The Old Testament

TEXT: Psalms 24:1-4; 105:7-10; 132:12-13

Have you ever seen a baby book that a mommy writes in? A baby book is very special. It tells about the baby's birth and growth. You could say it is a history book of his early years.

It is a lot like another very important book—the Bible. The first part of the Bible is called the Old Testament. It is divided into thirty-nine sections which we call books.

The baby book and the Old Testament don't look the same. In the baby book are lots of cute drawings. Maybe there are some photographs pasted on its pages. The Old Testament looks like just a lot of writing. So how are they alike?

First of all, they are both stories of beginnings. The baby book tells about when the baby was born. The Old Testament begins with how God created the world.

The baby book has places to write in things about the baby's life. It tells when he got his first tooth. We read about his first step and what his first words were. The mommy writes about other special times too.

After the Creation story, the Old Testament tells about other events in the world. We read the history of the Children of Israel in the first seventeen books of the Old Testament. We have heard some of those stories in Sunday school. We heard about Joseph and his coat of many colors. We learned of Moses and the Red Sea crossing. David and Goliath and many other stories are there too.

Sometimes in a baby book there are poems about the baby. The Old Testament has a part called the poetic books. One of these is called the Book of Psalms. King David wrote many of these poems. One of them is Psalm 23 which starts with, "The Lord is my shepherd."

Think about the baby book again. Sometimes it has wishes for the baby written by the mommy and daddy. It might have a place to write down what the child thinks he wants to be when he grows up. These are ways of looking ahead to the future. They may or may not come true.

Prophets of God wrote the last seventeen books of the Old Testament. Some of the things in these books have already happened. Do you remember Daniel and the lions' den? How about Jonah and the big fish? The prophets also told about things that will happen in our future. Everything they wrote about will come true.

Even if you don't have a baby book at your house, you probably have a Bible. Look at the Old Testament. You'll find there are many exciting things to read about!

PARENT'S CORNER

Our lesson focuses on the Old Testament. Your child will learn that this portion of the Bible is divided into three main sections: the historical books, the poetical books, and the prophetical books.

In your time together this week, talk over with your child some of the main events recorded in the Old Testament. Mention the Creation, and move through some of the other well-known Bible stories such as Noah and the ark, baby Moses in a basket, and Daniel in the lions' den.

For an activity, give your child a large piece of paper and have him draw two or three scribbles on it. Then tell him to make the scribbles into a picture of some event in the Old Testament, or articles that are mentioned in that event in the Bible.