3-5 Small Group Lesson
October 6/7
3-5 Small Group
October 6/7, 2012
Job
Session Title:Job
Bible Passage:Job 1- 42
Big Picture Question:Who is in control? God is all-powerful, sovereign, and good.
Memory Verse:“So God created man in His own image; He created him in the image of God; He created them male and female.“ Genesis 1:27 (HCSB)
Unit Christ Connection:God knew we would sin, and Jesus, our Creator, came to redeem us and protect us from the wrath of God by suffering for us.
THEBIBLE STORY: Job Job 1 – 42
Job was a wealthy man known as the greatest man in the area where he lived. Job was also known as a man of perfect integrity who tried to resist sin. He had a relationship with God and was committed to following God’s plan.
One day Satan came before God. God asked Satan if he had noticed Job, a man who followed God. God said that no one on earth was like Job. Satan claimed that Job only followed God because God had protected and blessed Job. He said that if God took away all Job owned, then Job would not follow God anymore. So God gave Satan permission to take away all Job owned, but he was not allowed to hurt Job. Satan sent men to steal Job’s oxen, donkeys, and camels, and he sent lightning to kill Job’s sheep. He also caused Job’s children to die. In one day Job lost all of his wealth and his children, but Job continued to follow God.
Again Satan came before God. God again asked him if he had noticed Job. God told him that even after all Satan had done, Job still followed God and kept his integrity. Satan said that if Job became sick, he would not praise God anymore. So God gave Satan permission to make Job sick, but God would not let Satan kill Job. Job became ill with boils all over his skin. His wife thought he should blame God. But Job told her that God was always in control whether Job experienced good times or bad times.
Three of Job’s friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, came to visit him so they could comfort him. Job shared with his friends how confused and grieved he was over all he had experienced. Instead of comforting Job, his friends told Job that he must have sinned to cause these bad things to happen to him. His friends believed that suffering only came to people who sin. They believed that Job was being punished for a sin he had committed and that Job should repent so God would restore his good fortune.
Job was very upset that his friends had not comforted him and that they did not believe he was innocent. Job responded that he knew he had not sinned. Job wished he had a mediator to represent him before God. Because Job could not explain why he was suffering, he wanted some answers from God. Job wanted God to come tell his friends that he was innocent and to answer his questions about why he was suffering. As Job’s friends insisted he must have sinned, Job became depressed and questioned whether God was just and why God was silent and would not answer his questions.
Finally Elihu, another friend of Job’s, explained that God was not silent. Elihu accused Job of insisting on his own righteousness to the point that he implied God was unjust. Elihu argued that God was righteous, merciful, and just. He reminded Job that God was all-powerful and sovereign over all.After Elihu spoke to Job, God spoke to Job through a whirlwind. God asked Job if he was there when God made the earth. Was Job the one who told the sea where it should stop? Did Job decide when the sun would rise or when it would snow? Did Job put the stars in the sky? God asked if Job knew when all the animals had their babies or if he was able to tell the eagles when to fly in the sky. God used all of these questions to help Job understand that God was sovereign, all-powerful, and good. Job was a human who was not capable of fully understanding God’s plans. He should have known to trust that God had control over everything and that God could use even the bad things that happened to Job for good.
God gave Job the opportunity he wanted earlier, to speak directly to God about his suffering. Job realized that he had spoken about things he did not understand, and he repented of his earlier words and attitude.
God restored all of Job’s wealth and doubled the amount of possessions he had before he lost them all. All of his relatives and former friends came to a special dinner at Job’s house to comfort Job. Job had 10 more children and lived 140 years after his suffering. He saw his grandchildren and great-grandchildren be born and grow up before he died.
Christ Connection: Job’s suffering and his request for a mediator gives us a glimpse of our Savior, Jesus. Neither Job nor Jesus experienced suffering because they had sinned. Unlike Job, Jesus never questioned why He had to suffer. Jesus understood that we needed Him to pay the price for our sin and be our mediator before God.
TEACHERBIBLE STUDY
What? Job? Why now? Most biblical authorities believe, based on subject matter and language, that Job was a contemporary to the patriarchs. Job fits chronologically into this period of history.The story of Job helps Christians see God alone is all-powerful, sovereign, and good. Job’s story is one all people can relate to, as everyone will suffer in his or her lifetime. God’s dialogue with Job reveals His characteristics clearly.
Have you ever in your life commanded the morning or assigned the dawn its place? (Job 38:12) God is all-powerful! Does the eagle soar at your command and make its nest on high? (Job 39:27) God is sovereign. Who provides the raven’s food when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food? (Job 38:41) God is good.
