PATTERNED AFTER JESUS
Children's sermon
The Devil Is A Mosquite Bite
Children's Sermons
Object: an office punch (hole punch) and different shapes and colors of paper.
How many times have you wished that you could be like Jesus? Wouldn't it be wonderful to be able to live like Jesus lived and do good things for people, like healing the ones who are sick, and making the sad very happy, and giving right answers to whatever questions are asked? Jesus was a wonderful person to know and all the disciples and people who knew him thought so.
[Take out the first piece of paper and the punch.] You know that, when Jesus lived here on earth, he had a special way of living and he asked all of the people who trusted him to be a lot like him. [Punch a hole for each thing that you mention that he did.] I mean, Jesus prayed and he wanted us to pray; Jesus did kind things for people and he wanted us to do kind things for people; Jesus never returned a hurt for a hurt; Jesus kept his promises and wanted us to keep our promises. Now those are just a few of the things that Jesus did, but look what happens when we are the same way. [Take another piece of paper and begin to punch holes in that sheet using the Jesus paper as a pattern.] If we use Jesus as an example and his life as a pattern, then we also will pray and do kind things for people and never try to hurt others, and we will keep our promises. Now, look at what happens when we follow Jesus. Even though we may be a different shape and have a different color, we can be a lot like him. When we follow Jesus like this, we are called Christians because we show others that our example for living is Jesus.
Let me show you one other thing about what happens when we make Jesus our example and try to live as he wants us to live. If I take some string and put it through the holes of both the Jesus paper and the other paper, we can see that they match, that they belong together. That's what we all want and what Jesus wants for us, to belong to one another. If we live like he lived and try to be as much like him as we can, we will not only make God happy and others happy, but we will be happier ourselves.
TURN OFF THE WORLD - WITH LOVE!
1 Peter 2:11-20, vs. 15: For this is God's will: he wants you to silence the ignorant talk of foolish men by the good things you do.
Object:
a teakettle.
Good morning, boys and girls. One of my favorite times of the week is Sunday when I can be together with you early in the morning. Sometimes I think of a story to tell you very early in the week and then I have to wait for days to tell you about it. The good thing about today is that I don't have to wait any longer to tell you about a friend whom I brought along with me to help me tell you something that St. Peter said a long time ago.
See who I brought with me? This is an old friend of mine, and a noisy one, too. [Hold up the teakettle.] Her name is Tillie Teakettle and she is quite a girl. Old Tillie has done a lot of work in her time and once in a while you might say she has blown her stack. By the way, Tillie asked me if I would check to see if any of her relatives lived in your houses. If you have a teakettle at your house, it might be one of her aunts or uncles or even a cousin. If you have one, will you please raise your hand? Wonderful! Tillie is pleased about that.
I told you that Tilly has blown her stack on more than one occasion and when she does, everyone knows it. It kind of bothers me, because she screams so loudly that she is finished doing her job. How many of you know what kind of whistle Tillie makes when she gets hot? [Here you can demonstrate with a shrill whistle or let the whole group do so together.] That's kind of what she sounds like and she just keeps on doing it until you turn her off.
The reason that I am telling you this story is that Peter says the world is a lot like Tillie, because of the way it treats Christians. Sometimes, Peter says, you have to turn the world off just like you turn off Tillie. When people tell you that they don't pray, or worship, or attend Sunday School, or do any of the other things that we like to do to show the Lord Jesus how much we love him, we have to turn them off. Now, we can't do that to the world like we can turn off Tillie, so Peter tells us another way. He says that, as Christians, we must turn them off with love. We don't hit back when they hit us. No, we ask how we can help them. When they eat all of their candy and don't give us any, we don't keep all our candy to ourselves. No, we share it with them. We Christians always do good for those who try to hurt us and that is the way that we turn them off or change them.
The next time that you see Tillie Teakettle, you remember what St. Peter taught us to do. Turn the world off with kindness and love and everyone will be better because of it.
GOD NEVER CHANGES
James 1:17-21, vs. 17: Every good endowment and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
Object: a strong light, a white sheet, finger shadows made from different angles.
