Unit 33: The Northern Kingdom: Israel s Idolatry and God s Punishment Theme: God forbids idolatry and the mixing of truth and false teaching.

Transcription

1 Old Testament 8 Teacher s Guide Divided Kingdom, Babylonian Captivity, Return This set contains... Student Lesson Copy Masters Teacher s Guide CD with Student Lesson Masters and Teacher s Guide in PDF and RTF files Unit 33: The Northern Kingdom: Israel s Idolatry and God s Punishment Theme: God forbids idolatry and the mixing of truth and false teaching. Lesson 1: The Sins of Jeroboam Lesson 2: The Sins of Ahab and Jezebel Lesson 3: The Sins of the Samaritans Unit 34: Elijah and Elisha: Faithful Prophets of God Theme: God provides faithful ministers to call his people to repentance and to proclaim the gospel. Lesson 1: Elijah Calls Sinners to Repentance Lesson 2: Elisha Faithfully Proclaims God s Grace Lesson 3: Elisha Guides Believers in Their Lives of Faith Unit 35: The Southern Kingdom: God s Faithfulness to Judah Theme: God remains faithful to his promises in spite of our unfaithfulness. Lesson 1: Jehoshaphat and Joash: The Faithful Become Unfaithful Lesson 2: Hezekiah: Mostly Faithful Lesson 3: Judah Falls Unit 36: The Babylonian Captivity: All Nations Serve God s Purpose Theme: God uses the nations and peoples of the earth to serve his purposes. Lesson 1: God Preserves His People in Captivity Lesson 2: God Preserves the Remnant through Esther Lesson 3: The Return from Exile Lesson 4: The Intertestamental Period ISBN Suggested for Grade 10 74N7021

2 Curriculum Developer: Prof. David Kuske Project Director: Gerald Kastens Writing/Editing Team: Rev. Lyle Albrecht, Laurie Biedenbender, Richard Carver, Owen Dorn, Donald Helwig, Rev. John Miller Design Team: NPH Design Services Authorized by the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. We extend our thanks to the many employees of Northwestern Publishing House and WELS Parish Services who have contributed to this project. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. The NIV and New International Version trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society. All hymns, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from Christian Worship: A Lutheran Hymnal. Copyright 1993 by Northwestern Publishing House. Northwestern Publishing House 1250 N. 113th St., Milwaukee, WI by Northwestern Publishing House Published 2001 Printed in the United States of America ISBN All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission of Northwestern Publishing House. Printed with soy inks on recycled paper.

3 Introductory Pages for Old Testament Books UNIT FORMAT Each unit contains 15 to 25 copy masters for use with the students. These student copy masters may be reproduced. The teacher s guide contains copy master text, answers, and other instructions. Each student should have a three-ring binder to store and organize all the student lesson pages. Overview This page contains the information the teacher needs to understand the unit. Unit title Bible references Unit theme Spiritual goals: We pray that the Holy Spirit would help the students learn these spiritual truths and adopt these spiritual attitudes and habits. Suggested memory treasures: Assign these as you see fit. Be sure to discuss their relationship to the truths in the unit. The students will have learned almost all the suggested memory treasures in their Christ-Light lessons at Lutheran elementary school or Sunday school. One asterisk designates those memory treasures that are part of the Sunday school core. Two asterisks designate what is additional core for Lutheran elementary schools. Suggested commentary readings: Read these to review Scripture or to add depth to your instruction. Introduction ideas: Use these to interest the students and to help them see their need for what they will learn in the unit. Copy Masters The Background page helps the students review some of the basic facts of the Bible character or the Bible era about to be studied. Most, but not all, units have a background page. This copy master should always be used. The Bible lesson guides the students in their study of specific portions of the Bible. It begins with an Aim question and ends with a Truth that answers that question. Key Points are emphasized along the way. You may hand out the Bible lesson copy master and have the students fill it in as you teach the lesson, or you may have the students work in small groups to complete a portion of it before you discuss it. Please note that the student pages will lose their effectiveness if assigned as homework before class. The first Bible lesson is the primary one in the unit. It should always be used. Using the remaining two or three is strongly suggested. Each Let s Talk page contains questions related to the Bible lesson directly preceding it. Each option is designated to the specific Key Point to which it is most closely connected. The discussion options require a variety of learning skills, such as analysis, synthesis, evaluation, and application. At least some of these questions should always be used because they help the students apply the lesson to their lives. Plan in advance which questions you will use and where the questions fit best. Then vary your use of these questions: ~ Discuss some questions as a class. ~ Have students write answers first before discussing the questions as a class. ~ Have students discuss the questions in pairs or small groups before discussing them as a class. ~ Assign some questions as homework. The remaining pages contain activities to help the students learn the Bible lessons and apply them. The pages include additional Bible studies of many kinds, real-life situations, skits and roleplays, simple doctrinal studies, hymn and memory treasure studies, illustrations, writing activities, simple art activities, and so on. They may be done in class or outside of class, independently or in small groups. Select those activities best suited to your class, and limit the number of activities to fit the time allotted. Plan in advance at what point in the lesson you can most appropriately and effectively use the selected activities. My Journal topics: The last copy master in each unit contains a variety of questions for student reflection and writing. You may assign one or more of the suggested topics or one of your own choosing. The students may put all their journal pages in one section of their three-ring binders. Generally, journal writings are intended to be kept private. You may ask the students occasionally to hand in one of their own choosing, or you may tell them ahead of time that you will be collecting one. Because the writing of spiritual journals encourages personal reflection on spiritual truths as they relate to daily living, use of these journal topics is strongly suggested. iii

