God Promises to Restore Israel After the Exile

Bible Point: God guides us

Key Verse:
“ ‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’ ” (Jeremiah 29:11) .

Bible Exploration: Jeremiah 29:4-14

The people of Judah had strayed from God, and as a result Judah fell to the nation of Babylon and the people of Judah were captured and held in exile for many years. We’ll look at Jeremiah 29 and see what God had to say to his wayward children. We’ll discover that despite Judah’s rebellious nature, God still had a loving plan for the people. God always guides his people.

To think about and discuss:

1. What do you think about this promise God made: “I know the plans I have for you” in Jeremiah 29:11? How does it make you feel? Why?
2. Why is it important for people to believe that God really does have plans to give them “hope
and a future”? (See Jeremiah 29:11b.)
3. Would you say that you are seeking God passionately right now? Why or why not?
4. Are there some things in your life that are keeping you from seeking or serving God? If so, what
will you do about them?
5. Have you ever felt as if God had forgotten about you? If so, how did you respond toward him? If not, what kept your eyes focused on him?
6. Is it ever too late for people to draw closer to God and seek his will for their lives? Why or why
not?1. Why do you think God reminded the exiled Jews about his current
and future plans for them?

Family Worship Challenge:

• As a family, decide to go on a special outing—perhaps tothe zoo, the desert, the mountains, or a museum in thecity. Rather than doing much of the preparation workyourself, assign family members specific tasks, such as packing sandwiches, cleaning out the car, planning theroute, and making sure everyone is wearing appropriateclothing. After you return from the outing, discuss why itwas so important to plan your trip, and use that discussion
  to transition into the wonderful plans that God is making for his people. For example, we may not always see whatGod is doing, but we can know for sure that he is making plans for us to spend eternity in heaven with him if wehave invited Jesus into our lives.

God Protects Daniel in the Lions Den

Bible Point When we trust God, we find peace.

Key Verse: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).

Bible Exploration: Daniel 6:1-23


Daniel faced significant hardship, and he endured because of his strong relationship with God. All of us face difficult situations. The question is, how will we respond? God delivered Daniel from the lions because Daniel trusted in God. How did that trust develop? Obviously Daniel had often presented requests to God and received answers. The more this young man came to know God, the more intensely he sought God. Daniel knew that God could be trusted, so he made it a point to give his anxieties to God.

To think about and discuss:

1. Why do many Christians continue to be anxious about their situations? (They don’t realize that God really is in control; we just reflect what the rest of the world does.)

2. Would you say that most people today are peaceful? Why or why not? How does a person receive God’s peace according to the Key Verse?

3. How willing are you to trust God completely today, no matter how difficult a situation may be?

4. How much does your view of God affect your willingness to trust him with even the most difficult challenges in your life?

Family Worship Challenge:

• Identify something you’ve given too much time and worry toward. Resolve to put it away—either mentally or literally, depending on what it is—for a week. Talk about what inner peace is and where it comes from.

Daniel's friends are Safe in the fiery furnace

Bible Point: Stand up for God.

Key Verse: “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of
courage; be strong” (1 Corinthians 16:13).

Bible Exploration: Daniel 3:1-30

To think about and discuss: 1. Everyone knew that Shadrach,Meshach, and Abednego worshipped God because of they refused to bow down to the giant idol. Why is it so important for Christians to stand up for God wherever they are?

2. If you haven't been put in a situation where you have had to stand up for God, do others even know that you are a Christian? If they know that you are Christian, do you feel like people watching are watching the way that you act and the choices that you make?

Family Worship Challenge:

• Share with your kids about a time when you obeyed God even when people were pressuring you to do something you knew was wrong? What did you learn?
  
• or tell them about when you didn’t stand up for God, If you could go back in time, what would you change?

Daniel Chooses to Follow God

Bible Point: God's ways are best

Key Verse: “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like thedawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun”(Psalm 37:5-6).

Bible Exploration: Daniel 1:1-20


You might wonder what would have been so bad aboutDaniel and his friends eating the king’s food—undoubtedly the best in the land. There were probably at least two problems with it: It may have been offered to idols, and it certainly was not prepared according to Old Testament
guidelines for the Hebrew people. It may also have included meat from animals that were prohibited by God in the law of Moses. It took courage for Daniel to stand up and ask for
permission to not eat foods that would go against his beliefs. And when the official first denied the permission, Daniel remained levelheaded and suggested a test that could work out well for both the Hebrew men and the Babylonian leader. Daniel knew what the Babylonians didn’t—that following God’s ways would always be best. Of course we know how the test turned out. God gave Daniel and his friends better health than that of those eating the best of the king’s food!

