Immaculate Conception Archdiocesan School

Fr.Barua St.Tetuan,Zamboanga City

Senior High School Department
S.Y. 2021-2022

RELIGIOUS STUDIES 2
Week 6
SECOND QUARTER

Gerald B. Cuarto Cruz

Subject Teacher

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 LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 2
2nd Quarter 2021-2022

TOPIC: The Prophets: Calling Us to Renewal LESSON 5

OBJECTIVES:
1. Realize that only God can truly restore us by giving us “a new heart and a new
spirit” (Doctrine).
2. Express hope in God’s help and intervention during dark moments in our national
history (Worship).
3. Reach out to those who are outside the Church.

I- Engaging on Task
I.I EXPLORING ACTIVITY

The Call of Jeremiah

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The word of the LORD came to me, saying,

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“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
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before you were born I set you apart;

I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
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“Alas, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.”

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But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I
send you to and say whatever I command you. 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am
with you and will rescue you,” declares the LORD.

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Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have
put my words in your mouth. 10 See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms
to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”

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The word of the LORD came to me: “What do you see, Jeremiah?”

“I see the branch of an almond tree,” I replied.

The LORD said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that my
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word is fulfilled.”

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The word of the LORD came to me again: “What do you see?”

“I see a pot that is boiling,” I answered. “It is tilting toward us from the north.”

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The LORD said to me, “From the north disaster will be poured out on all who live in
the land. 15 I am about to summon all the peoples of the northern kingdoms,” declares
the LORD.

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 “Their kings will come and set up their thrones
in the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem;
they will come against all her surrounding walls
and against all the towns of Judah.
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I will pronounce my judgments on my people
because of their wickedness in forsaking me,
in burning incense to other gods
and in worshiping what their hands have made.
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“Get yourself ready! Stand up and say to them whatever I command you. Do not be
terrified by them, or I will terrify you before them. 18 Today I have made you a fortified
city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall to stand against the whole land—against the
kings of Judah, its officials, its priests and the people of the land. 19 They will fight
against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares
the LORD

Answer the question.

1. What is the significance of Jeremiah’s prophecy of the New Covenant? How does that
message affect us today?
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II. ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

A NEW HEART FOR NEW PEOPLE (36:26-27)

A "new heart" and "new spirit" is the promise of spiritual

regeneration. "Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a
new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from
your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within
you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful
to observe My ordinances" (vv. 26-27).

Jeremiah also spoke of this spiritual change in the heart of sinful

man (31:31). The change is in the heart that will cause the people
to turn to the Good Shepherd. The people receive a new heart that
desires to please the LORD. The "new spirit" (v. 26) is "My Spirit"
in v. 27. He is referring to the Spirit of Yahweh (Ezekiel
37:14; 39:29; Joel 2:28-29). Only the Holy Spirit can empower
man to fulfill the word of God. There are twenty-five references to
the Holy Spirit in the book of Ezekiel. A new heart and a new spirit
are themes Ezekiel reflects on several times.

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Jesus may have had this passage in mind when He spoke to
Nicodemus one night in Jerusalem. To this upright, moral,
spiritually sensitive man Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you,
unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God"
(John 3:3). Nic asked, "How can a man be born again when he is
old?" Jesus replied, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born
of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. .
. Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again'" (3:5,
7).
Reflecting on that work of God in the human heart, the apostle
Paul wrote: "Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new
creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have
come" (2 Corinthians 5:17).

The Holy Spirit changes the heart to cause the individual to

"follow" the Lord (v. 27). The Spirit enables and creates the desire
in the heart of the person to do what is humanly impossible. The
only way to live a life pleasing to the Lord is by the indwelling
presence of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:16-26).

The Holy Spirit dwelling in the heart of the believer will "cause you
to walk in My statutes and you will be careful to observe My
ordinances" (v. 27). What Moses law could not do God does
through His "Spirit within you." His dwelling within enables the
"new heart." The heart of stone has been removed and replaced
with a "new heart" and "a new spirit."
Only the sovereign grace of God can do that. As the believer yields
to the Holy Spirit He enables us to "walk" in the statutes of God
and carefully observe His "ordinances." The holy life is an
exchanged life.
One of the most intriguing ideas is the people will return to the
land and live in it permanently. The meaning is to "live" or dwell
as permanent residents and is the opposite of the non-immigrant
or alien. "You will live in the land that I gave to your forefathers;
so you will be My people, and I will be your God" (v. 28).

How strange that this promise becomes a stumbling block to some

students of God's word when the greater miracle is the radical
change in the heart of believing sinners. If we take verse 28 for
what it says God will take care of the logistics. He will bring the
people back to "the land" "from the nations, gather you from all
the lands, and bring you back into your land" (v. 24). The problem
is not God's doing it, but is our accepting the impossibility of man
doing it. God will do it in His own way in His own time. The people
"will live in the land" as permanent residents. This will be a God
sized accomplishment; not something brought about by
politicians.

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Not only will He bring his people cleansed, forgiven with a new
heart and new spirit to their land, but also He promises fruitful
agricultural production. Observe who instructs the increase in the
fruit trees, grain, crops, etc. There will be no more famine for the
people in the land. God's fruitfulness will cause the people to see
His glory and repent (vv. 29-30). God instructs the grain to
produce and the crops to yield abundantly. "I will call for the grain
and multiply it, and I will not bring a famine on you. And I will
multiply the fruit of the tree and the produce of the field, that you
may not receive again the disgrace of famine among the nations."
The LORD God will also restore the land to better than the
original. It will be like the Garden of Eden before sin invaded it.

