Unit 12: Elijah and Elisha OT12.14 Elisha and the Famine ... · Unit 12: Elijah and Elisha OT12.14...

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OT12.14 Elisha and the Famine in Samaria ©Beverly Wilson 2019

Unit 12: Elijah and Elisha OT12.14 Elisha and the Famine in Samaria

Scripture: 2 Kings 6:23- 7:19

Lesson Goal: Elisha was a prophet in the land of Israel during the reign of the kings. Elisha followed in Elijah’s footsteps and demonstrated the power of God to perform many miracles. In this lesson Elisha prophesizes about the end of the famine in the city of Samaria and teaches us that we should never laugh at God’s promises.

Introduction: This lesson is found in the book of 2 Kings. This book tells the history of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah. It is in the second group of Old Testament books called the historical books. These books begin with Joshua and go through Esther. Let's say these books--Joshua, Judges, Ruth, I Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther

Attention Getter: “Laugh at Someone” Have you ever laughed at someone who is clumsy? Sometimes we see a person falling into a pool of water and start laughing! Some people fall very easily. We say that they could slip on a banana peel! But falls can be very dangerous. This is a picture of a man who is about ready to fall off the roof of his house because his ladder fell! These kinds of falls are not so funny especially when people get hurt! Laughing at people instead of with people is not good. In this lesson we will learn about a man who laughed at the prophet Elisha because he did not believe in God’s power. This happened when there was a great famine in the city of Samaria. He learned that it was not good to make fun of God’s prophet! Opening Prayer: Dear Father in heaven, thank you for this lesson about learning to trust in you when our faith is weak. Help us to recognize that You are our great Provider. Give us the faith we need to recognize that Your Word is holy and should not be scorned. Thank you that you have given us a great example of telling others the good news of the gospel. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.”

Memory Verse: The memory verse is Romans 10:14 “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?”

Lesson Video: https://youtu.be/anX5nNk2Vw4 Elisha was a prophet in the land of Israel during the reign of the kings. Elisha followed in Elijah’s footsteps and demonstrated the power of God to perform many miracles. He taught the people of Israel to worship God and to obey His laws. He often showed great compassion for those who were around him. People who trusted in God soon learned that if they had a problem they could go to the prophet Elisha for help. Elisha’s name even meant “God is Salvation.” During the time of Elisha there was a kingdom to the northeast of Israel called Aram in the land of Syria. Although Israel and Aram were neighbors they were rarely on friendly terms. The Syrians were growing in power and the King of Aram would have his army make raids in Israel. Elisha the prophet prayed for the safety of Israel and God had given them many victories.

