God saves Noah

Genesis 7:1 – 8:19

To help the students understand that those who love and obey God experience His love and care in a special way

“The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving” (Daniel 9:9a, NIV*).

I will never forget the flood that I saw in a Bible storybook for children when I was little. In the front part of that black and white painting, representing the waters and the fierce rain, there were figures of babies on the rocks that would soon be submerged by the water. I loved babies and I asked myself again and again why God had not saved them. It is good that today’s publications no longer make materials for children like those. Even so, the most sensitive students in your group will feel worried about the death of all those people and creatures that were left out of the ark.

Pray a lot for this lesson, because it teaches a difficult truth. God loves all people with a love that has no end. And those who respond to him with trust and obedience will experience his love and care in ways that others cannot. But, some refuse to obey and that’s why the consequences come to them. In this session, emphasize the ark of salvation that God provides for Noah and his family. Remind your students that Noah, like every person, had sinned. But unlike the rest of the people who hated and ignored God, he loved God and wanted to obey him. And as he did, God protected him. The Lord will do the same for the children in your group.

There is Good News between our last lesson and today’s: Noah survived! Between God’s command to “enter the ark” (7:1) and “come out of the ark” (8:15) we see multiple evidences of God’s love, mercy and care. There are many points in this story where the result could have been different. What would have happened if God had not given Noah the plans to make the ark from the beginning? Or what if Noah had taken on other construction projects at that time? What if the animals had refused to go on the ark? What if the ark had leaked and sunk?

Thank God, Noah survived! After he, his wife, his children, his daughters-in-law and the animals entered the ark, God closed the door behind them (7:16). What a reassuring thought this must have been for Noah and his family during the long dark days to come! The flood had swept away all the creatures except the fish, and the animals and the people who were in the ark.

God provided the ark as a means to survive. Sheltered inside, Noah, his family and the animals escaped the terrible destruction that hit his friends and neighbors. After the flood, the ark took them gently to land, perched on Mount Ararat, and placed them in front of a new life. That new life was offered by God to those who had obeyed him.

Chapter 8 begins with the words: “Then God remembered Noah.” When the Bible uses the term “remembered” in relation to God, it means one’s concern for someone, which is expressed in actions of love. God’s judgment on the people was over. Now began a period of redemption. God began again with a family and a holy creation. He extended his grace through his creation through righteous survivors. From the line of Noah emerged Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses and Jesus.

Later, the word “ark” continued to appear in the Jewish religion. The ark of the covenant was the place where the symbols of God’s presence were kept. While it was with the Israelites, they were safe. Sometimes we talk about people entering the “ark of salvation” when they accept Christ as their Savior. When we enter that “ark of salvation”, God delivers us from the death and destruction that accompanies his judgment on sin.

In these days of instability and sin, we want to see more than ever that our children will survive the evil that surrounds them. God provided the “ark of salvation” through Jesus Christ. We must teach the children that God loves them and, above all, guides them to enter the ark of salvation, which is Jesus Christ, the Savior. How can we provide an ark of salvation for our children? Some opportunities are through Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, Bible clubs, child development centers, the church worship, Christian friendships, the influence of the faith community, good advice, our Christian testimony, varied Christian activities.

Count the animals

Before the session, cut 2 sets of cards (26 for English) for each letter of the alphabet (8 cm x 8 cm) from poster board or cardboard. Write the letters of the alphabet on the cards - one letter on each card. Make two sets. Place all cards in a bag or basket.

During the session, ask the children to sit in a circle to play the “Ark, Ark.” In a rap tone you can say, “Ark, Ark, how many animals do you have?” And repeat the same thing several times, while the bag with letters goes from child to child. When you stop singing, the child who has the bag will draw a letter and say as many animals that they can whose name starts with that letter before you count to 10. (English examples with the letter c: cat, crocodile, camel, etc.) Meanwhile in silence, you count to 10. Write on the board the name of each animal, without repeating. Then continue singing: “Ark, ark ...”. Continue if there is time until each child has the opportunity to participate. Count on the board how many animals they named.

Say: Very well, you remembered a lot of animals. Think of how many animals Noah would have put on the ark, two of each kind. Since the ark was so big, some people think that there were about 45,000 animals. But we do not know for sure. There were a lot of animals! Today’s story tells us about how God rescued Noah, his family and many animals.

