This lesson reveals the extent of Manasseh’s wickedness. Yet once again, we see God’s mercy when a wicked sinner repents.  The students will discover that because of God’s great mercy. He forgives all sins when a person repents and turns to Him.

This Bible study is only a guide.  Be sure to modify the lesson to the needs of your students. Click here to see all the Bible lessons in this series.

Bible Story Title: Manasseh repents and receives God’s mercy
Bible Passage: 2 Chronicles 33
Target Age Group: Age 9 – 11 (U.S. 3rd – 5th Grade)
Learning Context: Sunday School
Target Time Frame: 60 minutes
Printer Friendly Bible Lesson: Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it. this lesson plan
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Supply List:  Bibles, paper plates or construction paper for two sided face (smile/sad), pens/pencils, paper

Learning Goal: Students will learn that God is merciful and always forgives repentant sinners.

Learning Activity #1: Review the kings.  Using small plates or circles cut from construction paper put a smiley face on one side and a sad face on the other.  Read names of Kings that you have studied so far and allow students to show happy face or sad face indicating whether the king was pleasing to God or evil in His sight.

Learning Activity #2:  Teaching students how to use concordance.  Have them look in the concordance of their Bible (if they don’t have one have Bibles they can use that do) and look up the word Mercy.  Have them look at the different verses for mercy and have them write their favorite one down.  At the end of the activity have students share the verses they wrote down.

Test: Review Questions

Memory Verse: Exodus 34:6-7a “And He passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.”

Bible Lesson:  Manasseh repents and receives God’s Mercy

(Use the Review the Kings activity to introduce the Bible lesson.)

King Hezekiah was a good king who did what was right in God’s sight. When he became king the land was filled with wickedness and the people were not worshiping the One True God.  They were worshiping false gods or idols.  As he began to reign Hezekiah brought great changes in his kingdom. If you were growing up as a child of King Hezekiah what do you think you would know about God?  (Worship God only, worship according to God’s laws, trust Him when enemies come against you, etc.)

Hezekiah was a good example for his sons to see how to live a life that pleases God.  After he died his son Manasseh became king.  Let’s turn in our Bibles to 2 Chronicles 33 to discover how he reigns as king over God’s people.

Read verse 1. How old was Manasseh when he became king?  (12)  How long did he reign as king?  (55 years)

Read verse 2.  Does this shock you?  How could a child of a good king do evil in the eyes of the Lord?  (Allow responses)

• All people are sinners.  (Romans 3:23)
• Our hearts are desperately evil. (Jeremiah 17:9)
• There is nothing good in man only God can empower us to please Him.  (Romans 7:18-8:17)

2 Chronicles 33:3-9 Manasseh’s wickedness

Hezekiah worked to bring people back to God and in a few short years his son brought the southern kingdom back into a spiritually dark place.

Evil things that Manasseh did:

• Rebuilt high places and built altars for Baal.
• Bowed down and worshiped the stars.
• Built altars to false gods/idols and placed them in the Lord’s temple and put altars in the courtyard of the temple.
• Sacrificed his sons to the god named Molech by throwing them into a fire.
• He practiced sorcery, divination and witchcraft.
• Put a carved image in the Temple

All of the things Manasseh did were openly rebellious toward God.  Everything he did broke God’s laws.  From what you know about God and His word what laws did Manasseh break?  (You shall have no other gods before Me.  You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything.  You shall not bow down to them.)

When a person sins it always affects others.  Let’s read verse 9.

We may never be a king but we will always have someone who is watching our life.  How we live is important.

• If others follow your example would they be living a life that pleases God?

In our world we are exposed to lies people believe about God.  If the world that we live in knows little about what the Word of God teaches the more lies people believe about God.  One lie that people say about God is that in the Old Testament a harsh God punishing sin, and in the New Testament God is kind and compassionate.  That is an inaccurate statement  because God is the same God in the Old Testament as in the New.  God is just.  He hates sin.  He gives us teachers to teach us His truth and to warn us of punishment if we choose to sin.  He forgives us when we repent and turn from sin.

We have seen a kind compassionate God throughout the history of Israel’s kings.  He faithfully sent prophets to kings who were sinning to warn them of coming punishment.  Some kings listened and repented and some did not.

2 Chronicles 33:10-11 God’s warning and punishment

As we return to Manasseh let’s see if God wipes Manasseh out because of his wickedness or if God warns him.  Read verse 10.

We are not much different than these people in the Old Testament.  Have you ever had a parent or teacher who told you how to avoid punishment and you ignored them?  What happens when you ignore a clear warning from someone in authority?  (You face the consequence of your decision not to obey)

Manasseh and the people in his kingdom chose to ignore God.  He sent enemies (the Assyrian army) to invade the land of Judah.  They captured Manasseh.  What did they do to him?  (Read verse 11)  This was a very humiliating thing for a king to experience.

2 Chronicles 33:12-13 Manasseh’s repentance

Read 33:12-13.  God disciplines His children because He is a good father who desires His children to live the abundant life He can give.  His purpose for allowing any difficulty is to turn our hearts to Him so we can live a life that pleases Him. (Hebrews 12:5-11)

God heard Manasseh’s prayer and saw his humility and forgave him.

Manasseh sinned in many ways against God.  None of those sins were too bad for God to forgive.  It is the same with all people.  No sin we have ever committed is too hard for God to forgive.  The only sin God cannot forgive is an unrepentant heart.  All God requires for our sins to be forgiven is to repent and turn away from our sins and turn to Him.

• God provided a way for our sins to be completely forgiven by sending Jesus to die in our place on the cross.  He shed His blood, was buried and rose again the third day.  All who believe in the Lord Jesus can have every sin past, present and future sin forgiven.

2 Chronicles 33:14-20 Fruit of Manasseh’s repentance

True repentance will be evident by the way a person lives after pleading for God’s forgiveness.  How do we know that Manasseh was truly sorry for the wicked life he lived?  Read verses 15-16.  (He got rid of the idolatrous altars and idols that he used to worship, and restored the altar of the Lord)

• When a person is truly repentant of his/her sins before God they are a new creation. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
• As a new creation the Holy Spirit enables a believer to put off the sinful actions and attitudes and live a life that pleases God. (Ephesians 4:22-24)

What should you do if you are a believer and you know that you sinned?  All your sins were forgiven the moment you believed in Jesus.  When we knowingly sin as a believer it affects our relationship with God. (He never takes away our salvation…when we believe in Jesus we receive eternal life) Our relationship with God is similar to relationships we have in our lives.  If I offend or hurt someone I love and I don’t admit that I was wrong and say I am sorry it causes there to be distance in that relationship.  My sin caused Jesus to die.  When I sin as a child of God it hurts my relationship with Him.  He will always be my Father but my sin puts distance in our relationship. When I confess it to Him, He cleanses me and restores me to a close relationship with Him. (1 John 1:9)

Manasseh’s life started out wicked and very displeasing in God’s sight.  We close our lesson seeing God’s great mercy towards a great sinner who humbled himself and repented.  As we pray which stage are you in Manasseh’s life?  Are you at the place where you are a sinner separated from God by your sinful life?  Have you been saved and have allowed sin to creep into your life and habits?  Maybe you are walking closely with Jesus.  You can thank Him for His great mercy towards you.  Wherever you find yourself in Manasseh’s life, talk to God about it as we start our prayer time in silence.

Close in prayer.

Review Questions:

1. Who is Manasseh’s father?  (Hezekiah)
2. How long did Manasseh reign as King? (55 years)
3. What did Manasseh do that was evil?
4. How did Manasseh and the people respond to God’s warning? (Ignored Him)
5. Why did God forgive Manasseh?  (He humbled himself and repented)
6. How can we tell that Manasseh truly repented?  (He removed the wicked altars/idols)
7. What sin is so great that God could never forgive? (None except not believing that Jesus is the Savior)

Related posts:

1. Lesson: Uzziah finds success by seeking God
2. Lesson: Jonah Obeys and Nineveh Repents

This lesson continues in the life of King Hezekiah and teaches the students how he handled the threats of the king of Assyria by prayer.  The students will discover lessons how to apply what they learn from Hezekiah’s response to their lives when they are confronted with difficulties.  The lesson is prepared for older elementary students.  Please adapt to your ministry needs.

This lesson is only a guide to help you to prepare for your class.  It was created for older students but can be adapted for your individual needs.  Click here to see all the Bible lessons in this series.

Bible Story Title: Hezekiah prays when threatened by Assyria
Bible Passage: 2 Chronicles 32:1-23
Target Age Group: Age 9 – 11 (U.S. 3rd – 5th Grade)
Learning Context: Sunday School
Target Time Frame: 60 minutes
Printer Friendly Bible Lesson: Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it. this lesson plan
You Can Help: Please share your feedback and suggestions to improve this children’s Bible lesson. Click here to respond

Supply List: Bibles, Bible map, Index cards, pens/pencils,

Learning Goal: Students will learn that believers have a real enemy (the devil) and can stand up against his attacks by trusting in God alone.

Learning Activity #1: Have a Sword Drill.  (This lesson plan has many different verses that can be used for the Sword Drill) It is helpful for visual learners if you write the passage on the board or have it written before hand on a piece of paper.

Learning Activity #2: Fighting Enemies with God’s Word:  This activity allows students to see enemies that attack them in their daily walk with God.  They will discover Scriptures that will help them overcome their enemies (difficulties that they are confronted with).  Have students make individualized index cards with the name of an enemy on one side and Scriptures to fight those enemies on the other side.  (Here are some examples: Fear (Deuteronomy 31:6, Hebrews 13:6), Pride (Proverbs 18:12, Philippians 2:3), Jealousy (Proverbs 27:4, 1Corinthians 3:3), Insecurity/lacking confidence (Jeremiah 17:7, Philippians 4:13), laziness (Proverbs 12:24, Hebrews 6:12), anger (Proverbs 29:22, Ephesians 4:26), hate (Proverbs 8:13, Luke 6:27) These cards will be for them to use at the different times when they are being attacked and have Scriptures readily available to help them overcome.

Test: Review Questions

Memory Verse: 2 Chronicles 32:8a “With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God to help us and to fight our battles.”

Bible Lesson: King Hezekiah Part 3:  Hezekiah prays when threatened by Assyria

Before an army fights the enemy the captain receives orders from the king.  The captain prepares the soldiers to fight the enemy.  The captain teaches his soldiers what kinds of weapons the enemy uses.  He prepares them for their possible fighting tactics and where the enemy is usually located.  A strong army that wins battle is made up of soldiers who prepare well before going into battle.

