Unit 12: Elijah and Elisha OT12.9 Elisha the Prophet · going to use this problem to show them that...

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OT12.9 Elisha the Prophet ©Beverly Wilson 2019

Unit 12: Elijah and Elisha OT12.9 Elisha the Prophet

Scripture: 2 Kings 2-3

Lesson Goal: Elisha was a prophet that God had chosen to take over the ministry of Elijah. In this lesson we will learn how God gave Elisha the power of the Holy Spirit to perform many miracles. These miracles proved that Elisha was God’s prophet.

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: “Helper” Who are some people who have helped you? Perhaps you have a teacher at school who has helped you learn how to solve a hard problem in math. You might have a coach who has taught you how to bat the ball and make a home run! Maybe you take piano lessons and you have a teacher who has helped you learn how to play song! Having someone to help us is very important! Everyone needs a helper sometime in their life! In this lesson we will learn how Elisha was a prophet that God had chosen to take over the ministry of Elijah. In this lesson we will learn how God gave Elisha the power of the Holy Spirit to perform many miracles. These miracles proved that Elisha was God’s prophet.

Opening Prayer: Dear Father in heaven, Thank you for loving and caring for us. Thank you for using Elisha to help the people of Israel know who You are and how much you love them. You also desire that we too can know your love and compassion. Thank you for helping us with every need and problem that we face. Thank you for offering to give us the forgiveness of our sin and the gift of eternal life in heaven. Help us to trust You for everything! In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Memory Verse: The memory verse is Psalm 103:8 “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.”

Lesson Video: https://youtu.be/m83A0kGVtq8 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 often showed great compassion for those who were around him. Toward the end of his ministry God had told Elijah to go find Elisha and anoint him as a prophet. Elisha had been a farmer who was out plowing his field with oxen when Elijah found him! To show Elisha that God was calling him to be a prophet, Elijah placed his mantle or coat on his shoulders. Elisha willingly answered God’s call and left his home and family to follow Elijah. For over ten years these two men traveled together preaching and teaching God’s Word. Elijah taught Elisha what it meant to be a prophet of God. Elisha faithfully served Elijah and kept close to his side.

https://youtu.be/m83A0kGVtq8

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One day Elijah and Elisha were walking along together and talking. They came to the Jordan River. The river was very deep and there was no way to cross. So Elijah took off his cloak, rolled it up, and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left and the two of them crossed over on dry ground. When they had crossed the river, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what I can give to you before I die?” Elisha knew immediately what he wanted. “Give me a double portion of your spirit!” he said. “Make me your son in ministry!” Elisha knew that if he was going to assume Elijah’s work of telling forth God’s Word that he could not do this by himself. He needed twice as much of God’s Holy Spirit as Elijah had! Elijah was thrilled at his friend’s faith! “If you see me die,” he said, “then you will be my son in ministry. But if not then I cannot give you what you ask.” Elisha was determined not to leave Elijah’s side. They walked on and suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them. Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! He was like the chariots and horseman of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Elijah had gone to heaven without dying! Elisha took hold of his own clothes and tore them apart. He was in deep sorrow over the loss of his companion Elijah. Then he picked up Elijah’s mantle that had fallen from the sky. His request had been answered! Elisha was the new prophet of the Lord! Elisha started to walk back. When he arrived back at the Jordan River, he remembered how Elijah had parted the waters. So he rolled up the mantle, just as Elijah had done and struck the water with it. “Where is the God of Elijah?” he shouted. Immediately the water rolled back and made a dry path from bank to bank. Elisha ran across! God would only use a true prophet to perform such a miracle! Certainly God had chosen Elisha to be his messenger! The young prophets came to meet Elisha as he walked into Jericho. They watched as Elisha had parted the waters. They said, “The spirit of Elijah is now resting on Elisha.” They bowed down to the ground before him. Because Elisha was the prophet of God, he would be used in a great way to show the people of Israel the power of the one true God. When he spoke his words were to be trusted! Through his miracles Elisha would show the people God’s compassion and love. He would prove that God is much more powerful than any idol like Baal! Elisha then headed for Jericho. Many years earlier the city of Jericho had suffered a great defeat when Joshua fought the Battle of Jericho and God caused the walls to tumble down. Since that time the town had suffered much trouble. The water was bad and the hot dry land was producing poor crops. God was going to use this problem to show them that He was the only One who could help them with their needs. As Elisha was coming toward the town, some men of the city came out to greet him. They told Elisha about their problems with the dry land and bitter water. After hearing about their problems Elisha gave a strange command. “Bring me a new bowl,” he said, “and put salt in it.” So they brought him a new bowl full of salt! Elisha then took the bowl to the local water spring! He then threw the salt into the water and said, “This is what the Lord says: “I have healed this water. Never again will it cause death or make the land unproductive.” When the people tasted the water it was fresh and clean. The water was never again contaminated nor was the land unproductive! This miracle helped the people know that God is the only one who can make our hearts clean just like He changed the poison water to fresh! It also showed that God was

