"Thus Saith the Lord..." Ministries - November 2002 Children's Newsletter

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Vol. 1 Iss. 1 Current Vol First Issue Previous Next

INDEX:
New Testament Lesson - Jesus, and the First Few Disciples (John 1:35-51)
Old Testament Lesson - Joseph And Pharaoh's Dreams (Genesis 41)
Character Lesson
Memory Text
Nature Lesson - Corn plant
Health Lesson - External use of water
Coloring Page
Matching
Atbash
Unscramble
Learning Activities
PICTURE: A single pillar, automatically tiled in the index box, represents "the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth." (1 Timothy 3:15)..

CHILDREN'S NEWSLETTER - NOVEMBER 2002 NEWSLETTER

NEW TESTAMENT LESSON

Jesus, and the First Few Disciples (John 1:35-51)

The next day, John and two of his disciples were looking upon Jesus as He walked. John said, “Behold the Lamb of God!” And the two disciples heard John speak, and they followed Jesus.

After walking a little, Jesus turned and saw them following. Jesus said to them, “What are you looking for?” They said to Jesus, “Rabbi,” which is being interpreted to mean Master or a great teacher of God, “where are you dwelling?” Jesus said to them, “Come and see.” They then followed and saw where He dwelt. They stayed with Him that day because it was about the tenth hour of the day, which is about two hours before the sun would be setting.

One of the two which heard John speak and followed Jesus, was Andrew, who was Simon Peter's brother. Andrew quickly found his brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah,” which is interpreted to mean “the Christ.” “The Christ” was someone who was predicted from long ago to come to earth and save everyone from the penalty of sin, doing wrong when we know it is wrong. “The Christ” offers eternal life in heaven to all that believe in Him and also the power to do only that which is right.

And Andrew brought Simon Peter to Jesus. Now when Jesus saw Peter, Jesus said, “You are Simon the son of Jona. You will be called Cephas,” which is by interpretation to mean “a stone.”

The next day, Jesus went to Galilee and found Philip. Jesus said to him, “Follow me.” Now Philip was of the town Bethsaida, the same city as Andrew and Peter. Philip then found Nathanael, his brother, and said to him, “We have found Him -- the One that long ago Moses in the law and the prophets wrote about that should come. Jesus of Nazareth the son of Joseph is the one.” Nathanael said to Philip, “Can any good thing come out of the city of Nazareth?” Nazareth was a very bad city. A lot of people did very bad things there. But Philip said to Nathanael, “Come and see!”

Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him and said, “Behold, an Israelite in which there is no guile or lying!” Nathanael said to Jesus, “Since when do you know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree. I saw you there.” Now no ordinary person could see that far away. But Jesus was no ordinary person. He was God with us.

Nathanael answered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God. You are the King of Israel.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Just because I said to you that I saw you under the fig tree you believe? You are going to see greater miracles than these. Verily, verily, I say to you, from this moment on you shall see heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.” Now Jesus said this because many years before a man by the name of Jacob had a dream about a ladder that went from the earth to heaven with angels going up and down the ladder. The ladder represented the connection or bridge between heaven and earth. The only connection we have is Jesus. He is like that ladder.

PARENTS: Young children love repetition and so they will love to hear this story over and over again. We did our best to include something for all ages so where necessary, please assist your child or adjust it to make it more their level.

OLD TESTAMENT LESSON

Joseph And Pharaoh’s Dreams (Genesis 41)

At the end of two full years, Pharaoh had a dream. In the dream he stood by the main river known as the Nile. And up out of the river came seven cows that were big and healthy. They went and fed in a meadow. But then seven other cows came up out of the river, and they were thin and sickly. They stood by the other cows and then they ate up the seven big and healthy cows. Then Pharaoh woke up. After a moment, he fell back to sleep. Then he dreamed another dream. This time seven ears of corn grew on one stalk, which were strong and good. Then seven thin ears of corn appeared as if they were blasted with the east wind. The seven thin ears devoured the seven rank and full ears. Then Pharaoh woke up again and realized that it was just a dream.

