TEACHER BIBLE STUDY 4 th -6 th Grade Kids Bible Study Guide By all appearances, Saul was a good king. He was handsome, taller than most people, and God had blessed him. But Saul forgot that it was God who gave Saul his throne. First, Saul sinned by burning offerings in Samuel s absence. That moment was an important test for Saul. According to Samuel, the Lord would have permanently established Saul s reign if Saul had obeyed. Instead, God would appoint a king who was loyal to Him. (1 Samuel 13:13-14) Then, before battle, Saul vowed that anyone who ate before sunset would be cursed. When the battle was over, the Israelites were so hungry they ate the livestock before the meat finished cooking. Saul s oath resulted in the people sinning against God (Leviticus 19:26), and it almost cost him his son Jonathan s life. Finally, God told Saul to destroy the Amalekites completely. The Amalekites were enemies of God s people. (See Deuteronomy 25:17-19.) But Saul spared Agag the king and kept the best livestock and cattle. He destroyed the worthless things. Samuel arrived. I have carried out the Lord s instructions! Saul said. Samuel asked him about the sheep, the cattle, and King Agag. Saul still insisted that he had obeyed; he planned to offer the sheep and cattle to the Lord as a sacrifice. To obey is better than sacrifice Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has rejected you as king! Samuel said. (1 Samuel 15:22-23) After they returned to Israel, Samuel never visited Saul again, and the Lord regretted making Saul king. As you teach, help guide the children to understand that all earthly kings like Saul are imperfect. But we can see how those kings point us to the perfect King, Jesus, who carried out His Father s instructions without fail. Thank God for sending us the King we needed a King who loved us enough to give His life for our salvation. LESSON OVERVIEW/SCHEDULE Session Title: God Rejected Saul as King Bible Passage: 1 Samuel 13:1-14; 14:18-48; 15:1-35 Big Picture Question: How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. Key Passage: Psalm 51:10 Unit Christ Connection: God provided the first kings to rule His people Israel; Christ, the final King, rules over all people as Savior. Through David s family, God sent Jesus Christ, the Messiah. Transition Time Welcome time Activity Sheet/Table Centers Session starter (10 minutes) 1
Lesson Countdown Introduce the session (2 minutes) Timeline map (1 minute) Big picture question (1 minute) Tell the Bible Story (10 minutes) The Gospel: God s Plan for Me (optional) Discussion starter video (4 minutes) Key passage (5 minutes) Sing (5 minutes) Prayer (2 minutes) Table Time Bible story review & Bible skills (10 minutes) Key passage activity (5 minutes) Activity choice (10 minutes) Prayer (5 minutes) THE BIBLE STORY/OVERVIEW God Rejected Saul as King 1 Samuel 13:1-14; 14:18-48; 15:1-35 Saul was a young man when he became king of Israel. God s people had asked for a king, and they got Saul. As ruler over Israel, Saul gathered an army. Some of the men went with Saul into the hill country, and the rest of them went with Saul s son Jonathan to a place called Gibeah. Jonathan led his men to attack and destroy a Philistine army camp. This made the Philistines mad! Saul sent messengers to tell everyone in Israel what had happened. Saul called for more men to help fight the Philistines. The Philistines came out to fight the Israelites. They had 3,000 chariots, 6,000 men on horseback, and more foot soldiers than anyone could count! The Israelites were outnumbered. They were all afraid; some of them hid. Saul waited seven days like Samuel had told him to do, but Samuel had not come with more instructions yet. Saul s soldiers were leaving him. Saul didn t want to wait any longer, so he made an offering to God. Then Samuel showed up. Saul, what are you doing? Samuel asked. You hadn t come, and the men were leaving me. I wanted to ask for God s help before we went into battle against the Philistines, Saul replied. You have disobeyed God, Samuel said. Saul was king, not the priest. It was a sin for Saul to 2
make the sacrifice! You will not be king much longer. God is going to find someone obedient to be king. The fighting began between the Israelites and Philistines. Earlier that day, Saul had told the soldiers not to eat anything before sunset. If anyone eats before I get even with the Philistines, you will be cursed! Saul said. The Israelite men soon became weak because they were hungry. They were in a forest when they came across some honey. It looked so good, but none of the men ate it because they didn t want to be cursed. Jonathan hadn t heard what his father Saul had said. He dipped his staff in honey and ate some of it. All of a sudden, Jonathan had more energy and felt strong. Then one of the men with Jonathan said, Your father made us promise not to eat today. Anyone who eats is cursed! My father sure is making trouble for you, Jonathan replied. I had just a little taste, and I feel great! The Israelites were tired from all the fighting, but when they had won, they ate the food they had captured from the Philistines. They were so hungry, they disobeyed God by not properly preparing the food. That night, King Saul wanted to attack the Philistines