December 7, Joseph

Day 8, December 7
Persons: Joseph
Theme/Event: God’s Providence
Symbol: Colorful Coat
Genesis 37, 39:1-50:21or Genesis 42:1-45:15

Jacob (Israel) was someone who did wrong things and had to seek forgiveness from God and his brother. Tonight we will read about one of Israel’s sons who had to forgive his brothers for how they mistreated him.

Genesis 37:3-4, 18-28
3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age. Also he made him a tunic of many colors. 4 But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him. …18 Now when they saw him afar off, even before he came near them, they conspired against him to kill him. 19 Then they said to one another, “Look, this dreamer is coming! 20 Come therefore, let us now kill him and cast him into some pit; and we shall say, ‘Some wild beast has devoured him.’ We shall see what will become of his dreams!” 21 But Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands, and said, “Let us not kill him.” 22 And Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit which is in the wilderness, and do not lay a hand on him”—that he might deliver him out of their hands, and bring him back to his father. 23 So it came to pass, when Joseph had come to his brothers, that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the tunic of many colors that was on him. 24 Then they took him and cast him into a pit. And the pit was empty; there was no water in it. 25 And they sat down to eat a meal. Then they lifted their eyes and looked, and there was a company of Ishmaelites, coming from Gilead with their camels, bearing spices, balm, and myrrh, on their way to carry them down to Egypt. 26 So Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is there if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? 27 Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother and our flesh.” And his brothers listened. 28 Then Midianite traders passed by; so the brothers pulled Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt.
It would seems that God had forgotten Joseph and His promises. But, God had a much greater plan. Joseph had to wait a long time to see God’s purposes in his life. Joseph had to wait in prison, and be a servant for many years before he would see his brothers again. God blessed Joseph’s obedience and faithfulness while he was in Egypt and brought him to a position where he could bless not only his brothers, but the whole nation.
Genesis 50:15-21
15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “Perhaps Joseph will hate us, and may actually repay us for all the evil which we did to him.” 16 So they sent messengers to Joseph, saying, “Before your father died he commanded, saying, 17 ‘Thus you shall say to Joseph: “I beg you, please forgive the trespass of your brothers and their sin; for they did evil to you.”’ Now, please, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of your father.” And Joseph wept when they spoke to him. 18 Then his brothers also went and fell down before his face, and they said, “Behold, we are your servants.” 19 Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? 20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. 21 Now therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.” And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.

God’s plans for us are always what is best for us. Joseph trusted in God’s plan for his life, even when it seemed that his life was out of control or in the control of others who wished to harm him. God never took his eyes off Joseph. Joseph waited patiently in Egypt because he believed God had a purpose for his life. Joseph was able to forgive his brothers because he trusted God and his plan. Jesus knew God’s plan for His life and Jesus knew God was the one in control. Because of this, Jesus was also able to forgive those who treated Him cruelly. We can always trust that no matter how things look on the outside, God is always in control.

Questions:
What did Joseph’s brothers do to Joseph?
Did God forget about Joseph?
Do you need to forgive anyone?
Prayer: Dear God, help me to forgive those who are unkind to me. Thank you that You are always in control.

December 6, Jacob

Day 7, December 6
Persons: Jacob
Theme/Event: Assurance of the Promise
Symbol: Angel and Jacob wrestling
Genesis 27:41-28:22



Do you remember Abraham’s son Isaac? When Isaac grew up he had a son named Jacob. God’s plan was still to bless all of Abraham’s descendants and to show His character to the world through His relationship with them. But Jacob had done unkind things, even to his own brother. Instead of asking for forgiveness, he had run away. Would God’s plan be ruined? Would God not fulfill His promises?

Genesis 32:9-30
9 Then Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the LORD who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your family, and I will deal well with you’: 10 I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which You have shown Your servant; for I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two companies. 11 Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and attack me and the mother with the children. 12 For You said, ‘I will surely treat you well, and make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.’” 13 So he lodged there that same night, and took what came to his hand as a present for Esau his brother: 14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15 thirty milk camels with their colts, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten foals. 16 Then he delivered them to the hand of his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass over before me, and put some distance between successive droves.” 17 And he commanded the first one, saying, “When Esau my brother meets you and asks you, saying, ‘To whom do you belong, and where are you going? Whose are these in front of you?’ 18 then you shall say, ‘They are your servant Jacob’s. It is a present sent to my lord Esau; and behold, he also is behind us.’” 19 So he commanded the second, the third, and all who followed the droves, saying, “In this manner you shall speak to Esau when you find him; 20 and also say, ‘Behold, your servant Jacob is behind us.’” For he said, “I will appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterward I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me.” 21 So the present went on over before him, but he himself lodged that night in the camp. 22 And he arose that night and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons, and crossed over the ford of Jabbok. 23 He took them, sent them over the brook, and sent over what he had. 24 Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. 25 Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him. 26 And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!” 27 So He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.” 28 And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.” 29 Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I pray.” And He said, “Why is it that you ask about My name?” And He blessed him there. 30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”