How will you know that it is for real? The result will be a radical
change in the heart. "Then you will remember your evil ways and
your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves in
your own sight for your iniquities and your abominations" (v. 31).
True repentance will have taken place in the core of their being.
The people will "remember" their evil ways and will "loathe" their
iniquities. They will not secretly want the opportunity to be
tempted to sin again. They will no longer be ready to sin when the
temptation comes. They will see their former life style and feel the
revulsion. That is what every true believer should experience when
they pause and silently reflect upon their sins of the past in the
sight of God. God is holy, and His holiness should cause us to
loathe our past sins. His holiness should produce a desire in our
hearts to be holy.

Modern man needs the message of this passage in its context.

God will not do it because He loves us or for our sake. He does it
out of "concern for My holy name" (vv. 21, 32). His name is holy
and He does it for His glory alone. "It is not for your sake . . . that
I am about to act, but for My holy name . . . " (v. 22). "I will
vindicate the holiness of My great name . . . the nations will know
that I am the LORD . . . when I prove Myself holy among you in
their sight" (v. 23).

This reveals God's purpose. He "will take you from the nations,
gather you from all the lands, and bring you into your own land"
(v. 24). The purpose is so His holy name will be redeemed.
This restoration will vindicate the name of the LORD. His
reputation is at stake! He will demonstrate to the nations that He
is the sovereign Lord over the nations by bringing Israel back to
the land He gave her (36:21-23).

This restoration will vindicate the name of the LORD. His

reputation is at stake! He will demonstrate to the nations that He
is the sovereign Lord over the nations by bringing Israel back to
the land He gave her (36:21-23).
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What God does for Israel as well as non-Jews is an act of

sovereign grace. No one deserved these restoration promises (v.
32). A sovereign holy God reached down to Israel in His amazing
grace to save and restore. God chose to save for Himself a holy
people. He did this out of grace and mercy. We have been
redeemed by the shed blood of the Lamb of God.

Have you personally experienced this "new heart" and "a new
spirit"? Jesus Christ came to give you eternal life. Here is A Free
Gift for You. All you have to do is receive it.

Test for Knowledge: Pause and Reflect

1. Why is it important for you to take responsibility for your own actions?
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III. DEEPENING EXERCISE

Jonah and the Whale Story Summary

God commanded the prophet Jonah to preach in Nineveh, but Jonah found God's order
unbearable. Not only was Nineveh known for its wickedness, but it was also the capital of
the Assyrian empire, one of Israel's fiercest enemies.

Jonah, a stubborn fellow, did just the opposite of what he was told. He went down to the
seaport of Joppa and booked passage on a ship to Tarshish, heading directly away from
Nineveh. The Bible tells us Jonah "ran away from the Lord."

In response, God sent a violent storm, which threatened to break the ship to pieces. The
terrified crew cast lots, determining that Jonah was responsible for the storm. Jonah told them
to throw him overboard. First, they tried rowing to shore, but the waves got even higher.
Afraid of God, the sailors finally tossed Jonah into the sea, and the water immediately grew
calm. The crew made a sacrifice to God, swearing vows to him.

Instead of drowning, Jonah was swallowed by a great fish, which God provided. In the belly of
the whale, Jonah repented and cried out to God in prayer. He praised God, ending with the
eerily prophetic statement, "Salvation comes from the Lord." (Jonah 2:9, NIV)

Jonah was in the giant fish three days. God commanded the whale, and it vomited the reluctant
prophet onto dry land. This time Jonah obeyed God. He walked through Nineveh proclaiming
that in forty days the city would be destroyed. Surprisingly, the Ninevites believed Jonah's
message and repented, wearing sackcloth and covering themselves in ashes. God
had compassion on them and did not destroy them.
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Again Jonah questioned God because Jonah was angry that Israel's enemies had been spared.
When Jonah stopped outside the city to rest, God provided a vine to shelter him from the hot
sun. Jonah was happy with the vine, but the next day God provided a worm that ate the vine,
making it wither. Growing faint in the sun, Jonah complained again.

God scolded Jonah for being concerned about a vine, but not about Nineveh, which had
120,000 lost people. The story ends with God expressing concern even about the wicked.

Themes

The primary theme of the story of Jonah and the Whale is that God’s love, grace, and
compassion extend to everyone, even outsiders and oppressors. God loves all people.

A secondary message is that you can't run from God. Jonah tried to run, but God stuck with
him and gave Jonah a second chance.

God’s sovereign control is showcased throughout the story. God commands everything in his
Creation, from the weather to a whale, to carry out his plan. God is in control.

Points of Interest

 Jonah spent the same amount of time—three days—inside the whale as Jesus
Christ did in the tomb. Christ also preached salvation to the lost.
 It's not important whether it was a great fish or a whale that swallowed Jonah. The
point of the story is that God can provide a supernatural means of rescue when his
people are in trouble.
 Some scholars believe the Ninevites paid attention to Jonah because of his bizarre
appearance. They speculate that the whale's stomach acid bleached Jonah's hair, skin,
and clothing a ghostly white.
 Jesus did not consider the book of Jonah to be a fable or myth. While modern skeptics
may find it impossible that a man could survive inside a great fish for three days, Jesus
compared himself to Jonah, showing that this prophet existed and that the story was
historically accurate.

Pause and Reflect

1. Why did God call Jonah to be a prophet? Describe his response.

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IV- SEL-DETERMINING PRACTICE

Renewing Ourselves

Take some time to reflect on your life as a student. Find a symbol for your present life and
draw the new symbol you wish for yourself as a better person in the coming school year.