Family Ministries

Review

• Obedience:
  • I will do what I'm told right away.
  • I will do what I'm told with a smile.
  • I will follow directions completely.
• “Can you remember any times when it has been hard to obey, but Jesus helped you to do it anyway?”
• “Have you been remembering to ask Him to help you?”
• “Can you think of any of the Bible verses we’ve learned about so far?”

Memorize

• Philippians 4:13, Luke 22:42, Ephesians 6:1, and Colossians 3:20.

Read

• 1 Samuel 15

Discuss

• “What did Samuel tell Saul that God wanted him to do?”
• “What did Saul do?” “Did he obey exactly?” “Did he obey the part of what he was told?”
• “Was God pleased with partial obedience?” “Why not?”
• “When God tells us to do something, He wants us to do it just the way He says to do it. If we decide to do it our own way, instead of God’s way, it is a rebellion.”
• “What reasons did Saul give for his disobedience?” (use animals to sacrifice to God – v. 21; feared people, so he obeyed them – v. 24)
• “What did Samuel tell Saul about this?” (To obey is better than sacrifice – v. 22.)
• “Can you think of any other Bible people we’ve ever read about who were asked to obey people instead of God?” (Peter and John and the other apostles – read Acts 4:19,20 and Acts 5:29.)
• “What might have been other reasons Saul disobeyed?” (Samuel said he had become proud – v. 17 – and rebellious –v. 23. His heart was cold toward God.)
• “What did Samuel say rebellion was as bad as?” (witchcraft – v. 23)
• “Did Samuel realize he was doing wrong?” (yes – v. 21)
• “Would Saul admit that he had done wrong?” (No, he tried to blame the rest of the people – v. 21.)
• “What should we do if we disobey?” (repent –admit we have done wrong and ask forgiveness)
• “Did Saul truly repent – was he truly sorry?” (No, he was only concerned about being embarrassed in front of the people – v. 30.)
• “What was the result of Saul’s disobedience?” (God took the kingdom away from Saul – v. 23 and v. 28)

Learn

• 1 Samuel 15:22b -- "Behold to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." (Parent should explain what this means.)
• "Just like God wants us to obey Him exactly, He wants children to obey their parents exactly. This is part of what it means in the fifth commandment when it says to honor your father and your mother."

Pray

• Pray for God's help to obey exactly.

Scripture Song

• "Blessed is the man" Psalm 1:1-3