4 Sample Lesson Plan The following lesson plan is for Lesson 1 of Unit 33: The Northern Kingdom: Israel s Idolatry and God s Punishment. 1. Use Copy Master 1 (Solomon: Disobedience and Disaster), the Background page, to acquaint your students with the necessary background for this lesson. 2. Introduce the lesson with the first Introduction option (What day of the week does God say we must worship?). 3. Hand out Copy Master 2 (The Sins of Jeroboam). Read and discuss the first section, concluding with Key Point To apply Key Point 1, hand out Copy Master 3 (The Sins of Jeroboam), the Let s Talk page. Discuss applications 1 and Return to the lesson on Copy Master 2, and complete the second section, concluding with Key Point To apply Key Point 2, use applications 4 and 5 on Copy Master To further apply Key Point 2, use Copy Master 5 (Crystal Power?). Make this copy master into a transparency. Show it to the class on an overhead, and then discuss how to respond to a Christian who is dallying with crystals. 8. Return to Copy Master 2, and answer the Aim question with the Truth of the lesson. 9. To have the students explore a false religion, use Copy Master 4 (Exposing the Wolves). Put the students into small groups to respond to each false teaching. Then discuss the false teachings briefly as a class. 10. Assign Copy Master 6 (Twisted Religions) as homework, if desired. Characteristics of Tenth-Grade Students Spiritual Development They think more deeply about spiritual truths they have already learned. They can understand the interrelatedness of Bible events. They want to know how to apply spiritual truths to their lives. They may need additional guidance if they do not come from homes that model Christian living. Emotional and Volitional Development They do not consider themselves children, and they are independent in their attitudes and habits. They are greatly influenced by the actions and opinions of their peers. They are often governed by role models they have consciously or unconsciously chosen to follow. They are greatly influenced by television, movies, music, and magazines. Sexual Development Their sexuality is becoming an important aspect of their lives. Relationships with Parents They are in the process of leaving their parents in order to develop independent lives. They share fewer of their experiences with their parents. They are still influenced by their parents, especially if their parents respect their growing independence. iv

