1 Kings - About

1 K i n g s — Lesson 2Have you ever been accused of something youdid not do? If it was something that you did notdo, you didn’t want to take credit for it becauseyou knew it was bad and you didn’t want to getinto trouble. When you were accused, who didyou have to go talk to—your parents, teacher, orRoyal Rangers leader? How did they respond?Were you immediately in trouble? Or did theylisten to your side of what happened and thendecide what was going on?A fair and just judge always listens to both sidesof an argument. He will then use wisdom todecide what the truth is, and, who, if anyone, islying. That is what King Solomon did. When thewomen came to him, he acted like a wise andjust judge. He listened to each woman’s side ofthe story. And he watched their actions. Whenthe mother of the child acted in love to save thebaby’s life, Solomon knew who the real motherwas. The real mother wanted the baby to live,even if it meant she couldn’t be his motheranymore. The liar didn’t care what happenedto the baby. Solomon acted justly and gave thebaby back to his mother.Like Solomon, God is a just judge. God is also abetter judge. Solomon could only judge peopleon their actions. God can judge us on the intentof our heart. If our heart is not turned towardGod, He knows. If we don’t give our heart toGod through believing in Jesus, God will judgeus and we will spend eternity in punishment.We need to continually be turning our hearttoward God and letting Jesus forgive us of oursins. If we do that, Jesus will give us a pure heartand we will have nothing to worry about.When we have a pure heart, we act differently.When our heart is like God’s heart, we treatothers like God does. We show love to ourfellowman. We help the poor and the helpless.We are kind and thoughtful to friends andfamily and everyone else in our life. When weact like this, there are only good things for Godto judge!RE f l e c tAs a group, discuss the following questions. What were the women in the Bible textfighting over? Who decided which woman was the baby’smother? What can you do when you need to make adecision and you’re not sure what the bestchoice is?Review the Key Point and the Key Verse.P r ay e r : God, please give me a pure heart.Turn my heart toward You. Help me to treatothers like You treat me, with love and kindness.In the name of Jesus. Amen.R e s p o n dRemember to read your Bible this weekusing the Bible reading plan of your choice. Arecommended plan can be found in the BibleReading merit or online at royalrangers.com.Review this lesson with a friend or parent as away to help you remember it.This license grants permission to Rich Schreiber to use and reproduce this sheet from Feb 05, 2013 to Feb 20, 2014 for use in a local outpost/group or self-study. Anyunauthorized use constitutes a violation of the agreement and may result in the revocation of TRaCclub membership. 2010 by Gospel Publishing House. All rights reserved worldwide.

C at e g o r yTitleReferenceWorldviewPolitical Marriages1 Kings 3:1,21 KingsLeaders Lesson Overview—Lesson 3for the leaderKey P ointWith God’s help, I will do my best to formrelationships that are acceptable to Him.Key VerseDo not be yoked together with unbelievers.For what do righteousness and wickednesshave in common? Or what fellowship can lighthave with darkness? 2 Corinthians 6:14Note: Boys are not required to memorize theKey Point or Key Verse to receive completioncredit for this lesson.In this lesson, we will examine how in Bibletimes and throughout much of history worldleaders often married the children of otherworld leaders to build alliances. The Bibleteaches us that we should use godly principlesin developing relationships.For information on how to use Bible merits in aRoyal Rangers meeting, refer to the TRaCclubSupport section or the Royal Rangers LeaderManual.R efl ec t A n sw er sThese answers match the questions in theReflect section of the boys’ sheet. Because of what they can get. God knew foreign women would lead theIsraelite men to worship false gods. Answers will vary. See 2 Cor. 6:14–18 if theboys need additional guidance.M at e r i a l s & p r e pPrepare a copy of the Student Handout foreach boy.Read the lesson in advance, taking note of themain points. Be prepared to present the lessonto your group, but avoid reading it word forword. Include discussion with the group tomake it more enjoyable for everyone.“Royal Rangers,” the Royal Rangers Emblem, and Royal Rangers group names and group logos are registered trademarks of Gospel Publishing House. Permission for use isrequired.Scripture quotations taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version ,NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rightsreserved worldwide.The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc. 2011 by Gospel Publishing House, 1445 N. Boonville Ave., Springfield, Missouri 65802. All rights reserved worldwide. No part of this material may be reproduced, storedin a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means–electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise–without prior written permission of thecopyright owner, except brief quotations used in connection with reviews in magazines or newspapers.Handout material may be reproduced for use in teaching within your local outpost.We ask that our members set a good example for the young men that they lead by honoring this license agreement.This license grants permission to Rich Schreiber to use and reproduce this sheet from Feb 05, 2013 to Feb 20, 2014 for use in a local outpost/group or self-study. Anyunauthorized use constitutes a violation of the agreement and may result in the revocation of TRaCclub membership. 2010 by Gospel Publishing House. All rights reserved worldwide.

