Ruth Finds New Life. TOPICS Blessings, Kindness, Ruth, Salvation

Transcription

1 In this lesson, children see how Ruth received new life when Boaz redeemed her. They will also learn that Jesus is our redeemer. He paid the price for our sins, so we can be part of God's family. by Kristy Thornton TOPICS Blessings, Kindness, Ruth, Salvation AS KIDS ARRIVE (10 minutes) Sandal Contract (Craft/Activity) Part 1 page 3-4 (part 1 ONLY!) BIBLE VERSE (7 minutes) "For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the Lord." Proverbs 8:35 NLT Write the memory verse on the board and read it several times to the children. Explain that when someone seeks God with all of his or her heart, He gives that person new life and blessings through Jesus. Find It and Receive It (Memory Activity) Write each word of the verse and the reference on a separate index card. Then, hide the cards around the room so the kids can easily find them. Show the children a blank card so they will know what to look for, and tell them how many cards in all they need to find. (In this case, there will be 13 cards.) Once they find all of the cards, read the verse again slowly. Then, go word by word, giving the children time to find each corresponding card, and placing it on a table so the entire verse is in the correct order. When finished, have the children read the memory verse again using the cards. BIBLE STORY (15 minutes) Gather the children around you for story time. After the introduction, read the story about Boaz Redeeming Ruth directly from the Bible. If possible, use a Children's Bible so it will be easier for the kids to understand. Introduction: Before we read our story from the Bible, I have a question. What do you think it means to redeem someone or something? Have you ever heard that word before? (Let the children respond.) To redeem means to buy back, or purchase something owned by someone else. Jesus redeemed each one of us when He died on the cross. He paid the price for all of our sins. In our last lesson, we learned that Boaz wanted to marry Ruth. To do so, he must first redeem the land from Naomi. If he redeems the land, he can have Ruth too. However, the first person with an opportunity to redeem the land was not Boaz. It was a closer relative, known as the kinsman-redeemer. What would happen if the kinsman-redeemer decided to redeem the land? Would Ruth be able to marry Boaz, or would she be taken away and sold to someone else? Let's read our story now to find out what happened. Read Ruth 4:1-10, (Boaz Redeems Ruth) Discussion Questions: 1. How many elders of the town did Boaz ask to come with him to the meeting? (Ten.) 2. Who was selling the piece of land? (Naomi.) 3. Who had the first choice to buy the land, Boaz or the kinsman-redeemer? (The kinsman-redeemer.) 4. If the kinsman-redeemer decided to buy the land, whom would he also need to redeem? (Ruth.) 5. Why did whoever redeemed the land need to take Ruth also? (To maintain the name of the family by providing an heir for Naomi's husband who died.) 6. Did the kinsman-redeemer decide to buy or redeem the land and Ruth? (At first, he wanted the land, but then he changed his mind.) 7. Who bought and redeemed the land and Ruth? (Boaz.) 8. How did the two men finalize the transaction? (The kinsman-redeemer removed his sandal, giving Boaz the right to become the new kinsman-redeemer.) 9. After Ruth and Boaz were married, did they have a baby? (Yes.) 10. What was the baby's name? (Obed.) 11. Do you think Ruth found new life in God? Do you think she received favor from the Lord? (Ruth probably

2 found new life in God. He blessed her with a new husband and a baby of her own. In this way, she received favor from the Lord.). FUN TIME (10 minutes) Sandal Contract (Craft/Activity) Part 2 page 3-4 (part 2) (Note: The children can use the baskets made from this fun time craft during the closing activity.) CLOSING ACTIVITY (5-10 minutes) Redemption Bracelet (Craft) page 5

