YEA Lesson Library
Celebrate With Joy
About This Lesson
This lesson teaches how the consequence of Israel and Judah’s disobedience led to their captivity. Once in Babylon, God’s people repented. God made a way for them to return to the land under King Cyrus. Similarly, when we sin, God makes a way for us to be reconciled to Him through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Scriptures
Leviticus 23:4-8
Numbers 28:17-25
Deuteronomy 16:2-8
Ezra 1 - 6
Ezra 6:22
Matthew 16:12
John 6:48-58
1 Corinthians 4:3-8
Words to Know
NEBUCHADNEZZAR - a king of Babylon
DARIUS - a later king of Persia
SLAVERY - when someone is the property of another person
The Lesson
Britney was so homesick! She liked staying with her friends, Ben and Kate. But she wanted to be home with her own things and in her own room. Britney's mom and dad had a conference to go to and Britney couldn't go. The conference was for adults. It would have been boring for kids her age. So Britney's parents left her at her friends' house. The first couple of days had been a lot of fun. Now Britney just wanted to go home.
Today's lesson is about God's people going into captivity and wanting to go home. Many years had passed since King David and King Solomon had died. Many kings had ruled over God's people. Sometimes the kings were good kings, who loved God and obeyed Him. But other times, they were bad kings. The bad kings led God's people into doing wrong things. God's people had started following other gods. They did not do the things that make God happy. Pretty soon, the bad kings were so bad, God had to do something about it. He sent them into slavery. King Nebuchadnezzar took them captive to Babylon.
It is not nice to be a slave. You have to do what you are told all the time. You are treated more like an animal than a person. Your master does not think about your feelings. You are never free to do what you want.
Being a captive in Babylon was worse than just being a slave. It meant God's people were far from home. They were in a strange country where they knew they did not belong. They wanted to go home.
Why would God do that to His people? God loves His people. Why would He do something that would make them so unhappy? Remember, it wasn't God who caused this. It was the people who caused this to happen because of the bad things they had done. They couldn't see how bad their sin was. They could not see how awful not obeying Him was. God loved His people so much that He wanted to teach them a lesson. He sent them into a strange place where things were really bad so they would see how much they needed God.
After a long time, the people realized how much they needed God. They told God they were sorry. They repented. They stopped doing the bad things. When they turned back to God, He helped them find a way to go back home. God made the heart of Cyrus (a Persian king who conquered Babylon) soft towards God's people. He let them go.
Some of the people of God were allowed to go back to Israel. After they got settled, the first thing they wanted to do was to rebuild God's house- -the Temple. It was hard to rebuild God's Temple. It was a lot of work. And there were people who did not want God's people to rebuild it. These enemies told Darius, a later Persian king, that rebuilding the Temple would only cause more problems. But God knew His people wanted to serve Him. So God made the heart of the king of Persia, Darius, soft towards His people so they could rebuild the Temple.
When the Temple was finished, the people celebrated the Days of Unleavened Bread. This is where your memory verse comes from. It says they celebrated with joy.
Do you think about celebrating the Days of Unleavened Bread with joy? You should. It is a very special time. It reminds us that God loves us so much. He wants us to live good and happy lives. If we are not doing things that make Him happy, He loves us enough to help us see how much we need Him. Even if it means making us suffer for a little while. Remember our story of Britney? Just as much as Britney wanted to go home, God wants us to come back to Him. He wants us to come home. That's one of the pictures of the Days of Unleavened Bread: God loves us enough to make a way for us to come home to Him and put His Son, Jesus Christ, into our lives.
It's a time to celebrate with joy!
Student Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for the Days of Unleavened Bread. Help me to celebrate them with joy.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.
