The Big Read – Chronicles

Powerpoint Pictures: Apartment; Cottage; Mansion; Yurt; Cave Homes (found in Tunisia); Palace; Castle

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What different types of houses are there?

Look at these pictures.  Does anyone know what the name of these types of houses are? [Apartment; Cottage; Mansion; Yurt; Cave Homes (found in Tunisia); Palace; Castle]

Now there is one more type of house.

This one isn’t a building made up out of bricks like our houses are.

A house can also describe a royal or wealthy family or lineage – another word we might use for this type of house is a dynasty.

An example of this house is the house of Windsor, which Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, Prince William and the other members of the royal family belong to.

In the book of Chronicles, houses play a big role.

Chronicles?

You many not know very much about that book because Chronicles is one of the books in the Bible that doesn’t get read a lot.

One of the big reason for this is that it begins with a long list of names.  9 chapters of names.  936 names to read before you get to the story.  Another reason is that seems to be repeating what the books of Samuel and especially Kings are saying.

It is such a shame that people don’t read Chronicles more because it is a book packed full of hope.

In Chronicles we get a retelling of the story of human history from Adam through to the time the Israelites were going to return to Jerusalem from exile in Babylon, and as it tells this story it focuses on two houses.

THE HOUSE OF DAVID and THE HOUSE OF GOD.

The house of David was all the kings of Israel (Judah) that descended from him.

The house of God was the temple in Jerusalem that David’s descendants built and maintained.

And what the story of these two houses do, is remind God’s people what the King that was going to save them, the King they were waiting for, was going to be like.

He will be from the house of David, in his royal line, and He will faithfully worship God at the temple – the house of God.

He will be a better King David and King Solomon – greater than both of them – and He won’t be like the rest of Israel’s kings after Solomon who were pretty rubbish at worshipping God.

The book of Chronicles encourages God’s people to wait in hope for this King to arrive and He now has in Jesus.

Jesus is the true King from the house of David who perfectly worships God.  These words spoken to Solomon by God were ultimately about Him.

“As for you, if you walk before me as your father David walked, doing everything I have commanded you, and if you keep my statutes and ordinances, I will establish your royal throne, as I promised your father David: You will never fail to have a man ruling in Israel.” (2 Chronicles 7:17-18)

But more than being the faithful worshipper, Jesus is the true temple, the place where people can meet with God.

As we read Chronicles we can thank God that He has kept His promises and sent the King; that the Saviour did arrive; and we can now meet with God because of Him.

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More talks from The Big Read for Kids can be found HERE.

(Photo: Freely)