GPS CURRICULUM SUMMER 2015 PRESTONWOOD BAPTIST CHURCH

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1 GPS CURRICULUM SUMMER 2015 PRESTONWOOD BAPTIST CHURCH

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3 DEAR DIRECTORS AND TEACHERS: In this final unit of GPS in our three-year cycle, we walk with Ezekiel and Daniel into exile. We will see the rise and fall of world nations. We will take one more lap through the pages of the Bible to see that Jesus has always been God s Plan of Salvation (GPS) the scarlet thread of redemption that ties everything together. We cheer the victories of our heroes of faith who have won the greatest victory of all just Beyond the Finish Line. We have designed our curriculum materials in a way that requires small-group discussions and activities throughout the teaching time. This type of interaction provides the students with more interactive learning experiences. This approach fosters the development of relationships among students as well as between the Huddle Group Leader and the students. The use of the lecture method is greatly limited. The key components of our teaching approach include: Introductory activities that connect the Big Room experience with the Bible lesson Students use of classroom Bibles to locate and read Bible passages Multiple small-group activities where students work together as a team An explanation of how each Bible story fits into God s plan of redemption A clear presentation of the plan of salvation 1. A ADMIT that you are a sinner and ask forgiveness (Romans 3:23). 2. B BELIEVE in your heart that Christ died to pay the penalty of your sins (1 Corinthians 15:3). 3. C CONFESS with your mouth that you want Jesus to be your Savior (Romans 15:3 4). Together, we are creating an experience that encourages a salvation decision, lays a strong foundation for biblical literacy, and promotes discipleship within the family unit. Thank you for your commitment to teach. The Children s Ministry Staff Prestonwood Baptist Church

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5 TABLE OF CONTENTS June 6/7: Journey 1: PASSING THE BATON 3 The Generations of Genesis June 13/14: Journey 2: GO FOR THE GOLD! 15 God Keeps His Promises June 20/21: Journey 3: OVERCOMING OBSTACLES 27 Divided Nation/Bitter Exile June 27/28: Journey 4: SETTING GOALS 39 Ezekiel s Dry Bones July 4/5: Journey 5: STRENGTH TRAINING 51 Daniel in Babylon July 11/12: Journey 6: COOL UNDER PRESSURE 65 The Fiery Furnace July 18/19: Journey 7: A SHUT OUT 77 Daniel in the Lions Den July 25/26: Journey 8: DELAY OF GAME 89 The 70 Weeks of Daniel s Prophecy Aug. 1/2: Journey 9: TEAM BUILDING 101 Ezra Leads the Exiles Home Aug. 8/9: Journey 10: BORN TO WIN 113 Esther, Queen of Persia Aug. 15/16: Journey 11: THE WINNER S PLATFORM 125 Nehemiah Builds the Wall

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7 JOURNEY 1 PASSING THE BATON The Generations of Genesis

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9 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 1: PASSING THE BATON The Generations of Genesis Key Passages: Genesis 3; Isaiah 14; Ezekiel 28:14 17 Key Word: Decisions Key Thought: Begin now to make decisions that honor Christ. Key Verse: Choose this day whom you will serve... But as for me and my house we will serve the Lord. Joshua 24:15 A FALLEN ANGEL The Bible teaches before God created man, He brought forth an innumerable company of angels (Hebrews 12:22) designated as a heavenly host of spiritual beings with great strength and intelligence. The highest of these beings were the cherubim, who attend the throne of God. There was an anointed cherub who seemingly had continuous and unrestricted access to the throne of God as described in Ezekiel 28: The Bible describes him as the son of the morning or Day Star (Isaiah 14:12), a beautiful creature who worshiped the God of creation and was called Lucifer. God gave the angelic host the freedom to choose to serve Him. Filled with pride and arrogance, Lucifer, this angel of the morning, chose to exalt himself above God. His ambitious goals are clearly defined in Isaiah 14. I will make myself like the Most High God. I will ascend into heaven. I will raise my throne above the stars of God. I will sit as a ruler on the highest sacred mountain. I will put myself above the heights of the clouds. Lucifer refused to worship or obey God; he wanted to be God. His willful self-exaltation resulted in expulsion from heaven along with a third of the angelic hosts who joined his rebellion (Revelation 12:4). There is no verse in Scripture stating Lucifer is Satan. However, several biblical passages make it obvious that Lucifer and Satan are one and the same. The fall of Lucifer in Isaiah 14:12 15 is almost identical to that described by Jesus in Luke 10:18: I saw Satan fall like 3

10 JOURNEY 1 lightning from heaven. In Ezekiel 28:14 17 a similar event is depicted. John in Revelation 12:3 4 saw an image he described as a great, fiery red dragon rebelling against God and leading one third of the angelic host to do the same. Scripture offers different names for Satan, but he is always recognizable because of the havoc he creates. DID GOD CREATE EVIL? 1 The answer to this question cannot be fully understood. We are finite human beings who can hardly understand an infinite God (Romans 11:33 34). God looks at things from an eternal, divine perspective. We look at things from a human point of view. Why did God put man on earth knowing that Adam and Eve would sin and therefore bring death and suffering on all mankind? One answer for such a question is this: God didn t create us as robots without free will. He has allowed for the possibility of evil to occur by giving us the capacity to choose to worship Him or not. His provision for freedom of choice has exposed the presence of evil. Evil is not a created entity like a person or star or flower or planet. It exists as a result of the absence of good. It is a potential reality when the ability to choose is lovingly extended to created beings. Without choices, one might worship God out of a sense of obligation rather than out of a heart of love. The attitudes of love and gratitude produce the opportunity for true intimate fellowship with a loving God. A RULER WHO ACCUSES AND DECEIVES For His own purposes, God has allowed Satan (Lucifer) to become the ruler of a world that functions apart from God (John 12:31; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2). The Bible precisely identifies his character as a warning for those who are tempted to join his rebellion. Satan is: An ACCUSER (Revelation 12:10) A MURDERER (John 8:44) The FATHER OF LIES (John 8:44) A TEMPTER (Matthew 4:3; 1 Thessalonians 3:5) A DECEIVER (Genesis 3:4 5; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Revelation 20:3) His very name means adversary or one who opposes. He is also referred to as Satan, the devil, which means slanderer. However, Satan s destiny is sealed; an eternity in the lake of fire is waiting for him at the end of this age when Jesus returns (Revelation 20:10). SATAN: UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL When God created heaven and earth, He looked at all He had done and said it was good. He had made everything perfect but very soon everything would experience a fall from that perfect state. He would have to undertake a new form of creation as He began 1 Adapted from article: Did God Create Evil? website 4

11 JOURNEY 1 the great work of redemption. God had made man in His own image so that man could bring glory to Him. These first two human beings lived in the presence of the God of the universe. They had intimate fellowship with Him at the end of each day. They lived with His blessing, enjoyed every good thing He had made, and knew how much He loved them. Yet, that knowledge and experience failed to keep them from disobeying His one command not to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. THE GENERATIONS OF GENESIS Genesis provides a record of at least 2,000 years of history. In the first 11 chapters, we read of the origin of the natural universe, human life, sin, death, redemption, civilization, nations and languages. Adam and Eve deliberately disobeyed God. When they succumbed to Satan s lies and deceit, they incurred a penalty for their disobedience. Like Satan s eviction from heaven, Adam and Eve were barred from Eden. The knowledge of good and evil that they now possessed had broken their intimate fellowship with God. This capacity for sin was passed on to their children and placed all succeeding generations under the penalty of spiritual and physical death. Eventually, God regretted He had made man and saw the need to wipe him off the face of the earth with a flood. However, there was one family who honored Him. Through Noah and his sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, and their wives, God would repopulate the earth and call out for Himself a special people through whom He would send a Redeemer. Beginning with Genesis 12, the rest of the book describes the beginning of the Hebrew people who would be to Him a special treasure. Out of this Hebrew nation, the entire world would be blessed through the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. God repeated His covenant promises to Isaac and Jacob. Yet even these patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, succumbed to Satan s lies. They and their descendants made one foolish decision after another and would have derailed God s plan except for a man named Joseph, the 11th son of Jacob. The story of Joseph is told in Genesis He was the link between the patriarchs and the nation the Hebrews would eventually become after 400 years of slavery in Egypt. As the book of Genesis closes, the Hebrew family of Jacob consisted of 70 persons. In Exodus 12, the number of Hebrews leaving Egypt is considered to be about 2 million. God had preserved the people who would become to Him a special treasure. With his dying words, Jacob spoke of his son Judah, out of whom would come a ruler. He would be known as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. 5

12 JOURNEY 1 GPS: The Victory in Christ At a designated point in time God Himself entered our space-time continuum as a man through the line of Abraham to secure the redemption of those who would commit themselves to Him. Jesus Christ was that man. He is the focus of the biblical record. He is somewhere on every page in the Bible. He is foreshadowed and expected in the Old Testament. In the New, He is the fullness of the Godhead bodily in His ministry, death and Resurrection. His physical presence is now absent from earth but He has promised to return and to take back with Him those who have placed their faith in His saving grace. It is crucial that Christians recognize the reality of Satan in this world. There is a battle raging between the forces of good and evil fully documented in both the Old and New Testaments. Satan is the enemy; he prowls around like a roaring lion looking for those he can destroy (1 Peter 5:8). His weapons are lies and slander about the true nature of the Godhead. He tempts people to settle for less than what God desires for them. He promises a kind of instant gratification that can only end in emptiness and heartbreak. His ways are the ways of death, both physically and spiritually. God knew that all of this would happen and so He had a plan that would require His very own Son coming to earth to rescue man from the penalty of his own bad decisions. It is incumbent upon each generation to teach the next generation the story of the Savior who has come to help them make decisions that bring honor and glory to Christ the King. 6

13 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 1: PASSING THE BATON The Generations of Genesis KEY PASSAGES Genesis 3; Isaiah 14; Ezekiel 28:14 17 KEY WORD Decisions KEY VERSE Choose this day whom you will serve... But as for me and my house we will serve the Lord. Joshua 24:15 KEY THOUGHT Begin now to make decisions that honor Christ. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES Have the students gather in small groups. Give each group a sheet of paper and some markers. Ask them to open their Bibles to the book of Genesis. Tell them to make a list of all the firsts they can find in Genesis. Example: first man, first woman, first marriage, etc. Explain that you will give them five to seven minutes to complete the list. The group with the longest list wins a prize (sucker, donut, gum, etc.). COMMENT on the awesome power of God to create the world by simply speaking it into existence Let there be... Refer to the information included in Creation s 10 Undeniables. Ask the students to repeat the phrase that explains how God felt about His creation. (It was good!) ASK: What happened in Genesis 3 that was not good? (Sin entered the world. Adam and Eve disobeyed God.) Transition into the Bible passage by asking the students what they know about the serpent in the garden. EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGE [Younger students can focus on the account of how Satan appeared to Eve and then Eve convinced Adam to disobey in Genesis 3:1 6. They can then go on to complete Huddle Group 2. ] SAY: Let s see where this spirit of evil came from that lived in the serpent. We will need to leave the book of Genesis and read what God told two of the Old 7

14 JOURNEY 1 Testament prophets to record about Satan. Just as Satan appeared in the form of a serpent, his spirit of rebellion filled a famous king, the king of Tyre. Let s read about what happened. A. Isaiah 14: Some kind of being has fallen out of heaven. Verse 12: What was he called? What do these words make you think of something good or bad? Why? Verses 13 14: What did he want to do? What two words did he keep repeating? (I will) What was wrong with what he said? Whom did he want to be greater than? (God) Verse 15: Where would he end up? (cast out, with no burial) B. Ezekiel 28 provides more understanding about what Satan is like by looking at an evil king and seeing what he does. Verse 12: Is Satan red with horns and a pitchfork? How was Satan first created? (as a beautiful creature) Verse 16: What happened to Satan that would cause God to cast him out? (evil intents; pride, self-exaltation) C. Revelation 12:3 4: Bible scholars think this is a description of other angels who were cast out of heaven with Satan. How many fell with Satan? (One third of the heavenly host chose not to honor God.) HUDDLE GROUP 1: Hiding Evil Explain that when Adam and Eve sinned, the first thing they did was to try to hide from God. Is that really possible? Why or why not? Give each student a washable marker and have him/her color his/her thumb. Tell each one to make an impression of their thumbprint on a piece of paper. Have the students compare their thumbprints with those of others to see the differences. Discuss how no two fingerprints are alike. God made each of us as a unique individual. Remind the students that we leave our fingerprints on everything we touch. SAY: You can t usually see fingerprints, but they are there. The effects of sin are not always immediately visible to humans, but they were easily recognizable to God. The shame one feels, the awareness of having made a terrible decision, the effort to make excuses rather than to confess and the attempt to hide sin is always seen by the omniscient God. These things grieved God. He had made a perfect world, and now everything was changed. The bad decisions Adam and Eve made left the fingerprint, or mark, of sin on every person who would ever be born. 8

15 JOURNEY 1 HUDDLE GROUP 2: The Generations of Genesis HAVE the students continue in their groups. GIVE each group a list of the following people in Genesis. Each person on the list represents a new generation in the book of Genesis. Each of these people had the opportunity to make good decisions or bad ones. [With younger children, you may want to read the verses aloud and let them tell you whether the decision was good or bad.] Abraham Genesis 20:1 3 (lying) Isaac Genesis 25:28 (preferential treatment) Esau Genesis 27:41 42 (hatred) Jacob Genesis 27:14 17 (deceit) Joseph Genesis 45:1 6 (forgiveness) HAVE the older students look up the Scripture reference and write out the decision each character made. HAVE them discuss whether the decisions were good or bad and why. ASK them to explain how we can know if a decision is good or bad. THE FIRST GOSPEL: Genesis 3:15 SAY: From the beginning, God promised to send someone to crush Satan. What did God tell Satan about the Savior? Read Genesis 3:15. Satan was now an enemy of God. All human beings born in the future would be marked by this sinful nature he revealed. Satan would one day bruise the heel of One of the woman s offspring. However, this One would be a perfect man and the Son of God who would eventually crush Satan s head. Give each student a die-cut form of the Bible. Have them write across it: Genesis 3:15 Jesus is coming! Tell them to keep this reminder in their Bible to use as a bookmark. THE CROSSROADS: GPS: God s Plan of Salvation SHARE with the students that from the very beginning, God had a plan to save us. Satan could have chosen to serve God and he would still be in heaven with Him. Instead, he wanted to be God. His attitude of pride and his lying, deceitful ways are the very heart of sin. We all tend to want what we want when we want it, and that attitude is not pleasing to God. 9

16 JOURNEY 1 10 God has given each one of us the opportunity to choose to love Him or to reject Him. He sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to show us how to live a life that pleases God. What decision have you made about receiving Christ as your Savior? It is the most important decision you will ever make in life. [Share the plan of salvation and close in prayer.] APPLICATION OPPORTUNITIES Challenge the students to identify the areas in their lives where bad decisions keep happening. Ask them to commit this area of their lives to God in prayer every day. Suggest that at the end of each day they should review the decisions they made to see which ones were good and which ones were not so good. Encourage them to ask forgiveness for the bad decisions and for God s help to make better choices tomorrow. SCRIPTURE MEMORY: Joshua 24:15 REPEAT the verse several times to the class. CIRCLE these key words: choose, serve, me, my house, and the Lord. DISCUSS what each key word means. HAVE the entire class say the verse several times. BREAK IT UP into three phrases to make it easier to remember. Choose this day whom you will serve... But as for me and my house we will serve the Lord. Joshua 24:15 SAY: Every choice we make, everything we say or do demonstrates to the world who is the boss of our life. Joshua was a man whose life honored God as he led the children of Israel into the Promised Land. He made decisions that honored God and accomplished His will. Do you want God to be pleased with your life? Do you want to draw others to Him? If so, then learn now how to make good decisions and reject the bad ones. Repeat this verse every morning before you begin your day. HUDDLE GROUP 3: Passing the Baton MAKE each huddle group a team. [You will need the same number of players on each team. You may need to run the race two or three times to give everyone an opportunity to play.] GIVE each team a paper baton [a rolled up piece of cardstock on which you have written the words THE GOSPEL TRUTH and today s key verse Joshua 24:15].

17 JOURNEY 1 DESIGNATE a start line and a finish line for racing. ALLOW the students to run several rounds. DEBRIEF by asking questions about how hard it was to pass the baton; what happened when someone dropped the baton; and how hard each person tried to win. EXPLAIN how failure to pass the baton resulted in loss and disappointment. ASK how important is it for us to make sure we pass the truth of God s love in Jesus to the next generation. What if Abraham had not told Isaac? What if Isaac had not told Jacob? What if Jacob had not told Joseph? We must continue to keep telling what we know about Jesus. Failure is not an option. BIBLE LEARNING PROJECT: Hands That Serve Supplies: foam hands, markers Distribute markers to each table. Provide a foam hand to each student. Instruct the students to write Joshua 24:15 on the palm of the hand, then write one decision they can make to serve the Lord on each finger. Encourage the students to place the hand somewhere they will see it every morning as a reminder that each decision they make should honor Christ. A LOOK AT THE BOOK HAVE the students look up the following verses about the coming Savior. BE SURE that they understand what each verse is saying. Micah 5:2 Bethlehem Isaiah 7:14 Immanuel Isaiah 9:6 His kingdom Isaiah 53:4 Our sin Psalm 2:7 The Son of God REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. What bad choices did Adam and Eve make that caused sin to enter the world? (They ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil that God had told them not to do.) 2. What was their punishment? (physical death, driven from Garden of Eden, pain in childbirth, hard labor in order to survive) 3. How was Satan able to convince Eve to make a bad decision? (He lied to her. He made her doubt God s truthfulness. He appealed to her pride and desire to have all knowledge like God.) 4. What did God promise in Genesis 3:15? (a Savior who would one day crush Satan s power over men) 11

18 JOURNEY 1 5. Give three different names used to describe this Savior. 6. To whom did Adam and Eve pass on the capacity to make bad decisions? (the next generations) 7. Who represents the next generations in Genesis? (Noah, his sons, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and his brothers) 8. What do we do that reveals our sin nature? (We make choices that do not honor God.) 9. How can these bad choices be forgiven? (trusting Jesus as Savior and asking forgiveness) 10. Name three good choices you should make every day. (pray, read the Bible, obey parents, be a good student, be kind to others, share the Good News about Jesus, eat healthy foods, exercise) 12

19 JOURNEY 2 GO FOR THE GOLD! God Keeps His Promises

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21 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 2: GO FOR THE GOLD! God Keeps His Promises Key Passages: Genesis 12; Exodus 20; Luke 2 Key Word: Promises Key Thought: Claim God s promises as you live each day. Key Verse: The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 ONE BOOK OUT OF MANY The books of the Bible were written by 40 different authors over a period of about 1,600 years. The Bible is one book, one history and one story. When these 66 individual books are brought together and bound up as a unit, they are often called The Book. This book is a divine, progressive revelation of God to man. It begins in eternity past and ends with eternity future. One generation gives way to the next. The story of redemption unfolds gradually, one chapter after another. The stories, though varied in time and place and written by different authors, seem to have been produced by one mind. Peter understood this when he wrote: For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21). There is a unity of thought demonstrating that one mind inspired the writing of all the books. Each book reflects this unity of thought that comes from a single author. 2 The Bible is one book with one story the story of how Almighty God will redeem a wrecked and fallen world. The Ancient of Days stands firmly behind the more than 10,000 events recorded on its pages. Between Genesis, the book of origins, and Revelation, the book of endings, God is unfolding His plan for Jesus to redeem a lost and broken world. CHRIST, THE LIVING WORD The Old Testament describes the rise and fall of the nation of Israel. The New Testament 2 Understanding the Bible, What the Bible Is All About by Henrietta Mears, Regal Books,

