Children’s Bible Program – Level 3: Lesson 19 “Moses Forewarns Israel”

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By Janth English

Read Together: The events at Kadesh marked a crucial point in Moses’ life. First, Moses’ sister Miriam died there. Next came a day that would change Moses’ future. Once again, the people were complaining about their lack of water, forgetting how God had provided for their needs again and again. All they needed to do was to turn to God and ask Him for His help. Moses went to God and asked Him to provide the water they needed. God patiently gave Moses and Aaron instructions, telling them exactly how to provide for the people. He told Moses to speak to the rock and water would flow from it. Moses, however, lost his temper. He was so angry at the Israelites that he hit the rock with his rod. In fact, he hit it twice! God made water start miraculously pouring out of the rock, providing for the needs of the thirsty people. But He was very displeased with Moses. According to God, Moses and Aaron did not show honor and respect to Him. Moses had allowed his anger to guide his actions instead of trusting God’s hand and obeying Him as He had instructed .

God does not play favorites, and this act of disobedience on the part of Moses and Aaron in front of all the people was just as wrong as the disobedience shown by others. Because they disobeyed God, Moses and Aaron were not allowed to enter the Promised Land. However, before he died, Moses reminded the people of Israel to never forget the laws of their God. He encouraged them, saying that if they obeyed, God would bless their families, give rain in its season, increase their crops, increase their livestock, protect them from their enemies, and give them peace. However, if they disobeyed, they would be cursed. The weather would be harsh, the earth would not yield its crops, disease would cling to the people, their enemies would pursue them and overtake them, and they would eventually become slaves again. God gave Israel a clear choice between living the way that brings life and peace, or the way that brings curses and death. He gives us the same choice.

Read Together:  Numbers 20:1–13, 23–29; 27:12–14; Deuteronomy 28:1–37; 30:1–3, 15–20.

Discuss:

  • Discuss with your child Moses’ and Aaron’s punishment for disobeying God. Was this an unfair punishment?
  • Even though God punished Moses and Aaron for their disobedience, God forgave them. We know that Moses will have a high position in the Kingdom. Explain the fact that even though God forgives us, sin still has consequences.
  • Explain to your child that there are only two ways to live, God’s way and man’s way. God’s way is the only way that brings true joy, peace, and happiness. This may be a good opportunity to discuss the difference between the world today (governed by man) and the Kingdom of God (governed by God).
  • Point out to your child that even when we sin, God offers us forgiveness when we repent and turn to Him.

Review Memorization.

Deuteronomy 30:15–16 “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil, in that I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, that you may live and multiply; and the LORD your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess.”

L3.19 Moses Warns IsraelDownload

Children’s Bible Program – Level 1: Lesson 19 “The Tower of Babel”

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By Janth English

Read Together: Babel, the first city that Nimrod built, was the beginning of his kingdom. The people all spoke the same language, so it was easy for them to share ideas and work together. But instead of working together for good, they began to rebel against God. Even though God had commanded them to fill the earth with their families, the people refused. With Nimrod as the leader, the people built a huge tower in the city of Babel. The city they built, with its towering fortress, made the people very proud of themselves and what they had done. They were so proud that they believed they could defy God. But the people did not know the amazing miracle that would happen next.

Read Together:  Genesis 10:9–10; 11:1–4

Discuss:

  • Explain to your child that Noah and Shem could tell the people about the flood and what happened before the flood. (According to the genealogies contained in the Bible, they were still alive during the time that Nimrod built Babel.)
  • The people knew what they were doing was wrong. Noah was a preacher of righteousness (2 Peter 2:5), and he would have continued to preach after the flood. Explain to your son or daughter that the people were being disobedient and wanted to do things their own way, regardless of what God said.
  • Help your child to understand that there is never a time when we can rebel against God. Still, when we do something wrong, we can ask God to forgive us, and He will. God loves us, and we can rely on Him to provide for us and protect us.

Review Memorization.

Genesis 11:4 “Then they said, ‘Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.’