Daily Devotions
Sunday: 1 Corinthians 4:3-8
Monday: Leviticus 23:4-8
Tuesday: Numbers 28:17-25
Wednesday: Deuteronomy 16:2-8
Thursday: Ezra 6:22
Friday: Matthew 16:12
Saturday: John 6:48-58
Objectives
At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
1. Tell about another example in the Bible when the Days of Unleavened Bread were celebrated.
2. State that the Days of Unleavened Bread remind us that Jesus is the Bread of Life.
3. Plan activities to make each day during the Days of Unleavened Bread special and joyful.
Topics & Themes
Babylon
Celebrate
Consequences of Sin
Cyrus
Darius
Days of Unleavened Bread
God’s Judgment
God’s Love
Holy Days, Unleavened Bread
Nebuchadnezzar
Obedience
Reconciliation
Repentance
Slavery
Temple
Materials Needed
Bible, YEA Students' and Teacher's books, attendance and memory verse charts, star stickers, CD and music player, songbook, seven small boxes for each child, tiny prizes, dry erase board and markers
Preparation
Sometimes we adults are so consumed with the Passover, examining ourselves, rededicating our lives, and reconfirming our covenant with the Lord, that we forget to make the holy days extra special to the children among us. They can see the Holy Days as just an extra day during the year when they have to sit still and be quiet during services, wait an interminably long time for their parents to finish talking to all the people, and aren't allowed to watch TV or play video games. It can be a really hard sell to convince our children that these days are joyful days, days for celebrating.
Before class, find tiny boxes, seven for each child in class. Make sure the boxes will fit inside each other (stackable). Then put a prize (like a sticker or bookmark) into the smallest one. Put another prize and the smallest box into the next largest box. Continue until you have six boxes inside the seventh box. Then, on the first holy day, give a box to the children. Tell them to open one box each day during the Days of Unleavened Bread to find something to remind them to celebrate and rejoice before God for His Holy Days.
How to Teach This Lesson
Homesick: Talk with the children about a time when they were homesick. Ask: Why were you away from home? How long were you away from home? How did you feel when you finally got home?
Sinning and slavery: After King David and King Solomon died, God's people had many kings--some good and some bad. Eventually all of the kings were so bad that God sent the Israelites into slavery. Then Judah was taken captive by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Why would God allow the people He loved to go into slavery? Talk about the people having a choice whether to obey God or not. They chose to disobey. God doesn't want His people to continue to sin. He will do what needs to be done to get their attention. Sometimes that means allowing someone to take them captive into slavery.
Repenting and Returning: It took a long time for the people to realize that they needed God and that they had sinned against Him. But when they repented and told God they were sorry, God allowed some of them to come back home to the land.
Rebuilding: Once the people were settled, they started to rebuild the Temple for God. It was hard work and there were people who tried to stop them. God was with them and they finished just as God's New Year was beginning. They dedicated the Temple. Then they celebrated the Days of Unleavened Bread with joy.
Sin and consequences: We still sin today. And there are still consequences to our sin. Sin is awful and God doesn't want it to be a part of our lives. It hurts us and it hurts our relationship with Him. We may not be slaves in another country, but there are still bad things that happen every time we sin.
Repent and Return: When we realize we’ve sinned, we need to tell God we're sorry. Then we try not to do that same thing again. God says He'll forgive us when we ask Him. Then God is pleased with us. Just like the people were allowed to come back to the land, Jesus makes us right with God.
Days of Unleavened Bread: Sometimes people don't realize what a blessing God's holy days are. They point us to what Jesus Christ is doing for us. The Days of Unleavened Bread remind us how God has provided a way for us to be one of God's children when we repent of our sins. These days remind us that Jesus is the Bread of Life. That is something to really celebrate.
Review Questions
1. What examples can you think of when the Days of Unleavened Bread were celebrated in the Bible?
2. Why were the people in Ezra celebrating with joy?
3. Why did God allow Nebuchadnezzar to take the Israelites captive into Babylon?
4. Why did God allow Kings Cyrus and Darius to let the people come back to the land?
5. What does this story remind us about our relationship with God?
6. What special things can you do every day during the Days of Unleavened Bread to make it a special and joyful celebration all week long?