22 JOURNEY 2 presents the Son of God as the Savior of the world coming from the nation of Israel. God chose Israel to bring forth the man who would secure salvation for all. His appearance on earth is the central event of all history. The Old Testament sets the stage for this event, and the New Testament describes how it unfolded. The apostle John said that if all the deeds of this Christ were written down, the world could not contain the books. Therefore, God has created the books contained in the Bible to reveal Himself and His plan for redemption. A QUICK SURVEY OF GENESIS There are four major events in Genesis that lay the foundation for the redemptive history of man. They are Creation: God is the sovereign Creator of matter, energy, space and time. Fall: Creation is followed by corruption as Adam s sin separates man from God. The hope of redemption is promised in Genesis 3:15 as the Serpent is cursed. Flood: Man s growing depravity compels God to destroy the human race except for Noah and his family. Nations: As children of Adam and Noah, the human race was scattered at the Tower of Babel over the face of the earth into single cultures and languages. Once the nations were scattered, God focused on one man and his descendants through whom He will bless all nations (Genesis 12 50). God chose Abraham to head up a special group of people who would become the nation of Israel. They would be God s chosen people. If Abraham would get up and leave the land of Ur (near present-day Iraq) and travel 500 miles to the land of Canaan, God would make him the father of many nations. God promised Abraham the following things would happen if he obeyed God s commands (Genesis 12:2, 3). His descendants would become a great nation (Israel, the Hebrews, the Jews). The land of Canaan would be an eternal homeland for his descendants (Israel, Judah, Jerusalem). All the world would be blessed by one of Abraham s descendants (Jesus). These covenant promises land, descendants, blessing are the building blocks for God s Plan of Salvation (GPS) for all of mankind. How Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph participate in this covenant relationship fills Genesis When Abraham was 100 and Sarah 90, she at last gave birth to the legitimate heir of God s covenant promise Isaac. God established His covenant with Isaac as the chosen spiritual link with Abraham. Isaac s son was Jacob, whom God transformed from a selfish opportunist to a willing servant and changed his name to Israel, the father of the 12 tribes (Genesis 32:28). Joseph was Jacob s favorite son, whose jealous brothers sold him to slave traders. He ended up in Egypt, where God providentially allowed him to become second-incommand under Pharaoh. Having forgiven his brothers, Joseph brought his family from Canaan into the land of Goshen to ride out the years of famine. 16

23 JOURNEY 2 Judah, the fourth son of Jacob, received a special blessing from Jacob before he died. God chose Judah to be the line of the Jewish race through whom the Messiah would come (Genesis 49:8 10). Jesus was known as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah (Revelation 5:5). THE EXODUS IN EXODUS The book of Exodus opens with the 70 descendants of Jacob having greatly multiplied in Egypt. Their numbers had increased to almost 2 million over the course of 430 years, but they had become slaves to the pharaohs who had forgotten Joseph. When God sent Moses as their deliverer, it took much persuasion to convince Pharaoh to let the people go. Once the people were released, God led Moses into the desert and gave him the Ten Commandments as a covenant of obedience with Israel. His blessing was upon them as they chose to keep His commandments. LEVITICUS AND HOLINESS Moses wrote the book of Leviticus to explain how Israel was to live as a holy nation in fellowship with God. There were to be special offerings that pictured the life and service of Christ. There were feasts to commemorate events in the life of Israel, each one pointing to the Messiah, who was to come. There were prescribed sacrifices that pointed to the shedding of Christ s blood that must be made for the forgiveness of sins. God said to Israel: You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy (Leviticus 19:2). NUMBERS DON T LIE God instructed Moses to take a census and organize the people by tribe before setting off for Canaan. God used a cloud to guide their travels by day and a pillar of fire by night. It had been God s plan that Israel should go straight into the Promised Land. However, the people murmured against God. They showed a lack of faith in God s ability to overcome their enemies and take them into the land. They were only 11 days away from reaching Canaan but God sent them back into the desert to wander in the wilderness 40 years until the faithless generation that had left Egypt died out. JOSHUA STEPS UP God would not allow Moses to lead the Israelites into the land because of an incident in the desert where Moses showed a lack of respect for God (Numbers 20:12). Leadership was passed to Joshua, and he bravely led the nation in the battle of Jericho as the people entered the Promised Land. JUDGES AND KINGS As long as Israel honored God and obeyed His commandments, the people were blessed. When the people cried out for help, they repented of their sin and God sent a judge, or military leader, to defeat their enemies. They were grateful for a time, only to return to idolatry. The judges God sent included Deborah, Gideon, Samson and others. In those days, there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his or her own eyes. 17

24 JOURNEY 2 KINGS AND CHRONICLES When the people demanded a king, the prophet Samuel was angry because they did not see God as their king. Yet, God allowed Samuel to anoint Saul as their first king but Saul proved to be a terrible ruler. Soon God showed Samuel that David, the young giant-slayer, would be the king to unify the people, help them to worship God and bring to the nation good fortune and prosperity. David did this before experiencing his own personal moral lapse. Eventually, his son Solomon, wisest of all men, led the nation into more prosperity, but his own alliances with foreign nations through his marriages eventually caused the nation to split in two. Now the chosen seed of Abraham had been split into two groups: 10 tribes in the north formed Israel; and two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, in the south formed the nation of Judah, with Jerusalem as its capital. PROMISES! PROMISES! The people had witnessed the blessings of their faithfulness to God, but their own willful spirits could not sustain such devotion. King and after king in both Israel and Judah failed to lead the people in lasting commitment to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Still, God promised to bless them if only they would repent and obey. God promised a great deliverer the Messiah who would come to set up an eternal kingdom. The people longed for such a time but failed to obey the truth they had been given. How would God deal with their disobedience and lack of faith? They had failed to live up to His calling. Now they would live with the consequences of their decisions. 18

25 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 2: GO FOR THE GOLD! God Keeps His Promises KEY PASSAGES Genesis 12; Exodus 20; Luke 2 KEY WORD Promises KEY VERSE The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 KEY THOUGHT Claim God s promises as you live each day. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITY CONNECT the Big Room experience with the Bible story by asking the students questions about what they saw. HUDDLE GROUP 1: The Big Picture HAVE everyone open their Bible to the table of contents page. EXPLAIN how the Old Testament is organized into groups: The Books of Law, Books of History, the Books of Poetry, the Major Prophets, and the Minor Prophets. ASK the Huddle Group Leaders (HGLs) to help the students turn through the pages to locate one or two books in each section. [Be alert to younger students who are struggling to find things in the Bible. They will need a little extra help and encouragement, but it is well worth the time.] EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGES [Based on the age level of your group, choose one or more of the following activities to explore the lesson.] A. A WALK THROUGH THE BIBLE TAKE the students on a walk through Genesis and the Books of History. As you turn through the pages, talk about the major events that took place. Be sure to mention the following people/events. 19

26 JOURNEY 2 Adam Eve Fall/Satan Noah Nations Abraham Sarah Isaac Jacob Joseph Israel, God s Chosen People Moses Samson Gideon Ruth Boaz David Goliath King Saul King David King Solomon Isaiah Joseph Mary Jesus The Church B. A HUMAN TIMELINE Having reviewed the major events in the first part of the Bible, you are now ready to form a human chain to link all the people/events together. MAKE one name tag for each of the people/events listed above. Mix up the events/people among the groups. ALLOW each table group to organize themselves in sequence (some events/people will be missing in each group since they have been split among the groups) and then HAVE each table group connect with other groups and form one large line in the correct sequence across the room. C. A CAST OF CHARACTERS Here s another way to distribute the name badges and reinforce the lesson: Divide the class into two groups. Place the name tags on the backs of students in one group. Students in the other group can read the name tags silently and give clues to the first group about what their name tags say. Students in the first group will try to guess who they are. Or, have the students pair up and try to identify the Bible person whose names are on their backs. When a named student guesses who she is, have her partner take her name tag off of her back and she can replace it on the front and then step to one side. When everyone has been identified, ask the group of students who were giving the clues to arrange the Bible people in the order in which they appeared in Scripture. If they need help with this, they can refer to their Bible or the Bible Timelines in the classrooms. 20 PROMISES! PROMISES! Now, with the Bible persons all in place, the next step is to help the students match the promises God made with the people God was using to develop His plan of salvation (GPS). (Note: There are 21 Bible people/events and only 12 promises, so not every person will have a matching promise.) Write out on a half sheet of red paper each promise in the chart to the right. Give the red promise sheets to the students who gave the clues. Each student will read his/her promise and then decide to which Bible person it belongs.

27 JOURNEY 2 Each Bible person will take the red promise sheet and hold it in front of him. GPS: GOD S PLAN OF SALVATION TAKE a long piece of red cord/string/yarn and WALK DOWN the row of Bible people. RUN the red thread through the hands of the students representing each Bible person. Make sure they are lined up in the order given above. Below, each promise is aligned with its correct Bible person. BIBLE PERSON/ EVENT Adam, Eve, Satan Noah Abraham Isaac Jacob Israel Boaz, Ruth David Isaiah Joseph, Mary Jesus The Church GOD S PROMISE Genesis 3:15 A Savior will crush the head of Satan even though Satan will bruise His heel. Genesis 9:11 I will keep my promises (covenant) with you. I will never flood the earth again. Genesis 12:2 3 I will make you a great nation and bless all the families of the earth through you. Genesis 22:17 I will give you many offspring who will bless all the nations as I blessed your father Abraham. Genesis 35:10 I will give to you all that I promised Abraham and Isaac. Your name will now be changed to Israel. Exodus 19:5 You will be my treasured possession. I will give you my commandments to keep as sign of my covenant with you. Ruth 4:13, They were the great-grandparents of a royal line of kings who produced a king with an eternal kingdom. 2 Samuel 5:1 3 He was God s chosen king for Israel. From his line would come the King of Kings. Isaiah 7:14 This prophet spoke about a man born of a virgin whose name would be Immanuel. Luke 2:3 5 God used their faith to bring His Son into the world. Luke 2:7 The long-awaited Messiah had finally come into the world. Matthew 16:18 Jesus said,... on this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 21

28 JOURNEY 2 You will have literally laid out the plan of salvation in front of everyone. Have the students repeat to you the names of the people who prepared the way for Jesus to come. Ask them where they would place themselves in the timeline. (in the Church) Explain that we are in the Church Age now as we wait for Jesus to return and take us back to live with Him. Ask how a person can be sure if he/she will be able to go back with Jesus when He comes. Listen to their answers and then explain the plan of salvation. Close in prayer. BIBLE LEARNING ACTIVITY: Promise Keeper Supplies: 2 mini terra cotta pot, craft sticks, markers, list of promises from Exploring the Bible Passages Distribute list of promises, markers and craft sticks among the students. Provide a terra cotta pot to each student. Instruct the students to take a craft stick and write a person/event from the promise list on one side of the stick, and the corresponding Scripture reference on the other side. Continue until five or six craft sticks are completed. Next, have the students write Promise Keeper on their pot and decorate as desired. Insert the craft sticks in the pot. Direct the students to use their Promise Keeper when they need to be reminded that God always keeps His promises. APPLICATION OPPORTUNITIES DISCUSS the following questions in Huddle Groups. 1. How can someone discover God s promises? (read the Bible) 2. Describe any promises you already know that are found in the Bible. 3. How can believing in those promises help you? (gives you hope, peace, confidence, security) 4. Which of the following promises are you learning to count on? Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved (Acts 16:31). Jesus is coming back (1 Thessalonians 4:16 17). I am with you; do not worry about anything (Philippians 4:6 7). I will be with you to the ends of the earth (Matthew 28:19 20). I want God to guide my steps (Proverbs 3:5 6). I want God s will for my life (Psalm 37:4). 5. Would you consider yourself a good promise keeper? Why or why not? 6. How do we know God will keep His promises? (Hebrews 6:18) 22

29 JOURNEY 2 A LOOK IN THE BOOK Have the students locate the promises written on the red paper in their Bibles and mark them with a red star or underline. SCRIPTURE MEMORY: 2 Peter 3:9 EXPLAIN that God s promises to us are more precious than gold or silver or any type of paper money. Because God keeps His promises, we can place our total faith and trust in Him. Sometimes we don t always understand His timing, but He always does what He says He will do. READ the verse aloud and EXPLAIN what it means. POINT OUT these key words: promise, slow, patient, perish, repentance. WRITE each word across the picture of a coin. PROVIDE each Huddle Group with a set of these coins. HAVE each Huddle Group put the coins in order so that the verse is clearly written out. ASK them to say the verse over and over until everyone in the group can say it together. HAVE each group stand before the class and say the verse aloud from memory. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. What do the letters GPS mean when we are talking about the Bible? (God s Plan of Salvation) 2. Where did God s plan for redeeming mankind first appear in the Bible? (Genesis 3:15) 3. What does God s salvation provide for man? (hope, peace, eternal life) 4. How is Jesus connected to Abraham? (Jesus was born a Jew; Abraham was the patriarch, the father of the Jewish people.) 5. How are Ruth and Boaz connected to King David? (great-grandparents) 6. What was God s plan for the people called the children of Israel? (He wanted them to tell the world who the true God really was.) 7. Why did they fail at this task? (They became unfaithful to God and worshipped idols and rejected His authority over them.) 8. What eventually happened to them? (They were captured by foreign nations and taken away as slaves.) 9. How is Jesus connected to the Jewish people? (He was a Jew Himself.) 10. Why did God have to send Jesus? (to rescue men from the punishment of their sin and keep them from eternal separation from God) 23

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31 JOURNEY 3 OVERCOMING OBSTACLES Divided Nation/Bitter Exile

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33 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 3: OVERCOMING OBSTACLES Divided Nation/Bitter Exile Key Passages: 1 Kings 12:16 24 (The Split); 2 Kings 18:9 12 (The Assyrians); 2 Kings 24:1 16 (The Babylonians); 2 Kings 25:8 12 (Jerusalem) Key Word: Overcomer Key Thought: Overcome life s challenges by asking for God s help. Key Verse:.. In this world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. John 16:33 OBEDIENCE BRINGS BLESSINGS The nation of Israel had grown strong and mighty under the reign of David and Solomon. Yet, after Solomon s death, civil war broke out among the tribes of Israel. The ten tribes to the North formed a type of confederacy called Israel. The two southern tribes, Benjamin and Judah, united under the name of Judah. Jerusalem was their capital city, and for a time the temple remained intact. Not only did the tribes of Israel and Judah fight one another, they also had to protect themselves from outside invaders and the Canaanite tribes they had never conquered as God had commanded. There was trouble on every side for both groups of God s divided and chosen race. The 20 kings of Israel were for the most part idolatrous and uninterested in leading the people back to God. Out of all of Israel s kings, Ahab was by far the most evil. He and his wife, Jezebel, epitomized the greed and rebellious spirit of this period in Israel s history. Together they instituted the worship of Baal and built temples to idols. God sent Elijah to confront their evil motives, but no prophet was able to turn the nation back to God. The kings of Judah came from the line of David from Rehoboam to Zedekiah. God had promised that the Messiah would come from the line of David. Judah would be the key to Israel s survival as a nation. Judah would someday give the world the Messiah God had promised, but only after years of cruel treatment by invading armies. 27

34 JOURNEY 3 IMPENDING DISASTER Years passed and the powerful nations to the east, Assyria and Babylon, looked toward Israel and found her to be a desirable conquest. Egypt to the south also waited for an opportunity to seize these Hebrews and again make slaves of them. The beautiful temple in Jerusalem was considered a wonder of the ancient world. What nation would not wish to lay claim to such an edifice and seize its treasures as its own? The only hope for both Judah and Israel lay in the divine protection of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Like a parent warns a rebellious child, God sent one prophet after another to warn both nations of their impending doom. The prophets would speak to the king or to the people directly. The message was always the same. Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. Isaiah 55:6 7 THE PROPHETS The writings of the 16 prophets in the Old Testament are categorized as either major or minor. This is based not on their status or social position but rather on the amount of material they wrote. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel are considered to be the major prophets; the other 12 are classified as minor. The circumstances of each prophet were different, but they all spoke with one voice about the holiness of God. They fearlessly condemned sin and spiritual indifference. They were not always popular, and people ignored their messages for the most part. The prophets primary role was to point people to God. They did this in several ways. They condemned society s immorality and wickedness: Let me no longer see your evil deeds... (Isaiah 1:16 17). They exposed religious hypocrites: I am sick of your sacrifices... Don t bring me any more burnt offerings! (Isaiah 1:11 15). They begged people to repent: Come back to me and live! (Amos 5:4). They spoke of God s coming wrath and judgment:... he will roar through Israel like a fire, devouring you completely (Amos 5:6). They declared God s plan to redeem His people: In this day I will restore the fallen kingdom of David (Amos 9:11). They predicted coming events. 1. Micah 3:12 predicted the temple of Solomon in Jerusalem would be destroyed. 2. Jeremiah 13:19 predicted the Babylonians would carry Judah into captivity. 28

35 JOURNEY 3 3. Hosea 9:3 predicted that the northern kingdom would be taken captive and carried away. 4. Jeremiah 25:11 predicted that the Babylonian captivity would last only 70 years. 5. Isaiah 44:28 predicted that after 70 years of captivity, the Jews would be allowed to return to their homeland to rebuild Jerusalem and the temple. THE MESSIAH The most famous predictions of the prophets focused on an event that was hundreds of years away. God promised to send a Messiah to restore Israel and set up an eternal kingdom for God s elect. The Jews yearned for the Messiah to come to relieve them from oppression by their enemies. God gave the prophets precise details about the Messiah so that the genuine Savior of God s people could be distinguished from the wannabes. Here are some of those predictions. He will be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). He will be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14). He will make a triumphant entry into Jerusalem (Zechariah 9:9). His own people will reject Him (Isaiah 53:1 3). He will be tried in court and found guilty (Isaiah 53:8). He will be beaten and spit upon (Isaiah 50:6). His life will be sacrificed to save man from the penalty of his own sin (Isaiah 53:5 12). PROPHECIES FULFILLED In 722 B.C., the northern nation of Israel was invaded by the Assyrians. The cities were destroyed and the people taken captive and carried off to exile. They would never see their homeland again. The people making up these 10 tribes eventually were dispersed among the nations of the world and assimilated into foreign cultures. In 586 B.C., Judah, the southern nation, was captured by the Babylonians, which is modern-day Iraq. The city of Jerusalem was destroyed and the temple was looted and then burned. The poorest people along with the uneducated were left behind to fend for themselves as the wealth and best men of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin were taken into exile into Babylon. Jeremiah, known as the weeping prophet, walked through the streets of Jerusalem and sobbed over the destruction he saw. What he prophesied had indeed come true and he was devastated. Judah had been destroyed; the people scattered across the foreign cities of the Middle East living as slaves. How could they hope for a future restoration? It seemed out of the question. Had God finally given up on Abraham s children? Was this the end of God s chosen people? 29

36 JOURNEY 3 A HOPE AND A FUTURE God still had a plan for Israel (Jeremiah 29:11). He would still do what He had promised restoration and the advent of Messiah. There would be much work to do when their exile was over. Because they had lost so much, would they listen to the prophets God sent with them in exile and return with grateful hearts? Two men stood ready to lead the returning group Ezra and Nehemiah. They had heard the prophecies of Ezekiel and Daniel, and they were sure God would enable His people to overcome every obstacle they faced if only they would worship and serve Him. 30

37 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 3: OVERCOMING OBSTACLES Divided Nation/Bitter Exile KEY PASSAGES 1 Kings 12:16 24 (The Split) 2 Kings 18:9 12 (The Assyrians) 2 Kings 24:1 16 (The Babylonians) 2 Kings 25:8 12 (Jerusalem) KEY VERSE... In this world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. John 16:33 KEY WORD Overcomer KEY THOUGHT Overcome life s challenges by asking for God s help. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES: Truth Or Consequences? A. CONNECT the Big Room experience with the Bible story by asking the students questions about what they saw. B. USE sections of a newspaper or ipad and let the kids look through the headlines and stories. ASK them to comment on some of the problems they find. Discuss what the people involved in the stories need to do in order to overcome their circumstances. Determine what problems resulted because people had disobeyed God s commandments. Ask the students what they might tell someone in a difficult situation to bring them hope and encouragement. Talk about how the problem might have been avoided. Ask who can help us overcome any difficult situation. TRANSITION to the Bible story by explaining how Israel, God s chosen people, continually disobeyed God s commandments and rejected the prophets He sent to them. Their problems were caused because they would not give God first place in their hearts. 31

38 JOURNEY 3 EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGE SAY: There had been many warnings and many opportunities to turn around and do what God had asked His people to do. Now it was too late. A catastrophe was about to happen, and there was nothing they could do to stop it. HAVE the students open their Bibles to 2 Kings 25:8 15 and discuss these questions. [You can summarize these events for younger students after they locate the passage.] Verse 8: What is about to happen to Jerusalem? Verses 9 10: Describe the destruction that took place. Verse 11: What happened to the people who lived there? Verse 21: Where were the people of Judah taken? Jeremiah 29:10: How long would Judah be in captivity? Jeremiah 29:11: Was God finished with His chosen people? Jeremiah 31:31, 33: What would be the basis of the new covenant? HUDDLE GROUP 1: Mapping It Out ASK the students to get into their Huddle Groups. Provide each student with a map of the world showing Israel. Ask them to locate the country of Israel and then make these comments. Israel is a small country. It has only about 8,367 square miles. It could fit into Florida eight times. Texas has 266,853 square miles. Israel could fit into Texas more than 31 times. HAVE the students write the names of the countries that surround Israel: Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Syria and Egypt. Besides these border countries, Iran and Iraq are not far away, just to the northeast of Israel. Repeat the names of Israel s neighbors. How do Israel s neighbors feel about her? What happened to Israel after King Solomon died? Who conquered Israel? Judah? Why did God allow Israel and Judah to suffer captivity? 32 SAY: As we look at this tiny country, it is hard to imagine that the events described in Revelation will all center around this area of the world. God has a plan for Israel, but for a time, her disobedience has caused God to set her aside. As a nation, Israel has refused to recognize Jesus as the long-expected Messiah. Israel was intent on doing things her way, rather than God s way. It is easy to see how the Israelites disobeyed God s commands. Why do you think it is easier to see other people s faults rather than our own?