5 Learning Style They can study one topic in depth over a number of class periods. They still enjoy a variety of learning experiences: ~ working independently and in peer groups ~ learning by listening and by doing ~ learning by reading and by writing ~ learning by answering questions and by asking questions ~ analyzing, synthesizing, evaluating, and creating They question things they have previously accepted without question. Some Teaching Strategies Meet the students where they are and then stretch them: Recognize that your students have different levels of Bible knowledge and spiritual development, even when they might have received similar spiritual training in elementary school. Do not make assumptions about their previous learning. Start with the simple. Review the basics. Then move on to more complex concepts, deeper understandings, and applications of Bible truths relevant to their teenage years. Create an open, responsive environment: Recognize that as your students develop independent thinking skills, they may question things they previously accepted without question. Maintain a classroom in which it s good to ask questions, even spiritual questions. You are a spiritual leader. If they have questions, you want to give them truthful and appropriate answers. Encourage them to search the Scriptures, not look to worldly experts for answers. Allow them to work together on some exercises: Occasional cooperative-learning activities yield many positive results. Your students may enjoy their work more when they do it with their peers. They may become accustomed to discussing spiritual issues with their peers a skill we hope they take with them outside the classroom. And when they have already tried out their ideas on a small group of their peers, they may feel more confident discussing an issue in front of the whole class. To keep chatty students focused on the task at hand, give the students definite and fairly short time limits. v

6 The Northern Kingdom: Israel s Idolatry and God s Punishment 1 Kings 12 16,21,22; 2 Kings 9,17; John 4; Matthew 10 Unit Theme God forbids idolatry and the mixing of truth and false teaching. Goals We pray that the student knows these spiritual truths: Idolatry is putting other people and things before God. God forbids idolatry. God forbids the mixing of truth and false teaching. develops these spiritual attitudes and habits: I hold to God s truth, which centers in Christ. I repent of my sins of idolatry. I avoid errors that endanger faith and warn others of these dangers. To Memorize ** Matthew 4:10b Matthew 7:15 * Matthew 22:37 * Romans 6:23 Romans 16:17 Galatians 5:9 2 Timothy 4:3 * The First Commandment * Hymn 304:1,5,7 Suggested Commentary Readings Pages , in Franzmann, Bible History Commentary, Old Testament Pages , , , in Wolfgramm, 1,2 Kings, The People s Bible series Pages in Albrecht, Matthew, The People s Bible series Pages in Baumler, John, The People s Bible series Introduction Ideas Suggested use with Copy Master 2: On what day of the week does God say we must worship? He doesn t say. We may worship on any day, although we ve chosen Sunday, the day of his resurrection, as our regular day. Where does God say we must worship? He doesn t say. We may worship wherever we wish, although we ve chosen to do so in houses of worship built specifically for that purpose. God doesn t mandate the wheres, whens, and hows of our worship, but he did do so for the Israelites. He gave them the ceremonial law, which told them exactly how they were to worship him. In our lesson we ll see how one of the Israelite kings ignored that ceremonial law. Suggested use with Copy Master 7: If I asked you to name the worst king or ruler of the 20th century, whom would you name? Possible answers: Pol Pot, Adolph Hitler, Saddam Hussein. It may surprise you to know that God named one man as the most evil Israelite king. The Bible says that this man did more evil in the eyes of the LORD than any of those before him.... [He] did more to provoke the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger than did all the kings of Israel before him (1 Kings 16:30,33). In this lesson we ll meet this king. His name is Ahab. Suggested use with Copy Master 13: How many of you have ever made bread, either from scratch or in a bread maker? What are the main ingredients of bread? Flour, water or milk, and yeast. A small amount of yeast is used, yet what does it do? It makes the whole loaf of bread rise. Paul talked about yeast and making bread in the Bible. In Galatians 5:9 he said, A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough. But he wasn t giving a cooking lesson. He was quoting a proverb to warn the Galatians about the dangers of false teaching. Just as a little bit of yeast affects the whole dough, a little bit of false teaching affects the whole truth of God s Word. Mixing false teaching with orthodox teaching is what this lesson is about. Old Testament Unit 33 1

