Lesson 5: Crossing the sea.
Passage: Exodus 12:31-42; 13:17-14:31 - After the tenth plague that God sent on Egypt, Pharaoh finally agreed to let the people go. So the Israelites made preparations and started on their journey. However, after the Israelites had left Egypt, Pharaoh changed his mind and sent an army of Egyptians to chase after the Israelites and bring them back. When the Israelites were camped next to the Red Sea, they saw the Egyptian army approaching and were terrified, but Moses told them not to be afraid and to trust God to deliver them. So God told Moses to stretch his hand out over the sea, and God sent a strong wind to blow the waters, causing it to split in two and a path of dry ground to form down the middle. The Israelites were able to cross over on dry ground to the other side, but when the Egyptians tried to follow, God caused the water to come back down, preventing them from getting across.
Big Idea: Trusting God in tough times.
For Teachers:
Lesson plan.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Have the children sit in a circle on the circle time rug. Welcome them to class.
Warm Up Activity: — Activity Leader
Preliminary Discussion — Activity Leader
Today we are going to talk some more about the story of Moses and the Israelites…
Last Sunday was all about how God sent 10 big signs to Egypt so that the Pharaoh would let the Israelites go free, and today’s story is all about what happened after Pharaoh finally let the people go.
You might remember how last time we learned that Pharaoh wouldn’t listen to Moses for a long time, and didn’t want to let the Israelites go. Instead, he made their work even harder. But after God sent 10 signs, Pharaoh finally listened and the Israelites were allowed to leave Egypt.
Then, when the Israelites had gotten all packed up and started on their journey, the Pharaoh changed his mind and sent his army to chase after the Israelites, who were stuck at the edge of a big sea… There was nowhere for them to go.
So what did God do? God told Moses to stretch out his hand over the waters, and the winds blew so hard that the sea split in two and made a path for the Israelites to cross so they escaped to the other side. But when the Egyptian army tried to follow them across, the waters came back down again so they couldn’t make it across.
So that’s what today’s story is all about. Let’s watch today’s video to find out more…
Video Lesson — Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Do you remember what Pharaoh did after the Israelites left Egypt?
How do you think the Israelites felt when they saw the Egyptians chasing after them and they were trapped in front of the Red Sea? How did God end up helping them?
Has there ever been a time when you felt scared and had ask someone for help? What happened?
Do you think we can always trust God when we’re scared? Why?
Prayer — Bible Story Leader
“Dear God, thank you for the story we learned today about how you rescued the Israelites when the Egyptians were chasing after them and they were stuck in front of the Red Sea. Thank you that you are strong enough to save us, and that you always hear us when we ask you for help. Please help us to trust you when we’re feeling scared, and to know that you are watching out for us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Activity: Crossing the Sea Craft — Activity Leader
Kids will draw a picture of their family on white paper, which they will then cut out and glue them along the middle of a large piece of kraft paper shared by the class.
They can then decorate either side of the paper to look like water/sea life using various materials (chalk, crayons, markers, stickers).
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure each child leaves with their caregiver.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Have the children sit near the TV. Welcome them to class.
Warm Up Activity: — Activity Leader
Preliminary Discussion — Activity Leader
Today we’re going to continue our story about Moses and the Israelites.
Last week we learned that because Pharaoh wouldn’t listen to Moses and Aaron, and wouldn’t let the Israelites go free, God sent 10 big signs to Egypt.
Does anyone remember what some of them were? (frogs, flies, hail, darkness…)
Then what happened after the Pharoah finally let the Israelites go? (he changed his mind and sent an army to chase after them)
So now, the Israelites had reached a place called the Red Sea, and they were standing at the edge of the water when the Egyptians started to catch up to them… There was no where for them to go. They were trapped. And that’s where our story for today begins.
Let’s watch a little clip from the movie Prince of Egypt to see what happens next, and then we’ll move on to our video lesson for the day…
Play Prince of Egypt video clip on Youtube: “The Prince of Egypt - Parting the Red Sea” from MovieClips.
Video Lesson — Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Can anyone remember what Pharaoh did after the Israelites left Egypt?
