Jerusalem S Walls Rebuilt

October 26, 2014

35LG Lesson–Unit 2, Session 2

SESSION TITLE: Jerusalem’s Walls
Rebuilt / Bible Passage: Nehemiah 3:1-6 -- 6:16
BIG PICTURE QUESTION & ANSWER / How did God protect His people? God used Nehemiah to lead the people to rebuild the city walls.
UNIT CHRIST CONNECTION / God restored a faithful remnant and reminded them of His promise of a new covenant through Jesus Christ.
MEMORY VERSE
NEW – We’re adding a verse each month until we finish the whole chapter! / “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.”
Psalm 23: 1-3 ESV

Jerusalem’s Walls Rebuilt

Nehemiah 3:1–6:16

(The bolded script highlights the most important points when you review with your kids)

Nehemiah (nee huh MIGH uh) was in Jerusalem to help the people rebuild the city walls. The people started working together to fix the walls and the burned-down gates. The walls and gates had special names. Some of the people worked on the Fish Gate. The Fish Gate was the entrance to the fish market. Some people worked on the Sheep Gate; this gate led to the place men gathered to sell sheep.

Others worked on the Valley Gate, the Old Gate, and the Horse Gate. The people worked on the walls, and other workers repaired the towers along the walls.

The workers put in doors, bolts, and bars. They cut stones and lifted them into place on the wall, and they filled in gaps and holes. All around the city, people worked side by side. Soon the wall was half as tall as it had once been!

Not everyone was happy that Jerusalem’s walls were being rebuilt. Some men who lived nearby were angry. Sanballat (san BAL uht) and Tobiah (toh BIGH uh) mocked the people. Sanballat said, “What do these people think they are doing? These walls are just piles of trash and dirt. They can’t be rebuilt!”

Nehemiah prayed. God’s people kept working on the walls, but their enemies made a plan to attack them and stop their work. God’s people prayed and assigned men to guard the walls all day and all night, but they were discouraged. “Our enemies are everywhere,” they said.

Nehemiah reminded the people that God was with them. “Do not be afraid. God is great and powerful!” Nehemiah said. “Be ready. If our enemies attack us, God will fight for us!” Sanballat and Tobiah could threaten God’s people, but they couldn’t make God’s people stop building. Sanballat and Tobiah were not in charge of rebuilding the wall; God was!

So God’s people went back to work. Some stood guard with weapons, and others worked on the wall. Some men worked with one hand and held a weapon in the other. They were always ready to fight, just in case.

Nehemiah was a wise and good leader of God’s people while they worked. He helped them solve any problems they had, and he did not give in to their enemies. The people kept working very hard. In just 52 days, the wall was complete! The gates were repaired, and the wall was restored. When all of Jerusalem’s enemies heard that the wall had been rebuilt, they were afraid because they knew God was with His people.

Christ Connection: Nehemiah led the people to rebuild the walls around Jerusalem to protect them from their enemies. Jesus came to protect us from our enemies. He died on the cross and rose from the dead to rescue people from sin and death.

BIBLE STUDY

When the Babylonians took God’s people to Babylon, they destroyed Jerusalem. God’s people returned years later to rebuild the temple, but when they faced opposition in rebuilding the rest of Jerusalem, they stopped. Some 70 years passed, and the walls and gates around the city were still ruined.

City walls and gates were very important in Bible times. Walls were built to be several feet thick. They protected a city from its enemies and provided a sense of safety and security. Gates were the center of city life, the meeting place for commercial and social transactions. Without these structures, the surviving remnant of God’s people struggled and was vulnerable to attack.

Nehemiah traveled from Persia to Jerusalem to lead the effort in rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls. Nehemiah’s leadership was effective. Nehemiah 3 describes all the people working together to rebuild the gates and walls.

But it wasn’t long before Nehemiah met opposition. Sanballat and Tobiah were local governors who strongly opposed Nehemiah’s helping the Jews. The two mocked God’s people and tried to discourage them. Sanballat and Tobiah planned a surprise attack against God’s people, but God’s people found out. They kept working—with a trowel in one hand and a sword in the other.

God’s people completed the wall in just 52 days. Note how their enemies reacted: “All the surrounding nations were intimidated and lost their confidence, for they realized that this task had been accomplished by our God” (Neh. 6:16).

Now God’s people were protected from their enemies. God provided the way for us to be protected from our enemies, sin and death. He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins. When we repent and trust in Jesus, He frees us from sin and death. We still sin, but we are no longer slaves to sin. (See Rom. 6:17-18.) We will die a physical death as a result of sin, but we have eternal life. (See John 11:25-26; Rom. 6:23.)

