Leader Guide

Video Leader Guide

Welcome (1 minute)

Welcome, everyone! Today we will watch an exciting Bible story called “Elijah and the Prophets of Baal.” God is the one true God who deserves all of our worship and devotion! Now, let’s begin the video and see what Chris, Joy and Gizmo are doing today in the Superbook adventure!

Play Video 2: Chris and Joy’s Dilemma (4 minutes)

Chris and Joy's Dilemma

Chris is so obsessed with becoming the most powerful “god” in a video game that he neglects his friends and family.

SuperTruth and Discussion (2 minutes)

The SuperTruth for today is: “There is only one God.” There are many false gods, but there is only one true God—and He is the one we worship!

Chris and Gizmo were obsessed with a new videogame. What does “obsessed” mean? To constantly think about something.

Chris and Gizmo played the game so much that they neglected other things that are important in life—like family, friends, and the Lord. Sometimes people get obsessed with bad things, such as drugs or alcohol; but sometimes we can get obsessed with good things—like sports, or getting perfect grades at school, or collecting something, or a certain friendship. Even though those are all good things, they can take us away from what is most important in life. Let’s watch the rest of the video to see if Chis can overcome his obsession!    

Play Video 3: Bible Story and Resolution (18 minutes)

Bible Story and Resolution

Superbook takes Chris, Joy and Gizmo back to ancient Israel. They meet Elijah, a prophet of the Lord, who boldly stands alone to challenge 450 prophets of the false god Baal in an epic showdown. The Lord clearly demonstrates that He is the one true God.

Play Video 10A: SuperVerse Graphic  

Graphic loops 2.5 minutes without audio; turn off or freeze video after children repeat verse.

SuperVerse Graphic 1

SuperVerse Discussion (1 minute)

Let’s say our SuperVerse together. Deuteronomy 6:4–5:

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.”

God is one God, the only God, and He stands alone. God wants us to love Him with our entire being—with all our heart, soul and strength! He should always be first in our lives. Sometimes we may be tempted to think that something is more important than God. But can anything ever be more important or more powerful than God, who is alive and loves us so much that He sent His Son to die for us? No!

Let’s say our SuperVerse again. Children repeat SuperVerse.

Children will have more time to learn the SuperVerse in Small Group.

Prayer and Send-Off (1 minute)

Let’s pray. Almighty God, You are the one and only true God, the Creator of heaven and Earth. We choose today to give You all of our love, honor and worship! In Jesus’ name, Amen!  

Let’s go to our Small Groups where you will stack up some stones like Elijah did! 

Teachers take children to Small Group classes for Grades 1–3 and 4–6. If the combined group is small, all children may stay together for Small Group time.

Game

In the Superbook adventure, Chris and Gizmo were playing a videogame about false gods. We worship the one true God. Is there any other god that deserves to be worshiped?

No, our God stands alone. Only He deserves our worship, love, and devoted service. Why did Chris throw his video game in the trash after he returned from the Superbook adventure? He wanted to spend time following the one true God instead of trying to be a false god in the game.

Let’s say our SuperTruth together: “There is only one God.” And we should worship Him alone.

Before Elijah asked God to send fire, he stacked some stones to rebuild God’s altar that had been neglected and torn down. How many stones did he use? Twelve.

Why do you think he used twelve stones? To represent the twelve tribes of Israel.

Today, we will have a relay race to stack up twelve stones.

Divide the children into two equal teams. Have each team make a large semi-circle around the table as shown in the illustration, with each child standing about an arm’s length apart. The first child on each team is the “stone picker” and the last child is the “stone stacker.” This will be a relay race to pass, then stack, the twelve stones. Only four stones can be at the bottom of the pile, with the other eight stacked on top.

Start the race. Each team’s “picker” takes one stone from the team’s box and passes it to the next player on the team. Children continue to pass the stone until it reaches the “stacker” at the other end of the semi-circle, who uses it to build the stack, with no more than four stones touching the table. The picker may not begin to pass the next stone until the previous stone has been stacked. If a team’s pile of stones collapses, the stacker must re-stack them before the picker can pass another. The first team to complete their stack wins. If time permits, play an additional round with different pickers and stackers.