Good morning, boys and girls. We have talked a lot about change lately, and we have spoken about how good it is for us. Sometimes we think that changing is painful, but we still have to do it because it is better for us in the long run. Every day brings change, and we often can't do anything about it. For instance, you can't stop your hair from getting longer when it grows, or your feet from changing sizes. They just change. Everything changes except one thing and I am sure that you can guess what doesn't change. [Let them guess.] That's right, God doesn't change.
Let me show you what I am talking about. Here is an ordinary flashlight which I am sure that most of you have in your homes, and a piece of very white paper. Now I am going to shine this light on my hand which is close to the paper and make a what? [Let them guess.] That's right, a shadow. If I were very clever I could make shadows that looked like dogs or cats or rabbits, but for right now I am just going to make a shadow. Now I need a volunteer. [Select someone to help you who would not ordinarily volunteer.] I want my volunteer to hold the flashlight at different places but still shine it on my hand. Do you see what happens to the shadow? It gets longer and shorter and sometimes if you are not careful where you are shining it you can't see it at all. The shadow is always changing because the light is always changing.
Now, God made the light and the paper and even the hand and, while all of these things change, the One who made them does not change at all. God doesn't change. You change, the light changes, and the shadow changes, but God doesn't change.
Is it good for God not to change? It surely is, because you know now and you always will know that God is love and that God is always forgiving, and that God will never change into anything else but the way that he is today. You and I may change so that we understand him better, but God will not change.
Now, the next time you see a shadow on the sidewalk or in your yard, you can say that it reminds you about the way that God is and always has been. You will say, "The light changes, the shadow changes, but God never changes. He loves me today, tomorrow, and forever."
LISTENING IS NOT ENOUGH
James 1:22-27, vs. 22: But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
Object:
an exercise record, or you can simply make up your own set of exercises that you can give at the proper time. To make this work best, you must divide the group in two with some just listening and the others doing the exercises.
Today was the right day for fat people to come to church. That's right, I have a lesson today for all who feel that they have an extra pound or so that they would like to lose in a hurry. Is there anyone here who thinks he is too fat and needs a little help in getting rid of it? [Take all the volunteers that you can get; the skinnier the better.] That is terrific. I am going to see that you all lose an ounce or two before you leave. Before losing weight, I am going to let this group of very fat people do some exercising that is really a lot of fun. The other group of people is going to sit and listen to every word, but they must just sit there and do nothing. Use your ears, but don't even lift a finger. Only this group of fat people get to do the exercises.
[Play the exercise record here if you have one, but first instruct them to listen carefully and do whatever they are instructed to do. If you have your own exercises then the instructions are also very important. Do it for a few minutes so that they know that they have done some exercising.] Boy, you were great and I know that you have lost at least four ounces.
Now, let's look at the other group and see what has happened to them. Well, I know that they haven't exercised and built up their muscles so they are not any stronger than they were before they came this morning. However, they did watch pretty closely and it will be interesting to see if they could lose any weight just watching. Is there anyone in this group who thinks they lost weight while they were watching the other group doing some exercises? I don't think so. You see we learn a very valuable lesson when we understand that just listening is not enough. We have to do what we are taught as well.
St. James teaches us that we must do what we hear or otherwise our Christian teaching is lost. If we just hear that we must be kind and love one another, but we don't do anything about it, then we are not Christians at all. Christians are doers like the group that not only hear the exercises, but did them. Christians are not like the group that just listened and did nothing. We must practice our Christianity by doing things that God wants us to do. You can't lose weight or build muscles just sitting around and you can't be a Christian if you don't use the things that God gives you to help others. Remember, do what you hear God tell you to do and you will be called Christian.
COUGH DROPS, LIKE LOVE?
1 Peter 4:7b-11, vs. 8: Above all hold unfailing your love for one another, since love covers a multitude of sins.
Object:
cough drops, some plain menthol and a lot of different flavored ones.
Good morning, boys and girls. I hope that you feel good this morning. I just love to come to church on Sunday morning when I feel good. Every once in a while I get here and find out that my throat is a little scratchy, or I have a little cough, and then I feel bad. Of course, when that happens I just take a cough drop and suck on it and pretty soon the bad feeling passes away. How many of you take a cough drop when your throat is a little scratchy or you have a cough? Lots of you do.