As a believer we are in God’s army.  Believers are the soldiers, Jesus is our King and the Holy Spirit is our captain.  Jesus knows how to defeat the enemy and the Holy Spirit prepares believers by giving instructions from God’s Word and power to defeat the enemy. The Holy Spirit helps believers understand that God alone can be trusted to win the battle against the enemy. The enemy believers face is the devil or Satan.  He is God’s enemy and he attacks believers.  Believers are daily in a battle against the attacks from the enemy.  The attacks come in different forms.  Difficulties that confront us and sin are enemies that every believer is faced with on a daily basis. Each time we are tempted to disobey God’s Word we are being attacked by the enemy.

Since believers have a real enemy and are in a daily battle with sin, only God, who knows all things, has power over all things and is everywhere can help believers in this battle.  He knows everything about Satan, his tricks and his tactics.  God has given us every weapon (The Bible, Prayer) we need to not be defeated in the battle. (Hebrews 4:12)

The only way believers can win against Satan is to trust fully in God’s promises and allow Him to fight our battles.

Today we are going to see an example we can follow from studying the life of Hezekiah.  Let’s turn in our Bibles to 2 Chronicles 32.

(If you have taught part 1 and part 2 of Hezekiah’s reign, review what the students remember)  King Hezekiah was faithful to the Lord.  He brought change to the Southern kingdom by getting rid of pagan worship and restoring worship at the temple.  He invited all of God’s people to come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover.

Read 2 Chronicles 32:1.  King Hezekiah was faithful to God and Sennacherib the king of Assyria attacked his kingdom.  Whenever God’s people are doing great things for God and turning people’s hearts back to Him, God’s enemy the devil is never happy. The devil’s motto is: Lie, steal and destroy! (John 8:44, 10:10)

2 Chronicles 32:2-5 Hezekiah takes action against his enemy

Hezekiah blocks off the springs of water so the enemy cannot drink.  Water is a necessity for life.  By cutting off the flow of water the enemy could not stay camped in that area for long without water to drink. (Verses 2-4)

• What are some ways that you can stop the ‘flow of water’ to the sins that are enemies in your life? (James 4:7 Obey God and the enemy will have to flee)

Read verse 5.  Hezekiah worked hard to strengthen the protective walls around Jerusalem.  He repaired the broken sections and built towers on it.  He built another wall around the original wall.  He made large numbers of weapons and shields.

• How do you prepare to protect yourself from an inescapable attack?  (Believers face situations that we know that are going to be difficult (Peer pressure))  Do you study God’s Word daily?  Do you pray and ask God for wisdom every day?  Are you memorizing Scriptures?  God is our strength and shield and His Word is our weapon to fight against all the enemies we face.)
• Do you pray for your pastor and leaders?  By praying for them you are protecting them from the enemy who wants to destroy them.

2 Chronicles 32:6-8 Hezekiah encourages his army

Read verses 7 and 8.  King Hezekiah encouraged the people to be strong and courageous.  He encouraged them to trust God to fight their battles.  The people gained confidence from the King’s encouragement.

• How strong is your faith in God?  Is your faith strong enough that you can point others to trust God and have courage when they are in a battle? (Hebrews 3:12-13)

2 Chronicles 32:9-19 The enemy’s tactics

Read selected verses:  9 (Sennacherib is laying siege (harassing) Lachish (show on map) and sends his messengers to threaten Hezekiah and his kingdom), 10-11, 15 (messengers cast doubt on Hezekiah’s instruction to have confidence in the Lord), 16-17 (Messengers insult God), 18 (Messengers try to terrify the men on the wall)

Satan (the enemy-Ephesians 6:12) uses these same tactics in the lives of believers.  Have you ever doubted God’s ability to rescue you from the enemy? (Did God really say? Genesis 3:1) Have you ever been bullied?  Has anyone every made fun of your faith in God?  If so, you can relate to how the people in Hezekiah’s kingdom felt.

2 Kings 18-19; 2 Chronicles 32:20 Hezekiah’s Battle Strategy

King Hezekiah trusted God to fight against the King of Assyria.  The following are some of his strategies to help his people when they were attacked by the enemy. Each strategy can be used by believers when they are attacked by the enemy. (Depending on how much time you have available you can have the students look up the verses and read.)

• Keep silent before the enemy. (2 Kings 18:36)/ (1 Peter 2:23)
• Humble yourself before God.  (2 Kings 18:37-19:2)/ (Micah 6:8)
• Seek Godly Counsel. (2 Kings 19:2-4)/ (Proverbs 15:22)
• Take your troubles to the Lord.  (2 Kings 19:14-19; 2 Chronicles 32:20)/ (Philippians 4:6)
• Trust your Defender (2 Kings 19:34)/ (Psalm 35:23)

2 Chronicles 32:21-23 God Responds and Rescues

God can be trusted to hear and answer prayer.  His answers are above and beyond what we could ever expect.  (Ephesians 3:20)

Let’s turn to 2 Kings 19:35-37.  How many Assyrian soldiers were killed by the angel of the Lord?  (185,000)What happened to Sennacherib?  (He was killed by his sons while he was worshiping his god)

Read 2 Chronicles 32:22-23.  King Hezekiah faced a dangerous, intimidating enemy.  He chose to trust God.  God defeated the king of Assyria and his army.  We too can trust God to rescue us from the enemies we face.  We will never be disappointed when we trust God with every aspect of our lives (Psalm 22:5).

At the beginning of our lesson we talked about believers being in God’s army.  If you have never been saved you are not in His army. To be a soldier in God’s army you must admit that you are a sinner.  Your sin separates you from God.  You must believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, was buried and rose again on the third day.  When you call upon Jesus to save you from your sins you are now an enlisted soldier in the Lord’s army (2 Timothy 2:3-4).  If you are a believer are you obeying King Jesus and following the Holy Spirit’s instructions each day?  It is important to walk closely with God each day so you will be fully prepared for attacks from the enemy.

Close in prayer.

Review Questions:

1. What did King Hezekiah do when the King of Assyria invading his land?  (Blocked the springs, repaired broken walls, made weapons)
2. How did Hezekiah encourage the people?  (Told them to be strong and courageous and trust God)
3. What did Sennacherib’s messengers say?  (Tried to cause the people to doubt that God could save them, insulted God and frightened the people)
4. What did Hezekiah do?  (Humbled himself, sent a message to Isaiah, prayed)
5. How did God respond to Hezekiah’s prayer?
6. How did this lesson encourage you to trust God when faced with difficulty?
7. What changes do you need to make so you can stand firm when faced with difficulty?

Related posts:

1. Lesson: King Hezekiah Celebrates Passover
2. Lesson: King Hezekiah Brings Reform
3. The Kings of Israel (Lesson Series Index)
4. Preschool Bible Lesson: Jesus Prays
5. Lesson: The Great Battle of Daniel 11

This lesson was prepared for our students who are currently studying the Book of Acts.  The purpose of the lesson was to tie in what the students were learning in their study as they study the birth of Christ.  This was created for older students but can be adapted for your ministry needs.

Bible Story: Jesus is the Light of the World
Scripture: Selected passages (Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 2:1-7)
Target Age Group: Age 9 – 11 (U.S. 3rd – 5th Grade)
Learning Context: Sunday School
Target Time Frame: 60 minutes
Printer Friendly Bible Lesson: Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it. this lesson plan
You Can Help: Please share your feedback and suggestions to improve this children’s Bible lesson. Click here to respond

Supply List: Bibles, blindfolds, white board, dry erase marker, flannel graphs or pictures to illustrate the story. For more lesson ideas, you can browse another Christmas Sunday School lesson based on the theme “Jesus is the Light.”

Learning Goal:  Students will learn that the birth of Christ fulfills God’s promise to send Light into the world.

Learning Activity #1: Blind-fold demonstration:

• Blindfold students
• Give students simple instructions like-walk to the door and touch the handle, return to your seat, choose one student at a time to come to the white board and write his/her name on it and then return to their seat.  Call out a student’s name and tell him/her to switch seats with another student you choose, etc.
• Remove blindfolds and have the students look at the board and see how their names turned out.
• Discuss difficulties of being blindfolded. (Bumping into people, things, didn’t know if someone already wrote on the board where they wrote etc.)

Test: Review Questions

Memory Verse:  1 Peter 2:9 “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.”

Bible Lesson:  Jesus is the Light of the World

Related posts:

1. Children’s Bible Lesson: Jesus is the Light
2. Birth of Jesus Foretold to Mary: Christmas Bible Lesson
3. Free Christmas Plays for Children “The Birth of Jesus”
4. Jesus Brings Peace: A Gospel Lesson for Christmas
5. Story of Christmas Video Part 4 “Birth of Jesus at Christmas”

This is a continuation of the study of Israel’s Kings.  In part 2 of the life of King Hezekiah this lesson focuses on King Hezekiah’s invitation to all (both Northern and Southern Kingdoms) Israel to come to Jerusalem and celebrate Passover.  Students will be learning about the meaning of Passover and how it was pointing God’s people to the Lamb of God Jesus who would take away the sins of the world.

This lesson is only a guide to help you to prepare for your class.  It was created for older students but can be adapted for your individual needs.  Click here to see all the Bible lessons in this series.

Bible Story Title: King Hezekiah Celebrates Passover
Bible Passage: 2 Chronicles 30-31:1
Target Age Group: Age 9 – 11 (U.S. 3rd – 5th Grade)
Learning Context: Sunday School
Target Time Frame: 60 minutes
Printer Friendly Bible Lesson: Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it. this lesson plan
You Can Help: Please share your feedback and suggestions to improve this children’s Bible lesson. Click here to respond

Supply List: Bibles, construction paper, markers, supplies to make invitations, visual aids for telling the story (use Google Images)

Learning Goal: Students will learn that believers are commanded to invite others to come to Jesus and be saved from their sins.

Learning Activity #1: Students create invitations to communicate the Gospel to someone who is not a believer.

Learning Activity #2: Passover Activities for Kids from Apples for Teachers

Test: Review Questions

Memory Verse:  2 Corinthians 5:20 “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us.  We implore you on Christ’s behalf:  Be reconciled to God.”

(If Hezekiah Part One was taught and 1 Peter 2:9 was introduced you can build upon the responsibilities of a believer.  Believers are God’s royal priests pointing others to Jesus.  Ambassadors represent King Jesus. As Christ’s ambassadors believers invite others to come to Jesus so they can be reconciled to God.)

