Copycat
Children's sermon
Object:
a photo of a monkey or a stuffed monkey
Therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. (v. 3)
Good morning, boys and girls! How are you this morning? (allow answers) Today we are going to talk about copycats. How many of you have ever copied someone -- maybe a brother or sister or cousin -- to make them mad? (allow answers) It can be annoying if somebody copies every word you say! When we copy someone, it's sometimes called "aping" them. Do you know what an ape is? (allow answers) An ape is kind of like a monkey. Gorillas, chimpanzees, and orangutans are considered apes.
When we "ape" someone, it could mean that we are teasing them by repeating every word they say. But it could mean that we try to copy their behavior -- maybe the way that they speak, the way that they dress, or the way that they act. If we are aping someone who we respect or who we think is a good person, it can be a good thing if we try to ape their behavior. When we are learning, it is good for us to learn by watching others and copying their good behaviors.
It can also be bad -- especially if we start to copy other peoples' bad behavior. When we are looking for people to copy, we have to be careful to make sure we are only copying the good things they do. We should watch their actions but we should also use our own common sense. Are they doing something we should copy? (allow answers) Sometimes people can make very good decisions about some things and very bad decisions about other things. We have to sort out what they do that we want in our lives as well as what they do that we don't want in our lives.
This is not a new problem. In fact, Jesus talks about this problem. He says that there are teachers who will give good lessons but who do not live the way they teach.
Should we listen to teachers like that -- teachers who teach good things but live as bad examples? (allow answers) That's a tricky question to answer. If they teach us good things -- if their lessons can help us live better or healthier -- we should listen to their lessons and take all the information we can from the good things they teach. But we must remember not to learn from their actions -- not to ape them.
It's hard to separate what people say from what they do. If you become a teacher -- or even if you are just a big brother or sister, or someday a parent -- remember that there is more to teaching others than saying the right things. You also have to live in the way that you teach others to live. It might be hard but it is worth it in the end. Amen.
Good morning, boys and girls! How are you this morning? (allow answers) Today we are going to talk about copycats. How many of you have ever copied someone -- maybe a brother or sister or cousin -- to make them mad? (allow answers) It can be annoying if somebody copies every word you say! When we copy someone, it's sometimes called "aping" them. Do you know what an ape is? (allow answers) An ape is kind of like a monkey. Gorillas, chimpanzees, and orangutans are considered apes.
When we "ape" someone, it could mean that we are teasing them by repeating every word they say. But it could mean that we try to copy their behavior -- maybe the way that they speak, the way that they dress, or the way that they act. If we are aping someone who we respect or who we think is a good person, it can be a good thing if we try to ape their behavior. When we are learning, it is good for us to learn by watching others and copying their good behaviors.
It can also be bad -- especially if we start to copy other peoples' bad behavior. When we are looking for people to copy, we have to be careful to make sure we are only copying the good things they do. We should watch their actions but we should also use our own common sense. Are they doing something we should copy? (allow answers) Sometimes people can make very good decisions about some things and very bad decisions about other things. We have to sort out what they do that we want in our lives as well as what they do that we don't want in our lives.
This is not a new problem. In fact, Jesus talks about this problem. He says that there are teachers who will give good lessons but who do not live the way they teach.
Should we listen to teachers like that -- teachers who teach good things but live as bad examples? (allow answers) That's a tricky question to answer. If they teach us good things -- if their lessons can help us live better or healthier -- we should listen to their lessons and take all the information we can from the good things they teach. But we must remember not to learn from their actions -- not to ape them.
It's hard to separate what people say from what they do. If you become a teacher -- or even if you are just a big brother or sister, or someday a parent -- remember that there is more to teaching others than saying the right things. You also have to live in the way that you teach others to live. It might be hard but it is worth it in the end. Amen.
