Week 4 Lesson (Videos will be posted Wednesday):

See Weeks 1-3 Materials Below…

Last zoom, WEdnesday, July 1, 11 am

Bring a friend!

As we conclude our VBS for this Summer, let’s review some of what we’ve learned. In our lessons about Elisha and Balaam and the talking donkey, we saw that the spiritual world exists. There are really angels around us that most of us will never see. Throughout history, God has given some people (and a donkey) the ability to see the spiritual world. In both stories, God protected His people. When we believe in Jesus, God protects us too!

I hope you are having fun making your crafts to remind you about truth, righteousness, peace, salvation, and God’s word, but none of the man-made armor we have will help. With David and Goliath, we learned that the Armor of God from Ephesians 6:10 is not a physical armor, but a spiritual armor. David knew that! With no armor, he went into battle and defeated a mighty warrior who was covered in armor! David was able to do that because he God was fighting his battles along side him!

Today’s story  (Matthew 4:1-11) teaches about the one part of the armor that is used for attack - The Sword of the Spirit - God’s Own Holy Word! When Satan tempts Jesus, Jesus responds each time with God’s word. We must follow Jesus’ example and learn God’s word so we can also take part in the spiritual battle!

All of our armor helps us to stand firm in God; but, the sword of the spirit allows us to join in the battle. We must study God’s word!

I hope you take the rest of the summer to relax, catch up on some treehouse videos and VBS crafts and activities. Don’t forget about right now media and all of the great resources and children’s shows that are available to you for free!

Craft: Sword of the Spirit

1. 2 Paper Towel Roles

2. Gluestick/Hot Glue Gun 

3. Scissors

4. Cardstock Paper

5. Aluminum Foil

Craft: Helmet of Salvation

1. Card Stock Paper

2. Template (link below)

3. Hot Glue/Regular Glue

4. Scissors

https://www.firstpalette.com/pdf/romanhelmet.pdf

Week 3 Lesson:

See Week 1 and 2 Materials Below…

This week we cover David and Goliath! I always loved this story as a kid because David was such a big underdog and was able to take down a giant! As an adult, I realized that God was the one fighting Goliath alongside David. God v. Goliath just seems extremely unfair for Goliath! Sadly, none of the Israelites had the faith in God that David did.

David was well aware of God’s power in battle. When he was telling King Saul about his bouts with lions and bears he said,  “The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.” (1 Samuel 17:37). David had faith God would rescue him. He knew that God was fighting on his side!

My favorite line in this story has always been when David is facing Goliath and says, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands...”  (1 Samuel 16:45-46). David fights for God’s glory and he believes God will deliver him! All the things the world values in battle, size, strength, swords, spears and javelins, mean nothing. In the end, God is the one who determines the victor!

Right before he kills Goliath he gives God credit one more time: “All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.” (1 Samuel 16:47). 

Yes, David was brave; but David’s success stemmed from having faith in God and giving God all the glory! 

Enjoy VBS today and enjoy our David and Goliath video put together by the Sanchez, Urbina, and Parker families. Enjoy making some fudge “river rocks” and have fun assembling shoes fitted with the Gospel of Peace and a Shield of Faith!

Craft Materials:

Shield of Faith

1. Card Stock or craft paper

2. Shield Template (See Links below)

3. Toilet Paper or Paper Towel Roll

4. Crayons

5. Pencils

6. Decorative Material

7. Glue Gun

https://ministryark.com/printable/shield-of-faith-printables/

https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/printables-armor/Shield-min.pdf

Gospel of Peace Shoes:

1. Cardboard

2. Sharpened Pencil

3. String/Ribbon

4. Construction paper

Week 2 Lesson:

See Week 1 Materials Below…

See you on zoom Today at 11 am - Crazy hair!

and next week, June 24, 11 am -

Bring a friend and wear your favorite superhero shirt

VBS BIBLE PASSAGE WEEK 2 Ephesians 6:10-14:

GOD’S ARMOR FOR BELIEVERS

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place.

Discussion:

The Oxford Dictionary says that righteousness is “the quality of being morally right or justifiable.” There are a lot of questions today about what is morally right or just. Some things that were “right” 50 years ago are not considered “right” today; There are also some things that were not okay 50 years ago that are “right” to do today! It seems like what is considered “right” is constantly changing because we try to define morality or justice without God’s truth (Belt of Truth - see Week 1 for a review).