https://youtu.be/anX5nNk2Vw4

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When Naaman the commander in chief of the Syrian army had been healed from leprosy by dipping seven times in the Jordan River, the message about the great healing power of the God of Israel had spread throughout the land of Aram in Syria. Naaman the Syrian commander had become a believer. But soon Naaman’s influence waned when the new king of Syria, King Ben-hadad I arose to the throne. Once again the king was planning attacks against Israel. God miraculously revealed to Elisha the secret plans of the Syrians and he warned the King of Israel. Each time God saved Israel from destruction. When King Ben-hadad found out that Elisha was revealing his secret plans, he brought the whole Syrian army to arrest Elisha. But God sent his heavenly army to protect Elisha and his servant. God blinded the Syrian army and Elisha was able to lead them into the capital city of Samaria where they were prisoners of war. Elisha told the King of Israel to treat them kindly by giving them water and food before he let them return to Syria. For a long time after that the Syrian army did not come against Israel. Now King Ben-hadad’s son was on the throne of Syria. His name was King Ben-hadad II. He forgot about his father’s army who had been supernaturally blinded and sent home. Once again the attempts to take control of Israel began! King Ben-hadad II, the new king of Aram, mobilized his entire army and marched against Samaria. They surrounded the city where the King of Israel lived. King Jehoram of Israel was not a good king. He had led the people of Israel into much idolatry. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord. He and the people of Israel were not trusting God and now God was allowing this tragedy to happen to them. The siege lasted so long that the food supplies in Samaria became very scarce. People were starving. The little bit of food that was left was being sold at ridiculously high prices. People were even considering killing their own children and eating them! How awful was that! King Jehoram of Israel became very distressed then he heard about the desperate measures people were taking to find food. Everyone was looking for someone to blame for this terrible catastrophe. They did not trust God and felt that the situation was hopeless! King Jehoram became so distraught that he tore his robes and declared, “May God deal with me severely if I do not kill Elisha the prophet!” I will be-head him because he does not perform a miracle and save our city! How wrong King Jehoram was! He was blaming God for his trouble instead of recognizing his own sin! Elisha was in his house in the city meeting with the elders. God let Elisha know what King Jehoram was planning to do. Elisha told the elders, “This King is a murderer. He killed his own brothers to ascend to the throne and now he is sending someone to cut off my head! When the messenger and the King come, shut the door and hold it shut against him!” Soon the King arrived outside Elisha’s house, along with an army officer, but he could not get in. “This disaster is from the Lord!” the King shouted. “Why should I wait for the Lord any longer?” Inside the house, with the door blockaded, Elisha replied, “The Lord says that by this time tomorrow the food will sell for cheap prices! Seven quarts of flour will sell for a penny and 13 quarts of barley will sell for 2 pennies!” All this seemed impossible! The officer with King Jehoram mocked Elisha’s claim. He began to make fun of Elisha. He said, “Even if the Lord opened the floodgates of the heavens, this could not happen!” But Elisha shouted back to the officer, “You will see it with your own eyes, but you will not eat any of it!” The King’s guard did not believe in God’s great power! At the entrance to the city gate of Samaria were four men with leprosy. They were not allowed to be in the city because of their disease and were left to die outside the walls! They said, “if we stay here, we will die. Let’s go over to the camp of the enemy and surrender. If they spare us, we live; if they kill us, then we will die.” They were in a hopeless situation.

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As evening approached and it was near dusk, they got up and went to the camp of the Aramean army. When they reached the edge of the camp, no one was there! Where had the enemy soldiers gone? But the Lord had caused the enemy soldiers to think that a mighty army was approaching. They had heard the roar of chariots and horses and the thunder of a great army. They said to one another, “”Look, the king of Israel has hired the Hittite and Egyptians kings to attack us!” So they got up and fled. They ran away so quickly that they abandoned their tents and their horses and donkeys. They left the camp as it was and ran for their lives! When the four men with leprosy entered the camp of the enemy soldiers, they went into one of the tents and everyone was gone! Because the four lepers were so hungry they ate and drank the food that the soldiers had left! Since the enemy was no longer in the camp they took silver, gold, and clothes, and went off and hid them. They returned again and entered another tent and took some things from it and hid them also. Then they said to each other, “What we’re doing is not right! We are eating and the people of our city are starving! This is a day of good news and we are keeping it to ourselves. Let’s not wait until daybreak, but report this back to the royal palace in Samaria.” So they went and called out to the city gatekeepers and told them, “We went into the Aramean camp and not a man was there—not a sound of anyone—only tethered horses and donkeys, and the tents left just as they were!” The gatekeepers started shouting the news, “The enemy has left! The enemy has left!” Soon it was reported to the king in his palace! King Jehoram got up but he was very suspicious of the news. “They are setting an ambush to draw us out of the city and once we go out they will attack us! They want to take us alive and capture our city!” He did not believe that God could accomplish such a thing! One of the King’s officers suggested that they take the five remaining horses in the city, harness them to two chariots, and go and see what was going on in the enemy’s camp. The officer said, “The horses will die of starvation if left here in the city so what does it matter if the enemy kills them! Let’s just send them out and see what happens!” They followed the horses and chariots as far as the Jordan River, and they found the whole road strewn with clothing and equipment that the Armaeans had thrown away in their headlong flight out of the territory! When they returned they reported to the king what they had seen! God had kept His promise!’ When the news spread throughout the city, there was a stampede as everyone rushed to grab the food the fleeing army had left behind. Just as Elisha had prophesized, there was so much food it now sold at low prices! Now the King had put the officer who had mocked Elisha in charge of the city gate! In the mad rush to get out of the city and get some food, the people had trampled him to death! So just as Elisha had said, the officer saw the food but he did not taste any of it!” In this lesson we learn that we should never laugh at the promises of God. The King’s officer laughed at Elisha’s prophecy and he died without ever getting to reap the joy of the victory! Just like it was in the time of Elisha, God is our Provider not the worthless idols of the world. He is the One who gives us our daily food. Although our faith may be weak or very small, we must never ridicule or laugh at God’s Word. When our resources are low and our doubts are high we should remember that God can open the flood gates of heaven. He is the God of the impossible! He is our great Provider! When the lepers discovered the deserted camp and realized that their lives had been spared, they were so excited that they just ate themselves! But soon they realized that they could not keep the good news to