Gospel Connection:  Using brown construction paper cut two pieces 10 inches long and 1 ½  inch wide.  Cut one piece 5 inches by 1 ½ inch wide.  This visual connects the blood placed on the door posts on the first Passover and Jesus’ death on the cross. (Display the 3 strips of construction paper in the shape of a door frame) On that first Passover if the Death angel saw the blood he passed over the home and did not send death to that family.  (Take away one of the long strips and make the door frame into a cross)  Jesus the Lamb of God sent to take away the sins of the world shed His blood on the cross.  All who believe by faith that Jesus died on the cross for his/her sins, was buried and rose again is saved from death.  (Romans 6:23) When you believe in Jesus, God sees His shed blood over the ‘door post’ of your heart and will not punish you as your sins deserve.

Bible Lesson:  King Hezekiah Part 2:  Celebrate Passover

(Introduce or refresh students’ memory of the meaning of Passover for God’s people.  Exodus 12)

Many years ago God’s people the Israelites were slaves in the land of Egypt.  God sent Moses to Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) warning him to let the Israelites go.  If he was unwilling to release the Israelites God was going to punish the Egyptian people.  The Pharaoh did not listen to Moses and God sent 9 plagues (or disasters) to punish Egypt.  The tenth plague was the final blow to the nation of Egypt.  Pharaoh would finally let the Israelites go free.

Through Moses, God warned of the coming devastation of the death of the firstborn males (human and animal).  He also made a provision for deliverance and protection from the disaster.

God commanded the people to kill a lamb and take the blood and place it on the door frame of their home.  Everyone who had the blood from the lamb on the outside of the door frame would be kept safe when the death angel went throughout the land killing the firstborn of each family.  If the death angel saw the blood he passed by the home and the firstborn was not put to death.

God rescued His people on the night of this terrible plague of the firstborn.  God didn’t want His people to ever forget the deliverance from slavery.  He commanded that every year His people celebrated Passover to remind them.

Let’s return to 2 Chronicles 30 as we continue our study of King Hezekiah.

Hezekiah became king during a very wicked and sinful time of Israel’s history.  Many years had passed from the night that God rescued them from slavery in Egypt.  God had powerfully rescued them from being slaves to pharaoh.  Now God’s people were slaves to sin.  They chose to disobey God’s laws and worship false gods and do every kind of evil thing.

Read 2 Kings 17:7-12.  Throughout God’s word we will see that God is rich in mercy (Ephesians 2:4).  On the night that God was going to destroy the firstborn in Egypt, He provided deliverance to those who by faith obeyed God by putting blood on the door frames.  This is an example of mercy because God didn’t have to provide a way to avoid punishment.

All people have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God.  All people deserve to be punished for their sins. (Romans 3:23, 6:23)  God is holy and must punish sin.  However He always provides a way of escape.  As we examine the wickedness of Israel we see that He sent prophets to warn of coming punishment.  Read 2 Kings 17:13.

Sadly, the Northern kingdom would not repent.  (2 Kings 17:15-17)  God punished them as He said.  (2 Kings 17:18-20)

Hezekiah recognized the sinfulness that surrounded him.  Someone had taught him from God’s Word who God is and what He expects His people to do.  He understood that God must punish sin if His people did not repent and turn away from their sin.

(From King Hezekiah Part 1) Hezekiah called the priests and Levites to cleanse themselves and the temple. (2 Chronicles 29)

• Do you recognize the evil that is taking place in the world around you?  What actions are you taking to point others back to God?

2 Chronicles 30:1-9 King Hezekiah sends messengers with an invitation to celebrate Passover.

The invitations were unlike most invitations you and I have received to attend a celebration (birthday, wedding, etc.)

Let’s read the invitation that went to the entire nation of Israel (Both the Northern-some Israelites remained after most of them were taken as prisoners to the land of Assyria, and Southern kingdoms)

Read 2 Chronicles 30:6-9.  What was King Hezekiah inviting all of Israel to do?

• Return to the Lord.  (Verse 6)
•  Come to the sanctuary. (Verse 8)
• Serve the Lord. (Verse 8)

What was the warning that King Hezekiah sent out in the invitation?

•  Do not be unfaithful and stubborn to the Lord.

What promise is found in King Hezekiah’s invitation?  (Verse 9)

• God invites you to turn away from your sin.  Come to Jesus and have your sins forgiven.

2 Chronicles 30:10-12 Some accept invitation and some reject.

Read 2 Chronicles 30:10-11.  It’s hard to understand why people who have experienced God’s punishment (Northern kingdom has been taken captive by Assyria) reject His invitation to repent.

Even today people hear the Good News that Jesus rescues people from sin.  They will mock, ridicule and even persecute believers who share the message.

The messengers obeyed King Hezekiah and invited all the people. Some rejected and some accepted the invitation to celebrate Passover.

•  Believers are commanded by King Jesus (Matthew 28:19-20) to share the invitation to come to Jesus and be saved from sin.  Some will accept and be saved and some will reject and face God’s punishment (separated from God for all eternity in a place called hell).

2 Chronicles 30:13-27 A large crowd celebrates Passover.

Those who came and celebrated Passover experienced God’s healing (verse 20) and great rejoicing (vs. 21, 23, 25-26).

• When we remember what God has done for us by sending His Son Jesus to die on the cross in our place it should cause us to rejoice.

2 Chronicles 31:1 Celebration leads to action.

Read verse 1.  The invitation to come is not only for an emotional response.  When we come near to God He comes near to us.  (James 4:7-10) When we experience God’s forgiveness and blessing it should change our lives.

The Israelites smashed and demolished idolatrous objects and places where worship of false gods took place.

•  As we look at our own lives and compare what God tells us to do (from His Word) and how we live, what sins need to be ‘smashed’ and ‘destroyed’?

The Passover that God’s people were commanded to celebrate each year was a preparation for them to recognize the Lamb of God (Jesus) who takes away the sin of the world.  Jesus was crucified on the night that the Jews were sacrificing their lambs in remembrance of their deliverance from Egypt.

Gospel Connection:  Use the brown pieces of construction paper and share the connection between the blood on the door posts and Jesus’ death on the cross.  Jesus was crucified on the cross as our sacrifice for the sin of every man, woman, boy and girl.  God made provision for the deliverance of my sin so that I can be rescued from the punishment of sin (eternal separation from God in hell).

Is this the first time you’ve heard the invitation to come to Jesus to have your sins forgiven?  Don’t delay.  Today is the day of salvation. (2 Corinthians 6:2)

If you have accepted the invitation and are saved, are there sins you need to turn from so you can return to a close relationship with God?  (1 John 1:9)

In our first lesson about King Hezekiah we learned that if we are believers we have a high calling as Royal priests.  Believers are representatives in this world to invite others to come to Jesus and celebrate eternal life.

Close in prayer.

Review Questions:

1. Why did God command His people to celebrate Passover?  (To remember how they were rescued from Egyptian slavery, to prepare them for the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world)
2. What did Hezekiah invite all Israel to do?  (Come to Jerusalem and celebrate Passover)
3. How did God’s people respond to the invitation?  (Some ridiculed and some came to celebrate)
4. What emotion did those who celebrated Passover feel?  (Great joy)
5. What action did the people take after Passover ended?  (They smashed and destroyed things and places that were for false gods)
6. How can people be saved from the punishment for sins?  (Believe in Jesus the Lamb of God)

Related posts:

1. Lesson: King Hezekiah Brings Reform
2. Children’s Bible Lesson: The Passover
3. Lesson: God’s Great Sign (Exodus / Passover Story)
4. The Kings of Israel (Lesson Series Index)
5. Lesson: King Ahaz’s brings great suffering to Judah

This is a continuation of the study of Israel’s Kings.  This lesson is part one in the life of King Hezekiah.  In 2 Chronicles 29 Hezekiah commands the priests and Levites to consecrate themselves and the temple.  Students will learn about the ministry of the priests and Levites in the Old Testament and how believers are called to be royal priests in the New Testament.

This lesson is only a guide to help you to prepare for your class.  It was created for older students but can be adapted for your individual needs.  Click here to see all the Bible lessons in this series.

Bible Story Title: King Hezekiah (Part 1) Consecration of priests and cleansing of Temple
Bible Passage: 2 Chronicles 29
Target Age Group: Age 9 – 11 (U.S. 3rd – 5th Grade)
Learning Context: Sunday School
Target Time Frame: 60 minutes
Printer Friendly Bible Lesson: Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it. this lesson plan
You Can Help: Please share your feedback and suggestions to improve this children’s Bible lesson. Click here to respond

Supply List:  Bibles, materials for object lesson

Learning Goal:  Students will learn that believers are appointed as royal priests to point others to Jesus.

Learning Activity #1:  Object Lesson on Sin  As we have studied Israel’s kings we have seen how sin continues to permeate the kingdoms.  King Ahaz (Southern Kingdom) followed the wicked example of the Northern kingdom and led his kingdom to worship false gods.  The sin of the people had become increasingly ‘gross’.  King Ahaz closed the temple doors and placed altars on every corner for the people to worship.  When Hezekiah began his reign he had a huge task before him.  He could either do something about the spiritual mess in his kingdom or allow God to use him to clean things up.

Test: Review Questions

Memory Verse: 1 Peter 2:9 “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.”

Bible Lesson:  King Hezekiah Part 1-Consecration of priest and cleansing of Temple

Introduction:  Biblical Historical background of priests and Levites.

(Exodus 32) When Moses was on Mt. Sinai receiving God’s laws for His people, the Israelites had grown impatient waiting for their leader to return.  They asked Aaron to make them a golden calf to worship.  When Moses came down the mountain and saw the people worshiping the golden calf he was angry.

Have a volunteer read Exodus 32:25-29.

(Depending how new to the Bible your students are share a brief description of God’s people Israel.  Israel is a nation of God’s people.  They are descendants of Abraham.  God promised Abraham that from his descendants the Savior would be born.  Abraham and Sarah gave birth to Isaac.  Isaac is the father of Jacob who had twelve sons.  These sons make up the 12 tribes of Israel.)  Levi was one of Jacob’s sons and his family is called the tribe of Levi or Levites.  This passage of Scripture is how the Levites were set apart to serve as priests and Levites.

