Leaving it Behind

I had Bible study at the church with the junior highers today, as I do every Tuesday. We're going through first John, and it's been a pretty good study. The girl who runs it is really good about letting the kids draw from it on their own, rather then telling them the "book" or "commentary" answer. Sometimes though, the kids are off. It's not surprising, I'm sure I misinterpret the Bible sometimes too. However, part of it is due to their age. That's ok. But sometimes I wonder when we need to correct them. There have been a couple times that a kid has come up with something, and all that flashes through my mind is "theologically incorrect, theologically incorrect." I know the kids aren't going to get everything exactly right, and there are a lot of paradoxes in Christianity that are either hard or impossible to explain. However, I wonder where the balance is between letting them search and telling them the answer. Things like a kid saying everyone is a child of God, or that God lives in everyone and that's why we should love our brother. Both statements are very wrong. Not everyone is a child of God, and God isn't in everyone. Everyone is made in God's image, but that doesn't mean God dwells in them. Another misconception was the reversal of God is love. Love is not God. If a kid shares that idea and isn't corrected, I think they'll assume they must be right. A lot of misconceptions can be born out of that. God forgive me if I haven't opened my mouth enough this summer at Bible study...