Throughout all of Job’s suffering, Job never stopped trusting God. Listen to Job’s response to God’s questions: “I am so insignificant. How can I answer You?” (Job 40:4) Job didn’t understand his suffering, but he understood who God is. While the Book of Job speaks volumes to the problem of human suffering, it is also an important picture of how a suffering person should relate to God. Though Job sometimes doubted God, he never turned away. Job’s suffering actually brought him closer to God.
Pray that you will help the kids you teach understand the story of Job and its implications. Point them to the true suffering servant, Jesus, who was truly innocent yet suffered greatly so that we could be brought closer to God in both our suffering and in our joy. Job reminds us that following Jesus will be worth it. God is good, present, and in control. We can trust Him when we don’t understand the pain we have to endure. At the cross God used the ultimate pain to bring about the ultimate good, our future and final salvation from sin.
Small Group Lesson
5:15/9:00/11:00 – 5:30/9:15/11:15
WELCOME: Small Groups - 15 minutes
SUPPLIES: Small Group Folder – Books of the Bible cards –
As the kids in your group arrive, welcome them to kidZone by introducing yourself. As each child arrives, introduce the kids to one another as well. Connect with them about their 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.
Books of the Bible: Lay out the cards for the first two sections – the Law and the istorical books. For the month of October, we’ll continue working on the historical books as well as the first five.
Plug-In Activity – Review:
As the kids arrive, you may choose to review the chronology of God’s story and the big picture questions.
5:30/9:15/11:15 – 5:38/9:23/11:23
SESSION STARTER: (If you like…)Small Groups - 8 minutes
SUPPLIES: none
**Tip: Be sensitive to kids’ feelings during this game and do not allow one kid to stay in the middle too long. Join them in doing something silly to get another person to smile.
Urge kids to sit in a circle or semicircle. Select one kid to start the game by being in the middle. The goal is for the person in the middle to make someone in the circle smile. To make someone smile you complete the statement: “If you like _____, you’ll smile,” and make a silly face, tell a joke, or be goofy. (examples: pizza, baseball, 4-H) They cannot touch the person. If the person smiles they must trade seats and they are now in the middle. If they do not smile, the middle person must move on to someone else.
Say • This was a silly game, but it shows us how easily we can influence someone to do something. True friends try to be a good influence and help us understand God. In our Bible story today, Job’s friends tried to influence him. Listen to find out if they were a good influence or a negative influence. Listen to see if they truly understood who God was.
5:38/9:23/11:23Clean Up and Transition to Large Group
5:40/9:25/11:25 – 6:20/10:05/12:05Large Group
Daily Dilemma Video: The kids will watch a short silly video about a kid who is not really powerful at all – especially compared to God’s power. You will be prompted as a small group to discuss: What did that video tell us about our power versus God’s power? How powerful is God? Why does it matter to us that God is all-powerful? Guide kids to think about the story of Job and about God being all-powerful, sovereign, and good.
6:20/10:05/12:05 – 6:30/10:15/12:15
BIBLE STORY REVIEW: 10 minutes
SUPPLIES: Bibles, SG Visual Pack, Big Picture Fill-In Activity sheet
Explain that the books of the Bible are not in chronological order. Instead books that are related to each other are arranged together under a division title (Law, History, Wisdom). (You may want to get out your Books of the Bible cards and show them the different divisions.) Then, use the timeline in the small group visual pack to review Job’s location in the chronological story of God’s plan. Option: Use the Big Picture Fill-in activity sheet to review all the Big Picture questions and answers from Unit 1.
Who created everything? God created the world and people to bring Him glory.
What is sin? Sin is breaking God’s law and separates us from God.
Why does sin separate people from God? God is holy and separate from sin.
What happens when people choose to sin? Sin separates people from God and each other, but God’s plan is to heal relationships.
Re-tell the Bible story to the kids – either choosing key verses from Job, or by retelling the Bible story in your own words.
Then, lead kids to review today’s lesson by playing a game. Ask the kids to line up and face you. Give the kids the first Scripture reference and allow 20–30 seconds for everyone to find the verse and step forward. Select a kid to read the verse. Use the notes below as a guide to review each verse. Continue until you have completed a review of the story of Job.
1.Job 1:1 (Job was known as a man with perfect integrity. He always tried to follow God and avoid sin.)
2.Job 1:22 (Even though Job lost his children and his wealth, Job still did not sin or blame God.)
3.Job 4:8 (Job’s friends told him that he must have sinned and that God was punishing him. This was not true.)
4.Job 16:2 (Job shared his disappointment that his friends had not encouraged him.)
5.Job 16:21 (Job wished for a mediator to represent him before God. A mediator is one who helps two people reconcile their relationship. Jesus is our mediator because He created the way for our relationship with God to be reconciled by paying the price for our sin when He died on the cross. When you become a Christian, Jesus represents you before God.)