God gave Moses specific guidelines for how the priests and Levites were to serve in the temple and to lead the people in worship.  Priests had to be descendants of Aaron (Exodus 28:1 Numbers 3:1-4).  Their job was to make offerings in the temple.  The Levites were assistants to the priests and were given different jobs to help the people worship God.  (Numbers 3:5-10)

During the time of Israel’s wandering in the wilderness the priests and Levites served in a tabernacle that could be taken apart and moved from place to place.  Later in Israel’s history during the reign of King Solomon a Temple was built.  The Temple was built in Jerusalem and God’s people came to the Temple to worship Him.

Now with that brief history of priests and Levites let’s return to our study of Israel’s kings. Turn in your Bibles to 2 Chronicles 29.

What is the spiritual condition of the Southern kingdom at this time in history?  (Review King Ahaz’s reign-people were sinful, temple doors had been closed, people were not worshiping God according to His law (worshiping at altars that Ahaz had built on every corner).

Let’s read verse 1-2.  Hezekiah’s father was a very wicked king.  Did Hezekiah follow his father’s example?  (No) His mother’s name was Abijah.  She was related to the priest Zechariah (2 Chronicles 24:20-22) It is very likely that she taught her son Hezekiah God’s laws and how to live a life that pleases Him.

• We are responsible for the choices we make.  We must choose to follow examples that please God according to what is written in His Word.

The first thing Hezekiah does as king is clean up the sinful mess in his kingdom.  He opens the doors of the temple and has them repaired. He commands the priests and Levites to consecrate themselves and consecrate the temple.  (Verses 4-5)  Consecrate means to set apart or sanctify.  Sanctify means to purify or free from sin.

Whenever we study God’s Word we should always be thinking and even asking questions so we can learn and understand what we are studying.

God set apart the priests and Levites to lead His people to worship Him according to His laws.  What do you think happened to the priests and Levites during the reign of Ahaz that they would not stand up to his command to put a pagan altar inside the temple (2 Kings 16:15-18)? (Allow students to respond with their thoughts)

In the Bible the disease called leprosy is symbolic of sin.  A person with leprosy eventually loses feelings in their body.  An example would be that they might put slam their hand in the door and not feel a thing.

In a sense it seems that God’s people became desensitized to sin. Even the people God had given the job to teach the people God’s ways and to lead them in worship had become deadened to the power of sin and allowed wickedness to overpower them and God’s people.

• Believers must be alert because sin desensitizes our hearts to God’s truth and leads us to walk in darkness.  “Be very careful, then, how you live-not as unwise, but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”  Ephesians 5:15-16

King Hezekiah was alert to the spiritual condition of his kingdom and knew that the anger of the Lord had fallen on them (they were being punished) because of the sinfulness of turning away from worshiping the One true God according to His laws.  (Verses 6-9) He had the opportunity to use the position God gave him as king to turn the people back to God.  If the people repented of their sin and turned back to God, He would remove His hand of punishment. (2 Chronicles 6:36-39)

• Believers can have their sins cleansed by confessing them to God.  (1 John 1:9)  God will forgive and purify us from all unrighteousness.

2 Chronicles 29:11-19 Read verse 11.  These priests and Levites had been chosen by God to serve Him.  It was a privilege and responsibility to do His work. These men obey King Hezekiah and  immediately get to work and purify themselves.  Then they took on the task to purify the temple.  Read verse 16.

The temple is a physical building where God’s people went to worship Him. God met with His people at the temple.  When Jesus died on the cross, was buried and rose again all who believe in Him become His temple.  The Holy Spirit lives in the heart of each person who believes that Jesus died for his/her sins.

• Believers need to keep every area of his/her life pure because we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) When people see our lives they should be able to see a life that pleases God and allows people to see Jesus.  What needs to be cleaned up and removed from your life so that you reflect the Lord Jesus more clearly in your life?

2 Chronicles 29:20-24 King Hezekiah commands to offer the sin offering.

The priests obey Hezekiah and slaughter the animals that were brought to the temple for the sin offering.  Read verse 24.  The blood was shed to atone (cover) for all Israel.

In the Old Testament God’s requirements for worship point to what the Savior of the world would accomplish in the New Testament.  Jesus Christ is our sin offering who died once for all, shedding His blood so our sins could be cleansed forever (not just covered). (Hebrews 10)

2 Chronicles 29:25-34 Hezekiah gives order for burnt offering.

What takes place in this passage is another act of worship that was required by God’s law to worship Him. (Exodus 20:24)  The priests began to offer the burnt offerings and the Levites who were musicians and singers began to sing and play music.

The burnt offering is symbolic of complete dedication to God.  As the priests offered this to God they were saying they were giving their lives completely to God.

• Believers are called to offer our own bodies to God as a living sacrifice.  We are to dedicate our entire life to Him.  (Romans 12:1)

When the priests and Levites performed their tasks according to God’s law the response of those around them is found in these verses:  Read 2 Chronicles 29:28-31

King Hezekiah began his reign by immediately beginning to clean up the spiritual mess that his kingdom was in.  He led the priests and Levites to rise up and once again serve the Lord.  As a result God’s people were turning back to Him.

We live in a world that is spiritually messy.  We see sin in most every place we turn.  Can you think of places where people are not living according to God’s Word?  (Homes, schools, government, sadly even churches)

Our memory verse ties what we learned from 2 Chronicles 29 to our lives today.  Let’s read it together.  1 Peter 2:9 “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.”

Because of King Jesus who is our High priest we do not have to be from Aaron’s family to be a priest (Revelation 1:6, 5:10).  We become priests when we believe in Jesus and are adopted into God’s family.  We are given the privilege and responsibility to point others to Jesus so they can be saved and live forever with God.

If you are a believer how seriously do you take the responsibility of being a chosen, royal priest?  What sin needs to be cleared out of your life so that you can lead others to worship King Jesus?

If your sins have never been cleansed by believing in the Lord Jesus, today you can call on Him to save you.  If you have questions about how to be saved please talk to us and we can show you from the Bible how to be saved from your sins.

Close in prayer.

Review Questions:

1. How did Ahaz leave the Southern Kingdom?  (A spiritual mess, the temple doors were closed and people were worshiping idols)
2. Who became king after Ahaz died?  (His son Hezekiah)
3. What kind of king was Hezekiah?  (He pleased God)
4. What did Hezekiah do in the first year of his reign?  (Opened the temple doors, had them repaired and commanded the priests and Levites to consecrate themselves and the temple)
5. When the priests and Levites performed their responsibilities according to God’s laws how did the people respond?  (Bowed down and worshiped)
6. How can God use you this week to point others to Jesus?

Related posts:

1. Lesson: King Ahaz’s brings great suffering to Judah
2. Lesson: Israel’s Northern Kings “King Ahab”
3. Lesson: Jehoiada’s Godly influence upon King Joash
4. The Kings of Israel (Lesson Series Index)
5. King Saul Lesson for Children’s Church

This is a continuation of the study of Israel’s Kings.  The lesson covers the reign of King Ahaz over the Southern Kingdom.  Students will see how sin affects others.  Many people in Ahaz’s kingdom suffered as a result of his idolatry and rebellion against God.  Students will learn that individuals are responsible before God and their sin affects others.

This lesson is only a guide to help you to prepare for your class.  It was created for older students but can be adapted for your individual needs.  Click here to see all the Bible lessons in this series.

Bible Story Title: King Ahaz’s wickedness brings great suffering to Judah
Bible Passage: 2 Chronicles 28
Target Age Group: Age 9 – 11 (U.S. 3rd – 5th Grade)
Learning Context: Sunday School
Target Time Frame: 60 minutes
Printer Friendly Bible Lesson: Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it. this lesson plan
You Can Help: Please share your feedback and suggestions to improve this children’s Bible lesson. Click here to respond

Supply List:  Bibles, index cards

Learning Goal: Students will learn that sin always affects others and each individual is responsible for his/her choices before God.

Learning Activity #1: Sin’s Consequences (Examples from Scripture): Create Cards with people from the Bible who affected others because they sinned and people who were affected by others’ sins. Have the name written on the card with Scripture references for students to discover whether the person affected others or were affected by someone’s sin. (Examples:  Adam-Romans 5:12-17, 1 Corinthians 15:22)  Abraham (Genesis 12:10-20) Achan (Joshua 7) David (2 Samuel 11-12, 1 Chronicles 21) Jonah (Jonah 1), Jesus (Romans 4:25, Hebrews 2:9)

Learning Activity #2: Other activities for sin’s affect on others.

Test: Review Questions

Memory Verse: Galatians 6:7-8 “Do not be deceived:  God cannot be mocked.  A man reaps what he sows.  The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.”

Teaching the Memory Verse:  Explain how a person’s actions have consequences.  Divide the verse into phrases (enough phrases for students to have one phrase) and place on the wall around the room or in students chairs.  Play ‘musical chairs’ and when the music stops the student says his/her phrase as the verse is recited.

Teacher Study Resources:  How sin affects others: (Sins of the Fathers) , The Blessing of Brokenness: Why God allows us to go through hard times, Others Suffer

Bible Lesson:  King Ahaz’s wickedness brings great suffering to Judah

As we learn about the history of God’s people in our study of Israel’s kings we have been on a journey that is a lot like riding a roller coaster.  When God’s people did what is right it has been an enjoyable ride.  We have seen God’s blessings and victory over the enemy God gave to those who did what pleased Him.  It has been a bumpy and not so enjoyable ride when we have seen God’s people sin and rebel.  The kings who rebelled against God were punished and were defeated by their enemies. (If your class has been studying the series have them share names of good kings and the bad kings.)

We are going to continue on this journey with the history of Israel’s kings.  Let’s turn to 2 Chronicles 28.

(If you have been teaching the series, review what the students remember about King Uzziah)  After King Uzziah died his son Jotham reigned over Judah for 16 years.  He was a good king.  He did what was right before the Lord.  Jotham was a powerful king because he walked steadfastly before the Lord his God.  (2 Chronicles 27:6)  Even though Jotham was a good king sin was still present like a virus in the lives of God’s people.  “The people, however, continued in their corrupt practices.” (2 Chronicles 27:2)

2 Chronicles 28:1-4 King Ahaz’s wickedness

After Jotham’s death Ahaz his son became king.  Choose volunteer to read 2 Chronicles 28:1.  (2 Kings 16:1-4)

Ahaz like all of us have a variety of people we can look to as role models.  As king over the southern kingdom of Judah Ahaz had many good examples to look to and model his leadership after.