This week we are learning about the breastplate of righteousness. In a soldier’s armor, the breastplate protects the most vital organs. Only when we seek God’s righteousness can we protect the most vital parts of our lives. For followers of Jesus, true righteousness comes from obeying God. Scripture tells us that “there is no one righteous, not one” (Romans 3:10). How then can we put on a breastplate of righteousness? 

Let’s read Romans 3:25 (NIRV):

25God gave him as a sacrifice to pay for sins. So he forgives the sins of those who have faith in his blood. God did all of that to prove that he is [righteous]. Because of his mercy he did not punish people for the sins they had committed before Jesus died for them. 26 God did that to prove in our own time that he is fair. He proved that he is [righteous]. He also made right with himself those who believe in Jesus.

Today’s Bible story is about a man named Balaam who tried – sort of – to do what God wanted him to do. Eventually, Balaam became righteous when he realized the full power and might of God and followed God’s command. Through all of that, God protected His people…just like the breastplate of righteousness!

Craft Time: The Breastplate of Righteousness

Materials:

1. Crayons

2. Markers

3. Crafting paper

4. Scissors

Music and Game Time: Blind Balaam

Balaam could not see the Angel of the Lord in front of him. We made up another game called Blind Balaam. You can use a pillow or anything else you can wack someone with. You must be blindfolded and say, "Blind Balaam" before you take a swing at someone. Be careful though because yelling will give away your position to the other competitors. Each hit equals a point - first to 3 (or whatever number you want) wins. We added "Tyrannosaurus Arms" (keeping your arms short and close to your body) to keep from hitting someone too hard in the face. Have fun!

Week 2 Special Song - Whom Shall I fear

VBS Week 1 Material

WEEK 1:

This page will be updated with new material so you can spend time with your family studying the Bible together. Take a minute to read the passage, talk about what it means, watch the videos, do the crafts, and even sing the song! It may sound like a lot, but you don’t have to do it all in one day! Each video is 5-10 minutes (often less) and should be easy enough where most kids can do the activities on their own. Most importantly, send in videos of your activities so you can be a part of the Treehouse Club VBS Edition video next week!

Next week, we will try to have a ZOOM Meeting at 11 am on Wednesday to play some games and to see how everything went the first week! You can also share this webpage, or the whole playlist on Youtube with your friends!

VBS Bible passage Week 1:

Ephesians 6:10-14

God’s Armor for Believers

10 Finally, let the Lord make you strong. Depend on his mighty power. 11 Put on all of God’s armor. Then you can remain strong against the devil’s evil plans. 12 Our fight is not against human beings. It is against the rulers, the authorities and the powers of this dark world. It is against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly world. 13 So put on all of God’s armor. Evil days will come. But you will be able to stand up to anything. And after you have done everything you can, you will still be standing. 14 So remain strong in the faith. Put the belt of truth around your waist. 

Questions:

How do we become strong? (v. 10)

Why do we need armor? (v. 11)

Who is our enemy? (v. 12)

How can we stand up to these spiritual forces? (v. 13)

What do we put on around our waist? (v. 14)

Bible Story Video and discussion

The only way we can really know and trust someone is if they tell us the truth! The only way that we can really get to know God is by reading the Bible (God’s Holy word) because God’s word is truth (John 17:17a). We can learn to stand strong when we study His word! In our story from the Bible today (2 Kings 6:8-23), we will learn that there is a spiritual world around us in which God and his heavenly armies are all around us keeping us safe. In this world, the most powerful weapon is prayer! TJ learns about how truth is helpful to standing strong in the Lord! Enjoy!

TJ Works out

Game and Craft Videos

Blindfold Pictionary - Ephesians tells us that our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against spiritual forces. If we don't study God's word, we will be going into those struggles blind-folded. Just like Elisha's servant had his eyes opened so he could see God's army protecting him, God can open our eyes so we can see the world the way God wants us to see it. When we study God's word (Truth), we can learn to see without the blindfold!

The Belt of Truth - The belt for a soldier holds all the armor together. Without it, it would be really hard to fight! Can you imagine fighting with your pants falling down? Even though belts for a soldiers in Bible times didn’t hold up their pants, it was still very important to keeping the soldier prepared for battle. As you make this craft, remember that God’s word is truth (John 17:17b) and will help us prepare for spiritual battles!

Week 1 Song: Surrounded (Fight My Battles)

This song was written based on the story of Elisha and the angel armies. Elisha fought his battle with prayer. We can also chose to worship God in the middle of the battles - We fight with prayer, praise, worship and fellowship!