unit 12: elijah and elisha ot12.5 elijah anoints elisha · 1 ot12.5 elijah anoints elisha ©beverly...

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OT12.5 Elijah Anoints Elisha ©Beverly Wilson 2019

Unit 12: Elijah and Elisha OT12.5 Elijah Anoints Elisha

Scripture: 1 Kings 19-20

Lesson Goal: Elijah was the first and most famous of Israel’s prophets. Elijah was a man whom God used to warn the nation of Israel against their sins. In this lesson we will learn how Elijah anointed Elisha as the next prophet of Israel.

Introduction: This lesson is found in the book of 1 Kings. This book tells the history of the kings of Israel and Judah. It is in the second group of Old Testament books called the historical books. These books begin with Joshua and go through Esther. Let's say these books--Joshua, Judges, Ruth, I Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther

Attention Getter: “Follow the Leader”

Have you ever played the game, “Follow the Leader?” In this game you must do everything that the leader tells you to do. If he says, “Jump.” Then you must “jump.” If he says, “Wave your hand, then you must wave your hand. The winner of the game is the person who follows the leader without missing a command. He or she is someone who is willing to stop doing what they want and only do what the leader says! This game is a like what a man named Elisha did in following God. In this lesson we will learn how Elijah anointed Elisha as the next prophet of Israel. Elisha left all to follow the Lord.

Opening Prayer: Dear Father in heaven, thank you for this lesson about Elijah and Elisha. Thank you that we have the example of Elisha being willing to leave everything to follow You. Help us to be willing to make that commitment too. Father, thank you that you died on the cross to pay for the punishment of our sins. You love us and want us to be with you forever in heaven someday. Thank you that you showed your love and care for Elijah by encouraging him during a difficult time and that you will do the same for us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Memory Verse: The memory verses are Matthew 16:24b-25 “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and

take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.”

Lesson Video: https://youtu.be/t-B77W39ubg Elijah was a prophet that God had sent to the people of Israel to speak His Word to them. Elijah was also well known for the great miracles that God did through him. During the time of Elijah the King of Israel was Ahab and his wicked wife Queen Jezebel. They had led the nation of Israel to worship the idol of Baal instead of God. God did not want His people worshipping idols! God sent Elijah to King Ahab to tell him that a great famine was coming on the land because of their sin. Elijah said, “As the Lord God of Israel lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.” For three and one half years no rain fell in the land. Many people starved and died because of the lack of food and water. Many people were angry at Elijah and wanted to kill him for bringing about this terrible famine. But Elijah had faith that God would take care of him in this time of drought.

https://youtu.be/t-B77W39ubg

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At first God told Elijah to hide from King Ahab and Queen Jezebel in the Valley of Kerith near a brook. There God miraculously sent ravens every morning and evening to bring bread and meat for Elijah to eat. Then God sent Elijah to the widow of Zarephath where he supplied him and the widow and her son with an endless supply of oil and flour everyday during the famine. God even used Elijah to raise the widow’s son back to life after he got sick and died. Finally after three and one half years of drought, God spoke to Elijah and told him to go again to King Ahab with a message. Elijah was told to prove to the evil King Ahab and the wandering children of Israel that only the Lord is God. A contest was held on Mt. Carmel between Elijah and the 450 prophets of Baal. God demonstrated his great power by sending a fire from heaven to burn not only the sacrifice, but the stones and soil and it even licked up the water in the trench around the altar! The people gathered on Mt. Carmel saw the Lord’s victory over idols and began to worship Him. They cried, “The Lord he is God! The Lord he is God!” Then the prophets of Baal were killed. After God’s victory on Mt. Carmel, Elijah began to pray that God would send rain again to Israel. In answer to his prayer, a small cloud appeared in the sky and soon a huge rainstorm came upon Israel. The drought and famine were over! But King Ahab and Queen Jezebel were still not convinced to repent of their evil ways and stop worshipping Baal. Jezebel was so angry that her prophets had been killed that she issued a death threat against Elijah. Elijah escaped from Israel and ran into the wilderness where God encouraged him with food and water to help him make the journey. Elijah was returning to the place where God had met Moses and given the Laws and the Ten Commandments. When Elijah finally reached Mt. Horeb or Mt. Sinai he was hiding in a cave when God called to him, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord for the Lord is about to pass by.” At first a great wind came that tore the rocks apart, but God was not in the wind. Then a great earthquake came, but God was not in the earthquake. Next a great fire appeared on the mountain, but God was not in the fire. Finally there was a gentle whisper and God spoke, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” Elijah knew that the gentle whisper was God’s voice. He realized that God does not always reveal himself only in powerful miraculous ways. Elijah told God how discouraged he was. He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.” Lonely and discouraged Elijah thought that he was the only person left who was still true to God! God wanted Elijah to know that his job was not done. He began to tell Elijah what would happen during his ministry. The Lord then said to him, “Go back the way you came and go the Desert of Damascus. When you get there anoint Hazael king over Aram. Also anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as a prophet.” God asked Elijah to anoint three different people. The first was Hazael, as the king of Aram. Elijah was told to anoint an enemy king because God was going to use the nation of Aram as his instrument to punish Israel for its sin. The people of Aram would bring King Ahab and Israel external punishment through a war. King Ahab would die in that battle. Next Elijah was to anoint Jehu as the next king of Israel to succeed King Ahab. As the new king of Israel, Jehu would destroy those who worshipped the false god Baal.