Read verse 2.  Who did Ahaz model his leadership after?  (The wicked ways of Israel’s northern kings)  The entire history of the northern kingdom of Israel beginning with Jeroboam all the way to their exile (God’s punishment to them for their wickedness) is filled with wicked kings.  Not one of Israel’s northern kings did what was right in God’s sight. (1 Kings 12:26-33; 13:34; 2 Kings 13:2,6; 14:24; 15:9, etc)

Ahaz’s father Jotham was a king who did what was right in the eyes of the Lord so Ahaz has no excuse for not having any Godly role models.

• Whether we have good role models or not we all are responsible before God for each choice we make.  (Ezekiel 18; Romans 1:20, 3:23, 6:23, 14:12; James 4:17; Hebrews 9:27)

2 Chronicles 28:5-8 Consequences to Ahaz’s wickedness.

Read verse 5.  God was not pleased with Ahaz’s sin.  God is holy and must punish sin.  He punished Ahaz for his wickedness by allowing enemies to attack his kingdom.  (Southern Kingdom-Judah)

Blessings and victory are given to God’s people when they obey Him.  Distress and defeat are the consequences to disobedience.  (Deuteronomy 28) Ahaz’s sin brought God’s hand of punishment against him and the people of his kingdom.  God used enemies of the Southern Kingdom as His instruments to punish Ahaz.

Enemy #1:  Rezin King of Syria (Aram).  He defeats Ahaz and takes many of God’s people as prisoners back to Damascus. (2 Chronicles 28:5)

Enemy #2:  Pekah King of Israel (Northern Kingdom).  He attacks Ahaz and causes considerable damage to the Southern Kingdom.  His army kills 120,000 soldiers in one day.  A warrior from Israel named Zicri kill 3 men close to King Ahaz (his son Maaseiah, an officer in charge of the palace Azrikam, and a man second in charge to the king Elkanah)

There are consequences to our sin.  Who was affected by Ahaz’s sin?  (The people of his kingdom)

• The consequences of my sin can cause pain and suffering to others around me.  As a believer my sin affects other believers (the Body of Christ) 1 Corinthians 12:26.  How does this challenge me to think before I choose to sin? (Sin is a choice)

2 Chronicles 28:9-15 Israel listens to Oded’s warning.

Read verse 9.  The army of the northern kingdom was an instrument of God’s punishment to the southern kingdom.  Both kingdoms are God’s chosen people from the nation of Israel.  Both kingdoms are under the same laws of God.

The Northern Kingdom is not righteous before God and we have already mentioned their wickedness and rebellion before God.  They were unrighteous and were already under the cloud of God’s punishment (future exile 2 Kings 15-17). They were not without sin before God and when they were given the opportunity to attack Judah they did so with cruelty.  When they took prisoners of their own people (2 Chronicles 28:8) they were breaking God’s laws (Leviticus 25:39-46)

God is full of mercy.  Even though Israel is wicked and deserves punishment for their sins, He sends a prophet named Oded to warn them to turn away from their cruel punishment of their own people.  Oded tells them to repent and send back the prisoners to the southern kingdom.  If they would not repent he told them that the Lord’s fierce anger rests on them (verse 11).

The leaders of Israel’s army obeyed what Oded said. They clothed the naked prisoners.  They gave them food to eat and water to drink.  They also put ointment on their wounds.  They put the weak on donkeys and took them back to their homes.  (Luke 10:25-37)

• As believers we are to love our enemies and do good to them.  It does not please God if we treat them harshly or with cruelty. (Luke 10:27-31)

2 Chronicles 28:16-27 Ahaz’s refusal to repent.

When we face trouble and hardship in our lives it should cause us move closer to God.  When we move closer to God we see the sin in our lives.  When we see that sin we should repent and obey God.  The closer we are to God the more dependent we are on Him.  We realize that He is the One who is always with us and will always help us when we cry out to Him.

The consequences for Ahaz’s sins have caused him and his kingdom to suffer great loss.  Let’s read 2 Chronicles 28:22 to discover if the trouble and hardship has caused him to repent and come close to God. (No-unfortunately he becomes more unfaithful)

Enemy #3:  King of Assyria, Tiglath-Pileser.

In his rebellion and unbelief of God’s promises Ahaz turns to the King of Assyria (Tiglath-Pileser) for help when he was attacked by another enemy (verse 16). Instead of helping Ahaz the king of Assyria only caused more trouble.

Ahaz turned even further away from God when he decided to have an altar built so he could worship the gods of Damascus. (2 Kings 16:10-14; 2 Chronicles 28:22-23)

The final thing recorded about Ahaz’s wicked reign is that he gathered the furniture from the temple and had it taken away.  He closed the doors of the temple and set up altars on every street corner for people to worship false gods.  His wickedness provoked the Lord, the God of his fathers to anger.  (2 Chronicles 28:25)

Challenges for our generation from Ahaz’s reign:

• If you have a wicked leader ruling over you how do you respond?  We may not feel like we can make a big difference in our country if the leaders are wicked but God has told us that we should pray for our leaders.  (1Timothy 2:1-2)

Gospel Connection:  The ultimate example of the price of sin and its consequence is seen when Jesus Christ, the innocent Son of God was crucified on the cross.  He suffered humiliation and death because of my sin and yours. Jesus died in my place and yours to pay the price for our sins.  He took the pain and suffering that we deserved so that we don’t have to be punished and can have eternal life.  What do you need to do if you have never been saved from your sins? Admit to God that you are a sinner.  Believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, was buried and was raised from the grave three days later.  Confess to others that you believe that Jesus is the Savior.

Close in prayer.  Lord, help us to learn from Ahaz’s example that our sin has consequences and those consequences bring suffering to those around us.  May the thought of others having to suffer keep us from choosing to sin.  Help us to live a life that pleases you so that others can see Jesus in our lives.  In Jesus Name we pray, Amen.

Review Questions:

1. Which kingdom was Ahaz king over?  (Southern Kingdom/Judah)
2. What kind of king was he?  (Wicked, sinful like the Northern Kingdom)
3. How did God punish Ahaz?  (Resin, Pekah, Tiglath-Pileser)
4. Who suffered because of Ahaz’s sin (the people in his kingdom)
5. What did the leaders of the Northern Kingdom’s army do that was obedient to Oded’s warning?  (Clothed the prisoners, fed them, put healing balm on them and released them)
6. True or False:  Ahaz relied on God to help him defeat his enemies.  (False he asked the King of Assyria for help)
7. How is the time of Ahaz’s reign over Judah similar to the nation you live in today?  How is it different?
8. What do you need to change as a result of this lesson? (Personal-not to be answered out loud unless someone want to volunteer)

Related posts:

1. Bible Lesson: King Asa seeks God
2. Lesson: King Amaziah’s Distractions
3. The Kings of Israel (Lesson Series Index)
4. Lesson: The Great Battle of Daniel 11
5. Lesson: Jehoiada’s Godly influence upon King Joash

This lesson examines the life of Uzziah in a continuation of the study of Israel’s Kings.  Uzziah is a successful, powerful king when he seeks the Lord.  Unfortunately he allowed the power to go to his head and pride led to his downfall.  Students will learn that a truly successful life is one that keeps the spotlight pointing to Jesus.

This lesson is only a guide to help you to prepare for your class.  It was created for older students but can be adapted for your individual needs.  Click here to see all the Bible lessons in this series.

Bible Story Title: Uzziah finds success by seeking God
Bible Passage: 2 Chronicles 26
Target Age Group: Age 9 – 11 (U.S. 3rd – 5th Grade)
Learning Context: Sunday School
Target Time Frame: 60 minutes
Printer Friendly Bible Lesson: Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it. this lesson plan
You Can Help: Please share your feedback and suggestions to improve this children’s Bible lesson. Click here to respond

Supply List:  Bibles, pens/pencils, paper, lamp (with a incandescent bulb), butter, clay, ice cube, rock

Learning Goal: Students will learn that true success is achieved when others’ focus is on God’s greatness not an individual.

Learning Activity #1: (Hero comparison-this activity will help students discover that Jesus is the only One who can be a True Hero.)  Have students write the name of someone they look up to.  Have them compare how the person acts like Jesus and ways the person doesn’t look or measure up to the standards God teaches in His Word.  What are things Jesus did that this person could never do?

Learning Activity #2: Spotlight activity:  Using a lamp demonstrate the effects of the heat from the light upon different objects.  Objects that change in consistency represent people.  (Example:  butter, clay, ice cube or anything that will change in consistency under the lamp’s heat.)  Use an object that doesn’t change in consistency under the lamp’s heat (A rock) This object represents God.  The illustration teaches why it is important to always keep our focus on God and point others to Him.  Man cannot handle the pressure of fame.  God is the only One who deserves any fame and can handle it because He is perfect in every way (Isaiah 42:8, 48:11)

Test: Review Questions

Memory Verse: Proverbs 16:3 “Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.”

Bible Lesson: 

Choose a volunteer to read John 3:30.  “He (Jesus) must become greater, I must become less.”

John the Baptist spoke those words.  God called John to prepare the way for the Promised Savior.  He knew that his purpose wasn’t for people to focus their attention on him but their focus was to be completely on Jesus the Savior of the World.

(If you used the hero comparison activity discuss what the students discovered when they compared their hero with Jesus.)  If not, have the following discussion:  Can you think of a famous person that you looked up to and you felt like they were your hero? (Allow responses) Sometimes we look to sports figures, musicians, actors and even Christian leaders and make them our heroes.  Have any of the people you looked up to always lived a life that reflects Godly values?  From our limited perspective they may seem like they always do the right thing.  Unfortunately humans have sinful natures and will not always do the right thing.  Even if they did (which they can’t) our focus needs to be completely on Jesus.  When we turn the spotlight on Jesus we will never find sin.  He always did the right thing and acted in a way that pleased His Heavenly Father.  John the Baptist knew that the spotlight of human affection needed to be directly on the Lord Jesus.  If you are a believer, everything you do should cause others to see Jesus.  The spotlight cannot be upon you because you are not able to stand up under the heat of that light.  (Any success you may have has been allowed by God for the purpose of others seeing His greatness.) Only God can receive that fame because He alone deserves every ounce of praise that comes from anyone’s lips.

Let’s turn in our Bibles to 2 Chronicles 26.  When we study Israel’s Kings we see our own sinful natures as we discover truths from their examples.  Today we are going to examine the life King Uzziah.