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themselves. They were forgetting about their fellow citizens who were starving inside the city walls. The right thing to do was to go back and tell them the good news! In the same way the good news about Jesus Christ and his salvation must be shared too! We should not become so preoccupied with our own faith that we neglect sharing it with those around us. Our “good news” is like that of the lepers, it will not “wait until daylight.” Our memory verse is Romans 10:14 “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” This verse is telling us that we have an important responsibility to share the good news of Jesus with everyone around us. People cannot believe in Jesus if they have never heard the gospel message. Let’s say our verse again together. Romans 10:14 “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” One of the ways to tell people about Jesus is to use the ‘Romans Road to Salvation.” It is a way to use the Bible to show people what God says about going to heaven. Our lives are like a road. Every road has a destination or place that it ends. What is the destination of our life? God has given us a road map in the Bible to tell us how to get to heaven. The Romans Road to Salvation are verses from the book of Romans that tells us the way that a person can go to heaven and receive the gift of salvation. The first verse on the Romans Road is Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” This verse says that we have all done things that are wrong. Sin is disobeying God’s law—the Bible. The second verse is like the first. Romans 3:10 “There is no one righteous, not even one.” No one is perfect like God. When an arrow misses the target we say that it has missed the mark! Like these arrows we have all missed the mark of perfection! Nothing that we can do is equal to our Perfect God. Therefore, we cannot go to heaven by our own good deeds. The next verse tells us the result of our sin. Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Because we have all sinned against God, we are all guilty and will die physically. The road of life that we are on is going to end in death. But it also means that we will die spiritually. That is, we will all suffer from eternal death. We will be separated from God forever. Our sin prevents us from entering into the presence of God. The good news is in Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Because of God’s great love for us He sent His Son Jesus to come down from heaven to live as a Man. Jesus came to show us who God is and to die on the cross to pay for our sins. Because of Jesus’ death on the cross, salvation or eternal life is now available to us as a free gift. You cannot earn this gift but you must reach out and receive it! Romans 10:13 says “For whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” We must ask Jesus to forgive us of our sin and to be our Savior! He promises to save those who ask Him! Romans10:9 says “But if you confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” We must believe that Jesus not only died on the cross but that He rose again the third day. He had victory over death. He is alive and now in heaven! We trust in His death and resurrection as the payment for our sins! That is called having faith in Jesus. The last verse in the Roman Road is Romans 8:1 “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” This verse is great news for the believer. We are no longer condemned to die! We are free from eternal death! Jesus’ death gives us victory over the power of sin! We have a new life in Christ! Just