Optional: give each child a plastic spoon or index card to pass the stones, and tell children they can’t touch the stones with their hands.

Teaching

Elijah had to rebuild God’s altar because it had been neglected and torn down. How sad that the Lord’s very own people no longer loved and worshiped Him alone. Elijah challenged the Israelites to choose which God they would love and follow. Would they choose the one true God—the Lord, who is alive and who made the entire world? Or would they follow Baal, an idol that people made out of wood, metal or stone? 

Optional: Read 1 Kings 16:32–33:

First Ahab built a temple and an altar for Baal in Samaria. … He did more to provoke the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than any of the other kings of Israel before him.

Why wasn’t God pleased with King Ahab?

Ahab had built a temple to a false god. That is why Elijah spoke God’s words of judgment, stopping the rain and causing a drought. What happens when there is a drought? Plants can’t grow; animals may die; people are hungry and thirsty.

When God stopped the rain, the king was so angry at Elijah, he wanted to kill him!

Hundreds of years earlier, God delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. Do you think God set His people free so they could worship idols?

God wants His people to worship and serve Him alone.

Our SuperVerse for today is what God told His people after He brought them out of slavery. Let’s say it together. Deuteronomy 6:4–5:

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord> is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.”

Sadly, the people wandered away from God. That’s why Elijah told the people they must make a choice! 

Read 1 Kings 18:21:

Then Elijah stood in front of them and said, “How much longer will you waver, hobbling between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him! But if Baal is God, then follow him!” But the people were completely silent.

How sad that the people would not speak up and say they would follow God! Why not? Perhaps they believed Baal was a true god, or they were afraid of being killed by the king, or they felt pressure to go along with the crowd.

Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to a showdown, and he let them go first. They prayed, pleaded and danced for hours, but Baal did not respond. Why not? He was not really a god; he was handmade by people!

When it was Elijah’s turn, he prayed to the one true God. God answered quickly and powerfully by sending fire to burn up the wood, the sacrifice, and even the altar stones—although everything was totally drenched with water! 

Read 1 Kings 18:39:

And when all the people saw it, they fell face down on the ground and cried out, “The Lord — He is God! Yes, the Lord is God!”

Were the people silent, now?

No; the people realized that the Lord is the one true God, and they bowed down to worship Him. God wants us to worship Him with all of our heart, soul and strength.

Now, is an idol only a man-made figure or statue like Baal was?

No, idols can be many things in our lives, today. Can you name some things that might be an idol in our lives?

Yes, it could be an activity like sports, music, or maybe a club or an organization. It could be spending all of your free time watching TV or playing video games like Chris; or too much time on a computer, tablet or phone. When we think something or someone is more important than God, it can be like an idol to us and keep us from loving God as we should. We need to be careful to keep balance in our lives and never replace our devotion to God with other things—even though those things may be good! And that is what our Discipleship Challenge is all about!

OPTIONAL OBJECT LESSON FOR GRADES 4–6

See preparation instructions here.

With both hands, hold up Figure 1 in such a way to conceal that it has two sections. Point to the text on the figure as you present the lesson.

Let’s say this figure represents us. Listed on it are ways we can show our love for God. We can use:

• Words—to talk about God and His Word. We can sing songs of praise and worship. We can say kind things and encourage others.
• Strength/effort—in actions using the talents and abilities that God has given us to serve Him and others.
• Time—for God, to study His Word and pray. We can give our time to help others, too.
• Possessions—our money or things that we own for God’s use and to benefit others.

These are all good things we can do to show our love for God; yet does that mean we love God as our SuperVerse says—with all of our heart, soul and strength?

Flip Figure 1 open to reveal Figure 2.

