March 8 2014
Saturday Lesson–Unit 18, Session 1
SESSION TITLE: God Called Jeremiah/ Bible Passage: Jeremiah 1
BIG PICTURE QUESTION & ANSWER / What job did God give Jeremiah? God chose Jeremiah before he was born to be a prophet to the nations.
UNIT CHRIST CONNECTION / Though it appeared that sin prevailed, the covenant God promised would be fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
MEMORY VERSE
NEW – The kids will continue this passage, adding a verse each month through verse 11. / “Have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Philippians 2:5-8
5:50 – 6:00
WELCOME & CONNECT / SUPPLIES: SG Binder
Offering
Take Attendance
6:00 – 6:20
BIBLE STORY / SUPPLIES: Bible story video and ppt slides
6:20 – 6:25
MISSIONS MOMENT / SUPPLIES: Video, ppt slides
6:25 – 6:30
MEMORY VERSE / SUPPLIES: Memory Verse video, poster in SG Binder, cups, sticky notes, markers, dry erase board, dry erase markers
6:30 – 6:40
ACTIVITY STATIONS / SUPPLIES: activity sheets, markers, 2 balls or bean bags, questions, Big Picture cards
God Called Jeremiah
Jeremiah 1
When Josiah was the king of Judah, God spoke to Jeremiah, a priest. God spoke to Jeremiah for many years. God said to Jeremiah, “I knew you before I made you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born, I chose you to do very special things. I chose you to be a prophet to the nations.”
Being a prophet meant listening to what God said and telling the people God’s message. Jeremiah said, “Oh no, God! I don’t know how to speak in front of other people. I’m just a boy, only a youth.”
God replied, “Don’t say that. You will go where I send you and say what I tell you to say. You do not need to be afraid of anyone because I am with you. I will protect you.”
Then God reached out His hand and touched Jeremiah’s mouth. “I’m giving you the words to say,” God said. “I am putting you in charge of nations and kingdoms. You will give the people My message. It is a message of destruction, of bad things happening because of their sin. It is also a message of reconstruction. After I tear down the people, I will rebuild them.”
God gave Jeremiah two visions. Visions are like dreams, except Jeremiah was awake. God said, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”
Jeremiah said, “I see a branch of an almond tree.”
“You are right,” God said. The almond branch was a sign for Jeremiah so he would know that God would do what He said He would, and He would do it soon.
Then Jeremiah saw a second vision. He saw a boiling pot. The pot was overflowing from the north! God told Jeremiah that this vision meant trouble was coming from the north. Trouble would come for everyone in Judah.
God told Jeremiah what would happen. God said that the rulers in the north were going to come and set up their kingdoms outside the city gates of Jerusalem. They were going to attack Jerusalem and other cities in Judah. God was going to judge the people of Judah for their sin. They had walked away from God; they worshiped their own man-made gods instead.
Jeremiah had a big job to do, and God was ready to send him on his way. “Get ready! Tell the people everything I say. Do not be afraid. I am making you strong against the people. They will fight you, but they’ll never win. I’m here to protect you and to rescue you.” These are the words of God that came to Jeremiah the priest.
Christ Connection: Jeremiah challenged the way people lived in Judah and called them to turn away from their idol worship and other sins. Christ did more than challenge how people lived; He called people to turn from their sins, and He provided the way for people to have a relationship with God.
BIBLE STUDY
“I chose you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart before you were born.” These words from Jeremiah 1:5 reveal a Creator who is sovereign, working out everything in agreement with the decision of His will. (Eph. 1:11) Jeremiah 1:5 ends with a specific call for a man named Jeremiah: “I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
Jeremiah was the son of Hilkiah the priest. He lived just north of Jerusalem. Jeremiah’s ministry began when God called him. At that time, Josiah was king of Judah. Who else did God call in the Old Testament? God called Noah to build an ark (Gen. 6); He called Abram to leave his home (Gen. 12:1-4); He called Moses to lead His people out of Egypt (Ex. 3).