C at e g o r yTitleReferenceWorldviewPolitical Marriages1 Kings 3:1,21 KingsStudent Handout—Lesson 3Key ThoughtsKey P ointKey V er seWith God’s help, I will do my best to formrelationships that are acceptable to Him.Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. Forwhat do righteousness and wickedness havein common? Or what fellowship can light havewith darkness? 2 Corinthians 6:14R e a dSolomon made an alliance with Pharaohking of Egypt and married his daughter.He brought her to the City of David until hefinished building his palace and the templeof the Lord, and the wall around Jerusalem.The people, however, were still sacrificingat the high places, because a temple hadnot yet been built for the Name of the Lord.1 Kings 3:1,2players are off the board. This keeps them in thegame longer and gives them help. This worksfor some people, but leads to the two peoplefighting each other in the end. One of them isstill going to lose.Have you ever played the game Risk? It is aboard game that looks like a map of the worldand is broken up into different countries. Youhave armies that you get to place at differentspots on the board when it is your turn. Thenyou try to conquer other countries. The attackerrolls the dice and tries to get a higher roll thanthe person who owns the country. The goal ofthe game is to conquer the entire board.In the real world, every nation has friends. GreatBritain and Israel are strong. They are closefriends of the United States. Things have beenthis way for a long time. Even in Bible times,nations made friendship deals. One popular wayto go about it was through marriages. To forgean alliance, the king of one country married thedaughter of the king of another country. Then,the two countries would trade instead of fight.Problems arose when nations that should nothave been friends made these deals. In caseslike that, families could be caught in the middleof a fight.Experienced players can make a Risk gamelast for hours. Some people stay up all nightplaying a single game! To win, you have to havea strategy. Some people make secret deals.They don’t fight each other until the otherIt was wrong for Solomon to marry the Egyptianprincess. God had told His people not to marryforeign women. God said this because thewomen would lead the men to worship falsegods. Also, God wanted to be the One to takeThis license grants permission to Rich Schreiber to use and reproduce this sheet from Feb 05, 2013 to Feb 20, 2014 for use in a local outpost/group or self-study. Anyunauthorized use constitutes a violation of the agreement and may result in the revocation of TRaCclub membership. 2010 by Gospel Publishing House. All rights reserved worldwide.

1 K i n g s — Lesson 3care of Israel. He didn’t want His people lookingto other nations for help. Solomon’s ties to Egyptmade it easier for God’s people to seek helpthere. It’s easier to depend on someone you cansee than a God you don’t see.RE f l e c tAs a group, discuss the following questions. Why do people sometimes buildSometimes, we can be that way, too. We buildfriendships that are bad because of what we canget. These friendships sometimes sour quickly.God wants to meet all of our needs, includingour need for friends. He gave us our parents andother family. God also gives us church leaders,teachers, siblings, and others to be friends with.God will provide for all our needs. He can dothat himself or He can use our relationships. Wedon’t need to go looking elsewhere. Remember,if we have bad friends, we may end up just likethem. Let’s choose to be like God instead!relationships that are bad? Why did God tell the Israelites not to marryforeign women? What kind of woman should you seek tomarry?Review the Key Point and the Key Verse.P r ay e r : God, thank You for the wonderfulpeople You have put in my life. I ask that Youhelp me to always lean on You for all my needs.Keep me away from bad relationships. I want todo what is right. In the name of Jesus. Amen.R e s p o n dTalk to one of your friends about Jesus. If theydo not know Jesus, offer to pray with them. Ifthey do know Jesus, then encourage them to bemore like Him. Talk about ways the two of youcan be a light to your other friends.Remember to read your Bible this weekusing the Bible reading plan of your choice. Arecommended plan can be found in the BibleReading merit or online at royalrangers.com.Review this lesson with a friend or parent as away to help you remember it.This license grants permission to Rich Schreiber to use and reproduce this sheet from Feb 05, 2013 to Feb 20, 2014 for use in a local outpost/group or self-study. Anyunauthorized use constitutes a violation of the agreement and may result in the revocation of TRaCclub membership. 2010 by Gospel Publishing House. All rights reserved worldwide.