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The third person Elijah was to anoint was Elisha, the prophet who would succeed him. Elisha’s job was to work in Israel, the northern kingdom to point people back to God. God wanted Elijah to know that he was NOT alone. There were still seven thousand people in Israel who had not bowed their knees to the idol Baal nor had their mouths kissed the false god! So Elijah went from Mount Sinai back to Israel. He set off on the long trip north to the town of Abel Meholah where God had said that Elisha lived. Elijah found Elisha out in a field plowing with twelve yoke of oxen. The ground was so hard from the drought that it took that many oxen just to pull the plow through the soil. Elijah walked up to Elisha and threw his coat or mantle over him. It was a sign that Elisha had been chosen by God to become a prophet who would one day take over for Elijah. Elisha was obviously a godly man because he left his oxen and ran after Elijah. Elisha was one of those 7,000 Israelites who had not bowed their knee to the idol Baal. Elisha understood what Elijah putting the coat over his shoulders meant—it was that Elijah was passing his prophet’s job onto Elisha. “Let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,” Elisha said, “and then I will come with you.” “Go back,” Elijah replied. So Elisha returned to his parents and said farewell. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned his plowing equipment to cook the meat. There was no way he could now carry on doing the job he had. Elisha was making a strong commitment to follow Elijah. Without oxen he could not be a farmer again! He then shared the meat with his parents who had come to say goodbye. They had a big feast together. The meal was more than just a feast. It was an offering of thanks to the Lord who chose Elisha to be his prophet. After eating and saying goodbye, Elisha set off with Elijah to begin the new job that God had chosen for him. So for the next ten years God had given Elijah a friend to encourage him and help him. This lesson about Elijah anointing Elisha teaches us several important truths. First, when we are discouraged as Elijah was, things can become too hard for us. But when we turn to God for courage and strength, He will give us the strength to do anything that He asks us to do. Sometimes we might feel like giving up or think that we are alone in serving the Lord, but we are not alone! God is with us and he has many of His children serving Him in the world today. We need to read God’s promises in the Bible and remember how much He loves us and is our strength! Instead of feeling sorry for ourselves we need to thank God that He is such a wonderful God and that He will take care of us as He took care of Elijah by giving him a friend in ministry—Elisha! Elisha is also an important example to us of how willing he was to leave everything behind to follow the Lord. He was willing to burn his plow and offer his oxen as a meal of thanksgiving! When Jesus was calling the disciples he asked them to be willing to leave all in order to follow Him. When Jesus called James and John, and Peter and Andrew he asked them to leave their fishing boats and come follow Him. When Jesus called Matthew, he left his job as a tax collector! Jesus is still calling us to be disciples in the same way. Our memory verse is Matthew 16:24b-25 “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.

25 For whoever wants to save their life

will lose it, but whoever loses

their life for me will find it.” In these verses Jesus is using the cross as a picture of being willing to die for the cause of Christ. Following Jesus means we are willing to make a true commitment even risking death to obey Christ. Like Elisha we are not turning back! Let’s say our verses again together. Matthew 16:24b-25 “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.

25 For

whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.

