YEA Lesson Library
The Signal
About This Lesson
This lesson teaches that there are several signs prophesied to occur prior to the return of Jesus Christ and enumerates them from Revelation 8 and 9.
Scriptures
Leviticus 23:23-25
Leviticus 23:24
Zechariah 13:8-9
Matthew 24:30-31
1 Corinthians 15:52
Revelation 6:12-14
Revelation 8:1-13
Revelation 9:1-21
Words to Know
COMMEMORATE - to celebrate by memorial
THE DAY OF THE LORD - a time of God's wrath on this earth
The Lesson
Jason's older brother, Brian, was coming home over the weekend. The whole family was anxious for his arrival. Brian had enlisted in a special unit of the army that trained dogs, and he'd been gone for several months now. When Brian last wrote his family he said he was bringing his new partner home with him. Everyone was excited to see Brian and curious about his new canine partner, Toby.
Jason was amazed at what Toby knew. Brian had a special whistle that he could blow in different ways to tell Toby what to do. Jason asked his brother how Toby could understand all those commands.
"Well, they start training them when they're just puppies. We use rewards when they respond correctly to our signals and before long they see the connection. If you think about it, it's not that different from training people. We learn that a red light means stop and letters have sounds associated with them pretty early in life. It's the same with dogs." Jason rubbed Toby behind the ears affectionately and Toby thumped his tail on the ground.
Just as Toby learned that certain signals require specific actions, God told the Israelites to use trumpets to signal different things. For Toby, two short blasts on the whistle mean sit. For the Israelites, blowing two trumpets meant the whole community was to assemble at the Tent of Meeting.
Trumpets were used a lot of different ways in the Bible. They were used to gather the community or the leaders, as mentioned above, and they were also used in worship. Trumpets were used to make announcements, to lead men into war, and a trumpet will be used to announce the Feast of Trumpets and Christ's return when the saints are resurrected from the dead (I Corinthians 15:52).
The Feast of Trumpets' lesson title a year ago was Grab the Rope. We learned that the Feast of Trumpets pictures the return of Christ to this earth as a rescue mission. World conditions will be horrible at that time. The world will be on the brink of utter destruction and Christ will return to save His people. But could Christ come tonight? Are there signals that will let you know His coming is soon?
Jesus' disciples clearly expected that there would be some prior indication that Jesus' return was imminent. He spoke to them of the destruction of the Temple. The disciples came to Him privately on the Mount of Olives and asked Him, "Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" (Matthew 24:3). Then Jesus put together a comprehensive list of events that will take place before He returns.
One of the things that will happen will be a sequence of seven trumpets or The Signal that is mentioned in the book of Revelation. The first six trumpets are described in the eighth and ninth chapters of Revelation. It begins with the opening of the seventh and last seal followed by a short period of silence.Then John saw seven angels standing before God and they were given seven trumpets.
The angels then sounded their trumpets in sequence and the following happened when each trumpet sounded: (I) "There was hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth; And the third part of trees were burnt, and all green grass was burnt up" (verse 7). (2) It was like a great mountain burning with fire and was cast into the sea. A third part of the sea became blood: a third part of the living creatures in the sea died; and a third part of the ships were destroyed (verses 8 and 9). (3) A great star named wormwood falls on the rivers of waters and a third part of them are made poison (verses 10, 11). (4) A third part of the sun, moon, and stars go dark (verse 12).
The fifth, sixth, and seventh trumpets consist of the "three woes" (Revelation 9:1-21). This is the ultimate war. If Jesus did not intervene to stop the third woe, it would mean, quite literally, the end of the world.
Since we're looking for events that will happen just before Jesus* return, let's look carefully at the sixth trumpet in Revelation 9:13-16, "And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great River Euphrates. And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men. And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them."
This is an army of very specific size - 200 million men! In the specific time of one year, one month, one day, and one hour, one-third of the earth’s population will be slain! This sounds like something out of science fiction. This will be The Signal of Christ's return because it is to take place just before He comes back. Jesus Christ could not come tonight because these events haven't taken place. But how long do you think it will be before we see The Signal?