7 Solomon: Disobedience and Disaster Background 1 Kings 11:1 12:24 Solomon, who had been blessed by God with wisdom, lived very unwisely in his later years. God had commanded the Israelites not to intermarry with the surrounding heathen nations, because the heathens would surely turn the Israelites hearts after other gods. Solomon, however, loved many foreign women and took seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines. As Solomon grew old, his wives led him astray, as God had said they would. Solomon pledged allegiance to Ashtoreth, Molech, and Chemosh, and he built high places of worship for them. As Israel s spiritual leader, he led the whole nation astray. In his anger God told Solomon he would tear the kingdom away from Solomon s son and give it to another. But for the sake of his servant David, God would keep Benjamin and Judah, home of his holy city, Jerusalem, in Solomon s family. The prophet Ahijah announced that Jeroboam would become the agent through whom God would wrest the ten northern tribes of Israel from Solomon s family. God s judgment on Solomon was fulfilled shortly after he died. Solomon s son Rehoboam succeeded him and unwisely decreed that his rule would be even harsher than his father s. Rehoboam said he would tax the people even more heavily and force even more people to labor for him on his building projects and fight for him in his military. When the ten northern tribes heard Rehoboam s decree, they rallied behind Jeroboam and declared him their king. Only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin remained under Rehoboam s rule. The name Israel would be used to refer to the northern ten tribes. The southern tribes would be called Judah. From Judah would come the King who would fulfill God s promise that David s kingdom would last forever the King who would obey God s will perfectly, the King who would give his life for the people of Israel and of all the world, the King Jesus Christ. 2 Old Testament Unit 33 Copy Master 1

8 The Sins of Jeroboam 1 Kings 12:25-33; 13:1-6,33,34; 14:6-16 AIM How does God respond to those who set up their own religions? After Israel s split into two kingdoms, Jeroboam wanted to make his kingdom in the north as appealing as possible to those whose loyalty might still be wavering between him and Rehoboam. Part of his plan was to develop a style of worship and religion that would satisfy everyone and keep everyone far away from Jerusalem. In a sense his plan worked. Israel survived for a time as a political entity. Yet his idea was an appalling sin and a tragic failure. Let s see why. 1 Ki 12:25-33 a. List six ways Jeroboam changed the true worship of God. (1) He told the people to worship at Bethel and Dan instead of Jerusalem. (2) He made golden calves for the people to worship and echoed Aaron s words: Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt. (3) He built shrines at pagan high places for the people to worship. (Jeroboam did not institute this practice, for it had been going on for some time.) (4) He removed God s appointed priests and appointed his own, who were not Levites, to lead worship. (5) He instituted a feast of his own to take the place of the Feast of Tabernacles. (6) He himself served as a priest by offering sacrifices on the altars he had built. b. Why were these changes sinful? While Jeroboam maintained some aspects of the true worship of God, he instituted practices that ran contrary to God s ceremonial law and even included elements of idolatry, thereby violating the First Commandment. 1 Ki 13:1-6,33,34 c. God sent a man to show Jeroboam that his actions were wrong. What did the man say about the altar on which Jeroboam was about to make a sacrifice? Speaking to the altar itself, the man said that Josiah (who ruled as king three hundred years later) would burn the bones of the false priests on that very altar. The man also said the altar would split apart and ashes would spill out of it. All this was to show that these sacrifices being offered at Bethel were not acceptable to God. d. What did God do to Jeroboam when he tried to stop this man of God? As Jeroboam stretched out his hand and said, Seize him! God shriveled his hand, making it useless. e. Although God gave Jeroboam a further sign by healing his hand, what did Jeroboam refuse to do? Jeroboam refused to change his evil ways. He continued to practice his contorted, corrupted religion. KEY POINT 1 What was Jeroboam s sin? He corrupted the worship of the true God. Soon after these events, Jeroboam s son Abijah became critically ill. Jeroboam did not turn to one of his golden calves for help. He turned to Ahijah, the prophet of the true God, who had foretold Jeroboam s rule over the ten tribes of Israel. Jeroboam disguised his wife and sent her to Ahijah to find out whether their son would recover. But God informed his blind and aged prophet of the king s ruse. The moment Jeroboam s wife spoke the prophet knew who she was, and the king did not get the news he had hoped for. Instead he heard words of judgment. 1 Ki 14:6-16 a. According to the prophet, why was God angry with Jeroboam? In spite of all God had done for him, Jeroboam had shown contempt for God, despised God, and made false gods. He had done more evil than all who lived before [him]. b. What would ultimately happen to Jeroboam s family because of his idolatry? God would bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam. Every last male from his family line would die. c. What would happen to Jeroboam s sick son? He would die as soon as Jeroboam s wife got home. (Note that for Abijah, who was the only one of Jeroboam s house in whom God found some good, this was an act of mercy. This apparent heir to the throne was the only male member of the family to die a peaceful death and have an honorable burial.) d. What would happen to all Israel because they too sinned? God would scatter all Israel beyond the Euphrates River a prophecy of the Assyrian exile. Old Testament Unit 33 Lesson 1 Copy Master 2a 3

