Alan Vermilye - The Screwtape Letters Study Guide for Teens: A Bible Study for Teenagers on the C.S. Lewis Book The Screwtape Letters

T HE S CREWTAPE L ETTERS S TUDY G UIDE FOR T EENS

A Bible Study for Teenagers on the C.S. Lewis Book the Screwtape Letters

By Alan Vermilye

Our cause is never more in danger than when a human, no longer desiring, but still intending, to do our Enemy's will, looks round upon a universe from which every trace of Him seems to have vanished, and asks why he has been forsaken, and still obeys.

Screwtape,

The Screwtape Letters

The Screwtape Letters Study Guide for Teens

A Bible Study for Teenagers

on the C.S. Lewis Book

The Screwtape Letters

Copyright 2016 Alan Vermilye

ISBN-13 : 978-0-9978417-4-9

To learn more about this Bible study, order additional copies, or to download the answer guide visit www.ScrewtapeLettersStudyGuide.com

All rights reserved.

No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by the 1976 Copyright Act in writing from the publisher.

Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible, Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission.

(www.Lockman.org)

Version 1

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I dedicate this Bible study to my four teenagers (at least at the time of this writing ) Zane, Maddie, Olivia, and Emma. My life would not have been complete without each of you in it. I love each of you very much.

Thanks for letting me be your dad!

Table of Contents

What are your thoughts on the spiritual world? My guess is that it has something to do with ghosts, who were once people, trying to find their eternal rest. Or, how about demons who have infiltrated someones body causing all kinds of death and destruction. Maybe, its cartoonish angels with wings flying around in the clouds with harps.

At least that was my view on the spiritual world when I was a teen. My opinions, probably like yours, were formed entirely by movies, television and books. Why do we think this way? Mostly because of the media that we consume, but also because the church has done a poor job educating us on what lies beyond the worldly realm that we live in.

Which is so ironic, since the Bible is fairly clear on the subject. In the Bible, you find stories of angelic beings created by God to serve His creation. They intervene in human affairs and Scripture even says that at various times in our life we might be entertaining angles unware. There are also stories of demon possession and actual battles between demons and angels.

So, why is it so hard for Christians to believe that God often interacts with the human race through his angels while Satan does so through his demons? The problem is that we cannot see the spiritual world so we assume it does not exist. Regardless of whether we can see it or not, there has been a war going on in the spiritual realm since the beginning of time for the hearts of Gods most prized possessionus.

Ok, even if I buy into that, what does it have to do with me today? First, you need to have an awareness that the spiritual realm does exist. Secondly, you need to understand that there are demons looking to trip you up. Does that mean you can blame every bad thing on Satan and his minions? The devil made me do it argument does not always hold water. I have found that we do a pretty good job of screwing up all on our own.

But, Satans war strategy does involve pulling you away from God and making you more like him and less like Jesus. It generally does not happen overnight but rather slowly over time.

C.S. Lewis understood this truth. You might be more familiar with his childrens novel series later made into movies, The Chronicles of Narnia. Lewis wrote many other books including the book youre about to study, The Screwtape Letters.

I hope you enjoy the book and the study. It can be a bit challenging at times, but hang in there, take your time, write notes in your book and in this study, and participate in a group discussion with others your age with an adult leader.

I believe at the end of reading the book and completing the study you will have a good appreciation for the spiritual world and a better understanding of why it matters in your life.

Our cause is never more in danger than when a human, no longer desiring, but still intending, to do our Enemys will, looks round upon a universe from which every trace of Him seems to have vanished, and asks why he has been forsaken, and still obeys. - Screwtape

Why do we sometimes succeed spiritually, and at other times we fail? Are there a host of spiritual forces battling to influence the choices we make, or are we left to our own devices?

The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis provides unique insight into the battles that are being waged in the spiritual world. The story is told through a collection of letters from Screwtape, an undersecretary in the lowerarchy of Hell, to his incompetent nephew, Wormwood. Wormwood is a junior devil who has just been given his first human, a young man (referred to as the patient), to corrupt and secure for eternity.

The story takes place in England during the tumultuous years of World War II with the man contemplating Christianity. However, another setting could very easily be his consciousness where another war is taking place for his soul. Each letter is filled with detailed instructions from Screwtape to Wormwood on how to best enter the man's thoughts and subtly influence his choices thereby guiding him closer to Hell.

There is nothing extraordinary about this mans life, but from the moment of contemplating faith until his last breath, he undergoes spiritual attack. Like most young adults, he is influenced by culture, materialistic friends, and the media. Each provides excellent distractions from his spiritual journey, but his quest for spiritual truth wins out, and eventually he becomes a Christian.

Early on, he struggles with balancing the unrealistic expectations of being an ideal Christian with what he encounters in the world, the church, his family, and daily life. The strange habits and hypocrisies of fellow church members and the prospect of his own mother doubting his new-found faith were unexpected, but they did not discourage him.

Building a dedicated prayer life becomes one of his top priorities. Battling everyday distractions, he quickly learns that being completely transparent with God is hard but also refreshing.

Living during a time of war, the man knows its only a matter of time before he must make a stand. What is the Christian response to war? Should he take up arms and fight for his country against an evil tyrant, or should he refuse on moral grounds? He decides in favor of military service and now must learn to control his fear and hatred of a distant enemy whom he has never met.

As with life, the Christian journey is filled with mountain-top and valley experiences. Various trials and temptations common to all men come his way. He resolves to rise above each and finds himself strengthened with a renewed sense of self along the way.

He soon becomes aware that building relationships in a world hostile to his faith is difficult. He knows that he is to be in the world but not of the world. As a result he must distance himself from the negative influences in his life while maintaining relationships that he can either positively influence or be encouraged by.