Great Expectations
Children's sermon
Children's Sermons A To Z
Exegetical Aim: Growing up and fulfilling a calling.
Props: None.
Lesson: Good morning! (response) I am going to ask your parents to help us. Let's turn around and look out at the congregation, and we are going to ask your moms, dads, and grandparents a question. Mom, Dad, what kind of person do you want your child to be when he or she grows up? Please stand up when you answer. Allow all the parents to speak if possible. In larger churches you may want to arrange for three or four parents to state briefly their hopes and ask after the "planted" speakers if there are any others.
Thank you, Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa. You can turn around now. Your parents have great expectations for you. They want you to grow up to be ... what? What did your parents say? (honest) What else? (disciplined) What else do they want you to be? (caring)
One day I hope you will fulfill their desires. One day Jesus stood up and announced that he was going to fulfill his Father's desires. He stood up in church [the synagogue] and said, "God's Spirit is upon me. I will give good news to the poor. I will bring freedom to prisoners. I will give sight to the blind."
Application: Jesus had grown up and he knew it was now time to fulfill his Father's desires. One day you will grow up and I pray you will try with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength to fulfill your parents' desires. Will you try to do that? (response) When you grow up I want you remember this day and the promise you made right here on these steps.
Let's Pray: Oh God, help these children to remember all their lives the promises that they make while they are young. Strengthen them to do good deeds and accomplish great things for you. Amen.
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Epiphany 3
1 Corinthians 12:12--31a
A Body Strike
Exegetical Aim: To show that every member of the body is important.
Props: None needed.
Lesson: Let's play a game this morning. But for this game, I need a volunteer. (response) Pick one child who you know will follow directions. When I say, "Go," I want you to go over to the piano and then come back to this spot. Can you do that? (response) There's one other thing. While you are going, I'm going to tell you something else, and you have to do what I ask, okay?
Once upon a time there was a girl, and she decided to go see the church piano. Instruct the child to walk very slowly toward the piano. But while the child was going to see the piano ... she had to stop ... the child's feet decided that they didn't want to work anymore. The feet thought to themselves, "The arms and hands get more attention than we do, and it's just not fair." So they just quit working. Instruct the child to act as though her feet quit working, and to sit down. Now the child could not get to the piano. The rest of the body asked the feet to work, because the eyes wanted to see the keys on the piano. And the hands wanted to touch the keys, and the mouth wanted to sing a pretty song. But without the feet, the child could not go. Finally, the body begged the feet long enough and promised to pay more attention to the feet. So the child got up, went to the piano, and then came back home.
Application: Did you know that the Bible talks about the body that way? It asks what would happen if an eye decided to stop working, or if a hand didn't want to be a hand anymore. What do you think would happen? (response) That's right. The body could not function. In the same way, if we decide that we don't want to pray anymore, or we don't want to talk to others about Jesus, or that we don't want to give money anymore, what will happen to this body called the church? (response) That's right. The church would not work anymore. So it's very important that Christians always do what we are supposed to do. The whole church depends on us.
Let's Pray: Thank you, God, that you gave us something to do in the church. Thank you that we can pray, or share your love, or preach, or teach in your name. Amen.
?
Props: None.
Lesson: Good morning! (response) I am going to ask your parents to help us. Let's turn around and look out at the congregation, and we are going to ask your moms, dads, and grandparents a question. Mom, Dad, what kind of person do you want your child to be when he or she grows up? Please stand up when you answer. Allow all the parents to speak if possible. In larger churches you may want to arrange for three or four parents to state briefly their hopes and ask after the "planted" speakers if there are any others.
Thank you, Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa. You can turn around now. Your parents have great expectations for you. They want you to grow up to be ... what? What did your parents say? (honest) What else? (disciplined) What else do they want you to be? (caring)
One day I hope you will fulfill their desires. One day Jesus stood up and announced that he was going to fulfill his Father's desires. He stood up in church [the synagogue] and said, "God's Spirit is upon me. I will give good news to the poor. I will bring freedom to prisoners. I will give sight to the blind."
Application: Jesus had grown up and he knew it was now time to fulfill his Father's desires. One day you will grow up and I pray you will try with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength to fulfill your parents' desires. Will you try to do that? (response) When you grow up I want you remember this day and the promise you made right here on these steps.
Let's Pray: Oh God, help these children to remember all their lives the promises that they make while they are young. Strengthen them to do good deeds and accomplish great things for you. Amen.
?
Epiphany 3
1 Corinthians 12:12--31a
A Body Strike
Exegetical Aim: To show that every member of the body is important.
Props: None needed.
Lesson: Let's play a game this morning. But for this game, I need a volunteer. (response) Pick one child who you know will follow directions. When I say, "Go," I want you to go over to the piano and then come back to this spot. Can you do that? (response) There's one other thing. While you are going, I'm going to tell you something else, and you have to do what I ask, okay?
Once upon a time there was a girl, and she decided to go see the church piano. Instruct the child to walk very slowly toward the piano. But while the child was going to see the piano ... she had to stop ... the child's feet decided that they didn't want to work anymore. The feet thought to themselves, "The arms and hands get more attention than we do, and it's just not fair." So they just quit working. Instruct the child to act as though her feet quit working, and to sit down. Now the child could not get to the piano. The rest of the body asked the feet to work, because the eyes wanted to see the keys on the piano. And the hands wanted to touch the keys, and the mouth wanted to sing a pretty song. But without the feet, the child could not go. Finally, the body begged the feet long enough and promised to pay more attention to the feet. So the child got up, went to the piano, and then came back home.
Application: Did you know that the Bible talks about the body that way? It asks what would happen if an eye decided to stop working, or if a hand didn't want to be a hand anymore. What do you think would happen? (response) That's right. The body could not function. In the same way, if we decide that we don't want to pray anymore, or we don't want to talk to others about Jesus, or that we don't want to give money anymore, what will happen to this body called the church? (response) That's right. The church would not work anymore. So it's very important that Christians always do what we are supposed to do. The whole church depends on us.
Let's Pray: Thank you, God, that you gave us something to do in the church. Thank you that we can pray, or share your love, or preach, or teach in your name. Amen.
?
