Teaching Job 19

3-5s

Aim: When life is yucky remember Jesus is true

Intro:

·         Colour or paint a large cross to then stick up on the wall

Teaching:

Recap from last few weeks – Job is suffering surrounded by his three friends. His friends say that he must have been naughty, that’s why his life is so yucky. But Job is sure that he hasn’t. We know that it was Satan who was attacking him.

How do you think Job is feeling? [Have some masks/pictures of various emotions] How would you have felt?

Job was feeling really sad and confused [hold up relevant mask(s)]. Read 19:2-6 (or less?). His friends haven’t been good friends to him. They’ve made him feel worse by saying it’s all his fault. [have Job and friends puppets out]

Job says this to his friends ‘have kindness on me for God has done this to me’. Job is so confused. Unlike us, he doesn’t know who is making these bad things happen. When we’re sad we can forget that too. But God doesn’t ever hurt us. He’s always in charge when bad things happen but he doesn’t make them happen. Job doesn’t know that it’s Satan who is being so mean. Job is sad and confused.

Sometimes we will feel sad and confused too, but Job still follows God and trusts Him through it all. He doesn’t know why this is happening to him but He still wants to love God. Read 19:18-22.

And do you know, Job remembers something brilliant: he remembers that he’s got a great rescuer. Read 19:25-27.

Job feels alone and sad but he knows he is Gods friend. Whatever happens to him God will rescue him. Job says even if I die I know that God will rescue me.

Isn’t that a great thing to remember? When things are bad for Gods people they always have God. Not only is God in charge but one day he will make all things better.

Today we know that is true because of Jesus. In lots of ways Jesus was like Job.

[hold up cross or point to one made earlier] When Jesus died on the cross he had everything taken from him. His friends were useless, he was in pain, he was so very sad and alone. But Jesus died on the cross to be our rescuer.

We know Jesus is the redeemer because after being alone on the cross, dead in a grave, he came back to life. He is strong enough to give life. [have picture of empty tomb]

Today we need Jesus to be our redeemer. It can be tricky to think of sad times when we’re happy. But if we’re happy or sad we all need Jesus to be our rescuer. We need to be God’s friend if we want to be in Gods forever family...

Pray

Craft:

·         Resurrection/Cross crafts

·         Lollipop crosses on playdoh hills

Songs:

·         He died upon the cross, Super Saviour, 10,9,8 God is Great (Colin Buchanan)

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5-11s

Aim: When life is yucky hold on to what you know is true

Intro:

·         Redeemer Tag

·         Hidden good/bad things

Teaching:

Reading of Job 19 with pictures

Recap from last week

[This talk was written by Hannah Newham]

Today we’re going to see how Job feels now. Anybody want to guess any ways he might be feeling? (slide with lots of faces for help in answering or maybe with context picture job left with nothing and rubbish friends and a sad face)

Sad, lonely, scared, confused...?

He could have been feeling all of those. And they’re feelings we can feel too. Sometimes sad things happen to us. Sometimes we get hurt, or our friends do. So it’s good to look at Job together. It can help us know what Gods friends can do when we feel sad.

We’re going to see how Job feels and then what Job does.

1 – Job is sad and confused v1-24

Job’s friends have been no help. They’ve made things worse not better. It feels as though God is unfair. Job asks God ‘why are you doing bad things’. Job feels like a pile of rubbish, nothing to look forward to, all alone, no family, no friends, it all feels rubbish.

If people see him they’ll probably try to avoid him at best or maybe point and laugh at him. Job 19 tells us just how Job is feeling.

He’s confused, alone and helpless.

Job says this to his friends ‘have kindness on me for God has done this to me’. Job is so confused. Unlike us, he doesn’t know who is making these bad things happen. When we’re sad we can forget that too. But God doesn’t ever hurt us. He’s always in charge when bad things happen but he doesn’t make them happen. Job doesn’t know that it’s Satan who is being so mean. Job is sad and confused.

When we’re sad it’s easy to moan. It’s easy for us to say ‘I hate you’ to somebody who’s mean to us. But Job never does that. He still follows God, still knows God is in control even when he’s feeling sad and confused about all the badness.

That’s how Job feels. It’s sad. But next he chooses to remember something brilliant.

2 – Jesus is the rescuer we always need to remember v22-29

He remembers he’s got a rescuer. This is what Job says in

Verse 25 ‘I know that my redeemer lives and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.’

Job feels alone and sad but he knows there’s more. He knows he is Gods friend. Whatever happens to him God will rescue him. Job says even if I die I know that God will rescue me. He might not see anything good now but he can look forward to life with God.

Isn’t that a great thing to remember? When things are bad for Gods people they always have God. Not only is God in charge but one day he will make all things better.

Today we know that is true because of Jesus. In lots of ways Jesus was like Job.

When Jesus died on the cross he had everything taken from him. His friends were useless, he was in pain, he was so very sad and alone. But Jesus died on the cross to be our redeemer.

We know Jesus is the redeemer because after being alone on the cross, dead in a grave, he came back to life. He has power to give life. To bring life where there is death.

Today we need Jesus to be our redeemer. It can be tricky to think of sad times when we’re happy. But if we’re happy or sad we all need Jesus to be our redeemer. We to be Gods friend if we want to be in Gods forever family...

Table time:

Knowledge

• What was Job sad and confused about?
• What does Job know for sure?
• What does ‘Redeemer’ mean?

Understanding

• How does remembering that he has a redeemer help Job?
• How do we know Jesus is our Redeemer?
• How was Jesus like Job?

Application

• What makes you sad/confused?
• What can you remember when you’re feeling sad/confused?
• How do you think that will help you?

Funsheets

Memory verse – Job 19:25

Pray for persecuted country