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compassionate and loving. God had miraculously provided for their needs. From that point on the water remained pure, just as Elisha had said. The people also knew that Elisha was truly the prophet of the One True God. God also gave him the power to perform many other miracles even more than the prophet Elijah had done! Here is another miracle. In the days of Elisha there were many false gods that people worshipped. One of the false gods was called Baal. People would bow down and worship these wooden statues. People thought Baal was in charge of the weather, so when they wanted rain for their crops they would offer sacrifices to him. Some people even dedicated their own children to these false idols. One day the prophet Elisha was walking on the way to Bethel. Bethel was a city full of idols. As Elisha walked along, he suddenly came across a gang of young men who looked threatening and rowdy. These young lads worshipped false idols and wanted nothing to do with God. When they saw Elisha they started to shout hateful things at the prophet and make fun of him and God! “Get out bald head,” they sneered. “Get out of here baldy.” They followed after the prophet and Elisha feared for his life. They started bullying Elisha and chanting a song, “Get up, Baldy! Go up, Baldy!” They were mocking Elisha and saying that he should “go up” to heaven like Elijah had done! Elisha knew he was in danger and he became angry that these young men were laughing at God. He turned around to face them and said, “May the Lord defend me and judge you!” As soon as Elisha said these words, suddenly God sent two big bears running out of the woods. They scratched and clawed at the jeering crowd and the young boys fled. The two bears injured forty two of the young boys. The rest ran far away and probably told their friends what had happened. They wouldn’t be bothering Elisha anymore! Because of God’s great mercy many of the boys escaped and ran away. God does not want people to make fun of his servants or those who obey Him. We should be careful never to make fun of God’s ministers. We should show honor to God by listening to our church leaders when they read and teach God’s Word to us. Elisha continued on his journey and went on to Mount Carmel and then to Samaria. By now Elisha’s reputation had grown. Word got around that God worked miracles through him. Many people respected him, and some even feared him. Even the local kings considered him to be very important. In fact, it wasn’t long after that that the kings needed Elisha’s help. The problem was a war they wanted to fight. King Jehoram and King Jehoshaphat and a foreign king got together and decided to march against the Moabites. The three armies started out, but then, after a march of seven days, they realized they had not brought enough water with them. The weather was hot and dry and the people and animals became very thirsty. King Jehoram started to moan and grumble. “We’ve come all this way and by the time we get to the battle we’ll be too weak to fight!” he said. “The Moabites will defeat us!” King Jehoshaphat brightened up. “Hey, cheer up!” he said. “There might be a prophet of the Lord around here. He’ll tell us what to do!” One of King Jehoram’s servants answered. “Excuse me, sire,” he said. “Just down the road there is the prophet Elisha. He’s the one who took over for the prophet Elijah.” “Great!” said the king. “The Lord speaks through him. Let’s go and visit him!” So the three kings went off down the hill to visit Elisha.