God had not changed. Even though He made the promise to Jacob’s grandfather many years ago, and even though Jacob had done wrong things, God was always true to His Word and to His plans. Just like Jacob, we do not deserve God’s wonderful promises and love. But, God was faithful to Jacob and changed his name to Israel. Sometimes we do wrong things, even to our brothers and sisters. But, God made a plan for us to be restored to Him and to each other. If we confess our sins to God and to each other, and we ask to be forgiven, then because of what Jesus did on the cross, we can be restored. God is always faithful and His arms are full of blessings for the obedient.

Questions:
Did Jacob ruin God’s plan?
What new name did the angel give to Jacob?
Do you need to ask God or someone else to forgive you for something?
Prayer: Dear God, help me be quick to ask for forgiveness when I have been unkind or disobedient. Thank you for always forgiving me.

December 5, Isaac

Day 6, December 5
Persons: Isaac
Theme/Event: Offering of Isaac
Symbol: Ram

How excited Abraham was to have his son, Isaac. Abraham and Sarah had waited all those years and God had fulfilled His promise and given them a son. We always need to be careful when God gives us a wonderful gift that we do not love the gift more than we love God. We may get many gifts this season, but we must always remember to put God first in our lives. God tested Abraham’s obedience and Abraham’s love for God.

Genesis 22:1-19
1 Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!”
And he said, “Here I am.”
2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
3 So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. 4 Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. 5 And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you.”
6 So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together. 7 But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!”
And he said, “Here I am, my son.”
Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”
8 And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” So the two of them went together.
9 Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, upon the wood. 10 And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
11 But the Angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!”
So he said, “Here I am.”
12 And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”
13 Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 And Abraham called the name of the place, The-LORD-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the LORD it shall be provided.”
15 Then the Angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, 16 and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the LORD, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son— 17 blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. 18 In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” 19 So Abraham returned to his young men, and they rose and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba.
Abraham obeyed God without question and in absolute faith. Abraham showed the world through his faith that God can be trusted with those things that are most precious to us. God rewarded Abraham for his obedience and his faith. God provided the sacrifice, a ram. God blessed Abraham with many more descendants and told him that through his seed, or descendants, that all the nations of the earth would be blessed. One of the ways that all nations would be blessed is when God’s only Son Jesus would be sacrificed for us, giving us eternal life with Him forever. God was showing us His plan through the story of Abraham and Isaac. That is the blessing we are celebrating this Christmas season.

Questions:
• Why is it so important to give God first place in our life?
• Did Abraham obey God, even when it was hard?
• How did God reward Abraham?
Prayer: Dear God, help us to always put you first in our lives. Thank you that You always keep Your promises.

December 4, Abraham

Day 5, December 4
Persons: Abraham
Theme/Event: The Promise
Symbol: Field of Stars or Tent and Camel

Do you remember God’s promise to Noah? Tonight we will learn about another promise God made. God had a plan to show the world His character. He would do this by showing His love and faithfulness to His chosen people. He chose Abram to be the father of that nation, and He would later change Abram’s name to Abraham. But first, God had to set Abraham apart from the other people in the world.

Genesis 12:1-7
1 Now the LORD had said to Abram:
“Get out of your country,
From your family
And from your father’s house,
To a land that I will show you.
2 I will make you a great nation;
I will bless you
And make your name great;
And you shall be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
And I will curse him who curses you;
And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
4 So Abram departed as the LORD had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. And Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5 Then Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his brother’s son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people whom they had acquired in Haran, and they departed to go to the land of Canaan. So they came to the land of Canaan. 6 Abram passed through the land to the place of Shechem, as far as the terebinth tree of Moreh. And the Canaanites were then in the land.
7 Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” And there he built an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him.

Abraham was excited about God’s plan. But, when many years passed and Abraham was still waiting for a son, he became discouraged. Waiting can be really hard.

Genesis 15:1-6
1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.”
2 But Abram said, “Lord GOD, what will You give me, seeing I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 Then Abram said, “Look, You have given me no offspring; indeed one born in my house is my heir!”
4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.” 5 Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”
6 And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.

God promised Abraham that he would have so many descendants that to try and count them would be like trying to count the stars in the heavens. And Abraham believed God. We always need to believe God, even if we have been waiting a long time, and even if it seems impossible for God to do what he promised. God never forgets His plans, He always fulfills His purposes. God is showing the world His character through us, and by how we wait for Him.

Questions:

• What did God want to show the world?

• What did God promise Abraham?

• Is anything impossible for God?

