Learning the Bible’s ABCs in an Innovative Way

[Editor’s note: This article is a slightly modified version of a news release that is being distributed to media outlets today.]

As a ground-breaking Sunday school curriculum is arriving at Answers in Genesis on dozens of pallets from a printer, pre-sales are already witnessing a broad acceptance. Thousands of ABC kits have already been sold to churches across America. When many of today’s Sunday school curricula are teaching mostly Bible stories and with little depth, the Answers Bible Curriculum will meet a tremendous need for solid Bible teaching. ABC takes seven age groups on a full sweep of biblical history in three years, defending the authority of the Bible along the way.

“We think many publishers of Sunday school curriculum are watering down their content, believing that more in-depth Bible teaching is too difficult for young people to comprehend. AiG disagrees,” declared Ken Ham, president of AiG and the Creation Museum. “Over the years, several Sunday school teachers have told me of the weak curricula they have been told to use by their church. They have also told me that as a result, many young people lack a basic understanding of the ABCs of Christianity, and not surprisingly, can’t defend the Christian faith.

“Our successful Vacation Bible School curricula and student assemblies around the country have shown us that young people are indeed yearning for more depth of Bible teaching, including how to defend the Bible. Our experience makes AiG uniquely qualified to produce ABC and meet a huge need.”

Ham noted that young people and adults in our churches are bombarded with messages from the media, museums, and magazines that contradict Scripture. He pointed out another distinctive of ABC—defending the entire Bible. “For example, it’s not adequate enough today just to teach about the Flood and the Ark of Noah. The account must be shown as historical and accurate. The new ABC curriculum will answer the skeptical questions about the Flood, such as: was the Ark really big enough to handle all the animals?; where did all the water come from to cover the earth?; and don’t modern-day geologists say there are no remnants of a global Flood? In the New Testament, ABC will defend the account of the Resurrection of Christ and other events.”

In another distinctive as ABC covers all 66 books of the Bible in three years, ABC has children (starting with preschoolers) and teens studying the same section of Scripture as their parents. ABC is truly an integrated program for family discipleship.

Correspondingly, a unique bonus of the ABC curriculum is a guidebook to use for optional devotional lessons for families to hold at home after their Sunday school lessons at church.

The need for such a curriculum became clear when AiG commissioned the renowned America’s Research Group to find out why two thirds of young people are leaving the church when they turn college age. In its nationwide research, ARG discovered that doubts about the relevancy and accuracy of the Bible were a major reason for the youth exodus. A substantial number of young people could not defend the Christian faith and/or saw the Bible as irrelevant in our modern, technologically advanced society.

Dan Zordel of AiG, who headed up the massive project, stated: “Imagine what would happen if churches began teaching their people how to defend the Christian faith and remain solid on the Word of God? As this ABC curriculum presents answers to some of the skeptical questions of our age, Christians will be more emboldened to present the gospel to others. The ABC curriculum meets a great need.”

A highly qualified advisory council assisted Zordel’s curriculum team in making sure that ABC would meet the needs of churches across America, regardless of denomination or size of church.

As ABC presents and defends what the Bible teaches from Genesis to Revelation, the gospel is taught throughout, starting with Genesis (Genesis 3:15). Furthermore, ABC encourages believers to become more conformed to the image of Christ. Using the initials ABC, the curriculum emphasizes:

A—Apologetics. In a practical way, all ages will be equipped to answer the skeptical questions of this age, leading to a full confidence in the authority of God’s Word.

B—Biblical authority. Each age level is taught chronologically through the Bible (with many references to the New Testament), building a strong Christian worldview.

C—Christ-centered. All ages are taught to focus on Christ and His gospel message.

A 4-minute ABC promotional video and PDF downloads can be seen at AnswersBibleCurriculum.com.

Answers in Genesis is a biblical apologetics ministry which conducts about 300 teaching meetings each year, including in the UK early next month during the Olympic Games. It also produces the Answers radio program heard on more than 500 stations in the U.S. The AnswersInGenesis.org website is this year’s “Best Ministry Website” as picked by the 1,200-member National Religious Broadcasters (with about 1 million web visits a month). Its Answers magazine, for two years running, has picked up the highest award for magazine excellence by the Evangelical Press Association. AiG’s Creation Museum has welcomed over 1.6 million visitors in five years, and AiG is now designing a full-size Noah’s Ark in northern Kentucky.