Joyful Moments in Christ

This Bible study lesson is for people who are learning English (ELL or ESL students). It is made for advanced beginner and intermediate English learners. Children who speak English or adults who prefer easy English may also enjoy it and learn from it.

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Lesson Icebreaker Question

When you wake up in the middle of the night, what do you use to help you see in the dark?

Lesson Highlight

In this lesson, we will learn how Jesus talks about light and how people should share God’s message. We will also learn why it is important to listen carefully to God’s words.

Vocabulary List (GNT)

1. Bed — A piece of furniture you sleep on.
2. Bowl — A round, open dish used for holding food or other things.
3. Brought Out — Taken from a hidden place and shown to everyone.
4. Careful — Paying close attention to what you do.
5. Cover — To put something over another thing to hide or protect it.
6. Found — Discovered or seen after being hidden.
7. Given — Something handed or shared with someone.
8. Have — To own or hold something.
9. Hidden Away — Put in a place where no one can see it.
10. Lamp — A thing that holds a light to brighten a room.
11. Lampstand — A tall stand or holder where a lamp is placed.
12. Light — What lets people see in the dark.
13. Listen — To pay attention to sounds or words.
14. Little — A small amount of something.
15. More — A larger amount or extra.
16. Nothing — Not having anything at all.
17. Open — A place where everyone can see or go.
18. People — Men, women, and children.
19. Put — To place something in a certain spot.
20. See — To use your eyes to notice something.
21. Taken Away — Removed or taken from someone.
22. Think — To have an idea or belief in your mind.
23. Under — Below or beneath something else.

Summary of the Passage

This passage shows Jesus teaching a lesson to people around him. Jesus often used simple things from everyday life to help people understand important truths about God. In this story, he talks about a lamp.

Jesus explains that when people light a lamp, they do not hide it under a bowl or under a bed. Instead, they put it up high on a lampstand so everyone can see the light when they enter the room. Light helps people see, and it makes it easier to walk and stay safe in the dark.

Jesus also says that things people try to hide will one day be shown. Secret things will be found out. He reminds everyone to listen carefully to God’s message. Those who listen well will learn more. But those who do not listen will lose what little understanding they have.

This passage teaches us that God wants us to share his message with others like a bright light. It also reminds us to listen closely to God’s word, because it helps us live wisely and kindly in the world.

Read The Passage

A Lamp under a Bowl
16 “No one lights a lamp and covers it with a bowl or puts it under a bed. Instead, it is put on the lampstand, so that people will see the light as they come in.
17 “Whatever is hidden away will be brought out into the open, and whatever is covered up will be found and brought to light.
18 “Be careful, then, how you listen; because those who have something will be given more, but whoever has nothing will have taken away from them even the little they think they have.”

Luke 8:16-18 (GNT)

Most English learners should use the New International Reader’s Version (NIRV) or the Good News Translation (GNT) because they are easy to read. If you want to try something harder, you can read one of the other Bible versions:

• Very Easy: New International Reader’s Version: Luke 8:16-18 (NIRV)
• Easy: Good News Translation: Luke 8:16-18 (GNT)
• Medium: New Living Translation: Luke 8:16-18 (NLT)
• Hard: New International Version: Luke 8:16-18 (NIV)
• Very Hard: English Standard Version: Luke 8:16-18 (ESV)

Comprehension Questions

1. What does a person do with a lamp after they light it?
2. Why do people put a lamp on a lampstand?
3. What does Jesus say will happen to secret things?
4. Why does Jesus tell people to be careful how they listen?
5. What happens to those who listen well to God’s message?
6. What happens to those who do not listen well?

Application Questions

1. Why do you think Jesus used a lamp to teach about God’s message?
2. How can you be like a lamp and show God’s love to others?
3. What helps you listen carefully to important messages?
4. What is something good you have learned about God that you could share with a friend?

Theological Insights

1. God’s word is like a light that helps people see truth.
2. Jesus wants his followers to share God’s message and not hide it.
3. God knows everything, even the secret things in people’s hearts.
4. Listening well to God’s word helps people grow in wisdom and faith.

Closing Prayer

Dear Father, thank you for giving us your word like a light to help us. Help us listen carefully and share your love with others. Amen.

ELL Resources for the Gospel of Luke

More ELL Resources

You can find more Bible lessons for English learners on the main ELL page.

Scripture quotations marked (GNT) are from the Good News Translation in Today’s English Version- Second Edition Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.