T HE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S and turns the meals over which He pre sides into holy things.%a-Sel. v. 31. Their eyes were opened. The stranger first startles them by taking the place of master at their own table, but on proceeding to that act which reproduced the whole scene of the last supper, a rush of associations and recol lections disclosed their guest and He stood confessed before their astonished gaze.-ft-J. F. & B. Approach: Now you boys and girls who can remember some things that have happened to you can answer these questions. Do you remember of doing something that was BEGINNERS wrong some time AND PRIMARY and mother pun- Mabel L. Merrill ished you for doing it? Now I am so glad Charles was frank enough to own up, for none of us like to own up when we have done wrong. Now Charles, after mother had punished you for do ing wrong, how did she treat you? Did she tell you she was not going to help you any more by preparing your meals for you and getting your clothes ready for you to wear and doing all the other many things mothers are always doing for their children, or did she love you just the same and did everything she could for you just as she had done be fore she punished you? Of course she loved you just the same and helped you in every way she could. Now the reason I have asked you these questions is be cause they will help us to understand our story for today. Prayer. Lesson Story: (Relate briefly Joshua’s life up to today’s lesson, emphasizing his quick obedience to God’s com mands.) Now we see what a faithful leader Joshua had been to God’s people Israel, and how wonderfully God had been with Joshua because of his obedi ence to all that God had asked him to do. Joshua was getting old and knew
387 that he could not be their leader any longer, so one day he called all the peo ple together and told them that very soon he was going to die, and go to heaven, for death is just going home to heaven for all those who belong to Jesus. He told them how good God had been to them in driving out their enemies from the land, and giving them nice homes to live in. Joshua also told them because God had done all this for them, they should love Him and do as He commanded them to do. Then Joshua gave them a last warning against worshipping idols which the heathen people around them worshipped. Joshua said he and all his house would serve the Lord, and the people answered saying, they would not worship idols, but God. Then Joshua wrote down the words of the people in the Bible how they promised to always worship the Lord, and Joshua placed a large stone near the Tabernacle, and told the peo ple the stone was to help them remem ber the promise they had made to God that they would not worship idols but would always worship and follow God. Every time they went to church they would see this large stone and they would remember their promise to God. After Joshua’s death the men of Israel drove the heathen nations out of their land as God had commanded them to do, but they let some of the hbathen people stay, and God told them because they had let some of the people stay, they would cause them trouble and tempt them to sin by worshipping their idols. After a time the people forgot what God had said and Joshua’s warn ing, for they not only allowed many of the heathen people to remain in the land but made friends of them,, and pretty soon the children of Israel be gan to worship the idols just like the heathen people around them did. , (Em phasize the harmful influence of bad companions or associates.) When Israel obeyed God He helped them in their
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