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like Jesus who rose from the grave we are given the gift of eternal life with Him! That means that when we die, we will go to be with Jesus in heaven forever! We have peace with God! That means we can enjoy living for God. He is now our Savior and Helper. We have a new destination on the road of life. We are on our way to heaven! Would you like to receive this gift of salvation today? You can. All you have to do is ask Him to come into your heart and cleanse your sin. You must believe in Him as the Son of God and your Savior. You can ask Jesus to give you the gift of salvation right now by praying this prayer with me. Dear Father in heaven, I confess to you that I am a sinner. I know that what I have done wrong has separated me from you and I deserve the punishment of death. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God and I put my trust in the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross for me. I ask you to forgive me of my sins and give me the gift of eternal life. Thank you for hearing my prayer and giving to me life with you forever. Help me to live for You for the rest of my life. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.” Remember “We should never laugh at God’s Word. Let’s tell others the good news about Jesus.”

Review Questions: “The Four Lepers” Game Board Preparation: You will need a printed copy of the game board below, a single dice cube, and some game board markers. Say: “Today we are going to use a game board to remind us of how the Four Lepers left their place at the city gate of Samaria and went into the camp of the Syrian Army. The Four Lepers thought they were hopeless but God had a surprise in store for them. God had miraculously made the Syrian army frightened!” Procedure: Divide students into two teams. Give each team a game board marker. Have the players on each team take turns rolling the single dice. The player moves the game board marker ahead the specified number of spaces. If the team answers the question correctly then they may move their marker the number of spaces that they rolled on the dice The first team to make to the last box wins. Students can take turns from each team to throw the dice and move their team’s marker.

1. Who was Elisha? (Elisha was a prophet that God had chosen to take over the ministry of Elijah. Elisha demonstrated the power of God to perform many miracles. He often showed great compassion for those who were around him. People who trusted in God soon learned that if they had a problem they could go to the prophet Elisha for help.)

2. What did Elisha’s name mean? (Elisha’s name even meant “God is Salvation.”) 3. Who was one of Israel’s enemies during the time of Elisha? (During the time of Elisha there was a

kingdom to the northeast of Israel called Aram in the land of Syria. The Syrians were growing in power and the King of Aram would often have his army make raids in Israel.)

4. When the Syrian army attacked Israel, how did God protect Israel? (God told Elisha the Syrian’s secret plans and he relayed them to the King of Israel who could then direct the army away from the attack.)

5. How did God protect Elisha and his servant when King Ben-hadad I and the Syrian army came to arrest Elisha? (God sent his invisible army to protect Elisha and blind the Syrian army.)

6. After leading the blind army to Samaria, what did Elisha convince the King of Israel to do? (Elisha ask God to heal the blindness. Then Elisha told the King of Israel to treat the army of Syria like prisoners of war. They gave them food and water and let them return to their country unharmed.)

7. When they got to Samaria what did Elisha do? (He asked God to restore their sight. When they opened their eyes they were surrounded by the Israelite army.)

8. What did King Ben-hadad II do to Israel? (He raided the land and wanted to take control of the people so he surrounded the capital city of Samaria for many days.)

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9. What problem did the Israelites have in the city of Samaria during the siege by the Syrian army? (They ran out of food and supplies. They were starving and desperate for food.)

10. Why had God allowed the Israelites to be taken siege by the Syrian army? (King Jehoram was a wicked king. He had led the nation of Israel into more idolatry and sin. God allowed this difficult situation to occur because of the sin of Israel and to help them see the need to return to worshipping Him.)

11. How did King Ben-haddad II respond to the desperate situation in the city of Samaria? (He tore his clothes in grief. He blamed Elisha the prophet for not performing a miracle to save the city. Instead of repenting of his own sin, he went to Elisha’s house to arrest him and to kill him!)

12. What kept King Jehoram from arresting Elisha? (Elisha was in his house meeting with the elders of the city. Elisha told them to bar the door shut and not let the king and his servant to enter.)

13. What prediction did Elisha tell King Jehoram and his servant when they tried to arrest him? (Elisha told them, “The Lord says that by this time tomorrow the food will sell for cheap prices! Seven quarts of flour will sell for a penny and 13 quarts of barley will sell for 2 pennies!”)