Teacher-Directed Activity
Brainstorming a Week of Celebrating!
Have children give their ideas of what would make the Days of Unleavened Bread special and list them on the board. These may include special meals, making a card or picture for someone for each day, making coupons to give to your parents for special things you'll do for them each day, a list of things for your parents to do with you to make each day special (think of things that don't cost money, if possible), etc.
REACH Activity
Back to the Bible: Celebrating With Joy
Your memory verse comes from Ezra 6:22. “For seven days they celebrated with joy the Feast of Unleavened Bread . . .” Those three dots mean that there’s more to this verse. The next section says, “for the LORD had made them joyful . . .” Joy is a big topic in the Bible. It’s even one of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23. Have you ever thought about the fact that God wants you to be joyful? He isn’t a God who is harsh and mean. Our God is loving and merciful. He provides good things for His people. One of those good things is our celebration of His holy days.
With your family, brainstorm some ways that you can make the celebration of the Days of Unleavened Bread especially joyful this year. Be realistic and keep your celebration centered on honoring God.
Journal Jot: The Reason Why
Do you know why your family and your church family celebrate the Days of Unleavened Bread every year? If you do, write about it in your Bible notebook. Make sure you use scripture references to explain why it’s important to keep these holy days. If you don’t know, ask your parents to explain it to you. Then write this information down, with scriptures, so that you’ll remember the next time someone asks you why you keep these holy days.
Word Study: simchah
This Hebrew word means “joy, delight, pleasure, gladness, mirth.” This is the word that is used in 1 Samuel 18:6 and 1 Kings 1:40. When you read these accounts, you learn that this is not an average joy. This is full celebration. Write this word, its definition, and the scripture reference in your Bible notebook.
Just Toolin’ Around: The Temple
The Temple would have been the center of worship during all of God’s holy days. Using a Bible dictionary, encyclopedia, or other reference source, research the temple built by Solomon and the temple built during Ezra’s day. Compare and contrast the two. You may wish to display what you find in a chart or a Venn diagram.
Share the information with your sabbath class.
Did you Know? 70 Years
Solomon’s Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians when they captured Jerusalem in 586 B.C. The temple reconstructed by the returning exiles was known as Zerubbabel’s temple. It was completed around 515 B.C. - around 70 years later. This was the time decreed by God (Jeremiah 25:11; 2 Chronicles 36:21; Daniel 9:2).
Stretch It Out: Mapwork
Find a map of the Middle East region. Do some research to find out where Cyrus and Darius would have been ruling. Then figure out the distance from that location back to Jerusalem. In Ezra 7:8-9, we’re told that it took Ezra four months to travel from Babylon to Jerusalem. Copy the map and put it in your Bible notebook.
Music Notes: I Am Resolved
This hymn is found on page 90 of the CEM Hymnal.
The music to this hymn was written by a medical student who left school to become a traveling evangelist, James Henry Fillmore. He was not satisfied with the words he’d written with the tune; he wanted something stronger - something which would convey the necessity of being resolved to follow Jesus regardless of what obstacles we may encounter. He gave the music to his friend, Palmer Hartsough, who wrote the words we sing. (Source: Near to the Heart of God, Robert Morgan, 2010, June 1st.)
Are you resolved to follow our Savior? Write about this in your Bible notebook. Then sing this hymn. Then think about your essay in your Bible notebook. Do you have any thoughts you’d like to add?
Questions?
Remember to write down any questions that you think of as you are reading your lesson, daily devotionals, or doing the REACH activities. Plan to ask your parents or your pastor these questions.
Song
"Down In My Heart" is on page 69 of Kids Classics Collection.
Closing Prayer
Lead the children in prayer, thanking God for the Days of Unleavened Bread and how He has made a way for us to come back to Him.
Printable Pages