39 JOURNEY 3 HUDDLE GROUP 2: Sin Is Sin HAVE the students get into their Huddle Groups. Provide each group with a piece of charcoal to pass around. As they do this, the black residue will begin to coat their hands and fingers. Tell them to think about something they did this last week that they know was not a good choice. Ask them to pretend that the black smudges on their hands represent the things they do that displease God. The Bible calls these things Sin. Israel sinned against God, and her sin looked just like the piece of charcoal in the eyes of God. Finally, God gave them over to the consequences of their sin. If they loved idols so much, He would let them worship all the idols they could make. But He would not be there to protect them and watch over them. He would not bless them as a special people chosen for Himself. How dangerous it is to tell God that we don t care about what He wants and that we d rather do things our way! HUDDLE GROUP 3: The Cleansing As the students remain in groups, ASK them how to get the stain of sin out of their lives and then LISTEN to their answers. How can we get rid of the stain of sin? SAY: There is a way. It is His way and not your way or my way. God s way takes a person to the Cross where Jesus died to pay the penalty for all the sins of mankind. Have ready a basin of warm, soapy water for each Huddle Group or use wet wipes. As each Table Group Leader gently cleans away the dirt, talk about how Jesus came to take away our sins. Explain how He gives us the choice of doing things our way or His way. If we do things our way, then our hands can become dirty with sin s mark. If we choose His way, there will be forgiveness, eternal life, joy, blessing and hope. Ask why anyone would want to do things his/her own way. THE CROSSROADS When all the hands have been washed, SHARE the plan of salvation with the group and close in prayer. Urge the students to speak privately with you or their parents about their relationship with Jesus. 33

40 JOURNEY 3 APPLICATION OPPORTUNITIES DISCUSS with the students what it means to be an overcomer. EXPLAIN how life gives us challenges to face all the time. SAY: God wants to help us deal with these challenges but He wants us to ask Him for help. Encourage the students to go home and discuss with their parents difficult challenges they may be facing. Tell them to ask their parents how to handle these challenges. Explain how God wants to help them. Ask them to memorize the key verse for the day. Challenge them to say the key verse while looking in the mirror at least five times every day. Encourage them to begin each day with prayer and Bible reading. Psalms and Proverbs provide wise counsel to help us work out our problems. SCRIPTURE MEMORY: John 16:33 Provide each student with a copy of the key verse divided into phrases that are easy to memorize.... In this world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. John 16:33 Ask the students what the word tribulation means. Have students repeat the verse three times to the person sitting next to them. Ask the students to look around the room and find cards on which the words of this verse have been written. Allow three to five minutes for them to find the words and put them in the correct order. Provide a small reward for the winner. BIBLE LEARNING PROJECT: Overcomer Door Hanger Supplies: foam door hanger, cell phone stickers, markers Distribute markers among the students. Provide each student with a door hanger and cell phone sticker. Instruct the students to write Call Unto Me on the screen of the cell phone and affix it to the door hanger. Decorate with Christian symbols as desired. Encourage students to hang their door hanger on their bedroom or closet door. Explain that they can overcome all of life s challenges by asking for God s help. 34

41 JOURNEY 3 A LOOK AT THE BOOK Locate these books of history in the Bible that describe what happened to Israel. 1 & 2 Samuel 1 & 2 Kings 1 & 2 Chronicles Find these books of prophecy that describe what will happen to Israel. Isaiah Jeremiah Revelation REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Whom did God send to the people of the Old Testament to help them know what God wanted them to do? (the prophets) 2. What is the difference between a major prophet and a minor prophet? (amount of material each has written) 3. Name two major prophets. 4. Name two minor prophets. 5. Name two warnings the prophets gave to the people. 6. Why was Jeremiah called the weeping prophet? (because he cried over the destruction that resulted from the people s disobedience) 7. Explain how God felt about Israel s sin. (It deeply grieved Him.) 8. Name one of Israel s neighbors. (Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Iran, Iraq) 9. Name another country that lies near Israel. 10. Who was Israel s greatest king? (David) 11. Who was the king in Israel when the country split in two? (Solomon) 12. What does it mean to be an overcomer? 35

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43 JOURNEY 4 SETTING GOALS Ezekiel s Dry Bones

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45 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 4: SETTING GOALS Ezekiel s Dry Bones Key Passages: Ezekiel 1; Revelation 4:2 11: Ezekiel 37:1 23 Key Word: Goals Key Thought: Learn how to set goals that honor God. Key Verse: Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do; forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13 14 DARK DAYS The Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar, destroyed Jerusalem in three stages. In 605 B.C., he overcame King Jehoiakim and carried off key hostages including Daniel and his friends. About eight years later, he returned to put down a rebellion and took 10,000 more hostages including Ezekiel. Then he returned in 586 B.C. to totally destroy Jerusalem. This last act of destruction crushed all hope for the exiled Hebrews of ever returning to their beloved homeland. Her walls were flattened, her houses burned to the ground, the temple totally destroyed and her people dragged off as slaves. How alone and forgotten the people of Judah must have felt. A MAN OF VISION: Ezekiel 1 Ezekiel was probably 25 years old when he was carried off to Babylon. He had been a priest in Judah, but in a strange and foreign land, God would use him as a prophet to warn and encourage the people who had been carried off as slaves. When the city fell, Ezekiel comforted the people by reminding them of God s covenant promise for a future blessing and restoration. However, there would be no quick deliverance. They would have to endure years of captivity. In his new role as prophet, Ezekiel was first given a vision of the glory of God high and lifted up. He would have remembered the sights and the sounds of this vision in chapter 10 many times over during the difficult days in Babylon. His description of the vision was 39

46 JOURNEY 4 like the strokes of an artist s brush on canvas. The images he described were strange, yet awe inspiring. They were frightening, yet comforting at the same time. Here is a description of what he saw. There were whirling clouds of fire coming out of the north. Within the clouds were four living creatures, probably the cherubim of the temple. Each had four wings and four faces: that of a man, a lion, an ox and an eagle. These images represented intelligence, sovereignty, strength and speed. The wheels beside each creature formed a type of chariot that easily moved in any direction, perhaps to indicate God s omnipresence. The rims of the wheels were covered with eyes, symbolic of God s ability to see everywhere at the same time, i.e., His omniscience. Above their heads was an expanse that looked like a crystal sea. Positioned on the expanse was a throne with a rainbow above. Then there appeared on the throne an image like a man engulfed by the brightness of fire that glowed brilliantly. It was a representation of Jesus. The vision portrayed God s glory and His ability to see and control all parts of the universe. It enabled Ezekiel to accept God s call as a prophet to the Jews while in captivity. God would deliver them, but first they would experience the absence of His blessing on them. Ezekiel must help them to better understand the holiness of God in order for them to see their ungodliness. JOHN S VISION ON PATMOS: Revelation 4 Ezekiel s vision is similar to the one described by John in Revelation 4, almost 700 years later. In Revelation, the scene takes place in heaven as John is called up to the throne room to learn what will soon come to pass on earth during the Tribulation. Around the throne, he sees four living creatures, all quite similar to those described by Ezekiel. John s vision equips him to prophesy to those saved during the Church Age about a time when Satan would be defeated and Israel would at last be redeemed along with the Church. His vision enabled him to preach with confidence about the sure victory that lies ahead for God s people. THE TWO VISIONS Seven hundred years passed between the vision of Ezekiel and that of John; each one was written for a different time and place, yet the similarities they share are remarkable. There is the four-faced man. Present are the representations of a man, an ox or calf, a lion and an eagle. The presence of eyes that can see in every direction. A crystal sea A throne A rainbow Fire coming out of or around the throne Creatures with wings 40

47 JOURNEY 4 When both visions ceased, the response of both men was the same. They were filled with awe and wonder and worshipped God in the beauty of His holiness. Yet the vision was given to both in order that they might prophesy with power about a God who loved His people but would not tolerate repeated disobedience and apostasy. A VISION OF DRY BONES: Ezekiel 37:1 18 In another vision, God transported Ezekiel to a great valley filled with dry bones. He identified the bones as the whole house of Israel (Ezekiel 37:11). God was ready to show Ezekiel that His people would finally be restored to Him with eternal blessing. The promise was sure; God would keep His covenant with Israel. As Ezekiel watched, the bones moved and began to reconnect. He saw muscle and tissue reattach itself to the skeletons, yet there was not breath in them. God told Ezekiel to speak aloud and call for the coming of the Holy Spirit from the four corners of the earth. Ezekiel obeyed the command and watched as the dry bones were filled with new life and began to move about, thus forming a mighty army of God. The exile in Babylon had not been God s desertion of Israel; God used the nations of the world to chastise Israel for her unfaithfulness. She was like the unfaithful wife whom God was calling back to Himself. Ezekiel was witnessing the literal resurrection of God s chosen people as the bones began to move. THE UNIQUENESS OF ISRAEL 3 The return of Israel to her land is unique in all of human history. There are ancient people who have always occupied their territories, such as the Egyptians who never left their ancient boundaries to return at a later time. Israel is the only nation that has ever been deported from her homeland, remained a distinct people while outside the land, and then returned to her original country. During the 20th century, the miracle of this return to the homeland was accomplished. Jews who lived outside the homeland began to pour in from all over the world. In 1948 Israel was recognized once again by the world as a nation. Today there are more than 6 million Jews living in the land. Their full restoration and blessing from God await the end of the age. As the vision concludes, God told Ezekiel to take two sticks. On one he was to write Judah and on the other the name Ephraim to represent Joseph and the nation of Israel. He was then told to tie the two sticks together to form one unit. This new unit represented the restored nation of Israel who will dwell with God for all eternity (Ezekiel 37:22 23). This event will at long last take place during the Millennium when Israel and the Church, the Bride of Christ, will be united as the elect of God to live together in peace throughout eternity. 3 Ezekiel 37-39, Charting the End Times by Tim LaHaye and Thomas Ice, Harvest House Publishers, 2001, p

48 JOURNEY 4 NEW TESTAMENT AFFIRMATION The apostle Paul, a Jewish Christian, affirmed what Ezekiel and the Old Testament prophets had declared: Israel would be redeemed. God s grace had been given for a time to the Gentiles, those who are not Jews, so that they might respond in faith to Christ. Yet, God had not forgotten His promises to His chosen people. Israel would be saved according to God s divine purposes. His ways of dealing with Israel through hardened hearts that rejected Christ are incomprehensible to our finite minds. God s judgments and ways are unsearchable and beyond understanding. Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has become His counselor? (Romans 11:36). His gifts and calling are irrevocable (Romans 11:29). The people of Israel will receive Christ by faith at the appointed time. BEYOND THE FINISH LINE God gave to special men visions of what lies ahead for all believers. Yet human speech can scarcely describe what heaven will be like Jew and Gentile, male and female, people from every kindred, tribe and nation. Each person will have only one goal in eternity to praise the Lamb seated on the throne. The victory will have been won at Satan s defeat. Beyond the finish line of this victory, no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him... 1 Corinthians 2:9 42

49 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 4: SETTING GOALS Ezekiel s Dry Bones KEY PASSAGES Ezekiel 1; Revelation 4:2 11; Ezekiel 37:1 23 KEY WORD Goals KEY VERSE Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do; forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13 14 KEY THOUGHT Learn how to set goals that honor God. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITY CONNECT the Big Room experience with the Bible story by asking the students questions about what they saw. HUDDLE GROUP 1: What s a Goal? ASK the students to get in their Table Groups and discuss what kind of goals are appropriate for them. The younger students will need help. EXPLAIN that a goal is something you to want to accomplish within a certain time period, like making an A in math or history; becoming a good player on your soccer team; staying healthy by eating the right foods; or reading your Bible every day for a week. ASK them if they have set any goals. TRANSITION to the lesson by describing how in today s Bible passage, the only goal of the main character was to prepare the hearts of the people to return to God. Let s find out how all of this came about. EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGE A. EZEKIEL 1:4 10 [Students in grades 1 and 2 should listen to the teacher read verses 4 10 and then draw pictures to represent what Ezekiel saw.] SAY: Ezekiel was captured and taken by the Babylonians back to their homeland. One day God showed him a 43

50 JOURNEY 4 vision of Himself and this is what he saw. READ Ezekiel 1:4 10. Then ask the younger students to draw the following things to the best of their ability. Four living creatures, most likely angels, with wide wingspans Each creature had four different faces. A man s face that represents intelligence A lion s head that demonstrates strength and power The face of an ox that depicts the willingness to serve An eagle that is swift and quick to soar above the earth EXPLAIN that these images gave Ezekiel a renewed sense of commitment to the awesome God who still loved His children in exile. Ezekiel knew that God wanted him to be a prophet and prepare the people for the time when they would be able to go home. B. EZEKIEL 1:4 28 [Students in grades 3 and 4 will be able to do the following activities.] SHARE information from the Bible Background about Ezekiel and his captivity. God called him to be a prophet in a most unusual way. SAY: Let s read what happened. Verse 4: What four things did Ezekiel see first? Verses 5, 10: What did the living creatures look like? How did each face reflect some aspect of Jesus nature? (man a perfect man; lion a king from the tribe of Judah; ox a servant; eagle like God who is above all His creation) Verses 6, 11: Describe the wings that appeared. Verse 15: What appeared beside each creature? Verse 16: What did wheels have to do with the vision? Verse 17: How did they move? Verses 26 28: How did heaven look to Ezekiel? PROVIDE each student with a blank piece of paper. Tell them to try to draw a picture of what Ezekiel saw. You can go back over the vision slowly as they begin to sketch it out. SAY: Ezekiel is like an artist painting a word picture. God has given him a picture of the cherubim who guard the throne of God. He was showing Ezekiel His glory that had once filled the temple. Now the temple lay in ruins in Jerusalem. Would it ever be filled with God s glory again? Would Ezekiel and his fellow captives ever be able to go home again? Ezekiel knew God was calling him to prophesy to the people about the God who still loved them. 44 C. ANOTHER VISION 500 YEARS LATER: Revelation 4:1 11 [Read portions of this passage aloud to the younger students and let them draw a picture to depict John s vision.] SAY: It is interesting to note that hundreds of

51 JOURNEY 4 years later another man had a vision very similar to that of Ezekiel s. He was alone on an island in the Mediterranean Sea. All of his friends were dead; the leader of his small band of brothers had been killed by the Romans. He was now being punished because he had continued to spread his Master s message of hope. What did the two visions have in common? What could they mean? HAVE the students turn to Revelation 4 as you prepare to discuss the vision of heaven God gave to the Apostle John. Verse 2: Where does it seem that John is standing? (the throne room of heaven) Verse 3: What does he see around the throne? (a rainbow) Verse 6: What was around the throne? (a crystal sea) Verses 7 8: What did the four living creatures look like? How were they similar to Ezekiel s vision? (man, calf, eagle, lion, wings, eyes) Verses 8 9: What do the creatures do all day? (sing praises to God) Verses 10 11: Who else is there singing praises to God? (24 elders) Whom do they represent? (the 12 tribes/the 12 disciples) EXPLAIN: John is seeing what is to come when the elect are gathered around the throne. His vision is almost identical to that of Ezekiel s. Both visions partially convey the majesty of the glory of God that someday we will see. The descriptions are inadequate at best to convey what the men actually saw. SAY: Both visions are meant to prompt the men to tell what they have seen, to affirm the existence of God on His throne and His ultimate plans for those who are called by His name. DESCRIBE how John knew what Ezekiel could only hope for the coming of the Messiah who would reconcile all things to Himself. After a great Tribulation that would devastate the earth, Israel will at last accept Jesus as her Messiah. The Jewish people will join those who make up the Church as Jesus prepares to reign in peace for 1,000 years. EXPLAIN: Ezekiel would have to encourage the Jews to hang on for a while. The Messiah was coming but it would take time. In Ezekiel 37, God showed Ezekiel a valley of dry bones that slowly came back to life. Israel would live again someday in the land God had given her; she would be a nation again and someday she would see Jesus as her Messiah. SAY: John would have to encourage the Church with his vision. Jesus had promised to come back and take His followers to a place He was preparing for them. What a place! John had seen it, and it was worth waiting for. This was the 45

52 JOURNEY 4 46 message he wrote in the book of Revelation. Well, we are still waiting for this to happen. What are we to do in the meantime? SAY: Today s key word is goal. Why do you think God put us here on earth? What does He want us to do until Jesus returns? What goals should we set for ourselves in terms of serving Him? THE CROSSROADS ASK: What do you think the No. 1 goal for your life should be? (to know Christ and to make Him known) SAY: If you have never received Christ as your Savior, then there is no better time than now to do so. Your No. 2 goal should then be what? (to go and tell others who He is) ASK for volunteers to explain the plan of salvation. WRITE on the board what they say and then clarify to make sure the plan of salvation is well understood. CLOSE in prayer. APPLICATION OPPORTUNITIES SAY: The athletes who compete in the Olympic Games train for years to reach the performance goals they have set for themselves. They keep their focus on the prize they are going after to be the best at what they do. How much more should we, who know the Living God and His Son Jesus Christ, focus on the prize that is laid before us eternal life with Christ? Spend time talking with your parents about some personal goals you would like to set for yourself. Ask them to help you in areas that they are concerned about. Make your goals specific. Be sure that each one will bring honor to God. Write them out and put them in your room or on a mirror so that you can see them every day. Be sure to include goals that involve Bible reading and prayer. Share with your teacher how you are learning to grow spiritually. BIBLE LEARNING PROJECT: Finish Line Baton Supplies: cardstock with preprinted key verse, markers, tape Distribute markers and tape among the students. Instruct the students to color their cardstock page, decorating it with Christian symbols. Direct them to roll the page into a baton, and tape securely. Then have each Huddle Group form a single line and prepare for a relay race. Each line needs to have the same number of people. You may need to run several relays in order to give everyone a chance to participate.

