The talk of the town
Children's sermon
Object:
newspaper articles on a subject that everyone in the community or the country is talking about
Good morning, boys and girls. Have you heard about __________________? Did you see the stories in the newspaper? (let them answer) It's been on television and the radio, also. Have you heard your mom and dad talking about it? (let them answer) By the time they are tired of talking about it, someone else will bring it up. This is quite a story.
The same thing happened about Jesus. After Jesus was resurrected there was a lot of talk, especially in and around Jerusalem. Some said that Jesus was hiding while others said that the Roman soldiers must have hidden his body. Others said he was resurrected. It didn't really make any difference where people went, because there was a lot of talk about Jesus just as there is about ___________________ in our town.
That is the way it was in and around Jerusalem after Jesus was resurrected. People were talking to friends and strangers. If they stopped for coffee they talked about it, and before they went to the temple to pray, they talked about it.
Our story in our town starts on the front page and then it is on the first page of another section. Pretty soon the editor is writing about it in his column and then there are just articles here and there.
In Jerusalem they did not have newspapers so you had to depend on the talk of others. Sometimes people added to the story or subtracted from the story. Not everyone could talk to a Peter, John, Thomas, or Mary Magdalene, but we know of one disciple by the name of Cleopas who could not get it out of his mind. He was talking so fast to his friend that when another person came up to ask what Cleopas what he was talking about, he did not even look up. He just said to the new person, "Where have you been? You must be the only person in Jerusalem who does not know what happened."
Well, that new person was Jesus. Jesus listened to them talk while they walked and they found him very interesting but they still did not know who he was. It was only when they stopped to eat and Jesus blessed the meal that they realized they were talking to the Messiah, the same person they were talking about all day. As soon as they knew who he was, Jesus vanished from sight.
Cleopas and his friend raced back to Jerusalem to tell the eleven disciples what had happened to them. It was a very exciting day.
The same thing happened about Jesus. After Jesus was resurrected there was a lot of talk, especially in and around Jerusalem. Some said that Jesus was hiding while others said that the Roman soldiers must have hidden his body. Others said he was resurrected. It didn't really make any difference where people went, because there was a lot of talk about Jesus just as there is about ___________________ in our town.
That is the way it was in and around Jerusalem after Jesus was resurrected. People were talking to friends and strangers. If they stopped for coffee they talked about it, and before they went to the temple to pray, they talked about it.
Our story in our town starts on the front page and then it is on the first page of another section. Pretty soon the editor is writing about it in his column and then there are just articles here and there.
In Jerusalem they did not have newspapers so you had to depend on the talk of others. Sometimes people added to the story or subtracted from the story. Not everyone could talk to a Peter, John, Thomas, or Mary Magdalene, but we know of one disciple by the name of Cleopas who could not get it out of his mind. He was talking so fast to his friend that when another person came up to ask what Cleopas what he was talking about, he did not even look up. He just said to the new person, "Where have you been? You must be the only person in Jerusalem who does not know what happened."
Well, that new person was Jesus. Jesus listened to them talk while they walked and they found him very interesting but they still did not know who he was. It was only when they stopped to eat and Jesus blessed the meal that they realized they were talking to the Messiah, the same person they were talking about all day. As soon as they knew who he was, Jesus vanished from sight.
Cleopas and his friend raced back to Jerusalem to tell the eleven disciples what had happened to them. It was a very exciting day.