COUNTDOWN TO LARGE GROUP

VIDEO: Countdown Video

Countdown Timer will play for 3 minutes before Large Group begins. The Worship Leader will talk on the mic encouraging children to move towards the front of the room as it plays.

WORSHIP

Worship leader: Welcome to kidZone! I am so glad you are here today.God is so good to us and we gather each week to praise and worship Him altogether. As we begin our worship with songs, if you brought offering today, please worship God with your gifts by coming forward and placing your offering in the basket.

PPT/Video:

PPT/Video:
Worship Leader: Awesome job today. I can’t wait to hear our story today. Let’s welcome ______who is going to teach us our Bible story today.

MEMORY VERSE REVIEW

Bible Story Teacher: Good morning, kids! It’s great to be with you here today. Let’s continue our worship by praising our God for how He cares for us just as a good shepherd takes care of the sheep. So, let’s recite our memory passage, Psalm 23, verses 1-3.

PPT or video: Psalm 23:1-3 (if you need the video, it can be stopped at the end of verse 3.

(Instruct the kids to sit down for the Missions Moment.)

PPT: Mission Moment

MISSIONS MOMENT

***more info to come

BIBLE STORY Last week we learned that many years had passed since the Temple was completed in Jerusalem. Were things going well for the Jews back in Jerusalem? No, they weren’t. The walls of the city had still not been built and they were surrounded by enemies. But God raised up a leader to help the Jews begin the job of rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls. Does anyone remember who that was? Yes, Nehemiah.

PPT: Bible Story Picture -- Unit 22, Session 1 -- Nehemiah Hears the News

When Nehemiah heard how bad things were, he wept and prayed. He remembered God’s promise to help His people when they turn back to him, so he asked the King of Persia if he could go back. The King gave him wood, important letters to government leaders, and soldiers, and Nehemiah headed back to Jerusalem.

Now, does anyone remember what Nehemiah did when he first arrived in Jerusalem? You’re right! Nehemiah inspected the walls to figure out what needed fixing. And when he went to the people to encourage them to start rebuilding, what did they say? That’s right -- they were ready to start rebuilding the walls.

But, not everyone was happy about Nehemiah coming back and the Jews starting the rebuilding project. In fact, last week, we heard how they responded. (Reading Nehemiah 2:19

19 But Sanballat, the Horonite, heard about it. So did Tobiah, the official from Ammon. Geshem, the Arab, heard about it too. All of them laughed at us. They made fun of us. “What do you think you are doing?” they asked. “Are you turning against the king?”

But Nehemiah didn’t listen to them.

20 I answered, “The God of heaven will give us success. We serve him. So we’ll start rebuilding the walls.

Nehemiah knew that God always keeps His promises, and so, even though he had people making fun of him, he wasn’t going to give up. But what would happen when their enemies threaten to attack. The walls were no where near being finished. And city walls and gates were very important in Bible times. Walls were built to be several feet thick. They protected a city from its enemies and provided a sense of safety and security. They did not yet have walls to protect them. So, How did God protect His people?

PPT: Big Picture Question

Well, that is our Big Picture Question. Let’s take a look at our Bible story video and find out.

Video: Bible Story Video

Wow! Did you hear how long it took the people to rebuild the walls? Yes -- only 52 days! Even though the Jews had enemies trying to stop them, they didn’t give up. Sanballat and Tobiah were local governors who mocked God’s people and tried to discourage them. Sanballat and Tobiah planned a surprise attack against God’s people, but God’s people found out their plan. What did Nehemiah do to make sure the people kept building? You’re right! Nehemiah set up guards to protect the people day and night, and builders even worked with a trowel in one hand and a sword in the other.

So then, how did Sanballat, Tobiah, and the other nearby enemies react to the news? Yes. They were frightened because they knew that God had helped the Jews rebuild the city walls. God protected His people. Hey, that sounds like the answer to our big picture question.

PPT: Big Picture Question & Answer

How did God protect His people? God used Nehemiah to lead the people to rebuild the city walls.

Nehemiah led the people to rebuild the walls around Jerusalem to protect them from their enemies. The same God who was with Nehemiah is with each of us today. Let’s remember that important truth as we pray and go into our activity time.

PPT: Prayer

PRAYER

Before you go back to your small groups, let’s pray. So, quietly now, circle up as a small group.

(Once kids are in their groups – encourage the kids to QUIETLY share their requests with their group.)

PPT: Pray – Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication slide

In addition to asking God for things – which He does want us to do – remember to ADORE God that He is a God who always keeps His promises, to CONFESS your sins to Him, and to THANK Him for all the good gifts He gives us. And then, lastly, we ask God for all that we need for ourselves and for others -- that is SUPPLICATION. This is also the time when we pray for Helen, Siras, Emely and Anthony. Let’s pray.

PPT:Helen, Siras, Emely, Anthony