The Promised King

Memory Verse: Hebrews 10:23 “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.”

Personal Experience in Peer Pressure and Its Negative Consequences

Some of us are born leaders, some are born followers, and some are a little of each. God holds you responsible for your choices. The consequences of your choices are yours alone – even if someone else influenced you to sin. God holds each of us accountable for our own choices. If someone influences you or pressures you into making a bad choice, the consequences of that choice are still yours and yours alone. God does not hold other people responsible for the choices you make or for the sins you commit. Each of you is accountable to God for your choices, and the sins you commit. God loves you and wants to bless you just as your parents love you and want to bless you as their children.

We learned in this lesson that Israel had been promised blessings if they obeyed God and worshipped only Him, and curses if they disobeyed and worshipped other gods, and that they were promised a King. Depending on their choices, they would be blessed or cursed.

God wanted to bless the Israelites, but the Israelites rejected God and His blessings in order to go their own way. The consequences of those choices resulted in the Israelites being taken captive by foreign nations every time they stopped obeying and worshipping God and began obeying and worshipping other gods. God allowed the Israelites to suffer the natural consequences of their choices.

They were promised a King. Isa.11:1-2 “There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots. 2 The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.” This King would come from the house of David. (Jesse was David’s father)

Isa: 7:14 14 “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” (God with us). This King would be like no other human ever born. He would be born from a virgin.

Isa. 9:6-7 6” For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end”, This King’s rule would be forever – it would never end.

Micah 5:2 ”But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.” This King would come out of the town of Bethlehem.

Ps. 231:11-12 11 The LORD has sworn in truth to David; He will not turn from it: “I will set upon your throne the fruit of your body. 12 If your sons will keep My covenant and My testimony which I shall teach them, their sons also shall sit upon your throne forevermore.” King David was not that king, but he was promised that if his children obeyed God, they too would be kings.

Did Israel obey God and worship only Him? No. What happened to them over and over again? They fell into idolatry and were taken into captivity. Can you see how important the choices are that we make?

Choices and peer pressure.

Take a test

1. Are you the first to decide if your group goes out for pizza or hamburger?
2. Are you the first to wear a new color, style or something different to school?
3. Are you the one who chooses the movie you and your group sees?
4. Are you the one who chooses which activity your group will do for fun?
5. Do you usually stick with your decision not to do something you feel is wrong?
6. Even if everyone else is doing it?
7. How great are the consequences if you have pizza rather than hamburger?
8. How great are the consequences if one of your friends leads you to sin and destroys your relationship with God?

   Even though the Israelites were special to God, they suffered trials, tribulations, and were taken into captivity by the Babylonians, Assyrians, and Romans.

9. Why did foreigners take the Israelites into captivity?
10. Was their suffering necessary or could they have avoided it?
    Deuteronomy 28:1-14 Blessings for Obedience
    Deuteronomy 28:15-68 Curses for Disobedience
    
    They were given a choice of life or death, blessings or curses.
    Deuteronomy 30:1-10 The Blessing of Obedience & Returning to God
    Deuteronomy 30:11-20 The Consequences of Disobedience & Abandoning God
    
11. What should the Israelites have done to prevent captivity?
12. What should the Israelites have done to receive God’s blessings?
13. What should you do to receive God’s blessings?

God does not force us to obey Him by punishing us, rather He allows us to suffer the natural consequences of bad choices and our sins so that we can see that we did have a choice to obey Him or not. He blesses us for obedience and allows us to suffer natural consequences for our disobedience. He wants children that want to show their love for Him by their voluntary obedience to Him in love – not out of fear. We serve an awesome, mighty, and loving God – not an angry, vindictive, vengeful one. Consider the choices you make everyday in everything in your life –the words you use, the clothes you wear, the music you listen to, the TV and movies you watch, the way you treat other people – every big and little decision you make – consider your choices.

Deut. 30:19 “I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live”

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