Rotation.org Writing Team

Judges Then, Jesus Now!

The "What Would Jesus Say?" Workshop

Summary of Activities

In this workshop, Jesus will "judge the Judges."  Students will view a select* number of short animated Bible videos, each telling a different judge's story, and then select from a handout of "Jesus quotes" on the subject of enemies, violence, and peace to describe what Jesus might have said about the story and to the judge.

*There are four videos, each lasting between 4 and 6 minutes long. How many you choose to use is up to you.

Scripture for the Lesson

The primary scriptures for this lesson are on the handout. They are a collection of Jesus quotes about violence, enemies, peace, etc. 

The video clips condense and retell the Judges' stories into visually engaging, kid-friendly re-telling of the stories. Judges 21:25, the last verse in Judges, is suggested as a "look up" in the lesson plan.

Lesson Objectives

See the Bible Background at rotation.org for this set's complete list of objectives. 

In keeping with this set's goal of becoming familiar with the story of Judges and how we read it in light of Jesus Christ, this lesson focuses on what we know about Jesus' response to violence and conflict, and thus, what he has to say about these stories in Judges. A major principle being shared in this lesson is the understanding that Jesus has the final word on all matters of faith, including, how we treat certain scriptures which are at odds with Jesus' teachings. 

Preparation and Materials

• Read the Bible Background and scripture.
• Print copies of the scripture handout for each student.
• Select and Preview the video clips from those suggested below.
• Assemble and test the equipment you'll need to view the video clips. Using either a "smart" tv with an internet connection available in your classroom, or by downloading the video clips as movie files and viewing them on a smart TV or computer screen. Note: If you will be using wifi to view the videos online in the classroom, test the wifi connection speed. Yes, you can download and watch a YouTube video offline. See the "how to" notes at the end of this lesson.

Lesson Plan

Depending on the age of your students, length of class time, and your teaching objectives, select one to four of the following videos. They vary in length between 4 and 7 minutes long. You will want about 5 minutes between each for "WWJD."

Open

Welcome your students and ask them the following warm-up questions (seen below). You might invite them to "vote" by walking to one side of the room or the other (each side representing a different answer).  Pause very briefly after each vote to ask students why they voted the way they did. 

Considerations:
Be careful not to judge a child for how they vote. Do not use the voting questions to state your own opinion as the "right" one. Stay neutral for now. Jesus' words will be the opinion that matters most. Help your students to grasp the complexity and struggle of these issues, and learn that it is okay to wrestle with them. Keep in mind that this is a very tough subject for everyone, adults included. It's not one we should hide from our children. They are already dealing with them at home and school, and whenever they turn on the tv.  The issues surrounding violence, and Bible verses which seem to condone it, are something The Church and great theologians have struggled with ever since Jesus called us to a higher standard of behavior that did not always jive with certain scriptures and societal norms. 

Warm-up Questions

Bullying is okay.   Yes or No.

Hitting someone in anger is okay.  Yes or No.

I have hit someone out of anger. Yes or No.

it is okay for a parent to hit a child.  Yes or No.

There are verses in the Bible which suggest that there are times when God approves of violent acts, such as, using a sword against an enemy.  Yes or No. 

Jesus thinks violence is sometimes necessary. Yes or No.

I think that sometimes violence may be necessary to solve a problem.  Yes or No.

It is okay to kill someone if they murdered someone, or if it means saving someone else. Yes or No.

Conclude the voting by saying this statement and instruction:  

Violence is something everyone experiences in their life, and sometimes it is we who are the ones being violent. As Christians, we are not perfect. We sometimes do things that are wrong, and we ask Jesus to forgive us —which he always does. And Jesus says violence is wrong.

In this next part of our lesson, we're going to see and hear the Bible stories about several "Judges" in Israel who did some violent things, ...thinking that's what God wanted them to do. These scriptures from the Book of Judges are very old. They happened about 1200 years before Jesus, and about 200 years before King David.  

After each short video, we're going to have Jesus show up and say something to the Judge in the story. On the following handout are a collection of things Jesus said. Let's quickly read through them now, and then after the video clip of the Judge's story, you must PICK THE JESUS VERSE you think would have been Jesus' answer to that Judge about violence.

Video!

Choose the videos you'd like to show your students. After each has played, invite each student to say which Jesus Bible Verse they choose as "What Jesus Would Have Said" to the judge in that story. 

About the Handout:  it has a lot of great quotes and several, if not all of them, could apply to the Judges story. Let each student choose and tell others why that verse spoke to them. Use it as an opportunity to go deeper.

See the closing statement to be read AFTER the videos are discussed to know where you want the discussion to lead.

Ehud's Video

2:43 minutes
Link to the video at bimbam.com (formerly G-dcast) ~ https://www.bimbam.com/ehud/
Link to the video on YouTube.com ~ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjTocODJH9g

Questions for After the Video:

1. What would Jesus say to Ehud?

2. Instead of killing him, what could Ehud have said when he drew his sword against King Eglon that would have saved Eglon's life, and changed Eglon's mind about the Israelites?

