The right priority
Children's sermon
Object:
A bottle of expensive perfume
Good morning! Today, I brought with me a bottle of perfume.
Would you like to see what it smells like? (Put some on one or two
of the children.) That really smells nice, doesn't it? But perfume
like this is very expensive and we want to be careful of how we
use it. What are some ways you wouldn't want to use this expensive
perfume? (Let them answer.)
Once when Jesus was visiting some friends (it was just before
he died), one of his friends named Mary took some very expensive
perfume and put it on his feet. Then she wiped his feet with her
hair. One of Jesus' disciples, a man named Judas, complained about
it. He thought it was a waste of money. He said the perfume should
have been sold and the money given to the poor. Do you think he
was right? Did Mary do a bad thing when she put it on his feet?
(Let them answer.)
What Mary did was a very good thing! She was showing honor to
God by what she did. She didn't know that Jesus was going to die
in the next few days, but she wanted to sacrifice this expensive
perfume to honor him. She was showing her love for him by what she
did. She was showing that Jesus was more important than the cost
of the perfume.
Jesus told them that what she did was right. He said that the
poor would always be around, but he was not going to be with them
very much longer.
Mary was right to put Jesus first. Do you always put Jesus
first in your life? Is he more important to you than any expensive
thing that you might own? (Let them answer.)
Dear Jesus: Please help us to remember that you are more important
than all the things we might own. Amen.
Would you like to see what it smells like? (Put some on one or two
of the children.) That really smells nice, doesn't it? But perfume
like this is very expensive and we want to be careful of how we
use it. What are some ways you wouldn't want to use this expensive
perfume? (Let them answer.)
Once when Jesus was visiting some friends (it was just before
he died), one of his friends named Mary took some very expensive
perfume and put it on his feet. Then she wiped his feet with her
hair. One of Jesus' disciples, a man named Judas, complained about
it. He thought it was a waste of money. He said the perfume should
have been sold and the money given to the poor. Do you think he
was right? Did Mary do a bad thing when she put it on his feet?
(Let them answer.)
What Mary did was a very good thing! She was showing honor to
God by what she did. She didn't know that Jesus was going to die
in the next few days, but she wanted to sacrifice this expensive
perfume to honor him. She was showing her love for him by what she
did. She was showing that Jesus was more important than the cost
of the perfume.
Jesus told them that what she did was right. He said that the
poor would always be around, but he was not going to be with them
very much longer.
Mary was right to put Jesus first. Do you always put Jesus
first in your life? Is he more important to you than any expensive
thing that you might own? (Let them answer.)
Dear Jesus: Please help us to remember that you are more important
than all the things we might own. Amen.