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Have you chosen to follow Jesus? You can make that commitment today. The Lord Jesus loves you and has made a way possible for you to receive the free gift of salvation by His death on the cross. He earnestly desires to walk with you and give you the great blessings that come in serving Him. Will you do that today? Remember be willing to follow Jesus and commit everything to Him!

Review Questions/ Game: “Heads or Tails” Preparation: You will need to draw a large grid on poster paper or on a white board using markers. Make the grid 5 squares across and five squares down. Label the lower left corner “Start” and the upper right corner “Finish.” See diagram. You will also need a coin to flip. Procedure: Divide the class into two teams. Assign a different colored marker for each team. Each team must correctly answer one of the following review questions to proceed. Have each member of the team take turns flipping the coin. If the coin is heads the team marks the square one space horizontally. If the coin is tails the team marks the square one space vertically. Teams are to try to reach the “Finish” Square. First team to get to the Finish square is the winner. Say: “This game has only two choices—moving horizontally or vertically. When we are faced with temptation we only have two choices—to obey God or not. Winners always obey God.”

1. Who was Elijah? (Elijah was one of God’s prophets. A prophet is a messenger from God who is sent to preach God’s Word to save the people from their sins. Elijah warned the people to turn away from Baal worship and obey God.)

2. What message did God send Elijah to tell King Ahab? (“As the Lord God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be any dew or rain in the next few years, except at my word.”)

3. How did God provide food for Elijah during the famine? ( Every morning and evening God sent the ravens to bring bread and meat in their beaks. Then God sent him to Widow of Zarephath and her son and gave them an endless supply of oil and flour.)

4. After three and one half years of famine, what was the message that Elijah had for King Ahab from God? (Elijah said, “We're going to have a contest! Gather all you prophets of Baal and we will meet on Mount Carmel. This contest will prove who the real God is!”)

5. What happened when Elijah finished his prayer for the sacrifice? (Suddenly the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil. It also licked up the water in the trench.)

6. What response did the people have to this great fire from God? (The people fell face down and cried, “The Lord he is God! The Lord he is God!”)

7. After the contest on Mount Carmel what did Elijah do? (He went up on the mountain and prayed for rain.)

8. Why did Elijah flee to Mount Horeb? (He was afraid of the order by Queen Jezebel to have him killed.)

9. What was special about the place that Elijah escaped to in the desert? (Elijah went to Mt. Horeb which was another name for Mount Sinai where Moses had talked to God in the burning bush and had received the Ten Commandments.)

10. Where did Elijah stay while on Mt. Horeb? (He stayed in a cave.) 11. How did God show his power to Elijah on Mount Horeb? (God showed Elijah his power by first a

powerful windstorm, then through an earthquake, and finally a great fire.) 12. In what way did God finally talk to Elijah? (He spoke to Elijah in a gentle whisper.)

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13. What message did God give Elijah in the quiet whisper? (He told him, “Go back the way you came,” the Lord quietly replied. “When you get to the Desert of Damacus, anoint Hazael king over Aram, and anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel.Anoint Elisha the son of Shaphat to succeed you as prophet. Then God explained to Elijah that he was not the only one left who served God. There were 7,000 people in Israel who had not bowed to Baal.”)

14. Why was Elijah to anoint Hazael the king of Aram? (God was going to use the nation of Aram as his instrument to punish Israel for its sin. The people of Aram would bring King Ahab and Israel external punishment through a war. King Ahab would die in that battle.)

15. Why was Elijah to anoint Jehu the king of Israel? (As the new king of Israel, Jehu would destroy those who worshipped the false god Baal.)

16. Who was the third person that Elijah was to anoint? (Elijah was to anoint Elisha, the prophet who would succeed him. Elisha’s job was to work in Israel, the northern kingdom to point people back to God. Elisha would also become a friend of Elijah’s for the next ten years.)

17. What lesson can we learn from this story from Elijah? (At times we may feel like God cannot use us anymore because of our past failures, problems or lapses of faith. But that is NOT true! God will not give up on us either. In God’s gentle way, He will speak to our heart to encourage us to continue His work in our life. He will bless our lives when we walk with the Lord.)

18. What lesson can we learn from example of Elisha in choosing to follow Elijah? (Elisha is an example to us of how willing he was to leave everything behind to follow the Lord. He was willing to burn his plow and offer his oxen as a meal of thanksgiving!)

19. What command did Jesus give to his disciples when he called them to follow Him? (“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.)

