Spring Break is upon us and, hopefully, that means some extended time together as a family! We hope that your family is continuing to march along with us as we make our way through this year’s Journey! Whether you’re with us or not, it’s always a good time to have fun learning more about God’s Word and, as a result, about God’s great love for us! Plan a couple of nights over the next week where your family can take some time to learn from the books of Joshua, Judges and Ruth about a God who goes before us to defeat our enemies and patiently provides for the ones He loves!
Family Guide for Volume 4, Episode 1: Finally, the Promised Land
- What is the name of the first section of the books of the Old Testament? (Pentateuch) What is the name of the next section of books in the OT? (History) How many books are in that section? (12)
- Do you remember the 3 promises that God made to Abraham? (make him a great nation, promised land, and bless the whole world through him) Which promise did God keep in the book of Joshua? (He gave the people the land) What is the name of the land that God gave to the people of Israel? (Canaan)
- Why did God take away the land from the people living in Canaan and give it to the people of Israel? Wasn’t it their land first? (No, the whole world belongs to God. He can give it to who He wants and the people of Canaan had chosen to worship false gods)
- Why did God allow the people of Israel to kill the people in the land of Canaan? (Because those people were against God and, like all of us, deserved death as the payment for their sin)
- Phil said that better than asking the question, “Why did the Canaanites get what they deserved for their sin?” we should ask the question, “Why has God NOT given us what we deserve for our sin?” Talk about that question for a few minutes as a family. Afterwards, read Romans 5:6-11 in the New Living Translation and let member of your family pray and thank Jesus for dying for our sins so that we can be friends with God!
Family Guide for Volume 4, Episode 2: Cycle of Misery
- Why is the name of the next book of the Bible called Judges? (Because it tells the story of the judges that God placed over Israel to lead them) How many judges does the book of Judges tell us about? (12) Who is the most well-known of the judges? (Samson)
- What did the judges actually do? (Joshua died at the end of the book of Joshua, so the judges were there to lead the people back to God when they were making bad choices)
- Can you explain what the “Cycle of Apostasy” is? (The Israelites would start out worshiping God, then they would start to worship the false gods of Canaan, then God would allow the Canaanites to capture the Israelites to punish them, then the Israelites would ask God to help them, and God would provide a judge who would deliver them from the Canaanites, and the people would worship God again before the whole thing started all over again) Why do you think that God kept giving the people of Israel a judge or rescuer after they kept messing up over and over again? (Because He loved them and He keeps His promises even when people don’t)
- What is the book of Ruth about? (It’s the story of a girl named Ruth and how she was rescued and married by Boaz) Why is the book of Ruth in the Bible? (Because it is a great example of redemption as Boaz paid the debt for Naomi and Ruth. It also introduces us to the family that God will use to give Israel a godly King, King David)
- Print out the “Popsicle Stick Theater” characters from the What’s in the Bible? website and help your kids reenact the story of Ruth and Boaz! Make it fun and creative, but most importantly, make it obvious that just like Boaz redeemed Ruth, God sent Jesus to redeem us and save us!
For those who are new, be sure to check out these tips for planning your “Family Journey Time” as well as the What’s in the Bible? viewing schedule so you’ll know when to watch the next set of videos. If you need help with how to access or purchase the videos, click here and/or come see us at the Kids Welcome Desk on Sunday!