The General ~Acts 17:24
Objective:
Students will understand that God is the supreme authority over life and will acknowledge their need to surrender to His authority.
Key Thought: 
God’s authority is rooted in God’s attributes.
Lesson Summary:
This lesson was the first lesson in a four-part series called “Rank: Fall in Line.” In this series, we are exploring what the Bible says about authority and viewing authority from the perspective of different ranks in the military. We compared God to a General; He has supreme authority over all of life.
His supreme authority is because He is God, and that authority is rooted in His attributes. The two attributes that we discussed in this lesson are God’s self-existence and His self- sufficiency. When we surrender to His authority, we experience the self-existent God Who knows us and the self-sufficient God Who watches over us.
The self-existence of God gives Him authority over us as our Creator and His self-sufficiency gives Him authority over us as our sustainer. Submission to His authority results in a love for God and desire to obey Him.
If we are all honest, we would all agree that we struggle with submitting to authority. By nature, we each want to rule our own life and not have anyone tell us what to do. If we are not careful, we could fall into the trap of living life “my way” or believing that “no one can tell me what to do.” Living that way leaves us empty and unsatisfied and leads to all kinds of dangers.
Surrendering to God’s authority allows us to experience incredible benefits. We asked the students if they were willing to release control of their life and place it under God’s authority. This is a great decision and a difficult one. Talk to your teen about the importance of surrendering to God’s authority from your own life’s experience. Encourage them in this decision. If you have one, share your story of when you finally placed your life under God’s authority.

Fall Under ~Hebrews 13:17
Objective:
Students will understand God’s purpose for authority and will learn to fall under the authority figures in their lives.
Key Thought: 
The best way to grow up is to fall under.
Lesson Summary:
This lesson was the second lesson in a four-part series called “Rank: Fall in Line.” In this series, we have been exploring what the Bible says about authority. In this lesson, we reminded the students that God has established a vertical authority with Himself at the top as our supreme authority. Hebrews 13:17 expresses three truths about authority: maturity, responsibility, and accountability. Learning to follow orders is necessary and a sign of maturity and growth.
The title of this lesson was “Fall Under.” It means that we need to learn to “fall under” the authority that God has placed over us just like lower ranked military officers learn to fall under the authority of the higher ranked officers. We reminded the students that growing up (becoming a mature adult) only happens when they learn to fall under the authority figures in their lives. The best way to grow up is to fall under.
We then applied the lesson specifically to the authority in the home. God gave order to the home by giving parents (guardians) the authority to lead and watch over their kids, while the kids are to fall under that authority (Ephesians 6:1-2). It’s God’s design for the home. The best place for a student to learn to submit to authority and mature is in the home. We encouraged your student to not disrupt God’s design and purpose for authority by fighting against it.
We ended the lesson by asking the students to send a text to you – their mom or dad (or both) or guardians – to thank you for leading them and watching over them. We encouraged them to tell you that they appreciate your authority over their life as God’s means to help them mature and grow. Students without phones were challenged to write a letter.
As a parent, what you can do is be a godly example and use your authority to provide a place where they can grow and mature. Take the time to read Hebrews 13:17, and ask God to help you be the best parent you can be.

Insubordinate ~ Proverbs 28:13
Objective:
Students will learn that there are consequences for disobeying authority and will be challenged to choose to have the right attitude toward that authority.
Key Thought: 
The choices you make, make you.
Lesson Summary:
This lesson was the third lesson in a four-part series called “Rank: Fall in Line.” In this series, we have been exploring what the Bible says about authority. The students learned that you can’t always choose who will be in authority over you, but you can always choose your attitude toward them. Attitude is your choice, and the choices you make, make you.
We used an airplane to illustrate the importance of having a nose-high attitude. If you choose to have a nose-high attitude and obey the authority over you, you will climb; but if you choose to have a nose-low attitude and disobey the authority over you, you will eventually crash. In other words, having a bad attitude toward authority is not going to help you soar. We discovered from Proverbs 28:13 that if we cover our sin, we will not prosper.
We studied the life of a man named Achan as an example of someone with a poor attitude toward authority. Achan was severely punished because he willingly disobeyed authority. His sin brought trouble to the whole nation of Israel. God placed authority figures in our lives so we would soar, not crash. Achan crashed because he chose to disobey authority. You can read his story in the Book of Joshua, chapter 7.
At the end of the lesson, we challenged the students to choose to have a nose-high attitude toward authority by respecting and obeying them. As they respect and obey the authority God placed over them, they will experience the blessings of God instead of the consequences for being insubordinate.
Specifically, we challenged them to memorize Philippians 4:8 and use it as a filter to identify any negative thinking they may have toward authority in their lives.
Offer to memorize Philippians 4:8 with your student. Share a time when you struggled with being insubordinate toward authority. Share how you have learned that obeying authority is much better than fighting against it.

Code of Conduct ~ Romans 13:1
Objective:
Students will learn how to respond to those who abuse their authority and will be equipped to handle tough situations with authority.
Key Thought: 
When authority is wrong, appeal to the higher authority.
Lesson Summary:
This lesson was the fourth lesson in a four-part series called “Rank: Fall in Line.” In this series, we have been exploring what the Bible says about authority. This lesson helped the students know how to respond to someone who is abusing their authority. The statement that we used to help guide them is this: When authority is wrong, appeal to the higher authority.
We taught the students about the five realms of authority and explained briefly each one. These realms of authority included God, conscience, civil, church, and parents. We then discussed various scenarios to help the student learn how to appeal to a higher authority when faced with a conflict with someone in authority over them. They should be better equipped now to handle a situation where someone is misusing or abusing their authority.
Talk to your student and ask them if they have experienced anyone who has abused their authority over them. If you are brave, ask them if they feel like you, as their parent, have ever abused your authority over them. This is a tough question, but their perspective is their reality. Ask them to be honest with you. Knowing how they see things will help you become a better parent for them. Take the risk; it’s worth it.