ession 3 jacob deceives esau and...

3Session

34 FaithWeaver • Summer Quarter

Session Sequence What Children Will Do Supplies

Let’s Praise God!

(about 25 minutes)

Sing• “He Is Good” (Nahum 1:7) (track 3)• “I Will Not Be Afraid” (track 8)• “Living by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:25) (track 9)• “God Works for the Good” (Romans 8:28) (track 5)• “All His Promises” (Psalm 145:13b) (track 18)

KidsOwn Worship Kit:Songs From FaithWeaver

Classroom Supplies: CD player, rock, chalkboard, chalk


Let’s Learn the Point!

(about 25 minutes)

* Ice Cream and CakeLearn about sisters who behaved like Jacob and Esau.

Truth or LiePlay a game to practice discerning between true statements and lies.

Classroom Supplies:Bible, 2 sheets of newsprint, markers

God SaysPlay a clapping rhythm game.

Jacob Deceives Esau and IsaacGenesis 25:27-34; 27:1-40

Worship Theme: God is always truthful.

Weaving Faith Into Life: Kids will worship God for his unwavering truth and choose a way to be truthful in their own lives.

Session 3 • KidsOwn Worship 35



(about 25 minutes)

* Guilty!Experience a trial to discover what happened in the story.

Classroom Supplies:Clear cookie jar, 1 cookie per child, 5 copies of “Jacob’s Trial” script (p. 46)

That’s No LieMake true and false statements, and talk about the importance of being truthful.

Classroom Supplies:Wire whisk

* Truth LeapLeap at truths about God.

Art to come

* Starred activities can be used successfully with preschool and elementary children together.

Customize your session to fit your needs. You can separate preschoolers and elementary children for Section 2.

Or, if you keep the children all together for the entire worship session, we suggest you choose from the starred activities.


Let’s Pray! (about 10 minutes)

The Offering Offer their gifts to God.

Classroom Supplies:Offering bowl

Always TruthfulSay a prayer of praise and commitment.

Be HolyParticipate in an active prayer.

KidsOwn Worship Kit:Songs From FaithWeaver: “Give of Your Best to the Master” (track 1)

Classroom Supplies: CD player


Abraham lived another 35 years after Isaac’s wedding, and during that time, he took a new wife who bore him six more children. After he died, he was buried with his wife Sarah. It’s interesting to note that he was buried by Isaac and Ishmael. Ishmael and his mother, Hagar, had been kicked out of Abraham’s household. Certainly Ishmael had little love for Isaac. But apparently the two were able to put aside their differences to honor their departed father.

In the meantime, Isaac and Rebekah had twin boys, Jacob and Esau. Esau, the firstborn, was Isaac’s favorite, and Jacob was Rebekah’s favorite. Such favoritism seldom leads to a healthy, honest home life.

The first deception we see in the story of Jacob and Esau appears to be Jacob’s alone. One might call it extortion. When Esau came in hungry from the fields and demanded some of the stew Jacob was cooking, Jacob quickly responded that he would exchange the stew for Esau’s birthright. His quick response indicates that he had been scheming to steal the birthright, which was considered a precious gift from God. It entitled Esau to a double portion of the inheritance. The bearer of the birthright was also considered the head of the family. When Esau swore the oath that Jacob demanded, he entered a legal agreement giving up that birthright. He gave up all that God had given him as the firstborn.

Though Esau had lost the birthright, Isaac could still give him the fatherly blessing before he died, and Isaac was determined to do that. Rebekah initiated the second deception. She heard Isaac’s instructions to Esau and proposed a plan to Jacob. To be fair to Rebekah, we should consider that she might have thought she was doing her part to make sure that God’s message to her described in

Genesis 25:23 came true. God had promised that the older of her twin sons would serve the younger. Whatever her motives, she helped Jacob deceive his aged father into giving him the blessing intended for Esau.

This deception devastated the family. Esau vowed to kill Jacob as soon as their father died (Genesis 27:41). Jacob had to flee the land, never to see his mother alive again.

