Tie a yellow ribbon
Children's sermon
Object:
Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. (v. 10)
Object: yellow ribbon and white ribbon tied in bows
Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you have ever seen a yellow ribbon tied to a tree or a fence post? (let them answer) Do you know why we tie yellow ribbons on trees? (let them answer) We tie them on trees and fences because we are hoping that someone in danger will come home safely. We tie yellow ribbons on trees for boys and girls who are lost, or for soldiers who are thousands of miles away. Yellow ribbons tied on trees tell everyone that we are praying to God while we search for people who are missing.
Jesus taught us about people who are missing, except he was concerned about the people who are lost from God. These people grew up going to church but they don't go to church anymore. They used to worship Jesus but not anymore. They used to ask for the forgiveness of their sins but not anymore. They used to be kind and generous and filled with love but not anymore. They used to pray and share their lives with God but not anymore. They would rather spend their time making money or doing bad things. They have different kinds of friends now who also like to do bad things.
God doesn't give up on this kind of person. God is always searching for people who are trying to hide from him. Sometimes God has to wait until someone loses everything before the person asks for Jesus' help. Sometimes a person has to be very sick before they ask Jesus to heal them. Once in a while a person has to lose his family and friends before he prays that Jesus will help him. But we know that Jesus is always there.
Why does God care about one person? There are billions of people in the world. There are millions of people in churches today worshiping God. Why should God care about a person who has tried to run away and hide so he can do bad things? God cares because he loves each one of us. God wants us to be part of his world. He loves us more than our parents or grandparents. God knows each one of us by name and we are very precious to him.
When a person comes back to God, it makes all of heaven and earth happy. The Bible tells us that even the angels rejoice. It is a wonderful occasion when a person who is ugly, mean, and selfish turns to God and asks to be taken back as a follower. Those people can wear a white ribbon to show everyone that they follow God. Amen.
Object: yellow ribbon and white ribbon tied in bows
Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you have ever seen a yellow ribbon tied to a tree or a fence post? (let them answer) Do you know why we tie yellow ribbons on trees? (let them answer) We tie them on trees and fences because we are hoping that someone in danger will come home safely. We tie yellow ribbons on trees for boys and girls who are lost, or for soldiers who are thousands of miles away. Yellow ribbons tied on trees tell everyone that we are praying to God while we search for people who are missing.
Jesus taught us about people who are missing, except he was concerned about the people who are lost from God. These people grew up going to church but they don't go to church anymore. They used to worship Jesus but not anymore. They used to ask for the forgiveness of their sins but not anymore. They used to be kind and generous and filled with love but not anymore. They used to pray and share their lives with God but not anymore. They would rather spend their time making money or doing bad things. They have different kinds of friends now who also like to do bad things.
God doesn't give up on this kind of person. God is always searching for people who are trying to hide from him. Sometimes God has to wait until someone loses everything before the person asks for Jesus' help. Sometimes a person has to be very sick before they ask Jesus to heal them. Once in a while a person has to lose his family and friends before he prays that Jesus will help him. But we know that Jesus is always there.
Why does God care about one person? There are billions of people in the world. There are millions of people in churches today worshiping God. Why should God care about a person who has tried to run away and hide so he can do bad things? God cares because he loves each one of us. God wants us to be part of his world. He loves us more than our parents or grandparents. God knows each one of us by name and we are very precious to him.
When a person comes back to God, it makes all of heaven and earth happy. The Bible tells us that even the angels rejoice. It is a wonderful occasion when a person who is ugly, mean, and selfish turns to God and asks to be taken back as a follower. Those people can wear a white ribbon to show everyone that they follow God. Amen.
