God’s Seeds
Children's sermon
Object:
Mustard seeds. You can probably find them in the spice section of your local grocery store.
Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.” (vv. 30-32)
Hi, everyone! (Let them respond.) I have a question for you today. Are you ready? (Let them respond.) Great! Do any of you sometimes feel frustrated or disappointed because you can’t do things that older or bigger people do? (Let them respond.) Maybe there are places you would like to go or things you would like to do, but you can’t because someone thinks you are too small? (Let them respond.)
One day Jesus was talking with a bunch of people who were feeling frustrated like that. They wanted to do things God wanted them to do, but there were other people around who were bigger and wouldn’t let them do those things. That is frustrating, isn’t it? (Let them respond.)
The people were telling Jesus how frustrated they were, and do you know what Jesus did? (Let them respond.) He reached into the little bag he was carrying, and he pulled out some of these. (Pour some seeds in your hand.) Can anyone tell me what I have in my hand here? (Let them respond.) They are seeds, but they are a very special kind of seed. Does anyone have an idea what kind of seeds these are? (Let them respond.) These are mustard seeds. They grow into a plant that we can eat, and that we can make mustard out of. But can anyone tell me what made these seeds special enough for Jesus to talk about them? Did he just like mustard? (Let them respond.)
Jesus said the mustard seed was special because it was so small. He said it was one of the smallest seeds, but when you plant it, it grows into a plant that is taller than most of the other plants in the garden, and even taller than most people. Some mustard seeds can even grow as big as a huge tree. From this little-bitty seed.
Jesus told the people that even though they sometimes got frustrated because they felt so small, God was going to help them do things that no one else could do, and they didn’t have to worry if they felt small, because God didn’t care how big they were. And even if you do feel kind of small sometimes, God can still use you to do some pretty big things.
For example, maybe you see someone who is having a really bad day and you just say “Hi!” and give them a smile. That might make a HUGE difference to them. Or maybe you come home after a busy day and give someone in your family a big hug. That is HUGE, too. Even little things like saying “Thank you” or patting someone on the back, things anyone can do no matter how big they are, those things show people that we care about them and that God loves them.
We may be small like a mustard seed, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do big things with God’s help.
The next time we might feel kind of small, instead of getting frustrated and disappointed I hope we can remember the little mustard seed, don’t you? (Let them respond.) We might feel like the smallest seed in the garden but look out! We can do some really big things!
And I hope you’ll remember how much God loves you, and how much God wants us to show everyone around us how much we love them, too.
Let’s have our prayer and ask God to help us stick together and do the things God wants us to do to take care of each other.
Prayer:
Dear God, thank you for reminding us how much you love us. Please help us remember that you love all of the people you have created and help us let the people around us know that we love them just like Jesus loves us. Amen.
Hi, everyone! (Let them respond.) I have a question for you today. Are you ready? (Let them respond.) Great! Do any of you sometimes feel frustrated or disappointed because you can’t do things that older or bigger people do? (Let them respond.) Maybe there are places you would like to go or things you would like to do, but you can’t because someone thinks you are too small? (Let them respond.)
One day Jesus was talking with a bunch of people who were feeling frustrated like that. They wanted to do things God wanted them to do, but there were other people around who were bigger and wouldn’t let them do those things. That is frustrating, isn’t it? (Let them respond.)
The people were telling Jesus how frustrated they were, and do you know what Jesus did? (Let them respond.) He reached into the little bag he was carrying, and he pulled out some of these. (Pour some seeds in your hand.) Can anyone tell me what I have in my hand here? (Let them respond.) They are seeds, but they are a very special kind of seed. Does anyone have an idea what kind of seeds these are? (Let them respond.) These are mustard seeds. They grow into a plant that we can eat, and that we can make mustard out of. But can anyone tell me what made these seeds special enough for Jesus to talk about them? Did he just like mustard? (Let them respond.)
Jesus said the mustard seed was special because it was so small. He said it was one of the smallest seeds, but when you plant it, it grows into a plant that is taller than most of the other plants in the garden, and even taller than most people. Some mustard seeds can even grow as big as a huge tree. From this little-bitty seed.
Jesus told the people that even though they sometimes got frustrated because they felt so small, God was going to help them do things that no one else could do, and they didn’t have to worry if they felt small, because God didn’t care how big they were. And even if you do feel kind of small sometimes, God can still use you to do some pretty big things.
For example, maybe you see someone who is having a really bad day and you just say “Hi!” and give them a smile. That might make a HUGE difference to them. Or maybe you come home after a busy day and give someone in your family a big hug. That is HUGE, too. Even little things like saying “Thank you” or patting someone on the back, things anyone can do no matter how big they are, those things show people that we care about them and that God loves them.
We may be small like a mustard seed, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do big things with God’s help.
The next time we might feel kind of small, instead of getting frustrated and disappointed I hope we can remember the little mustard seed, don’t you? (Let them respond.) We might feel like the smallest seed in the garden but look out! We can do some really big things!
And I hope you’ll remember how much God loves you, and how much God wants us to show everyone around us how much we love them, too.
Let’s have our prayer and ask God to help us stick together and do the things God wants us to do to take care of each other.
Prayer:
Dear God, thank you for reminding us how much you love us. Please help us remember that you love all of the people you have created and help us let the people around us know that we love them just like Jesus loves us. Amen.