This story is somewhat difficult because in the end God’s will was accomplished even though it was done through human deceit and dishonesty. God can work through broken, imperfect people to do his will, but he still expects and wants us to live with integrity and to strive for purity. The family in this story was shattered by dishonesty. May we seek to be honest in all we do—and to let God accomplish what he wants to do through us as we follow him faithfully.

Bible Background for Leaders


Devotion for LeadersWhen we choose honesty and trust God with an outcome, he honors and protects us. This path is not always easy, but it will bring us closer to Jesus.

Weaving Faith Into Your Life: Everyone is tempted to be dishonest at one time or another. Have you ever been dishonest with God? with yourself? with others? We need courage to step out of deception and commit to truthfulness. Take a moment to ask God to bring to mind any dishonesty. Confess your weakness to God, and ask for his strength and integrity.


Why We Worship for LeadersPeople of all ages struggle with telling the truth. But truthfulness is a quality that is constant in God. If God says something will happen, it will! If God makes a promise, he’ll keep it! If God teaches something through his Word, it’s true—without a doubt! We can trust God to always be truthful, unlike humans. That’s reason to worship!

In today’s Scripture, Jacob and Esau demonstrate how different we are from God. Deceit, trickery, and ungratefulness are qualities common in man but unheard of in God. Use this session to help kids discover that God is always truthful and that, because of this, he deserves our praise.

Easy Prep for LeadersLet’s Praise God!

• Print “Good” on the right side of a chalkboard, flip chart, or large piece of poster board. Print “Bad” on the left side.

• Find a rock that is solid enough that it won’t crack or crumble if people try to break it with their hands.

Guilty!

• You’ll need a clear glass cookie jar or a large resealable plastic bag with enough cookies for each child to have one.

• Enlist adults or teenagers to act the parts of a judge, a lawyer, Jacob, Esau, and Isaac in the “Jacob’s Trial” skit on page 46. Photocopy the script for each actor. Have the actors rehearse the skit at least once before the worship session. It’s OK if the actors simply read from the script when they perform.

Preschool Activities—Refer to the preschool pages for preparations.

Let’s Praise God!Play Songs From FaithWeaver, Summer 2012 as children arrive. Greet children by name, and say to each one, “God is good all the time. Tell that to the next person who comes into the room, and then go sit down.” Encourage kids to shake hands with one another while sharing the greeting, “God is good all the time.”

When you’re ready to begin, welcome the children warmly.

Welcome to children’s church, everyone. God is good! He’s perfect and never does anything wrong. Today we’re going to worship him because he’s always truthful.

• Why is it important that God is always truthful? (Because we

know we can trust him; because he’ll never lead us the wrong

direction; we can depend on him all the time.)


If we know that God is always truthful, then we can believe his Word, trust him, and depend on him. God is perfect. There is not even one little part of him that’s bad. Let’s talk about good and bad for a few minutes. Tell me some things that are good to do and some things that are bad.

List answers under the appropriate titles on the chalkboard. If no one mentions truthfulness, add that word to the list at the end.

God is always good. There is no bad in him at all. He never does any of these things. Cross out the “Bad” list, and circle the “Good” list. Let’s celebrate God’s goodness by singing “He Is Good.”

Sing “He Is Good” (Nahum 1:7).

Lyrics are in the back of this book.

Circle the word truthfulness on the chalkboard.

One of the good things about God is that he is always truthful. Psalm 119:160 says, “All your words are true.” God is holy and perfect. He cannot tell a lie because he is love and truth. You and I are different, however! Have you ever told a lie? We all have at some time or another. But not God! The song “I Will Not Be Afraid” says, “He always does exactly what he says he’s gonna do.” That means that God doesn’t ever even think about telling a lie or doing a wrong thing. He is completely truthful all the time. That’s why we worship God!

Sing “I Will Not Be Afraid.”


Our next song, “Living by the Spirit,” says that we should follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. One reason we should follow God is because he is always truthful.

Sing ”Living by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:25).


Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Because God is a wise and truthful king, we know we can trust him to work everything out for our good to fulfill his perfect plan. Let’s sing “God Works for the Good.”

Sing “God Works for the Good” (Romans 8:28).


Have children sit down. Hold up the rock so everyone can see it.

I need a volunteer—someone strong—to try to break this rock apart with your hands. You can’t drop or throw the rock, because it could hurt someone or break something. Use just your hands.