Zechariah 13:8, 9 says. "two-thirds will be struck down and perish; yet one-third will be left in it. This third I will bring into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold.They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, 'They are my people,' and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’" Think about it. We don't sacrifice any offerings with fire at this time, however we ourselves are sacrifices to God. We are brought through a type of refining fire: trials and tribulations. Through these things we are brought closer to God and made stronger. Celebrate the Feast of Trumpets with joy and make yourself ready for the return of Christ. Now think about this. How long do you think it will be before we see The Signal? Will you be ready?
Student Prayer
Dear Lord in heaven,
Teach us to accept the refining fire of hardship and trial each day and prepare for your return in gladness. We put our trust and hope in you.
In Jesus' name I pray.
Amen.
Daily Devotions
Sunday - Leviticus 23:23-25
Monday - Revelation 8:1-13
Tuesday - Zechariah 13:8-9
Wednesday - 1 Corinthians 15:52
Thursday - Revelation 9:1-21
Friday - Matthew 24:30-31
Saturday - Revelation 6:12-14
Objectives
At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
1. List the seven trumpets that are The Signal of Christ's return.
2. Explain how the Feast of Trumpet connects with the return of Christ.
3. Give ways we can prepare ourselves for Christ's return.
Topics & Themes
Feast of Trumpets
God’s Love
Holy Days, Feast of Trumpets
Jesus, Return of
Preparing for Jesus’ Return
Trumpet
Materials Needed
Bible, YEA students" and teacher's books, attendance and memory verse charts, music player and CD or cassette, songbook, paper, pencils, newsprint pad, marker, timer, concordances, map showing the Euphrates River with surrounding countries
How to Teach This Lesson
Divide the class into groups of four. Give each group two pieces of paper. Instruct the groups to write what happens when each of the seven trumpets are blown on one piece of paper. On the second piece of paper have them list ten good things that will result because of Jesus Christ returning to this earth. They can use their Bibles, YEA students books, and a concordance. Give them about ten minutes to do this. Set your timer. When the timer goes off, have the students return to their seats that are arranged in a semicircle. Now have each group give as many of the seven trumpets as they can. As they give them, write them on the newsprint pad.
Debrief - How did you feel about writing down the events that will happen when each of the seven trumpets are blown? How was this experience like or unlike other experiences you’ve seen or had? How bad do you think this world is going to get before Christ returns? How do you feel about the seven trumpets being blown? Which of the seven trumpets takes place in theEuphrates River? Who can find it on the map? What countries front on the Euphrates River?
Warfare- What kind of warfare do you think will take place just before Christ returns? Ask a student to read Revelation 9:1-6? What kind of warfare would bring this much pain, yet not kill a person? What does all of this sounds like? What does this mean to you? Why do you think it will be necessary for Christ to return? How do you feel about Christ coming in your lifetime. How many of you would prefer that Christ delay His coming and not return in your lifetime? Could He come tonight? Why or why not? Will this be the “end of the world?" Why, or why not? Who will be spared from these horrible events?Ask a student to read Revelation 7:1-3.
Application - Ask a student to read Matthew 24:36, 42-44. Ask: What do you think Christ meant when He said "you must be ready"? Is He talking about buying out half the grocery store or hiding food and water in your home? What else could He be talking about? What ways can we make ourselves ready for the return of Christ? Ask for volunteers to read 1 Timothy 6:18 (KIV), 1 Peter 3:14-15, and Zechariah 13:8, 9. Think about it. We don't sacrifice any offerings with fire at this time, however we ourselves are sacrifices to God. We are brought through a type of refining fire: trials and tribulations. What does that mean to you? Have you ever been a in a situation where someone asked you about your faith and you didn't know what to tell them? What can we do to be more prepared? Do you think doing this will also help us comfort those who feel scared and confused during the Day of the Lord? Ask for a volunteer to read Jude 20-23. How do you think preparing ourselves for the return of Christ will affect our spiritual growth right now? What is the reward for those who are baptized and have overcome? (They will enjoy the most exciting time known to man - the first resurrection and a millennium in God’s Kingdom). How badly do you want to spend 1,000 years with Christ?
Second Part of the Beginning Activity - Now ask each group to give their list of ten good things that will happen as a result of Christ's return. Write these on the newsprint pad. Ask: Is it worth it to change and prepare your life to please God so that you will be in the first resurrection at Christ’s return? Will you do it?