53 Establish the finish line and make sure everyone knows where it is and precisely where they are supposed to hand the baton to the next student. Explain how important it is to pass the baton carefully. Caution the students to make sure they do not drop the baton. Run several races and watch for baton drops. Use these as teachable moments. Remind the students of those who have run the race before us. They have passed the message on to us and now we must not drop the baton. Keep the baton you have made some place special in your room so you will remember to run the race well. SCRIPTURE MEMORY: Philippians 3: I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13 14 JOURNEY 4 Divide the passage into phrases that can more easily be memorized. Do this by using flashcards, construction paper, etc. Provide a set of words and phrases to each Huddle Group. Challenge the group to work together to put the verses together. Allow each member of the group to say the verse twice while doing one of these activities: running in place, doing jumping jacks, air boxing, push-ups, etc. When each person is ready to say the verse, ask him/her to describe one goal they have set for themselves that will honor God. Encourage them to persevere until that goal is met. 47

54 JOURNEY 4 REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Who is Ezekiel? (a prophet God sent to His people during the Exile) 2. Describe the vision of God s glory that Ezekiel saw. 3. After seeing this vision, what was Ezekiel s only goal? (to encourage the people to hang on because God still loved them) 4. Who else had a similar vision and wrote about it? (the apostle John) 5. How many years passed between Ezekiel s vision and John s? (500) 6. Where did John record his vision? (book of Revelation) 7. After seeing his vision of heaven, what became John s goal? (to warn the people to repent; that God had prepared a beautiful place where we can live for all eternity with Him) 8. Name two things that appeared in both visions. 9. Name two more things that appeared in both visions. 10. What did the vision of the dry bones mean for Israel? (that someday they would return to their land and God would bless them again) 48

55 JOURNEY 5 STRENGTH TRAINING Daniel in Babylon

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57 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 5: STRENGTH TRAINING Daniel in Babylon Key Passage: Daniel 1 2 Key Word: Fitness Key Thought: Invest time in developing both physical and spiritual fitness. Key Verse: Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. 1 Corinthians 16:19 20 EXILED TOGETHER About 600 years before Jesus was born, Babylonia (modern-day Iraq) was the most powerful kingdom in the Middle East. The Babylonians invaded Judah in 605 B.C. and took many of the Jews captive. Daniel was among the first hostages taken into Babylon by the armies of Nebuchadnezzar. He was 16 at the time. Eight years later in a second invasion, Ezekiel was captured and taken to Babylon. While Ezekiel toiled as a slave proclaiming the glory of God to his own exiled countrymen, God placed Daniel in the palace to proclaim truth to the Gentile government officials. In many ways Daniel s mission was far more dangerous than Ezekiel s. Daniel s whole life was spent in Babylon. He was described by Ezekiel as a righteous man of prayer who was above reproach (Ezekiel 14:14). He exalted the name of God before the empires of the world in the courts of their kings. Like Joseph, Daniel was God s light in the darkness of pagan societies. He remained loyal to the God of his fathers throughout his life. He lived to be more than 90 years old, and during that time he saw the rise and fall of the Babylonian Empire and the establishment of the Medo-Persian Empire. He held high positions under kings Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius and Cyrus. He lived a life without blame and was well-favored. 4 A DIVINE APPOINTMENT As Jewish captives, Daniel and three of his friends were selected to learn the language and culture of the Babylonians. When presented with the king s foods and wine, Daniel and his friends asked to be given only vegetables and water so as to preserve their strength and 4 Understanding Daniel, What the Bible Is All About by Henrietta Mears, Regal Book,

58 JOURNEY 5 health. For 10 days, they were allowed to nourish themselves on this type of diet. At the end of the testing period, they were healthier and fitter than the other young men who had eaten the king s delicacies. When interviewed by King Nebuchadnezzar, the four men were found to be 10 times more knowledgeable than all the magicians and astrologers who were in the realm (Daniel 1:21). The king was amazed at their wisdom and strength of character. A DREAM OF HISTORIC PROPORTIONS The king had a dream that troubled him and he demanded that his advisors explain it. The advisors asked him to tell them the dream, but he couldn t remember it. When they said that no man could interpret a dream if he didn t know what the dream was, the king ordered the execution of all the wise men of Babylon, of whom Daniel was one. When Daniel learned of the king s decree, he asked if the king would give him time so that he might provide an interpretation of the dream. Daniel and his three friends prayed that the God of heaven would reveal the king s dream to them along with the interpretation. This would keep them from being killed along with the rest of the Babylonian wise men. In a night vision, God revealed the secret of King Nebuchadnezzar s dream. Daniel went to the captain of the king s guard and asked him not to execute the advisors, and asked him to allow Daniel to appear before Nebuchadnezzar. When the king asked Daniel if he knew the dream, Daniel declared that there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets. It is He who had shown Daniel the hidden mystery of what he dreamed. 5 Daniel told the king he had seen a great statue standing before him, and he was awestruck. A HEAD OF FINE GOLD The head of the statue was made of gold. It represented the kingdom of Babylon that the Lord had given Nebuchadnezzar to rule. A CHEST AND ARMS OF SILVER The chest and arms of the statue were made of silver. This represented the kingdom of Medo-Persia, which was the next kingdom to rise to power. By 538 B.C. Babylon was under Persian rule. The silver used for this portion of the statue was of lesser value than gold. It symbolized the inferior status of the Medo-Persians to the Babylonians. THE BELLY AND THIGHS OF BRONZE The belly and thighs of the statue were made of bronze, representing the kingdom of Greece. This was the third kingdom to rule over the earth under Alexander the Great. Bronze was a metal of lesser value than silver and thus symbolized the inferior status of Greece when compared to Persia. Eventually, Greece would be conquered by the Romans. 5 The Statue in the Book of Daniel, a pamphlet published by Rose Publishing,

59 JOURNEY 5 LEGS OF IRON AND FEET OF CLAY Bible scholars suggest that the fourth kingdom represented in the statue is probably the Roman Empire, even though the Bible does not identify this kingdom as such. This would be a divided kingdom with both strengths and weaknesses as indicated by the iron and clay. The kingdom itself would be a mixture of people who were not united. It would be the weakest of the four kingdoms and would end in chaos. A STONE CUT WITHOUT HUMAN HANDS As the king looked on, he saw a stone, not of human origin or power, strike the statue at its feet, breaking them into pieces and causing the statue to fall. The statue then began to crumble from the force of the impact. The pieces were carried away by the wind. The stone became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. The stone represented God s eternal kingdom that is more powerful than any other kingdom and can never be destroyed. This is a reference to the Stone the builders rejected, that has now become the chief cornerstone (Acts 4:11; Ephesians 2:20). Having explained the dream to Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel declared that the dream was certain and its interpretation sure (Daniel 2:45). The vision teaches that God will not forget His promises about a servant-redeemer. The events in the vision will be fulfilled in the Son of Man, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will establish an everlasting kingdom on earth (Daniel 2:44; 7:27). THE KING S RESPONSE King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face as if to worship Daniel. He told Daniel that truly his God was the God of gods. He was the Lord of kings and a revealer of secrets (Daniel 2:47). The king then promoted Daniel by making him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief administrator over all the wise men. Daniel asked that his three friends Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be put over the affairs of the province. They had prayed with Daniel that God would reveal the secret of the king s dream. Daniel wanted to reward their faith and to seek their counsel as he sought to be a wise ruler himself. Together, they would live to tell the story of God, who was the revealer of secrets, in this foreign land. Nebuchadnezzar granted his request. Daniel s physical fitness, his godly wisdom and counsel had resulted in honor and blessing he could have never imagined. 53

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61 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 5: STRENGTH TRAINING Daniel in Babylon KEY PASSAGE Daniel 1 2 KEY WORD Fitness KEY VERSE Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. 1 Corinthians 16:19 20 KEY THOUGHT Invest time in developing both physical and spiritual fitness. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES CONNECT the Big Room experience with the Bible story by asking the students questions about what they saw. GOOD CHOICES vs. BAD CHOICES TAKE a survey among your students regarding the food choices they make. ASK which of the following foods they would choose to eat. PUT a chart on the board to keep track of good choices and bad choices. ASK: Which food would you choose? Apples or Pop Tarts? Carrots or French fries? Cake or a banana? Milk or a Coke? Hamburger or grilled chicken? Salad or pizza? Yogurt or Skittles? SAY: In our lesson today, Daniel has some very important food choices to make. What he eats will make a huge difference in terms of what the king will think about him and his friends. Let s see what happened. 55

62 JOURNEY 5 56 EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGE: Daniel 1 PROVIDE some background information on Daniel s arrival in Babylon. REMIND the students about how Israel and Judah had split into two different nations. Both nations refused to obey God s commandments and were finally taken captive, their homeland destroyed and inhabited by idol worshippers. A SCATTERED PEOPLE Verses 3 4: Whom did King Nebuchadnezzar ask to be brought to him? Verse 5: What did the king offer these young men? Verse 6: What are the names of the four Jewish young men who appeared before the king? Verses 8 13: What was Daniel s plan to keep from eating the king s food? Verses 15 16: What happened after 10 days? Verse 17: What special abilities did God give these four young men who remained loyal to Him? Verse 19 20: Why was the king so impressed with the four young men? (10 times smarter than all his other wise men) HUDDLE GROUP 1: A Guide to Meal Planning HAVE the students gather in their table groups. Here are some important questions to have them discuss. Why did the men turn down the delicious food the king offered them? How does this honor God? (1 Corinthians 6:19 Our body is God s temple.) Why do you think God gave us fruits and veggies? Why is it important to make the right eating choices? How are you doing in this area of your life? Are you cooperating with your parents or is there room for improvement? PROVIDE the students with a blank meal-planning guide for the next seven days with three meals a day and two snacks. An example is provided at the end of this teaching plan. Suggest they take the guide home and discuss with their parents. Discuss the importance of drinking plenty of water (six to eight glasses a day). Have them write down when they will drink water each day. Next, the students should write down what fruits and veggies they plan to eat each day and when (five to nine servings a day). At the bottom of the page, ask the students to list the things that are probably not the best food choices for them. Daniel probably would have liked sweets and soft drinks, but what did he say to them? To what other harmful things do we need to say no (drugs, alcohol, smoking, etc.)? Ask the students what they think will be the benefit of eating healthy this

63 JOURNEY 5 week. What are some harmful choices young people often make? Ask the students to bring their meal-planning guides back to class next week and give a report on what happened. SAY: Being physically fit provides the energy and strength you need to focus on those things that make you spiritually fit. WISDOM WHEN YOU NEED IT! SAY: About a year later, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that none of his own counselors (wise men) could understand. The king couldn t remember his dream, so his counselors couldn t even fabricate an interpretation. The king was so angry he issued an order for all the wise men to be killed. That included Daniel and his three friends. But God gave Daniel an idea. READ Daniel 2: What did Daniel ask of the king? How did his three friends help him? Where did Daniel s ability to interpret dreams come from? Whom did he tell the king knew all the secrets of the universe? (vs. 28) Was the king ready to listen to Daniel? HUDDLE GROUP 2: The Rock HAVE the students assemble into their Huddle Groups. PROVIDE each student with a rock. SHOW the students a picture of the statue and the rock that crashed into it. (This will be provided.) EXPLAIN how this rock pointed to the Savior who would come one day. It had not been cut out by human hands. Jesus came from heaven, sent by God Himself. The force of the rock caused the statue to crumble. Jesus has power over all creation and all governments. The stone became a great mountain that filled the whole earth. The kingdom Jesus establishes will one day fill all the earth and can never be destroyed. It will endure forever. Jesus is the Rock of our Salvation! HAVE the students use markers to write on their stone Jesus Is My Rock! [Teachers of younger students should go to THE CROSSROADS section next to complete the lesson.] 57

64 JOURNEY 5 A HISTORY LESSON IN A STATUE [This section is for older students.] SAY: The king s dream is recorded in Daniel 2: READ the passage aloud. SHOW a picture of the statue you have been provided or GIVE the students a blank piece of paper on which they can draw their own picture of the statue. Then EXPLAIN to the older students what the statue represents in terms of the history of the world. [You many want to use a world map to show the location of the countries mentioned in the dream.] The older students will have heard of the different kingdoms and empires. REFER to the background information to EXPLAIN the rock cut out by no human hand. SAY: Daniel could never have interpreted the king s dream without the wisdom and power of God. He gave himself faithfully to prayer every day. He studied the prophecies of old and He knew God s mind. When Daniel needed spiritual strength to stand before the king, God provided a full supply. God will do the same thing for you when you commit your life to Christ. 58 THE CROSSROADS SAY: Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:20 that Jesus is the Chief Cornerstone. That rock that King Nebuchadnezzar saw flying into the statue was Jesus and the kingdom of believers who would follow Him. Jesus told Peter that He would build His Church on the rock of faith that Peter represented. Daniel saw the Rock before the world ever heard of the man, Christ Jesus. What kind of rock are you standing on? Is it solid or is it shifting? Today you can receive Christ as the Rock of your salvation. If you already know Jesus but there are some areas in your life that need help, rededicate yourself and ask Jesus for help. [Close in prayer as you explain how to receive Christ as Savior.] APPLICATION OPPORTUNITIES ASK the students to discuss ways they can demonstrate better physical and spiritual fitness. What are some ways to do some Strength Training in these areas? Here are some suggestions to discuss. Spend a few minutes talking to your parents about areas in your life in which you need to make some changes. These areas may involve your eating habits, your bedtime schedules, your study habits, etc. Ask your parents to help you make some changes that will make you more physically and spiritually fit. Ask your parents to point out some Scripture verses that would help you become a stronger believer. Talk to other friends who are trying to get spiritually fit and share ideas. Make Bible study and prayer the No. 1 priority in the morning.

65 JOURNEY 5 SCRIPTURE MEMORY: 1 Corinthians 6:19 20 [Younger students should memorize only the last three lines of these verses.] Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. 1 Corinthians 6:19 20 HAVE the students locate these verses in the Bible. DISCUSS the key words: temple, Holy Spirit, price and glorify. DEMONSTRATE how to do a jumping jack exercise. HAVE the students say each phrase of the verse as they do jumping jacks. HAVE them repeat the verses again while they run in place. HAVE them say the verses again as they skip around the room. REMIND them that spiritual fitness requires attention every day, just like physical fitness. BIBLE LEARNING ACTIVITY: Medal of Strength Supplies: metal bottle caps, plastic crosses, beads, precut cord, glue dots Distribute glue dots among the students. Provide each student one bottle cap, a plastic cross, a precut cord and three beads. Instruct the students to affix the cross to the top of the bottle cap using the glue dot. Thread the cord through the hook of the bottle cap. Holding the two sides of the cord together, thread both of the cord ends through the three beads. Separate the cords then tie the ends together in a knot to secure around one s neck. Encourage the students to wear their medal to remind them to seek God s Word, His power and His presence in their lives. God will give them the spiritual fitness they need. 59

66 JOURNEY 5 A LOOK AT THE BOOK HAVE the students look up Hebrews 12:1 2 and Philippians 2:5 11. READ the passages aloud. DISCUSS how these two passages describe the rock that Daniel saw in the king s dream. Who is the Chief Cornerstone in Ephesians 2:20? REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. How did Daniel end up in Babylon? (taken captive when Judah was conquered) 2. What prophet was taken prisoner along with Daniel and his friends? (Ezekiel) 3. Who were the three young men who stood with Daniel before King Nebuchadnezzar? (Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego) 4. What did the king want the young men to do? (to eat the same food as the king) 5. Why did Daniel refuse to do this? (He had purposed in his heart not to do harm to his body by eating the rich foods of his captors.) 6. What did he suggest to the king s officials? (that he and his three friends be allowed to eat vegetables and drink water for 10 days) 7. After 10 days, how did things turn out? (Daniel and his friends were healthier, more energetic and mentally sharper than the youth who ate the king s food. They were 10 times smarter than the king s own officials.) 8. How did Daniel explain the king s dream? (different metals represented different nations; the rock represented the kingdom of the coming Messiah) 9. Who is the Chief Cornerstone? (Jesus the Christ, the Son of God) 60

67 A MEAL-PLANNING GUIDE JOURNEY 5 Guidelines: Make healthy choices for each meal and snack. Include protein, whole grains, one or two dairy servings, at least five servings of fruits and vegetables, and at least 48 to 64 oz. of water a day. Breakfast Lunch Dinner Snacks/Water Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 61

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69 JOURNEY 6 COOL UNDER PRESSURE The Fiery Furnace

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71 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 6: COOL UNDER PRESSURE The Fiery Furnace Key Passage: Daniel 3:1 30 Key Word: Trust Key Thought: Trust God to protect you in every situation. Key Verse: So we can confidently say The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me? Hebrews 13:6 THE BEST AND THE BRIGHTEST The Babylonian invaders had taken captive a group of young men who were the best and the brightest Judah had to offer. These young adults were taken back to Babylon not just because of their strength and intellect, but also because their outstanding abilities could benefit Babylon and guarantee the cooperation of the people of Judah. Daniel and three of his friends were among the young men taken captive. Daniel soon rose to a position of prominence in the king s court for many reasons. He and his friends proved to be superior in terms of their physical health and strength and intellectual abilities. God had been with them during the 10-day experiment of abstaining from eating the king s delicacies. God blessed their courage and conviction so that even Nebuchadnezzar realized these men were special. He chose these four to serve close beside him in the palace. IMPENDING CRISIS Now a crisis loomed on the horizon one that would need God s intervention if Daniel s three friends were to survive. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were Babylonian names given to them after they arrived in their captive country. What happened to these three men is an excellent illustration of what it means to stand up for one s convictions with unfailing trust in God. Nebuchadnezzar had built a golden statue of himself that was 90 feet tall. It may have been a response to Daniel s interpretation of his dream where Babylon was represented by a golden head. To Nebuchadnezzar, though, the statue was an expression of his greatness and power. His subjects could now be made to bow down and worship such a replica of himself. The statue was probably not solid gold but overlaid with gold. It would have stood the height of a 10-story building and been a very impressive sight from the plain of Dura outside the capital city. Precise instructions were given as to how and when people would 65

72 JOURNEY 6 bow down to worship the image. Anyone who refused to bow down would be thrown into a fiery furnace (Daniel 3:6). Some of the temple priests of Babylon were jealous of the king s favor on the young Jewish men. They informed Nebuchadnezzar that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego would not bow down in worship of the golden image. The young men remembered what God had said: You shall not make for yourself an idol... You shall not bow down to them or worship them (Exodus 20:4 5). The king called for them to appear before him. He told them if they continued to refuse, he would have no choice but to put them in a burning fiery furnace. Their answer to his challenge was respectful but unyielding. Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up. Daniel 3:17 A KING IN A CORNER The king was outraged; his countenance revealed his fury at their refusal. He demanded the fire be made seven times hotter than it was usually heated. The three men were bound with all their clothes on and tossed into the furnace. The fire was so hot that the king s men who tossed them into the furnace were killed immediately. THE KING IN THE FIRE King Nebuchadnezzar looked into the furnace hoping to see the men burning up, but instead he saw a fourth man walking in the middle of the fire with the other three. None of the men appeared hurt. The Bible says that this fourth person was like the son of god (Daniel 3:25). He appeared to be some type of supernatural being. Bible scholars believe this to be a preincarnate appearance of Jesus in all probability. This fourth person provided a rescue so complete that the clothes of the three men were not even singed nor did they smell of smoke. A KING IN AWE Nebuchadnezzar was astonished. He recognized this salvation as having come from the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Their God had protected them from him; their God had covered their bodies with His supernatural presence; their God was the God! Nebuchadnezzar then made a decree that no one throughout all the land could speak anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. If they did, they would be cut into pieces and their houses turned to heaps of ash. 66

73 JOURNEY 6 THE FOURTH MAN Hundreds of years later, the man in the furnace with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego left His home in heaven to come to earth to offer His salvation to all. Being in the form of a man, He humbled himself by becoming obedient even to the point of death on a cross. God has now highly exalted Him and given Him a name that will cause every knee to bow, both in heaven and on earth. One day soon every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:8 11). And, just as Nebuchadnezzar had declared: His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and His dominion will be from generation to generation (Daniel 4:3). In the middle of the fiery furnace, the scarlet thread makes its presence known. THE CONCLUSION OF THE MATTER The God who made us knows everything that happens to us. He is with us at all times and in all places. Because we are flesh and blood, we can be in only one place at a time. But God is a Spirit; He is not limited by time or space. He can be everywhere at the same time even in the midst of a fiery furnace. What courage these three men showed in the face of persecution! Their witness was a testimony to the one true God the God who made heaven and earth that He alone is God. Their own lives were spared by the supernatural fourth man. The Jewish captives were encouraged by their brave example to continue trusting in God and to hold to their faith even in this foreign land. Nebuchadnezzar recognized and exalted the power of the one true God throughout the nation (Daniel 4:34 35). Daniel recorded this amazing story for future generations as a witness to the power of God s providential care for His people. Nebuchadnezzar s life ended as a madman. He thought himself a wild animal and lived and ate as one with them (Daniel 4:28 34). He had set himself up as a rival against almighty God, having built Babylon by his power and for the glory of his majesty. Through his insanity, his eyes were opened and his conscience touched. He confessed the greatness of God and learned that man is not the architect of his own fortune. 6 6 Ibid., p

