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Joseph Reunites With His Brothers; Joseph's Family in Egypt by Jennifer Tolbert
The covenant God made with Abraham has now passed to his grandson Jacob. Even though this inheritance was obtained by Jacob through deceptive ways, God continues to work his plan through his family. While Abraham was blessed with his one promised son, Isaac, his family tree continues to grow as his grandson Jacob is blessed with 12 sons.
This lesson is the story of the reconciliation of Joseph and his brothers and the unique circumstances that brought this reunion about. Key Themes:
Memory VerseSongs
Books of the Old Testament
Jacob Lived in Canaan Sons of Jacob Song Be Careful Little Eyes The B.I.B.L.E. He’s Got The Whole World in His Hands 12 Tribes of Israel Story
Begin Class with Songs, Games, Table Activity, or Sharing Time
Open Class in Prayer Introducing the Story Ideas 1. Family Reunions Ask how many of the kids have ever been to a family reunion? What makes them special? What do you usually do? Draw a family tree tracing Abraham to Joseph and his brothers. SAY: In today's lesson we are going to talk about a special family reunion. Joseph had not seen his family in 22 years! 2. Change of Heart from Ministry to Children Students will cut out two hearts from construction paper, tissue paper, or wrapping paper. Tell them that the first heart represents a heart that is sinful. Joseph’s brothers’ hearts were sinful when they threw Joseph down the well and sold him as a slave. Have the students decorate their first heart to represent a sinful heart in some way. It could be black with the “dirt” of sin, crumpled up or torn to show that it’s not in the best shape, or have words written on it that name sinful attitudes: greedy, hate, jealous, anger, selfish, etc. The second heart represents a heart that changes to be like God wants us to be. Joseph’s brothers’ heart changed when they showed that they were willing to become Joseph’s slaves to save their brother Benjamin. This second heart can be new or shiny or list pure attitudes (love, kindness, peaceful, giving, etc.) to show the change. 3. Freeing Benjamin from Ministry to Children Divide the students into two teams on opposite sides of your play area. A line divides the play area. A “Benjamin” from each team goes to stand on the play area’s boundary, behind the opposite team. They are in the opposite team’s prison. The rest of the team then tries to reach their Benjamin without being tagged. The opposing team can tag them anytime they cross the middle line into their territory. The strategy is for the teams to send some of their members to free their Benjamin while leaving others behind to tag members of the opposite team trying to cross over to free the Benjamin they’re guarding. When a player crosses the line and gets tagged by a defending team member, they’re out. The game is over when one team reaches and frees their Benjamin. Play as many times as you like, choosing a new Benjamin each time. Afterward, remind the students that Benjamin’s brothers had a change of heart and were willing to take Benjamin’s place as Joseph’s slave so that he could go free. Story: Review the story of Abraham to Jacob so far. Jacob (later known as Israel) had a very large family! Just like his father's before him, Jacob had inherited a promise the God would bless the entire world through his family. However, Jacob's life was marked with sadness. Remember, Jacob still believes Joseph is dead and to make matters worse, the land is in a severe famine (which means the land will not produce food and they are running out!) In this story, Joseph's gift of prophecy is used to rescue lots of people from starvation, including his own family! After 22 years, Joseph forgives his brothers and is reunited with his brothers and father! SHOW the power point Joseph Reunited with His Family or read Genesis 43-46. EMPHASIZE that:
Visual AidsGod is...
Challenge the children to come up with "God is" statements based on this story such as God is faithful, God is powerful, etc.
Activities
Game: Who Has the Cup?
Supplies: Brown paper bags, a small gold cup, small cups, filler Download: Who Has the Cup Read Aloud Fill each brown paper bag with filler (popcorn, beans, etc) and a cup. Make sure that one brown paper bag has a gold cup in it. As you read the Who Has the Cup story, kids will pass left or right when the reader says left or right. At the end of the story, each child looks in their bag tosee who has the cup.
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