What God Sees: An ESL Bible Study on Luke 16:14-18

This Bible study series is for people who are learning English. It is designed for advanced beginner and intermediate learners, but children or adults who prefer simple English may also enjoy it.

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Luke 16:14-18 Printable Discussion Questions

Luke 16:14-18 Printable ERV Passage

Lesson Icebreaker Question

Have you ever seen someone pretend to be good when they were not? How did you feel about it?

Lesson Highlight

In this lesson, we will hear how Jesus spoke to people who loved money too much. We will learn that God sees our hearts, not just what people see on the outside.

Vocabulary Lists for the ERV Bible Translation

Key Vocabulary Words (10 words)

adultery: (noun) Having a sexual relationship with someone who is not your husband or wife.
criticize: (verb) To say that someone is doing something wrong.
divorce: (verb) To end a marriage by law.
God’s kingdom: (phrase) The place or way where God rules as king.
Good News: (phrase) The message about Jesus and how he saves people.
guilty: (adjective) Having done something wrong or broken a law.
Law of Moses: (phrase) The rules that God gave to the people of Israel through a man named Moses.
Pharisee: (noun) A religious leader who was very strict about rules.
prophet: (noun) A person who speaks messages from God.
worth: (adjective) Having a certain value.

Important Words to Know (20 words)

adultery: (noun) Having a sexual relationship with someone who is not your husband or wife.
criticize: (verb) To say that someone is doing something wrong.
divorce: (verb) To end a marriage by law.
earth: (noun) The world where we live.
God’s kingdom: (phrase) The place or way where God rules as king.
Good News: (phrase) The message about Jesus and how he saves people.
guilty: (adjective) Having done something wrong or broken a law.
hard: (adjective) Very difficult to do.
heart: (noun) The part of a person where they feel and think.
heaven: (noun) The place where God lives.
important: (adjective) Something that matters a lot.
John the Baptizer: (noun) A man sent by God to tell people that Jesus was coming.
Law of Moses: (phrase) The rules that God gave to the people of Israel through a man named Moses.
letter: (noun) A small mark or character used in writing.
pass away: (phrase) To end or disappear forever.
Pharisee: (noun) A religious leader who was very strict about rules.
prophet: (noun) A person who speaks messages from God.
remarriage: (noun) Getting married again.
worth: (adjective) Having a certain value.
writings: (noun) Things that have been written down.

Complete Lesson Word Bank

about: (preposition) Used to show the person or thing that someone is thinking or talking about.
adultery: (noun) Having a sexual relationship with someone who is not your husband or wife.
all: (adjective) Every part of a group or thing.
also: (adverb) In addition to something else.
another: (adjective) A different one.
any: (adjective) Some or even one.
away: (adverb) At a distance from a place.
because: (conjunction) For the reason that.
before: 1. (preposition) Earlier than a certain time. 2. (preposition) In front of someone or something.
came: (verb) To have moved toward a person or a place.
change: (verb) To make something different.
criticize: (verb) To say that someone is doing something wrong.
divorce: (verb) To end a marriage by law.
earth: (noun) The world where we live.
easier: (adjective) More simple to do than something else.
even: (adverb) Used to show that something is surprising.
everyone: (pronoun) Every person in a group.
get: (verb) To reach a certain state.
God: (noun) The creator and ruler of everything.
God’s kingdom: (phrase) The place or way where God rules as king.
Good News: (phrase) The message about Jesus and how he saves people.
guilty: (adjective) Having done something wrong or broken a law.
hard: (adjective) Very difficult to do.
heart: (noun) The part of a person where they feel and think.
heaven: (noun) The place where God lives.
important: (adjective) Something that matters a lot.
in front of: (phrase) To be ahead of something or someone so you can see them.
Jesus: (noun) The Son of God and the Savior of the world!
John the Baptizer: (noun) A man sent by God to tell people that Jesus was coming.
know: (verb) To have information about something in your mind.
Law of Moses: (phrase) The rules that God gave to the people of Israel through a man named Moses.
letter: (noun) A small mark or character used in writing.
listen: (verb) To pay attention to a sound with your ears.
look: (verb) To have a certain appearance or way of being seen.
love: (verb) To care very much for someone and want what is best for them.
make: (verb) To cause a feeling or a change.
marry: (verb) To become the husband or wife of someone.
money: (noun) The coins or paper used to buy things.
Moses: (noun) A great leader of Israel who lived long before Jesus.
nothing: (pronoun) Not anything.
part: (noun) A piece of something.
pass away: (phrase) To end or disappear forever.
Pharisee: (noun) A religious leader who was very strict about rules.
prophet: (noun) A person who speaks messages from God.
really: (adverb) Truly or very much.
remarriage: (noun) Getting married again.
since: (preposition) From a certain time until now.
smallest: (adjective) Smaller than all the others.
taught: (verb) To have helped someone learn something.
think: (verb) To have a specific opinion or a thought in the mind.
time: (noun) The period when things happen, measured in hours or days.
told: (verb) To have given information to someone.
try: (verb) To make an effort to do something.
wife: (noun) The woman that a man is married to.
woman: (noun) An adult female person.
worth: (adjective) Having a certain value.
would: (verb) A word used to talk about something that might happen or something someone wanted to do.
writings: (noun) Things that have been written down.

Summary of the Passage

This passage tells about a time when Jesus was teaching people. Some religious leaders called Pharisees were listening. The Pharisees loved money very much. When they heard Jesus say that we should trust God more than money, they criticized him. To criticize someone means to say they are doing something wrong.

Jesus spoke to them. He told them that they try to look good in front of other people, but God knows what is really in their hearts. The heart is the part of a person where they feel and think. Jesus said that many things people think are important are actually worth nothing to God.

Then, Jesus talked about God’s laws. Long ago, God gave the Law of Moses and the writings of the prophets. A prophet is a person who speaks messages from God. Jesus said these laws are still important! He told them the Good News about God’s kingdom. The Good News is the message of how Jesus saves people. Jesus said that even though this new message is here, God’s word will never pass away, it will never end. It is easier for the earth and heaven to disappear than for one small letter of God’s law to change.

Jesus gave an example of how strong God’s law is by talking about marriage. He said that a man who divorces his wife to marry another woman is guilty of adultery. Adultery is having a sexual relationship with someone who is not your husband or wife. This shows that marriage is a very serious promise to God.

This passage teaches us that God cares about our hearts more than our money or our looks. God’s word is always true. His rules help us live good and faithful lives.

Read The Passage

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

God’s Law Cannot Be Changed
14 The Pharisees were listening to all these things.
They criticized Jesus because they all loved money.
15 Jesus said to them,
“You make yourselves look good in front of people.
But God knows what is really in your hearts.
What people think is important is worth nothing to God.
16 “Before John the Baptizer came, people were taught the Law of Moses and the writings of the prophets.
But since the time of John, the Good News about God’s kingdom is being told.
And everyone is trying hard to get into it.
17 But even the smallest part of a letter in the law cannot be changed.
It would be easier for heaven and earth to pass away.
Divorce and Remarriage
18 “Any man who divorces his wife and marries another woman is guilty of adultery.
And the man who marries a divorced woman is also guilty of adultery.”
Luke 16:14-18 (ERV)