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These kings were quite a distinguished crowd to show up at the door of the prophet. And how do you think Elisha welcomed them? Well . . . actually, he didn’t. In fact, Elisha wasn’t too happy about these kings showing up at his door. Elisha knew that they often worshipped idols. “Why are you here, Jehoram?” said Elisha. “Get back to your idols, and talk to your false prophets! Don’t waste your time coming here!” The three kings were surprised at this reception. Most people bowed and showed great respect but Elisha knew that they worshipped false gods. King Jehoram tried to be a bit more humble. “If you don’t help us,” he said, “our three armies will be trampled to death by the Moabites.” Elisha listened and tried to calm down a bit. ”Get someone to play some harp music for me,” he requested. Elisha listened to the music for a while and calmed down. Finally the Lord spoke to Elisha. “The Lord says to dig ditches all over this valley,” said Elisha, “because soon there will be water all through here. And the Lord says that you will win the battle. You will kill all the Moabites. After you do that, the Lord wants you to fill up their wells and throw rocks all over their farm land.” God was going to give Israel and Judah a victory over their enemy! The three kings decided to obey God’s direction. They went back to their armies and told them what to do. “Phew!” thought the soldiers. “That means a lot of hard work!” But the soldiers got busy and started digging ditches. This sure was a strange way to fight a war. The ditches were finally dug and the armies had a good night’s sleep . . . . and while they slept, something came creeping slowly through the valley. It was water! It poured across the land and filled the valley from one side to the other, following the ditches and overflowing everywhere. God was working a miracle. And in the morning the sky was deep, beautiful, rosy red, and when the Moabite soldiers woke up and went out of their tents, they saw a dreadful sight. The valley looked as if it was filled with blood! The Moabites thought that the kings had turned and fought each other! So they decided to go to the camp of the Israelites. When the Moabites arrived the three kings rallied their armies and shouted, “Charge!” The Moabites were confused and amazed. They were so befuddled they forgot how to fight properly. Soon the Moabite army was completely wiped out! God had given Israel a great victory that day! The king of the Moabites realized that his army was defeated he thought that perhaps his idol was angry with him. So he rushed home and offered his eldest son as a sacrifice to his idol. Well, of course this did no good at all because there is only one true, living God, so the king lost the battle, and his territory, and his army, and his son as well. Thanks to the Lord the battle was won. This miracle made the King of Israel and the King of Judah realize that Elisha was a prophet from God. It also proved that God’s power was greater than the false god of Baal who was the god of rain, fire and farm crops. In this lesson Elisha had used God's power to perform a miracle of changing bitter water to sweet. God blessed the city of Jericho by meeting their need for fresh water and good land. Elisha had helped the people learn that God was merciful and forgiving. But the people of Israel had also learned that God's power could be used to punish sin when God sent the two bears to punish the boys who were mocking Elisha. God also gave the nation of Israel and Judah victory in their battle with the Moabites. He made the water miraculously appear in the ditches and caused the enemy to be deceived.

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Most of Elisha's miracles were like the miracle at Jericho to show God's kindness and care for His people. Time after time people went to Elisha with their problems, and Elisha showed God's kindness and blessing by making things right. The people of Israel soon learned that if they had a problem Elisha would help them. Did you know that we have someone greater than the prophet Elisha? He is the Lord Jesus, Who has told us to bring to Him all of our problems. He has the solution to every problem, the right answer for every question. Of course, our sin problem is the first one that must be dealt with. God knew this and gave His Son, the Lord Jesus, to die on the cross to take the punishment for our sin. He died in our place. The Bible says that if we are sorry for our sins and believe that Jesus is God and that He died for our sins on the cross, then we can ask Jesus into our hearts to be our Savior. He will wash our hearts whiter than snow and make us His child. Then we can live with Him in heaven forever. Perhaps you have already received Him as Savior, but you have another problem which is troubling you. God wants to help you, and He tells you to bring it to Him in prayer and let Him untangle your problem for you. He is the great "trouble-fixer." But you must ask Him, and then obey Him. Would you like to ask Him now? Our memory verse is Psalm 103:8 “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.” This verse tells us that God loves us and desires to help us. He is able to take care of all our needs. Nothing is too hard for him to accomplish. We do not need to worry or fret. Let’s say our verse again together. Psalm 103:8 “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.” Let’s pray. Dear Father in heaven, Thank you for loving and caring for us. Thank you for using Elisha to help the people of Israel know who You are and how much you love them. You also desire that we too can know your love and compassion. Thank you for helping us with every need and problem that we face. Thank you for offering to give us the forgiveness of our sin and the gift of eternal life in heaven. Help us to trust You for everything! In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen. Remember God is our Strength and Help!

