Genesis 49:8-12 (NIV) 8“Judah, your brothers will praise you; your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons will bow down to you.  9You are a lion’s cub, Judah; you return from the prey, my son. Like a lion he crouches and lies down, like a lioness—who dares to rouse him?  10The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his.  11He will tether his donkey to a vine, his colt to the choicest branch; he will wash his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes.  12His eyes will be darker than wine, his teeth whiter than milk.  

The final clue that God gives to the patriarchs is given through Israel (Jacob) to his fourth son, Judah.  He states, “The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his.”  If we were to put the clues together, we would come to the conclusion that a ruler will come from the tribe of Judah, of the Nation Israel; this ruler will be both a king and priest, who will defeat Satan and bring freedom to humanity.

In the clue that is given in Genesis 49, it would seem that God’s providence will rest upon the tribe of Judah through time and circumstances, and finally rule all nations.  In this we can come to the conclusion that God has a missionary heart.  The nations are included in God’s plan.  

Memory Verse: Matthew 24:14 (NIV)
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.  

Family Activity:

As a family create a scavenger hunt and then invite a family or two to join you in the hunt.  For the final item/clue gather together for hot chocolate sing some Christmas carols and light the first Advent Candle.  

Example of  scavenger hunt and instructions:

Create a list of items (Christmas in nature) that need to be found.  The length of the list would depend on time and transportation or location (example: a 10 block radius, a basement, a shopping mall etc.) for the scavenger hunt. Items, once found need to be identified as to location. The best way of doing this might be through using cell phones to take pictures of the item with the group beside it.  These pictures could be used later during the hot chocolate time for proof, story telling and laughs.  

Your task is to find the following items:  

# Item                                   House and Street#         Picture                      

1. Angel                                  _____________  

2. Nativity Scene                     _____________  

3. Blue Christmas lights           _____________  

4. Words “Merry Christmas”     _____________  

5. Cross                                 _____________  

6. Candy Cane                       _____________  

7. Snowman                           _____________

8. A Star                               _____________  

9. A house with                      _____________        
multi-coloured lights  

10.   Inflatable Santa Claus     _____________