June 30, 2013
3-5 Small Group – Unit 10, Session 3
3-5 Small Group
June 30, 2013
Session Title: The Ark Was Captured
Bible Passage: 1 Samuel 4–5
Big Picture Question: Why was the ark of God important? The ark reminded the Israelites of God’s promise to be with His people.
Memory Verse:Summer Review of 2012-2013 Verses
Unit Christ Connection: God used people and visual elements in history to give us pictures of Christ.
Bible Story:The Ark Was Captured 1 Samuel 4–5
The people of Israel did not get along with the Philistines. The people of Israel fought a battle against the Philistines, but the Philistines killed about four thousand Israelites, and the Philistines won.
The leaders in Israel said, “Why did God let us lose the battle against the Philistines?” In the past, God had helped the Israelites defeat their enemies. Instead of asking God what they had done wrong, the Israelites decided to take the ark of the covenant—a wooden box covered in gold that reminded them God was with them—and carry it to the battlefield.
Some of the men went to talk to Eli’s sons. Eli’s sons were priests; they were in charge of the ark of God. The men told Eli’s sons their plan to win the battle. Eli’s sons were wicked. They should have just asked God to help them fight. Instead, they took the ark of the covenant to the Israelites’ camp. When the army of Israelites saw the ark, they shouted because they were happy. Surely they would win the battle now!
The Philistines heard the shout, but they did not know what was happening. Why were the Israelites happy? They had just lost a battle. Then the Philistines heard that the ark of God was with the Israelites, and they panicked! They could fight against men, but who could fight against God?
Could the Israelites force God to help them win? No! The two groups went to battle, but the Philistines won again! They killed thousands of Israelites, including Eli the priest’s sons, and they stole the ark of God! One of the men in the battle ran to tell Eli the priest what had happened. When Eli heard the news, he fell backward in his chair, broke his neck, and died.
The Philistines took the ark of God to a temple where they worshiped Dagon (DAY gahn), a false god. They put the ark next to a statue of Dagon. The next morning, the Philistines entered the temple and saw that Dagon’s statue was facedown in front of the ark of God. They set the statue back up where it belonged. The next day, it was facedown again. This time, the head and hands were broken off.
Wherever the ark of God was, God punished the people living in that city. God caused a lot of trouble for the Philistines. The Philistines got really sick, and they wanted to get rid of the ark because they knew God was responsible for their suffering. When they moved the ark to another city, everyone in that city got sick. So they moved the ark to a third city. Then everyone in that city got sick too. The Philistines were afraid. They didn’t want God to punish them anymore, so they decided to send the ark of God back to the Israelites, where it belonged.
Christ Connection: The ark of God was important to the Israelites because it reminded God’s people that God was with them. Years later, God gave His people something greater than a sign that He was with them; God gave them His Son, Jesus—God in the flesh. One of Jesus’ names is Immanuel, which means “God with us.”
TeacherBible Study
The ark of God (also called “the ark of the covenant”) was an incredibly important symbol in the lives of God’s people. Not only was the ark the original container for the Ten Commandments, it symbolized God’s presence with His people.
God gave Moses instructions in Exodus 25 for creating the ark. It was made of acacia wood and overlaid with pure gold. God forbade anyone from touching the ark, so it was carried by two poles. God would speak to Moses from between two golden cherubim on top of the ark, which was called the mercy seat. (See Num. 7:89.)
The Philistines were a near-constant threat to Israel during the time of the judges. Under the leadership of Samuel, the Israelites went out to fight the Philistines. But the Israelites were defeated because of their sin.
The elders of Israel realized that it was God who allowed them to be defeated. God hadn’t fought for them against the Philistines. So they did what seemed logical; they took the ark—the symbol of God’s presence—and carried it to the battlefield. But the ark was not a good luck charm. Not only was Israel defeated, the Philistines captured the ark and killed Eli’s sons. When Eli heard the news, he fell over and died.
