Sunday School in Pakistan

Ages 9-12 Courage Judges

Gideon and the Small Army

God calls us what we will become, not what we have been.

Bible passage: Judges 6:11-24; Judges 7:1-22

Memory verse

“The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.”

Judges 6:12

Roman Urdu Khudawand tere sath hai, ai zabardast surma.

Teaching the lesson

  1. Hiding in a winepress

    Find Gideon where the angel found him u2014 threshing wheat in a hole in the ground so the enemy would not see him. He was frightened and hiding. And the angel greeted him as a mighty man of valour. Let the class feel how odd that is.

  2. God sees forward

    God did not call Gideon what he was that morning. He called him what he would be by the end. Ask the class what they would like God to be able to call them one day.

  3. Thirty-two thousand down to three hundred

    Gideon's army was already outnumbered, and God kept sending men home. Twenty-two thousand frightened men left. Then all but three hundred. Do the arithmetic on the board u2014 it is less than one in a hundred.

  4. So that nobody could boast

    God gave the reason plainly: lest Israel say, mine own hand hath saved me. When God works, He often makes the numbers impossible first, so that afterwards nobody is confused about who did it.

Activity

The shrinking team. Line the class up as Gideon's army and send them to sit down in the same proportions God used, until only two or three are left standing. Ask those left how they feel. Then read Judges 7:7 aloud.

Craft

Clay jar and lamp. Gideon's men hid torches inside clay jars and smashed them at the signal. Make a jar from a paper cup with a yellow paper flame inside, and write on it: "This treasure in earthen vessels."

Closing prayer

Lord, I feel small and afraid more often than I admit. Thank You that You see what I will become. Use me even when I am outnumbered, so that everyone knows it was You. Amen.

This lesson is free to use

Print it, photocopy it, retype it or translate it into Punjabi, Sindhi or Pashto for your own class. You do not need permission and you do not need to tell us. The only thing asked in return is that it is never sold to a teacher who cannot afford it.

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