Prayer: Dear God, help us to show Your character by living obedient lives. Thank you that nothing is impossible for You.

December 3, Noah

Day 4, December 3
Persons: Noah
Theme/Event: The Flood
Symbol: Ark or Rainbow
Gen 6:14-22, 7:21-24, 8:4-12, 8:20-9:17

We talked last night about how many of Jesus’ ancestors were faithful to God. One of those faithful men was Noah. Do you know what Noah did?

Genesis 6:11-14 (New King James Version)
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. 13 And God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth. 14 Make yourself an ark of gopherwood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and outside with pitch.

Everyone around Noah was doing the wrong things and not giving honor to God. But, Noah stood alone and did what was right. Noah loved God and obeyed him, even when it seemed foolish to the people around him. But, it is never foolish to believe God - He always does what He says He will. God had a plan to save Noah and all the animals, so Noah obeyed God and built the ark and God sent the flood just like he said he would.

Genesis 7:17-20, 8:1-3
17 Now the flood was on the earth forty days. The waters increased and lifted up the ark, and it rose high above the earth. 18 The waters prevailed and greatly increased on the earth, and the ark moved about on the surface of the waters. 19 And the waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth, and all the high hills under the whole heaven were covered. 20 The waters prevailed fifteen cubits upward, and the mountains were covered. … 1 Then God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the animals that were with him in the ark. And God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters subsided. 2 The fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were also stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained. 3 And the waters receded continually from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters decreased.
Genesis 9:8-13

8 Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying: 9 “And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, 10 and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ark, every beast of the earth. 11 Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

12 And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13 I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.

Noah had to wait a long time on the ark, but he believed in God and God saved Noah and his family. Sometimes we have to wait a long time, but we can always know that God has not forgotten us. God gave Noah and his descendants a promise to never destroy the earth by a flood, every time we see a rainbow we know that God keeps His promises. God saved mankind through one man, Noah, and He had a plan to save mankind forever through His Son, Jesus. But the world would have to keep waiting for Christ to come.

Questions:

• What did God ask Noah to do?

• Does God ever forget about us?

• What is the sign of God’s promise?

Prayer: Dear God, help us to obey You, even when others are being disobedient. Thank you that You never forget about us.

December 2, Adam and Eve

Day 3, December 2
Persons: Adam and Eve
Theme/Event: The First Sin
Symbol: Apple with Serpent
Genesis 2:4-14, 2:18-25, 3:14-24

Last night we read about the perfect world God created, and how He created the first man and woman. Do you know their names? God’s plan for Adam and Eve was for them to rule over the earth and live in perfect relationship with Him. There was only one thing He asked them not to do.

Genesis 2:15-17
15 Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”


God has an enemy. He is always looking for ways to spoil God’s plans and try and make God’s people doubt God. He did not want Adam and Eve to live in happiness with God, so he came up with a plan too.


Genesis 3:1-13

1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”

2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’”

4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.

8 And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.

9 Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”

10 So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

11 And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”

12 Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.”

13 And the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”

The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

Adam and Eve doubted God’s goodness to them and believed the enemy’s lie about God, and they disobeyed God’s commands. We must always believe God’s Word and never believe anything else. Ever since that time, mankind has been waiting to be redeemed, waiting to be restored to that perfect relationship with God. It seemed that the enemy had won, but God has always had a plan to bring His people back to Him. It would be many, many years of waiting before Jesus came to fulfill that plan as the second Adam who would not believe the lies of the enemy. During that time of waiting, many of Jesus’ ancestors would prove faithful. I can’t wait to learn about more of them tomorrow night!

Questions:

• What was God’s plan for Adam and Eve?

• Why did Adam and Eve disobey?

• Does God have a plan to fix everything?

Prayer: Dear God, help us to only believe what You say in Your Word. Thank You that Jesus came to defeat the enemy and bring us back to You.

December 1, Creation

Day 2, December 1

Persons: God
Theme/Event: Creation
Symbol: World
Genesis 1:1-25, 2:1-3

Genesis 1:1 says: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Everything begins with God. God had a glorious plan from the very beginning. He created this beautiful world for us to live in.
Genesis 1:26-31

26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”


29 And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. 30 Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so. 31 Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

He created man in His own image. Isn’t that amazing? This is what makes other people so precious, so special to God. Every person you see and meet was created in the image of God.

He also commanded us to have dominion over this world, to rule and to nourish the world He created. It is precious because He created it. We need to treat God’s world with care out of love and respect for God. All of creation is waiting for the time when Jesus will come back and establish His everlasting dominion. Won’t that be wonderful?

Questions:

• Who created the world and everything in it?

• What makes people special?

• How should we treat the world?

Prayer: Dear God, help us to show your love by treating others with kindness. Thank you for creating such a beautiful world for us to live in.