Kid Nation Lesson, grades 3-4-5 October 13, 2018 Numbers & Deuteronomy Good morning! Today is a special day (although all days given to us by God are special!)!!! Today the morning will begin as usual with opening prayer and worksheet in the classrooms. At 9:25 or 11:10 you will take your class to the Hangar. Once there you will leave your class clipboard on a designated table then: * all teachers and 4:10ers will go to the Wesley Room * Children will stay in the Hangar with Renee * Buddies will remain with their children Children will have their lesson taught by Renee today. They'll talk about the books of Numbers and Deuteronomy. When finished (about ½ an hour as usual) teachers will pick up their kids and return to the classroom for the small group activity. Small Group Activity 1. Give each child one of the booklets and make sure they have a pencil and a Bible. 2. Have them open to the book of Numbers. 3. As you talk about the 2 books today, have students follow along with their illustrations. You'll be narrating the main points and events that took place. Talking points are given on the next page. 4. Have students number the pages of their book with the first page being #1 and continuing through #17 (the page with Deuteronomy 30:16).
TALKING POINTS Page 1 Today we are going to talk about the books of Numbers and Deuteronomy. The book of Numbers is a book of facts, figures and events. It is a record kept by Moses of 38 years of wandering. The book of Numbers is about numbers, but it's about so much more. The book begins with one census when the Israelites got ready to leave Mt. Sinai and another at the end, as they were camping near the border of what is now known as Israel. But the book is also full of dramatic stories that reveal a lot about what God is like and how he deals with consistently rebellious human beings. Jews in ancient times knew the book by the name "In the Wilderness." That's pretty descriptive because that's exactly what the book was about wandering in the desert for 40 years and why. The reason it took so long, in a word, is sin. In fact, one of the main points of the book and a message for all generations is that God punishes sin. He gives help when asked. He shows mercy and offers love that never ends. But when faced with sin, he knows it won't go away if he ignores it so he doesn't. Page 2 As you can see from this Family Circle cartoon, what Billy sometimes does is much like the Israelites did for those 40 years. They were trying to get to the promised land but because they kept sinning they went in all sorts of circles and it took 40 years to get where they were finally trying to go. Page 3 Let's review the first 4 books of the Bible so far. Genesis is the first book and it's all about the beginning creation, Cain and Abel, the first murder, Noah's Ark and the covenant God made with his people, Joseph and his brothers selling him into slavery, the famine in Egypt and more. Exodus is all about leaving or exiting. It's about God helping the Israelites out of Egypt and heading towards the promised land.
Leviticus is all about the rules and laws God gave his people. This book talks about when they should worship, clothes they couldn't wear, how they should behave, festivals they should celebrate, and more. Numbers is the fourth book of the Bible and this book records the Israelites preparation to enter the Promised Land. Pages 4 and 5 So while camping at Mt. Sinai for a year (Moses passed away at the end of Leviticus at the age of 120) God gave Israel their governing laws. God then called on Moses to get the people ready to leave. Since they will be invading an occupied land, God instructed Moses to take a census and determine how many fighting men he has. Among the 12 families descended from the sons of Jacob, there are 603,550 men of fighting age, 20 or older. Page 6 A pillar of cloud representing God's presence among the people rose from the tent sanctuary and began to move. This was the signal that it was time for Israel to break camp and follow. At the front of this nation of people are priests carrying the art of the covenant. This is the chest that contained the tablets with the 10 commandments in it. When the people travel by night, the pillar of cloud changes into a pillar of fire. Page 7 In the morning when the dew would cover the ground, manna also appeared. Manna is an unknown food "like small whitish seeds" that tastes something like baked olive oil. God provided this food for his people as they continued towards the Promised Land. Unfortunately, the people were unhappy and often complained that this was the only thing to eat. They were unhappy that they had left Egypt where they could eat cucumbers, melons, onions, and all the fish they wanted. They were starving in this desert and certainly made sure God knew they were unhappy! God then sent wind that pushed quail in from the seacoast. The birds were all over the place. The people collected the birds and ate a huge feast. Whatever they couldn't eat they dried to have for later.