20. What is the memory verse? (Our memory verses Matthew 16:24b-25 “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.”)

Memory Verse Activity: ““Verse Match-Up” Game Our memory verses are Matthew 16:24b-25 “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.


will lose it, but whoever loses

their life for me will find it.” Have students locate the verse in scripture and read it together several times.

Say: “In these verses Jesus is using the cross as a picture of being willing to die for the cause of Christ. Following Jesus means we are willing to make a true commitment even risking death to obey Christ. Like Elisha we are not turning back!” Preparation: You will need set of index cards for each player. Using a marker print the words (or phrases) of the memory verse onto the index cards. Procedure: Divide the class into groups of four to play a game similar to “Go Fish.” Distribute four sets of memory verse cards to each group. Players in each group shuffle their cards together and then distribute 5 cards to each player. To play, the player compares the cards he has to the verse to determine which cards he needs to complete the verse. The first player names another player in the group and asks for a needed card. If the player has the card, he must give it to the player who asked for it. If the player does not have the card, the next player takes a turn, asking for a needed card. Play continues until all the players in the group have the cards needed to complete the verse.

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Group Learning Activity: Dramatization: “In a Quiet Whisper” (Grades 2-5) Purpose: To allow children to participate in a review of the story using simple dramatic effects. Procedure: Have students form groups of four and “count off” from one to four. Tell the “ones” they’re the “wind.” Have the “twos” be “earthquake.” Have the threes be “fire” and have the fours be “whispers.” Have everyone in each group help each member of the group come up with a sound effect for what the group represents. Give the children two or three minutes to develop their sound effect. Say: “Our Bible lesson today includes wind, earthquake, fire, and whispers. God used these things to encourage Elijah. I’ll tell the story. When I mention your role, do t he sound effect you thought up.” “This story comes from the first book of Kings. Elijah traveled 40 days and 40 nights to reach Mt. Horeb, the mountain of God. When he arrived at the mountain, he crawled into a cave and slept. Then he heard God ask, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” “Elijah said, “God, I have served you passionately and faithfully. But your people have broken their agreement with you. They have destroyed the altars where they worshipped you, and they have even killed your prophets. I am the only prophet left, and they want to kill me, too.” “Then God said, “Go out and stand on the mountain, I am about to pass by you.” “Then a very strong wind blew until it caused the rocks of the mountain to crumble into bits. (Pause while the children do the sound effects.) But God was not in the wind. “Then a mighty earthquake shook the ground. (Pause while the children do the sound effects.) But God was not in the earthquake. “Next a tremendous fire arose and burned the mountainside. (Pause while the children do the sound effects.) But God was not in the fire. “Last there came a small, gentle whisper. (Pause while the children do the sound effects.) This was when Elijah went out of the cave to meet with God. God asked him again, “Elijah, what are you doing here?” “Elijah gave the same answer as before. He said, “God, I have served you passionately and faithfully. But your people have broken their agreement with you. They have destroyed the altars where they worshipped you, and they have even killed your prophets. I am the only prophet left, and they want to kill me, too.” “God said, “Elijah, I want you to go back the way you came. Then I want you to anoint a new king for Aram, a new king for Israel, and a new prophet. You think you are all alone, but I have kept 7,000 people in Israel who are still faithful to me.” Say: “How did Elijah feel before he heard from God? (Discouraged, like he was all alone, and afraid.) How did God encourage Elijah? (God gave him a plan; God told Elijah he wasn’t alone; God said he was with Elijah.) Why do you think God spoke to Elijah in the way he did? (To be sure Elijah was listening; because Elijah wasn’t expecting to hear God that way.) God’s encouragement helps us do hard things. God encourages us all the time!”

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Group Learning Activity: “In the Cave” (Grades K-2) Preparation: You will need a large cardboard box that will hold several children. Cut a hole in the side of the box to make an entrance to the “cave.” Cover the outside of the box with crumbled brown paper bags to resemble the rocks. You can have children help make the outside of the rock cave, if desired. Procedure: Allow a few children to go inside the box. Let the children run around the cave and make noises like the wind, the fire, and the earthquake. Allow the children to take turns being inside the “cave.” As you retell the story allow the children to dramatize. Allow some to demonstrate what it was like: to be afraid and run away, to hide, to sleep in the cave, to hear the wind, the fire, the earthquake, and the whisper of God’s voice. Elijah kept telling God that he felt alone. Talk about loneliness. Talk about how God can help. As the children take time for silence, remind them that God will speak to us if we will seek Him. Say: “Elijah became afraid for his life, so he ran. Sometimes it is tempting for us to run away from our problems. But God wants us to know that He is there with us, and He can help us through the problems. We just need to ask Him.” Close activity in prayer.