Each time God calls someone, He equips them to do His work. Like Moses, Jeremiah was hesitant: “Oh no, Lord, God! Look, I don’t know how to speak since I am only a youth” (Jer. 1:6). God assured Jeremiah: “I will be with you” (Jer. 1:8).
God called Jeremiah to be a prophet to Judah. Judah was deep in idol worship and other sins. God’s judgment was coming. Jeremiah’s job was to warn them. God gave Jeremiah two visions. The first—a branch of an almond tree—was a sign that God would keep His promise to send judgment, and He would do it soon. The second vision—a boiling pot—meant that God’s judgment was coming from the north. God would bring the Babylonians from the north as judgment on His people. Then God sent Jeremiah out to announce God’s declaration.
As you teach kids, help them connect Jeremiah’s ministry to the ministry of Jesus. God called Jeremiah to warn the people of the judgment for their sin. Jesus also came to tell people to turn from their sin; He didn’t just tell them about the punishment, He took the punishment on Himself.
5:50 – 6:00 (Times may vary slightly depending on the length of worship)
WELCOME
SUPPLIES: Room Binder
. Small Group Leaders or Parent Helpers take attendance as kids enter the room. During Huddle, check with your Bible story teacher to find out which group you will be staffing. Children who are not listed on your printed roster should be added to the “GraceKids Roster.”
. Offering (if children bring offering, they can place it in the offering basket on the stage)
Transition to the front of the room for the Bible story.
**Optional Opening Game – Wonderfully Made Challenge: Invite the kids to compete in a series of unique challenges. See who can sit still the longest, jump the furthest, do the most sit-ups, say the memory verse the quickest. Then, discuss how these tasks remind us that God made each of us unique. God wants each of us to play a different role in sharing the good news of Jesus – but we will each of us have a different job. Explain: Describe the many different roles that people play in kidZone –small group leaders, prepare supplies during the week, greet at the doors, run the computer/lighting equipment, clean the rooms, etc. God made each of us different because He wants all of us to be part of building His kingdom.
6:00 -- 6:05
MEMORY VERSE REVIEW
We started in December with verse 5, and now we’re on verse 8 of our passage that is from…..what book? Yes, Philippians. Can you show me the sign for Philippians? Great. And what chapter? Yes, chapter 2.
PPT: And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Let’s work on memorizing together by saying this verse along with Miss Rena on the video.
Video: Verse 8 video
Great job! Keep working on this verse at home. If you want to find it, it is located at http://gcconline.org/children/gracekids-video/ . (Will see about getting a link on the city as well)
6:05 - 6:15
MISSIONS MOMENT
SUPPLIES: Slides or video
***more info to come
6:15 - 6:30
BIBLE STORY
Now, it’s time for our Bible story. You can choose to either go under the big time line and have the regular one on the screen or to point to items on the one on the screen.
PPT: Timeline
So, here is where we are in God’s Big Story that tells us how God’s plan to make it possible for us to live in friendship with us. We’ve learned that even though God provided His people with everything they needed to live in friendship with God, over and over and over again, they turned away from God and lived selfish lives.
Today we are continuing God’s Big Story by exploring the Book of Jeremiah. Guess what Jeremiah was? He was another prophet! Jeremiah is one of the Major Prophets. So if he is a major prophet, was his book in the Bible long or short? (Take responses) Right, it is a longer book, so he is called a Major Prophet instead of a Minor Prophet.
PPT: Josiah Big Picture Card
Jeremiah was a prophet when Josiah was king of Judah. Jeremiah actually lived a long time, and he saw more than one king of Judah come along and rule God’s people. Some of the kings, like Josiah, loved God and led the people to worship him. But many of them, did the opposite. They worshipped false gods and led the people to worship false gods. Jeremiah also lived during the same time that Habakkuk lived whom we learned about several weeks ago.
