Crossing the Red Sea Sunday School Lesson for Kids (Lord’s Prayer Part 8)

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Parting Sea Card craft opened - the waves pulled back to show an orange page with Exodus 14 and popsicle-stick Israelite and Egyptian armies

Part 8 of our Lord’s Prayer series for kids: “deliver us from evil”. Teaching the whole prayer? Start with the free sample lesson from Prayer Power Lab (Week 1, Matthew 6:5-9).

The Great Guardian: children’s sermon on God’s protection

This lesson’s children’s message — the worn-out umbrella object lesson, the full script and the repeat-after-me prayer — has its own page: Children’s Sermon on God’s Protection (Lord’s Prayer Part 8).

Parting Sea Card and Deliverance Bouncer: parting the Red Sea crafts for kids

This lesson’s two crafts — the Parting Sea Card and the Deliverance Bouncer, with supply lists and step-by-step directions — have their own page: Parting the Red Sea Crafts for Kids: Parting Sea Card and Deliverance Bouncer (Lord’s Prayer Part 8).

Deliver Us from Evil: crossing the Red Sea Sunday School lesson and discussion questions

In the Lord’s Prayer, we pray that God would deliver us from evil. There are evil things in this world, unfortunately. But we can remind students that they need not fear those things, because the Lord is with us.

This lesson is the eighth and final in a series on The Lord’s Prayer, examining the prayer line by line to understand what it means for us and how it helps us have a blueprint for prayer. This lesson focuses on how God delivers us from evil in various ways.

Note: This series does not contain a specific lesson for the closing of the Lord’s Prayer (“For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, amen”), as that is not contained in Scripture, although it is a nice final word.

Passage: Exodus 14:5-31

Target Audience: Kindergarten-6th grade

Materials Needed: Small treats, Bibles

Lesson Opening

Children should be reminded and encouraged that God is our guide and protection. We can trust in Him and run to Him and away from evil. Open the lesson with some simple activities that illustrate the concept. Here are some suggested ideas:

  • Trust the leader: Have students team up to go through a simple obstacle course. The trick is that one student will be blindfolded, and the other leading them through. Talk about how God guides us through challenges and obstacles in life.
  • Maze race: Give students a paper maze puzzle and writing utensil. Challenge them to see who can get through the maze the fastest. (Again, remind them of how God guides us.)
  • Protection Relay: Set out several items that could be used for protection (umbrella, helmet, gloves, etc.). Have students split into teams and race relay-style across the play area. Each time, provide a situation that would require one of the protective items, and have students grab the matching item before running back.
  • Red Sea Escape: Have students form two lines and face each other. One at a time, have other students run between the lines. Periodically have the students in line throw a “Red Sea” blanket down to try to catch the students running through.
  • Egyptians versus Israelites: This game is best played outside. Have students split into two teams, and designate them Israelites and Egyptians. Have the kids line up back to back, just a few feet apart. Call out one team’s name, and have those children chase the others toward a designated finish point. If students are tagged before they reach the finish, they join the other team.

Talk about what it means to be delivered (note: not the same as a package delivery, in this case!). Explain that God delivers us from evil through the blood of Jesus, and continues to deliver us by being with us and keeping us safe in various situations. In the Bible, we see a lot of situations where God’s people were delivered, often miraculously.

Ask: Can you think of any stories that involve amazing rescues? How about in the Bible?

Bible Lesson

This lesson features a remarkable account where God’s people were clearly delivered from evil, through Moses. It’s a great story to act out with students, encouraging them to run as though being pursued, or “drive chariots.” Students should be able to take turns reading verses, or you can read aloud for younger audiences.

If students aren’t as familiar with the Moses story, review the book of Exodus, and how God raised up Moses to lead the people out of slavery in Egypt. This part takes place as the Israelites were running away from Pharaoh, the evil ruler.

When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have released Israel from serving us.” So Pharaoh prepared his chariot and took his army with him. He took 600 of the best chariots, and all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them. And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out defiantly. The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi-hahiroth, opposite Baal-zephon. —Exodus 14:5-9

Pharaoh had a lot of attitude changes in the book of Exodus…however, God was in control! Even in this story, the text reminds us that God hardened his heart (again), although ultimately for His glory. The people of God were finally on their way out of slavery, but Pharaoh decided he didn’t want to lose his free labor source, and decided to chase them down. The whole army started chasing after the Israelites, who were camped near the Red Sea.

As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up and saw the Egyptians marching after them, and they were terrified and cried out to the LORD. They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us into the wilderness to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Did we not say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone so that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” But Moses told the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the LORD’s salvation, which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.” —Exodus 14:10-14

This begins a pattern of complaining that unfortunately continued for the people of God. Here, they questioned the leadership of Moses and even the hand of God, too. But Moses knew God was at work. In a powerful and comforting promise, he told the people that God was with them and that God was going to fight for them! They didn’t even need to do anything but trust.

Ask: What kinds of things do you sometimes complain about? What should we do instead?

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the Israelites to go forward. And as for you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. Then I will gain honor by means of Pharaoh and all his army and chariots and horsemen. The Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I am honored through Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

And the angel of God, who had gone before the camp of Israel, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from before them and stood behind them, so that it came between the camps of Egypt and Israel. The cloud was there in the darkness, but it lit up the night. So all night long neither camp went near the other. —Exodus 14:15-20

God was present with the Israelites. The visual representation of that presence was found in a pillar of cloud that went with them during the daytime, and a pillar of fire at night. God instructed Moses to lift his hand and divide the sea. This must have seemed like an odd and impossible instruction! But Moses had seen God do amazing things before.

Ask: Has anyone ever told you to do something that you didn’t understand at first?

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove back the sea with a strong east wind that turned it into dry land. So the waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on their right and on their left. And the Egyptians chased after them—all Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and horsemen—and followed them into the sea. At morning watch, however, the LORD looked down on the army of the Egyptians from the pillar of fire and cloud, and He threw their camp into confusion. He caused their chariot wheels to wobble, so that they had difficulty driving. “Let us flee from the Israelites,” said the Egyptians, “for the LORD is fighting for them against Egypt!”

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea returned to its normal state. As the Egyptians were retreating, the LORD swept them into the sea. The waters flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had chased the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived. But the Israelites had walked through the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on their right and on their left.

That day the LORD saved Israel from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the shore. When Israel saw the great power that the LORD had exercised over the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and believed in Him and in His servant Moses. —Exodus 14:21-31

It worked! The people of God were able to pass through the middle of the sea, just walking along on dry land! But the Egyptians had a different experience…God had the waters collapse over them, and the whole massive army was crushed.

It might seem unfair that all of those people would be wiped out, but through that, God was saving His people, and delivering them from evil. This served to demonstrate God’s power and might, and His protection for the Israelite people.

Ask: What does it mean to fear God?

God is amazing. When we “fear” Him as the Israelites did, we recognize His power and control in all things. We also consider how awesome He is to work for us and protect us. His enemies should also fear His power, since He will always defeat evil!

We pray in the Lord’s prayer that God would deliver us from evil, and know that He does. Whenever we feel afraid, we can call on Him for help, and know He saves!

Review questions about the lesson

  1. How does God deliver us from evil?
  2. Besides the story of Moses, can you think of other Biblical figures who were delivered or deliverers?
  3. Where do we see evil in the world? Why do we know we don’t need to fear it?

Close with prayer, asking God to continue delivering us from evil as we trust in Him.

More Lord’s Prayer Resources

The Lord’s Prayer Series for Kids

See the whole series on one page: The Lord’s Prayer Sunday School Lessons for Kids (8-Week Series).

Related Sunday School Activities:

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