Leader Guide

Video Leader Guide

Welcome (1 minute)

Welcome, everyone! We have a new Superbook video for you today called “Rahab and the Walls of Jericho.” Our story is about a brave woman who risked her life to hide two Hebrew spies. But first, let’s see what our friends Chris, Joy and Gizmo are doing today.

Play Video 2: Chris and Joy’s Dilemma (3 minutes)

Chris and Joy's Dilemma

Joy is upset when a teacher asks her to work on a project with a girl who seems unfriendly.

SuperTruth and Discussion (2 minutes)

Today’s SuperTruth says: “Nothing can stand against God.” Yes, the God we serve is unstoppable. Nothing can prevent Him from doing what He desires to do! Turn to your neighbor and whisper the SuperTruth: “Nothing can stand against God."

Now let’s all shout it together as loud as possible!

These are faith-building words that you can tell yourself over and over when you face a tough situation!

What was Joy struggling with in today’s adventure?

Have you ever met someone who seemed unfriendly?

Let’s watch the rest of our video and see what happens!

Play Video 3: Bible Story and Resolution (19.5 minutes)

Bible Story and Resolution

Superbook takes Joy, Chris and Gizmo to Jericho as Joshua and the Israelite army are preparing to attack the walled city. They meet Rahab, who risks her life to hide the Hebrew spies. The children discover that even the highest walls are no match for faith in God!

Play Video 10A: SuperVerse Graphic 1 (3 minutes)

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

SuperVerse Graphic 1

SuperVerse (1 minute)

Let’s say our SuperVerse together. Joshua 2:11:

“No wonder our hearts have melted in fear! … For the Lord your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below.”

Rahab was explaining that the people of Jericho were afraid of the Israelites because they had heard of the many miracles God did for them. She understood that God is more powerful than any walls, any ruler, or any army. That’s why she decided to risk her life for the Israelite spies!   

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

Prayer and Send-Off (1 minute)

Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, we praise You for being supreme over the heavens above and Earth below! God, no one can stand against You! In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Now it’s time for Small Group, where you will be in Joshua’s army and follow his commands!

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

God gave Joshua detailed instructions on how to cross the Jordan River and conquer Jericho. The Israelites would need to follow these instructions perfectly, and by faith, because they were not ordinary instructions for battle! If they obeyed God’s instructions, He would do amazing miracles and the battle would be won. Would the Israelites obey and pass God’s test? When Joshua told the people what God had instructed, here is what they told him. 

Read Joshua 1:16:

They answered Joshua, “We will do whatever you command us, and we will go wherever you send us.”

Let’s play a game about following Joshua’s orders! Will you obey the instructions you are given? Yes!

This game is played like Simon Says. You should obey my order if I start it by saying, “Joshua commands.” 

Have children stand in rows, about an arm’s length from one another. Begin some—but not all—of the commands below by saying, “Joshua commands.” To stay in the game, children must only obey orders that start with, “Joshua commands.” If children follow an order without those words—or do not follow an order with those words—they are out of the game and must sit out for that round. You may choose to repeat some commands and add others. Play each round until only one obedient “soldier” remains. If time permits additional rounds, you may have sixth-grade helpers or other children take turns giving the commands.        

1. Make circles with your fingers around your eyes to spy out the land.
2. Spy on Jericho by silently tiptoeing in place through the city gates.
3. Knock softly on Rahab’s door.
4. Climb up the ladder to Rahab’s roof.
5. Quickly hide under the stalks of flax on the roof without making a sound!
6. Escape from Jericho by climbing down a rope out of Rahab's window .
7. Hide in the wilderness until the king’s soldiers have passed.
8. Run in place as fast as you can to give the report on your spying trip!
9. Israelites, walk in place as you cross the Jordan River on dry land.
10. Bend over and touch the Promised Land with both hands!
11. Sit down and rest.
12. Fall asleep and snore.
13. Kneel down and drink from the Jordan River.
14. Throw a pretend rock back across the Jordan River.
15. Prepare for the battle by kneeling down to pray.
16. Stand up and raise your hands to heaven.
17. Point the way to Jericho.
18. March four steps toward Jericho!
19. Turn around and march four steps back to camp!
20. Hop over three rocks on one foot.
21. Jump over four tree limbs on two feet.
22. Twirl around in a circle seven times, or until you get dizzy.
23. Hold hands with your neighbors to help pull them over the hill.
24. Put your hand across your forehead to block the hot sun.
25. Smile and laugh out loud because you serve the supreme God.
26. Shake your head “No” to show nothing can stand against God!
27. Turn to your left and march three steps.
28. Turn to your right and march three steps.
29. March silently in a circle around Jericho.  
30. Blow your trumpet loudly at the walls of Jericho.
31. Shout, “Praise the Lord!”
32. Clap your hands in praise to God. 

