YEA Lesson Library

Objectives

At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. State why Miriam and Aaron began to speak against Moses - the real reason.

2. State what God's reaction was - what He said and did.

3. Relate Aaron’s reaction to Moses’ reaction.

4. Transfer the idea of respecting authority to his/ her own life.

Topics & Themes

Aaron
Authority
Consequences of Sin
Envy/Jealousy
God’s Judgment
Gratitude
Grumbling
Leadership
Leprosy
Miriam
Moses
Respect
Women
Miriam

Materials Needed

Bible, YEA Students' and Teacher's books, pencils and pens, attendance and memory verse charts, stars, songbook, music player, cassette or CD, blackboard and chalk, copies of skits (See Preparation).

Preparation

Students this age are just beginning to have a hard time with authority. As they grow increasingly independent, they also become more intolerant of restrictions from said authorities. Devise small skits to work through some of these issues in class. Here are four suggestions, but you can make your own skits. Plan to type these out and make as many copies as are needed.

Skit A: Teacher/Playground
Student A: Hey, you just kicked my ball into the parking lot! Now I've got to go get it!
Teacher: (Student's name), stay on the playground.
Student A: She can't be talking to me. I've got to get my ball.
Teacher: Hey, (student's name), don't run into that parking lot. Come here.
Student A: (walking up to teacher defiantly) What do you want?
Teacher: You know the rules. You can't run into the parking lot.
Student A: I've got to get my ball. Some idiot kicked it! I’m going to get it now.
Teacher: Get it later. It's too dangerous to get it now.

Skit B: Umpire/Baseball Game
Umpire: Strike!
Player 1: It was not!
Umpire: (After next pitch) Strike!
Player 1: Are you blind? That wasn't a strike!
Umpire: Listen, kid. I call them as I see them - both teams.
Player 1: Yeah? Well, you don't see too well.
Umpire: Yeah? You can watch the rest of the game from the bench, 'cause you're outta here!

Skit C: Policeman/Highway
Child 1: Mom! Is that policeman coming after you?
Mom: Yes, he is. That stupid cop! Doesn't he have anything better to do than bug people?
Child 1: He's just doing his job. You were speeding.
Child 2: Yeah, but I betcha he's gonna give her a ticket 'cause it's less scary than chasing a real bad guy.
Mom: Thanks, (child 2's name). But you know, one of the scariest times for a policeman is walking up to the window of a car, not knowing if a gun is waiting for him. And you know what else? I deserve a ticket for speeding. I was breaking the law, just like (child 1) said.

Skit D: Mom/Bedtime
Mom: Okay, kids. Bedtime.
Child 1: Ah, Mom. Just five more minutes?
Child 2: I need a snack.
Child 3: I want Dad to read a book to me.
Mom: Hey, guys! It's bedtime. No arguments.
Child 1: I don't want to.
Child 2: Do I have to?
Child 3: I'm going to ask Dad.

How to Teach This Lesson

After opening the class with prayer. Follow the outline for teaching this lesson.

Memory Verse - Start the class by having each student recite the memory verse.Then discuss it.

Ask: Does James 4:1-2 fit with what happened to Moses, Miriam, and Aaron? What was the last argument you had with someone? Did that argument fit James 4:1-2?

Complaining - Remind the students that in Lesson 8, the people complained about how hard the traveling was and how they missed the Egyptian food. Explain how the complaining continued with Aaron and Miriam.

The cause of the complaint - Miriam and Aaron started by complaining that Moses had married a Cushite. But the real cause was jealousy over Moses' leadership position.

God's reaction - God responded immediately by calling them to the Tent of Meeting. Read Numbers 12:6-8 aloud. God made it very clear that although Miriam and Aaron were in leadership positions, Moses' position was special because of his relationship with God. They should have been afraid to speak against Moses, but weren't. When the cloud lifted, Miriam was leprous.

Aaron's reaction - He turned to Moses. Discuss his reaction and Moses' reaction.

God's decree - Ask: Did God leave Miriam leprous? What was her punishment? Why? Compare God, our spiritual parent, with a physical parent.