3 SANDAL CONTRACT Ruth Finds New Life Children learned how people during the days of Ruth redeemed land and made the transaction legal by removing their shoe. By Kristy Thornton TOPICS: Promises, Ruth MATERIALS: Construction paper (green or brown) 4 bowls, Dirt, blades of grass Plastic knives and spoons Marker, Glue (spreadable) DURATION: Approximately 20 minutes PREPARATION: Before class, place dirt into two of the four bowls and blades of grass into the other two bowls. Provide one piece of brown or green construction paper, glue, and a plastic knife for each child. WHAT YOU WILL DO: Part 1 Give each child a piece construction paper, glue and a plastic knife. Have the children use their knives to spread glue in any shape they want onto their piece of construction paper. Then, let them use a plastic spoon to scoop a little dirt from the bowl and sprinkle it on top of the glue. Then have them add a few blades of grass, to create their own piece of land. Be sure to write each child's name somewhere on his or her paper for easy identification. Place all of the finished pieces of land in a safe area to let dry. Part 2 (Begin part 2 after sharing the story of the Kinsman-redeemer found in Ruth 4:1-15.) Have the children retrieve their pieces of land and get into a large circle separated from each other by a distance of outstretched arms. Have them sit down and place their pieces of land in front of them on the floor. (If you have more than 10 children, you may want to have them form more than one circle, and assign a teacher's helper or assistant leader to each group.) Select one child in the circle to start. Have this child walk around the circle, asking the other children if they would like to redeem his or her piece of land. Once redeemed, the redeemer will remove a shoe and give it to the seller to seal the deal. Then, have next child in the circle do the same, and so on until all of the children have a chance to sell their piece of land. Land can only be redeemed once; however, a child can redeem more than one piece of land if he or she has a shoe to trade. WHAT YOU WILL SAY: As we learned, in the days of Ruth, it was customary to buy back land from someone in order to keep it in the family. This is called redeeming, and the person redeeming the land is called a kinsman-redeemer. Similar to redeeming land in this way, Jesus redeemed us. He bought us and paid for all of our sins when He died on the cross and then rose from the grave. Jesus is our Redeemer. In our story, Ruth's mother-in-law wanted to sell some land that belonged to her husband, who died. Boaz wanted to redeem it. However, a closer relative was first in line to do so. Boaz told this man that if he redeemed the land from Naomi, he would also have to take Ruth as a wife. Learning this, the kinsman-redeemer declined saying, "No not me, you redeem it yourself." This pleased Boaz very much, because now he could redeem the

4 land and take Ruth as his wife. To show that he would keep his promise, the other man took of his sandal and gave it to Boaz. Now we will pretend to let someone redeem our pieces of land. One at a time, you will ask the person sitting to your right if he or she would like to redeem your piece of land. If that person chooses to redeem your land, he or she will take off one of his or her shoes and give it to you. If that person does not redeem your land, you will ask the next person to his or her right until you find someone to redeem your land. Then, you will take the shoe and go back to your spot to sit down. Remember that you will go one at a time while the rest of the class watches. Everyone has a choice to say yes or no to redeeming a piece of land. You can only sell the land that you made; you cannot sell land that you redeemed from someone else. Also, if you do not have a shoe to remove, you will not be able to redeem any more land, because you cannot make the trade legal. Some of you may end up more than one pieces of land or none at all. Some may end up with no shoes, or three. After everyone has a chance to sell or redeem land, we will return everyone's piece of land and shoes to their original owner.

5 REDEMPTION BRACELET Children will create redemption bracelets to help remind them that they have been bought and paid for by the blood of Jesus. by Kristy Thornton TOPICS: Child of God, Cross, Honor God, Salvation MATERIALS: Red construction paper Markers Stapler Small cross stickers (optional) DURATION: Approximately 10 minutes PREPARATION: Before class, cut pieces of red construction paper into 1-inch strips. You will need one strip for each child. WHAT YOU WILL DO: Write the word REDEEMED on the board. Also, draw a picture of a cross ( ) and a money sign ($). After explaining the meaning of redemption, you will give the children strips of red construction paper to design their own redemption bracelets. The children will use markers to decorate their bracelets with the word and symbols on the board. WHAT YOU WILL SAY: Has anyone heard the word redeem or redemption before? Redemption means buying back what belongs to you. We belong to God, but we became separated because of our sin. However, Jesus paid for each one of us and for all of our sins. How do you think Jesus paid for every single one of our sins? (Allow for answers.) Jesus paid for us by dying on the cross. He became the perfect sacrifice. Jesus gave up His life to give us a new life. 1 Corinthians 6:20 Says, You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. We are going to make a bracelet to help us remember that Jesus redeemed us and we should honor God with our bodies. Through redemption, we can have a new life in Jesus Christ. The red paper represents the blood that Jesus shed on the cross for us. Written on the board is the word redeemed. Also, there is a cross and money sign to represent the price He paid for our sins. Everyone is going to get a red strip of paper to make a bracelet. You can design your own redemption bracelet by writing the word redeemed, by drawing a picture of the cross, or by drawing a money sign. Feel free to color your bracelet and design it in your own creative way. When you are done, I will put the bracelet around your wrist and I will staple the ends together so you can wear it all day.