You were good at obeying Joshua’s commands. Now let’s learn more about Joshua and the mighty God we serve!  

Teaching

Stand the five bags or boxes in chronological order as listed above, with the writing facing you. Have the children stand in rows of about five or six across. You will command them to march and stop at certain times in the lesson. Omit the marching if it causes too much distraction as you speak.

Rahab said the hearts of the people of Jericho were melting in fear because they had heard about the miracles God performed for His people. Let’s look at a few of those miracles. As we do, you are going to march on the journey! When I give the order, march in place quietly as I speak. These bags represent obstacles or problems that would be impossible for the Israelites to overcome without God’s miraculous help. Whenever I ask why something happened, we will shout the SuperTruth together. Let’s practice! “Nothing can stand against God!”

Now let’s start on our journey to Jericho! 

Turn Bag #1 around so children can see: “Pharaoh/Egypt.” Before the Israelites could begin their journey, they had to escape from Egypt, where they were slaves. Pharaoh was stubborn, but God sent ten plagues on Egypt until Pharaoh finally let the people go! Why? “Nothing can stand against God!”

Choose a child to kick over the bag. Troops, it is time to march! Children march in place.

Turn Bag #2 around so children can see: “Red Sea.” Troops, halt; stop marching! Children halt. When they left Egypt, the Israelites may have thought they were safe—but then they saw the Red Sea directly in front of them and the Egyptian chariots with soldiers coming up fast behind them. It seemed as if they were trapped, but they weren’t! Why? “Nothing can stand against God!”

Choose a child to kick over the bag. Troops, it’s time to march again! Children march in place. Yes, God held back the water and created a dry path in the Red Sea for His people to cross over to the other side. When the Egyptian soldiers followed with their chariots, God let the water fall back into place, drowning them! The Israelites marched on until they faced their next obstacle.

Turn Bag #3 around so children can see: “Amorites.” Troops, halt! Children halt. The Amorites were a mighty nation of giant warriors. But the warriors could not defeat God; why? “Nothing can stand against God!”

Choose a child to kick over the bag. Troops, let’s march! Children march in place. The Israelites marched on toward the Promised Land for many years and found their next obstacle.

Turn Bag #4 around so children can see: “Jordan River.” Troops, halt! Children stop marching. The river was so high it was overflowing its banks. There was no way to cross, but the Israelites should have faith. Why? “Nothing can stand against God!”

Choose a child to kick over the bag. God stopped the Jordan River and created a dry path for the Israelites to cross! Troops, it’s time to march again! Children march in place. The Israelites stopped to set up camp a short distance from Jericho. Halt; stop marching! Children halt. 

Turn Bag #5 around so children can see: “Jericho.” The walls were strong and tall. There was no way to get into the city, but Joshua was confident they had the victory, why? “Nothing can stand against God!”

Yes! Let’s march! Children march in place. The Israelite army marched one time around the city for six days. On the seventh day they marched seven times and then stopped! Halt; stop marching! Children stop marching. Joshua told the army to shout! Let’s shout our SuperTruth! “Nothing can stand against God!”

The walls began to shake and crumble, then the walls fell to the ground! Choose a child to kick over the bag. Why? “Nothing can stand against God!”

Those are just a few of the miracles God performed for His people on their journey! He performed many other miracles in the Bible, too. The greatest miracle of all is that after Jesus died on the cross for our sins, God raised Him back to life again! When we ask Jesus to forgive our sins and to be our Lord and Savior, He forgives us and gives us His power to meet any challenge we may face. He is the supreme God over heaven and Earth. When we obediently serve the Lord and rely on the power of His Holy Spirit, nothing can stop us!    

Discipleship Challenge/Practical Application

Distribute the Walls of Jericho patterns, scissors and tape to the children, and show them the sample you made. Have children cut the two long dashed lines to separate the wall sections. Have them fold the wall sections along the dotted lines, then carefully snip the short dashed lines. Roll each section loosely and connect the side tabs on the inside of the walls, securing each side tab with a small piece of tape. Do not attach the three sections of the wall together so they can be knocked down easily. 

What did Joy think about Becky at the beginning of our video today?

Why did she not want to work with Becky on the project?

Why did Joy change her mind at the end of the video?

Some people build “walls” around their hearts to protect themselves. Can you think of some reasons? They are shy; they have been hurt; they don’t want to be hurt; they are afraid of being judged.

Have you ever judged or formed an opinion about someone and later found out that it was not true?

