Advanced Level, Block 7—Idolatry and Division
Week 70
The Consequence of Not Taking Heed to the Warnings
Point to Emphasize: How easily do we shrug off the warnings?
Reference Reading: 2 Kings 24:1-4, 10, footnote 181; 25:21
Memory Verse: Come, children; hear me. / I will teach you the fear of Jehovah. (Psalm 34:11)
Story Sample
From the time the children of Israel entered the good land, they lived in the land for about eight hundred years. During these years, the children of Israel did not live for God all the time. Instead, they abandoned God and worshipped idols. They broke every commandment there was. Think about it, eight hundred years is a long time! God tolerated their evils for so long. He was full of forbearance and was SOOO patient with them. God sent prophet after prophet to talk to them throughout the years, but they didn’t listen. They continued in their evil ways. God used the prophets to warn the children of Israel. If they would listen to the prophets, they would have listened to God. Prophets came again and again, giving the children of Israel warnings.
Who can tell me what a warning is? [Let the children answer.] A warning is something said or written to tell others of possible danger, a problem, or another unpleasant thing that might happen. A warning is a word of caution. Where do you see warnings? You might have seen warnings on a bottle of medicine or detergent or on something flammable. Right away you know, you shouldn’t touch it, smell it or drink it, right?! But, have you ever considered that the source of your warnings could come from your parents or your teachers, or even from your grandparents? Do you hear and listen to their warnings or do you ignore their warnings?
Growing up I dreaded every time my dad would call me to come to the dining table to sit across from him. I don’t know about you, but I could tell by the tone of his voice why he was calling me. I knew he was going to warn me about something. Oh, it was such great suffering for me to sit and hear his long conversations. One of his warnings to me was the use of this Bible verse, “Do not be deceived: Evil companionships corrupt good morals” (1 Corinthians 15:33). He would tell me that just one poor companion as a friend could lead me to easily tell a lie. And my response was, “That’s never going to happen to me!” And I would just shrug my shoulders because I didn’t believe what he was saying. Then, later on I listened to some of my classmates talking about how easy it was to lie to their parents. They talked about it all the time. One day at my house my dad asked me, “So, what did you do at lunchtime?” I lied to him. I told him I had just stayed in school but in fact I had left campus with some of my friends. He didn’t even notice that I lied to him. I immediately went to my room. I felt terrible. I had just LIED TO MY DAD!! This was something I never thought I could or would do. Then his warning came back to me. The poor companions in school were corrupting my good morals. I should have listened to my dad’s warning. I did not feel good until I apologized to my dad. Now looking back, I treasure all those times my dad and I sat and talked at our dining table. He gave me all those warnings that helped me from making so many mistakes during my teenage years. [Storyteller, please share a personal story of a warning your parents used to give you and its outcome.]
How easily do we shrug off the warnings? Why do we not like sitting to listen to our parent’s warnings? Think about it. You might say, “They take too long. I get tired. I need to finish my homework.” And, how easily do we say, “That’s never going to happen to me!” Or you might say, “I’ve heard it a thousand times already!” How easily are we being indifferent to the warnings we are receiving! How easily do we ignore what they are saying to us. We never think we will be influenced by others to do the wrong things. We might think we know how to behave or how to handle situations. We might think we are the exception to the rule and that nothing bad will come our way. We just want to ignore what we are being told. We think of ourselves as too “grown-up” and don’t identify ourselves with the warning. If this is how you are, I hope right now you don’t feel so proud of yourself. You should feel ashamed, just like I felt bad because I didn’t take my dad’s warning about how poor companions could lead me to lie. It would be so good if you can have a time with your parents and talk about the warnings they have given you.
The children of Israel did not listen to the warnings. For over eight hundred years God was patient with them in sending the prophets to warn them over and over again. God really desired that His people would turn fully to Him. Still, after all the warnings they continued to abandon God, break all the commandments, and do what was evil. They ignored all the warnings. So, they suffered the consequence; God’s judgment came. This resulted in the temple being burned, the walls of Jerusalem being torn down, the good land being devastated, and the children of Israel being taken as captives. This was the tragic result of them not taking God’s warnings. We should listen to the warnings from our parents. If not, we will sadly find that we suffer because of it.