Track 3

Track 8

Track 9

Track 5

Check out the FaithWeaver Worship DVD included with your KidsOwn Worship

Kit! Use these segments to help you lead worship with your children each week.


Choose a couple of volunteers, and give them a few moments to try to break the rock.

This rock is strong. You can’t break it. Just as we know this rock won’t crumble, we know God will never “crumble” and tell a lie. God is always truthful. When someone always tells the truth, we say that person has integrity. That means the person is trustworthy. God’s integrity, his truthfulness, is rock solid—we never have to doubt it.

Sing “All His Promises” (Psalm 145:13b).


Thank you, God, for being a God of perfect love. Thank you that your word is true and that you never tell a lie. We praise you because you are always truthful. Help us, Lord, to be like you. We trust you and honor you. In Jesus’ name, amen.


Preschool Activities, pages 41-42At this time, have the preschool leader invite the preschoolers to go to

their own room for this section of activities. Tear out the Preschool Activities page, and give it to the preschool leader. Have the preschool leader bring the preschoolers back to participate in Let’s Pray! with the older children. If you prefer to keep all the children together, do the starred (*) activities. They will work well with both elementary and preschool children.

Elementary Activities

* Guilty!Show everyone the cookie jar. Encourage kids close by to smell the cookies.

These cookies look and smell pretty good! I have some questions for you. Don’t answer them out loud; just think about them.

• Have you ever taken a cookie, or maybe something like money, even though your mom or dad said no?

• Have you ever lied to get something you wanted that wasn’t yours?

• Have you ever wanted something so badly that you traded something much better for it, only to realize later you made a mistake?

If you can answer yes to any of these questions, you’ll be able to identify with the story of Jacob and Esau. The Bible tells us that they were twins. Esau was older because he was born first. But

Track 18

ALLERGY ALERT See page 10.


there was a problem. When they were almost grown up, Jacob wanted something that belonged to Esau. Today he is on trial for using trickery and deceit to steal from his brother.

Have the “judge” sit up front behind a desk. Place a chair next to the desk for witnesses as they are called. Have the actors playing the parts of Jacob, Esau, Isaac, and the lawyer sit on the opposite side of the room from the “judge.” Have the volunteers perform the “Jacob’s Trial” skit (on page 46).

• What was Jacob guilty of? (Taking his brother’s birthright; lying

to his father.)

• What was Esau guilty of? (Nothing; selling his birthright.)

Jacob used trickery and deceit, or lies, to take things from his brother. Lies are hurtful. They cause people to distrust or even dislike the people who tell them. When Jacob tricked Esau, Esau was so angry that Jacob had to run away so that Esau wouldn’t kill him. For many years, the two brothers didn’t see each other. Jacob’s lies caused lots of pain for his family.

We’re all guilty of untruthfulness sometimes. The only person who never sinned and is always truthful is Jesus. The Bible says in Isaiah 53:9b about Jesus, “He had done nothing wrong. He

had never lied” (New Century Version). Jesus forgives us when we say we’re sorry. God forgave Jacob, too.

Let’s eat these cookies and celebrate God’s forgiveness and the fact that God is always truthful. Pass out the cookies.

That’s No LieIf you don’t use a microphone in your worship sessions, use a wire whisk, a marker, or something else as a pretend microphone.

I’m ready to interview some of you. When I come to you with the microphone, tell us one sentence about yourself and end it by saying, “and that’s no lie.” For example, you could say, “I went bungee jumping once, and that’s no lie,” or “I’m going to Disneyland in three weeks, and that’s no lie,” or “I got 100 percent on all my spelling tests in school last year, and that’s no lie.” The trick is, you can tell us something that’s true or you can tell us something that’s not true. If it’s not true, do your best to make us believe your story. Then we’ll decide if you’re telling the truth or not.

Have several kids make statements into the microphone. After each statement, have the other kids decide if it is true or false.