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75 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 6: COOL UNDER PRESSURE The Fiery Furnace KEY PASSAGE Daniel 3:1 30 KEY WORD Trust KEY VERSE So we can confidently say, The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me? Hebrews 13:6 KEY THOUGHT Trust God to protect you in every situation. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITY A. CONNECT the Big Room experience with the Bible story by asking the students questions about what they saw. B. HOT! HOT! HOT! HAVE the students discuss situations they have experienced that involved being around something that was very hot, for example: The weather Something that burned them Something spicy they ate A fire they saw burning and/or got close to ASK them to think about how hot they felt and then to multiply that by seven and imagine how much hotter things could really get. TRANSITION to today s story by explaining that no matter how hot it got, three Old Testament characters stayed cool! EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGE: Daniel 3 ASK the students if they have ever heard of Hananiah, Mischael and Azariah. If they say no, ask them to think again. SAY: These guys got put into a very hot situation that could have ended up killing them, but they survived. Now do you know who they are? You may be familiar with their other names: Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Now do you remember? 69

76 JOURNEY 6 Let s take a new look at an old story and see what insights we might find. Open your Bibles to Daniel 3. Verses 1 7: What had King Nebuchadnezzar built? What was his order? What was the signal for the people to bow? Try to find something in the room to compare to the 90-foot statue. Draw to scale two lines on the marker board, one that represents 90 feet and the other 6 feet, the average height of a man. (If one inch equals 9 feet, then the long line could be 10 inches long and the short line 2/3 of an inch long.) Comment on how huge the statue would have seemed to an ordinary man. It was overlaid with gold and would have shone brilliantly in the sunlight. What was the penalty for not bowing down? [A picture of this will be provided.] Verses 11 12: Who refused to bow down to the king s statue? Who told the king? Why wouldn t the three men bow down? (Exodus 20:4) Verses 13 15: How did the king react when they refused to bow down? Verses 16 18: What did Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego tell the king? Wow! How brave was that? What would you have done? Verses 19 21: What were the king s orders? Verses 22 23: How hot was the fire? What happened to the king s men? Verses 24 25: What did the king see in the fire? (a fourth man) Who could this have been? (Refer to Bible Background info.) Verse 26: When the king called the men to come out of the fire, what did He call them? (Servants of the Most High God) What caused the king to change his mind? Verse 27: What did the king s men discover when they examined the three men? Verse 29: What new law did the king make? HUDDLE GROUP 1: The Old Fiery Furnace Since most students are visual learners, GIVE them an opportunity to create a visual image of the story about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. HAVE the students get into their table groups. Provide each group a piece of poster board or butcher paper and markers. Ask them to draw a picture showing the three men, clothed and bound, in the furnace with flames everywhere. Tell them to include some type of image to represent the fourth man. Allow each group to share their poster with the class. 70

77 JOURNEY 6 THE CROSSROADS ASK: Who was the fourth man the king described in Daniel 3:25? His identity cannot be known for sure. SUGGEST that it might have been a preincarnate appearance of Jesus the Lord Himself. He could have joined the three in the fire to provide a shield of protection so complete that their clothing was not even burned nor did they smell like smoke. ASK: Why do you think God saved the men from death? Could it have been their witness? Their faith? Their total commitment to stand for God no matter the consequences? All of these reasons? SAY: When we stand up for God, how much pleasure does that bring to Him? Jesus said in Matthew 10:32 that whoever confesses me before men, him will I also confess before the Father in heaven. Who among us does not want to hear Jesus praising us to God because we have witnessed for Him on earth? We have no one in heaven but Jesus to intercede on our behalf. Why would anyone not want to have that kind of protection? CLOSE in prayer as you share the plan of salvation. HUDDLE GROUP 2: Application Opportunities HAVE students gather at their tables to discuss the following scenarios. ASK someone to read each situation and then ALLOW the students to describe how a Christian could take a stand and witness for Christ. A. You are spending the night with a friend. After his/her parents go to bed, your friend turns the TV on to watch a movie that contains bad language and violence. What would you do? B. You are standing in the lunch line at school. Your friend drops his/her lunch money and a person known as a bully grabs it and won t give it back. What do you do? C. You play soccer on a team in your city. Several team members take God s name in vain when someone on the team messes up. What do you do when this happens? D. Do you think it is hard to stand up for what is right? Why or why not? Do you know anyone who is willing to stand up for God s truth? How do you think God feels about that person? 71

78 JOURNEY 6 BIBLE LEARNING ACTIVITY: Taking the Heat for My Faith Supplies: white tiles, Sharpies Distribute Sharpies among the students. Provide a tile to each student. Instruct the students to write one of these phrases and the Bible reference Daniel 3:25 on the tile then decorate as desired. Cool in the Son Jesus Stands Up to the Heat Taking the Heat with Jesus Discuss with the students that when they feel anxious or scared God is always with us and we can call on Him at any time for comfort. If we live our lives for Christ and stand firm in our commitments to Him, we have nothing to fear. SCRIPTURE MEMORY: Hebrews 13:6 SAY: When our trust and confidence in the Lord is secure and steadfast, we can be bold and stand to defend His truth. This verse states that we need not fear what man can do to us.... so we can confidently say, The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me? Hebrews 13:6 Comment on the key words: confidently, helper, fear and what. In each Huddle Group, give students the opportunity to say the verse over and over until they have memorized it. Write the verse on the board and erase words gradually until the group can say the verse without looking at any words. Allow students to stand on a chair or stepstool and say the verse out loud with boldness and confidence. A LOOK AT THE BOOK HAVE the students look up these stories about other people who were brave enough to stand up for God and were protected by Him. David against Goliath 1 Samuel 17:37 Ruth and Naomi Ruth 1:16 17 Joshua at Jericho Joshua 6:20 Gideon and the Midianites Judges 7:22 David and Saul 1 Samuel 18:

79 JOURNEY 6 REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Who were Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah? (Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego) 2. Who was the king of Babylon at this time? (Nebuchadnezzar) 3. What did he build to honor himself? (a statue 90 feet tall) 4. What did he command the people to do? (bow down to the statue) 5. Why were Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego being punished? (because they would not bow down) 6. How hot was the fire? (seven times hotter than normal) 7. What happened to Daniel s friends when they were thrown into the fire? (They did not burn up.) 8. What image appeared in the midst of the fire? (an image of a fourth man who was referred to as the Son of God) 9. Who was this? (It could have been an image of Jesus before He was born into this world.) 10. When the men were taken out of the furnace, what condition were they in? (no singed hair, no smell of smoke, no garments burned by fire) 11. What decree did Nebuchadnezzar make? (No one was to ever to speak a word against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego because He was the true God.) 73

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81 JOURNEY 7 A SHUT OUT Daniel in The Lions Den

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83 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 7: A SHUT OUT Daniel in the Lions Den Key Passage: Daniel 6 Key Word: Commitment Key Thought: Keep your commitment to God no matter what happens. Key Verse: Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. Psalm 37:5 A NEW KING IN TOWN In the last journey, we examined how God had taken care of Daniel s three friends. In this lesson, we will see how God took care of Daniel. More than 65 years had passed since the fiery furnace incident. Daniel predicted many events and all had come to pass, including Nebuchadnezzar s insanity and the fall of Babylon to the Medes and the Persians (Daniel 5:31). After Nebuchadnezzar died, one of his sons, Belshazzar, was made king sometime between 539 and 550 B.C., according to the historian Herodotus. One night the king gave a great feast with more than a thousand guests. In the presence of all, he called for the sacred gold and silver vessels that had been taken from the temple in Jerusalem to be brought to him. He filled them with wine and gave them to his lords, his wives and concubines to drink. As they drank, they praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze and iron. In that very hour, the fingers of a man s hand appeared and wrote a message on the wall of the palace. The king s demeanor suddenly changed; he was terrified and began to shake. He called for the astrologers and soothsayers to explain what the writing meant, but none could interpret it. Hearing of the event, the queen came to the banquet hall to see what was going on. When she saw the emotional state of the king, she advised him to call for Daniel. This was a man, the queen said, who has the spirit of the Holy God living inside him; he is full of light, understanding and wisdom (Daniel 5:14). He will be able to interpret the writing for you. THE HANDWRITING ON THE WALL: Daniel 5:13 23 Daniel came before the king when he was called. When the king offered him gifts for the interpretation, Daniel refused them. He reminded him of what God had taught Nebuchadnezzar and how he had given him a kingdom, power and honor. Daniel rebuked 77

84 JOURNEY 7 Belshazzar for not having humbled himself before this God that his father had come to honor. This was the God who holds the king s breath in His hand and knows all his ways. Daniel went on to explain the writing on the wall. The language of the message was Aramaic. It described the end of the Babylonian Empire as being at hand. 7 Belshazzar s kingdom had been numbered for destruction. The king himself had been evaluated and found lacking. The kingdom of Babylon would be taken away and given to the Medes and the Persians. After hearing the interpretation, Belshazzar made Daniel third in command throughout the land, but that very night, Belshazzar was killed and soon Darius the Mede became the next ruler (Daniel 5:30 31). THE CHEST AND THE ARMS RISE UP Twenty-three years after the death of Nebuchadnezzar, the city of Babylon fell into the hands of the Medes and the Persians. They had been portrayed as the silver-plated chest and arms in Nebuchadnezzar s statue. There was a new king now whose name was Darius. He immediately appointed Daniel as one of the three governors of Babylon. Daniel was an old man now, probably near 80, and his years of experience made him a valued advisor and source of information. Daniel did such a good job as one of the three administrators that the king decided to elevate him to a position of authority over all officials throughout the kingdom. A TRAP IS SET This arrangement was most unsatisfactory to the other officials. They spied on Daniel, hoping to catch him doing something wrong. They decided to use his relationship with God as a way of demonstrating his unfaithfulness to Darius. They knew that Daniel would not compromise his faith for any reason because they had witnessed how he had prayed to his God three times a day. They finally convinced the king to make a law that everyone in the kingdom should only pray to him. The rulers of ancient civilizations often thought of themselves as gods and liked the idea of their subjects bowing down to them in submission. King Darius approved of their suggestion, so with the stroke of his pen, he signed the law into action. Since the king had agreed to the terms of the law, it could not be revoked. He would be forced to carry it out even if he didn t want to. THE KING S LAW Soon the men caught Daniel praying to God just as he had done every day of his life. Daniel knew of the decree about prayer, but it caused him not one minute s hesitation. He continued to pray. He was taken before the king. Darius was trapped. He was grief-stricken 78 7 The Believer s Study Bible, W.A. Criswell, ed., Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1991, pp

85 JOURNEY 7 because he cared so much for Daniel, but he had to obey his own law. He was forced to order that Daniel be thrown into a den of lions. The den would be closed with a rock and sealed so that no one could rescue Daniel. Before the stone was put into its final place, Darius called out to Daniel to say that he hoped his God would deliver him continually throughout the night (Daniel 6:16). Once the stone was in place, the king placed his own official seal to secure it. Inside, Daniel must have been amazed to watch the animals settle in for a peaceful night on the floor of the den. THE KING S AGONY Darius returned to the palace and tried to sleep, but it was impossible. As soon as it was light, the king ran back to the den where the lions were kept. As he got near, he began to cry out in anguish, O, Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions? (Daniel 6:20). He suddenly heard Daniel s joyful reply: O king, live forever! My God sent his angel and shut the lions mouths, and they have not harmed me, because I was found blameless before him; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm (Daniel 6:21 22). The king was elated to hear the prophet s voice. He knew Daniel had done nothing wrong. He ordered that Daniel be immediately taken up out of the pit. He commanded the men who had organized the plot against Daniel to be thrown into the lions den, including their children and their wives. The lions with mouths unrestrained literally devoured the people in midair before their bodies could reach the bottom of the den. THE KING S DECREE By this time, Daniel was more than 80 years old. He had been in captivity 66 years. His long life of faith and unwavering trust in God s provision for all his needs had saved him from destruction and brought glory to God. This incident led King Darius to issue a decree to all the people, nations and languages on the earth. People throughout his dominion were to stand in awe and fear before the God of Daniel (Daniel 6:26). For the third time, the behavior of Daniel, along with his friends, had caused strong and mighty kings to humble themselves and declare that Daniel s God was the living God whose kingdom would never pass away (Daniel 6:26). CHRIST IN THE BOOK OF DANIEL There are many veiled references to Christ in the book of Daniel. He is the Great Stone who caused the statue in Nebuchadnezzar s dream to fall (Daniel 2:34 35). He is the Son of Man coming in glory to meet the Ancient of Days (Daniel 7:13). He is the fourth Man in the fiery furnace with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. He is with the angel who closed the mouths of the lions. He is in the midst of Daniel s prophecy about the coming 70 weeks, waiting to take His rightful place as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is the scarlet thread of redemption woven into every page of God s Holy Word. 79

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87 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 7: A SHUT OUT Daniel in the Lions Den KEY PASSAGE Daniel 6 KEY WORD Commitment KEY VERSE Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. Psalm 37:5 KEY THOUGHT Keep your commitment to God no matter what happens. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES CONNECT the Big Room experience with the Bible story by asking the students questions about what they saw. HUDDLE GROUP 1 EXPLAIN to the students that you need their help today to decipher a type of coded message. ASK them to gather into their Huddle Groups. Write the words of this sentence on separate sheets of paper: Heaven belongs to those persons who have trusted Christ as their Savior. Direct their attention to the wall where you have hung these 12 sheets of paper in random word order. Tell the students you have written a special message to them, now displayed on the wall, and you want them to try to figure it out. Allow three or four minutes to do this. If they are successful, tell them they have read the handwriting on the wall. Next, tell them you have another message on the wall that is in the Bible lesson for today. Ask for their help in deciphering its meaning. Point to your four posters with these words: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. When the students say they cannot figure it out, explain that it is a message from ancient Babylon. Suggest that everyone open their Bibles to Daniel 5 to see if they can decipher the message. 81

88 JOURNEY 7 82 EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGE Daniel 5:22 30: The Handwriting on the Wall This expression comes from Daniel 5:22 30, when Belshazzar, the successor to Nebuchadnezzar, was entertaining his friends at a large banquet. He ordered the servants to bring in the gold and silver vessels stolen from the temple in Jerusalem. The guests drank wine from these holy vessels as they worshipped their own gold and silver idols. Suddenly in the room, there appeared the fingers of a man s hand, writing something on the wall. There were four words that contained a message from God to Belshazzar. They were: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. The king called for all the wise men and astrologers to come and interpret the meaning of the writing, but no one could. Then the queen remembered that Daniel was an interpreter of dreams and visions. He was called in and promised great rewards if only he could explain the meaning of the handwriting. READ what Daniel told the king as recorded in Daniel 5 and ask these questions: Verse 26: What was going to happen to the kingdom? Verse 27: What did God think of the king? Verse 28: Who would now rule the area known as Babylon? Verse 29: What did Daniel receive for speaking the truth? Verse 30: What happened to Belshazzar that night? Therefore, the phrase handwriting on the wall came to mean that something terrible was about to happen. The king saw the handwriting predicting his death, and that very night he died. God had once again used His prophet Daniel to reveal His truth. God s protection on Daniel s life is a testimony to Daniel s commitment to God. Daniel 6: Daniel in the Lions Den SAY: Daniel had grown old in Babylon. Through the years, he had become a valued advisor to every king who ruled. King Darius so loved Daniel that he elevated him to a position of authority over the other officials. This made them furious, and they looked for ways to discredit Daniel. Have the students look up the following verses and discuss these questions. Verses 3 4: Why were the other government officials jealous of Daniel? Verses 5 9: What did they convince the king to do that was sure to hurt Daniel? Verse 10: Knowing about the new law, what did Daniel do all day long?

89 JOURNEY 7 Verses 11 13: What did the officials charge Daniel with? Verses 16 17: What did the king have to do? Did he want to do it? How did he think Daniel might escape? Verses 18 20: How did the king react in the morning? Verses 21 23: How did Daniel explain the miracle? Verses 24 28: What did Darius think of Daniel s God? THE CROSSROADS ASK: How did God protect Daniel? Why was Daniel important to God? (his commitment, his faith, his prayer life, his witness, his willingness to speak the truth even when it might be easier to lie) How did God use Daniel in a foreign land? Did Daniel ever see his homeland again? (no) How do we know God loved Daniel? (He answered his prayers and gave him visions to see the future and warn the people.) How does God know that you love Him? How does your commitment to Him really look? [Share the plan of salvation and the importance of praying and reading God s Word every day.] HUDDLE GROUP 2: Application Opportunities SAY: Daniel s commitment to God was what made him so exceptional. ASK: Will you dare to be a Daniel? If so, what will that look like in your everyday life? HAVE the students get into their Huddle Groups and describe what a modernday Daniel might look like. PROVIDE paper for them to list the qualities of a modern-day Daniel. BIBLE LEARNING ACTIVITY: The Strength of a Lion Plaque Supplies: cardboard frames, colored craft foil squares, ballpoint pens, preprinted lion tracer sheet, tape, markers Distribute markers, pens and tape among the students. Provide a cardboard frame, foil square and lion tracer sheet for each student. Instruct the students to place the lion tracer sheet on top of the foil square and trace over the lines with their pen, pressing hard. When complete, have them tape the foil square onto the back of the frame. Direct the students to write Psalm 46:1 on the top of the frame and decorate as desired. Remind the students that our strength comes from God who made heaven and earth. He is our refuge and our rock. His strength is our strength. Our commitment to Him must remain strong all the days of our lives. He is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. 83

90 JOURNEY 7 84 SCRIPTURE MEMORY: Psalm 37:5 PROVIDE each Huddle Group with 14 half sheets of paper. HAVE the students write out each word of the key verse on a half sheet of paper. ASK the table Huddle Group Leaders to scramble the words and then have one student at a time put them in the right order. REPEAT the process until everyone at the table has had a chance to assemble the key verse. REWARD students in the Huddle Group who can stand and say the verse in unison from memory. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. Psalm 37:5 A LOOK AT THE BOOK ASK the students to complete the following activities. Look up Daniel 5:14. Daniel had a great reputation. Write down five words that you want other people to use when describing you. Look up Daniel 6:10. Write down three times when you are going to stop today and pray to God. Look up Genesis 49:8 9 and Revelation 5:5. Whom are these verses talking about? Who is this Lion and where did He come from? Why was a lion chosen to be the character of Aslan in the Chronicles of Narnia? What makes a lion suitable for this part? REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. What was the name of the king who succeeded Nebuchadnezzar as king of Babylon? (Belshazzar) 2. What did the king do at a banquet that showed his contempt for the worship of Daniel s God? (He had his guests drink from the sacred cups that had been stolen out of the temple.) 3. What suddenly appeared within the banquet room? (a hand, writing on the wall) 4. Describe one thing the message communicated. (The king s days were numbered. The king lacked the character to be wise and honorable. Babylon would be divided.) 5. What happened to Belshazzar that night? (He suddenly died.) 6. Who became king next? (Darius) 7. How did Darius feel about Daniel? (He respected him and gave him much authority in the land.) 8. How was Daniel rewarded for his interpretation? (with a purple robe, a gold chair and a promotion to the third-highest-ranking position in the land)

91 JOURNEY 7 9. What kind of a trap did the other Babylonian officials set for Daniel? (They got the king to make a law that said anyone who prays to a god other than to the king should be thrown into a lions den.) 10. What did Daniel s prayer life look like? (He prayed three times a day as he faced old Jerusalem.) 11. What was the king bound to do, because of his own law? (He had to have Daniel thrown into the lions den.) 12. What happened that night in the den of lions? (God caused the lions to close their mouths and leave Daniel alone.) 13. Was King Darius happy about this? (yes) 14. What new proclamation did Darius make? (that Daniel s God was God and that He was to be honored and respected) 15. How had Daniel s commitment to God saved his life? (God used Daniel to proclaim His name to a heathen people in a foreign land.) 85