L1.19 Tower of BabelDownload

Children’s Bible Program – Level 3: Lesson 18 “Forty Years in the Wilderness”

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Read Together: Israel did not bring a good report during their wandering in the wilderness. During this time, Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and On stirred up the people in rebellion, saying Moses and Aaron should no longer be the leaders of Israel. God had something to say about that! He caused the earth to open up and swallow these rebellious men, their families, and all their possessions. After the rebellion was put down, the Israelites complained that Moses had killed the people of God. They gathered against Moses and Aaron, but again God saved them and sent a plague that killed 14,700 more people. After a victory over the king of Arad, the people started complaining again, calling the manna worthless. This time God sent fiery serpents through the camp which killed many of the people. After Israel wandered for forty years, the time finally came for them to inherit the Promised Land. God lead Israel to defeat and take the lands of Sihon King of the Amorites, and Og King of Bashan. The Moabites heard of Israel’s conquests and were afraid. Balak, king of Moab, sent for Balaam to curse Israel, but God would not allow it, but allowed Balaam to bless them instead. However, the Israelites started worshipping idols and marrying foreign women. The Lord became angry and sent a plague that killed 24,000 people. Time and again Israel tested God. Israel failed to keep the covenant they had made with God, but their deeds were recorded for our benefit so that we can learn from their mistakes.

Read Together:  Numbers 16:1–32, 41–50; 21:1–6, 21–26, 31–35; 22:1–35; 24:10–13; 25:1–9

Discuss:

  • Remind your child that God promised Israel the land of the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites, and the Hivites (Exodus 3:7–8). Their conquests were in partial fulfillment of God’s promise.
  • Ask your child what lessons they think we can learn from Korah’s rebellion. Use this as an opportunity to talk about God’s government and how we are to respect those God has put in leadership positions.
  • Read 1 Corinthians 10:6–11 with your child. Discuss how we can get caught up in the same sins that Israel committed. Help them come up with some examples.

Review Memorization.

Deuteronomy 30:15–16  “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil, in that I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, that you may live and multiply; and the LORD your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess.”

Printable PDF – L3.18

Children’s Bible Program – Level 2: Lesson 18 “God’s Promises to Abraham”

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Read Together: God promised to make Abram a great nation, saying that all the nations of the earth would be blessed through him. God showed Abram all the land of Canaan and promised it to his descendants. Abram had traveled throughout the land of Canaan for 24 years, and now he was 99 years old. God had promised that his descendants would be as numerous as the sand on the seashore, but he still did not have a son. It was at this time that God appeared to Abram and expanded the promises. He told Abram that he was going to make him a father of many nations and that some of his descendants would be kings. God changed Abram’s name to Abraham and his wife’s name, Sarai, to Sarah, to reflect the promise that many nations would come from them. God told Abraham that he and Sarah would have a son the next year, and they were to call him Isaac, which means laughter. Perhaps Isaac was given that name because both Abraham and Sarah laughed when they first heard they would have a son. The next year Isaac was born, just as God had said. Isaac was the beginning of the fulfillment of God’s promises to Abraham.

Read Together:  Genesis 13:14–18; 15:1–6, 18–21; 17:1–24; 18:1–15; 21:1–6

Discuss:

  • Discuss with your child how Abraham remained faithful to God year after year, believing that God’s promises would be fulfilled through his descendants. Include Hebrews 11:1 in the discussion. Remind your son or daughter that if God says something, it is as good as done!
  • Ask your child if they can remember some of the promises God gave to Abraham. Discuss with them how these promises have been fulfilled (e.g. through Jesus Christ, European kingdoms, Great Britain, and the United States).
  • Remind your child that the promises were also made to Sarah. She was an important part of the covenant God made with Abraham. God loves both men and women.  All human beings are created in His image (Genesis 1:27).
  • God names things what they are. From the Bible, we learn that in the Kingdom we will all to be given a new name. Ask your child what name he or she would choose for themselves to reflect their character and personality.

Review Memorization:  Hebrews 11:17–18  “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called,’ concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.”

Printable PDF – L2.18

Children’s Bible Program – Level 1: Lesson 18 “Nimrod”

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Read Together: After the flood, people began to raise families, and gradually moved further and further away from where the ark had come to rest. The Bible tells us about the families of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and how they began to populate the earth. We read about one man who became famous as a great hunter. This man’s name was Nimrod, and he was the grandson of Ham, one of Noah’s three sons. As his fame grew, he was idolized by many. In fact, some people began to look to Nimrod instead of God for protection and leadership. They called him “the mighty hunter before [“instead of” or “in place of”] the Lord” (Genesis 10:9). Remember, God had commanded the sons of Noah to fill the earth (Genesis 9:1). But proud Nimrod rebelled against God, building cities and a kingdom. One of the cities he built was the famous Babel, where the people began to build a giant tower, reaching into the sky.