We can only see what is on the outside of people, but God looks on the inside, where no one else can see. In the Bible, Jesus condemned the religious leaders who appeared to be pure and holy on the outside, but were unclean and full of sin on the inside. See Matthew 23:27–28. God can see our minds and hearts, which include:

• The motives or reasons we do things. Is it for our own glory or His?
• How much we desire to draw closer to Him and know Him better.  
• The truth and purity of our heart.
• Our love. Is it shared with or divided by other things, or do we love Him with our whole hearts?
• Our submission and surrender to His will vs. our own wills.

This is all of us: the inside and the outside. God has not changed. What He desired back in Old Testament times, He still desires from all of His children—including us! God is still the one and only true God, the maker of heaven and Earth, the Creator of all living creatures, especially us! Doesn’t He deserve all of each one of us? Let’s say our SuperTruth now: “There is only one God.” 

Discipleship Challenge/Practical Application

Give each child a My Time Wheel pattern, a brass roundhead paper fastener, scissors, and a pencil. Have children cut out and assemble the pieces, then put their names on the back. Display the model you made before class and assist the children as necessary to complete their craft. Then use it to illustrate what you say:

This is called a My Time Wheel. Can you guess why? To show how we use most of our time each day.

Let’s start with school. You need to spend a lot of time learning, studying and reading. So, adjust your Time Wheels so you have lots of time for school. Chores are important, too. Adjust your Time Wheel to give yourself enough time to do them. And we have to sleep, right? Give yourself lots of time to sleep. And we all want to have a little fun, right? So adjust your Time Wheel for that. Oh, no—what got squeezed out? God.

Our relationship with God is the most important thing in our lives. Yet it’s easy to let other things crowd Him out of our lives! God is the foundation of our Time Wheels—that’s because time belongs to Him, and we belong to Him! We want to spend time with Him every day—worshipping Him, reading our Bibles, praying, and listening to His voice in our hearts. So let’s start over on our Time Wheels. First, let’s give God lots of room in our lives. Now let’s adjust everything else around Him! 

Our challenge for these three lessons is to use our My Time Wheels as a reminder to put God first in our lives. Each day, ask Him how to use your time, then listen for His answer in your hearts. Next time we meet, I’ll ask you what happened when you put Him first!

SuperVerse

Have you ever done something with all your heart? This is how God wants us to love Him—not just a little bit, some of the time. We should love Him with all our heart, with all our soul, and all our strength—not keeping anything back from Him! As we learned earlier, loving God with our entire being means that we give Him our time with our best effort and ability in all we do. We obediently put our whole self in service and worship to the only God who stands alone! Let’s learn our SuperVerse with some simple hand motions today.

Deuteronomy 6:4–5:

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.”

Hear, O Israel: Tap both ears with index fingers.

The Lord our God, the Lord is one!   Point upward with ONE finger.

You shall love the Lord your God  Cross both arms across chest, like a hug.

with all your heart,    Place right hand over heart.

with all your soul,      Place left hand over right hand.

and with all your strength.   Open both arms and flex muscles.

Deuteronomy 6:4–5 

First: Say each phrase and do the hand motions with the children.

Second: Say the verse and do motions together a little faster.

Third: Erase a middle section of the verse from the board. Begin to say the verse with the children, but stop at the deleted phrase to see if the children can say it and do the motions without you.

Fourth: Erase other sections of the verse and continue as above until children can say the entire verse and do all the motions without any help.

Note: If younger children are not able to memorize the entire SuperVerse, simply have them repeat it several times and be sure they understand its meaning.

Prayer

Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to ask their idol to send fire onto their altar. After the prophets had prayed, shouted and danced for hours, Baal was silent. Why do you think the idol did not answer the prophets? He wasn’t real or alive.

Now it was Elijah’s turn. 

Optional: Read 1 Kings 18:36–37:

At the usual time for offering the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet walked up to the altar and prayed, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, prove today that You are God in Israel and that I am Your servant. Prove that I have done all this at Your command. O Lord, answer me! Answer me so these people will know that You, O Lord, are God and that You have brought them back to Yourself.”

Elijah did not issue this challenge to show off or to bring glory to himself. Elijah wanted one thing—for God’s people to know that the Lord is the true God of Israel. Elijah’s desire was that the people would come back to God, and that they would worship Him alone. There were 450 prophets of Baal and an additional 400 prophets of another idol called Asherah. It might have looked like Elijah was all alone, but is that really true?

