The authority for Christians
Children's sermon
Object:
a book of law that you might obtain from an attorney or a judge
Good morning, boys and girls. Today, I brought with me a big book. Does anyone know what is in it? (let them answer) It is a book of laws. It is the kind of a book that a judge would use or a lawyer. It tells what is right and what is wrong and what could happen to you if you did something wrong. This book is a book of authority.
There are different kinds of authority. At home your parents are the authority. They tell you what is right and what is wrong in your home. But in school, your principal and your teacher are the authorities. Not your parents, not your doctor, but the principal and the teacher. In our choir, the director is the authority. Not the ushers nor the singers but the director. And when it comes to the law, this book and the judge are the authorities. They tell us how to run our city, how we can drive automobiles, how loud we can play music on the streets, and what is right and fair when people cannot agree.
People were amazed at the way Jesus taught and the things he said. So the people wanted to know where Jesus got his authority. He told people to love one another, even their enemies. He healed people and did other things that no one else could do. Some important people were afraid that if people believed Jesus, they would not believe them. So they asked, "Where do you get your authority?" Did the king give Jesus authority? Did the Emperor Caesar give Jesus authority? The important people wanted to know.
Jesus knew they did not believe him because they wanted to be the authority. So Jesus began to teach them about the power of God and how God sent him into the world to make changes and to teach about faith in God. There was no king or emperor or high priest who gave Jesus authority. Jesus did not get his authority from his parents or his schoolteacher or principal. And it was not a doctor or a judge or a book. Jesus said his authority was from God and only God.
Today, as Christians we believe Jesus and call him our authority because by dying on the cross and being raised from the dead, he showed he is God's Son.
But before you leave, let me tell you something. Jesus shares his love and his authority with our parents, our schoolteachers, our policeman and judges, and teaches us to respect them when they teach us with love and respect.
Prayer: O God, help us to let the example and teachings of Jesus be the authority of our lives. Amen.
There are different kinds of authority. At home your parents are the authority. They tell you what is right and what is wrong in your home. But in school, your principal and your teacher are the authorities. Not your parents, not your doctor, but the principal and the teacher. In our choir, the director is the authority. Not the ushers nor the singers but the director. And when it comes to the law, this book and the judge are the authorities. They tell us how to run our city, how we can drive automobiles, how loud we can play music on the streets, and what is right and fair when people cannot agree.
People were amazed at the way Jesus taught and the things he said. So the people wanted to know where Jesus got his authority. He told people to love one another, even their enemies. He healed people and did other things that no one else could do. Some important people were afraid that if people believed Jesus, they would not believe them. So they asked, "Where do you get your authority?" Did the king give Jesus authority? Did the Emperor Caesar give Jesus authority? The important people wanted to know.
Jesus knew they did not believe him because they wanted to be the authority. So Jesus began to teach them about the power of God and how God sent him into the world to make changes and to teach about faith in God. There was no king or emperor or high priest who gave Jesus authority. Jesus did not get his authority from his parents or his schoolteacher or principal. And it was not a doctor or a judge or a book. Jesus said his authority was from God and only God.
Today, as Christians we believe Jesus and call him our authority because by dying on the cross and being raised from the dead, he showed he is God's Son.
But before you leave, let me tell you something. Jesus shares his love and his authority with our parents, our schoolteachers, our policeman and judges, and teaches us to respect them when they teach us with love and respect.
Prayer: O God, help us to let the example and teachings of Jesus be the authority of our lives. Amen.