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93 JOURNEY 8 DELAY OF GAME The 70 Weeks of Daniel s Prophecy

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95 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 8: DELAY OF GAME The 70 Weeks of Daniel s Prophecy Key Passage: Daniel 9 Key Word: Timing Key Thought: Learn to wait for God s perfect timing in your life. Key Verse:... at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:10 DELAY AND CAUTION It is interesting to watch the Olympic relay races and the skill and precision the runners demonstrate as they pass the baton from one runner to the next. Occasionally, the timing for the pass is a little off and the baton is dropped, costing precious seconds that must be made up. The prophet Daniel also understood the importance of timing if God s plan of redemption was to be passed from one generation to the next. This great man of God faithfully interceded for Israel s restoration. God sent the angel Gabriel to Daniel to deliver a message of hope for the future. This prophecy covered 70 periods of time, each covering seven years. It is often called Daniel s 70 weeks, where the word week means seven years, giving a total of 490 years (70 x 7). As we shall see in this lesson, these 490 years are broken into two periods: one of 483 years and the second period of seven years. This period of time will culminate in Israel s final restoration. The people needed to listen to what Daniel had seen regarding Israel s future. There was hope for the nation, but there would be heartache before ultimate victory. God s timing is perfect in all things. THE MESSIAH There is only one passage in the Bible that refers to God s Redeemer as Messiah (meaning anointed one ). It is found in Daniel 9:26. In other Old Testament passages, He is called Shiloh (Genesis 49:10); the Root of Jesse (Isaiah 11:10), the Righteous Branch (Jeremiah 23:5); and the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). In the Old Testament, the Messiah, or the Anointed One, is pictured as one who will put an end to conflicts and war and usher in a universal period of peace and righteousness. This describes what believers will experience 89

96 JOURNEY 8 90 as they live with Christ during the Millennium. Like the apostle John, Daniel was given a panoramic view of God s plan of redemption through Christ that extended through the Tribulation and the Millennium into eternity future. Having discovered Jeremiah s prophecy of 70 years of exile for the people of Judah (Daniel 9:2), Daniel realized that the period of the exile was nearing an end. Daniel went before the Lord to pour out his heart in confession for the sins of Israel. He acknowledged that God was righteous in punishing their sin, for they were guilty as charged. Yet, Daniel pleaded with God to turn from His anger and show His people His great mercy. Daniel s prayer is compelling. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive, O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name. Daniel 9:19 GOD S ANSWER DELIVERED While Daniel continued to pray, he became aware of the presence of the angel Gabriel in the form of a man (Daniel 9:21). Daniel s intercession for Israel had prompted God to dispatch a heavenly messenger who would outline God s purpose for Israel until the kingdom of God was permanently established on earth. Gabriel affirmed to Daniel that in God s sight, he was greatly beloved (Daniel 9:23). Gabriel laid out the following outline of things to come. The first seven periods covering 49 years began when King Cyrus gave permission (March 14, 445 B.C.) to rebuild Jerusalem under the leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah. The next 62 periods covering 434 years began at the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem and ended at the Crucifixion when Messiah was cut off (Daniel 9:25 26.) From the time of the decree to rebuild Jerusalem (March 14, 445 B.C.) until Messiah was crucified, a period of 69 weeks, or 483 years, elapsed. Jesus was hailed as the King of the Jews as he entered Jerusalem in April of 33 A.D. [Special Note: Mathematically, this appears to be a period of 478 years. The Jewish lunar calendar provided for 360 days a year, while the Gregorian solar calendar is based on 365 days a year. When the difference in days per year is reconciled between the two calendars, the result is the passage of 483 years at the time Jesus entered Jerusalem at Passover. This marked the end of the 69 weeks.] At the end of the 69 weeks, the Messiah was to be cut off (Daniel 9:26). Jesus was killed five days after entering Jerusalem. Since the end of this period of 483 years ( ), Israel s life as a nation has stopped temporarily a delay of game, so to speak. We are currently living in this period of unknown duration while the Gospel is given to the Gentile nations of the world. The 70 th week or seven-year period has not yet begun. As we wait in this period of delay, we anticipate the Rapture and Christ s Second Coming.

97 JOURNEY 8 This 70 th week begins after the Rapture, when the Antichrist takes power and makes a covenant with the Jews and then breaks it. This ushers in the time of trouble of Daniel 12:1 and the Great Tribulation described in Revelation. This final, 70 th week will end in victory for the Messiah, the Church and for Israel, but the earth itself will endure great destruction before that happens. Gabriel explained the following to Daniel. A prince from this world will come who will destroy Jerusalem and the temple. This is a reference to the Antichrist described in Daniel 7:8. He will make a covenant with Israel for a period of seven years. After three and a half years, he will break the covenant by prohibiting all worship in the temple and destroying the city of Jerusalem. Then will come the last half of the 70 th week, known as the abomination of desolation (Daniel 9:27; 12:1). DELAY OF GAME In Daniel s prophecy, there appears to be a temporary gap of time between weeks 69 and 70. We now know that this gap represents the Age of the Church in which we are living. This is the time of the Gentiles when nations other than Israel have received the truth about Jesus through the witness of the disciples of Christ. The length of this gap was not revealed to Daniel or to any other Old Testament prophet. This gap has come to be known as the Church Age. In 1 Thessalonians 4:13 17, the apostle Paul describes a time when the Church, those who have placed their faith in Christ, will be raptured or carried off into heaven to be with Christ. This, many Bible scholars believe, will happen prior to the beginning of week 70 of Daniel s prophecy. THE END The last three and a half years of the 70 th week will contain the destruction described in Revelation 16:13 16; 19:17. This period concludes when Christ returns to earth to defeat the forces of Satan. Satan will be bound for 1,000 years. A golden age is ushered in on earth where Christ rules with His elect the Church and those from Israel who have acknowledged Christ as the Messiah. DANIEL, A MAN OF HEAVENLY VISION AND HONOR Daniel was an exceptional man in the sight of God. Repeatedly, God declared His love for Daniel and for good reason (Daniel 9:19; 10:11, 19). As an exile, Daniel s faith and commitment to the God of his fathers was paramount. No threat of death among lions could make him renounce Jehovah. Acutely aware of God s capacity for mercy, he interceded on behalf of his fellow Jews through prayer and fasting. His desire to know God and do His will enabled God to use him in the courts of kings 91

98 JOURNEY 8 through his interpretation of dream and visions. Like Joseph, God providentially used him in a pagan land as a statesman and trusted companion of kings. His instruction of other wise men in Babylon and the historical records they produced may have been the catalyst that spurred the Magi from the East to go in search of a king born in Judea almost 500 years after David s death. God enabled Daniel to draw back the curtain of time to unveil the hidden things of the future as no one had before. He showed us how God demonstrated His power to the nations of the world even with His people in captivity. Daniel recorded how the great kings of the world acknowledged God as the living God, the Most High, the King of Heaven. Daniel s testimony points his readers to the Messiah and the scarlet thread of redemption that proceeds according to God s timetable. 92

99 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 8: DELAY OF GAME The 70 Weeks of Daniel s Prophecy KEY PASSAGE Daniel 9 KEY WORD Timing KEY VERSE... at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:10 KEY THOUGHT Learn to wait for God s perfect timing in your life. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES CONNECT the Big Room experience with the Bible story by asking the students questions about what they saw. PASSING THE BATON DISCUSS with your students what is involved in running a relay race. They may have observed this during the Olympic games. COMMENT on the need for good timing as the baton is passed to the next runner. SAY: Let s have our own race and see how hard it is to do it perfectly every time. DIVIDE your class into two teams. DESIGNATE areas to accommodate two running lanes. CHOOSE an object (bean bag, cardboard tube, etc.) for students to pass to one another as the relay race progresses. ALLOW the race to proceed until all students have had a chance to win. DISCUSS any incidents that resulted in the baton being dropped. TRANSITION to the Bible lesson for the day by commenting on Daniel s faithfulness to God throughout his years in Babylon. During his lifetime, Daniel served four different kings who ruled over Babylon: Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius and Cyrus. Each king found him to be a remarkable man of faith, full of wisdom only God could give him. In today s lesson, we will read about an amazing revelation about the future that God sent to Daniel by the angel Gabriel. 93

100 JOURNEY 8 EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGE: Daniel 9 Daniel consistently honored God in a foreign land during the exile of Judah in Babylon. He remembered what life had been like in Judah and he must have longed to return. As he studied the writings of the prophet Jeremiah, he came to understand that God would someday allow His people to return to the land God had given them. Daniel began to pray fervently that God s mercy would be given back to the people. Read what Daniel prayed and how God answered his prayer in Daniel 9. [With younger students, use Daniel 9:7 27 to teach them about Daniel s prayer life. Use the wall quilt activity as their Bible Learning Project. For the older students, use Daniel 9:7 27 to focus on Daniel s prayer life. Use the timeline activity in the Bible Learning Project to teach and explain about Daniel s prophecy regarding the 70 weeks.] Verse 7: Who is righteous? Who is not righteous? Why? What had happened to God s people? Verse 11: What sin had Israel and Judah committed? Verses 13 14: Why were the people still in exile? Verses 16 19: What did Daniel pray for? How serious was he? While Daniel was still praying, he became aware of something flying quickly past him. Was God going to answer his prayers quickly? Verses 21 23: Whom did God send with an answer to Daniel s prayer? Why did God answer his prayer so quickly? Verses 24 27: What did Gabriel tell Daniel? [Refer to the background material to explain what the 70 weeks meant. Be sure to mention that we are now living in a pause a period of time between weeks 69 and 70. It is called the Church Age.] WALL QUILT OF DANIEL S LIFE [This activity is planned for younger students so they can visualize how God used Daniel for His glory.] SAY: God created Daniel to be a witness for Him in a land full of idol worshippers. God s timing was perfect for Daniel s life. Let s review how God used him. GIVE each student a piece of construction paper. HAVE them go to the book of Daniel. You can point out the various stories that it contains. ASK each student to draw a picture or representation of one of the events in Daniel s life. When the panels are completed, ARRANGE them on the wall to form the squares of a quilt. Some squares could be quotes from Bible verses; 94

101 JOURNEY 8 other squares could be simple designs that relate to Daniel. Here are some suggestions.»» Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the furnace»» Daniel eating fruits and vegetables and drinking water»» The fourth man walking in the furnace»» Daniel as an advisor to each of the four kings»» The vision of the statue with gold, silver, bronze, iron, clay»» The rock that crashed into the statue»» The golden statue of Nebuchadnezzar»» Daniel praying for God s mercy»» Daniel s 70 weeks»» Gabriel delivering a message»» The lions den»» The people of Israel as slaves in Babylon»» The handwriting on the wall»» The 70 years of exile in Babylon»» The Star of Bethlehem»» The Magi on the way to Bethlehem»» Verses for Quilt»» Daniel 9:18 God s mercy»» Daniel 9:23 God loved Daniel»» Daniel 2:34 Rock crashes into statue»» Daniel 1:20 Daniel and friends fare 10 times better»» Daniel 3:25 The fourth man in the furnace»» Daniel 3:29 The God over all gods»» Daniel 6:26 The God of Daniel honored When the quilt is assembled, HAVE the students approach the area and describe what is happening in each of the panels. THE CROSSROADS When Gabriel told Daniel what his vision of the 70 weeks meant, he mentioned the Anointed One. This was a reference to Jesus. He told Daniel that this person would die, but Daniel was not to worry. God was in control and everything would come out all right in the end. This Anointed One did come to earth. ASK what His name was and what amazing act of love He performed to convince the world that He loved them. (He died.) Will Daniel be in heaven? Why or why not? Will you be in heaven? Why or why not? If not, you can make it possible today by trusting in Jesus. [Share the plan of salvation and close in prayer.] 95

102 JOURNEY 8 HUDDLE GROUP 1: Application Opportunities HAVE the students gather into their Huddle Groups. ASK someone to read Daniel 9:1 19. Then HAVE the group make a list of seven things that are important about Daniel s prayer life. [Answers: prayed consistently; praised God; interceded for others; confessed sin; prayed for forgiveness; called on God s mercy; acknowledged God s sovereignty; asked for God s favor.] ASK the TGL to conduct a short prayer time with his or her group. ASK the students to share their prayer requests. Then ALLOW the students an opportunity to pray for several minutes. When the prayer time is finished, CHALLENGE the students to begin every day with a time of Bible reading and prayer. CHALLENGE the students to bring their request before God every day. He loves to hear what we have to say to Him, and He will always answer. BIBLE LEARNING PROJECT: Daniel s Prophecy Timeline [Use this project as a way of teaching the concepts contained in Daniel s prophecy regarding 70 weeks.] Supplies: preprinted pictorial timelines of events of the Last Days, pencils/pens, answer key 8 Distribute pencils/pens among the students. Provide a timeline to each student. Instruct the students to connect the 15 pictures to the event by drawing a line between the boxes. Check the student s matches against the master answer key provided. Discuss the events with the students and point out where we are on the timeline (between weeks 69 and 70). Comment on how Daniel s prophecy intertwines with the prophecies of Revelation. Remind the students that there is still time for people to be saved when the Rapture comes. Jesus delays His coming so that all might believe Permission to copy Bible People and Events to Know Time Line, Big Book of Bible Facts and Fun by Gospel Light, 2005, pp

103 JOURNEY 8 HUDDLE GROUP 2: Scripture Memory: Philippians 2:10 PROVIDE each student with a blank name tag. HAVE students write the name of different countries on the tags, such as United States, Russia, Iran, Iraq, Australia, Israel, Uganda, Japan, England, Canada, etc. ENCOURAGE them to use different countries for each name tag. PROVIDE each student with a copy of the key verse broken into phrases.... at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Chris is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:10 POINT OUT the key words: name, knew, bow, tongue, Lord and glory. ASK everyone to get on their knees and PRACTICE saying the verse several times. EXPLAIN that one day every nation will bow before Christ because they will finally understand that He is God and Lord of the universe. A LOOK AT THE BOOK: Daniel s Prophecies HAVE the students match the following events with the Scripture passages that describe them. [Answer Key: 1 F; 2 A; 3 B; 4 G; 5 D; 6 C; 7 E] 1. The Anointed One (Jesus) is cut off. 2. The Anti-Christ makes an agreement with Israel and then forbids their worship of God. 3. The Church is born under the leadership of Peter and the disciples as people receive Christ as Savior. 4. Many in Israel will finally accept Jesus as the true Messiah. 5. The Jews taken captive into Babylon are allowed to return home. 6. Jesus returns to defeat the forces of Satan. 7. Jesus crushes the head of Satan as described in Genesis 3:15. A. Daniel 9:27 B. Acts 2:41 C. Revelation 19:11 15 D. Ezra 2:1 E. Revelation 20:10 F. Matthew 27:45 50 G. Romans 11:

104 JOURNEY 8 REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. How did Daniel end up in Babylon? (taken captive when Babylonians razed Judah) 2. How many kings did Daniel serve over the course of his lifetime in Babylon? (four) 3. Which king had Daniel placed in the lions den? (Darius) 4. Who brought Daniel the message about the 70 weeks? (Gabriel) 5. Based on Daniel s vision of the 70 weeks, when did the 70 weeks begin? (when Ezra and Nehemiah got permission to rebuild Jerusalem) 6. Why is there a lapse of time between weeks 69 and 70? (This represents the Church Age in which we are now living.) 7. What must happen so that week 70 can start? (Jesus must return and rapture the Church.) 8. When will the Antichrist appear? (at the beginning of week 70) 9. Who is the Anointed One? (Jesus) 10. When was the Anointed One cut off as Daniel describes? (at the Cross) 11. When will the people of Israel believe that Jesus is the Christ? (sometime during week 70) 98

105 JOURNEY 9 TEAM BUILDING Ezra Leads the Exiles Home

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107 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 9: TEAM BUILDING Ezra Leads the Exiles Home Key Passages: Ezra 1 10 Key Word: Determination Key Thought: Determine to finish the work God gives you to do. Key Verse: But one thing I do; forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13 14 TEAM BUILDING Any athlete can testify to the need for a cohesive team whose commitment to each other is as great as their commitment to win. Ezra and Nehemiah would need this kind of solid support if they were to return home and begin the rebuilding process. Seventy years had passed since the Jewish people had been carried away from their homeland. Jerusalem and the surrounding towns and villages had lain in disrepair all this time. It would take much work to rebuild the temple, the homes of the people and the city walls. THE BOOK OF EZRA As the book of Ezra opens, Cyrus, the king of Persia, has made a decree allowing the Jews to return home after 70 years of exile in Babylon, later called Persia. In this journey, the exiled people of Judah are prepared to assess the damage. They have been gone 70 years from their homeland, now called Palestine. God had given them over to the consequences of their sin and allowed foreign nations to destroy their homeland and take them captive. In 537 B.C., approximately 50,000 Jews decided to go home. They had no idea what they would find. There had been reports of widespread destruction throughout the land, including the temple and the city of Jerusalem. They were going home to make repairs to their homes, their cities, their walls and their spiritual lives. Could they do it? Could they rebuild and once again experience the blessing of God? Where was the Messiah they had so long expected? When would He come to free them from dominance by other nations? A SECOND EXODUS Under King Cyrus, they would make a second exodus out of the bondage in Babylon. Only a remnant of the Jews chose to leave. Cyrus appointed Zerubbabel to head up the returning delegation. He was the legal heir of Jehoiachin, the next-to-the-last king of Judah. This 101

108 JOURNEY 9 placed him in the ancestral line of King David and made him a legitimate heir to the throne. Cyrus gave him the golden vessels Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem (Ezra 1:5 11) and helped finance the return of the exiles. Under Zerubbabel s leadership, this first group of refugees was determined to rebuild the temple, even before they built their own homes. The first order of business was to erect an altar and initiate the system of blood sacrifices once again. The scarlet thread resurfaced as the people sought first the forgiveness of their sin. This genuine spirit of repentance caused them to rebuild the altar even before the temple was reconstructed. When the foundation of the temple was finally put in place, the people assembled, the priests appeared in their priestly robes, and the trumpets and cymbals sounded. The people sang and praised God for His goodness and mercy. Yet, the old men who had seen Solomon s temple wept aloud. This temple could not be compared to the glory of the one they had known under Solomon. Zerubbabel s temple for them was a reminder of how much they had lost. As they mourned the loss, others rejoiced at what had been restored. This work of rebuilding their nation would not be easy, but God had promised to be with them. How good it was to be home again! OPPOSITION The people who lived in Palestine while the Jews were in exile tried to discourage such reconstruction. They even went so far as to write a letter to the king of Persia, accusing the Jews of building an evil and rebellious city whose citizens would surely refuse to pay taxes back to the king (Ezra 4:12 13). As a result, the new king in Persia ordered the work to cease. For at least 14 years, no work was done on the temple and the wall around Jerusalem. During this time, God sent the prophets Haggai and Zechariah to encourage the people. Within four years, the temple was completed and dedicated around 515 B.C. (Ezra 6:14 18). For the first time in decades, the Passover was celebrated in the land of Judah. The people were filled with hope and joy (Ezra 6:22). SPIRITUAL PRIORITIES SET RIGHT At least 60 years after the Jews first returned to Jerusalem, Ezra, the scribe, led a second expedition from Babylon to Judah to shore up the people spiritually. King Artaxerxes commissioned him to return with about 1,700 Jews. Ezra s top priority was rebuilding the spiritual foundation of the people and their moral purity. The king promised that no taxes would be imposed on the priests or those who tended to the house of God as stated in a letter quoted in Ezra 7:24. The king went on to tell Ezra to exhort the people to obey the law of his God as well as the law of the king lest judgment upon them be executed speedily. How grateful Ezra was to God for having put such compassion in the heart of the king and extending to Ezra such mercy. 102

109 JOURNEY 9 THE REAL SITUATION As a scribe, Ezra was devoted to the study and observance of God s holy law. He faithfully copied the books of Moses and the historical records of Samuel and David so that God s Word could be passed on accurately to future generations. However, when he arrived in Judah, he discovered an alarming situation. Many of the people of Israel, including the Levites and the priests, had intermarried with foreign women from among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians and the Amorites (Ezra 9:1 2). He was appalled. The priests, the religious leaders of the people, had not separated themselves from all types of abominations abhorred by Yahweh. How could this be? Ezra was overwhelmed by the sin of the people. He fell on his knees before God in intercession for the people and the nation. He was too ashamed to lift up his face to God as he grieved almost inconsolably (Ezra 9:5 6). He recounted the reasons for the nation s slavery and exile. He expressed gratitude for God s mercy seen in the hearts and minds of the Persian kings. He thanked Him for sparing a remnant of Israel. WEEPING AND WAILING As Ezra prayed, weeping and bowing down before the house of God, a large crowd of men, women and children gathered in front of him. As they listened to the man of God cry out to heaven, they began to weep bitterly (Ezra 10:1 2). A man rose to speak for the group to Ezra. He confessed the sin of having taken pagan wives as an act of disobedience. He asked Ezra to help them make a covenant with God to put away these foreign women. Ezra called all the men from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin to come to Jerusalem within the next three days. He implored the men to send away these pagan women and renew their commitment to God in this area. Ezra 10:19 states that all those who had taken pagan wives sent them away in an effort to turn away the wrath of God. The result of such obedience was a great revival throughout all the land. REPAIRS UNDERWAY Jeremiah had prophesied about this time (Jeremiah 29:13 14). God brought His people back from their captivity in all the nations to which they had been driven. He had kept His promise to them. With the remnant at home in the land, the stage was set for the fulfillment of the Messianic promises in Judah. The Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, not Babylon. EZRA S CONTRIBUTIONS Ezra exalted the Word of God in every way. Under his leadership, there was a great revival of Bible study. According to tradition, it is believed that Ezra took the initiative in organizing the books of the Old Testament into a form that was later accepted as the canon 103

110 JOURNEY 9 of Scripture. 9 Tradition also attributes the introduction of synagogue worship to Ezra. He realized the need for people to worship in the communities where they lived. With the temple destroyed and the people scattered, he had seen the rituals of worship deteriorate. After the return to their homeland, synagogues sprang up in many different places. Many were started in homes; others developed even in foreign lands. Each Jewish community needed its own place of worship and instruction. Ezra made this a priority. He saw the need to build a strong network of spiritual leaders a team approach that could keep the people on their knees and obedient to God Understanding Ezra and Nehemiah, What the Bible Is All About by Henrietta Mears, Regal Books, 1998, p. 160.