How do you think the Israelites must have felt when they realized that the Egyptians were chasing after them and they were stuck in front of the Red Sea? How did God end up rescuing them?
Has there ever been a time when you were scared and you had to trust God to help you? What happened?
Prayer — Bible Story Leader
“Dear God, thank you for the story we learned today about how you rescued the Israelites from a bad situation when the Egyptians were chasing after them and they were stuck in front of the Red Sea. Thank you that nothing is impossible for you, and that you always hear us when we pray to you and ask you for help. Please help us to learn to trust you even when we’re feeling scared, and to know that you are watching out for us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Activity: Crossing the Sea Craft — Activity Leader
Kids will draw a picture of their family on white paper, which they will then cut out and glue them along the middle of a large piece of kraft paper shared by the class.
They can then decorate either side of the paper to look like water/sea life using various materials (chalk, crayons, markers, stickers).
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure each child leaves with their caregiver.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Welcome the kids to class, ask how their week was and one interesting thing that happened.
Warm Up Activity: — Activity Leader
Preliminary Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Today we’re going to continue our story about Moses and the Israelites.
Last week we learned that because Pharaoh wouldn’t listen to Moses and Aaron, and wouldn’t let the Israelites go free, God sent 10 plagues to Egypt.
Does anyone remember what some of them were?
We know that for a long time, Pharaoh wouldn’t listen to Moses and Aaron and wouldn’t let the people go free. But after the 10th plague, he finally gave up and agreed to let the Israelites go.
So the people got all packed up and started on their journey out of Egypt. But once the Israelites were gone, Pharaoh actually ended up changing his mind and sent an army to chase after the Israelites.
Now the Israelites had reached a place called the Red Sea and they were all standing by the water’s edge when the Egyptians were almost catching up to them, and they were terrified when they saw them coming. This is where our story starts off today.
Let’s watch a video clip from Prince of Egypt to see what happened next, and then we’ll move on to our video lesson for today.
Play Prince of Egypt video clip on YouTube: “The Prince of Egypt - Parting the Red Sea” from MovieClips.
Video Lesson — Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Can you image what the Israelites must have been thinking when they saw the Egyptian army coming for them and they were stuck in front of the Red Sea with nowhere to go?
Do you think it would have been easy for them to trust God in that situation or do you think they would have just been really afraid and thought God wasn’t gonna be able to help them this time?
Have you ever been in a situation or problem that you thought there was no way out of? What happened then?
Prayer — Bible Story Leader
“Dear God, thank you for the story we learned today about how you rescued the Israelites from the Egyptian army by allowing them to cross over the Red Sea. Thank you that from this story we can learn that you are always with us, and that no situation is too big for you to handle. Please help us to trust you even when we’re feeling scared or hopeless. Thank you that there is always hope because you are with us through every situation. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Activity: Crossing the Sea Craft — Activity Leader
Kids will draw a picture of their family on white paper, which they will then cut out and glue them along the middle of a large piece of kraft paper shared by the class.
They can then decorate either side of the paper to look like water/sea life using various materials (chalk, crayons, markers, stickers).
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure each child leaves with their caregiver.
For Parents:
Follow-up questions.
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What was the story you learned about in class today?
What did Pharaoh do after the Israelites left Egypt?
How do you think the Israelites felt when they saw the army chasing them?
How did God end up saving them in the end? Do you think that was pretty amazing how God split the sea for them to cross over?
Have you ever had a big problem that you needed help with? Who do you think you can ask for help with your problems?
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What was the story you learned about in class today?
What did Pharaoh do after the Israelites left Egypt?
How do you think the Israelites felt when they saw the army chasing them?
How did God end up saving them in the end? What did you think about that part of the story? How does it make you feel about God?
Have you ever had a big problem that you needed help with? Do you think it’s easy or hard to trust God with our big problems?
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What was the story you learned about in class today?
Why do you think Pharaoh changed his mind about letting the Israelites free?
How do you think the Israelites must have felt when they realized there was an army chasing them and they were trapped in front of the sea?
How did God end up saving them in the end? What did you think about that part of the story? How does it affect the way you think of God?
Do you think that there are situations that are hopeless or do you think there’s always hope no matter the circumstances? Why do you think that?