To think about and discuss:

• What pressures and influences could have deterred Daniel and his
  friends from following God’s ways?
• As an introvert, I know I dont' like standing out in a group of people. But there have been times when I have stood out - as a Christian and/or as an Adventist. I wasn't risking my life, but I was risking my anonymity. Have you been in a similar situation?
• How does risk play a part in deciding whether we’ll obey God’s instruction?
  

Family Worship Challenge:

• Take the 10 day vegetarian challenge with your family. Cook and eat vegetarian meals for 10 days and see if you feel healthier and stronger. As you eat as a family, discuss how your diet can affect your mood, energy level, attention and overall health.
  

God Calls Isaiah

Bible Point: Respond to God's holiness with worship.

Key Verse: “Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker” (Psalm 95:6).

Bible Exploration: Isaiah 6:1-8

To think about and discuss:

• How did Isaiah respond to what he saw and heard? Why do you think he said what he said? Isaiah was awestruck; he immediately knew that he was insignificant and unworthy; he instantly recognized God’s glory and worth; he thought he was ruined—he must have thought that to see God would kill him.
• What did a seraph do to Isaiah, and why was that necessary? The seraph touched Isaiah’s mouth with a hot coal to cleanse his sin; fire purifies; the coal represented God’s wrath; the coal symbolized purification; we have to be holy to be present before a holy God.
• How can we balance our need to revere God’s holiness with our desire to see God as a close friend? We need to remember that while God loves us, he’s still God; we need to have God’s holiness in our own lives as well.
• If we really recognized God’s holiness, what difference would it make in how we view our sins? in how we respond to God? in how we respond to other people? in our church services? in our worship time? We would better understand how our sins grieve God, and we would seek his love and forgiveness even more; we would take God’s presence in our lives and our church more seriously.

Family Challenge:

• Gather together and talk about what life would be likeif everyone was perfect and never sinned. (You mighttalk about serious things, such as how people wouldn’t hurt other people and all family members would always get along. Or you might talk about funny things, such as nobody would ever yell at the family dog.) Then think about God—how he is perfect and has never sinned. Explore how God feels when we sin and why God wants usto remember his sinlessness and glory and why we should humble ourselves before him.

Jonah Complains About God's Compassion

Bible Point:
Have compassion for people who don’t know God.

Key Verse:
“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some
understand slowness. He is patient with you, not
wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to
repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).

Bible Exploration: Jonah 3:10-4:11

Many people are hostile toward God. Some people think that the
Bible is just another book, that they can find God in their own way,
that everyone will go to heaven, that God causes evil, and so on.
Some of these people go out of their way to be rude and hostile
to Christians. Yet, as we’ve seen during our lesson today, Jesus
not yet come back to earth because he wants everyone to have
opportunity to repent of their sins and receive him as Lord and
Savior. He doesn’t want anyone to spend eternity in hell.

To think about and discuss:

• Why is God so patient with people?
• When each of us realizes that God has compassion for all of us— Christians and non-Christians—what difference should that make in our lives today?
• Why do you think it’s hard for some Christians to keep reaching out with the love of Christ to people who seem to want nothing to do with God? Is there a limit to your love and patience with non-Christians?

Family Challenge:

• “Interview” a non-Christian friend. Get his or her perspective on what Christians are “really” like. Just listen, and try to understand why your friend has these perceptions. Ask God to give you insight on how you can best represent Jesus to others.

Jonah Learns a Lesson

Bible Point:
Following God’s direction is always the right choice.

Key Verse:
"The ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in
them, but the rebellious stumble in them”
(Hosea 14:9b).

Bible Exploration: Jonah 1:1-3:10

Many of us are familiar with the story of Jonah. Jonah knew specifically what God
wanted him to do and made a very conscious choice to rebel against God and go the
other way. Sound familiar? Adults so often say, “If only I knew what God wanted me to
do…” But in reality, we often do know, and we often choose our own path rather than
God’s. Rebelling against God’s good plans for us is never a good idea! Today’s lesson
will help adults realize that following God’s direction is always the right choice, and it’s
also always the best choice for us.

To think about and answer:
• According to Jonah 1:1-10, what did God tell Jonah to do? How did Jonah respond?

• According to Jonah 3, how did the Ninevites respond to what Jonah said? How did God then respond to the Ninevites?

• Why do you think God gave Jonah another chance?

• What did these verses reveal about what happens when we don’t obey God?

Family Worship Challenge:
• Play Follow the Leader with your children. Have family members participate in lots of fun activities, such as sliding down the stairs and eating ice cream. Then talk about what it
was like to follow a leader in this game. Use this time to begin a discussion about what it means to follow God’s direction. Talk about the things we do that God doesn’t want us to
do. Then talk about God’s willingness to forgive us after we sin, and draw pictures of happy people who have asked for—and received—God’s forgiveness.