Review Questions/ Game: “Hang Man” (Grades 3-5) Purpose: This activity helps students to recognize and spell key concept words from the lesson as they answer review questions about the lesson. Preparation: You will need a large dry erase board and dry markers. Draw the Hangman gallows. Key words to use for this game include: compassionate, miracle, salt, ditches, kings, Elisha, mantle, baldy, prophets, Jordan, bears, etc. Procedure: Divide the group into two teams. Each of the teams must correctly answer one of the review questions below. If the team answers correctly, they may guess a letter that is in the key word. Have the students on each team to play a game similar to Hangman. Draw blank lines for each letter in key word. Students are to guess the letters of the alphabet. Print the correct letters on the appropriate blank letters. Print an incorrect letter to the side of the blank lines and add another feature to the man. Student who correctly guesses the word wins 10 points for their team.

1. Who was Elisha? (Elisha was a prophet that God had chosen to take over the ministry of Elijah. God gave Elisha the power of the Holy Spirit to perform many miracles. These miracles proved that Elisha was God’s prophet.

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2. What job was Elisha doing when Elijah called him to be a prophet? (God sent Elijah to Elisha who was a farmer plowing his field with twelve oxen.)

3. How did Elijah “invite” Elisha to come follow him and become his assistant? (Elijah threw his mantle on him.)

4. Before Elijah went up to heaven what amazing thing happened at the Jordan River? (Elijah took his mantle, rolled it up, and struck the water with it. The waters divided and the river bed dried up.)

5. What was Elisha’s last request of Elijah? (He said that he wanted a double portion of God’s power or spirit.)

6. Why did Elisha need God’s power? (To continue the work Elijah had trained him to do for God.) 7. How did Elijah go to heaven? (A chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire and then Elijah went

up by a whirlwind into heaven.) 8. What fell from the sky as Elijah went up into heaven? (Elijah’s mantle or coat fell. The coat or

cloak was a symbol of God’s power in his life.) 9. How did Elisha know if God had given him the power he asked for? (He also took up the mantle

of Elijah and struck the water with it. And the water divided and Elisha was able to cross over on dry land.)

10. How did the young prophets know that Elisha was God’s prophet and what did they say? (They knew that Elisha had parted the Jordan River like Elijah had done so they said, “The spirit of Elijah is now resting on Elisha.” They bowed down to the ground before him.)

11. What problem did the men of Jericho report to Elisha about their city? (They told Elisha about their problems their city had with the dry land and bitter water.)

12. What strange thing did Elisha tell the men of the city to do? (Elisha told the men to bring him a bowl of salt.)

13. What did Elisha do with the bowl of salt? (Elisha then took the bowl to the local water spring! He then threw the salt into the water and said, “This is what the Lord says: “I have healed this water. Never again will it cause death or make the land unproductive.”)

14. What did the miracle of making bitter water sweet teach the people of Jericho? (This miracle helped the people know that God is the only one who can make our hearts clean just like He changed the poison water to fresh! It also showed that God was compassionate and loving. God had miraculously provided for their needs. From that point on the water remained pure, just as Elisha had said.)

15. When Elisha was on his way to Bethel, who met him on the road and began to bully him? What did they do? (A gang of young men began to bully him by calling him names like Baldy and saying he should “go up” like Elijah did.)

16. How did God punish the gang of bullies that were attacking Elisha? (God sent two bears out to maul them and injured 42 of them. The rest ran away in fear.)

17. What problem did the three kings want Elisha to help them solve? (The problem was a war they wanted to fight. King Jehoram and King Jehoshaphat and a foreign king got together and decided to march against the Moabites. Their armies were tired and thirsty after marching for so many days.)

18. What did the Lord tell Elisha to tell the kings to do to win the battle with the Moabites? (They were to dig ditches throughout the valley and God would cause water to flow throughout the land.)

19. What did the enemy think that the ditches contained when they awoke the next morning? (The sun was rising and was very red. The rays made the ditches look red like blood. The Moabites thought that the kings had fought against each other and killed each other!)

20. What happened when the Moabite army came to investigate the trenches? (The armies led by the kings were told to charge and they surprised the Moabites and began to fight them. They chased them and defeated them all.)

21. What lessons can we learn about God from the miracle of Elisha making the bitter water fresh at Jericho? (This miracle helped the people know that God is the only one who can make our hearts

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clean just like He changed the poison water to fresh! It also showed that God was compassionate and loving. God had miraculously provided for their needs.)