Read 2 Chronicles 26:1-2.  Who is the new king of Judah?  (Uzziah also called Azariah in 2 Kings 14:21-22; 15:1-6)  How old was Uzziah when he was made king?  (16)

Read 2 Chronicles 26:3-5.  In verse 3 how long was Uzziah king over Judah?  (52 years)  In verse 4 what do we learn about Uzziah’s relationship with the Lord?  (He sought God during the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of the Lord.  As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success.)

Zechariah is the son of Jehoiada the priest. (Jehoiada was a Godly influence in the life of Joash.  2 Chronicles 23-24:16)   How was Zechariah’s influence important in the life of Uzziah?  (He taught him how to fear God.)

• Who are your main influences in your life?  Do they influence you to be more like Jesus or not?  (People who influence you to be more like Jesus will teach you how to study His Word and will try to set a godly example for you to follow.)

2 Chronicles 26:6-8 Uzziah fought against the Philistines who were long time enemies of God’s people.  Read verse 7.  Who helped Uzziah win the battle?  (God) Read verse 8.  Why did Uzziah become famous?  (He had become powerful)

In our world famous people are a reality. Can you name some famous people?  Why do you think God allowed Uzziah to become famous in his day?  (Allow responses)  Uzziah is an Israelite (God’s chosen people).  Everything God did through His people (Israel, Jews) was to show the world He is the One True God.  From the Jewish people God would send the Savior of the world.  Uzziah’s great fame and power allowed other nations to see the greatness of the God of Israel.

• Our life purpose is to glorify God (make His Name famous) and to enjoy Him forever.  How are you living your life to make God famous?

2 Chronicles 26:9-10 We learn from these verses that Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem and strengthened a wall that had been damaged in an earlier battle (2 Chronicles 25:23).  He dug many wells because he owned many farm animals (livestock).  God’s word tells us something that Uzziah loved.  What does the end of verse 10 say he loved?  (The soil)

I love how God included this information about Uzziah.  It gives us insight that God created us to enjoy the life we live.  We all have different interests or hobbies.  Uzziah was a king over the people of Judah.  It was a huge responsibility to lead God’s people.  Maybe he found working in the garden from time to time a relaxing peaceful way to unwind from the stress of being king.

• Our hobbies (the things we love) can be a blessing in our lives as long as we don’t make them more important than our relationship to Jesus.  He deserves our whole heart.

2 Chronicles 26:11-15 Uzziah created a large powerful army.  He provided weapons and armor for his entire army.  Read verse 14.  What did skillful men design for Uzziah’s army?  (Machines to use on the towers and corners that shot arrows and hurled large stones)  In verse 15 Uzziah’s fame is spreading all across the land.  God was helping Uzziah and it was because of Him that Uzziah was a powerful king.

• God has given every believer all the armor they need to fight in the battles of this life.  (Ephesians 6:10-18)

2 Chronicles 26:16.  This is such an unfortunate verse.  Uzziah forgot who was giving him power and became puffed up with his own pride.  Pride is sin because it causes us to rise up and take the spotlight away from God (Isaiah 14:12-15).  Humility keeps us on our knees so the spotlight shines brightly on the King of Kings!

• In order to keep the spotlight on Jesus at all times believers have to guard their hearts (Proverbs 4:23) against pride and the sinful idea that somehow we came to be famous for any reason other than to make God’s Name famous.

Uzziah’s sinful pride made him believe he could do anything because he had so much power.  He decided to offer incense in the Lord’s temple.  God’s law allowed only priests who had been called and consecrated (set apart) by God for this holy work.  (Exodus 30:30, 40:15, Leviticus 22:9, Numbers 3:10, Numbers 18:7)

2 Chronicles 26:17-23  Azariah the priest with eighty other courageous priests urged Uzziah not to sin by going into the temple.  Read verse 18 to see what they told Uzziah.

Uzziah clearly heard the truth from God’s Word what he should do.  He had an opportunity to respond by repenting from his wickedness or continuing in his rebellion.  Let’s read verse 19.  Sadly, Uzziah was so filled with himself and a false belief that he had power to do anything he wanted.  Uzziah’s sin of pride led him to think he knew better than God did.

God punished Uzziah’s rebellion by instantly causing leprosy (a skin disease) to appear on his forehead.  During Bible times if God’s people had leprosy it was symbolic of sin.  People with leprosy were considered unclean and could not live among people who did not have leprosy.

When Azariah and the other priests saw the leprosy on Uzziah’s forehead they knew that Uzziah was being punished by God and grabbed him and hurried to get him out of the temple.  (God showed Uzziah mercy by not putting him to death immediately Numbers 3:10, 18:7) Uzziah eagerly left with them because he knew that God had punished him for his sin of entering the temple and performing an act of worship that only God’s priests were allowed to do.

• To avoid allowing our sinful hearts to think we can live life our way and ignore God’s ways is to guard our hearts.  We must continuously study God’s Words (Psalm 119:11) so we are familiar with what He says we should live our lives like.  If you are a believer the Holy Spirit will convict you if you are heading in a direction that is not the direction God wants you to go.  He (the Holy Spirit), like the priests in Uzziah’s life will warn you not to go down your sinful path.  You must choose to repent and obey to live a life that points others to God.

Uzziah’s story begins with fame and power and ends with shame.  Because he had leprosy he had to live separate from the lives of the people of Judah.  Uzziah’s story would have ended differently if he kept the spotlight on God instead of thinking it belonged on him. We have a choice how the story of our lives will be written.  We can walk daily with God and in obedience to Him so at the end of our lives all that we have done in this life has pointed others to Jesus.  That’s the best ending for any person for anyone who believes in Jesus.

If you are not a believer, today is the day of salvation.  Jesus died on the cross for your sins.  He was buried and rose again. By believing that Jesus paid for your sins when He died on the cross God cleanses you and gives you the Gift of eternal life. The moment you believe that Jesus saved you from your sins, the Holy Spirit comes into your life and enables you to live a life that pleases God.  Please talk to us if you have any questions about how you can become a believer after we pray.

Close in prayer.

Review Questions:

1. How old was Uzziah when he became king? (16)
2. Which kingdom did Uzziah reign over?  (Judah)
3. Who taught Uzziah to fear the Lord?  (Zechariah)
4. What did God give Uzziah as long as he sought Him?  (Success)
5. What led to Uzziah’s downfall?  (Pride)
6. Why were the priests urging Uzziah to leave the temple?  (He was planning to burn incense which was not something he was allowed to do in the temple)
7. How did God punish Uzziah?  (He gave him leprosy)
8. How can you point others to Jesus in your life this week?  (Answers will vary)

Related posts:

1. The Kings of Israel (Lesson Series Index)

In the divided kingdom, none of the northern kings were recorded as righteous in God’s eyes.  They were all wicked and led their people to sin.  Ahab is usually taught when covering the study of God’s prophet Elijah. From this lesson about Ahab students discover that God’s word reveals His truth and instructs people how to live a life that pleases Him.  Sin blinds a person to the truth and causes him to walk in darkness.

This lesson is only a guide to help you to prepare for your class.  It was created for older students but can be adapted for your individual needs.  Click here to see all the Bible lessons in this series.

Bible Story Title: Israel’s Northern Kings (Part 2 King Ahab)
Bible Passage: 1 Kings 21
Target Age Group: Age 9 – 11 (U.S. 3rd – 5th Grade)
Learning Context: Sunday School
Target Time Frame: 60 minutes
Printer Friendly Bible Lesson: Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it. this lesson plan
You Can Help: Please share your feedback and suggestions to improve this children’s Bible lesson. Click here to respond

Supply List:  Bibles for each student to follow along in the Bible lesson, sun glasses, clear glasses, (or scarves if you do not have the glasses), post-it notes, pen/pencil, lunch bag, slips of paper

Learning Goal: Students will learn that unless a person repents, sin blinds his/her heart from God’s truth leading to further darkness with each sinful choice.

Learning Activity #1: Object lesson of how sin blinds our heart.  Take a pair of sun glasses.  (Another option is to use light-colored scarves that can be seen through.  Each time a sin is mentioned add another scarf causing it to be harder to see clearly.) Choose volunteer to wear sunglasses.  Ask students for examples of sinful choices (lying, stealing, etc.) Write the sin on a post-it note and place each example of sin on the lenses of the sunglasses.  Discuss how when a person chooses to sin and not turn from that sin it becomes easier to sin.  If a person lies then it becomes easier to steal.  Add more post-it notes of the effects of going deeper into darkness by continuing to disobey God’s truth.

God’s enemy Satan has blinded the eyes of those who have not been saved. (2 Corinthians 4:4) When a person repents and turns from their sins and puts their faith in Jesus God removes the blindness from their eyes. (2 Corinthians 3:15-16)  Remove the post-it covered sunglasses and replace with regular glasses.  Now the person can see clearly and walk in the Light of God’s truth.

When people become believers they still sin.  If he/she doesn’t repent and turn from that sin his/her heart becomes calloused to the Holy Spirit’s conviction. By continuing in sin it’s like exchanging the clear glasses to put on sunglasses.  At first you don’t really notice that you are not walking in God’s pure light.  Little by little each little sin keeps you from fully enjoying the life that God wants you to have.  The person that chooses to continue to allow sin into his/her life doesn’t lose the gift of eternal life.  He/she loses the power to effectively point others to Jesus and will miss out on the many blessings of walking in a close relationship with Jesus.  A true believer who continues to sin can expect God’s discipline.  God will discipline His child for their disobedience.  (Hebrews 12:5-11)

Learning Activity #2:  Grab bag with Ahab facts. The focus of the story is going to be in chapter 21.  This activity enables students to know that King Ahab’s past choices of disobedience led him to further walk in darkness instead of obedience to God. Make cards or slips of paper with the following facts about Ahab (add or subtract as many as you need for your class):

• King Ahab did more evil in the eyes of the Lord than any of the kings before him. (1 Kings 16:30)
• King Ahab married Jezebel who was not an Israelite and an idol worshipper and practiced witchcraft.  (2 Kings 9:22)
• King Ahab built a temple in Samaria so the people could worship Baal.  (1 Kings 16:32)
• King Ahab allowed Jezebel to kill the Lord’s prophets during the 3 ½ year famine.  (1 Kings 18:4)
• King Ahab told Jezebel that Elijah killed all the false prophets with the sword and she planned to kill him.  (1 Kings 19:2)

Bible Lesson:  Israel’s Northern Kings (Part 2 King Ahab)

(Introduce lesson with Ahab grab bag facts.)