Review Questions

1. Why were Miriam and Aaron really complaining against Moses?

2. How did God react to their disrespect?

3. When Miriam became leprous, what did Aaron and Moses do?

4. What did God decide to do about Miriam criticizing Moses?

5. Why should you always show the proper respect to those in authority over you?

Teacher-Directed Activity

Acting Out
Hand out one skit at a time to actors. It’s better for the spectators to listen to the words than read along with the actors. Apply James 4:1-2 to each
skit. Talk about why the authority figure did what he did. Discuss the child's reaction in each case and whether the reaction was good. Turn it around and find something to be thankful for; i.e., Skit 1: Be thankful there's a teacher who cares about children in danger of being run over. Skit 2: Be thankful the umpire tries to make fair calls for each team - without an umpire, the game would be spent arguing each pitch. Skit 3: Be thankful the police are there, ensuring that drivers slow down to prevent accidents, minimize the number of animals killed on the highway, and improve gas mileage. Skit 4: Be thankful for the mom who wants her children to get enough sleep so they will grow strong and healthy.

Disclaimer - Obeying those in authority over you does not free you from guilt if they tell you to do something that is against God's law; i.e., Hitler's SS men following his orders to exterminate the Jews. If what an authority figure tells you breaks God’s law, you should absolutely not obey. But this doesn't happen most of the time.

Gratefulness - Looking at the positive brings gratitude toward God and contentment.

REACH Activity

Back to the Bible: David and the LORD’s Anointed
Saul was very jealous of David. The people honored David more than Saul, to his way of thinking. When Saul was disobedient and Samuel told him the kingdom would be given to another, Saul didn’t repent; he tried to kill his successor. Saul spent a lot of time chasing David in order to kill him. At one point, Saul went into a cave to relieve himself. You can read the story in 1 Samuel 24:1-22. David has already been anointed to be king by Samuel. But David was unwilling to take by force what would someday be his, namely, by killing Saul. Look specifically at 1 Samuel 24:6. David might have thought that Saul was insane, but David respected the position that Saul was in and the fact that God put Saul there. If God put him in that position, it would have to be God that took him out of that position. David was going to show some respect!

Write your thoughts about this whole story in your Bible notebook.

Journal Jot: Respect and Competence
Have you ever watched someone completely mess up the job they were attempting to do? How did you react? Did you show them grace? Did you ask if you could help? Maybe it was something you couldn’t help with, so you couldn’t offer assistance. Nevertheless, you can always show them the respect they deserve. “Wait a minute,” you might say. “I’m expecting them to do a good job and they are completely messing it up. Why should I show them respect?” Here are a couple of things to think about: 1) Everyone makes mistakes sometimes. And sometimes, when you’re having a really bad day, things just go from bad to worse. You can’t seem to do anything right. But that’s not normally how you do things. If you know that sometimes happens to you, you know it can happen to someone else. Show them some grace. 2) If you are in charge of that person, you put them in that position of authority, then you have the right to correct them or fire them. But even then, you do not have the right to disrespect another person. 3) The Golden Rule says that you should treat others the way you want to be treated. No one likes to be disrespected, even if they are incompetent. Be very careful about showing disrespect; you might someday find yourself doing a job where you look really incompetent. 4) Everyone has to start somewhere. You go to school. You have on-the-job training, but we live in a complicated world. Technology changes constantly. Even experts in an area can sometimes need to learn more to stay proficient in their field. 5) God expects you to respect those who are in authority over you. You don’t get to disrespect them just because you think you could do a better job. You respect the position even if you don’t respect the character of the person in the position.

Maybe you can think of other reasons why you should show respect. Think about this topic. Write down other reasons, or build on the ones above. Think of scriptures which relate to this topic. Write about it in your Bible notebook.

Word Study: Fight and Quarrels - polemoi and machai
From the memory verse in James 4:1 we see the Greek words for “fight” and “quarrels.” The first, translated “fight,” means “war, battle, strife, dispute.” It’s the Greek word polemoi. In Greek mythology, Polemos was a demon; a divine personification or embodiment of war. We get our English word, “polemics” from this Greek word. Never heard of this word? “A polemic is something that stirs up controversy by having a negative opinion, usually aimed at a particular group. A piece of writing can be a polemic, as long as it gets someone's goat. Polemic comes from the Greek polemikos meaning ‘warlike, belligerent.’ It's like challenging someone to a duel of ideas.”