C at e g o r yTitleReferenceBiblical ManhoodGodly Dependence1 Kings 3:5–141 KingsLeaders Lesson Overview—Lesson 4for the leaderKey P ointI will trust God to help me make the rightchoices.For information on how to use Bible merits in aRoyal Rangers meeting, refer to the TRaCclubSupport section or the Royal Rangers LeaderManual.Key VerseTrust in the Lord with all your heart and leannot on your own understanding; in all yourways submit to him, and he will make yourpaths straight. Proverbs 3:5,6Note: Boys are not required to memorize theKey Point or Key Verse to receive completioncredit for this lesson.As godly men, we must learn that we mustdepend on God to work things out for us evenin rough times.R efl ec t A n sw er sThese answers match the questions in theReflect section of the boys’ sheet. Give Solomon wisdom to govern the people. God gave Solomon what he requested andmore. Answers will vary and may include these:God answers unselfish prayers. Godsometimes gives us more than we ask for.M at e r i a l s & p r e pPrepare a copy of the Student Handout foreach boy.Read the lesson in advance, taking note of themain points. Be prepared to present the lessonto your group, but avoid reading it word forword. Include discussion with the group tomake it more enjoyable for everyone.“Royal Rangers,” the Royal Rangers Emblem, and Royal Rangers group names and group logos are registered trademarks ofGospel Publishing House. Permission for use is required.Scripture quotations taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version ,NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica,Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc. 2011 by Gospel Publishing House, 1445 N. Boonville Ave., Springfield, Missouri 65802. All rights reserved worldwide. No partof this material may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means–electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise–without prior written permission of the copyright owner, except brief quotationsused in connection with reviews in magazines or newspapers.Handout material may be reproduced for use in teaching within your local outpost.We ask that our members set a good example for the young men that they lead by honoring this license agreement.This license grants permission to Rich Schreiber to use and reproduce this sheet from Feb 05, 2013 to Feb 20, 2014 for use in a local outpost/group or self-study. Anyunauthorized use constitutes a violation of the agreement and may result in the revocation of TRaCclub membership. 2010 by Gospel Publishing House. All rights reserved worldwide.

C at e g o r yTitleReferenceBiblical ManhoodGodly Dependence1 Kings 3:5–141 KingsStudent Handout—Lesson 4Key ThoughtsKey P ointKey V er seI will trust God to help me make the rightchoices.Trust in the Lord with all your heart and leannot on your own understanding; in all your wayssubmit to him, and he will make your pathsstraight. Proverbs 3:5,6R e a dAt Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomonduring the night in a dream, and God said,“Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”Solomon answered, “You have shown greatkindness to your servant, my father David,because he was faithful to you and righteousand upright in heart. You have continuedthis great kindness to him and have givenhim a son to sit on his throne this very day.“Now, Lord my God, you have made yourservant king in place of my father David. ButI am only a little child and do not know howto carry out my duties. Your servant is hereamong the people you have chosen, a greatpeople, too numerous to count or number.So give your servant a discerning heartto govern your people and to distinguishbetween right and wrong. For who is able togovern this great people of yours?”The Lord was pleased that Solomon hadasked for this. So God said to him, “Sinceyou have asked for this and not for longlife or wealth for yourself, nor have askedfor the death of your enemies but fordiscernment in administering justice, I willdo what you have asked. I will give you awise and discerning heart, so that therewill never have been anyone like you, norwill there ever be. Moreover, I will give youwhat you have not asked for—both wealthand honor—so that in your lifetime you willhave no equal among kings. And if you walkin obedience to me and keep my decreesand commands as David your father did, Iwill give you a long life.” 1 Kings 3:5–14Have you ever had to choose between an easychoice and a hard choice? For example, youasked your mom if you could go out and play.And she asked, “Is your homework finished?” Ifyour homework isn’t done, you could lie, and goplay while hoping to do your homework laterwithout getting caught. If you lie, you will haveto rush on your homework. You also risk gettingin trouble if your mother finds out that you lied. IfThis license grants permission to Rich Schreiber to use and reproduce this sheet from Feb 05, 2013 to Feb 20, 2014 for use in a local outpost/group or self-study. Anyunauthorized use constitutes a violation of the agreement and may result in the revocation of TRaCclub membership. 2010 by Gospel Publishing House. All rights reserved worldwide.