PPT: Habakkuk Big Picture Card
Let’s open our Bibles and discover what message God gave Jeremiah. I will give you a clue. [Point to the pot on stage.] A pot… hmmmm… see if you can figure out how this fits in as we tell our story today…. I am sure you will figure it out.
Oh yes, you also need to find the answer to our big picture question during today’s Bible story.
PPT: Big Picture Question
Our big picture question is, What job did God give Jeremiah? So now we have two hints about today’s story: Jeremiah had a job that God gave him, and somehow a pot is connected to our story. So, let’s take a look at our Bible story video and find out What job did God give Jeremiah? And what a pot has to do with that.
Video: Bible Story Video
Did you hear it? Did you learn the answer to our Big Picture Question? (Take responses)
PPT: Big Picture Question
Yes, you’re right!
PPT: Big Picture Question and Answer
God chose Jeremiah before he was born to be a prophet to the nations. Was Jeremiah young or old when God chose him? Young… that was kinda a trick question… God told Jeremiah that He had chosen Jeremiah before he was even born, so that is pretty young, wouldn’t you say? When Jeremiah was in his mom’s womb, God selected him to be a prophet to the nations.
The Bible tells us that Jeremiah saw two visions. What two things did Jeremiah see? (Take responses) Yes. Jeremiah saw an almond branch and a boiling pot. Did you hear how the boiling pot was a sign that trouble was coming for the people of Judah? The people of Judah were sinning. They refused to only worship God. They worshiped false gods, so God was going to punish them. A kingdom from the north was coming to conquer the people of Judah.
Jeremiah had a pretty tough job don’t you think? Do you think the people of Judah would like his messages from God? No, not at all! God warned Jeremiah that the people of Judah would try to harm him. Two times in chapter 1 God warns Jeremiah. But two times, God also told Jeremiah why he didn’t need to be afraid of the people.
Let’s find out why. If you have your Bible today, let’s turn in your Bibles to Jeremiah 1, verse 8. When you’ve found the verse and know why Jeremiah didn’t need to be afraid, stand up. (Call on a child to answer.)
Yes, you’re right!
PPT: “Do not be afraid of the people I send you to. I am with you. I will save you, announces the Lord.”
Jeremiah didn’t need to be afraid because God promised the He would be with him and would save him. Okay, now, let’s look at Jeremiah 1:18-19. How strong did God say he would make Jeremiah?
PPT: “ Today I have made you like a city that has a high wall around it. I have made you like an iron pillar and a bronze wall. Now you can stand up against the whole land. You can stand against the kings and officials of Judah. You can stand against its priests and its people. They will fight against you. But they will not overcome you. I am with you. I will save you,” announces the Lord.”
Yes, they said he’d be like a city with a high wall.
PPT: http://www.castles.francethisway.com/chateau-carcassonne.php
What else? Yes, he’d be like an iron pillar and a bronze wall.
PPT: http://everystockphoto.s3.amazonaws.com/iron_pillar_arch_1008411_l.jpg
And once again, God promised that he would be with Jeremiah and would save him – even when the people would be against him. He knew it was going to be hard for Jeremiah to obey and be His prophet to the nations. But Jeremiah loved God and obeyed him and we’ll be learning more about Jeremiah in the next couple of weeks.
But you know, several hundred years after Jeremiah lived, Jesus came to earth. His job was even harder. Jesus called people to turn from their sin, and He died for their sin. Jesus made a way for people to have a relationship with God by paying the price for sin.
6:30 -- 6:35
PRAYER
Kids return to their Small Group for prayer time with Small Group Leader or remain in Large Group with Parent Helpers.
PPT: Adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication slides
Take requests: “This year, we will have a journal to list our prayer requests and our praises to God. When God answers one of our prayer requests, we can mark it in our journal. Do any of you have something you would like us to pray for today?” Record the date, name of child and prayer request on the notebook paper inside your SG folder.