again. He asked God, Will You help us defeat the Philistines? But God did not answer. Saul knew this meant someone had sinned. Saul pledged to find out who had sinned, and he promised to kill that person. But Saul found out his son Jonathan had sinned. Jonathan said, I tasted a tiny bit of honey. Saul was ready to kill Jonathan, but the Israelites stopped him. Jonathan had been a good military leader; they did not want him to die. So Saul agreed to not kill his son. One day, Samuel came to Saul with a message from God. God wanted Saul to attack the Amalekites, killing all of the people and all of the animals. So Saul and his army fought the Amalekites. They won, but they did not destroy everything like God had commanded. Saul only destroyed the worthless things and things he didn t want. God told Samuel, I regret that I made Saul king because he does not obey Me. Samuel confronted Saul and told him what God had said. I did obey Him! Saul argued. I only saved the best animals to sacrifice to the Lord. Does God care more about obedience or sacrifices? Samuel asked. You rejected His instruction, so God has rejected you as king. Saul admitted his sin and pleaded for forgiveness. Samuel turned to leave. God has taken away your kingship today, and he is giving it to another king, Samuel said. Samuel left, and God was sorry He had made Saul the king of Israel. Christ Connection: God s message to Saul was clear: Obey Me and all will go well for you. But Saul did not obey God. Samuel told Saul he would not last as king. God rejected Saul as king, but He had a plan to bring Jesus His Son and our perfect King to rule over His people forever. 3
TRANSITION TIME Session Title: God Rejected Saul as King Bible Passage: 1 Samuel 13:1-14; 14:18-48; 15:1-35 Big Picture Question: How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. Key Passage: Psalm 51:10 Unit Christ Connection: God provided the first kings to rule His people Israel; Christ, the final King, rules over all people as Savior. Through David s family, God sent Jesus Christ, the Messiah. Welcome time Greet each kid as he or she arrives. Use this time to collect the offering, fill out attendance sheets, and help new kids connect to your group. Invite kids to share about their week. Was it good or bad? During the week, was there a time they thought about God or Jesus? Why? What was going on? Activity page Table Centers (Miscellaneous Activities) Missing Half / Too Many Letters activity page, 1 per kid Bibles Pencils Guide kids to complete the activity page Missing Half. Say Would half of these objects be good? Or would you rather have the whole object? Is doing something halfway good? What if you only did half of your homework? In today s Bible study we will hear about someone who did part not all of what he should have done. As time allows, lead kids to use the Bible to complete the activity page Too Many Letters. Session starter (10 minutes) Option 1: Ridiculous Rules Game game boards (x3 per classroom) game pieces dice (x3 per classroom) A generic gameboard has been provided in your classroom, along with a mixture of game pieces. Allow kids to roll a dice to determine how many squares to move. Kids should take turns. The first one to the finish line wins. Explain that the game has a few rules that must be followed. Before rolling the dice, the players must perform a crazy dance move or sing a silly song. After rolling, they must high-five someone and say You re the best! before moving to their spot on the gameboard. Say Would you rather play with my rules or rules you invent? Were my rules ridiculous? Did anyone break one of my rules? 4
Sometimes we don t understand God s rules. We may even think a rule is ridiculous or bad, but God s rules are never ridiculous or bad. His plans are perfect. We have to trust His plan and obey His rules. In our Bible story today, we will hear some rules or instructions that God gave someone. We will also discover whether or not he obeyed the instructions. Option 2: Throw It Away trash can with an empty, clean liner several items including some money, candy, or other items kids would want to keep Ask kids to sit in a circle. Scatter items on the floor in the middle of the circle. Explain that when you give the command, they must gather all the items and throw them away. They may not keep anything. If kids protest throwing away the good stuff, ask why they don t want to. Say What if God told you to throw all of it away? Would you? Would it be better to throw it away like God said, or give it to someone who needs it? Interesting. If God told us to throw all of this away, should we trust Him? Should we trust that His plan is perfect? In our Bible story, someone is faced with several choices. We will see if he obeys completely, disobeys completely, or picks and chooses what he will obey. Transition to large group LESSON Session Title: God Rejected Saul as King Bible Passage: 1 Samuel 13:1-14; 14:18-48; 15:1-35 Big Picture Question: How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. Key Passage: Psalm 51:10 Unit Christ Connection: God provided the first kings to rule His people Israel; Christ, the final King, rules over all people as Savior. Through David s family, God sent Jesus Christ, the Messiah. Countdown countdown video (insert provided DVD with lesson videos and worship) Show the countdown video as you clean-up table centers, set up classroom chairs for lesson and set it to end as large group time begins. 5