Teacher-Directed Activity
Have students demonstrate the codes they used to make the Feast of Trumpets.
REACH Activity
Memory Verse Spotlight: Leviticus 23:24
Look up the words “trumpet blasts.” Write down the Hebrew word and its meaning.
Then find three other Scriptures where this word is used. Does it really, literally, say “trumpet”? Do some research about the name Yom Teruah. What does it literally mean? Write what you find in your Bible notebook.
Where in the World? Jesus’ Return
Find the scriptures which talk about Jesus’ return. Where will His feet stand? Where is this place? Should we all move to that location to be there when He comes back? Will we miss out if we don’t? Why or why not?
They Did What Back Then? What Will Be the Sign?
Jesus’ disciples wanted to know what the sign would be that He would soon be back. They were ready for Roman occupation to end. They were ready for Jesus to rule, to establish His kingdom on this earth. And so are we all! So when Jesus gives His answer to them, we all tend to perk up our ears and listen. And then we try to figure out if those signs have happened or are about to happen.
But. What if we could figure out exactly all the signs and figure out exactly when Jesus will come back, but we didn’t have a close relationship with Him - would it matter? So what if we put our heads down and worked very hard to be obedient to Him, serving Him, spreading the gospel, honoring Him and we didn’t figure out exactly when He is coming back, would it matter?
Maybe instead of spending so much time on prophecy, we’d be much better off trying to do what is pleasing to God, getting close to Him, trusting Him, praising Him, honoring Him.
What do you think? Write about this in your Bible notebook.
Making It Mine: Jesus’ Return
My dad told the three of us kids to clean up the house one afternoon. When we got home from school, we were supposed to pick up all of our stuff and put it away. The living room was supposed to be straightened up. The carpet was supposed to be vacuumed. And he told us it had to be done by 4:00. But he wouldn’t tell us why. We knew that Dad got home from work around 6:00 every night, so we played around and at 4:00, when Dad walked in the front door, we weren’t done. The vacuum cleaner was still in the living room. We hadn’t finished cleaning. Oh, we were in big trouble. We didn’t expect Dad to come home that soon.
I’ve never forgotten that lesson. We may think that we know when Jesus is coming back. We’ve read the Bible and we have heard people putting together timelines and things that have to happen. But I keep thinking about the warning that Jesus gave His disciples - He’ll catch us by surprise if we’re not diligent to do what we’re supposed to do.
If you have a relationship with God, if you want to be commended by Him when Jesus returns, now is the time to start. Don’t wait until later. Value your relationship with God enough to start now. Do what He says. Honor Him now. You may not have a chance to later. Write about this in your Bible notebook.
Worldview Collisions: Jesus’ Return
There are so many ideas about the return of Jesus. There’s an old joke that where there are three Jews, there are four opinions between them. That’s kind of how it is with people who love God - or who at least say they love God. Some say that Jesus is coming back soon. Some say it could be on the Last Day of Unleavened Bread. Some claim Pentecost is the day of Christ’s return. Many believe that it is the Feast of Trumpets. All of these people have scriptures they point to and have well-reasoned arguments for why they believe what they do. So what should you do? Well, here’s a suggestion:
You know that Jesus is coming back. You can support that from the Bible. You know that the angels will gather those who belong to Jesus from the four corners of the Earth. You can support that from the Bible. You know that God chooses His people. You can support that from the Bible. Your job is to be as obedient as possible to what God has commanded. Does He command His people to figure out when He’s coming back? He says to watch. But He also says that no man knows the day or the hour. Pay attention to what’s going on, but do the job that He’s given you to do. He’ll worry about the rest.
Write about this topic in your Bible notebook. Add some scriptures that come to mind.
Questions
As you’re working through the YEA lesson, Daily Devotionals, doing the activity, or reading the Bible, be sure to write down any questions you have. That way you’ll remember to ask someone. Also remember to share the really interesting things you’re learning with family and friends.
Song
"Be Not Afraid" is on page 86 of The Group Songbook.
Closing Prayer
Have the students form a circle and hold hands. Ask for a volunteer to lead the class in the closing prayer asking God to help them to be ready for His return.
Printable Pages
