Elementary Level, Block 5—Aaron to Ruth
Week 46
Deborah—God Raising Up a Female as a Judge of Israel
Point to Emphasize: We should keep the proper order so that we can bring peace and rest into our families.
Reference Reading: Judges 4
Memory Verse: But all things must be done becomingly and in order. (1 Corinthians 14:40)
Story Sample
I want to talk to you about someone that was extraordinary. Someone who is extraordinary is someone who is beyond ordinary. This person is highly unusual, exceptional or remarkable. You might think an astronaut or a super hero is extraordinary, but if you listen carefully you will see today that each of you can be an extraordinary person. I want to be extraordinary! Let’s see how we can be such a person.
In the Bible we find someone who was extraordinary. There was a time in history when things were not going well. All the men of Israel were doing the wrong thing. They were not taking God as their leader. They were not consulting God, but they were all doing whatever they thought was right. That resulted in complete chaos. This is a sad situation, isn’t it?
Well, God had to do something extraordinary using an extraordinary person. God raised up a woman to sit as a judge over His people. Her name was Deborah. What? This is remarkable! The children of Israel had never had a female leader before. Deborah was the first female judge! She was very capable, she was full of insight. Deborah was different than all the rest because she was taking God as her leader.
Deborah did not consider herself as a ruler or leader over the people. She did not act like a man or try to be in charge of the men. She sat under a palm tree near her home, not on a throne in a palace. She called herself a mother in Israel, not the Queen or Judge of Israel. Deborah judged the cases that came to her among the children of Israel. When judging, she acknowledged God and obeyed Him. She judged according to God’s law.
Later on, God commanded Deborah to send out 10,000 men into battle. What could she do? Wow, Deborah was so extraordinary! She knew that she could not directly carry out this word as a woman. So, Deborah called Barak, a capable military man. He was the right one to lead the army of Israel. All those men were now in an excellent order—no longer were they doing what was right in their own eyes. They won the battle and the whole land had peace for another 40 years!
Each of you can be an extraordinary person. When some of the ones around might be doing the wrong thing by doing whatever they want and not consulting a leader, you can be the extraordinary one! You can seek the proper order and consult the older ones and leaders around you. Let me give you an example. When I was your age we all wanted to spend time with our friends. Some of my friends would come directly to me to invite me to their house. Then I would go to my mom and tell her that my friend invited me over. When my mom would call my friend’s mom, my friend’s mom would say that she didn’t know anything about it and it was just not possible. Then my friend was in trouble and I was in trouble. All of this would have been avoided by keeping the proper order. My friend should have asked her mom first. Then her mom would have called my mom and they would have let us know if it was possible. [Storyteller insert your own example of not doing what you thought was best but you consulted your parents or an older one.]
If you look around, you will see that there are many ways that we can be an extraordinary person by keeping the proper order at school and in our family. This will bring peace and rest wherever we are. Let’s practice this week. Instead of jumping in to do whatever you think is best (like the superheroes!), let’s be like Deborah! Let’s be those that follow and obey God and those who can consult with the leaders around us so we can have peace and rest!