God Spared Noah- Sunday October 10, 2021
Sunday October 10, 2021 (Vol 1, Unit 2, Session 3)
Hi there, and thanks for joining us this week. FriendshipKids exists to help families bring their children to Christ and disciple them to be maturing, lifelong, reproducing followers of Jesus Christ. We hope this blog will be a useful tool for you to use to fulfill that call on your life. Week by week, we will review the previous Sunday’s Children’s church lesson and help your kids grow in their faith. Please feel free to use as much of it as you choose. You know your kids and are the best possible teacher for them. God has given you the power of the Holy Spirit to enable you to do more than you think possible (Eph 3:20). So, let’s have some fun and teach our kids from the scriptures.
Parent Devotional
God Spared Noah
The Bible is full of promises. As early as the first few chapters of Genesis, we begin to see God make, and even fulfill, His promises: promises for punishment and for blessing, for death and for life, for separation and for salvation. In Noah’s journey to build an ark, survive the flood, and begin to repopulate the earth, we find multiple reminders that the Lord is faithful to fulfill His promises.
When God destroyed the entire population of the earth except for Noah and his family, we are reminded that God keeps His promise to preserve a remnant of His people always. When Noah sent a dove to find dry land and it returned with an olive leaf, we are reminded of God’s promise to show His people the way at just the right time. And when God painted His bow in the sky, we are reminded of God’s promise that He will always keep His Word.
In a world filled with fake news and false prophets, we are often skeptical of the stories and promises that we hear and read about. When it comes to the promises and claims of the world, we should be discerning. But when it comes to the promises of God, we should be trusting.
As you survey Genesis 6–10, may it stir a great reminder in your heart and mind that God is always faithful and true. God is no liar, and He will not turn back from His word. May these chapters of Genesis also give you hope that though everything around you may fail, God’s Word never will.
God is a God of great and magnificent promises. And every single one of them we can trust completely. When in doubt of this truth, look to the cross of Christ and His empty grave.
As Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 1:20, “every one of God’s promises is ‘Yes’ in [Jesus].”
God will fulfill His promises. This week, pray that God would stir in you many reminders of how He keeps His word.
TERMS TO KNOW
Favor: Undeserved blessing given by a powerful being to one who is less powerful. Noah did not earn his salvation, but his life did demonstrate that he possessed saving faith (Heb. 11:7).
Parent Guidance and Instructions
As we begin to explore this week’s devotional, take a moment to pray and meditate on the verse from Deuteronomy about teaching your children the scriptures. Deuteronomy 6:7 says: “You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” Maybe you do not have time to sit and have an hour of Bible time all at once, or perhaps your children are too young to sit for that long. Consider the key points of the lesson and ask God to give you opportunities to speak them into the hearts of your children throughout the week. Let the Bible become a part of your day-to-day. Be blessed this week, my friends!
Each week we include songs, activity pages, the bible lesson video, and memory verses. We pray this will help you find ways to engage your kids spiritually. It is written in script form from the K-2nd grade lesson, so you can read directly from it or change it to suit your children. Take some time to look at and print the activity pages and to review the lesson so you can adjust as needed. Once you are ready, go ahead and start with these songs if you would like, or pick some of your favorite worship songs and then jump right in! Have fun! And remember, this does not need to be done in one sitting! Feel free to break it up over the week. Please contact us at the church if you have any questions or suggestions. We would love to hear from you!
Opening
“Blessings and Bummers”
Let’s get started. Tell me, what have you seen the Lord doing in your lives this week? What have your greatest blessings been? How about your biggest challenges?
Parents share your blessings and bummers, encourage the kids to do the same. The goal is for kids to see God at work in the everyday, seemingly small and mundane things. It doesn’t matter if it is something as small as getting to watch a favorite TV show or something big like a new baby sibling being born, God is active and in our midst.
Prayer
Let’s go to the Lord in prayer: Father God, Thank you. Thank you for providing for our needs. You are so good to us even though we do not deserve it! Thank you for continuing to bless us, Lord. Thank you for being patient with us. Thank you to our friends as well as our families. Most importantly, we thank you always for sending Jesus to live a perfect life and die to pay for our sins. Thank you for raising Him from the dead and promising us life with you forever if we believe in Him. Please help us be thankful for all you do for us and look to you in all that we do. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
(Please add to or customize prayer time to fit your family)
Praise the Lord for hearing our prayers!
Let’s go!
Say Hi, there! Are you ready to learn more about God and His creation? Let’s get started! Have you ever had a day that started out so rotten you wished you could just climb back in bed and start over? [Allow kids to respond.] Sometimes there isn’t anything we can do to change what is happening, but you can go to sleep at night and have a fresh start the next day. Today, we are going to hear about a time God gave the world a fresh start.
If you brought your Bible, hold it up. [Provide Bibles for kids who need one.] Can anyone tell me what the Bible is about? [Allow kids to respond.] The Bible is God’s Word. It tells us the wonderful story of God’s plan to rescue sinners.
The Bible tells us what is true about God and about ourselves. Sin entered the world and spread, but how deeply did sin spread? Today’s Bible story will help us understand. But first, let’s review our Big Picture Question.
Big Picture Question
Our big picture question is, What does it mean to sin? To sin is to think, speak, or behave in any way that goes against God and His commands. I’ll say the question, and then you say the answer: What does it mean to sin? [Allow kids to respond.] To sin is to think, speak, or behave in any way that goes against God and His commands.
As you hear today’s Bible story, think about how sin affects every person.
