Childrens Sermon Service

Object: This is a role play activity.

Note: You will need to select six children to play roles in this activity. If you have a smaller group, you might ask some older youth or even adults to play the parts of the two attackers and the man being attacked. I will give suggestions for how they can play their roles, but feel free to help your children make the story as fun and memorable as you can. I have used boys and girls in the various roles, but you can change those however you want to change them.

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Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? (Let them respond.) Great! This is a story about something that happened one day when Jesus was talking with some people. He told them that God wanted them to love God and to love and take care of each other. Some of the people didn’t understand what Jesus meant and asked him, “Who are the people God wants us to love and take care of?” Jesus looked at them and said, “You should love your neighbor and take care of them the same way that you love and take care of yourself.” One person said, “But I live in the country and don’t have anyone living near me to take care of, so who is my neighbor?” Jesus said, “Let me tell you a story.”

One day, a man was walking down the road. (Select the child to play the man and have them stand and pretend to walk down the road.) When he walked past a big rock, two people jumped out in front of him. (Select the two children to play the attackers and have them jump in front of the man.) The two men grabbed the walking man, knocked him down on the ground, and stole all of his money. (Have the attackers CAREFULLY pretend to attack the walker. Then have him lie down and have the men pretend to take money from his pockets.) Then the two men ran away and left the man lying by the road. (Have the two attackers run away and then sit down.) The man was really hurt and could not get up. He needed help, didn’t he? (Let them respond.)

A few minutes later, another man came walking down the road. (Select the next man and have him start walking toward the man on the ground.) This man was really famous. There were millions of people who watched his videos he put online of the things he did. When he saw the man lying by the road, he stopped. (Have the man stand and look at the hurt man.) Then he bent over the hurt man, pulled out his camera, and took a really nice selfie of him with the hurt man. (Have the man do that.) Then he got up, put the picture online, and then walked on down the road and left the hurt man lying there. (Have the man walk away and sit down.)

A few minutes later, a woman came walking down the road. (Select a girl and have her start walking toward the man on the ground.) She was a very rich and important woman dressed in really fancy clothes and was on her way to an important meeting at her church. (Have the girl act very important and walk with a “strut”.) When she saw the man lying on the ground, she stopped. (Have her do that.) She looked at the man and told him, “I am late for a very important meeting, but when it is over I will try to remember to tell someone that you need help. (Have her say that.) Then she walked away, leaving the man lying by the road. (Have her walk away and sit down.)

A few minutes later another man came walking down the road. (Select a boy and have him start walking toward the man on the ground.) He wasn’t famous or important, and he wasn’t rich or powerful at all. In fact, he was a poor man from another country and was just walking around trying to find someplace to rest and get something to eat. (Have the walker look tired and hungry.) When he saw the man lying by the road, he stopped. (Have him stop.) He sat down by the hurt man. (Have him do that.) He didn’t speak the same language as the hurt man, but he smiled at him, nodded his head, and helped the hurt man sit up. (Have them do that.) Then he slowly helped the hurt man stand up. (Have them do that.) The foreigner didn’t know where the doctor was, but he helped the man walk down the road until they found a place that could help the hurt man. (Have the hurt man lean on the foreigner’s shoulder as they walk a few steps.) When they got to the place, the foreign stranger asked the doctor to help and said that he would pay the hurt man’s bill, and then he went back to the road and walked away. (Have the foreigner walk away and sit down.)

Now, I want to ask you the same question that Jesus asked his friends. Which of the people who came by do you think was the hurt man’s neighbor? (Let them respond.) It was the poor man from another place, wasn’t it? (Let them respond.) He wasn’t rich or powerful, and he didn’t live next to the hurt man, did he? (Let them respond.) They didn’t know each other and couldn’t even talk to each other, could they? (Let them respond.) But what did he do that the other people did not do? (Let them respond.) He cared about the hurt man, and he helped him, didn’t he? (Let them respond.) And Jesus told the people that is what they should do, too.

I hope our story will help us remember what Jesus said that God wants us to do, too. And who remembers what God wants us to do? (Let them respond.) Jesus said that more than anything else, God wants us to take care of each other, didn’t he? (Let them respond.)

Let’s give all of our actors a round of applause for their great help! (Have the volunteers stand, and ask everyone, including the congregation, to give them a big round of applause.)

Now, let’s pray and ask God to remind us that Jesus loves every one of us and wants us to follow him and take care of each other the way God takes care of us.

Prayer
Dear God, thank you for reminding us how much you love us and for forgiving us when we forget that. And 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.