14. What did King Jehoram’s servant say when he heard this prophecy? (He laughed and scoffed at Elisha and said, “Even if the Lord opened the floodgates of the heavens, this could not happen!”

15. What did Elisha say was going to happen to the King’s servant? (Elisha said that he would see the food but not eat of it!)

16. What miracle happened to the Syrian army to cause them to leave their post outside the city of Samaria? (God caused them to hear the roar of a great army approaching with chariots and horses that made them fear for their lives and run away.)

17. Who did the Syrian army think was coming to fight them? (They thought that King Joram had hired the Egyptian army or the Hittite army to fight against them.)

18. Why did the four Israelite lepers go toward the enemy camp? (They were starving and knew that they were going to die so they decided to see if the Syrians would capture them and give them food.)

19. What surprise did the four lepers find when they entered the Syrian army camp? (They were shocked to find that everyone was gone! They immediately began to eat the left over food. Then they stole clothing and gold and silver from the vacant tents of the soldiers.)

20. Why did the four lepers decide to go back to Samaria and tell them the news about the Syrian army? (They felt guilty for having food to eat and clothes and gold and silver when their families were starving in the city.)

21. When the news of the Syrian army leaving reached King Benhaddad’s ears, what did he do? (He did not believe it at first so he decided to send some horses and chariots out to see what would happen to them when they entered the Syrian camp?)

22. When some Israelite soldiers followed the horses and chariots, what did they see? (They followed the chariots and horses as far as the Jordan River and all along the road they saw the clothes and food that the Syrian army had thrown away in their haste to leave the camp.)

23. What happened to King Benhaddad II’s servant who had laughed at Elisha’s prophecy about God’s provision of food? (He was placed at the gate to guard the entrance. He was trampled by all the people of Samaria as they raced out of the city to get the leftover food and supplies that were left by the Syrian army.)

24. What lesson can we learn from King Ben-haddad’s servant? (We should trust God as our Provider. We should never make fun of God’s Word or His servants.)

25. What lesson should we learn from the four lepers? (We should share the good news of the gospel with those who do not know Our memory verse is Romans 10:14 “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?”)

26. What is one way we can share the good news of the gospel by using the Bible? (We can share the gospel story by using the Romans Road.)

27. What does Romans 3:10 and Romans 3:23 tell us about ourselves? (We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. None of us are perfect.)

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28. What does Romans 6:23 say is the result of our sin? (Because we have all sinned against God, we are all guilty and will die physically. The road of life that we are on is going to end in death. But it also means that we will die spiritually. That is, we will all suffer from eternal death. We will be separated from God forever. Our sin prevents us from entering into the presence of God.)

29. What is the good news of Romans 5:8? (Because of God’s great love for us He sent His Son Jesus to come down from heaven to live as a Man. Jesus came to show us who God is and to die on the cross to pay for our sins. Because of Jesus’ death on the cross, salvation or eternal life is now available to us as a free gift. You cannot earn this gift but you must reach out and receive it!)

30. What does Romans 10:9, 13 say about how we are to receive the gift of salvation? (We must ask Jesus to forgive us of our sin and to be our Savior! He promises to save those who ask Him.)

31. What promise does Romans 8:1 have for the believer? (We are no longer condemned to die! We are free from eternal death! Jesus’ death gives us victory over the power of sin! We have a new life in Christ! Just like Jesus who rose from the grave we are given the gift of eternal life with Him!)

32. What should we do after we have received the gift of salvation? (We should share the good news with others!)

Bible Memory Verse Activity: “Paper Plate” Bean Bag

Our memory verse is Romans 10:14 “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” Have students locate the verse in scripture and read together aloud several times.

Say: “This verse is telling us that we have an important responsibility to share the good news of Jesus with everyone around us. People cannot believe in Jesus if they have never heard the gospel message.”

Preparation: Print each word of the memory verse Psalm 128:1 on a paper plate. In verse order place the paper plates face down in a line on the floor. You will need a bean bag.