With the victory, the Philistines concluded that their god, Dagon, was better than the God of Israel. They moved the ark to Dagon’s temple, where God showed His power over Dagon. (See 1 Sam. 5:1-5.) As the ark moved between Philistine cities, God afflicted the people and made them sick.
Though the Philistines won the battle by capturing the ark, God afflicted them to show His power over their god. God received glory through the Israelites’ defeat. This points to the victory of God’s Son on the cross. The people thought they had stopped Jesus by killing Him on the cross, but by His death, Jesus saved the world and brought glory to God.
Small Group Outline – Summer Format
Session Title: Eli and Boy Samuel
Bible Passage: 1 Samuel 1–3
Big Picture Question: How did God use Samuel? God used Samuel to share His plan with the nation of Israel.
Memory Verse:Summer Review of 2012-2013 Verses
Unit Christ Connection: God used people and visual elements in history to give us pictures of Christ.
9:00/11:00 –9:28/11:28
WELCOME & GAMES
SUPPLIES: SG Folder with Attendance Roster, Game Supplies (choose 3)
As the kids in your group arrive, welcome them by introducing yourself if they are new. Introduce the kids to one another as well.
Connect: Use this opening time to connect with them about what happened this week.
Offering: As kids arrive, have them place their offering in the basket on the stage.
Take Attendance: Fill out the attendance roster with the children’s first & last names.
Games: Choose several games to play to help the kids learn.
GAME CHOICES
A.Books of the Bible Race: 2 sets of Books of the Bible cards and 2 “cheat sheets”
Create 2 teams. Kids race to put the books of the Bible in order.
B.Timeline Race: 2 sets of Big Picture cards, 2 Timeline sets
Create 2 teams. Kids race to put the cards in the correct chronological order.
C.Big Picture Concentration Match: 1 set of Big Picture Question and Big Picture answer cards and answer key.
Flip over all the cards. The kids try to remember where the correct question and answer cards are. Once they make a correct match, they keep that pair. The child with the most pairs wins.
D.Memory Verse Games – These can be done as race between 2 teams.
- Cup Tower: Build a tower of cups by correctly placing the words of the memory verse in order.
- Toss the Bean Bag: The kids stand in a circle and as they toss the bean bag to another child they must say the next word from the memory verse.
- Puzzle: The kids put the puzzle with the words of the memory verse together.
- Kids Line-Up: Each child holds up a phrase from the memory verse. The teams race to see who can line up in the correct order first. To play multiple times, keep switching around which child holds which phrase.
- Single File Line-Up: The goal is for kids to move from one side of the room to the other in a single-file line while saying one word of the memory verse. Divide your group into two teams. Kids should line up one at a time, each kid saying the next word of the key passage as he finds his spot at the front of the line. When every kid is in the line, the kid at the back of the line will move to the front of the line and say the next word in the verse. Each team will continue this cycle, repeating the memory verse, until they have traveled a path from one side of the room to the other. Allow kids to see the memory verse poster as they play. Play again, challenging kids to complete the task faster.
E.Activity Sheets: Kids can work on the activity sheets and coloring pages that are related to the lesson.
F.The Box:
SUPPLIES: box, 3 sets of different colored paper – 1 per child
Place a box or other container in the center of the room with a starting line several feet from the box on two sides. Form two groups. Provide one group with the same color paper and the other group with a different color of paper. Encourage each kid to make a paper wad. Each group must stand behind the line and try to toss the team’s paper wads into the box. If a paper wad misses, any team member who doesn’t have a paper wad may retrieve it and go back behind the line to toss it again. The first team to get all of its color of paper wads into the box wins.
Explain: Was there anything special about the box that made you win or lose this game? No. In today’s Bible story, the Israelites treated the Ark of the Covenant like a special box with powers of its own. We’ll see what happened.