Note:  Young David once crept up on King Saul with a knife, and instead of killing him, he cut off a piece of Saul's cloak and later showed it to him, saying, "I could have killed you, but didn't." It changed Saul's heart towards David. (1 Sam 24)

Deborah's Video

3:02 minutes
Link to the video at bimbam.com (formerly G-dcast) ~ https://www.bimbam.com/deborah/
Link to the video on YouTube.com ~ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myeSLGXHt4k

Questions for After the Video:

1. What would Jesus say to Deborah?  To Jael, the girl with the tent peg?

2. What could Deborah have said to everyone, including Jael, about capturing General Sisera –that would have been a great example of her leadership and God's mercy?

Gideon Video

2:43 minutes
Link to the video at bimbam.com (formerly G-dcast) ~ https://www.bimbam.com/gideon/
Link to the video on YouTube.com ~ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgVxa1uef2g

Questions to ask After the Video:

1. What would Jesus say to Gideon?

2. Gideon said they were fighting for their freedom. What did Jesus say will truly make you free? (the Truth will make you free, the truth being —the truth about God, and who Jesus is).

3. When Gideon had his enemies surrounded, what could he have done differently to avoid violence and perhaps win them over to his God?

Samson's Video

6 minutes.
Link to the video at bimbam.com (formerly G-dcast) - https://www.bimbam.com/samson/
Link to the video at YouTube.com - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62pSeKJU4EU

Questions to ask After the Video:

1. What would Jesus say to Samson?

2. What would Jesus have told Samson what his "real" strength should have been? (Restraint?)

3. How could Samson have been a different kind of "strong" leader to his people and solve the problem of the Philistines without violence?

Conclude your video viewing time with this statement and questions:  

The Book of Judges makes it quite clear, that the violent acts of the judges, which were an attempt to "save" Israel from sin and sinners, and guide its people back to God, all ended in failure. In fact, the last verse of Judges, 21:25, reminds us of this.

Question: What does this say about the power of violence to solve problems?

Violence did not solve their problems. God kept sending judges, and while some did bring temporary peace, the problems always came back.  Finally, God sent the Messiah to Israel, to show them a better way to live in peace, not fear. Love, not hate.  That's why we might say, "Judges then, but Jesus now !!!"

Question: How can Jesus help you with your tough problems?

(Look up Judges 21:25 if you have time. It's quite an "epitaph" on all those judges and their violent behavior. The concept of "Judges judging itself" is discussed in the helpful Bible Background for this lesson set.)

For older students:
Almost every day on the news we hear about religious terrorists killing others in the name of their religion. How are they like and unlike the Israelites in the Book of Judges?  (Both the terrorists and the Israelites believed it was okay to kill a person for not believing, or for being a sinner.)  Jesus encountered this same problem!  In John 8:1-11, Jesus rescued a woman whom the religious authorities were going to stone to death because she had committed adultery. Jesus was crucified because he was considered a "blasphemer," ...someone who lied to others about God, ...someone who broke the Law of Moses. Jesus preached peace and compassion to those who were different, especially those considered sinners. This is another example of Jesus "commenting" and reinterpreting scripture on the subject. Of course, he was the Messiah, and had that right! ...as well as, the truth of the matter. 

Adaptations

For Younger Students:  The stories are too intense for preschoolers and K's. Preview them.  They are not dissimilar to what elementary age children (and their parent's generation) have seen in cartoons. Watch your student reactions to the video to know what you might need to address.

Tips and Thoughts

• You might distinguish between violence and anger. Being angry about bad things is acceptable, provided that it doesn't turn to violence to solve the problem. Jesus is our example here. 
• You might distinguish between the "minor" acts of violence, such as, punching your brother in the arm, vs, taking a sword to the king.  What we know is that violent adults often start out as violent children, and children who have had violence done to them. Jesus wants us to break that cycle by love and forgiveness.
• You should at some point EXPAND the definition of "violence" to include "abusive" words or other actions that don't involve physical violence. Words can do just as much damage as a fist, sometimes more. 
• You should stress that God knows we will sin, that's why he sent Jesus, ...to condemn our sins, but save and CHANGE the sinner. 
• Please be aware that some of your students may be experiencing violence at home or school. Watch for the warning signs, and follow-up with a parent and pastor.
• Keep in mind that our children hear of "religious violence" in the news today much more than their parents and grandparents ever did, so it's a timely subject. Address it!
• See this lesson set's Bible Background for an excellent perspective on how Jesus' life, death, and resurrection was a commentary on everything that came before in scripture, and in many ways, cut through some of the confusion of competing scriptures with a simple higher standard of conduct: love in all circumstances.

Video Source Notes

The free videos were originally produced for Hebrew students by G-dcast.com, a website teaching the basics of Judaism and the Hebrew scriptures. G-dcast.com has since changed to bimbam.com.  If you are inclined, make a donation at their site. The videos are posted on their site at https://www.bimbam.com/?s=Judges.

To download the videos and play offline, click the YouTube link above for each video you plan to use and copy the video's YouTube web address (URL). Go to clipconverter.cc and paste the address into their interface to download the video as an MP4 video file (the common format all computers, smart TVs, and DVD players can play.)

The stories on the videos are condensed and paraphrased in a kid-friendly way. The violence is not highlighted, but it is not glossed over either. No theological opinion is expressed.

Written by Neil MacQueen for the Rotation.org Writing Team
Copyright 2017, Rotation.org Inc.

Graphic snippets are screenshots from the bimbam.com (formerly G-dcast) videos.