The walls of Jericho looked strong, but they came tumbling down when the Israelites acted in faith. Use this craft as a reminder to pray for God's help whenever you face a difficult challenge. At home, you can knock down the walls of your craft with a paper airplane, a rubber band, or even a puff of air. Remember, “Nothing can stand against God!” The next two times we get together, I’ll ask if you remembered to pray about any hard situations—and how God answered!

SuperVerse

Say the SuperVerse together, Joshua 2:11, looking at the board.

“No wonder our hearts have melted in fear! ... For the Lord your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below.”

Can you remember who said these words? Rahab.

Yes, Rahab and the people of Jericho had heard about the many miracles that God had performed. Even though the city of Jericho was surrounded by tall walls, Rahab told the spies that the people were afraid and had no courage to fight the Israelites.   

Divide the class into three groups. Assign each group a line from the SuperVerse below. Give them a couple of minutes to learn it and come up with simple motions to illustrate the words: 

• Group 1: “No wonder our hearts have melted in fear!
• Group 2: For the Lord your God is the supreme God
• Group 3: of the heavens above and the earth below.”
• All groups: Joshua 2:11

Bring the groups together and have them stand facing each other in a “U” shape so they can see each other. Have the groups say their lines in order, doing the hand motion as they speak, with everyone giving the scripture reference at the end.

That was great! Let’s all say the SuperVerse and do all the motions that you came up with together! Everyone says the verse and does the hand motions together.

Prayer

Moses had led the people to the edge of the Promised Land, but then he died. God picked Joshua to lead His people into battle to win the land God had promised to them. Yet Joshua needed confidence and reassurance to lead the people. Let’s read what God told Joshua in Joshua 1:5.

“No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. For I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will not fail you or abandon you.”

Throughout life, we will need confidence to know that God is indeed with us and that He will give us His strength and wisdom to win life’s battles. Joshua probably felt alone; he had been Moses’ assistant for 40 years. Now he would have to rely solely on God for direction and strength. As we serve God, there will be times when we feel alone and need reassurance that God is with us and will help us. When we turn to Him in prayer, He will answer us.    

Have children find a place in the room to pray. Have them speak to God and ask for His reassurance and confidence to do what He asks them to do, big or small.

Closing prayer: Dear God, thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus, to die on the cross and then raising Him to life again. Thank You for sending us Your Holy Spirit to give us power and wisdom. Fill us with Your strength to follow Your ways. Give us Your wisdom to deal with difficult situations. We praise You that nothing can stand against You! In Jesus’ mighty name, Amen.   

Bowling Game

God performed a great miracle before the Israelites got to the city of Jericho! 

Read Joshua 3:9–16:

Joshua told the Israelites, “Come and listen to what the Lord your God says. Today you will know that the living God is among you. … The priests will carry the Ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth. As soon as their feet touch the water, the flow of water will be cut off upstream, and the river will stand up like a wall.” … The Jordan was overflowing its banks. But as soon as the feet of the priests who were carrying the Ark touched the water at the river’s edge, the water above that point began backing up … until the riverbed was dry. Then all the people crossed over near the town of Jericho.

The people of Jericho probably thought they were safe from Israel’s army not only because of the walls around their city, but also because Israel’s people must cross the Jordan River. At that time of year, the river was at flood stage—overflowing its banks! It seemed impossible for the Israelites to cross it at that time. But as our SuperTruth says: “Nothing can stand against God!”    

Point to the props as you explain the game. We will work as one team to get the twelve tribes of Israel over the Jordan as quickly as possible! We will play a few rounds and try for the best time. Each sock represents one tribe of Israel. When I start the time, you will each take turns rolling one sock at a time so it crosses over the Jordan River on dry land. The ball must stay within the boundaries as it rolls all the way through. It does not count if the ball rolls or bounces over the sheets representing the water. Keep taking turns until all twelve socks pass through, and we will stop the time and record it. Then, we will play another round to try to beat that time.        

Conclusion: Great job everyone! That was an amazing miracle God performed for the Israelites—especially since the river was overflowing its banks! No wonder the hearts of the people of Jericho melted in fear! God made sure all twelve tribes, including 40,000 soldiers, made it across on dry land. When the priests safely crossed to the other side, the water was allowed to flow again. When we serve God, He will make a way for us in difficult situations.  

I Spy Game

Do you remember how Joshua gathered information about the city of Jericho?He sent two spies to go inside Jericho’s walls.

Read Joshua 2:1a:

Then Joshua secretly sent out two spies from the Israelite camp at Acacia Grove. He instructed them, “Scout out the land on the other side of the Jordan River, especially around Jericho.”