A similar word is translated “quarrels” in some translations. It’s the Greek machai. It means “a battle, conflict; in the spear of words, strife contention, quarrel.”

In other words, both of these terms refer more to the verbal conflict and exchange of words than physical engagement, although both have their origin in battle. Write these words, their definition, and where they can be found in your Bible notebook.

(Sources: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/polemic; https://biblehub.com/greek/4171.htm; https://biblehub.com/greek/3163.htm)



Just Toolin’ Around: Researching Gratitude
Your student activity says that gratitude is an antidote for disrespect and rebellion. Can you find Biblical support for that idea? Look up gratitude or gratefulness or thanksgiving in a concordance or other Bible reference tool. See what you can find about how an attitude of gratitude can change your entire outlook, and subsequently, your entire life direction. Oh, and while you’re at it, look up what Deuteronomy 28:47 has to say about the topic.

Write down what you find, along with scripture references, in your Bible notebook. It would make a great family discussion on a Friday night. Teens aren’t the only ones who need a reminder to show respect to people, especially people who are not competent or who don’t agree with your worldview. Discuss how to deal with your feelings of frustration with your family.

Did you Know? Leprosy
What we call leprosy today is not what the Bible defines as leprosy. First of all, the hair in the infected spots rarely turns white (Leviticus 13:13, 25) in today’s leprosy (also called Hansen’s disease). Furthermore, Hansen’s disease advances with more and more numbness. The Bible never mentions this as a characteristic. Biblical leprosy could clear up without treatment (Leviticus 14:3), but Hansen’s disease cannot. “It is more likely then, that Biblical ‘leprosy’ refers to a group of infectious conditions under the category of ‘scaly’ skin diseases.” (Source: NIV Archaeological Study Bible, 2005, p. 171)

Do some more research into this topic and write what you find in your Bible notebook?

Stretch It Out: Lesson Learned
Create a side-by-side comic strip. On the left side do three or four blocks showing the action of Aaron and Miriam confronting Moses; God’s punishment of leprosy; Aaron’s immediate repentance; God’s statement of duration of punishment and why. On the right side, do three or four blocks showing a current event of someone disrespecting authority, punishment, reaction, resolution. Add color. Display in your home or in your Sabbath School classroom.

Music Notes: Come, Ye Thankful People, Come
This hymn is on page 139 of the CEM Hymnal.

The text for this hymn was written by Henry Alford specifically for English harvest festivals. Henry is “generally regarded as one of the most gifted Christian leaders of the nineteenth century, distinguishing himself as a theologian, scholar, writer, poet, artist, and musician.” At the age of 16, he wrote on the inside cover of his Bible, “I do this day, in the presence of God and my own soul, renew my covenant with God, and solemnly determine henceforth to become His, and to do His work as far as in me lies.” He rose rapidly from one position to another in the church until he became Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, where he remained for 14 years, until his death in 1871.

“It is said that at the end of a hard day’s work, as well as after every meal, it was customary practice for Dean Alford to stand to his feet and give thanks to God for the blessings just received or enjoyed during the day. This spirit of perpetual gratitude is clearly evidenced throughout this hymn.”

The music for this hymn was composed by George Elvey. He was a boy singer at Canterbury Cathedral. Later he became the choir director there and the organist at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor for 47 years!! He was knighted by Queen Victoria in 1871 for “his many years of faithful service to the royal family as well as for his various musical publications." (Sources: Near to the Heart of God, 2010, March 27th and 101 More Hymn Stories, Kenneth Osbeck, 1985, p. 66-67.)

Sing this hymn and then make a card to send to someone who needs some encouragement from these words.

Questions?
Write down any questions you have in your Bible notebook so that you can remember to ask your parents or your pastor.

Song

"Heavenly Father, I Appreciate You" is on page 82 of the Kids Classics Collection.

Closing Prayer

Lead the students in prayer asking God for the wisdom to know when they have been disrespectful to an authority figure and for His help in learning to be thankful in every situation.