Give Thanks Daniel in the Lion s Den Daniel 6:1-28

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1 Fall 2015 ~ Beginners Lesson #8 Learning Objectives Give Thanks Daniel in the Lion s Den Daniel 6: The children will be able to retell the story of the Daniel in the lion s den. 2. The children will be able to explain what can happen when we choose to put our trust in God. Memory Verse: The Lord is with me. I will not be afraid. --Psalms 118:6 (NIRV) Getting Started Lion Talk Bring in pictures of lions or stuffed animals that are lions. If possible, have sounds of lions on a laptop or CD to play. Ask the students what the animal is. What sound does it make? After they have practiced roaring, ask the students what it would be like if the entire room was filled with lions! What would they feel like? (Scared? Worried? Afraid?) Today, we are going to learn about someone who faced a whole den of lions, and he wasn t even afraid one bit! OR Making Lions See: preschool lessons Daniel and the Lion s Den As kids Arrive Make lions out of play dough or modeling clay. (Be careful play dough can be messy so cover the floor and the children too!) Have the materials on the table so the children can begin making their lions as they enter the class. You will need to make a mane for the lions out of medium card stock. Please see the website above for a template and pictures of the final product. As the children work, talk about lions, what sounds they make, etc. Ask the children what they think it would be like if the room was filled with lions! Would they feel afraid? Tell them that lion s had an important part in today s story. Continue with the lesson. Bible Lesson with Discussion Questions Message: Trust in God with all your heart. Teacher Note: Please see Preschool Skits Daniel Trusts in God for puppet cut outs that may assist you in telling the story. Recruit volunteer helpers as needed to help act out the story. 1

2 Bible Lesson with Discussion Questions - Continued Daniel Is Thrown Into a Den of Lions It pleased Darius to appoint 120 royal rulers over his entire kingdom. He placed three leaders over them. One of the leaders was Daniel. The royal rulers were made accountable to the three leaders. Then the king wouldn't lose any of his wealth. Daniel did a better job than the other two leaders or any of the royal rulers. He was an unusually good and able man. So the king planned to put him in charge of the whole kingdom. But the other two leaders and the royal rulers heard about it. So they looked for a reason to bring charges against Daniel. They tried to find something wrong with the way he ran the government. But they weren't able to. They couldn't find any fault with his work. He could always be trusted. He never did anything wrong. And he always did what he was supposed to. Finally those men said, "It's almost impossible for us to come up with a reason to bring charges against this man Daniel. If we do, it will have to be in connection with the law of his God." So the two leaders and the royal rulers went as a group to the king. They said, "King Darius, may you live forever! All of the royal leaders, high officials, royal rulers, advisers and governors want to make a suggestion. We've agreed that you should give an order. And you should make sure it's obeyed. Here is the command you should give. King Darius, during the next 30 days don't let any of your people pray to any god or man except to you. If they do, throw them into the lions' den. "Now give the order. Write it down in the laws of the Medes and Persians. Then it can't be changed." So King Darius put the order in writing. Daniel found out that the king had signed the order. In spite of that, he did just as he had always done before. He went home to his upstairs room. Its windows opened toward Jerusalem. He went to his room three times a day to pray. He got down on his knees and gave thanks to his God. Some of the other royal officials went to where Daniel was staying. They saw him praying and asking God for help. So they went to the king. They spoke to him about his royal order. They said, "King Darius, didn't you sign an official order? It said that for the next 30 days none of your people could pray to any god or man except to you. If they did, they would be thrown into the lions' den." The king answered, "The order must still be obeyed. It's one of the laws of the Medes and Persians. So it can't be changed." Then they spoke to the king again. They said, "Daniel is one of the prisoners from Judah. He doesn't pay any attention to you, King Darius. He doesn't obey the order you put in writing. He still prays to his God three times a day." When the king heard that, he was very upset. He didn't want Daniel to be harmed in any way. Until sunset, he did everything he could to save him. Then the men went as a group to the king. They said to him, "King Darius, remember that no order or law you make can be changed. That's what the laws of the Medes and Persians require." So the king gave the order. Daniel was brought out and thrown into the lions' den. The king said to him, "You always serve your God faithfully. So may He save you!" A stone was brought and placed over the opening of the den. The king sealed it with his own special ring. He also sealed it with the rings of his nobles. Then nothing could be done to help Daniel. The king returned to his palace. He didn't eat anything that night. He didn't ask for anything to be brought to him for his enjoyment. And he couldn't sleep. As soon as the sun began to rise, the king got up. He hurried to the lions' den. When he got near it, he called out to Daniel. His voice was filled with great concern. He said, "Daniel! You serve the living God. You always serve Him faithfully. So has He been able to save you from the lions?" 2