Then in the morning Pharaoh was troubled. He called for the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams but none could tell Pharaoh what they meant. Then the chief butler told Pharaoh, “Today, I have remembered my forgetfulness. I promised something to a man in prison. A while back, Pharaoh was angry with his servants and put me in the captain of the guard's house along with the chief baker. Now each of us had a dream in the same night. In the morning, there was a young man, a Hebrew, who was the servant to the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams and he interpreted them. Just as he interpreted them, I was restored to my office and the chief butler was hanged.”

Then Pharaoh sent for Joseph. After he shaved and changed his clothes he came quickly to Pharaoh. When Joseph was standing before Pharaoh, Pharaoh said, “I have dreamed a dream, and there is no one that can interpret it. I have heard that you can understand a dream to interpret it.” And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It is not me but God that shall give Pharaoh an answer for peace.” So Pharaoh told Joseph his dreams.

Joseph then said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one. God has showed Pharaoh what He is about to do. The seven good cows means seven years, and the seven good ears of corn also mean seven years. The seven thin and ill cows are another seven years, and the seven empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years of famine. The dreams mean that there will come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt. Then there shall be seven years of famine after that. All the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt, and the famine will consume the land. The plenty shall be used up during the famine. And the dream was doubled because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly have it occur.

Now let Pharaoh find a man discreet and wise. Set him over the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh allow him to appoint officers over the land and take a fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous years and store it. Let them gather all the food during those good years and store up corn under the hand of Pharaoh and let them keep food in the cities. And that food shall be stored for the seven years of famine.

Then Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find anyone as this man in whom the Spirit of God is?” So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “As God has showed you all this, there is no one so discreet and wise as you are. You shall be ruler over my house and according to your word shall all my people be ruled. Only in the throne will I be greater than you.”

Then Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand and put it upon Joseph's hand and also arrayed him in clothes of fine linen, putting a gold chain around his neck. Pharaoh made Joseph to ride in the second chariot; and they cried before Joseph, “Bow the knee”. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh. Without you shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” And Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zaphnathpaaneah. And Pharaoh gave Joseph Asenath, the daughter of Potipherah, priest of On, as a wife. Joseph then went out over all the land of Egypt.

Joseph was thirty years old. During the seven plenteous years, the earth brought forth by handfuls, and he gathered up all the food of the seven years storing it up in the cities. Joseph gathered corn as great as the sand of the sea. And Joseph had two sons before the years of famine came. Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh because God had made him forget all his toil and all his father's house. And the name of the second was called Ephraim because God had made him to be fruitful in the land of his affliction. Then the seven years of famine began in all lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. And when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread. Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph. As he said to you, do.” And the famine was over all the face of the earth: Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold the food. And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph to buy corn because the famine was so great in all the lands.

CHARACTER LESSON

When John the baptist said, “Behold the Lamb of God”, he realized that all the people that used to listen to him would eventually follow Jesus instead. As the two disciples heard John speak, they followed Jesus. John was not jealous. There are people, even brothers and sisters that seem to get more attention or can do things better but there is nothing to be jealous about. The brothers or sisters that get more attention are usually much younger and only need the attention because they cannot do things themselves. When you were that age, you received just as much or even more attention then they do now. Also, those that are better at something than you should not disappoint you. God has a purpose for everyone if they only cooperate with Him. And He has given everyone just the ability that He needs them to have to do it.

Andrew quickly telling his own brother Simon that they have found the Messiah shows us that nothing else in the world really matters as much as believing in Jesus. Andrew did not stop to think if Peter would think him to be silly or foolish. Andrew simply left him know the truth. How important is Jesus to you? Should others know about Jesus too? Are you telling them?

Philip finding Nathanael, his brother, right away shows us how important it is to know Jesus and tell others. But Philip’s situation is different from Andrew’s in that Nathanael did not believe right away and wanted to argue. Philip did not argue. He simply told him to come see. This teaches us not to argue either - discussion is fine. But if someone gets angry, let them cool off before saying anything else.

Nathanael doubting that anything good can come out of a bad city showed a bit of prejudice. We should not automatically group people and expect that people cannot be different from where they come from. Just because a city may have a lot of problems does not mean everyone is doing bad things. It is true most of them are, but we must always allow someone to prove individually which side they are on - Satan or Jesus.