Page 8 When the Israelites were camping on the edge of Canaan, Moses sent 12 men one from each of the 12 family tribes to scout the land. He wanted to know if the towns were fortified with walls, if the soil was good, and if there were trees. The scouts returned 40 days later. Two of the men Joshua and Caleb show off grapes, pomegranates, and figs and urge the people to take the land. The other 10 scouts didn't agree. "We won't be able to grow anything in that soil, and the people are huge, like giants!" The Israelites refused to go any further and because they didn't have faith, God condemned the nation to wander in the desert for 40 years until most of the adults who had originally left Egypt were now dead. Page 9 The Israelites retreated (went back) to Kadesh, an place where they spent most of those 40 years. There the water dried up and people groaned and griped and complained about having left Egypt. Moses and his brother Aaron asked God for help. God asked the brothers to bring the people together. God told Moses to speak directly to the rock and command the rock to give you water. Moses called the people together but instead of speaking directly to the rock he told the people, "Look, you rebellious people, and you will see water flow from this rock!" Then he struck the rock twice with his staff. But because Moses did not speak to the rock has God had commanded, and God would receive credit for the miracle, God told Moses that he and Aaron would not lead the Israelites into the Promised Land. Page 10 As the Israelites continue wandering towards the Promised Land, they get to a land called Edom which is now western Jordan. The people of Edom refused to let the Israelites pass through which would have made their passage very short and direct. Instead, the Israelites had to turn around and go all the way around the long way. Once again, the people began to complain to God for making them endure such hunger and thirst. God send venomous snakes into the camp. These snakes killed many people. The Israelites repented and asked to be delivered from the poisonous snakes. God told Moses to put up a pole with a bronze snake at the top. Anyone who gets bitten by a poisonous snake and looks at the pole will not die.
Page 11 Is the Israelites turn north and head towards the border of the Promised Land they approach Moab which is near the Dead Sea in Jordan. The king of Moab becomes frantic and sends messengers to hire Balaam who was a well-known seer and prophet. The kind wants Balaam to put a hex or spell on the Israelites. Balaam loads his donkey and begins the journey. Somewhere along the way he came upon an angel with a sword. At first only Balaam's donkey can see the divine messenger so the beast sits down and refuses to go any further. When Balaam beats the donkey, trying to get him to move, the Lord gave the donkey the ability to talk. "What have I done to you that made you beat me?" the animal asked. Suddenly, Balaam is also able to see the angel. This angel lets Balaam and the donkey to pass and go on to Moab but only on the condition that he speak only the word of God. As they continue, instead of cursing and putting a hex on the Israelites, Balaam blesses them and curses their enemies instead. Page 12 Before Moses died, God tells him to commission (appoint) Joshua as a successor. Moses takes Joshua to a huge gathering of the people, puts his hands on him, and appoints him Israel's leader. Page 13 Now we'll talk about the book of Deuteronomy. This book's purpose is to remind the people of what God had done for them. Page 14 In one of several farewell speeches before he died, Moses reminded the Israelites of their history and the laws they have that set them apart from other nations. "The Lord told me to give you these laws and teachings," Moses said, "so you can obey them in the land he is giving you." And the main focus of all these laws and teachings is that they should worship God and God only. "Memorize his laws," Moses said, "and tell them to your children over and over again. Talk about them all the time, whether you're at home or walking along the road or going to bed at night, or getting up in the morning."
Page 15 Some 40 years after God made a covenant with the Israelites at Mt. Sinai, Moses reminded the people about it. "The Lord has made an agreement with you", he said, "and if you keep your part, you will be successful in everything you do." Page 16 Moses was now 120 years old. His sister Miriam and his brother Aaron have already died. So has most of the generation that Moses had led out of slavery in Egypt. Now is the time for Moses to die. He climbs Mt. Nebo which rises high above the Jordan River, sees the Promised Land, and dies. He is buried nearby in an unmarked grave. For one month the people grieve their loss of the one prophet in the Bible who spoke "face to face" with God. Any 9:15 students who would like to take their booklets home at end of class may do so. If they don't wish to keep them and instead would just be throwing them away, keep them for the 11:00 class to use and take home. I don't think every student will want to take one home, so I printed enough for some to take home and the rest to be shared by the 11am class. The 11am students who wish to do so may take theirs home as well.