6.Job 37:23 (Elihu reminded Job that God is all-powerful, righteous and just.)
7.Job 38:4-5 (God used questions to help Job understand that God is all-powerful and sovereign. Job should have trusted God.)
8.Job 42:2 (Job understood that God is all-powerful and sovereign.)
9.Job 42:12 (God blessed Job.)
Review the big picture question with the kids. Who is in control? God is all-powerful, sovereign, and good.
6:30/10:15/12:15 – 6:35/10:20/12:20
MEMORY VERSE REVIEW: 5 minutes
SUPPLIES: none
Explain that this is the last week for this memory verse. We’ll see how well we have learned this verse by playing a game – Memory Meltdown. Choose two children who want to try and say the verse. Have them stand back-to-back. Instruct them that one child will start by saying the first word of the verse. Then, the other child will say the 2nd word of the verse. They should go back-and-forth saying the whole verse. If a child misses a word, he/she should “meltdown” and another child should take his/her place. Play this game until every child has had a chance to play. Then, as a group, say the whole verse together.
6:35/10:20/12:20 – 6:40/10:25/12:25
PRAYER 5 minutes
SUPPLIES: Small Group folder with notebook paper
Your team coach will flash the lights to let you know it’s about time to begin your Small Group’s prayer time. They will turn off one bank of lights for prayer time and turn them on at 6:40/10:25/12:25.
Say • “This year, we will have a journal to list our prayer requests and our praises to God. When God answers one of our prayer requests, we can mark it in our journal. Do any of you have something you would like us to pray for today?” Record the date, name of child and prayer request on the notebook paper inside your SG folder. Record answers to prayer as well. End the session with prayer, thanking God for always being in control even when we don’t understand. Pray for each child by name, and ask God to help each of them trust God during good and bad times.
**Optional activity if there is time
FOLLOW THE COMMAND:
Lead the kids to play the game. Give a verbal command, but demonstrate another action to confuse the kids. Play one or two rounds of the game.
Say • Is it hard to do what is said when you see someone do something different? The words we say and the actions we take are very important. People notice if we tell them we love God and are Christians, but then we don’t act like it. Job is known for his integrity and following God. Even when bad things were happening to him, Job remained faithful to God. His words and actions matched.
•Who is in control? God is all-powerful, sovereign, and good.
•Although Job is a good example of someone with integrity, he was still a sinner. Only Jesus never sinned. He is the only one who followed God’s commands perfectly, so we might be saved by trusting Him.
PARENT PICK-UP:
SUPPLIES: Big Picture Cards
Introduce yourself to the parents as they pick-up their children. Say, “I’m ______. I will be serving on the Even months in this room. Each week we will be sending home a Big Picture Card to help you interact with your child this week about the Bible story. If you miss a week, you can get the card for that week in the kidZone lobby at the Parent Resource kiosk.
Insights for Leaders: Kids (and adults) will often ask questions about sin and suffering. As a teacher it is important to clarify that not all suffering is a result of personal sin. But sometimes we do suffer the consequences of our choice to sin. One of the consequences of sin is that it separates us from God. When kids ask questions about how to know and love God, you can use the suggestions below as a guide to explain how to become a Christian.
The Gospel: God’s Plan for Me
Ask kids if they have ever heard the word gospel. Clarify that the word gospel means “good news.” It is the message about Christ, the kingdom of God, and salvation. Use the following guide to share the gospel with kids.God rules. Explain to kids that the Bible tells us God created everything, and He is in charge of everything. Invite a volunteer to read Genesis 1:1 from her Bible. Read Revelation 4:11 or Colossians 1:16-17 aloud and explain what these verses mean.We sinned. Tell kids that since the time of Adam and Eve, everyone has chosen to disobey God (Romans 3:23). The Bible calls this sin. Because God is holy, God cannot be around sin. Sin separates us from God and deserves God’s punishment of death (Romans 6:23).God provided. Choose a child to read John 3:16 aloud. Say that God sent His Son Jesus, the perfect solution to our sin problem, to rescue us from the punishment we deserve. It’s something we, as sinners, could never earn on our own. Jesus alone saves us. Read and explain Ephesians 2:8-9.Jesus gives. Share with kids that Jesus lived a perfect life, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again. Because Jesus gave up His life for us, we can be welcomed into God’s family for eternity. This is the best gift ever! Read Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21; or 1 Peter 3:18.We respond. Tell kids that they can respond to Jesus. Read Romans 10:9-10,13. Review these aspects of our response: Believe in your heart that Jesus alone saves you through what He’s already done on the cross. Repent, turning from self and sin to Jesus. Tell God and others that your faith is in Jesus.Offer to talk with any child who is interested in responding to Jesus.