Joseph #2
JOSEPH #2
Possible Lesson Plan:
- Open with prayer.
- Scripture Reference: Genesis 39-45. Give each student a question to find the answer to as he reads, such as:
Why was Joseph in Egypt when the rest of his family were in Canaan?
Why was Joseph in prison in Egypt?
What interpretation did Joseph give the butler and the baker?
How did Joseph help the Egyptian Pharaoh?
Why did Jacob send his sons to Egypt with money? Why not Benjamin?
Which brother stayed in Egypt while the others went to get Benjamin & why?
How did Joseph test his brothers to see if their hearts had really changed?
How did Joseph reveal his identity to his brothers?
And, for the whole class, how did God bring something good out of the evil Joseph’s brothers did to him?
- Service References: In the Bridegroom services of Holy Week, Joseph is honored in the Kontakion: “Jacob lamented the loss of Joseph but his noble son was seated on a chariot and honored as a king. For when he refused to be enslaved by the pleasures of the Egyptian woman , he was glorified by the Lord who beholds the hearts of men, and bestows upon them an incorruptible crown.” And again in the Aposticha, “The serpent found a second Eve in the Egyptian woman and plotted the fall of Joseph through words of flattery. But, leaving behind his garment, Joseph fled from sin. He was naked but unashamed, like Adam before the fall.” In what way was Potiphar’s wife similar to Eve? How did Joseph’s actions differ from Adam’s? The results?
Eventually, Joseph married in Egypt and had two sons with his wife, Asenath. Their union is also remembered in the marriage service. Why?
- Discussion: Life is unfair, but it was particularly unfair to Joseph. Have you ever been treated unfairly? If anyone was entitled to a grudge, it was Joseph. List the ways people wronged Joseph on the board and, next to each, how Joseph responded. Did God seem to fail Joseph? If you were in Joseph’s place, how would you have responded? To the situations? To God?
Ask the class about situations they would find hard to forgive: with their friends? With their parents? Brainstorm and list them on the board. What is the one thing someone could do that you could never forgive? Write that on a piece of paper. Would you want others to see it?
We always have choices. Adam and Eve had a choice in the garden. Joseph had a choice; he had every right not to forgive his brothers, or did he? Should we always forgive, no matter what the circumstance? Are there some things that can never be forgiven? Do others have to apologize before being forgiven? Is forgiveness even possible? Is there anyone in my life I have not forgiven? Why? What are the consequences of my not forgiving this person to the person? To myself?
- Close with prayer: Have each student think of a person he or she needs to forgive. Ask God to help them forgive.
M