Procedure: Children will take turns tossing the bean bag toward the paper plates turning over the plate the bean bag lands on or near. Continue until all the paper plates have been turned face up. Read the verse aloud with the children. Repeat the meaning of the verse. Continue the activity as time permits. You can vary the way you arrange the paper plates on the floor depending on the size of your class.

Group Learning Activity/Game: “Key Word Charades” (Grades K-5) Preparation: Write the following key words on separate index cards: Elisha, King Benhadad II, King’s servant, Four Lepers, Syrian soldiers, King Jehoram, Procedure: Form two teams and play a game of charades using key word cards. One player will act out the word for his team. If his team can guess the word in 60 seconds, award one point. Then the other team will take a turn. Play additional rounds with new players taking turns drawing the key words. Review the key events in the Bible lesson as you play the game. Say: “In this lesson we will learn how God used a big bolt of fire to prove that He is God. God used his prophet Elijah to bring fire from heaven to judge the nation of Israel and foretell the coming death of King Ahaziah. God displayed his amazing power by sending fire from heaven. When Elijah called out to God, God answered.

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Group Learning Activity: “The Bridge of Salvation” (Grades 2-5) Preparation: You will need drinking straws, tape, scissors, and small toy cars. (If desired, you can print off the bridge designs template below for ideas to help students design their bridges.) Say: “In this lesson we learned about the Romans Road to Salvation. We learned that Jesus is the only way that we can receive the gift of salvation. He is the only way that we can enter heaven and live with God forever. We might say that Jesus is the bridge of salvation. He is the way to our forgiveness from sin. Today we are going to build some bridges to help us remember and celebrate that Jesus is the way of salvation!” Procedure: Distribute the drinking straws, scissors, and tape to the students. Allow them to work individually or in groups to tape together the straws in various bridge designs. Help the students begin by creating squares and then reinforcing them by crossing straws within the squares. It will work best to attach them within the squares. This should strengthen the structure as the cross-braced squares are put together in various formations. Encourage the students to make the bridges as strong as possible so they will hold as many cars as possible. They might include trusses, columns, or straws that serve as tension rods to add interest or structural variety. They might also add decorative straws. Say: “A bridge allows us to cross easily where it might otherwise be impossible. It is impossible to get to God because of our sin. Jesus is our bridge of forgiveness. How did Jesus build the bridge for us to cross over into heaven? (He died on the cross and then rose from the grave to prove His victory over sin.) Review the Romans Road verses with the students individually or as a group.

Group Learning Activity: “Barricade Break” (Grades K-3) Preparation: You will need empty cardboard boxed, toilet paper, beach balls, poster board and tape. You can use additional items but be sure that all items are soft or able to tear easily. Say: “In this lesson we learned about the Romans Road to Salvation. The first two verses on the Romans Road is Romans 3:23 and Romans 3:10. What are those verses? (Have students locate the verses in scripture and repeat them together.) What do these verses say about all of us? (We have sinned against God.) Today we are going to have an activity that will help us understand what these verses mean?” Procedure: Show the empty boxes, toilet paper, beach balls, poster board and tape to the group. Guide the students to use these supplies to build a barricade. The goal is to build a wall or barricade that will prevent one team from getting from one side of the room to the other. If there is available space consider allowing two groups to work as teams to build multiple barricades for opposing teams to break through. Divide the group into two teams. Allow the teams to break through the opposing barricade. If you have space for only one barricade allow the students to break through the barricade they just built. Say: “We have just played a game that helps us understand what a barricade is. Do you think that your barricade was difficult to break down? (Answers will vary.) In our lesson today we talked about another barricade that is between us and God. What is that barricade? (Sin separates us from God.) How did God break down that barricade of sin? (He sent His Son Jesus down to earth to die for our sins so we can through repentance and faith break through the barricade and be reconciled to God.) Could we break through the barricade of sin that separates us from God? (No we have all sinned and are not perfect. We cannot go to heaven through our own good deeds.)”