9 KEY POINT 2 How did God respond to Jeroboam s sins? God rebuked Jeroboam and punished his whole house and eventually all Israel. TRUTH How does God respond to those who set up their own religions? God punishes those who set up their own religions. 4 Old Testament Unit 33 Lesson 1 Copy Master 2b

10 The Sins of Jeroboam Let s Talk 1. KEY POINT 1 : Manuel says: I wish our church wouldn t practice close Communion. If we let anyone commune who wanted to, we d make people a lot happier. How would Manuel s suggestion be like Jeroboam s sins? Jeroboam tampered with God s Word in order to make religious practice more convenient to people at least in his eyes. Manuel also wishes to please more people by changing something that God has established in his Word. Ideas like Manuel s bring to mind Paul s words in 2 Timothy 4:3: The time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 2. KEY POINT 1 : Evaluate: We should avoid any change to our worship lives or congregational lives so we are not like Jeroboam. This statement is too extreme. Yes, God forbids us to make changes to his Word. Yet we have freedom to change things not prescribed in his Word, such as adopting different forms of liturgy or a new hymnal. As in all matters of adiaphora, Christians are still guided by love for one another. They do not want to do anything that would cause someone to lose faith or sin against the conscience. 3. KEY POINT 1 :Your Roman Catholic friend prays her rosary every day, sending prayers to God and to the virgin Mary. How is this friend guilty of a sin similar to Jeroboam s? She is adding false elements to her worship. Although we honor Mary as the highly favored (Luke 1:28) woman God chose to be the mother of his Son, God forbids us to worship anyone but him. 4. KEY POINT 2 : A Christian friend is dallying with his horoscope, even going to an astrologer to get a professional reading. He says it s just for fun. What would you tell him? As God sent his prophet to warn Jeroboam, so he sends us to speak his truth to those who are being seduced by false religions. We might say something like this: Even if you don t take that stuff seriously, it s dangerous. Astrology leads people to trust in something other than God a sin against the First Commandment. It s God, not the stars, who holds your future. Remember all that God has done for you, and then Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only (Matthew 4:10b). (Use Copy Master 5 to have your students respond to a Christian who is dallying with New Age crystals.) 5. KEY POINT 2 : Note the truth the following statement proclaims and also the false doctrine it condemns: The words of the testament of Christ are not to be understood otherwise than as they read... the bread does not signify the absent body and the wine the absent blood of Christ, but... they [the bread and wine] are truly the body and blood of Christ. Explain to the students that this is from the Formula of Concord (Epitome, Article VII:2), one of the Lutheran Confessions to which we subscribe. These confessions proclaim the truth of God s Word and condemn errors, as God s prophet did to Jeroboam. Specifically, this statement proclaims the truth that Jesus body and blood are present in the Sacrament and that Jesus words this is my body... this is my blood (Matthew 26:26,28) are to be interpreted literally. It condemns the false teaching of the Calvinists, who say that Jesus words are to be interpreted figuratively, that the bread merely symbolizes the body and the wine merely symbolizes the blood. 6. KEY POINT 2 : Evaluate: All who add man-made elements to their religion will go to hell. God says, Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only (Matthew 4:10b). If these man-made elements include worship of people or things other than the true God, if these man-made elements lead people to deny that Jesus is their Savior, then those who add these man-made elements will be damned. We must condemn and warn against false prophets and false teaching as God himself does (Matthew 7:15; Romans 16:17), but we cannot look into individual hearts of members of other Christian church bodies. And we know that the Holy Spirit can work saving faith in hearts wherever Jesus is preached as Savior. Old Testament Unit 33 Lesson 1 Copy Master 3 5