Intermediate Level, Block 5—Occupying the Land
Week 41
Being Formed into an Army
Point to Emphasize: We want to be those who accept where God has placed us.
Reference Reading: Numbers 1—7
Memory Verse: For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father, of whom every family in the heavens and on earth is named. (Ephesians 3:14-15)
Story Sample
We have been talking a lot about the children of Israel as they traveled through the wilderness to the land that God had promised them. It has been nearly forty years and now they are getting ready to enter in. Eventually, they will have to fight for this land, because there are many enemies living there. To do this, God needed to first form them into an army. Fighting against a great number of enemies is not a one person job. Sure, if I wanted to fight with my sister, it would only take one person—me! But if there were a war in another country, I could never fight it alone. It takes a lot of coordination to fight against many people.
In Numbers 2:2 God told Moses and Aaron that the children of Israel needed to encamp by their fathers’ households, facing the tabernacle. It was not a matter of them choosing where they would be; it was God’s choice. Whichever tribe they were born of, that was the tribe they had to encamp with. Later on, Jehovah spoke to Moses and asked him to number the children of Israel. Moses needed to number all by their families, by companies of their fathers’ households. The children of Israel could not just pack their things and go their own way. God needed them to stay with the people of God to be part of His army and go to battle. Once the children of Israel had all been numbered in this way, they were set in a particular order. Every family was grouped together with its leader and all the mature soldiers. And they camped facing the Tent of Meeting, the place where God was dwelling. They all faced God! What a wonderful arrangement!
When I was your age, whenever I got mad at my sisters or I thought mom and dad were too strict, I would wish I was in a different family. I would think to myself, “Why can’t I be in Nancy’s family? She is rich and can have any toy she wants; she’s an only child and doesn’t have to compete with three sisters; she gets to go to places I’m not allowed to go; and she doesn’t have to go to meetings on the Lord’s Day. I wish I was in her family!” But as I grew older, I realized I was placed by God in my family and it was the best one for me. God planned the very best family for me to grow up loving Him and this is where I could be a part of God’s army. [Storyteller, insert your own personal story.]
Each of you, along with your family, is a part of this army. You can be glad that you are a part of a family that loves God. You can choose to obey your parents when they give you instructions. And one day you will mature and be able to be one who serves God. But it all needs to be done here in God’s household, where we are part of a huge army—God’s army!