VERSES: Exodus 7:1-13
MEMORY VERSE: Exodus 7:12 "...but Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods."
BIBLE BOOK TO REMEMBER: Hosea. Write "Hosea" on small slips of paper and pass out at the end of the class.
PRAYER: May we always obey God as we live on this earth each and every day, knowing that there will be a time when we are accountable for all the things that we do and say. Let us be patient and kind to one another.
SPECIAL SONG: Read, Read Every Day (see February - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #1 on this blog), and Be Patient And Kind (see April - Lesson - Joseph Meets His Brothers Who Hated Him on this blog).
VISUAL AID: Whiteboard or Chalkboard Drawing (see Activity below or draw Moses and Aaron standing before Pharaoh and Aaron throwing his rod to the ground.)
LESSON POINTS:
- From what we have been studying, it sounds like Pharaoh will never let the children of Israel leave Egypt. He knew that God's people were great in number and if Pharaoh let them leave, he would have no one to make his bricks. Perhaps He thought that they would never come back. What little Pharaoh thought he might know about the LORD, his thinking changes; in fact what all the Egyptians think about God changes. God wanted the Egyptians to know who He is.
- God told Moses in advance that certain events were going to happen. God knows the future and could tell things to people in advance if He choose to tell them. Now He tells us what is going to happen in the Bible. All we need to do is read it! Remember God told Abraham and Sarah that they were going to have Isaac -- and they did! God told Joseph what was going to happen to the baker and the butler in advance--and it all happened exactly like God said it would! God knows everything! So, God talked to Moses, Moses told Aaron what God said, and Aaron then told Pharaoh to let God's people go out of the land of Egypt. God said that by hardening Pharaoh's heart that it would result in many signs and wonders performed in Egypt, but still Pharaoh would not listen to Moses. God said that in the end, the Egyptians would know that the LORD is God, not the sun or moon or stars like they worshiped as idols. Moses and Aaron did exactly as God told them to do.
- Let's turn our Bibles to Exodus 7:7 and find out how old Moses and Aaron were when they spoke to Pharaoh. (Read verse.) Let's place our bookmarks right here. How old was Moses? 80 years old! How old was Aaron? 83 years old! Which brother was older? Aaron!
- God then told Moses and Aaron what would happen when they went in to see Pharaoh. God told them that Pharaoh would ask for a miracle, then Moses should say to Aaron, "Throw down your rod!" Everything that God said would happen, happened exactly that way! All Pharaoh's servants were with him the day that Moses and Aaron walked into his palace. Pharaoh asked for a miracle to be performed just like God had told them in advance. Moses told Aaron to throw his rod down on the ground just like Moses had shown the children of Israel and guess what Aaron's rod turned into? That's right! A snake! Well! Pharaoh called in all of his wise men and his magicians and had them throw down their rods, too. Guess what they became? That's right! Snakes! BUT...Aaron's snake swallowed all of the other snakes up!! And even after seeing all of this miracle, do you think that Pharaoh let the people go? NO! Pharaoh said, "NO! I will NOT let the people go!"
- We will see next time what God does about Pharaoh's disobedience--about Pharaoh saying, "NO!" to God. When we say, "No!" to God, we know there are always consequences!
"Older Student" Tips:
- God uses Pharaoh's hard heart to show all of the land of Egypt that it is the LORD who is control and God wants the Egyptians to know who He is. God uses nations to do His will.
- Sometimes we think of Moses and Aaron as being young men when all this was happening, but they were 80 and 83. By having Exodus 7:7 in the Bible, we can learn, not only how old they were when they spoke to Pharaoh, but how much older Aaron was than Moses. Aaron was older by how much? Three years! So when Moses was placed in the ark that was in the river, Moses' brother was only three years old! Amazing facts that are in the Bible!
- Talk about disobedience to God. Life is always harder when we do not obey God as Pharaoh and his people will see in their very near future. There are consequences to disobeying God. Discuss Adam and Eve, the wicked people in the flood, and the terribly evil people in Sodom and Gomorrah. There were, are, and always will be consequences for sin.
Materials needed: 6" x 18" green construction paper, 3" x 18" red, yellow, and orange construction paper, scissors, stapler and staples or glue, crayon.
- Pass out green construction paper.
- Fold green paper in half, length-wise.
- Being very careful NOT to cut on the fold, cut out a long snake.(see picture at top).
- Staple the open side of the green paper, leaving the 'head of the snake' open to "swallow up" the magicians' rods-that-turned-into-snakes.
- From the red paper, cut out a long, skinny snake.
- From the orange paper, cut out a long skinny snake.
- From the yellow paper, cut out a long, skinny snake.
- Draw eyes on all snakes.
- Write "Aaron's Rod" and "Exodus 7:8-12" on the green snake.
- Have Aaron's Rod "swallow" up the other snakes.