Intermediate Level, Block 2—Babel and Good Land
Week 11
Entering a New World
Point to Emphasize: We should learn to follow the authorities in our life.
Reference Reading: Genesis 9:1-7
Memory Verse: Let every person be subject to the authorities over him, for there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are ordained by God. (Romans 13:1)
Story Sample
After the flood, the ark had landed and the water had withdrawn. And what do you suppose would happen now to Noah and his family? We know that only Noah and his family remained on the earth—only eight people, and that the earth was different than before. This was the time for a new beginning in a new world!
Because man had been so evil, there was a need for God to change things. In the beginning of Genesis, God created man in His image and made him the authority over all of the animals. But starting after the flood, God gave the people an authority, someone to represent Him and be in charge of man. Noah was the first deputy authority of God. Deputy means that Noah was given the authority to act on God’s behalf. Noah represented God. God was still over everything, but he gave Noah a special responsibility.
We have a lot of authorities in our life, right? In our family, our dad and mom are the authorities over us. At school, our teachers and the principal are the authorities over us. In our city, the police are the authorities over us, and in our country, the federal government is the authority over us. All of this authority over us is according to God’s plan. So, if we want to do what God wants, we need to obey all of those authorities in our life.
Sometimes it is hard to obey authority. I’m sure we have all failed to obey at least our mom or dad at some time. When I was young, I used to love to run on the block wall behind my house, but my mom and dad would say “Absolutely NOT!” One day, though, I was showing off and began to run along the fence. A rose bush was growing over the fence, and I tripped on it and fell to the ground. It really hurt me, and I knew if I had listened to and obeyed my parents, it would never have happened. [Insert your own story telling about not obeying your mom or dad.] We should try our best to obey our parents and other authorities God put’s in our life. [Read the memory verse, Romans 13:1, and discuss what it means.]
The authorities in our life are very important. If moms and dads weren’t in charge, their children would be a mess; if the teachers weren’t in charge, the class would never be able to learn; if the police weren’t in charge, there would be all kinds of problems, and it wouldn’t be safe to go out of our house.
So God made Noah in charge of the new world with deputy authority over the people. This was the best way for God to be represented on earth.