1 K i n g s — Lesson 4she does find out, and she always does, she maykeep you from going out and playing for severaldays. Or you could say no, do your homework,and then go play. If you do that, you won’t get toplay as long, but you will get your homeworkdone, and there is no way you get in trouble.The second option is often a harder choice.That’s because we don’t want to wait for it. It isthe better option though because we still getwhat we want and then some. We still get to goplay, we make better grades, and we please ourmom.Some people try to force things and even try tocheat to get ahead. Others just don’t depend onGod to take care of things for them. Dependingon God doesn’t mean we are lazy and don’twork. It does mean that we act with honesty,integrity, and perseverance. It also means wetrust God and allow Him to work for us. Whenwe take care of God’s business, He takes careof ours!RE f l e c tAs a group, discuss the following questions.Early in his reign, Solomon made a choice thatpleased God. God told Solomon that He wouldgive him whatever he asked for. That’s a prettycool offer!Solomon could have asked to be the richest guyin the world. He could have asked to live a longlife. He could have asked that he never lose abattle and that his country always prospered.Instead of asking for those things, he asked forwisdom. He wanted to be a good king and agood man. And as a result, God honored him.Not only did God give him wisdom, God madehim the wisest man to ever live. And becauseSolomon acted so selflessly, God made himthe richest man alive. God also gave him greathonor and made him the most powerful king inthe world. And God promised Solomon a longlife, if Solomon would obey God’s instructions.We will all face tough choices, especially aswe grow older. As godly men, we must learnto choose the best way and depend on Godfor everything else. Someone once said, “Takecare of God’s business and He will take careof yours!” This means that if we do what Godexpects of us, we don’t need to worry aboutanything else. God will take care of us. He willbe with us. What did Solomon ask God to do? How did God respond to Solomon’s request? What can we learn from this story?Review the Key Point and the Key Verse.P r ay e r : Dear God, I want to make Youproud of me. Help me to make the right choicesin my life. Also help me to depend on You for allmy needs. I don’t want to force things. I want Youto be my provider. In the name of Jesus. Amen.R e s p o n dBefore coming back to Rangers next week,talk to your parents or guardians about thingsyou can do at home that will make it a morecomfortable and happy place for everyone. Dothose things for at least one month.Remember to read your Bible this weekusing the Bible reading plan of your choice. Arecommended plan can be found in the BibleReading merit or online at royalrangers.com.Review this lesson with a friend or parent as away to help you remember it.This license grants permission to Rich Schreiber to use and reproduce this sheet from Feb 05, 2013 to Feb 20, 2014 for use in a local outpost/group or self-study. Anyunauthorized use constitutes a violation of the agreement and may result in the revocation of TRaCclub membership. 2010 by Gospel Publishing House. All rights reserved worldwide.

C at e g o r yTitleReferenceIntegrityMarrying Right1 Kings 11:1–51 KingsLeaders Lesson Overview—Lesson 5for the leaderKey P ointI will guard my heart by guarding myrelationships.Key VerseHe who finds a wife finds what is good andreceives favor from the Lord. Proverbs 18:22Note: Boys are not required to memorize theKey Point or Key Verse to receive completioncredit for this lesson.One day y

passage we read, God was talking to Solomon. Solomon was the king of Israel. Years earlier God had made a promise to Solomon s father, David. The promise was that Solomon would get to build the temple. The promise also said the throne would be passed down by Solomon. Late