Group Learning Activity: “Follow the Leader” (Grades K-2) Preparation: You will need objects to make a simple obstacle course such as chairs, tables, etc, Procedure: Play a simple game of "Follow the Leader." Set up the furniture in your room to make a simple obstacle course. The leader can go around chairs and under tables, making different clapping sounds, or noises. The more variety the more fun the students will have. Let each child be the leader and LEAD their classmates in various ways and things to do. Encourage children to do a lot of different things, such as sing a song, jump, run, crawl, hop, etc. When the game is over, have children sit in a circle and review the Bible lesson. Pray together that they will follow Jesus Say: "Follow the leader is a great game. In this lesson we learned that Elisha left his home and family to follow Elijah and to become a prophet. One day Jesus was walking along the sea shore. He saw two fishermen, Peter and Andrew, who were throwing their fishing nets out into the sea. Jesus called out to them, "Follow me and I will make you fishers of men." The Bible tells us that they laid down their nets and followed Jesus. Jesus went a little farther and he saw two more men, James and John sitting in their boat mending their nets. Jesus called out to them and the Bible tells us that they left their boat and followed Jesus. (vs. 19-20) Jesus is still calling people to follow him today. He has called you and me to follow him. Now it's up to us to decide if we will follow the leader. Every day we are to follow our Leader Jesus."

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Group Learning Activity: Scripture: “God Calls” (Grades 3-5) Preparation: Each student will need a Bible. Procedure: Distribute Bibles to every student. Have students locate and read aloud the following scriptures associated God’s calling. Say: "In this lesson we learned that God called Elisha to become the next prophet to succeed Elijah. We are going to look at some other men whom God called to serve Him.” Have students read the following scriptures and find the name of the man whom God is calling. Ask students to explain why these people were called. Discuss how God knew who they were and gave them a special job to do.

Jesus calls His disciples--Matthew 16:24b-25 “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.


will lose

it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.”

God calls Elisha—I Kings 19: 19-21 “So Elijah went from there and found Elisha son of Shaphat.

He was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen, and he himself was driving the twelfth pair. Elijah went

up to him and threw his cloak around him. 20 Elisha then left his oxen and ran after Elijah. “Let

me kiss my father and mother goodbye,” he said, “and then I will come with you.” “Go back,” Elijah replied. “What have I done to you?” So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his servant.

Jesus calls Zacchaeus—Luke 19:5-9 “5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to

him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

God calls David to be King—1 Samuel 16:12-13 “Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.” So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah.”

God calls Jonah—Jonah 1:1 “The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”

God called Gideon—Judges 6:14-16 “The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?” “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” The Lord answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”

God called Saul named Paul—Acts 9:15-17 “But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength.

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Craft Learning Activity: I Will Follow Jesus "Foot Print" Preparation: You will need large pieces of poster board, marking pens, crayons, glitter, glue and scissors. Procedure: Let children trace their own or each other's foot and cut it out. Or, they can cut out a big foot that the teacher has prepared beforehand. Children are to write "I willl Follow Jesus" on the big foot. The children can decorate their foot around the border with glitter glue or write their name on the "Big Foot." Children can also write today's memory verse on the foot or a prayer: Say: “Our memory verse is Matthew 16:24b-25 “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.


will lose it, but whoever

loses their life for me will find it.” Let’s write the verse on the back of our footprint. "Dear Jesus, you have called us to follow you. I'll follow you wherever you may lead me. In Jesus' name, Amen!"

Craft Learning Activity: “Elijah’s Mantle” (Grades K-5) Preparation: You will need 24" x 36" piece of light-colored fleece or a towel or material (any color), and fabric

markers. (You can use paper or second-hand materials, if desired.)