He was not alone—the living God was with him! And God is with us, too! God is ready to hear and answer our prayers.

Today, we are going to pray for our community—our neighbors, family, friends, and classmates. Let’s pray as Elijah did, that people would come to the Lord and recognize that He alone is God!

Allow time for children to pray quietly, and encourage a few of them to pray out loud if they feel comfortable doing so. 

Close in prayer. Dear God, Elijah was a bold voice for You, even in front of a wicked king and hundreds of false prophets. We pray that You would help each of us live a life of love and also speak words of hope and truth—so that others would decide to serve You. Thank You for sending Your Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins, to forgive us, and to bring us into a loving relationship with You, our Father in heaven. Fill us with the power of Your Holy Spirit so that we will always be ready to share the Good News of salvation with our friends, our family, our neighbors, and other people. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Challenge Game

This game is based on our SuperVerse, so let’s say it together. Deuteronomy 6:4–5:

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.”

The verse tells us that we must love God with our entire being; we cannot hold anything back! We are to love God inwardly in our minds and hearts, and outwardly through our words and actions. The verse tells us that God wants us to surrender ourselves totally to Him. In fact, Jesus said that this is the most important commandment!

Optional: Read Mark 12:29–30:

Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’”

Hold up each balloon as you speak. For each team, one balloon represents your heart, one balloon represents your soul, and one balloon represents your strength. Each player on each team will have to take their heart, soul and strength balloons to the goal line. The journey represents how we should live each day, and the goal line represents God. Getting all three of your balloons to the goal represents giving your entire self to God.

Hold up the pool noodle or broom. The hard part is that you must use this to sweep all three balloons to the goal at the same time! When you reach the goal, scoop up your balloons and carry them back to the next player on your team, along with your “sweeper.” Once everyone on your team is finished, shout the SuperVerse as loud as you can so we know who won!

Divide the children into equal teams and have them line up behind the starting mark. Give the first player on each team a pool noodle or broom, plus a set of three balloons marked Heart, Soul and Strength. Start the game. Be prepared to help children with special needs. The first team to complete the race and shout the SuperVerse wins. 

Optional: For younger children, you may tie the three balloons of each set together to make it easier to sweep them to the goal.

That looked like a lot of fun, but it wasn’t easy, was it?

Loving God with our whole self takes a lot of energy and focus! It isn’t enough to just give part of ourselves. What if we just thought about loving God but our actions and words didn’t show love? Jesus showed His love by giving His life for us on the cross—so we want to show our thankfulness by giving ourselves to Him—heart, soul and strength. God deserves all of our love!

Object Lesson

Optional: Read 1 Kings 18:21:

Then Elijah stood in front of them and said, “How much longer will you waver, hobbling between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him! But if Baal is God, then follow him!” But the people were completely silent.

The people of Israel wanted to serve God at times and Baal at other times. Elijah challenged them to make a choice. There was only one true, living God—the God who had created them and rescued them from Egypt! Only He was worthy of their devotion and worship. You cannot worship both the true God and false idols!    

Choose five volunteers to come to the table. One at a time, have the first four children hold up a pair of matching objects—the video games, pencils, balls, and fruit—then discuss the similarities and differences of that pair.

Would it matter if you chose one type one day, and the other type another day?

Is one object more important or superior to the other, or are they basically the same and equal?

Give the fifth volunteer the index card with the word “God” and ask the child to find a match. Ask why this is impossible. Discuss how, with the other paired objects, it did not really matter which one was chosen. They held equal value and importance. That is not the same with God—there is no other God—there is no equal or match!

Read 1 Kings 18:38–39:

Immediately the fire of the Lord flashed down from heaven and burned up the young bull, the wood, the stones, and the dust. It even licked up all the water in the trench! And when all the people saw it, they fell face down on the ground and cried out, “The Lord—He is God! Yes, the Lord is God!”