111 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 9: TEAM BUILDING Ezra Leads the Exiles Home KEY PASSAGE Ezra 1 10 KEY WORD Determination KEY VERSE But one thing I do; forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13 14 KEY THOUGHT Determine to finish the work God gives you to do. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES CONNECT the Big Room experience with the Bible story by asking the students questions about what they saw. HUDDLE GROUP 1: Going Home? HAVE the students gather in their Huddle Groups. DISCUSS with them the situation in Judah after 70 years of captivity. Display a suitcase and Bible to illustrate what Ezra packed. Here are some questions to have them think through and discuss. If you and your family had been in a foreign country for 70 years, would you want to go back home? Why? What if you went home and found that your neighborhood had burned to the ground? How would you feel? What if your city and your church had been destroyed? Why should you go back at all? Where would you plan on sleeping? What would you want to take back from your time as a captive in exile? What would you plan on doing first when you got home? SAY: These are the very questions the Jewish people asked themselves when they heard that Cyrus, the king of Persia, had given them permission to return home. Let s see what happened according to Ezra, the priest and the scribe. 105

112 JOURNEY 9 EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGES A. Ezra 1:1 11: The King Gives Permission Verse 2: What did King Cyrus want the Jews to rebuild first? Verse 4: What were some of the things the Persians gave the people as they left? Verses 7 10: What did Cyrus give the returning exiles to take with them? Verse 11: How had these things come to be in the king s possession? B. Ezra 2: Zerubbabel Leads the Group Verse 64: Exactly how many people returned? Verses 68 70: What were the people planning to do first? Where did they live? C. Ezra 3: Rebuilding the Temple Verse 2: What did the people want to rebuild? Where did they start? Verse 6: Why were the sacrifices so important? Verse 10: What did the people do when the foundation was laid? Verse 12: What did the older people do when they saw the new foundation? D. Ezra 4: Trouble on the Building Site Verses 1 4: Did Zerubbabel want help from the local people? Only genuine worshippers of Yahweh could work on the temple. How did these neighbors act when they were told to go away? It took more than 16 years to rebuild the temple, but the people celebrated with great joy when it was completed (Ezra 6:16). E. Ezra 9 & 10: Ezra Leads a Second Group of Exiles SAY: A second group of exiles returned in 458 B.C. under the leadership of Ezra, a priest and a scribe who knew God s Law and the writings of the prophets. Ezra 9:1 2: Ezra was pleased with the temple, but what was going on with the people that shocked him? Ezra 10:1: Why did Ezra cry out to God? How did the people respond? Ezra 10:10 12: What did the people agree to do? How would God honor them? 106

113 JOURNEY 9 HUDDLE GROUP 2: Mapping Out the Journey Home Supplies: map of return from Babylon, 10 markers, construction paper, small square of parchment to roll up as a scroll, tape/glue Instructions: Provide each student with a map showing the return of the exiles from Babylon. Attach the map to the piece of construction paper. Using colored markers, chart through the desert the path that the returning exiles would have taken. Draw a picture of the rebuilt temple next to Jerusalem. Draw a picture of praying hands to indicate Ezra s intercession for the people. Attach the scroll to the map as a reminder of how Ezra valued the commandments of God s Law. ASK the students to determine how many miles the people had to travel. How was this a difficult journey? Why was this a very important journey? What would make a person want to take this journey? THE CROSSROADS SAY: When the people returned to the land they still had a sin problem. Why was that of concern to Ezra? What did Ezra do for the people that is like what Christ does for us? (interceded before God for our sin) ASK: How does sin separate us from God? What priorities does God want us to have? What priorities do you have? Honoring Jesus with our lives must always be our top priority. If you have never trusted Him as your Savior, you can do so today. [Share the plan of salvation and close in prayer.] HUDDLE GROUP 3: Application Opportunities HAVE the students get into their Huddle Groups and discuss the following questions. What is a good definition of the word determination? (a commitment to complete a specific task) Whom do you know who has demonstrated determined attitude? How have you shown determination in your life? Why is determination a good quality? How can it become a negative quality? 10 Permission to photocopy To and From Babylon, Big Book of Bible Facts and Fun, Gospel Light 2005, p. 112 or use one found in a Study Bible. 107

114 JOURNEY 9 How does the concept of determination relate to your spiritual life? What does the phrase running hard after you mean? As a young person, are you determined to make your life count for God s glory? If so, bow your heads and ask God to help you become one of His determined followers. BIBLE LEARNING PROJECT: Spiritual Champion s Trophy Supplies: small trophies, Philippians 3:14 sticker ASK: How determined are you to win an Olympic trophy for determination? PROVIDE the following information on a 5 x 7 index card. CHALLENGE the students to answer each of the following questions correctly in order to earn a trophy for their determination to finish well. [Younger children may need help finding the passages. Leaders can assist by reading the passage aloud and letting the students write down their own answers.] SPIRITUAL CHAMPION S TROPHY What should I do when I am worried about what I don t have? Matthew 6: I don t know what to say to God? Romans 8: I need to remember who is in control? Romans 8: it s hard to like another person? Romans 15: I m tempted to worry? Philippians 4: I need to know what to do? James 1:5 EVALUATE the students answers to see who was determined to get the right information from Scripture. PROVIDE one trophy and one Philippians 3:14 sticker to each student. INSTRUCT them to attach the sticker to the base of the trophy. The sticker should read:... I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:

115 SCRIPTURE MEMORY: Philippians 3:13 14 CHALLENGE the students to memorize these two verses by studying them every day. ASK them to repeat the verses at least five times a day for a period of seven days. PROVIDE one copy of the verse for each student. TELL them to be determined to memorize these two key verses. But one thing I do; forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13 14 JOURNEY 9 REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. To which country had the people been taken? (Babylon, then Persia, which is now Iran) 2. What did Cyrus give the returning exiles to take back with them? (the holy articles that Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple 70 years ago) 3. How would you describe the new temple when compared to Solomon s temple? (much less magnificent) 4. Who was responsible for rebuilding this first temple? (Zerubbabel) 5. Why was it important to build the altar first? (The altar provided the approach to God through sacrifices for the forgiveness of sin.) 6. What shocked Ezra when he returned to Jerusalem and saw the priests of the temple? (They had married foreign wives.) 7. How did the people respond? (They sent their foreign wives home and repented.) 8. What did Ezra ask God to do with the people s sin? (forgive it) 109

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117 JOURNEY 10 BORN TO WIN Esther, Queen of Persia

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119 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 10: BORN TO WIN Esther, Queen of Persia Key Passage: Esther 2 7 Key Word: Courage Key Thought: Demonstrate courage as you help others to know God. Key Verse: If I perish, I perish. Esther 4:16 LIFE IN EXILE In 538 B.C. the first group of Jewish exiles were allowed to make their way back to their homeland. Some 50,000 people chose to return to Judah. However, the vast majority of Jews were reluctant to leave their homes in Persia. Many had been born in captivity and had never known another life. Their homes and businesses were well established and they had no desire to make the trek across the desert to start over. Among those who remained was a beautiful young woman named Esther who had been raised by her cousin Mordecai. Together she and Mordecai had been providentially placed by God to expose a plot to destroy the Jewish race. Esther s story chronologically fits between chapters 6 and 7 of Ezra. The first group of exiles allowed to return to Judah were led by Zerubbabel; the second group went back with Ezra and another group returned with Nehemiah. Esther s story took place between the first two returns. The story of Esther provides the only biblical picture of life in Persia (modernday Iran) for the Jewish exiles who chose not to return to Judea. Esther s story took place during the reign of King Ahasuerus, also known as King Xerxes, who would later be defeated in a famous battle against Greece in 480 B.C., one of the most important battles in history. He became the defeated general in a famous expedition against Greece in 480 B.C. This was one of the most important battles in world history. A NEW QUEEN IN TOWN King Xerxes called for a lavish banquet. The king requested the presence of Queen Vashti before his guests in order to show her off. She flatly refused. This was an embarrassment to the king and an affront to his authority. There was fear that such an independent spirit might spread among the women throughout the kingdom (Esther 1:17). The king decreed that Queen Vashti must forfeit her royal position; the king would choose another queen. 113

120 JOURNEY 10 Many young women from the kingdom were brought before the king for consideration as the new queen. Esther, a young Jewess, was among them. She was winsome and very beautiful (Esther 2:7). She had been raised by her Jewish cousin Mordecai after her parents died. Mordecai had cautioned her not to reveal her nationality to anyone in the palace. The king was immediately taken with her beauty the moment he saw her. He placed upon her head the crown of the former queen. Esther, whose Persian name means star, assumed the role of queen for which God had destined her to become. Mordecai feared that if Esther s ancestry were known, she would be sent out of the palace so he told her not to speak about it. THE KING S GATE One day near the king s gate, Mordecai learned of a plot to overthrow King Xerxes. He quickly alerted Queen Esther, who relayed the information to the king in Mordecai s behalf. The assassins were arrested and hung on the gallows. The incident was recorded in the palace chronicles. At the most strategic point in time, the king would read of this incident and ask if the man had been properly rewarded. AN IMPENDING THREAT Sometime later, Xerxes promoted a man named Haman to a high office in his government. Everyone bowed down to Haman except one. Mordecai the Jew only bowed before the one true God. This enraged Haman. When he learned that Mordecai was Jewish, he began to plot the elimination of the Jewish people. He convinced Xerxes to issue a decree that within 11 months, the Jews with their strange customs should all be put to death. Xerxes agreed and the decree went forth (Esther 3:8 13). Mordecai asked Esther to appeal to the king to spare the Jews. He warned that she could not escape the penalty of such a decree once her ancestry was known. He encouraged her approach to the king by telling her: And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this? (Esther 4:14) She sent word to Mordecai to call all the Jews together to fast for three days and three nights; she would do the same before going in to the king uninvited. Her last words to Mordecai communicate her courage and resolve:... if I perish, I perish (Esther 4:16). A PARTY WITH A PURPOSE When the king saw Esther standing in the courtyard, he extended to her his scepter as a sign to enter. He asked what he might do for her. She cleverly requested his and Haman s presence at a feast she had prepared for the king. The king was pleased with her invitation and sent for Haman. At the feast that night, she asked the king and Haman to attend another feast on the next day. 114

121 JOURNEY 10 Haman was ecstatic at his good fortune of being included. As he went out to prepare himself for the event, he spotted Mordecai at the king s gate and was reminded of how much he hated him. When he got home, he told his wife how wonderful it was to keep company with Esther and the king, yet as long as Mordecai the Jew lived, he could find no joy. His wife suggested that a gallows be erected immediately from which Mordecai could be hung the next morning. Pleased with her suggestion, Haman ordered the gallows made (Esther 5:14). A SLEEPLESS NIGHT That night the king could not sleep, so he asked for the book of the palace chronicles. There he read how Mordecai had saved his life by revealing the plot to assassinate the king. When the king inquired what honor had been bestowed on Mordecai for such service, he was told nothing had been done. A TABLE TURNED Shortly thereafter, the king saw Haman enter the court and asked him what should be done for one in whom the king delights to honor (Esther 6:6). Thinking the king was talking about him, Haman made these suggestions. The man should wear royal robes that once the king himself wore. He should be allowed to ride the horse the king has ridden. He should be given a royal crown to wear. He should be given these honors in the middle of the city s square so that all could see the high regard in which he was held by the king. The king was quite pleased with Haman s suggestions and ordered that all of them be carried out for Mordecai the Jew who sits at the king s gate. Haman was shocked and furious. He was compelled to honor Mordecai with those things he most wanted for himself. JUST DESSERTS! Later Haman went in to the feast Esther had prepared for him and the king. Pleased with Esther s banquet, Xerxes asked what favor he might bestow on Esther. She then exposed Haman s plot to kill all the Jews, including herself. She asked the king to grant mercy to her people. When the king asked who would dare plan such a thing, Esther identified the wicked Haman. The king was enraged and went out into the palace garden. Haman turned to Esther to beg for his life as he fell on his knees before her. The king returned and thought he was assaulting the queen. One of the king s officials told the king of the gallows Haman 115

122 JOURNEY 10 had constructed for Mordecai. The king ordered that Haman be hung immediately on these gallows and so it was done. Mordecai was given Haman s old position of service in the king s court along with the king s signet ring. He went before the people in robes of blue, white and purple, wearing a golden crown. The original decree to kill all of the Jews could not be revoked; instead a new decree was issued that allowed the Jews to defend themselves, which they were able to do successfully. A great celebration known as the Feast of Purim (Esther 9:26) commemorated the victories of the Jews over their enemies in the Persian Empire. Once again God had spared them from total annihilation. God had used Esther to save His people. She was willing to do what was right even if it cost her life. TWO WOMEN There are only two books in the Bible named for women Ruth and Esther. These two young women played important roles on behalf of God s people. Ruth became the greatgrandmother of David through whose line the Messiah was born. Esther s acts of courage before King Xerxes saved the people in the tribe of Judah from extinction so that the Messiah could be born hundreds of years later. God s providential hand of protection is quite evident. He placed Esther in exactly the right place at the right time with a kind of courage that enabled her to accomplish the purpose He had designed for her. Her marriage to the king had given Jews prestige in the court and made it possible for Nehemiah to rebuild Jerusalem with financial assistance from the king. God had promised to bless the whole world through His chosen people Israel. Esther intervened to save the line of Judah from extinction so that Messiah would be born through the line of David exactly as God had ordained. The scarlet thread of redemption could not be stopped. 116

123 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 10: BORN TO WIN Esther, Queen of Persia KEY PASSAGE Esther 2 7 KEY WORD Courage KEY VERSE If I perish, I perish. Esther 4:16 KEY THOUGHT Demonstrate courage as you help others to know God. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES CONNECT the Big Room experience with the Bible story by asking the students questions about what they saw. HUDDLE GROUP 1: Courageous Comebacks ASK someone to give you a good definition of courage. It might involve taking positive action when one is afraid or unsure. Here are some unkind remarks nonbelievers often make to Christians. How would you give a courageous comeback to each of these? All that God stuff is not true. Reading the Bible is for nerds. Going to church is boring. God doesn t really answer prayers. HAVE the students get into their Huddle Groups and DISCUSS some possible responses to these statements that honor God. TRANSITION to the lesson by explaining that the main character in today s lesson had to act courageously or her people would die. She was willing to die for them when she said: If I perish, I perish (Esther 4:16). Let s look in the Old Testament to see who this woman was and what brought on this crisis. 117

124 JOURNEY 10 EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGE SAY: While some people decided to return to Judah, other Jews decided to stay in Babylon. A young Jewish woman named Esther and her cousin Mordecai stayed. God had special plans for these two people in Persia, but they didn t know it yet. [For younger children, you may need to summarize some of the story rather than having them read it for themselves. Older children should be able to work through the chapters. These are the key verses that should be read aloud if possible: Esther 4:14, 16; 5:2; 6:1 3, 10 12; 7:1 10.] A. Esther 2: A New Queen Verses 1 4: How would the king find a new queen? Verse 10: What advice did Mordecai give Esther? Verses 21 23: How did Mordecai hear about the plot to kill the king? What did Mordecai do? Where was this recorded? B. Esther 3: Haman s Plan Verses 1 2: Who was Haman and why did Mordecai react to the decree? Verses 8 9: What did Haman ask the king to do? C. Esther 4: Esther s Presence Verses 1 3: How did Mordecai act when Haman was present? Verses 13 16: Was Esther safe even though she was a Jew? Did the king know about her ancestors? Did Mordecai think she could help her people? Why had God put Esther in the palace? What was Esther willing to do? How did she prepare herself? D. Esther 5: Esther s Banquet Verses 1 4: What danger was Esther in? What did the king say to her? What did she tell the king she wanted to do for him and for Haman? Verses 9 14: How did Haman react? What kept him from being really happy? What did his wife suggest? E. Esther 6: The King s Insomnia Verses 1 11: What did the king read late at night? What did he tell Haman to do? How did Haman respond? Why was he mad? F. Esther 7: The Plot Exposed Verses 1 10: What did Esther tell the king? How did he react? What happened to Haman? 118

125 JOURNEY 10 HUDDLE GROUP 2: A Courageous Queen GET the Huddle Group to identify the things that had to fall into place in order for Esther to be able to go into the king s presence. SAY: The story of Esther illustrates how God works all things for His glory. He put Esther in the right place at the right time. Had she not been the queen of Persia, what would have happened to the Jewish people still in Babylon? Let s figure out all the things that had to happen at precisely the right time for the Jewish people to be saved. Here are at least 10 of them. [You can turn these into questions so that the students can come up with the right answer.] Esther had to be the right age and she needed to be very beautiful to attract the king s attention. The king needed to recognize both her outer and inner beauty. Mordecai had to be sitting at the gate to hear about the assassination plot. What he did had to get recorded in the king s history books. The king had to have a sleepless night and read his history books. He could have read many stories, but he happened to see the one involving Mordecai. The king decided to reward Mordecai. He could have said, Never mind, that happened a long time ago. Haman showed up at exactly the right time for the king to discuss the matter with him. The king had to be pleased when Esther appeared in court and asked him to attend a banquet she was preparing. If it had been a bad time for him, Esther could have been banished or killed. The king responded correctly when learning about the plan to kill all of the remaining Jews. It was no accident that all these things happened exactly as they needed to. God was concerned about every detail of Esther s situation. God had planned long ago that her cousin Mordecai would be with her during this time to give wise counsel. Together God used both of them to save the remnant of God s people still living in Persia. If God is concerned about the life of a young Jewish girl in a faraway land, will He not be concerned about every detail of your life and mine? The Bible tells us that He even knows the number of hairs on our heads (Matthew 10:30). Is there any reason you would not want to know personally the kind of God who can make everything in your life work together for your good (Romans 8:28)? 119

