Abraham, Ancestor of Jesus
Children's sermon
Sunflowers, Sparrows, and Salt
52 Sermons and Activities for Children
Object:
Activity sheets and a picture of an ancestor
If we have faith, we are in the family of Abraham.
Scripture: Genesis 12:1-2, 3b; 15:5-6; Romans 4:13, 16
Visual Aids: A picture of an ancestor
Handouts: Activity sheets
Advance Preparations: Copy enough activity pages for each child to have one.
The Sermon:
Do you know what an ancestor is? An ancestor is a person in your family who was born a long time ago. You have grandparents. Your grandparents had parents and they are your great-grandparents. They, too, had parents who would be your great-great-grandparents, and on back through the years it goes. These are your ancestors.
*We all have ancestors. Some of them did interesting things. Now, what is a descendant? You are too young right now to have descendants, but when you grow up and have children of your own, they will be your descendants. They, too, will have children who will be your grandchildren. If your grandchildren have children, they will be your great-grandchildren. These are all your descendants.
We know that Jesus was God's Son. But, Jesus also had a human family and human ancestors. There is a list of Jesus' ancestors in both Luke and Matthew of our Bible where the story of the birth of Jesus is told. Christmas will soon be here and we are thinking of when Jesus was born. Jesus had ancestors. A great ancestor of Jesus was the man named Abraham. The Bible has stories about Abraham and tells us that Abraham had great faith. What is faith? Faith is believing God even when it is hard to do so. When Abraham was about 75 years old, God spoke to him and told him to leave home and travel to a new land where God would make a new nation of people.
Genesis 12:1-2 says, "Now the Lord said to Abram, 'Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.' "
Then the Lord told him in verse 3 something very special. He said, "... in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." Abraham had faith in God and he and his wife, Sarah, and nephew, Lot, packed up and left there. They had animals and traveled slow, living in tents along the way. Another place in the Bible tells us that God promised Abraham that he would have so many descendants that they would become a nation. Abraham and Sarah had no children and they were getting old, so how could they have descendants?
But God said to Abraham in Genesis 15:5, "Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them ... So shall your descendants be." Abraham believed God and God was pleased. God kept his promise and gave them a son, Isaac, when they were very old. God kept his promise and there were so many descendants that they became a nation. The greatest promise of all was that through Abraham's descendants, all families of the earth would be blessed. That blessing was Jesus, a descendant of Abraham. Now, thousands of years later, Abraham, the ancestor of Jesus, is remembered for his great faith, his belief in God and God's promises. The Bible says if we have faith in God, we are in the same family as Abraham (Romans 4:13, 16).
We can rejoice because of Jesus, our Savior, the descendant of Abraham, that great man of faith.
*Use visual aids
Scripture: Genesis 12:1-2, 3b; 15:5-6; Romans 4:13, 16
Visual Aids: A picture of an ancestor
Handouts: Activity sheets
Advance Preparations: Copy enough activity pages for each child to have one.
The Sermon:
Do you know what an ancestor is? An ancestor is a person in your family who was born a long time ago. You have grandparents. Your grandparents had parents and they are your great-grandparents. They, too, had parents who would be your great-great-grandparents, and on back through the years it goes. These are your ancestors.
*We all have ancestors. Some of them did interesting things. Now, what is a descendant? You are too young right now to have descendants, but when you grow up and have children of your own, they will be your descendants. They, too, will have children who will be your grandchildren. If your grandchildren have children, they will be your great-grandchildren. These are all your descendants.
We know that Jesus was God's Son. But, Jesus also had a human family and human ancestors. There is a list of Jesus' ancestors in both Luke and Matthew of our Bible where the story of the birth of Jesus is told. Christmas will soon be here and we are thinking of when Jesus was born. Jesus had ancestors. A great ancestor of Jesus was the man named Abraham. The Bible has stories about Abraham and tells us that Abraham had great faith. What is faith? Faith is believing God even when it is hard to do so. When Abraham was about 75 years old, God spoke to him and told him to leave home and travel to a new land where God would make a new nation of people.
Genesis 12:1-2 says, "Now the Lord said to Abram, 'Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.' "
Then the Lord told him in verse 3 something very special. He said, "... in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." Abraham had faith in God and he and his wife, Sarah, and nephew, Lot, packed up and left there. They had animals and traveled slow, living in tents along the way. Another place in the Bible tells us that God promised Abraham that he would have so many descendants that they would become a nation. Abraham and Sarah had no children and they were getting old, so how could they have descendants?
But God said to Abraham in Genesis 15:5, "Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them ... So shall your descendants be." Abraham believed God and God was pleased. God kept his promise and gave them a son, Isaac, when they were very old. God kept his promise and there were so many descendants that they became a nation. The greatest promise of all was that through Abraham's descendants, all families of the earth would be blessed. That blessing was Jesus, a descendant of Abraham. Now, thousands of years later, Abraham, the ancestor of Jesus, is remembered for his great faith, his belief in God and God's promises. The Bible says if we have faith in God, we are in the same family as Abraham (Romans 4:13, 16).
We can rejoice because of Jesus, our Savior, the descendant of Abraham, that great man of faith.
*Use visual aids