3 Bible Lesson with Discussion Questions - Continued Daniel answered, "My king, may you live forever! My God sent his angel and his angel shut the mouths of the lions. They haven't hurt me at all. That's because I haven't done anything wrong in God's sight. I've never done anything wrong to you either, my king." The king was filled with joy. He ordered his servants to lift Daniel out of the den. So they did. They didn't see any wounds on him. That's because he had trusted in his God. Then the king gave another order. The men who had said bad things about Daniel were brought in. They were thrown into the lions' den. So were their wives and children. Before they hit the bottom of the den, the lions attacked them and they died. Then King Darius wrote to the people from every nation and language in the whole world. He said, "May you have great success! I order people in every part of my kingdom to respect and honor Daniel's God. He is the living God. He will live forever. His kingdom will not be destroyed. His rule will never end. He sets people free and saves them. He does miraculous signs and wonders. He does them in the heavens and on the earth. He has saved Daniel from the power of the lions." So Daniel had success while Darius was king. Things went well with him during the rule of Cyrus, the Persian. Discussion Questions: 1. Who was Daniel? (A man who believed in God, he worked for King Darius.) 2. What was the law that King Darius made? (Everyone had to pray to him and no one else.) 3. Who convinced King Darius to make such a law? (The other men that worked for him.) Why? (They were jealous of Daniel and how much the king liked him.) 4. What did Daniel do about the law? (Nothing, he kept on praying to God like he always had.) 5. How and when did Daniel pray to God? (He prayed on his knees three (3) times each day.) 6. What happened when Daniel was found praying? (He was thrown into the lion s den.) 7. Did Daniel die? (No, he was saved because he trusted in God, an angel came and shut the mouths of the lions.) 8. Why do you think that Daniel was saved? (Answers will vary He trusted God, he refused to do something he knew was wrong. Discuss together.) 9. What if you were Daniel? What would you have done? Do you have the same trust in God as He did? (Discuss together.) Application to Real Life Enjoy a LION snack as you continue the conversation. (See preschool Crafts Lion Crackers.) You will need round crackers, peanut butter (check for food allergies), cheerios and raisins to make your lions. Please see the website above for detailed instructions. Let the children make their own lions. As they do, talk with them about how it wasn t easy but Daniel made a choice in today s story to do the right thing and still pray to his God. Talk about a time when the students had to make a choice about doing the right thing. Give them some scenarios, and have them think about which would be the right choice. Discuss the options, and then what would be the right choice of action. (If you really want to be creative you could make a worksheet with pictures use PowerPoint/Publisher and clipart.) Choose example scenarios that would be most appropriate for the children in your class. Then remind the children that even when we do not know what to do, if we turn to God and trust Him with our heart we will have no reason to be afraid. (Remind the children of the message and/or memory verse.) 3

4 Application to Real Life - Continued Examples: 1. Your brother/sister takes your toy. Do you: Hit your brother/sister OR Let them play with the toy 2. You forgot to do a chore at home. Do you: Lie to your mom and dad and say you did it OR Tell the truth 3. Your friend calls you stupid. Do you: Yell at your friend OR Tell them that is not very nice to say Memory Work Suggestions 5 minutes 1. Name the two main parts of the Bible and tell what the difference is. (Old Testament before Jesus, New Testament Jesus & After Jesus) 2. Where is the book of Daniel located? In the Old or New Testament? Practice finding it together. 3. Review the first commandment: I am the Lord your God. You shall have NO other gods before Me. What do you think this commandment means? How is it a part of today s lesson? 4. Recite the memory verse. Activity Ideas Paw Prints Story Review Review the story by putting various pictures on cut-out paw prints. (For example, pictures of King Darius with Daniel, Daniel praying to God, three men talking to the King, the guard outside the door of the lion s den, Daniel sitting with the lions, the King watching Daniel pray to his God) Practice mixing up the paw prints and putting them in the correct order. (Another Idea: you could look at the dollar store or Christian bookstore for an inexpensive book about Daniel ($1 or so) that you could cut apart and use the pictures for your review.) Daniel and the Lions Puzzle See: Preschool Activities Daniel and the Lions You will need craft sticks (thick ones) and copies of the Daniel and the Lions picture to make your puzzles before class. Please see the above website for detailed instructions. The children will get to do the puzzles in class. Make one for each child. Remember to keep the conversation going as the children work on their puzzles, as suggested in the activity. Lion Puppets Make lion puppets out of paper bags, or lion masks from paper plates, using yarn (for the lion s mane) and construction paper. Be as creative as you like. Retell the story and take turns being the lions, the king and Daniel. 4

5 Homework Ideas - Read at home with a grown up the lesson titled: Jesus Heals the Ten Lepers (Luke 17:11-19). - Learn the memory verse for next week: He threw himself at Jesus feet and thanked Him. --Luke 17:16 (NIRV) - Work on memorizing commandment #. - Color the Jesus Heals the Ten Lepers handout (teachers print attached coloring page for each child). Return it on Sunday for a sticker. Other Resources Resource Room Search Lion s Den 5