In the wake of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, students across the nation have been taking control of the gun debate in this country by organizing school walkouts and anti-gun marches.

Play this clip for your students [2:30].
Parkland school shooting survivors call for gun control as legislation stalls in Senate

Generate a discussion regarding the demands for stricter gun control. In order to get your class to dig deep into these topics, invite them to look beyond their political thoughts and play “devil’s advocate” on both sides of the discussion. Feel free to call on individual students to share their opinion to discourage groupthink.

• Do you think calling for stricter gun control is just? What are some of the benefits/consequences of actions like this? (Whether on the right, left, or center, your students are likely to have strong feelings on this issue. Maintain impartiality and mediate the discussion as necessary to keep it on the topic of whether or not their response was correct rather than discussing pros and cons of the gun issue.)
• In this age of selfies, viral self-promotion, and “following the crowd,” how can anyone be sure that these individuals really have convictions about this or if it is just the “thing to do”? Does intent affect the rightness of an action? (Sample answers could include skipping class just for the sake of skipping or giving into peer pressure.)
• Based on this video, why are these people particularly qualified to lead this discussion? (Answers might include: They are the ones living through this ordeal; they’ve experienced the pain first-hand. They have the freedom to speak out with fewer consequences.)
• Why might they be unqualified? (They’re exhausted and overwhelmed, emotion may be clouding their judgement, they may not know all of the issues.)

You may find the actions of these people inspiring, upsetting, or both. While these events may or may not provide a precise blueprint for how to stand up to wrongdoings, they do echo the sentiment that injustice is all around us, and that we cannot sit idly by when someone is being wronged.

Setting opinions aside, the events of the last few years mark a point in history where many people, on both sides of the political spectrum, are questioning the actions of authorities and governments.

Romans 13:1-2 says, “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.” 

• With this in mind, is it right to question authority? What about UNJUST authority? (Teacher should accept all reasonable answers without comment.)

Today, we’ll hear the Bible’s answer to this question and learn about our responsibility to stand against injustice.