Introduce the session (2 minutes) crown or tiara (available in the costume closet) long purple cape or fabric [Large Group Leader enters wearing a crown or tiara and a long, purple cape or piece of fabric.] Leader Welcome! Welcome to my royal castle! Can you imagine actually being a king or a queen? Wow! How many of you think it would be a fun job? Yeah. OK, how many of you think it would be a lot of work? Nice. How many of you think you would do a good job being a king or queen? Cool. Well, leading other people is quite a responsibility. Last week we learned that the Israelites wanted a new leader. They demanded to have a king like all the other nations around them. So God agreed to give them a king. He chose Saul from the tribe of Benjamin to be the first king of the Israelites. Let s look at our timeline map to see where we are today. Timeline map (1 minute) Timeline Map small group visual pack (Additional copies provided for Table Time Review) Leader Here is last week s Bible story. And here is today s Bible story. Oh no. This does not sound good. Maybe I shouldn t tell you. What do you think? You want to know. Well OK. According to the timeline, our Bible story today is God Rejected Saul as King. That does not sound like a good thing for Saul. I wonder why God would reject Saul as king after He chose Saul to be king. We need to open our Bibles and figure out what happened to Saul. Big picture question (1 minute) 11x17 poster provided Leader Our Bible story starts in 1 Samuel 13. Our big picture question this week is, How does God feel when His people obey? Wow. We know that God rejected Saul as king, and now we have a question about obedience. Do you think these are connected? Yeah, me too. Has everyone found 1 Samuel 13? Tell the Bible story (10 minutes) God Rejected Saul as King video Bibles, 1 per kid Big Picture Question: How does God feel when His people obey? - 11x17 poster provided Bible Story Picture 11x17 poster provided Open your Bible to 1 Samuel 13 and tell the Bible story in your own words, or show the Bible story video God Rejected Saul as King. Leader That Bible story makes me really sad. God was ready to make Saul s family be kings forever, but Saul sinned. God would not allow someone to lead His people and keep sinning the way Saul did. God wanted the Israelites to have a leader who loved God. He wanted a leader who followed Him a leader who would help the Israelites love and follow God. Saul was not that type of leader. In fact, Saul did the opposite. Instead of trusting God, Saul decided to do something to stop his men from leaving the battle. Instead of obeying God, Saul offered a sacrifice, but it was wrong. Samuel, the priest, was supposed to offer the sacrifice. Saul disobeyed God. He did not trust God. Sadly, that was 6
not the only time Saul disobeyed God. Do you remember God s instructions about the battle with the Amalekites? God wanted the Israelites to destroy everything. He did not want them to keep anything. But what did Saul do? Saul kept some of the best animals. He only destroyed the things that weren t valuable. Why did Saul say he kept the animals? Yes! He was going to sacrifice those animals to God. Did God ask Saul to keep the animals to sacrifice them to God? No. God instructed Saul to destroy everything. Saul sinned. He decided his plan was better than God s plan. Is it ever right to sin? NO! Saul tried to tell Samuel that he had obeyed and he was doing a good thing by keeping the animals. But he was wrong. Sin is still sin. Even when we think we have a good reason not to obey God s law, breaking God s law is sin. Is there ever a good reason to break God s law? No. Because we are human and not perfect, we sometimes think that it s OK to sin if we re doing it for a good reason. But God wants us to be holy because He is holy, and being holy means obeying God s laws. Saul s actions resulted in serious consequences. His son would not be the next king. God chose a new king to lead the people. Saul also lost his relationship with Samuel. Samuel and Saul did not speak anymore after the events in today s Bible story. Saul lost Samuel s leadership and guidance about following God. Sin has serious consequences. Do you remember the big picture question? How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. God knows we aren t perfect. We sin by breaking His law. We desperately need a Savior to rescue us from sin. The Gospel: God s Plan for Me (optional) Bible Tip: Anytime you share how to become a Christian in a large group environment, try to have teachers available to meet oneon-one with kids. Make sure kids know who they can talk to and when they can talk. Leader How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. God created a perfect world, but Adam and Eve s sin changed the world. As a result we all are separated from God because of sin. We cannot know and love God the way we should because of sin. But God had a plan. It was a plan to redeem us from our sin. Using Scripture and the guide provided, explain to boys and girls how to become a Christian. Encourage boys and girls to ask their parents, small group leaders, or other adults any questions they may have about becoming a Christian. Discussion starter video (4 minutes) Unit 11, Session 2 discussion starter video (on provided DVD) Leader So what about us? Because of our sin nature, we struggle with temptation to sin. Even after you re a Christian, you will still sin and be tempted to sin. The good news is that Christians have God s power to help them resist sin. Everyone even me, your small group leader, your parents, your grandparents, our pastor faces temptation to sin. Do we ever act like Saul and only obey part of what we are told to do? Check out this video while you think about your answer to my question. 7