22. What lesson can we learn from God sending the bears to attack the mob of young men? (The people of Israel learned that God's power could be used to punish sin when God sent the two bears to punish the boys who were mocking Elisha. God wants us to respect our spiritual leaders.)

23. What lesson can we learn about God in the miracle of filling the trenches with water so the Israelites could win the battle? (This miracle made the King of Israel and the King of Judah realize that Elisha was a prophet from God. It also proved that God’s power was greater than the false god of Baal who was the god of rain, fire and farm crops.)

24. What is the memory verse? (Our memory verse is Psalm 103:8 “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.”)

Bible Memory Verse Activity: “Salt Painting” Verse The memory verse is Psalm 103:8 “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.” Have students locate the verse in scripture and read it aloud together several times.

Say: “This verse tells us about the character of God. He forgives our sin, redeems us from death, gives us love even though we do not deserve it, and loves us with an unending eternal love. We have so much for which we can thank and praise Him!” Say: “In this lesson we learned that Elisha used a bowl of salt to pour into the well of water to miraculously change it from bitter to sweet. This miracle showed how God was merciful and forgiving to the city of Jericho. Our memory verse tells us how God is loving and kind toward those who obey Him.” Preparation: You will need a large sheet of black or white construction paper for each child, some bottles of craft glue, and some salt in a shaker. You will also need paint brushes and water colors or food coloring mixed in water. Optional: an aluminum 9” x 13” cake pan for each child Procedure: Make a raised salt painting: Place the construction paper in the bottom of the cake pan. Each child will need a paper and cake pan. Drizzle the paper with craft glue. Have students use the glue to write the letters or reference of the memory verse. Then sprinkle with salt. Gently paint with water mixed with either liquid water colors or food coloring. The salt will absorb the color and mix with the glue in a very interesting pattern.

Group Learning Activity: “Walk a Tightrope of Faith” (Grades K-5) Preparation: You will need a rope, a blindfold, and a garment to represent a coat or cloak. Say: “In this lesson we learned how Elijah put his cloak, or mantle on Elisha, which showed Elisha that he was God’s choice to follow Elijah as a prophet. When Elijah was taken to heaven, Elisha had to trust in the Lord and walk by faith. We also need to learn how to walk by faith. This activity will help us to understand walking by faith.” Procedure: Clear the room in the center and spread the rope across the room, laying it on the floor. The rope can be as long as you like and should curve in different directions instead of remaining straight. To choose a player, place the cloak on child and then blindfold them. Either you or another child can then lead them to the rope. Have them walk and feel with their feet the path to the end. After each player is blindfolded, change the route. When each child is done have them place the cloak on another child. Keep playing until everyone has had a turn.

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Say: “How did it feel to not know which direction the rope was laying on the floor? How important was it to have someone lead you to the rope? (Having someone lead us is very important. Otherwise we would be totally lost.) How is that like knowing our future? (The rope was going different directions for different people. God has a different plan for different people.) What did everyone have to do to be able to follow the path? (They had to feel the rope with their hands or feet.) How is that like faith in God to walk the journey of the Christian life? (God wants us to trust in Him. We have to be willing to follow His direction even when we do not know or see what direction God is leading.)

Group Learning Activity: “Special Memories” (Grades 3-5) Preparation: You will need to bring pictures of someone in your family who has gone on to heaven to be with the Lord. You will also need something special from that person that helps you remember them. Say: “In this lesson we learned that Elisha picked up the mantle that belonged to Elijah. The mantle was a special remembrance of the power of the God that Elijah had. This mantle was very special to Elisha. It helped him to remember his teacher and friend. Today we are going to share things about our loved ones that have died.” Procedure: Have the children sit in a circle and ask a few to share if they have had any loved ones who have gone on to heaven to be with the Lord. We can remember those we love by keeping special things that were once theirs. Ask the children to share if they have any special things that their family has kept as a special way to remember them by. Say: “To Elisha Elijah’s cloak had a very special meaning. It helped him to remember his teacher and his friend. But to Elisha it also represented God’s purpose for him. God had wonderful plans for Elisha’s life and God has wonderful plans for our lives.” “How can we know God’s plan for our lives? In Old Testament times, God spoke to His people through His chosen prophets. Today, God also speaks to us through His Word, the Bible. He wants us to read, memorize and to understand His ways. His Word will help prepare us and help us to understand what He wants us to do with our lives. Proverbs 3:5-6 states, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”