9:28/11:28 – 9:30/11:30
CLEAN-UP & LINE UP TO WALK TO LARGE GROUP IN GRACE PLACE
SUPPLIES: SG Folder with Attendance Roster (always keep an accurate roster of which kids are in your group with you), prayer paper, pencils and/or markers
9:30/11:30 – 10:05/12:05
LARGE GROUP & PRAYER
SUPPLIES: SG Folder with Attendance Roster, prayer paper, pencils and/or markers
During Large Group, time will be provided for your Small Group to circle up and pray.
To take requests, record the date, name of child and prayer request on the notebook paper inside your SG folder.
The Large Group Teacher will explain that we have been learning about different ways we can talk with God. We are using the word ACTS to help us learn the different ways. (If any child has not yet received an ACTS prayer bookmark, be sure to give them one.) Each letter is the beginning of a word that helps us remember something we can talk to God about. Some kids may want to write out their prayers and lay them at the cross.
Adoration:Telling God how awesome we know He is -- “God, You are...”
Confession:Saying “I’m sorry” and telling God about what we have done. He will forgive us.
Thanksgiving:Thanking God for all the good things in your life. “Thank you for...”
Supplication:Asking God for help for ourselves and others. “Please help…”
10:05/12:05 –10:10/12:10
TRANSITION BACK TO ACTIVITY STATIONS IN ROOMS
10:10/12:10 –10:23/12:23
ACTIVITY STATIONS
Decide during Huddle which activity station you will lead. Kids may choose the activity station in which they want to participate.
Coloring Page/Activity Sheets
SUPPLIES: tables & chairs set-up with activity sheets and coloring pages
Bible Ball
SUPPLIES: Two foam balls, Bible Ball questions
Human Tic-Tac-Toe
SUPPLIES: Velcro strips for tic-tac-toe grid on floor, “X” and “O” signs, Question page
Allow kids to use their Bibles during the game. If a team answers a review question correctly, a member of the team may stand inside one square of the tic-tac-toe grid. Play until a team wins or a tie is announced. Play again.
Capture the Ark
SUPPLIES: 1 sheet of construction paper per team – each a different color
Form two or more teams. Invite the teams to line up single file. Encourage each kid to put his hands on the shoulders of the kid directly in front of him. Tape a piece of paper on the last kid’s back in each line. Set up safe boundaries free of obstacles, and explain what those boundaries are. Kids may not let go of the shoulders of the kid in front of them, and the first kid can’t leave the rest of the team behind. The first kid in each line must try to capture the piece of paper, or the “ark,” from the other teams. If teammates disconnect, they must stop and rejoin before continuing. The winning team is the last one that still has its ark. Explain: The Philistines captured the ark from the Israelites because the Israelites misused it. Why was the ark of God important? The ark reminded the Israelites of God’s promise to be with His people.
10:23/12:23 –10:25/12:25
SMALL GROUP WRAP-UP
SUPPLIES: Big Picture card, Memory Verse Chart
All kids return to their Small Group to receive their Big Picture Card and Memory Verse Chart. This summer the kids will be challenged to review all the memory verses from the year, recite them to their parents, and then, bring the chart back to receive a reward.Ask the Big Picture Question to see if the kids have learned the answer. Ask: Which memory verse are you going to work on this week?
PARENT PICK-UP:
If possible, try and connect with each parent when they arrive to pick-up their child.
** Game to play as you’re waiting for parents: Philistine, Samson, Delilah (review from a previous lesson)
This game is similar to “Rock, Paper, Scissors.” Instead of rock, paper, and scissors, kids will “throw down”:
Philistine (hold imaginary sword and grunt)
Samson (flex biceps and say “oh yeah” in a deep voice)
Delilah (one hand on your hip; the other hand flounces your hair).
Philistine beats Delilah, Samson beats Philistine, Delilah beats Samson. Pair up the kids and guide them to stand back to back. When you say, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” the kids will turn around and strike a pose. Play again as time allows.
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