Show the Unit 11 Session 2 discussion starter video. Leader Hmm look familiar to anyone? What do you think about what happened in the video? Did you see total obedience? Guide kids to think about the big picture question and answer as they respond. Key passage (5 minutes) Key Passage Poster: Psalm 51:10 (11x17 poster, provided) Worship Song: A Clean Heart (on provided DVD) Group kids by small groups, rows, or pairs. Lead kids to say the key passage with the first group providing the first word, the second group providing the second word, and so forth. Leader Our key passage is something we can pray to God every day. Every day we need His help to obey His commands. How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. Join me in singing our key passage song. Sing A Clean Heart. Sing (5 minutes) Worship Song: Generous King (on provided DVD) Leader Who is glad that God sent Jesus to be our perfect King? Stand with me and we will praise God by singing about His wonderful generous gift of Jesus. Lead boys and girls to sing Generous King. Prayer (2 minutes) Leader What a sad Bible story we had today! Saul s sin was serious and had sad consequences. We will continue to hear some more about Saul during the next few Bible stories, but we will also begin to discover who the next king of Israel would be. God wanted a king who would love and obey Him. We will find out if that happened. Before we go, what is today s big picture question and answer? How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. Praise God for sending Jesus! After I pray, watch your small group leader for the signal to go to your small group and look at our Bible story some more. Close in prayer. Dismiss to small groups for Table Time 8
The Gospel: God s Plan for Me Ask kids if they have ever heard the word gospel. Clarify that the word gospel means good news. It is the message about Christ, the kingdom of God, and salvation. Use the following guide to share the gospel with kids. God rules. Explain to kids that the Bible tells us God created everything, and He is in charge of everything. Invite a volunteer to read Genesis 1:1 from the Bible. Read Revelation 4:11 or Colossians 1:16-17 aloud and explain what these verses mean. We sinned. Tell kids that since the time of Adam and Eve, everyone has chosen to disobey God. (Romans 3:23) The Bible calls this sin. Because God is holy, God cannot be around sin. Sin separates us from God and deserves God s punishment of death. (Romans 6:23) God provided. Choose a child to read John 3:16 aloud. Say that God sent His Son, Jesus, the perfect solution to our sin problem, to rescue us from the punishment we deserve. It s something we, as sinners, could never earn on our own. Jesus alone saves us. Read and explain Ephesians 2:8-9. Jesus gives. Share with kids that Jesus lived a perfect life, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again. Because Jesus gave up His life for us, we can be welcomed into God s family for eternity. This is the best gift ever! Read Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21; or 1 Peter 3:18. We respond. Tell kids that they can respond to Jesus. Read Romans 10:9-10,13. Review these aspects of our response: Believe in your heart that Jesus alone saves you through what He s already done on the cross. Repent, turning from self and sin to Jesus. Tell God and others that your faith is in Jesus. Offer to talk with any child who is interested in responding to Jesus. TABLE TIME LEADER Session Title: God Rejected Saul as King Bible Passage: 1 Samuel 13:1-14; 14:18-48; 15:1-35 Big Picture Question: How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. Key Passage: Psalm 51:10 Unit Christ Connection: God provided the first kings to rule His people Israel; Christ, the final King, rules over all people as Savior. Through David s family, God sent Jesus Christ, the Messiah. Bible story review & Bible skills (10 minutes) Bibles, 1 per kid Timeline small group visual pack 3x5 cards from last week s lesson listing 5 facts about Saul, the first Israelite king and 5 facts about Jesus, the perfect King dry erase board and marker, optional (use instead of 3x5 cards) Instruct kids to locate 1 Samuel 13:11-14; 15:22-23,35. Invite volunteers to read one verse each. Say If you were Saul, how would you feel? If you were Samuel, how would you feel? Discuss how Samuel and the Lord were greatly saddened over Saul s sin. 9