Procedure: Hand out material. There is no cutting or coloring for this project other than the lettering and the initial cutting of the fabric into strips. Have students write "Elijah's Mantle" and "1 Kings 19" in the very middle of one side of the fabric. Students wrap cloth around their shoulders as Elijah might have done with his mantle. As students have mantles wrapped around their shoulders the teacher should lead the following discussion. Say: “In this lesson we learned that God told Elijah to anoint Elisha as the next prophet of Israel. When Elijah found Elisha he was plowing in a field using twelve oxen. To show that God had chosen Elisha as the next prophet of Israel, Elijah threw his mantle or coat onto Elisha. That was Elisha's call from God to become a prophet just like Elijah. Becoming a prophet meant that Elisha would face the danger of an angry King Ahab and Queen Jezebel because of the truth that they would speak. “Elisha was ready to follow Elijah, but first he wanted to say goodbye to his family. Elisha left his oxen and ran after Elijah and asked him if he could kiss his mother and father before he left home and followed Elijah. Elijah told Elisha to go back home if he wanted to say goodbye. So Elisha went home, made a feast for everyone, then he got up, and went to follow and help Elijah. It was a great honor to follow in Elijah's footsteps and Elisha realized that fact when Elijah threw his mantle on him. There was going to be danger and hard times ahead, but Elisha accepted the job with enthusiasm. What would we have done?”

Craft Learning Activity: “Elijah and Elisha” Puppets (Grades K-4) Preparation: You will need printed copies of the puppet characters below on cardstock; scissors, crayons, jumbo craft sticks or paint sticks glue gun or tape. Procedure: Distribute the printed pictures of the puppets and craft sticks to each student. Have students cut out the figures and attach to the craft stick or paint stick using glue or tape. Encourage students to retell the Bible lesson of “Elijah Anointing Elisha.”

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Group Learning Game Activity: “Explore Books of the Bible” Grades K-5 Preparation: Print the “Flash Cards” of the books of the Bible below. Cut apart. Prepare a chart with the letters of the alphabet with space beside each letter to write the number of the Books of the Bible that begin with that letter. Say: “Find the name of the book our lesson was from today. (This lesson is found in the book of 1 Kings.) What section of books is 1 Kings in? (It is in the second group of Old Testament books called the historical books. This book tells the history of the kings of Israel and Judah). What are the names of the other books of History? (These books begin with Joshua and go through Esther.) Let's say these books--Joshua, Judges, Ruth, I Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther. Even though many of the people forgot God and His Laws during the time when the events in the books of History took place, God still took care of them. Who were two people from our lesson who remembered God’s laws and whom God helped with His great power? (Elijah and Elisha) Procedure: Place the Books of the Bible flash cards face up on the table. Say: “Let’s practice saying the name of the Bible books.” Guide each child to select a card. Say: “Can you tell me the name on your card? I will help you say the name.” State aloud each name. Place all of the cards face up on the floor. Say: “Let’s see how many Bible book names start with each letter of the alphabet. I’ll call out a letter. Let’s find all of the name cards that begin with this letter.” Call out a letter of the alphabet. Guide the children to locate each of the cards beginning with the letter. Count and record the number of cards for each letter.” Continue as time permits.

a 2 g 2 m 4 s 3 y 0

b 0 h 4 n 3 t 5 z 2

c 5 i 1 o 1 u 0

d 2 j 12 p 6 v 0

e 6 k 2 q 0 w 0

f 0 l 3 r 3 x 0

Say: “People at church learn about God and Jesus. Church leaders and teachers help us learn about God and Jesus. Let’s thank God for those who help us by teaching at church.”

Life Application Challenge: “Answer the Call” Say: “In this lesson we learned that Elisha answered God’s call to become a prophet. Elisha was willing to leave everything behind to follow the Lord. He was willing to burn his plow and offer his oxen as a meal of thanksgiving! “When Jesus was calling the disciples he asked them to be willing to leave all in order to follow Him. When Jesus called James and John, and Peter and Andrew he asked them to leave their fishing boats and come follow Him. When Jesus called Matthew, he left his job as a tax collector! Jesus is still calling us to be disciples in the same way.” “Have you chosen to follow Jesus? You can make that commitment today. The Lord Jesus loves you and has made a way possible for you to receive the free gift of salvation by His death on the cross. He earnestly desires to walk with you and give you the great blessings that come in serving Him. Will you do that today? Review the ABC’s of salvation. Close in prayer offering an opportunity for students to accept Christ.

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Elijah Anoints Elisha

Matthew 16:24b-25

“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it,

but whoever loses their life for me will find it.”

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Elijah and Elisha Stick Puppets

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