FOLLOWING THE WRONG KING
15 mins
Begin by playing the song ‘Be Prepared’ from The Lion King (found here). Say: How much do you remember about the film, and the character who’s singing this song? Divide into small groups and see which group is first to answer these six questions: answers can be found here.
- What is the name of the wrong king?
- What is his relationship to the right king?
- What are the forces who obey him?
- How does he kill the true king?
- What does he do to the true king’s son?
- How does he end up?
Say: For much of The Lion King, the wrong king is on the throne. That’s exactly what was happening when Jesus was born. King Herod should never have been in charge, and although the country was doing well economically, there was a climate of fear and injustice. Scar was on the throne. We’re going to take a close look at the wrong king and see why following the wrong leader is a very bad idea.
Read Matthew 2:1-8 and 16-18. Ask: why do you think Herod’s response was so violent? What does it tell you about him? (He was cruel and sadistic; he would let nothing stand in the way of his ambition; he was uncertain of his own position, so had to react aggressively whenever he felt challenged)
THE WRONG KING IS INSECURE
10 mins
Play a game together. One young person is ‘king’ and gets to sit on a ‘throne’ in the centre of the room. Everyone else fires questions at the king, who must respond but must not smile, nod or give a shake of the head, say yes or no, or mention any number. As soon as the king is caught out, the person who trapped them into the mistake becomes king instead... and so on. Play this for nine or ten ‘reigns’: some kings will last a while, others very briefly, but all will be replaced quickly and suddenly.
Say: That’s the kind of situation Herod, the king of Jesus’ country, was living in: here today, gone tomorrow. He drowned his brother-in-law, killed his wife and then her mother, executed another brother-in-law, and put three of his sons to death for treason. In the surrounding area, other kings rose and fell suddenly. It was a precarious life. When you become king and you’re not supposed to be, you can’t be at rest. We weren’t made to be king of our own lives; we were made to submit to the rightful rule of our creator. And when we invite God’s king, Jesus, to be our king, we find peace for the first time. But when we try to live for ourselves, by ourselves, or claim back control from Jesus, we’re always insecure.
KEY POINT 1
There’s no peace or security when we seize control of our own lives and try to run them without God’s rightful king being involved. And yet, like Herod, many of us push the rightful king away.
THE WRONG KING HURTS PEOPLE
10 mins
It’s time to find out more about what Herod was like. Imagine he’s writing a letter to a Sicilian godfather, applying to join the Mafia. What would he say? Imagine you’re drafting his application letter. You’re only allowed to use five pieces of information about him that you think might help his application. What would you say? Use the details of his CV that you’ll find it here. Compare results after six or seven minutes and award a small prize for the best letter.
KEY POINT 2
When you’re trying to rule your life all by yourself, one of two things will happen: either you lose it all, or other people get hurt as you struggle to stay on top.
THE WRONG KING LEAVES NO LEGACY
10 mins
How did it all work out for Herod? Ask different groups to explore different questions for five minutes, then report back to everyone:
- What happened to Herod?
- What happened to his family?
- What happened to his kingdom?
- What happened to the Jewish people?
Ask your young to give as full a picture as possible – not just ‘he died’ or ‘his kingdom ended’ – and to give a judgment: did Herod achieve what he’d dreamed, or not? What was left behind when he went? (Answers here)
Get the groups to share their findings. Make the point that living to please yourself, and fulfil your own dreams, means you leave nothing behind; you’re building sandcastles that just collapse when the tide comes in. Herod found in the end that he couldn’t control destiny; he could only hurt people. When he felt death approaching, he gave orders for all the notable people in Judea to be executed, so that somebody would be sad when he died, but his daughter cancelled the order! (You could show a video of a real-life story which can be found here if there’s time.)
THE TRUE KING
10 mins
Eventually in The Lion King, the impostor is exposed and the true king is crowned (show a video clip if you have time). Ask: how does all of this apply to Herod and us? End with a mini Bible study in small groups:
- Read Acts 17:6-8 (where early Christians are in trouble in a city called Thessalonica). What charge was made against them?
- Read John 18:35-37 (where Jesus is being tried by Pontius Pilate). What does he say about himself? What is different about his kingship compared with Herod’s?
- Read 1 Thessalonians 1:6-10 (which describes how the Thessalonian Christians served their new king). What does this tell us about crowning God’s rightful king, and giving him control of our lives, today?
Pray together, perhaps starting by reading Philippians 2:9-11.
John Allan is a retired school chaplain and church leader from Exeter with no plans to retire from youth work.