When Jesus told Nathanael that He saw him under a tree, Nathanael became a believer, but it required this miracle. We should believe without the signs and miracles. Once we make the decision, Jesus promises us that signs and wonders would confirm the decision.

Pharaoh calling for the magicians and wise men of Egypt to tell him what the dreams meant was a mistake. Now he did not know better but you do because you know about God. When we are troubled, we should turn to God and godly people. If your parents know God, they would be considered godly people that you can receive godly advice from. To just ask anyone for advice is to allow people that do not know God to lead you away from God a little at a time. So always look to God and godly people.

Joseph shaved and changed his clothes before seeing Pharaoh. This showed respect to a very important person. But there is someone more important than a king or president - God. When you go to church, you should always look your best and keep appearing your best by being careful.

Pharaoh said to Joseph that he was able to tell what dreams meant, but Joseph said that he did not know but God is the one that was speaking through him and knows the dream. Now Pharaoh did not know this. In fact, he was specifically told that Joseph was the one with the ability to do this. Joseph could have thought that it was no big deal, but to receive credit for something we do not do is actually stealing. And stealing from God is the worst type of stealing. So we should always give credit to the right person.

Now with the information about seven years of good time for gathering food followed by seven years of none, Joseph was given a plan to prepare for the future. Many do not consider this. They do not look ahead especially at what they do today as having an affect on future days. We should always be careful to make wise decisions today because it will help to have a good life tomorrow.

Pharaoh saying that there was none wiser or more discrete than Joseph was a compliment to him. Can the same be said of you? Are you wise or foolish? Jesus wants us to be like Joseph and be wise.

NATURE LESSON

CORN PLANT

Pharaoh dreamed about ears of corn. Seven good ears grew but then seven bad ears devoured the good ones. This represented seven years of a good harvest follow by seven years of famine. During the famine, all the good ears that were saved would be devoured or eaten.

Many years later, Jesus told a parable about ears of corn.

And He said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast or throw seed into the ground. And while the man slept and then rise night and day, the seed would spring and grow up, but the man would not know how. The earth brings forth fruit by herself -- first the blade, then the ear, and after that, the full corn in the ear. But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately the man puts in the sickle, which is an instrument to cut thick, tall plants, because the harvest is come. (Mark 4:26-29)

What did Jesus mean by telling this parable? The seed that the man threw, as Jesus told His disciples through another parable, is the Word of God or the Bible. The ground represents people’s hearts. Now the people that hear what the Bible says and believe what the Bible says, so much so that they follow it are called converted people - they do not want to continue doing bad things or selfish things, they want to do only those things pleasing to God.

Now how a person becomes converted is something a person does not know. We can read the same Bible words and talk about the same Bible words to more than one person, yet only one may become converted.

Now as the converted person continues to grow up in a life dedicated to God, they will go through a process. Jesus described the process in three phases - first the blade, then the ear, and then the corn in the ear. The blade represents a person’s initial response to God. The ear represents the new life of learning God’s way instead of their way. The corn in the ear represents a mature life that is still growing but is well beyond the initial learning of God’s way. The fruit represents the right character. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” (Galatians 5:22-23). Gone will be the fruit of self or the world, which is hatred, unhappy, fighting, impatience, harsh, badness, seeking worldly evidence, pride, and intemperance. Those with the fruit of the Spirit are ready for the harvest to be gathered to heaven at the great harvest, the second coming.

NEW TESTAMENT MEMORY TEXT: John 1:49 Nathanael answered and saith unto him {Jesus}, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.

OLD TESTAMENT MEMORY TEXT: Genesis 41:38 And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find [such a one] as this [is], a man in whom the Spirit of God [is]?

HEALTH LESSON

EXTERNAL USE OF WATER:

The external application of water is one of the easiest and most satisfying ways of moving the blood through your body.

Did you know that cleansing the skin helps rid the body of dirt that comes out through the pores that with just looking you cannot see but with a magnifying glass you could? Complete cleaning is important to both your body on the outside called the physical and you mind on the inside. A daily bath or shower strengthens the body against the common cold and other illnesses. It improves blood flow through your body and increases the ability for your muscles to move easily. A daily bath or shower wakes up the body and the mind, which in turn makes the mind more open to knowledge. And bathing calms down the nerves. It also helps the digestive organs digest food.