Say How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. Who would rule over God s people forever? (God rejected Saul as king, but He had a plan to bring Jesus His Son and our perfect King to rule over His people forever.) Guide kids to review the two charts they made last week about Saul and Jesus (whether on 3x5 cards or written on the dry erase board.) Allow kids to add to their charts facts about each one based on today s Bible story. Review the timeline in the small group visual pack. If you choose to review with boys and girls how to become a Christian, explain that kids are welcome to speak with you, another teacher, or a parent if they have questions. God rules. God created and is in charge of everything. (Genesis 1:1; Revelation 4:11; Colossians 1:16-17) We sinned. Since Adam and Eve, everyone has chosen to disobey God. (Romans 3:23; 6:23) God provided. God sent His Son, Jesus, to rescue us from the punishment we deserve. (John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8-9) Jesus gives. Jesus lived a perfect life, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again so we can be welcomed into God s family. (Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 3:18) We respond. Believe that Jesus alone saves you. Repent. Tell God that your faith is in Jesus. (Romans 10:9-10,13) Key passage activity (5 minutes) Written on My Heart Instructions Key Passage Poster (provided) heart-shaped cards with segments of the key passage paper bag Allow kids to take turns pulling one of the hearts from the container. The group will start with the phrase on the heart and say the remainder of the key passage. Continue until each heart has been used. You may wish to start the activity allowing kids to see the key passage poster, and remove or cover the poster halfway through to encourage memorization. Say Does our key passage reflect Saul in today s Bible story? Activity choice (10 minutes) Option 1: One Versus Two Game Pair kids together. One kid will be player one and the other kid will be player two. Each player will hop three times and then stick out one of his feet. If both put the same foot out, player one must name something that would not be total obedience (cleaning room but complaining while cleaning it). If they put out opposite feet, player two must name something that would not be total obedience. Play several rounds. Guide kids to find a new partner for each round. If you have an odd number, form one trio or ask an adult leader to play. 10
Say How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. Why do people think that only obeying part of the way is OK? Did Jesus obey God part of the way? If He had, would He have been able to die for our sins? No! Partial obedience is disobedience. But Jesus always obeyed God completely! Option 2: Missing Ingredient Game Recipe Cards Form teams or allow kids to play as individuals. Explain that you have a list of recipe ingredients for several foods, but each recipe is missing one ingredient. You will read the list for each food item and the first team to stand up and provide the missing ingredient earns a point. Say What difference does it make to have one ingredient missing? What if I made the pizza without the dough? Would it still be pizza? What happens if I obey all of God s laws but one? Did I sin? Am I a sinner? The Bible says in James 2:10 that if I keep every law except one, I am still a sinner. I am guilty of breaking God s law. How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. Invite kids to explain the gospel plan to you. Ask simple questions as the group works together to explain God s plan to send a Savior. Ask kids to think about one person they know who hasn t repented and trusted in Jesus. Encourage kids to explain some part of the gospel to their person this week. Prayer (5 minutes) Ask boys and girls to think about times they only partially obeyed a teacher, parent, coach, or God. Invite kids to pray silently to God about that time. They may need to confess this sin if they haven t already, or they may need to ask God to help them totally obey the next time. Say How does God feel when His people obey? God delights in total obedience, but we all sin and need a Savior. Close in prayer. Thank God for sending Jesus, who always obeyed completely. Ask God to help boys and girls this week to obey completely. Since no one will be able to obey completely during the week, remind kids that when we sin and repent of our sin, God forgives us because Jesus completely obeyed. Clean-up room. 11
Instructions: Draw the missing half of each picture. Draw half of an object of your choice. Challenge a friend to guess the item and complete the drawing. LifeWay UNIT 11 Session 2 Older Kids Activity Pages 2013 LifeWay Christian Resources. Saul and David
Instructions: The first letter of the instrument is the missing letter for the word. Fill in each missing letter to reveal a message from today s Bible story. J e s is Cymbals Flute Guitar LifeWay e n y er e t in Harp Kazoo Lyre Oboe Piano What makes a good king or leader? List as many qualities as you can. Shophar Trumpet Read 2 Corinthians 5:21 and 1 Peter 3:18 and think about the puzzle s answer. Ukulele UNIT 11 Session 2 Older Kids Activity Pages 2013 LifeWay Christian Resources. Saul and David
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Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Psalm 51:10 OK TO PRINT Saul and David