Group Learning Activity: “Serving God” (Grades 2-5) Preparation: You will need a sheet of paper with a column and lines for each child. Each child will also need a dice and pencil. Say: “In our lesson today we learned that Elisha served God by being a good prophet. He spoke the Word of the Lord. He performed many miracles to meet the needs of the people. He used God’s power to help people know about God. Elisha served God in many different places. Today we are going to play a game to help us think about the different places we can serve God. We also can think about different ways to serve Him. We can be a faithful servant of God like Elisha.” Procedure: Hand out one of the graphs shown to each of the children. Tell them to write down six places where they will spend time during the next week.

Then have the children take turns throwing the dice. When a child for example throws a two on the dice, he can check off the place beside the number two on the paper and say “I

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can serve God in ____________ by _______________. For example, “I can serve God in school by doing my homework every day” or “I can serve God at the playground by being a good friend to those who don’t have a friend.” When the child has done this, the next child has a chance. After a few rounds it gets harder and harder to throw the right number on the dice to get the last places checked off. Depending on the time you can decide that each child only throws the dice once in each round or as many times as needed until a right number shows up. The first one to get all his places on the list checked off is the winner. If you have too many children in class you will need to divide the children into the groups. After the game encourage children to take the paper home and pray about one of these places each day during the next week that God will help them serve Him in that place.

Group Learning Activity: Object Lesson “Bitter to Sweet” (Grades K-5) Preparation: You will need a pitcher of fresh squeezed lemonade made without sugar. You will also need sugar to sweeten the lemonade and paper cups to serve each child in your class. Say: “In this lesson Elisha had used God's power to perform a miracle of changing bitter water to sweet. God blessed the city of Jericho by meeting their need for fresh water and good land. Today we are going to experience how the water might have tasted.” Procedure: Show the pitcher of lemonade to the class and share with them how you brought a special treat for them. Pour the lemonade (without sugar) into the cups and serve each child. Have children all wait to taste the lemonade at the same time. After the children taste the “bitter” lemonade, ask if they would like to have another cup but this time you will add some sugar to the pitcher. While adding the sugar explain how this is something like the miracle that Elisha performed for the city of Jericho. Say: “The lemonade that I served you was very bitter, wasn’t it? It was difficult to drink because the lemons were so bitter. The water of Jericho was something like this bitter lemonade except that it was unsafe to drink. If people or animals drank from the bitter water they would become very sick and die. When the men of Jericho told Elisha about the problem, what did Elisha ask them to do? (He asked them to bring him a bowl of salt.) What did Elisha do with the salt? (He poured it into the spring of water that ran through Jericho.) What happened to the water? (God miraculously turned the bitter poisonous water into sweet fresh water.) I am going to pour some sugar into our lemonade. (Stir the sugar into the lemonade.) Let’s taste our lemonade now. (Pour and serve the sweet lemonade to all children.) Let’s take a sip together. How is this lemonade different now? (It is sweet and delicious.) That is similar to what the people of Jericho experienced when God changed the water from bitter to sweet.” “What lesson did God want the people in the city of Jericho to learn about Him? God blessed the city of Jericho by meeting their need for fresh water and good land. God wanted them to know that He is loving and kind and is merciful to all who will call upon Him.”

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Group Learning Activity: Scripture: “Fruits of the Spirit” (Grades 3-5) Preparation: Each student will need a Bible. Procedure: Distribute Bibles to every student. Say: "In this lesson we learned how God gave Elisha the power of the Holy Spirit when Elijah miraculously went to heaven in a chariot of fire. God was faithful to His promise of giving Elisha the power of the Holy Spirit so he could continue the ministry of Elijah. When we accept Christ as our Savior God gives to us the gift of the Holy Spirit. Just like Elisha we have the power to change how we live our lives. These gifts of the Spirit are called fruits of the Spirit.” Have students locate and read aloud the following scriptures. Discuss the biblical principle being taught in the scripture. Ask students to think of applications of the scripture to their life. Have students record what they have learned from these verses in their spiritual journals.

Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” The fruit of the Holy Spirit is the result of the Holy Spirit’s presence in the life of a Christian. We don’t have the fruit by our own effort rather is the result of allowing the Holy Spirit to control us. Romans 8:9 “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.” The Bible makes it clear that everyone receives the Holy Spirit the moment he or she believes in Jesus Christ. One of the primary purposes of the Holy Spirit coming into a Christian's life is to change that life. It is the Holy Spirit's job to conform us to the image of Christ, making us more like Him.

Have students make a list of the fruits of the Spirit. (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.) Write the names of the fruits on labels. Use physical fruit and label each one with one of the fruits. Discuss the meaning of each of the fruits:

1. Love—the choice to be kind; to sacrifice; to consider another’s need greater than our own; it is doing good to those who are our enemies.

2. Joy—the natural reaction to what God has done for us. He has set us free from the power of sin. It is what happens when the Holy Spirit lives in us.

3. Peace—the peace of no longer being a war with God; it is the result of submitting our wills to God.

4. Patience—the self restraint and careful thought of choosing to act in a loving kind way; compassion for others.

5. Kindness—It is the result of having the Holy Spirit control us; being tender, compassionate, and gentle toward others.

6. Goodness—It is acting in a holy way toward others like God or Jesus would do. It is being virtuous or right in our attitudes and deeds.

7. Faithfulness—It is being steadfast, constant and careful in keeping our belief about Who God is and What He has done for us. It is enduring to the end. It is trusting God to complete all that He has promised.

8. Gentleness—It is having great strength with a willingness to control it so we can be more like Christ; It is humility, thankfulness and a polite restrained behavior toward others.

9. Self-control—It is the willingness to be submit our will to the Holy Spirit so that we can persevere over the long term; It is choosing not to sin and be controlled by evil.

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Discuss the following questions: Who is the Holy Spirit? (Holy Spirit is one of the three Persons of God.) How can you have the Holy Spirit in our life? (You receive the Holy Spirit when you believe and trust in Christ as your Savior.) What fruit of the Holy Spirit do you see in your life? (Answers will vary.) Finish with a prayer asking for the Holy Spirit’s help and guidance.

Group Learning Activity/ Game: “Pictionary” (Grades 2-5) Preparation: You will need something to draw on, like a big pad of paper and marker, a chalk board and chalk,

or a wipe-off board and dry erase marker. Or even just a stack of blank paper. You’ll also need slips of paper with words written on them and a hat or bowl to put them in. A stopwatch, hourglass or clock, and a piece of paper to keep score are also helpful. Before class print the following words on 3” X 5” cards: Elisha; bowl of salt; mantle; hail stones; fiery chariot; three angry bears; mob of young boys; kings; ditches of water; red sunrise; etc. Say: “Today we are going to play a Pictionary game to see if you can guess a word or object that is found in this lesson. Procedure: Divide your children up into teams. Have one child from each team pick a card. Pick a team to go first. Each team has 30 seconds to have a child draw the picture of the word and his teammates guess what word from the lesson he is drawing. If the team guesses correctly, the team gets one point. Then the other team take a turn. Keep playing until all the children have had a chance to draw. The team with the most points wins. Life Application Challenge: “Faithful” Say: “In the lesson we learned that Elisha was a faithful servant to Elijah and God rewarded him by giving him a double portion of the Holy Spirit. Elisha was faithful to God in his ministry to the people of Israel. He used the power of the Spirit to perform miracles that helped the people learn more about God’s love, faithfulness, forgiveness, and mercy.” “We too should be faithful to God every day. God has given us talents and resources. We need to use them in a way that is pleasing to Him. He is pleased when we are willing to use our talents and abilities to bring honor to Him. One way to honor God with our talents is to make sure that whenever someone

compliments our special abilities, is to give the honor to God by saying, “Thank you. God has made me

with “strong legs, if someone compliments your running ability; or “a creative mind,” if someone compliments your creative writing or drawing, etc.. This way, we bring honor to God instead of ourselves.” “Let’s practice giving God the honor for the abilities and gifts He has given us.” Close in prayer.

https://www.thegamegal.com/2010/11/06/pictionary/#printables

https://www.thegamegal.com/2010/11/06/pictionary/#printables

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Elisha the Prophet

Psalm 103:8

“The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.”

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Unit 12: Elijah and Elisha OT12.9 Elisha the Prophet · going to use this problem to show them that...

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Transcript of Unit 12: Elijah and Elisha OT12.9 Elisha the Prophet · going to use this problem to show them that...