126 JOURNEY THE CROSSROADS SAY: God had promised Abraham that He would bless the whole world through His chosen people Israel. God used Esther to save the remaining people of Judah so that Messiah would be born through the line of David exactly as God had ordained. The scarlet thread of redemption could not be stopped. God s plan continued to move forward until it came to that little town in Bethlehem where Messiah was born as a man. That long-awaited Messiah was willing to take the punishment for your sin and mine so that we might have eternal life with God. That gift of love is available to you now, but you must reach out to receive it. [Share the plan of salvation and close in prayer.] HUDDLE GROUP 3: Application Opportunities HAVE the students gather at their tables. PROVIDE a copy of the case studies to each student. ASK the HGL to lead a discussion that focuses on what could have been done in each situation that would demonstrate courage in action. 1. Bryan Parker is such a bully! Today, I was walking down the hall between classes, and I saw Bryan and his friends gang up on Tim. Tim is really small and kids pick on him a lot. Bryan knocked all of Tim s books out of his hands. I knew I had to do something, but what? 2. Every day Susie sits at a table all by herself at lunch. Most of the girls don t like her because she wears funny-looking outfits. The girls I eat lunch with are always making fun of her. I think she always looks so sad. I know I should do something to help her, but what? 3. Jordan really messed up at the game the other night. What he did caused our school to lose the state championship. If he had only passed the ball to Dirk like the coach told him to, we would have won by two points. Now no one will speak to him. I know I should do something, but what? 4. Today I heard two guys talking in class about having stolen a copy of a test lying on a teacher s desk. They said they looked up all the answers before test day and they aced the exam. They were bragging about how smart they were to grab the test when no one was looking. I know I should say something to them, but what? 5. I saw my little brother take some money out of my mom s purse. He showed it to me and said we could go and spend it at the arcade near our house. He said no one would know if I didn t say anything. I know I need to set a good example, but I don t want to get my brother in trouble. What should I do? 6. Yesterday I saw two girls pour Coke all over Cindy s fifth-grade science project when she was out of the room. When Cindy came back, they said they didn t know what had happened. Cindy was so upset because she was

127 JOURNEY 10 going to have to do the project over. The two girls thought they were really cool. I felt so badly for Cindy, but what should I do? These two girls are good friends of mine. REMIND the students that God puts us in certain places at certain times because He needs us to stand up for what is right. It takes courage to do the right thing. Sometimes friendships can be lost because one person decides to take a stand. Do you have that kind of courage? Look for ways this next week to honor God by being courageous. What s more important what God thinks about you or what a bully thinks about you? BIBLE LEARNING PROJECT: Courage Bandanas Supplies: 1 bandana strips, square alphabet beads to spell COURAGE Provide a bandana strip and letter beads to each student. Direct the students to thread the beads onto the bandana to spell COURAGE. Encourage them to wear their bandana as a reminder that God gives us courage to stand for Him, no matter what others say. A LOOK AT THE BOOK SAY: Esther was a courageous woman. Check out other courageous women in the Bible. What did they do to overcome their fears? Courage comes in all sizes in many different places. Abigail and David: 1 Samuel 25:23 35 A poor widow: Luke 21:1 4 Rahab and the spies: Joshua 2:1 7 Ruth and Naomi: Ruth 1:11 18 SCRIPTURE MEMORY: If I perish, I perish. Esther 4:16 SAY: This week s key verse is short on words, but long on meaning. ASK the students to discuss what this verse means. How does it illustrate today s key word courage? HAVE one student turn to another and say the verse and then that student turns to the next and says it and so on and so on until everyone has had an opportunity to tell someone the verse. ASK the students if they would be willing to stand up for God no matter what. 121

128 JOURNEY 10 REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Describe how Esther came to be queen of Persia. 2. Who was Esther s cousin? (Mordecai) 3. What had he cautioned her about doing? (letting the king know she was Jewish) 4. Who was Haman? (one of the king s officials) 5. Why did he not like Mordecai? (Mordecai would not bow down to him.) 6. What decree did Haman convince the king to issue? (that every Jewish man, woman and child should be killed) 7. What did Mordecai ask Esther to do? (reveal the plot to the king) 8. How did Mordecai convince Esther to be courageous? (He told her that this is why God may have placed her in the palace.) 9. How did Esther respond? (She planned a banquet for the king and Haman.) 10. What did she say that revealed her courage? ( If I perish, I perish. ) 11. Why did the king want to reward Mordecai? (He had uncovered a plot to kill the king and Mordecai told the palace officials.) 12. What did Haman say would be a good reward for such a deed? (blue, white and purple robes; a horse; a royal headdress) 13. What had Haman built for Mordecai? (gallows) 14. Who ended up on the gallows? (Haman) 15. What happened to Mordecai? (He received the rewards Haman had wanted for himself.) 122

129 JOURNEY 11 THE WINNER S PLATFORM Nehemiah Builds the Wall

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131 BIBLE BACKGROUND JOURNEY 11: THE WINNER S PLATFORM Nehemiah Builds the Wall Key Passages: Nehemiah 2:1 18; 4:1 19; 6:15 16 Key Word: Team Player Key Thought: Develop character qualities that make you an MVP on God s team. Key Verse: It is good that I have been afflicted, that I might learn your statutes. Psalm 119:71 THE HOME STRETCH Three separate groups of Jews were allowed to return to their homeland of Israel after the Babylonian captivity. The first group returned under the leadership of Zerubbabel in 537 B.C. He brought with him the gold and silver vessels that Nebuchadnezzar had removed from Solomon s temple. Zerubbabel rebuilt the temple and restored the worship of Yahweh. The second group of Jewish exiles returned in 458 B.C. under the leadership of Ezra, a skilled scribe and teacher with extensive training in the books of the Law. His main focus was to reestablish the Law as the moral basis of Jewish life. The third group of Jewish captives returned under the supervision of Nehemiah in 444 B.C. to rebuild the city and the walls around Jerusalem, which still lay in ruins. CUPBEARER? As cupbearer to King Artaxerxes, the son of King Xerxes, Nehemiah enjoyed considerable influence. His duties of selecting and tasting the king s wine gave him constant access to the king. As a Jew, he had not yet felt led to return to his homeland until he heard a report about the conditions in Jerusalem. After almost 100 years, the walls and the city gates had not been rebuilt and the city lay in ruins. He literally sat down and wept (Nehemiah 1:4) to think about all that Israel had lost. Nehemiah mourned for many days over the plight of his people. He fasted and prayed to God; he acknowledged Him as great and awesome. He looked to God once more as the Covenant-Keeper with mercy for those who love Him and observe His commandments. 125

132 JOURNEY 11 He confessed to God the sins of the children of Israel as well as his own personal sin. He recognized the people s failure to keep God s commandments, statutes and ordinances. He recalled God s words once spoken to Moses: If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations, but if you return to me, though you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens, yet I will gather you to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for my name (Nehemiah 1:8 9). He asked for mercy and blessing in the sight of the king. BROKEN WALLS To the Jews, a city wall was a means of preservation. Without it, the people were facing assimilation into the culture of their neighbors. In those days, a city without walls was vulnerable to robbers and troublemakers of all kinds. Because there was no security, the Jews had scattered themselves among the people who lived in the surrounding towns and villages. There they intermarried and began to lose their identity including their language, culture and religion. A wall would give them a chance to make Jerusalem a truly Jewish city again, keeping it safe and controlling who came and went and how life was lived. Nehemiah felt compelled to do something. A SAD COUNTENANCE When Nehemiah was called before the king, the king saw how downcast and troubled his cupbearer was. He could not resist asking him what was wrong. Nehemiah was afraid of sharing his grief, but he took a deep breath, said one last prayer and laid his requests before the king (Nehemiah 2:1 8). Nehemiah s First Request The King s Response Nehemiah s Second Request The King s Response Nehemiah s Third Request The King s Response He asked the king to allow him to return to Jerusalem so that he could rebuild the wall. The king agreed to let him return and even appointed Nehemiah governor of Judah. He asked the king for letters to the governors of the nations through which he must travel to get home as a guarantee of safe passage. The king not only provided letters for passage, but he also sent army officers and cavalry as an escort for Nehemiah. He asked the king to provide him with a letter to the keeper of the king s forest so that he could secure the timbers he needed to make the beams for the gates of the city. The king gladly agreed to make these building materials available to his cupbearer. 126

133 JOURNEY 11 God had answered his prayers better than he could have ever imagined. He was on his way. God had given him the strategy and plan for Jerusalem. It would not be easy to accomplish his goal, but he was confident God would prepare the way. THE PLAN Nehemiah was a good organizer and business manager, but more importantly, he was a man of God. He did not act without praying and he did not pray without acting. He recognized God s role in all that happened and never forgot to give Him credit for what was done to restore Jerusalem. When he arrived and saw the shattered walls of the city, he was broken. He challenged his countrymen to rally and repair the wall of protection around the city. In spite of opposition from the outside, the people completed the task in only 52 days. This was accomplished by assigning to each family the portion of the wall that was in front of their house. Each family became a team of builders where they lived. The people caught Nehemiah s vision and rallied. The Bible says: They worked with all their heart (Nehemiah 4:6). Often they worked with a weapon in one hand and mortar and stone in the other to keep their enemies at bay. Their work proved to be a phenomenal achievement. Even their enemies realized God s hand was upon these people. REVIVAL With the newly built wall surrounding the city, the Jews began to worship God again as they had done in the days of King David. Nehemiah led them to reaffirm their loyalty to the covenant God had made with Abraham. Ezra joined Nehemiah for a citywide crusade as the books of Law were read aloud for all the people to hear. The people renewed their commitment to obey God s commandments. After the exile, they fully understood what it meant to be cast aside. For a while at least, they wanted to be included in God s winning family team. They wanted Him to be pleased with their new commitment to live for Him. Never again did they worship the idols of other people living near to them. THE JESUS CONNECTION Nehemiah illustrates Christ in several ways. He gave up a high position as cupbearer to the king in order to be a construction supervisor, just as Jesus left heaven to become a servant. Like Jesus, Nehemiah had a mission to accomplish and nothing could stop Him. Nehemiah bathed his work in prayer just as Jesus showed His total dependence on the Father. 127

134 JOURNEY 11 VICTORY Nehemiah s writing reveals that everything Israel needed was restored: the temple, the city of Jerusalem, the covenant and the people. The only thing missing was a king. The Messianic line was still intact through the tribe of Judah. Daniel s prophecy of the 70 weeks (Daniel 9:25 27) began with the decree of Artaxerxes for Nehemiah to rebuild the city. The Messiah would come at the end of week 69 as He rode triumphantly into the city of Jerusalem on a donkey. God was in the process of restoring everything that had been broken. The ultimate victory belonged to Him and the coming Messiah. SILENCE Chronologically, Nehemiah is the last book of the Old Testament. The story of the Jewish remnant back in the land ends around 425 B.C. 11 The books of prophecy that finish out the Old Testament are best understood in light of their relationship to the period of exile in Babylon. BEFORE THE EXILE: Amos, Hosea, Joel, Micah, Isaiah, Zephaniah, Jeremiah/ Lamentations, Habakkuk, Jonah, Nahum, Obadiah DURING THE EXILE: Daniel and Ezekiel AFTER THE EXILE: Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi At the end of the Old Testament, something very profound begins God ceases to talk to His people through prophets. For 400 years, no one heard from a prophet of God. Then when the time was right God sent His Son, the long-expected Messiah (Galatians 4:4). God was preparing a new team to take His message to a lost and dying world. 11 The Books of the Prophets: Grumpy Old Men, Knowing the Bible 101, Harvest House Publishers, 1998, p

135 TEACHING PLAN JOURNEY 11: THE WINNER S PLATFORM Nehemiah Builds the Wall KEY PASSAGES Nehemiah 2:1 18; 4:1 19; 6:15 16 KEY WORD Team Player KEY VERSE It is good that I have been afflicted, that I might learn your statutes. Psalm 119:71 KEY THOUGHT Develop character qualities that make you an MVP on God s team. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES CONNECT the Big Room experience with the Bible story by asking the students questions about what they saw. HUDDLE GROUP 1: Team Building The difficulty of rebuilding the Jewish homeland can be illustrated by doing the following activity. SECURE three blank cardboard puzzle forms. Before class, WRITE the key thought across the face of the blank puzzles. DRAW a blank line where the word MVP should go. CHALLENGE the students to figure out what this word should be. BREAK UP the pieces for each puzzle and put them in envelopes. Have the students get into their Huddle Groups. Give a puzzle envelope to each group. REMIND each Huddle Group to work as a team. Their goal is to solve the puzzle, figure out the missing word and finish within 60 seconds. Secretly, choose two students from each group who will try to distract the others from their assignment by talking and joking. They may not touch the other students or the puzzle in an attempt to stop the activity. After one minute is up, discuss what happened and how the distractions affected the students ability to work on the puzzles. Ask if any of the groups were able to figure out the missing word MVP. EXPLAIN to the class this is exactly what happened when the Jews tried to rebuild their homeland. Other people interfered and tried to make them stop. These people did not want the Jews returning from exile. Things would certainly 129

136 JOURNEY 11 change if that happened. Let s look at today s Bible passage to see how the Jewish exiles handled the situation. EXPLORING THE BIBLE PASSAGE PROVIDE background information on how three different groups of Jews had returned to Judah in hopes of rebuilding their country. EXPLAIN that 100 years had gone by and still the city of Jerusalem and its walls were in ruins. Nehemiah was in Babylon living a very comfortable life as cupbearer to the king. When he heard the reports coming in from Judah, he was devastated. What would he do? HAVE the students open their Bibles and read some of the verses as you narrate the account. A. Nehemiah 2 sets the stage for what is about to happen. Verses 4 5: What did Nehemiah ask the king to allow him to do? Verse 10: Who was against the rebuilding of the city and why? Verses 17 18: What did Nehemiah see when he inspected the city and its walls late at night? B. Nehemiah 4 explains how the walls got built. Verses 1 3: How did Sanballat and Tobiah try to hinder the rebuilding? Verse 6: How committed were the workers to their task? Verse 11: What did the opposing forces threaten to do? Verse 14: What did Nehemiah say to the people to encourage the work? Verse 18: What did the workers carry with them as they worked on the wall? C. Nehemiah 6 tells the final outcome. SAY: The work was hard, the hours long and the opposition great, but the people pushed on. PROVIDE some background on why the walls of the city were so important in Bible times. Verses 15 16: How long did it take to complete the wall? Who had made it possible to complete such an enormous task in such a short time? (only God) THE RESTORATION SAY: Nehemiah s writing reveals that everything Israel needed had been restored: the temple, the city of Jerusalem, the covenant and the people. The only thing missing was their Messiah. The captivity in Babylon had cured the Jewish people of idolatry. From the days of their captivity until the present, the Jewish people have never been guilty of this sin. 12 The Messianic line was still intact through the tribe of Judah whose people were now back in the Promised Land. The Messiah would be born in Bethlehem rather than Babylon What the Bible Is All About by Henrietta Mears, Regal Books, 1998, p. 163.

137 JOURNEY 11 THE CROSSROADS ASK the students to consider how Nehemiah is like Jesus. We know from Nehemiah s actions what was in his heart. He gave up a high position as cupbearer to the king in order to be a construction supervisor, just as Jesus left heaven to become a servant. Like Jesus, Nehemiah had a mission to accomplish and nothing could stop Him. Nehemiah bathed his work in prayer, just as Jesus revealed His total dependence on His Father. ASK: What difficult tasks are you facing? There is nothing too hard for God. Remember the writing on the puzzle. Do you want to be an MVP for God? You can. It all begins with a prayer asking Jesus to be your Savior. [Share the plan of salvation and close in prayer.] HUDDLE GROUP 2: Application Opportunities (Older Students) EXPLAIN: Last spring, we had a series of bad storms reported on the news. We watched on TV in disbelief at the destruction people had experienced. These sights and sounds should be a motivation to us to extend a helping hand by sending money, food, clothing or even volunteering our time. ASK the students to discuss how something good can come from something very difficult and sad. Our key verse Psalm 119:71 helps us to see more clearly how God can use difficult situations to draw us to Him. Romans 8:28 gives us hope that God can take any circumstance and make something good come from it. ENCOURAGE your students to begin looking for good that can come from difficult situations. HUDDLE GROUP 3: A Wall of Protection (Younger Students) SAY: Just as a wall protects a city, Jesus can help us to build a wall of protection around our heart. PUT names tags on students with the following titles: Lying Disobeying parents Being unkind to others Doing poorly in school Cheating or stealing Looking at bad TV/movies HAVE the class form a large circle by holding hands. This will represent a wall of protection. Have the students with the name tags to stand on the outside of the circle. As they try to break through the circle, tell the students holding hands to stand strong and not let them through. 131

138 JOURNEY 11 If possible, place a cross of some kind in the middle of the circle to represent Christ in our lives. Comment on the need to prevent sin from taking hold in our lives. We can use God s Word to put up barriers that will keep Satan out. BIBLE LEARNING PROJECT: MVP Puzzles Supplies: blank puzzles, markers, take-home baggie Distribute markers among the students. Provide a puzzle to each student. Instruct the students to write some of the following character qualities across the pieces of their puzzles. Honesty Integrity Compassion Determination Kindness Gentleness Self-Control Patience Goodness Joy Peace Once completed, direct the students to take apart their puzzles and then reconstruct them. For additional fun, students may exchange their puzzles and take turns rebuilding them. Discuss with the students how developing Christlike character qualities will make them an MVP on God s team. Give each student a baggie in which to place their puzzle pieces to take home. HUDDLE GROUP 4: Scripture Memory: Psalm 119:71 SAY: It took 70 years in a foreign land for God s chosen people to realize that when God asked for their obedience, He meant it. The grief-stricken exiles had finally been allowed to come home. And even though Judah and Jerusalem were in ruins, it was still home. SAY: The author of this psalm is uncertain. Bible scholars think it may have been written by David, Daniel or Ezra. As one of the exiles, he understood the lessons their time in Babylon (Persia) had taught them. Ezra led the people in worship and helped them make a new commitment to God s Word. Therefore, he could say: It is good that I have been afflicted, that I might learn your statutes. Psalm 119:71 132

139 JOURNEY 11 HAVE the students get into their Huddle Groups. Point out the key words: good, afflicted, learn and statutes. Ask how something as bad as being exiled could be considered good. Divide the verse into three phrase groups and assign one phrase to each group. Have the class say the verse five times with each phrase group chiming in when it is their turn. Then reassign the phrases to different groups and repeat the verse again five times. Reassign the phrases again to different groups and repeat the verse again five times. Have the entire class say the verse from memory. SAY: Sometimes God allows difficult times to come into our lives so that He can get our attention and teach us His truth. CHALLENGE the students to remember this verse whenever difficult times come. A LOOK AT THE BOOK SAY: Nehemiah knew how to get things done. He was a good organizer and he knew how to make others feel part of a team. LOOK UP the following Scriptures to discover who else was a good leader. Genesis 41:37 45 Exodus 3:7 12 Deuteronomy 31:1 3 Samuel 16:10 13 Daniel 2:46 48 Matthew 3:7 12 Acts 2:37 44 Acts 9:10 18 Revelation 19:

140 JOURNEY 11 REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Why was Nehemiah so troubled by the report from Judah? (Almost 100 years after the first exiles returned, the walls and the city gates had not been repaired.) 2. What made Nehemiah the right person for rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem? (He was an organizer who was passionate about the work God had given him to do.) 3. Why were walls so important to the larger cities in Judah and Israel? (protection) 4. What did King Artaxerxes give to Nehemiah as he set out to return to his homeland? (letters of safe passage; access to quality timber; and a blessing of God s grace on his work) 5. How did he organize the people for the task of rebuilding the wall? (He assigned each family the repair of the wall that was in front of their house.) 6. How many days did it take to rebuild the wall under Nehemiah s leadership? (52) 7. What had the exile taught the Jewish people about idol worship? (not to do it) 8. Had they learned their lesson? (Yes) 9. Why was it good for the Jews to be carried off? 10. What did it teach them? 134