• Could you tell if someone was telling the truth or not? Explain

your answer. (Yes, because they laughed if it was false; no, some

of them made it sound believable.)(continued on page 43)

41

3Session

Preschool Activities

Session 3 • KidsOwn Worship

* Ice Cream and CakeGather the children. Choose two girls to stand with you—one on your right and one on your left. Help the other children form two groups. Tell children in one group they are “ice cream.” Tell the others they are “cake.” Have all the children (“ice cream” and “cake”) sit in front of the girl on your right, who is “Maggie.” The girl on your left, “Millie,” will stand by herself. Tell the following story:

Maggie and Millie were sisters.

Point to Maggie and Millie.

Maggie just celebrated her seventh birthday.

• How do you celebrate your birthday?

Maggie had a party on her birthday with friends, games, and—most important of all—ice cream and cake!

On the day after Maggie’s party, there was one scoop of ice cream and one slice of cake left.

Point to the “ice cream” and “cake” groups.

Maggie’s mom said that Maggie could have the ice cream and cake since she was the birthday girl. Maggie was going to eat the ice cream after school. She was saving the cake for dessert after dinner.

Maggie hurried home from school to eat her ice cream. Just as she walked in the door, though, she found her sister, Millie, playing with a new beanbag toy. “Where did you get that?” Maggie asked.

“Mommy took me out to lunch,” said Millie. “This came with my food.”

Maggie wanted the toy. She wanted it so badly that she traded with her sister.

• What do you think Maggie traded for the toy?

Maggie traded her last scoop of ice cream for the toy.

Have the ice cream group move to Millie’s side of the room.

Maggie missed her ice cream, but she knew she could still eat her cake after dinner.

That evening, Maggie asked her mom if she could eat her special snack. Mom said, “I thought you already did. You called from the kitchen and asked me if you could have it a few minutes ago.”

Maggie ran to the kitchen and found her sister, Millie, eating the very last bite of cake.

Have the cake group move to Millie’s side of the room.

• How do you think Maggie felt after that?

Millie and Maggie are a lot like Jacob and Esau.

Let the girls who played Maggie and Millie join either the ice cream or cake group. Choose two boys to stand where Maggie and Millie were. Explain that the boy on the right is Esau. The other is Jacob. Have both groups move to your right, next to Esau.

Ice cream group, you are now “the birthright.” Cake group, your new name is “blessing.”

One day, Esau was very hungry. His brother, Jacob, wanted his birthright—a special gift given to the family’s oldest son. Jacob traded Esau some stew for the birthright—the way Maggie traded her ice cream for the toy.


Worship Theme:

God is always truthful.

Easy Prep for Leaders

Truth or Lie—Draw a large happy face on one sheet of newsprint and a sad face on another. Tape the sheets of newsprint to walls on opposite sides of the room.

Using TheoConsider using Theophilus the FaithRetriever puppet today in these ways:

• Have Theo lead the preschoolers from the main worship area to the preschool room.

• Have Theo read the true and false statements in the “Truth or Lie” activity.

• See the KidsOwn Worship Kit for a puppet skit written for today’s worship session.


Preschool Activities

God Says I want to teach you a clapping rhyme. Listen to the words, and watch my hands.

Demonstrate the first two lines of the clapping rhyme. Slap your knees on the first accented syllable, and clap your hands on the next accented syllable. Continue the rhythm throughout the rhyme. (Imagine saying the words to a quarter-time beat.)

God says he loves me, and I know it’s true—

Our God is always truth-ful.

This time, I’ll say the first line, and you will say the second. We’ll all clap together for both lines.

Slowly say the first line as you lead the children in clapping.Help the children say the second line.

Now I’ll add some more lines to the rhyme. Every time I finish a line, you will say, “Our God is always truthful.” Are you ready?

Do the clapping rhyme:

God says he loves me, and I know it’s true—


God says he cares, and I know he does—


God says I’ll meet him, and I know I will—


If God has said it, then it’s true be-cause


Truth or LieGather the children in the center of the room. Point out the happy face and sad face drawings.

I am going to read some sentences to you. If you think the sentence is true, go to the happy face. If you think it’s not true, go to the sad face. Are you ready?

Read the following statements one at a time, giving children time to move. If the children don’t agree, talk with children on each side about why they think the statement is the truth or a lie.