Read Together:  Genesis 10:6, 8-12

Discuss:

  • Help your child to understand that the people were looking to Nimrod as their provider and protector and not looking to God.  Remind your child that God is our ultimate provider and protector.
  • Nimrod was setting up a kingdom for himself to make himself the ruler over the people. You may want to take this opportunity to explain that in God’s government, men do not choose to be in charge themselves. God selects the leaders.
  • Explain to your child that moving people into cities as Nimrod did was not what God intended. Imagine and discuss what cities may be like in the wonderful world tomorrow and how they will be much different than the cities of Nimrod or of today
  • Help your child to understand that Nimrod was leading the people away from God.

 

Review Memorization:

Genesis 11:6  “And the LORD said, ‘Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them.’”

Printable PDF – L1.18

Second Thoughts: When Humility Becomes Dishonesty

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By Thomas White, Student at LivingEd-Charlotte

“You don’t want to step on other people trying to get a job, but the reality is…if you’re going to be hired…you need to look better than the other guy or other gal. That’s just the reality, because there’s competition for jobs.” ~ Dr. Scott Winnail

Dr. Scott Winnail focused this week’s assembly on strategies for building a strong resume, delivering a practical and beneficial presentation that was particularly pertinent in the lives of the eighteen-to-twenty-four-year-olds sitting in the room. The ability to write an effective resume is critical to those of us who would like to buy food on at least a semi-consistent basis, and two of the helpful resources Dr. Winnail provided are linked at the end of this post. But what struck me the most about this assembly was when Dr. Winnail spoke of the balance we all must use in showing humility and honesty at the same time. As he brought out, we’re all representatives of God’s Church, so if we make ourselves look worse than we really are, aren’t we not only lying, but making the very body of Christ look bad?

“People just lie. That’s what society is like, and lying becomes part of the character of the end-time Israelite society. And certainly, that’s something we don’t want to be part of.”

This topic certainly applies well to resumes, as Dr. Winnail proved. I had difficulty writing my first resume, largely because I felt like I was bragging. But I wasn’t lying on my resume; like Dr. Winnail said, I was simply putting my best foot forward. Do we ever view humility as thinking or speaking poorly of ourselves? I’ve thought of it that way, but that’s a pretty shallow idea of what humility is, and it leaves more room for dishonesty than true humility ever would. How often do we find ourselves being dishonest in the name of humility? “Hey, you did a good job on those spreadsheets,” someone might say. “Nah, it wasn’t much,” I might reply. Did I just lie? If I know I worked hard on those spreadsheets and delivered a quality result, then yes, I have indeed just lied. I might be well-intentioned, trying to obey the First Commandment by not making an idol of myself, but now I’ve turned around and broken the Ninth Commandment. How is that any better?

“We’ve got to speak truth to our neighbor, and any employer is our neighbor, in the context that God uses. … You can be a false witness of yourself, if you don’t tell the truth.”

Compared to God, not one of us humans is anywhere near a big deal, so obviously, we shouldn’t parade around acting like one. We’d all hopefully agree that we should never lie about our accomplishments, but do we think about how short-changing ourselves is, essentially, doing just that? For example, if you’re a great singer, wouldn’t true humility be to recognize that God made you that way, that you owe your talent to Him, and then to sincerely thank Him for it? (Probably best not to do this on a resume, by the way. That might not go over well.) To deny that you’re a great singer, if indeed you are, isn’t that to insult the gift God’s freely granted you? When we dismiss the abilities and accomplishments God’s given us as “not much,” we’re not only lying, but failing to be thankful. With prayerful effort and God’s constant help, we can strike that balance of humility and honesty, recognizing that we’re nothing without God, and acknowledging that He’s given us something valuable.

 

 

Resume Resources Given:

Indeed.com’s “10 Resume Writing Tips to Help You Land a Job”

The sample resume of one Sparty Spartan.

Thomas White headshot

Thomas White was one of the onsite Living Education students for the 2018-2019 semesters. He also has a Bachelor’s Degree in English. Thomas currently works as an Editorial Assistant for the Living Church of God. According to his wife, he eats pizza in entirely the wrong way.