Noah and the ark

“It is ready!” Noah said. “It is finally finished!” exclaimed his family. Together, Noah, his wife, sons and daughters-in-law looked at the huge ship standing on dry land in front of them. The boat was much bigger than a football field. It had taken Noah and his family more than 100 years to build it. At last it was finished!

Once again, God spoke to Noah. “In seven days I will send rain on the earth. It will rain for 40 days and 40 nights. You, your wife, your 3 sons and their wives will enter the ark. Take animals of each species and put them in the ark. Take seven pairs of clean animals.” (You can stop the story here and explain what the clean animals were. They were animals that God considered fit to be sacrificed to him and to be eaten as food. So, they had to have more than two of the clean animals.)

Continue with the story. Noah did everything that God had commanded him. For a whole week, the animals arrived and Noah helped them enter. What a busy time it must have been! Can you imagine Noah, his wife, his sons and their wives trying to accommodate so many animals? The huge elephants had to be in places where they did not crush the small animals, and the birds needed space to fly. Can you imagine the noise that there would have been? And where would they have put the skunks?

At the end of the seven days, Noah and his family entered the ark. God closed the door with total security. He wanted everyone to be safe and secure, because that same day the rain would begin to fall. It had never rained on earth! And now it did not stop for 40 days and 40 nights. The water began to rise and rise.

(Give time for the children to start covering the mural with the waves of blue water, remove the figures of Noah and his family, and the ark. Put the water parts on top of the rest of the people, animals and plants, each time higher.)

It began to cover the plants and trees and the houses (make the story dramatic), and it even began to cover the mountains. Everyone had died! The only ones who were alive were Noah, his wife, his sons and his daughters-in-law, plus the animals on the ark and the sea creatures that lived in the water.

After 40 days and 40 nights the rain stopped (place the ark floating on the water). Now God was making the land ready once again for Noah, his family and the animals. God blew wind to make the earth dry. The water had been receding for several months. Noah wanted to know how things were now. At first he sent a raven (place the raven). The bird flew and returned, because there were no dry places it could make its nest.

Later, Noah sent a pigeon (place the figure of a pigeon). This is a bird that likes to walk on the ground. But it returned soon because there was still no dry land. The next morning, Noah sent the pigeon once more. It came back again, but it had an olive branch in its beak (place the olive branch on the pigeon’s beak). What great news for Noah and his family! The water was already under the tops of the trees (ask some children to remove some of the water that covered the trees).

A week later, Noah sent out the pigeon once more. But this time, the pigeon did not return. Noah thought: “The earth must be dry so that the pigeon can walk.” Would Noah open the door of the ark? No doubt he really wanted to do that. They had been on the ship for almost a year. But Noah did not open the door of the ark, but waited for God to give him instructions.

At last the beautiful day arrived! One year and 10 days after God had closed the door behind Noah, his family and the animals, God spoke with Noah again. “Get out of the ark! Take your wife, your sons and their wives, and all the animals out with you. Live in this land and have children. I want to see the birds flying once more and the animals multiplying.”

With joy, Noah, his family and all the animals obeyed God. As they left the ark, they could walk on the cool green grass. They could feel the warmth of the sun, hear the chirping of birds and smell the fresh flowers. God had lovingly protected them from the flood. Now they could start a new life on earth. Noah’s heart was full of gratitude, love and praise to God.

Say: “God loves all the people of the world. How the Lord wished that people would have said, ‘Forgive us for how bad we’ve been and what we’ve done, please forgive us!’ Had they done so, God would have saved each one and given them the opportunity to enter the ark, or maybe he would not have had to send the flood. But Noah was the only one who believed, loved and obeyed God.”

Decide to obey (model in shoe box)

Give each child a shoe box, and Student Activity Sheet #247-A and #247-B. Guide them to follow the instructions on the activity sheets. As you help your students build their models, encourage your students to tell the story of how God saved Noah, his family and the animals. Since Noah obeyed God in everything, ask the children: “How can you obey God in your home, while playing or at school?”

Tell the children to take home their models to share the lesson with their families and friends.

Mural: Noah and the ark

Ask the children to continue working on the mural, drawing and coloring figures while you tell the story. (You can bring prepared waves, blue water, the silhouettes of various animals, etc. for the children to color, cut and paste on the mural at the appropriate time.) Ask some questions from the last session and give them time to match the pairs of animals).