• The sun is purple.• Some rabbits can hop to the moon.• Children grow up to be kitty cats.• God always tells the truth.• Apples are a healthy food.• Falling down the stairs can hurt you.• Zebras can fly.• God loves everyone in this room.

After playing the game, gather the children in a circle.

I am so glad you know the difference between the truth and a lie! Tricky people like Jacob and Millie will have trouble tricking you. This game was all in fun. I would never really try to trick you. I care about each of you, and I will always tell you the truth.

God cares about each of you, too. He doesn’t tell lies or trick people. You can count on him to always do what he says he will do. God is always truthful.

• How do we learn what God says he will do?

Show children your Bible.

God’s Word, the Bible, tells us what he has promised to do. The Bible tells us God loves us. It tells us he watches over us. It tells us he cares about all we say and do.

• How do we know we can believe God’s Word?

We know God is always truthful, so we know his Word, the Bible, is true!

Preschool Leader Tip

Don’t expect children to master clapping and speaking at the same time. They will have fun trying and watching you, but they may choose to do one instead of both. Commend their efforts without expecting perfection.

Have the birthright group move to Jacob’s side of the room.

Later, Jacob dressed like Esau and tricked his father, who couldn’t see, into giving him Esau’s blessing, too. This means Jacob’s father asked God to give him many wonderful things. By the time he was finished, there was nothing left for Esau.

Have the blessing group move to Jacob’s side of the room.

• How would you feel if someone took everything special from you?

Jacob and Millie weren’t nice. They used tricks and lies to take things. Sometimes people tell lies and trick other people. But God is always truthful.

* Ice Cream and Cake (continued)


• How did you feel when you believed something that wasn’t

true? (I felt foolish; I was surprised that I got it wrong.)

• How did you feel when you told something that wasn’t true? (I

didn’t like saying something that wasn’t true; it was fun to make up

a story.)

Sometimes it can be hard to know if someone is telling the truth or telling a lie. People tell lies for many reasons. Usually they’re trying to hide something or are afraid they’ll get in trouble.

• How do you feel when someone lies to you? (I feel like they

don’t respect me; I get angry; I don’t want to trust that person

anymore.)

We have trouble believing anything else that person says. We can’t trust him or her. God knows how important it is to trust others. We never have to wonder if we can trust him. God is always truthful. And that’s no lie!

* Truth LeapPush the furniture in the room against the wall to make an open space. Brainstorm aloud to come up with true statements about God, such as “God created everything,” “God is good,” “God loves us,” “God is always truthful.” Then divide the group into two teams.

Let’s play a game like Leapfrog where we leap at truths about God. In your group, you’ll need to choose several thinkers, one caller, and two leapers. The object is for the leapers to get across the room in three minutes. Thinkers, your job is to help the caller think of true things about God to tell the leapers. Callers, you tell the leaper on your team one statement at a time about God. The leaper should then say, “It’s true!” and leap over his or her partner. Keep saying truths until the leapers reach the other side or until three minutes have passed. If your team reaches the other side first, cheer the other team on or help them by calling out things to say about God.

Have the leapers get in position at one end of the room, crouching down, one partner behind the other. Keep the teams separate. They should say, “It’s true!” and leap once for each statement told to them by their teammates. Begin the game, and time the children for three minutes or until one or both teams makes it to the other side.

That’s a lot of true things about God! Aren’t you glad God is always truthful? It makes me want to leap for joy!

Worship Leader Tip

This game will create a noisy, happy confusion of lots of talking at one time. Don’t expect to hear everything that’s said, just encourage the children to make true statements about God as quickly as possible.

If you have a large group, make more than two teams.

(continued from page 40)


Let’s Pray!The Offering

Today we learned that God is always truthful. That is a big thing to be thankful for. Let’s thank him because he helps us be truthful, too. Think of one area of your life where you want to be more truthful this week. Thank God in advance for helping you as you place your offering in the bowl.

Take the offering.

Always TruthfulGod is always truthful. For that he deserves our trust and love. Let’s praise God for his truthfulness by promising to trust his Word. Repeat the following prayer after me, one line at a time:

God, you are truthful. God, you are good. We’ll trust you always As you’ve shown we should. Amen.

