God has no favorite people
Children's sermon
Object:
some photos or hand-drawn pictures of tombstones, some very large with a lot of words of praise, and another one that only has a name and a date written on it
Good morning, boys and girls. The Lord is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Would you say that with me? (ask them to repeat the words in a loud voice) Very good!
Today is Easter Day, the Resurrection of our Lord. Jesus has risen from the dead and he shares the gift of life after death with all of us. I mean all of us.
When Jesus was first resurrected, many people, including Peter and the other disciples, thought that his gift would be for only a few people. Then they learned that God has no favorite people. God is the God of all people.
I took a walk in the cemetery the other day and I was amazed to see all the different kinds of stones for people who are buried there. I would like to show you some pictures. First, there are some really big stones. These are very fancy and may have statues of people riding horses or sitting in big chairs, or they may have huge flowerpots or birdbaths. These fancy stones tell the name of the person buried there and the years they were born and died. They may even tell you some facts about the person's life. I read one about a man who was a brave war hero. I read another gravestone about a woman who gave all of her money to build a hospital.
Then, there are medium-sized gravestones. Most of the time they only show the person's name and the years they lived, but once in a while they may say a few words about the person's job or family.
Finally, some people have only stones in the ground. We only know that they were very poor and couldn't afford to have stones with their names on them.
Which people do you think God would like to welcome into his kingdom, the people with the big gravestones, the medium-size gravestones, or the very small gravestones? (let them answer) How many of you vote for the big ones about war heroes or generous people? (let them vote) How many of you vote for the medium-sized stones that only have a few things written on them? (let them vote) How many of you vote for the people so poor they didn't even have their names on a stone? (let them vote)
The truth is that God loves all kinds of people and does not have favorites. God loves young people, old people, strong people, weak people, blind people, deaf people, and all the different kinds of people in the whole world. Jesus was resurrected for all of us.
Today is Easter Day, the Resurrection of our Lord. Jesus has risen from the dead and he shares the gift of life after death with all of us. I mean all of us.
When Jesus was first resurrected, many people, including Peter and the other disciples, thought that his gift would be for only a few people. Then they learned that God has no favorite people. God is the God of all people.
I took a walk in the cemetery the other day and I was amazed to see all the different kinds of stones for people who are buried there. I would like to show you some pictures. First, there are some really big stones. These are very fancy and may have statues of people riding horses or sitting in big chairs, or they may have huge flowerpots or birdbaths. These fancy stones tell the name of the person buried there and the years they were born and died. They may even tell you some facts about the person's life. I read one about a man who was a brave war hero. I read another gravestone about a woman who gave all of her money to build a hospital.
Then, there are medium-sized gravestones. Most of the time they only show the person's name and the years they lived, but once in a while they may say a few words about the person's job or family.
Finally, some people have only stones in the ground. We only know that they were very poor and couldn't afford to have stones with their names on them.
Which people do you think God would like to welcome into his kingdom, the people with the big gravestones, the medium-size gravestones, or the very small gravestones? (let them answer) How many of you vote for the big ones about war heroes or generous people? (let them vote) How many of you vote for the medium-sized stones that only have a few things written on them? (let them vote) How many of you vote for the people so poor they didn't even have their names on a stone? (let them vote)
The truth is that God loves all kinds of people and does not have favorites. God loves young people, old people, strong people, weak people, blind people, deaf people, and all the different kinds of people in the whole world. Jesus was resurrected for all of us.