Knowledge in contrast bathing (switching between hot and cold) can help with: localized infections, injuries to muscles or joints, arthritis, headaches, and fluids that should leave the body but do not. Now this is something for only your mommy or daddy to do for you.

The contrast bath consists of placing a body part (hand or foot) in hot water for a few moments and then in cold water for just a little while. Again, this should be done only by mommy or daddy. The contrast bath causes the blood vessels, the lines that carry blood from one part of the body to another, to expand or dilate with heat causing the blood to flow more easily and quickly. The contrast with cold increases the circulation to the treated body part. The increased blood flow makes the supply of oxygen greater and nutrients to the body’s cells are taken there faster. Then the removal of the cell’s waste products are removed faster. The result of the contrast bath is increased cell metabolism and more rapid healing of the treated body area.

So remember, as part of God’s Health Plan for optimal health, water fights illnesses, improves circulation, helps digestion, and invigorates the body and mind.

Genesis 41:47-49 “And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth by handfuls. And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which [was] round about every city, laid he up in the same. And Joseph gathered corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering; for [it was] without number.”

MATCHING

For each item in the first column, write in the letter for the description from the second column.

A. Doubted that anything good could come out of the city Nazareth

B. Dreamed about seven cows and seven ears of corn

C. Jesus gave a new name meaning “a stone”

D. Told about a person that can interpret dreams

E. Told his brother to come see the Messiah but his brother wanted to argue

F. Told his brother to come see the Messiah without argument

G. Was placed in charge of all the food to prepare for the famine

[Answers to October 2002 matching: 1=D, 2=A, 3=G, 4=B, 5=C, 6=E, 7=F]

ATBASH

Each letter represents a different letter to make a real word. Replace the letter consistently in each word to reveal the verse being quoted. (Hint - the verse is from the cover story.)

A B C	A D E	F G H I G J M C H		B C K L F
__ __ __	__ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __		__ __ __ __ __
.
.
B G N	H J C K O,	K P F	A B C Q	R E M M E D C F
__ __ __	__ __ __ __ __	__ __ __	__ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
.
.
S C H T H
__ __ __ __ __

[Answers to October 2002 cryptic: Each letter in the puzzle stood the place of a real letter: A=J, B=O, C=S, D=E, E=P, F=H, G=A, H=I, I=D, J=U, K=N, L=T, M=R, N=M, O=B, P=G, Q=Y, R=L. The verse was: Genesis 40:8 “Joseph said unto them, Do not interpretations belong to God? tell me them, I pray you”]

UNSCRAMBLE

Rearrange the letters in the following words to reveal the Bible word. (Hint - the words are from the verses in the cover story.)

A D D E E M R	H L O B D E	Y N L T P E	E E S L L T W D
__ __ __ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
.
.
W A E D N R	E E N S V	I M N O S	C D T E E I R S
__ __ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
.
.
A A E H M N S S	A C E H P S	D D E E O R U V	H I I L P P
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __
.
.
A A E H N R T Z	A E H I M P R	L E G I U	A E F I M N
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __	__ __ __ __ __ __

[Answers to October 2002 unscramble: Row 1- BAPTIZE, BAKER, PROPHET, PHARAOH; Row 2 - OFFICERS, CAPTAIN, BUTLER, REMEMBER; Row 3 - PRIESTS, DREAMED, OFFENDED, LEVITES; Row 4 - ELIAS, VOICE, STRAIGHT, ESAIAS.]

LEARNING ACTIVITIES:

Read or have someone read to you stories about Jesus.

Find someone and tell them all about Jesus.

Memorize the memory verses on page 4.

Visit a farm, especially one that has cows, remembering that Pharaoh had a dream about seven cows that were good and seven that were sickly.

Visit a farm that grows corn and remember that Pharaoh had a dream about one stalk having seven ears of corn that were good and another seven that were very bad. You will notice that only one or two usually grow on a stalk.

When you eat something like peas, remember that every fifth pea, Joseph saved for the time of the famine.

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