Joshua needed to gather as much information as he could in preparation for attacking the city of Jericho. Do you remember what the spies told Joshua when they returned?

Read Joshua 2:23–24:

Then the two spies came down from the hill country, crossed the Jordan River, and reported to Joshua all that had happened to them. “The Lord has given us the whole land,” they said, “for all the people in the land are terrified of us.”

How do you think Joshua felt when he heard the spies’ report? 

We are going to play a game where each of you will become one of Joshua’s spies!

Divide the class into two teams. Two spies from each team will play at the same time. If the class is larger than 16 children, have four play at the same time. Explain that you are Joshua and you need each spy team to gather information and find certain items to help prepare for battle! Important: for each round, both teams must receive the same card and look for the same types of items. It is good strategy for each team to work quietly so the other team cannot hear!

Each team will search for the items on the card and write down the things they find that match the description. The teams get only 30 seconds, increase to a minute for younger children to “spy” and locate the items. Each team may list as many additional items that fit the description as possible for possible extra points. Once the time ends, stop the game and have the teams read their answers, pointing to and identifying as necessary the specific item/person they chose. If the teams chose the same item/person—those items cancel each other and no points are scored. For each item that is unique and accurate, the team scores one point. Record the scores for each team. After all teams have played, the team with the most points wins.

Conclusion: How did it feel to be a spy on an important mission for Joshua?

Would you have liked to be one of the actual spies that Joshua sent; why or why not?

Joshua showed great obedience and courage in following God’s plan of action to defeat Jericho! It may have seemed impossible to take that city, yet Joshua was convinced that nothing could stand against God!

Marching Game

God had specific instructions for Joshua and the Israelite army. The army marched around the walls of Jericho one time a day for how many days? Six.

What were the instructions for the seventh day? March around seven times and then shout!

We are going to play a version of musical chairs where the chairs represent the walls of Jericho—and we will march instead of walk!

Have the children form a circle around the chairs. Tell them that they are not allowed to talk as they march; they must be completely silent like Joshua’s army. Play begins as you say, “March around Jericho!” The children march in unison around the chairs. As they march you begin to shout out the numbers one through seven in random order. When you shout out the number “7” everyone must shout and try to sit down in one of the chairs. The player who is left without a chair is eliminated from the game, and one chair is removed so there will always be one chair less than the number of players. If you have a large class and wish to shorten the game, you may remove two chairs each time. The marching resumes as you say, “March around Jericho!” and begin shouting numbers again. Keep the game interesting by varying the cadence and timing when shouting out the numbers. Go slow, speed up, say strings of numbers quickly, repeat a number, say the number “7” immediately after starting the march, etc. Repeat in this fashion until there is only one player left in the game, who is the winner.

What do you think it felt like to march around the walls silently for 6 days? Would it be easy or difficult?

Would you think that the people of Jericho might be laughing at you?

What do you think it felt like on the seventh day when Joshua gave the command to shout?

The walls of Jericho were tall and thick but they could not stand against God! Let’s shout our SuperTruth together and raise our hands in victory as if we are Joshua’s soldiers after 7 days of marching! “No one can stand against God!”

Interview Activity

Do you remember in our video when Joy and Becky were doing a project at school? What didn’t the girls want to do? Work together.

Why didn’t they get along; had one offended the other or done something mean? No, Becky was new and they didn’t know each other, they had preconceived ideas about one another that were not true.

When Superbook took Joy and the others to Jericho, Rahab and Joy got to know each other. Even though Joy was not from Jericho, Rahab and Joy became friends. Do you remember how that happened? They talked and shared about themselves, they found a common interest in the scarf, clothes and fashion.

They both realized that people should be given a second chance. Rahab told Joy that when she got to know the enemy, she found they had common ground. Common ground means you share some interests, beliefs or experiences with someone else. The only way to find common ground with someone is to spend time with them and get to know them. We are going to do that today. For this activity, I want each of you to find someone you don’t know very well to be your partner.

Have children sit in pairs, then hand out the Interview Cards and pencils. If there is an uneven number, some children may work in groups of three. Have children ask each other the interview questions on their cards, then fill in the answers. Give them a few minutes, then have them come back together as a group. Allow time for children to share what they found out about each other. Ask if they found common ground, and what that was.

Pray: God, You created everyone in Your own image. We are Your children and You love all of Your creation. Help us not to judge too quickly or unfairly. Help us try to get to know others, to give them a second chance, and show Your love. God, Rahab was an unlikely choice to help the Israelite spies, but You chose to use her in Your plan! Let us see others with Your eyes of compassion and love. In Jesus’ name, Amen.