Let’s open our Bibles to 1 Kings 21. Choose volunteers to read 1-3.  What does Ahab want? (Naboth’s vineyard) Why?  (It was close to his palace and he wanted to make it into a vegetable garden) How was King Ahab going to pay for the vineyard?  (He was going to give him a better vineyard or pay whatever Naboth asked)

The story recorded in God’s Word starts out on a good note.  King Ahab wanted something and asked  for it.

Let’s read Naboth’s answer to King Ahab’s question in verse 3.  When God delivered His people from Egypt, He led them to the land He promised to give them. (Show a map ) All the tribes except the Levites were given a portion of land called an inheritance.  God recorded in His word the requirements of each tribe’s portion of land.  “No inheritance in Israel is to pass from tribe to tribe, for every Israelite shall keep the tribal land inherited from his forefathers.”  Numbers 36:7

Naboth’s response was out of reverence and obedience to God’s commands.  He was not being selfish in keeping his property so King Ahab could not have it. He had a God-given right to keep his land and not sell it.

King Ahab did respect God’s laws and had proven himself rebellious to God’s commands.  His disobedience darkened his perspective of how he should be living his life.

Read verse 4.  What was Ahab’s attitude about Naboth’s response? Sullen means showing irritation by a gloomy silence or reserve.  How many of you have ever been sullen because you didn’t get your way?  This attitude is common with very small children and with maturity a person should put off this poor attitude that doesn’t please the Lord.  Ahab was acting like a little child by pouting because he couldn’t have Naboth’s vineyard.

Because Ahab has added sin upon sin in his life his heart is blind to the truth of God’s word.  He is not able to recognize the main sin that is causing this childish attitude.  The main sin that Ahab is committing against God is covetousness.  (Exodus 20:17) The sin of covetousness was like a seed that was planted in Ahab’s heart.  He did not repent of that sin and turn away from it.  As a result the sin grew like a tree and brought forth fruit which were his words and his actions.

• When sin is allowed to grow in our hearts it will come out in our words and actions.  (Matthew 12:34-35, Luke 6:45)

(Verses 7-16) When Jezebel finds out why Ahab is in a bad mood she takes matters into her own hands.  She has Naboth (an innocent man) put to death.  Her husband can now own the vineyard he wanted.

Before this day arrived Ahab made sinful choices that placed him in a situation that caused an innocent man to be murdered so he could have his way.  The choice that led him on this sinful path began when he married an ungodly woman (Jezebel) who was not an Israelite. (Deuteronomy 7:3-4)  God’s told His people not to marry anyone who was not an Israelite because they would turn their hearts away from the One True God and they would worship false gods.

• As children you most likely aren’t planning on getting married any time soon.  It is important to remember that when you are old enough that if you are a believer you should not marry someone who is not.  (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)  A truth that you can apply at any age of your life is who you choose to spend most of your time with.  You should choose friends that walk according to God’s truth because “bad company corrupts good character.”  1 Corinthians 15:33

As we study God’s word we should always look for His attributes (character traits). We are going to finish our lesson by looking at two attributes of God that are seen in these last verses.

First, we see that God is a righteous judge.  Let’s look at verses 11-13.  Two men who did not have good reputations (scoundrels) falsely accused Naboth and he was put to death.  From a human point of view this seems so unfair.  It looks like the wicked get away with murder.  However, the good news is that God sees everything!  He saw what happened to Naboth and sent His prophet Elijah to Ahab to tell him what his punishment will be for his wickedness.  (Verses 17-19)

• God can be trusted to take care of the unfair things that happen in our lives.

The second attribute we see again in our study of Israel’s kings is God’s mercy.  God showed Ahab kindness by being patient with him in all of his wickedness.  God did not have to allow Ahab to continue to live and lead the people of the Northern kingdom to sin.  God showed mercy by sending His prophets with His truth.  God’s truth was revealed to Ahab.  He was without excuse for living a wicked life because God was shining His light of truth to allow Ahab to turn away from his sin and live a life that pleased the Lord.

Each time we hear God’s word He is leading us to the light of His truth.  How we respond to His truth will determine if we will walk with a clear vision of a life that pleases God or a life that is darkened and continues to sin.

If you have never been saved God wants you to know that He loves you so much that He sent His Son Jesus to deliver you from your sins.  Jesus died on the cross, was buried and rose again the third day so all who believe in Him can be saved and have eternal life.

If you have been saved the power of the Holy Spirit will help you overcome the battle over sin in your life.  Whatever sin you struggle with repent (turn away), ask God to forgive you.  Ask Him to empower you with His Holy Spirit to overcome the sin you struggle with.

Close in prayer.  Father, help us to respond by obeying what you taught us today.  Help us to turn away from any sinful choices we are making so we can walk in Your light.  In Jesus Name we pray, Amen.

Memory Verse:   1 Corinthians 15:33 “Do not be misled:  “Bad company corrupts good character.”

Review Questions:

1. What did Ahab want from Naboth?  (His vineyard)
2. Why did Ahab want Naboth’s vineyard?  (He wanted to make a vegetable garden)
3. Why did Naboth say no?  (The land was his inheritance and he was under no obligation to sell it)
4. How did Ahab respond to Naboth’s answer? (He was sullen)
5. What did Jezebel do so Ahab could have what he wanted?  (She had Naboth murdered)
6. What changes do you need to make so you are not allowing sin to blind you to God’s truth?
7. How has God shown you mercy this week?

Related posts:

1. Sunday School Lesson: Israel’s Northern Kings
2. The Kings of Israel (Lesson Series Index)
3. Lesson: Elijah Confronts Ahab
4. Children’s Bible Lesson: Israel Asks For a King
5. Magi and Two Very Different Kings: Christmas Bible Lesson

This is another option to teach the Bible lesson from Acts 3.  This lesson focuses on how a life without the Holy Spirit is helpless to live a life that pleases God.  When a person believes in Jesus the Holy Spirit enables and empowers him/her to live a life that pleases God.  This is only a suggested guide to give an idea how to teach this lesson. Make adjustments and adapt to the needs of your students. Click here to see all the lessons in this curriculum series. We also have an alternate lesson plan based on this same Bible lesson “Peter heals a blind beggar.”

Bible Story: Miracle at the Beautiful Gate
Scripture: Acts 3
Target Age Group: Age 9 – 11 (U.S. 3rd – 5th Grade)
Learning Context: Sunday School
Target Time Frame: 60 minutes
Printer Friendly Bible Lesson: Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it. this lesson plan
You Can Help: Please share your feedback and suggestions to improve this children’s Bible lesson. Click here to respond

Supply List:  Bibles, puppets, dry erase board (for memory verse),

Learning Goal: Students will learn that without the power of the Holy Spirit a person (like the crippled beggar) is helpless to live a life that pleases God.

Learning Activity #1: Puppet demonstration:  Lay a puppet on the floor and start talking to the puppet.  Ask the puppet to do something.  The puppet stays lifeless on the floor.  Ask the students why the puppet won’t do anything.  He is unable to do anything unless someone puts their hand in side his lifeless body to animate him.  Without someone’s help the puppet is only lifeless lying on the floor.

Test: Review Questions

Memory Verse: Act 3:6 Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you.  In the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.”

Teaching the Verse:  Recite the verse together and use the puppet to lead the class.  Choose a student to use the puppet to lead the class through the verse.  When he/she is finished have him/her choose another volunteer to use the puppet to lead the class (some students will use funny voices, accents etc.)  (Shy students who want to participate can use the puppet and just move his mouth as the students say the verse with the puppet with laryngitis.)  After reciting the verse a few times have students use the puppet to erase a word or a phrase than recite the verse.

Bible Lesson:  Miracle at the Beautiful Gate

(Introduce lesson with puppet illustration)  This illustration helps us understand how when a person believes in Jesus the Holy Spirit comes and lives inside the person and gives him/her power to do God’s Work.  Without the Holy Spirit living in and through a believer’s life he/she is powerless to live a life that pleases God.

Let’s turn in our Bibles to Acts 3.  We are going to do an exercise together in class to help you know how to study your Bible when you are by yourself.

Read verse 1.  Who is in this verse?  (Peter and John) Where are they going? (To the Temple) Why?  (To pray) When (3 o’clock in the afternoon)

Read verse 2.  Who is in this verse?  (Crippled man, those who carried him) What was wrong with the man? (Crippled) How long has this man been crippled?  (Since birth) Where was he carried?  (Temple gate called Beautiful) When was he put there?  (Everyday) Why was he put there?  (To beg from those going into the temple courts)

Just by asking those who, what, where, when, why and how questions we learned more than if we just quickly read over those verses.  When you have your quiet time asking these questions when you read your Bible will help you go deeper into God’s Word and receive more understanding.

We began the lesson using an illustration of a lifeless puppet.  The crippled man in verse two reminds me of this puppet in some ways.  He is helpless because he is crippled.  He cannot get up and go to work to make money because he is crippled.  The only way he can make money to support himself is to beg.  The only way he can get to a good place to beg is to be carried.

The crippled man also reminds me of every man, woman, boy and girl who is born into this world.  God’s Word tells us that every one of us is born with sin in our hearts.  Psalm 51:5 “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.”

Sin cripples us because it separates us from God and the life He has to give.  Our sin makes it impossible to live a life that pleases God and obeys His Word. Just like our lifeless puppet sin causes us to be lifeless and unable to walk with God in a right relationship with Him.  Sin equals death.  Ephesians 2:1 “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,”

Everyday this crippled man is carried to the temple gate called Beautiful (Show a diagram of the Temple courts) because at this entrance there would be many people who would be passing through.  More people means more opportunities to get money.

Read verses 3-5.  Each of us have appointments in our daily schedules.  What are some appointments you have in your day?  (Going to school, sports, doctor, dentist, etc.)  God is in control of every circumstance in our lives.  If you and I are followers of Jesus there will be days God has Divine appointments in our day that He has planned in advance. This Divine appointment is an opportunity to share Jesus with someone that we come in contact with. This event recorded in Acts 3 is a good example of a Divine Appointment.  The crippled man is placed in the same spot every day.  He does the same thing he does every day.  He begs.  Peter and John are followers of Christ and they make an appointment with God everyday to go to the Temple at the time of prayer.  They haven’t been told what they are going to experience at the Temple ahead of time. They are being obedient to spend time in prayer.

• As Jesus followers we have to spend time with God every day so we will not miss His Divine appointments as we go throughout our daily lives.