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Conclude the activity with plenty of celebration for the atoning work of Jesus that reconciles us to God.

Group Learning Activity: “Romans Road” (Grades 3-5) Preparation: Each student will need a Bible. Print copies of the Romans Road template below for each student. Procedure: Distribute Bibles to every student. Say: "In this lesson we learned that using the Romans Road is one way to teach people what the Bible says about how to go to heaven. Today we are going to look up these verses and talk about the message in each one.” Have students locate the following verses and discuss each one: Say: “Our lives are like a road. Every road has a destination or place that it ends. What is the destination of our life? God has given us a road map in the Bible to tell us how to get to heaven. The Romans Road to Salvation is a group of verses from the book of Romans that tells us the way that a person can go to heaven and receive the gift of salvation. If a person has salvation that means that someday they will live with Jesus forever.”

Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” No one is perfect like God. When an arrow misses the target we say that it has missed the mark! Like these arrows we have all missed the mark of perfection! Nothing that we can do is equal to our Perfect God. Therefore, we cannot go to heaven by our own good deeds.

Romans 3:10 “There is no one righteous, not even one.” This verse says that we have all done things that are wrong. Sin is disobeying God’s law—the Bible. Some examples of sin are lying, stealing, cheating, and disobeying our parents

Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord,” This verse tells us the result of our sin. Because we have all sinned against God, we are all guilty and will die physically. The road of life that we are on is going to end in death. But it also means that we will die spiritually. That is, we will all suffer from eternal death. We will be separated from God forever. Our sin prevents us from entering into the presence of God.

Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” This verse is good news! God looked down from heaven and saw that we were unable to come into His presence. But He loved us so much that He wanted to make a way for us to be with Him.Because of God’s great love for us He sent His Son Jesus to come down from heaven to live as a Man. Jesus came to show us who God is and to die on the cross to pay for our sins. Jesus paid the price for our sin by dying on the cross. Because of Jesus’ death on the cross, salvation or eternal life is now available to us as a free gift. Isn’t that wonderful? Going to heaven is a gift Jesus wants to give us! You cannot earn this gift but you must reach out and receive it

Romans 10:13 says “For whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” We must ask Jesus to be our Savior! He promises to save those who ask Him! But how do we ask Him?

Romans 10:9 says “But if you confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” What does it mean to confess? To confess means that we must first understand that our sin has separated us from God. Nothing good that we can ever do will be enough to cover our sin or enable us to go to be with Him. To confess means we want to turn away from that old way of living. We are sorry for the things that

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we have done that are wrong. That is called repentance. We must also believe in our hearts that Jesus is the Son of God and that His death on the cross was the payment of our sin. We trust in Him and what He did on the cross as the way to heaven. We want Him to save us from sin. We must believe that Jesus not only died on the cross but that He rose again the third day. He had victory over death. He is alive and now in heaven! We trust in His death and resurrection as the payment for our sins! That is called having faith in Jesus.

Romans 8:1 “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” This verse is great news for the believer. We are no longer condemned to die! We are free from eternal death! Jesus’ death gives us victory over the power of sin! We have a new life in Christ! Just like Jesus rose from the grave we are given the gift of eternal life with Him! That means that when we die, we will go to be with Jesus in heaven forever! We have peace with God! That means we can enjoy living for God. He is now our Savior and Helper.

Say: “We have a new destination on the road of life. We are on our way to heaven! Would you like to receive this gift of salvation today? You can. All you have to do is ask Him to come into your heart and cleanse your sin. You must believe in Him as the Son of God and your Savior. You can ask Jesus to give you the gift of salvation right now by praying this prayer with me.”

Dear Father in heaven, I confess to you that I am a sinner. I know that what I have done wrong has separated me from you and I deserve the punishment of death. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God and I put my trust in the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross for me. I ask you to forgive me of my sins and give me the gift of eternal life. Thank you for hearing my prayer and giving to me life with you forever. Help me to live for You for the rest of my life. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

Have students record what they have learned from these verses in their spiritual journals.

