THIS lesson will help you fix the truth of John 3:16 as well as the
words of this golden text in the memory and heart of the little
audience for a life time.
This verse is called by Martin Luther "the gospel in a nutshell." By
this remark he meant that the truth of the Gospel was condensed into a
few words. These colors will help you nail down on the wall of memory
this condensed Gospel of John 3:16 so it will be the Gospel not only
in a nutshell but the Gospel in the heart and memory. Draw on a heavy
paper, a large heart at least sixteen inches high. Pin that up on a
blackboard or some back ground where all the class can see it well.
Now say you will try to put the little Gospel of John 3:16 in the
heart so it will stick there. Take a small strip of _gold_ paper or
golden yellow paper and place it on the bottom of the heart. _Gold_ is
the richest and best of all things so we will let it stand for God,
Who is the Best of all things. That strip stands for "GOD SO." Just
above that you place a strip of _red_ which stands for "LOVED." This
represents the "Love" of God. Next take a strip of _brown,_ the color
of the common earth, placing it above the red, which will stand for
the earth. This represents "THE WORLD." Above the brown place a
_white_ strip which represents "HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON." White stands
for the purity for God's son who had no sin in Him, also "The only
begotten son, as He was the only earthly being who had no sin."
Above the white place one long strip of four colors, and if possible
let the colors in the strip be of a different shade from those used in
the single strips. They are _red_ and _yellow, black,_ and _white.
These_ colors stand for "WHOSOEVER BELIEVETH."
Red for the red races, the Indian.
Yellow for yellow races--Chinese, etc.
Black for the black people.
White for the white people.
Other races have faces shaded from these principal colors. These
papers can be made of independent strips, going completely across the
heart, or of shorter colors joined together endwise.
A _black_ strip is now placed above this which stands for "PERISH."
Black suggests death, and the lost soul in eternal night. Add now a
_green_ strip. Green is the eternal color. The ivy and the pine trees
are always green. Let this strip stand for "EVERLASTING." And so the
heart is thus built up.
Now ask them to name the word for which each color stands, then put
the words together as in the Bible verse. On another chart write out
the verse in colors using the proper color for each word. FOR GOD
_(gold)_ SO LOVED _(red)_ THE WORLD _(brown)_ THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY
BEGOTTEN SON _(white)_ THAT WHOSOEVER BELIEVETH _(yellow) (black)
(white) (red)_ SHOULD NEVER PERISH _(black)_ BUT HAVE EVERLASTING
_(green)_ LIFE, Tell them this is the Gospel of Christ in John 3:16 in
colors and this should be the Gospel in their hearts.
=CHAPTER XVI
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO THE MAGNET=
_Objects: A magnet and a quantity of tacks, needles and pins_