When Peter said, “Look at us!”  The man gave them his full attention expecting to get something.  What do you think the man expected to get?

Sometimes what we think we need and what we really need are not the same.  God knows what our most important needs are.  Peter has been saved from his sins and the Holy Spirit lives in his heart.  God knows that this man needs more than money.  God’s Holy Spirit gives Peter wisdom and power to know how to respond to the crippled man’s needs.

The need this man had was not only a physical one.  His physical need was to be able to walk so he could work and make money and no longer have to beg.  More importantly he had a spiritual need.  He was a sinner and needed forgiveness of sins so he could have a right relationship with God.  This is the most important need that every man woman, boy and girl has.  God wants to heal people spiritually so they can spend eternity with Him.

Let’s read verses 6-8.

The Holy Spirit enabled Peter to perform a miracle.  A miracle isn’t magic, it is something only God can do.  Only God could instantly give strength to this man’s ankles and feet.  This miracle happened because the man put his faith in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Notice the man’s response to the power of God in his life. (Choose a child to demonstrate the man’s response.)

This man was not silent and secretive when he had been healed. He was walking and jumping and praising God.  What do you think he was saying as he praised God?

Whenever God performs a miracle it should cause people to want to learn more about Him.  Let’s read verse 10.  When the people saw this man praising God on his two feet they were filled with wonder and amazement.

God has given Peter a Divine appointment to share the Good News not only with this crippled beggar, but now he has an opportunity to share the Gospel with this crowd of people.

Read verse 12. Peter takes no credit for this miracle.  Believers can do nothing without the power of the Holy Spirit.  “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord Almighty.” Zechariah 4:6b  When the Holy Spirit gives a believer power to do something it is so people will come to believe in the Lord Jesus.  His power is never given so a believer can make his/her own name famous because peoples’ focus will be on the believer not God.

Peter takes full advantage of this opportunity to share the Good News.  The Holy Spirit gives Peter power to speak to the people.

Peter is talking to the Jewish people who have come to the temple to worship God.  God had given the Jewish people His laws and promises.  He promised Abraham that one of his descendants (future family member) would be the Savior.  Peter tells the crowd that Jesus is that Savior and God’s own people the Jews had Him put to death on the cross.

Peter explains that when the crippled man believed that Jesus is the Savior he was completely healed.

The people in the crowd could personally experience the power of God too.  Peter shows them how they too can be spiritually healed and saved from their sins.  He tells them to repent.  Let’s read verse 19.  Repent means to turn away from sin (disobeying God’s commands) and turning to God and accepting the Gift of Salvation that He has given through Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection.

Peter’s message gives us a clear presentation of the Gospel.  If we are believers the Holy Spirit will give us power to clearly share the Good News.  The message is very simple to share.  Sin must be punished by death.  Jesus the perfect sinless Son of God died on the cross in our place for our sins.  He was buried and three days later God raised Him from the dead.

Today if you are not a believer this Gospel message is for you.  Repent and turn to God so that your sins can be forgiven by believing in Jesus.  If you are unsure of how you can be saved talk to us and we can show you from the Bible what you need to do to have your sins forgiven so you can receive eternal life.

If you are a believer allow the Holy Spirit to control your life so you will have His power to live a life that pleases God and shares the Good News with others.  The Holy Spirit never leaves a believer but sin effects His power through him/her.  If a water hose has a kink in it there is still water in the hose, it only affects the power of the water coming out of the spray nozzle.  If the Holy Spirit is showing you sin in your life that is affecting His power in your life repent and turn away from it.

Close in prayer:  We are going to be still for a few moments so you can talk to God about what He showed you from this lesson and then I will close in prayer.

Review Questions:

1. Where were Peter and John going at 3 o’clock in the afternoon? (To the temple to pray)
2. Who was placed at the Gate called Beautiful everyday?  (A man crippled from birth)
3. Why was he placed there every day?  (To beg)
4. What did Peter give the crippled man?  (He shared the power of Jesus’ Name with him and he was healed)
5. How did the man respond to the power of God?  (Walking, leaping and praising God)
6. Who gave power to Peter to preach to the crowd?  (Holy Spirit)
7. What did the crowd need to do to have their sins forgiven? (Repent and turn to God)
8. What new thing did you learn about God and His Word?
9. What changes will you make in your life this week based on what you heard this morning?

Related posts:

1. Lesson: Journey Through the Book of Acts
2. Acts 11 Lesson: Early Church Growth & Change
3. “The Book of Acts” Sunday School Lesson Series
4. Paul’s Shipwreck (Acts 27) Bible Lesson
5. Seven Men are Chosen to Minister: Acts 6 Lesson

This free Sunday School lesson teaches students that the details God gave Daniel about the future battles between the Northern and Southern Kings happened exactly as God said they would.  Students will learn that until Jesus comes for the final battle we will face battles in this life.  By standing firm in our faith in God and His Word, we can endure and overcome each battle.

Bible Story: Battle of the Kings of the North and South
Scripture: Daniel 11:2-32
Target Age Group: Age 9 – 11 (U.S. 3rd – 5th Grade)
Learning Context: Sunday School
Target Time Frame: 60 minutes
Printer Friendly Bible Lesson: Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it. this lesson plan
You Can Help: Please share your feedback and suggestions to improve this children’s Bible study. Click here to respond

Supply List:  Bibles, Battleship Game (or supplies for paper version),

Learning Goal: Students will learn that in the battles of this life believers can stand firm.

Learning Activity #1: While students are waiting for other others to arrive those who are there can play Battle Ship. (If you do not own the game you can create a paper version of the game and play teacher vs. students)

Learning Activity #2:  Play an indoor version of Red Rover.  Set limits to avoid injury.  Adapt the game by explaining that the team calling the student are believers in Jesus.  They are calling for others to believe in the Lord Jesus and join His team.  The obstacle of having to break through is from God’s enemy Satan who fights to keep people from being on God’s winning team.  After playing a few rounds of the game adapt again by choosing a student to stand in the middle. When a name is called out he/she will join the person and help them get through the obstacle to join the team that called them over.  The person helping represents prayer (praying for others defeats the enemy and loosens his grip), and a believer who encourages and shares God’s truth with unbelievers etc.

Test: Review Questions

Memory Verse: “Submit yourselves, then to God.  Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7 NIV

Teaching the verse:  Explain submit-to make God the boss of your life by obeying Him.  When you obey God and choose to say no to sin you are resisting the devil and he will flee from you.

Have students choose hand movements for the verse and recite together.

Bible Lesson:  The Battle of the Kings of the North and South

In our last lesson we studied Daniel chapter 10.  We discovered that there is a battle going on in the unseen world as the prince of Persia fought against God’s angel sent to tell Daniel about the vision of a great war.

Today’s lesson is going to be the message that the angel gave to Daniel about the great war.

Daniel 11:2-32

The angel explains Daniel’s vision of a great war.  If you have been studying the Book of Daniel with us a few weeks ago we discussed how God builds upon Daniel’s understanding through the different dreams and visions in this Book.  This dream begins with the reigns of the Persian Empire and then focuses on 2 of the four generals that rule after Alexander the Great dies.

The Babylonian Kingdom was taken over by Medo-Persian Empire.  Let’s read Daniel 11:2.  History records these as the men who rule in Persia:

• Cambyses from 529BC
• Pseudo-Smerdis from 527
• Darius Hystaspis from 521
• A fourth and far more wealthy king Xerxes (Esther’s husband), reigned from 485-465BC

Who remembers the Kingdom who will rise up and defeat the Medo-Persian Empire?  (The Grecian Empire)  Do you remember who the ruler is from the Grecian Empire?  (Alexander the Great) Daniel 11:3-4 refer to Alexander the Great and the dividing up of his kingdom to his four generals after he dies.

• Northern-Syria (Seleucus)
• Southern-Egypt (Ptolemy)
• Eastern-Turkey (Lysimachus)
• Western-Greece (Cassander)

(Use a map to locate the geographical territories of the North and South.)

The remaining verses are about events that happen between 2 of the generals and those who rule after them.  The rulers are the King of the South and the King of the North.

Daniel 11:5-20 The Kings of the South and the Kings of the North have many battles with each other.  Let’s look at a map and see the areas that these kings rule over.  The reason these battles are even mentioned in Scripture is because they affect God’s people and the land He gave them.  (Point out Israel)

Daniel 11:21-32 These verses talk about a wicked ruler from the Northern kingdom who attempted to defeat the South but is unsuccessful (11:29).  This ruler is so angry that he wasn’t successful that he took out his anger on God’s people.  In Daniel’s vision of the ram and the goat we learned the king predicted in (8:23-25) was Antiochus IV Epiphanes. In Daniel’s vision of the King of the North in 11:21-35 was also fulfilled by Antiochus IV Epiphanies.

Antiochus will treat God’s people with cruelty and he will defile God’s temple.  Let’s read how God’s people respond to Antiochus’ evil against them in verse 32.  “The people who know their God will firmly resist him.”  Let’s look at our memory verse for today.  Do you see any similarities?  God’s people are being attacked by a physical enemy but they firmly resist him because they know God.  Believers will be attacked by God’s unseen enemy and the only way we can resist him is if we know God (by reading and studying His Word) and stand firm in God’s truth.

Daniel’s vision of a great battle continues and focuses on a king that will come who will be the Antichrist. We are going to stop here for now.  There have been many battles in history and every one of them God knew about before they ever happened.  He knows about the battles that are taking place in the unseen world. We can stand firm against the enemy because God is fighting for us and always wins.

Close in prayer.

Review Questions:

1. What was Daniel’s vision about that the angel was explaining to him?  (A great battle)
2. Who was fighting in this battle?  (Kings from the South and Kings of the North)
3. After Alexander the Great died who took his place?  (Four of his generals)
4. Which two kingdoms from the four battled against each other?  (Ptolemy and Seleucus)
5. Why were these battles included in Scripture?  (Because they involve God’s people the nation of Israel)
6. How do believers win battles against God’s enemy?  (Submitting to God, prayer, resisting)
7. How will you fight the battle for those you know have not joined God’s winning team by being saved?  (Pray, invite to church, share the Gospel)

Related posts:

1. Lesson: Daniel’s Vision of a Ram and a Goat
2. Lesson: Daniel Understands the Times
3. Lesson: God Saves Daniel from a Den of Lions
4. Lesson: Daniel & Friends Seek God’s Wisdom
5. Lesson: Going Into God’s Place (Joshua and the Battle of Jericho)