Craft Learning Activity: “Megaphone” Purpose: To have children make a paper megaphone to shout the news of the gospel to everyone Preparation: Each child will need a large sheet of poster board, a stapler or glue, colored markers or crayons or you can use paper towel rolls. Procedure: Give each child a large sheet of poster board. Help them roll the poster board into a cone shaped megaphone. Staple or glue the cone together. Decorate the megaphone by drawing diagrams or symbols of salvation. Students can also print messages on the megaphone such as “Go tell it!” Decorate the megaphone with markers or crayons. Another idea is to use paper towel rolls as megaphones. Say: “When the lepers discovered the deserted camp and realized that their lives had been spared, they were so excited that they just ate themselves! But soon they realized that they could not keep the good news to themselves. They were forgetting about their fellow citizens who were starving inside the city walls. The right thing to do was to go back and tell them the good news! In the same way the good news about Jesus Christ and his salvation must be shared too! We should not become so preoccupied with our own faith that we neglect sharing it with those around us. Our “good news” is like that of the lepers, it will not “wait until daylight.”

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Craft Learning Activity: “Plan of Salvation Booklet” (Grades K-5) Purpose: To have children make a illustrated booklet that explains the plan of salvation that they can use to share the gospel with their friends. Preparation: Each child will need printed copies of the plan of salvation booklet below, a stapler, and crayons or colored markers. Cut the copies in half horizontally to form strips of pages. These strips can be stacked for form a booklet. Cut sheets of construction paper in half to make the cover for the booklet. Procedure: Distribute the pages to the booklet. Help students assemble the booklet and the cover in the correct order. You will have 8 pages. Check page numbers on bottom corners to make sure the strips are in the correct order. Staple the sheets together at the center fold (spine) of the booklet. Have students color the illustrations on each page. When booklets are complete have students practice telling or reading the pages that tell about salvation to one another. Ask students to think of someone that they would like to share the gospel with this week. Pray together about each of the individuals with whom they are interested in sharing the gospel. Do not forget to ask students if they have asked Jesus to be their Savior. Be ready to counsel each child individually and pray with them to receive Christ. Life Application Challenge: “Domino Chain Reaction” Preparation: Set up the dominoes in a long line on a table ahead of time, then topple them during the challenge time. Say: “In this lesson we learned that it is important to share our faith in Christ and the good news of salvation with others. Jesus has commanded us to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel.” Making disciples means to help people know Jesus and want to obey Him. The spread of the gospel to others is like this domino chain. It starts with one person. One person tells another and he tells another, and another, and another until the whole world has heard that Jesus is risen from the dead and he is Lord.” Say: “What are some things you could tell other people about Jesus? (Jesus loves everyone and wants them to go to heaven with him. Jesus died on the cross to pay for our sins or to pay for what we have done that is wrong. Jesus wants us to believe in Him or trust Him.) Say: “Who could you talk to about Jesus this week? What do you think is important for people to know about Jesus? Volunteers can tell the names of the people they want to talk to. Tell group that we need to pray for those people that are mentioned that they will want to learn about Jesus. Close by leading children in prayer, thanking Jesus for His love for us and asking for His help to tell others that He loves them, too.

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Elisha and the Famine in Samaria 2 Kings 6-7

Romans 10:14

“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear

without someone preaching to them?”

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Across: 2. “I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ because it is the power of ____ to save everyone who

believes.” 3. “If you _____________ with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God

raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” 4. “All have ___________ and fall short of the glory of God.” 7. Sin came into the world after ___________ and Eve disobeyed God. 8. While we were still sinner sinners, Christ ___ for us. Down:

1. There is now no _____ for those who are in Christ Jesus. 4. “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. 5. The punishment for sin is _______. 6. Who wrote the book of Romans?

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Unit 12: Elijah and Elisha OT12.14 Elisha and the Famine ... · Unit 12: Elijah and Elisha OT12.14...

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