Review
SAY: Before we go into the story, let’s consider what we’ve covered so far:
We learned that everything changed when sin entered the world. After Adam and Eve sinned, God promised to give Eve a descendant who would put an end to the curse of sin. But sin spread, leading to Cain’s rebellion and Abel’s death. What now? Adam and Eve had another son: Seth. Genesis 5 tells us that Seth had sons and daughters. New generations came, but we see God’s judgment against sin as each generation also died.
As the population of the earth grew, people did not get closer to God. Life on earth did not get better. In fact, God saw that human wickedness was widespread, and everyone thought evil thoughts all the time.
That’s where today’s Bible story picks up. Let’s hear why God spared Noah.
Bible Lesson
SAY: The story of Noah is well known, but as you see it is not primarily about animals going on a boat. This is a story about a time God judged the world and the grace He showed to Noah.
People were constantly choosing to turn away from God. God had created people to be in a close relationship with Him, but sin was ruining everything. How did God feel about sending His judgment on the world? Look at Genesis 6:6. [Choose a volunteer to read aloud Gen. 6:6.] God was deeply grieved. He wasn’t just angry; He was heartbroken.
God loves people, and He loved them too much to allow them to continue in their sin. So He decided to send a flood as judgment for sin, and He graciously chose to rescue Noah. Noah obeyed God by faith and built an ark. After Noah, his family, and the animals were on the ark, what did God do for them? Look at Genesis 7:16. [Choose a volunteer to read aloud Gen. 7:16.] God shut the door. The world was covered with water, but God kept Noah and everyone on the ark safe.
God judges sin and provides salvation to those who trust in Him. We saw God’s judgment of Adam, Eve, the serpent, and creation in Genesis 3. God judged Cain for murdering his brother in Genesis 4. Genesis 5 gives a list of people who lived from Adam and Noah, and each person died as a result of God’s judgment. Genesis 6–9 shows God’s judgment poured out to wipe away people’s wickedness. But all along, we also saw God providing grace.
When Noah finally came off the ark, what was the first thing he did? Look at Genesis 8:20. [Choose a volunteer to read aloud Gen. 8:20.] Noah worshiped God. Noah’s response to being saved from God’s judgment was to worship. God saves us from His judgment when we trust in Jesus. Salvation isn’t something we can earn; it is a gracious gift from God. Our right response is worship.
Christ Connection
SAY: God rescued Noah and his family from the flood. The story of Noah points ahead to a greater rescue. God’s Son, Jesus—the only perfectly righteous One—came to take the punishment for our sin. By trusting in Him, we are saved from the punishment our sin deserves.
Bible Time!
Distribute Bibles and display the Old Testament Mediterranean Sea map. Guide kids to open their Bibles to Genesis 8. Explain that Noah was in the ark for about five months until the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat (EHR uh rat). Point to the B12 area on the map.
Consider comparing the Old Testament Mediterranean Sea to a modern-day map to help kids understand where these stories took place. (Tip: Locate the areas between modern-day Turkey and Armenia.) Choose a volunteer to read aloud Genesis 8:18-20.
Say: Imagine being in an ark for 150 days! Noah worshiped God by making a burnt offering—not only because the water had gone down on earth but because God had kept him and his family safe from the flood in which so many other people had died.
DISCUSSION
Ask the following questions. Lead the group to discuss.
Say: Can we earn God’s favor? Why or why not?
Prompt kids to recall how Noah received God’s favor. Noah was not sinless; he was declared righteous because God chose to show him favor, and Noah responded in faith. Then God declared Noah righteous. God gives us righteousness as a gift when we respond to Jesus in faith.
(Option: Choose a volunteer to read Eph. 2:8-9.)
Say: Is God a God of judgment or a God of grace? Why do you think that?
Help kids recognize that God’s judgment does not come without love and grace. God clothed Adam and Eve, and they did not die immediately. God placed a mark of protection on Cain. God showed grace to Noah and his family. We see throughout the Bible that God is both gracious and just.
(Option: Choose a volunteer to read John 5:24.)
Say: What has God saved you from? How should you respond?
Remind kids that Noah was not spared from God’s judgment against sin because of anything he had done but because of God’s grace alone. Noah’s right response was to completely surrender to God. God wants us to totally surrender to Him. He is our loving and all-powerful God. God has saved us from death and separation from Him. In Jesus, we have forgiveness and life with God forever. We are right to respond with obedience and worship, living for Him and His glory.
(Option: Choose a volunteer to read Rom. 12:1.)
Key Memory Verse
Show the key passage poster. Lead kids in reading aloud Romans 3:23 together.
Then cover two words with sticky notes and challenge kids to read the verse aloud, supplying the missing words from memory. Continue covering up two words at a time, allowing kids to say the key passage in its entirety. Allow volunteers to individually recite Romans 3:23 from memory.
SAY: What does it mean to sin? To sin is to think, speak, or behave in any way that goes against God and His commands. We all have sinned and need a Savior.
Lead kids to sing “For All Have Sinned (Romans 3:23).” You may also choose to sing a worship song of your choice.
That is all I have for this week. Let’s pray together:
SAY: Lord God, thank You for Your Word. In the story of Noah, we see that You are gracious and just. We confess that we have sinned and need a Savior. Thank You for providing salvation through Jesus. Help us follow You in faith. Amen.
Thanks for joining us! I hope to meet you here again next week!
Thank you to Lifeway for allowing us to publish this lesson using their Gospel Project materials.