Many Israelites probably thought that God and Baal were equal. Elijah prayed for God to prove that He alone is the God of Israel. The Lord responded with a powerful miracle that caused all of the Israelites to bow in worship to God! We must choose whom we will worship and serve. No one or anything on Earth is worthy of our worship but God! Let’s say our SuperTruth together: “There is only one God.”

Craft

Listen closely to what the Bible says about Elijah when it was time for him to take his turn during the challenge.

Read 1 Kings 18:30–39:

Then Elijah called to the people, “Come over here!” They all crowded around him as he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been torn down. He took twelve stones, one to represent each of the tribes of Israel, and he used the stones to rebuild the altar in the name of the Lord. Then he dug a trench around the altar large enough to hold about three gallons. He piled wood on the altar, cut the bull into pieces, and laid the pieces on the wood. Then he said, “Fill four large jars with water, and pour the water over the offering and the wood.” After they had done this, he said, “Do the same thing again!” And when they were finished, he said, “Now do it a third time!” So they did as he said, and the water ran around the altar and even filled the trench. At the usual time for offering the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet walked up to the altar and prayed, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, prove today that You are God in Israel and that I am Your servant. Prove that I have done all this at Your command. O Lord, answer me! Answer me so these people will know that You, O Lord, are God and that You have brought them back to Yourself.” Immediately the fire of the Lord flashed down from heaven and burned up the young bull, the wood, the stones, and the dust. It even licked up all the water in the trench! And when all the people saw it, they fell face down on the ground and cried out, “The Lord—He is God! Yes, the Lord is God!” 

What did Elijah do first after he called all of the people to come near him?

He had to rebuild the altar because it had been torn down. How many stones did Elijah use for the altar? Twelve.

Why were there twelve stones? They represented the 12 tribes of Israel.

Today, we are going to make a drawing of the altar scene. Make sure to show all twelve stones.

Distribute the markers/crayons, glue, stones, pencils, and card stock to the children. Point to the board and go over the elements to include in their drawing. Have the children write their names on their crafts and glue the stones on their drawings as the last step. Children may walk around the table and view all of the drawings. Set aside the drawings on a flat surface to dry.

Your drawings are awesome! Now, try to imagine what it would have been like to be King Ahab, one of the false prophets, or the people of Israel who had chosen to worship idols instead of God. How do you think they felt when the idol Baal did not answer?

What were they thinking and feeling as the fire fell from heaven?

The Lord is the only true, living, all-powerful God; the Creator of heaven and Earth. He will not share worship with any man-made idol! Let’s say our SuperTruth together: “There is only one God.”

Skit

Optional: Read 1 Kings 18:19–39 as a class.

Divide the class into groups of 3 to 5 children. Give each group a copy of the Interview Questions and assign them which character to interview. If there are more than four groups, divide the questions among the groups. Make sure each group has at least one Bible to reference for the story details.

Each group should develop a 2-minute skit about a news reporter interviewing people on Mount Carmel just after God answered Elijah’s prayer by sending fire. One child should be the reporter and the other children should play the Israelites, Baal prophets, Elijah, or King Ahab. Children may change the questions if desired, and characters should show emotion as they answer. Skits may be humorous but should be accurate and true to the story. Allow a few minutes for groups to prepare and practice, then have them act out their skits for the class.

Optional: Give children Bible costumes to wear for their skits.  

Interview questions: 

Ask the Israelites:

• Why didn’t any Israelites answer when Elijah asked you to make a choice between God and Baal? 
• What did you think when Elijah poured water on the altar?
• What were you feeling when the fire came from heaven?
• How do you feel about God now?  

Ask the Baal prophets:

• What did you think of Elijah before this challenge?
• When you heard that Elijah was standing all alone against 450 Baal prophets, how did you feel?

Ask King Ahab:

• How did you feel when Elijah stood alone against hundreds of Baal prophets?
• At what point did you start to get a little nervous?

Ask Elijah:

• What did King Ahab do that was so wrong?
• How did you get the courage to confront the king and hundreds of his false prophets?
• What did you want to show the people of Israel through this challenge?