Intermediate Level, Block 7—Kingdom Degrading
Week 64
The Kings
Point to Emphasize: We need to take care of who we are, how we behave, and how we conduct ourselves.
Reading Reference: 1 and 2 Kings; 1 and 2 Chronicles
Memory Verse: Be very careful therefore for yourselves, that you love Jehovah your God. (Joshua 23:11)
Story Sample
We have been talking about David, Solomon, Rehoboam and Jeroboam—the first kings in the kingdom of Israel. But did you know there were many kings that came after them? And, because of the dividing of the kingdom by Jeroboam, now there were kings of both Judah and Israel. A lot of kings! There were nineteen kings in Judah and nineteen kings in Israel. That makes 38 kings! Some of them were good kings, but most of them were bad kings. All of these kings are recorded in the Bible in the books of 1 and 2 Kings and 1 and 2 Chronicles. These books of the Old Testament are a record of who they were and what they did.
How would you like someone to record your day? One time a new teacher was recorded as she taught her class. Everything she did and said, even how she said it was recorded. Later, she and other teachers watched parts of the video and made comments on what they saw. This is kind of like the record of the kings in the Bible.
Let’s talk about a few of the kings. Of the nineteen kings of Judah, only eight were good and did what was right in God’s eyes. They removed the idols the people were worshipping and took away the high places where they worshipped. But they all fell short in one very important thing; they never returned to serve God in the place that He had chosen. It is very important to God where we worship Him!
Of the nineteen kings of Israel, only ONE was good. His name was Jehu. Only Jehu did God’s will and even he was not completely absolute in doing it. There are many more stories of many more kings. The Bible is a record of all these kings. These examples show how they were, how they behaved themselves, how they did things, how they faced different situations, what their intentions were, what their interests were, and what their goals were as kings in the good land.
What do you think it would be like if there was a record of everything you have done or said? Would there be more good things or more bad things? Would there be a record of you talking back to your mom, or being obedient to her? Would there be a record of you crying when you didn’t get your way, or accepting the rules? Would there be a record of you being nice to someone just so that they would do something for you, or being nice to everyone because you love them?
We can learn from the kings that how we behave, what kind of person we are, and how we act really matters. I hope that we all want a good record.