Be HolyIn the Old Testament there’s a verse that says, “I am the Lord

your God…be holy, because I am holy” (Leviticus 11:44a). To be holy means to be spiritually perfect or untouched by evil or sin. It means sinless. We know that only Jesus was sinless, but he came to help us be like him. God wants us to be truthful, just as he is truthful. Think for a moment of areas in your life where you struggle with truthfulness. Pause for a few moments.

Have children cover their mouths with their fingers.

God, help us be like you—always truthful. Guard our mouths, and help us stop when we start to be untruthful about something.

Have children put their hands over their hearts.

God, guard our hearts, and help us to be like you. Give us your love so that in everything that we do and say, we will be like you.

Have children put their hands loosely over their ears.

Jesus, help us choose not to listen when others tell us lies or harmful things about others. We want to honor you and be like you.

Have children hold hands with one another.


God, thank you for always being truthful. We want to be like you. Help us to love one another and to always speak the truth. We love you, Lord. Amen.

Sing “Give of Your Best to the Master.”


God, thank you for your goodness. Thank you for always being truthful. We love you, Lord, and want to be like you. Help us to trust you and walk in your way of truth. Amen.

Track 1

Permission to photocopy this handout from KidsOwn Worship® Leader Guide, Summer, granted for local church use. Copyright © FaithWeaver®. group.com


Jacob’s Trial

Lawyer: (Walking toward Judge) Your honor—at this time I call Esau to the stand.

(Esau goes to the witness stand.)

Lawyer: Esau, do you promise to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

Esau: I do.

Lawyer: Isn’t it true that your brother, Jacob, took advantage of a desperate situation in order to take your birthright?

Esau: He sure did! I was starving—to death! All I wanted was a little bowl of stew. Jacob had plenty to share, but would he do that? No way! He made me sell my birthright for a bowl of lentil stew.

Lawyer: Did Jacob deceive you in any way?

Esau: Not at the time, but it was still a lousy thing to do. I was dying! The birthright didn’t mean much to me when my life was at stake. Later I wanted it back.

Lawyer: Thank you, Esau. Those are all my questions for you. (To the Judge) I now call Isaac to the stand.

(Esau gets up and leads Isaac, who is blind, to the stand. Esau then sits next to Jacob.)

Lawyer: Do you promise to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

Isaac: I do.

Lawyer: We are trying to prove that Jacob used trickery and deceit to steal Esau’s birthright and blessing. Jacob didn’t tell any lies to get the birthright, but he did take advantage of his brother’s situation. Did Jacob lie in order to get the blessing from you?

Isaac: Yes, he did. His mother put him up to it, too. She knew that I had sent Esau on a hunting trip. She also knew that I planned to give Esau my blessing when he returned with venison prepared especially for me. Rebekah told Jacob my plans and cooked up some venison herself. She had Jacob put animal fur on his arms, so he’d smell and feel like Esau. Then Jacob pretended to be my older son.

Lawyer: So when you gave Jacob your blessing, you thought you were blessing Esau. Is that right?

Isaac: That’s correct. My sight’s not so good. Esau has hairy arms and an animal smell—from hunting animals, you know. Jacob is my clean-cut son. Jacob’s arm was hairy, so I thought he was Esau. I gave him every blessing I could.

Lawyer: Thank you for your time, Isaac. I now call Jacob to the stand.

(Jacob leads Isaac to his seat and takes the stand.)

Lawyer: Jacob, your father and brother have testified that you used trickery and deceit to steal Esau’s birth-right and blessing. What do you have to say for yourself?

Jacob: Their stories are true—I’m ashamed to confess. Back then, that birthright and blessing seemed so important to me. But God blessed us both in spite of my actions. We both have wealth and families and every-thing we need. I’m guilty, but I’ve asked Esau’s forgiveness, and he’s forgiven me.

Judge: Esau, is this true?

Esau: Yes, Your Honor, it is.

Judge: In that case, case dismissed!

Encouragement for Leaders

“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any

double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul

and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts

and attitudes of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).

God’s Word is powerful. Even when you feel

like you’re struggling as a teacher, God’s Word is

powerfully impacting the lives of the children in

your class.

ession 3 jacob deceives esau and...

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