Has anyone ever told you that cough drops are a lot like love? They haven't? Well, let me show you how they work and then maybe you will understand how cough drops and love are a lot alike. [Pass out cough drops to the children, but tell them not to put them into their mouths until you tell them to.] Now, we are all going to have to pretend that we have very scratchy throats, the kind that make you cough and clear your throats a lot. Think of how awful that throat must feel. Are you getting the idea? Pretty sore, isn't it? I tell you I can hardly talk, my throat is getting so scratchy. Now I think to myself when I have such a sore throat with such a bad cough [Can you all cough a little bit? That's fine.] that I had better find something for my throat. How many of you are starting to feel the same way that I do? Don't you wish that you had something for your throat, too? You do? Well, it just so happens that I gave you a very special cough drop, and I want you to put it into your mouth right now and begin to suck on it and see if that doesn't help. That's right, see how it begins to make that old sore throat feel better. You see, the cough drop has some very soothing medicine in it that just covers over the spots that hurt in your throat. Now, when you swallow or cough a little bit, your throat won't hurt a bit.
Now, how are cough drops and love alike? Well, St. Peter tells us that love covers a multitude of sins. The cough drop covers the sore places in our throats just like love covers sins. You see, St. Peter says that God knows that we are not perfect, and that sometimes we do things that he doesn't approve of, but if we try always to love everybody and love what we are doing, and love even the things that other people find hard to love, then some of the things that we have done wrong are a little easier for God to understand. That's what St. Peter means when he says that love covers a multitude of sins.
So you see how cough drops and love are a lot alike? Now, the next time that you take a cough drop you can think to yourself, "This is a lot like love, for when I love others I make them feel good just like the cough drop makes me feel good." And you know what? You're right!
Pastor:
If you plan to use Acts 2:1-11 next week, be sure to ask children to bring a gift for next Sunday.
How many times have you wished that you could be like Jesus? Wouldn't it be wonderful to be able to live like Jesus lived and do good things for people, like healing the ones who are sick, and making the sad very happy, and giving right answers to whatever questions are asked? Jesus was a wonderful person to know and all the disciples and people who knew him thought so.
[Take out the first piece of paper and the punch.] You know that, when Jesus lived here on earth, he had a special way of living and he asked all of the people who trusted him to be a lot like him. [Punch a hole for each thing that you mention that he did.] I mean, Jesus prayed and he wanted us to pray; Jesus did kind things for people and he wanted us to do kind things for people; Jesus never returned a hurt for a hurt; Jesus kept his promises and wanted us to keep our promises. Now those are just a few of the things that Jesus did, but look what happens when we are the same way. [Take another piece of paper and begin to punch holes in that sheet using the Jesus paper as a pattern.] If we use Jesus as an example and his life as a pattern, then we also will pray and do kind things for people and never try to hurt others, and we will keep our promises. Now, look at what happens when we follow Jesus. Even though we may be a different shape and have a different color, we can be a lot like him. When we follow Jesus like this, we are called Christians because we show others that our example for living is Jesus.
Let me show you one other thing about what happens when we make Jesus our example and try to live as he wants us to live. If I take some string and put it through the holes of both the Jesus paper and the other paper, we can see that they match, that they belong together. That's what we all want and what Jesus wants for us, to belong to one another. If we live like he lived and try to be as much like him as we can, we will not only make God happy and others happy, but we will be happier ourselves.
TURN OFF THE WORLD - WITH LOVE!
1 Peter 2:11-20, vs. 15: For this is God's will: he wants you to silence the ignorant talk of foolish men by the good things you do.
Object:
a teakettle.
Good morning, boys and girls. One of my favorite times of the week is Sunday when I can be together with you early in the morning. Sometimes I think of a story to tell you very early in the week and then I have to wait for days to tell you about it. The good thing about today is that I don't have to wait any longer to tell you about a friend whom I brought along with me to help me tell you something that St. Peter said a long time ago.
See who I brought with me? This is an old friend of mine, and a noisy one, too. [Hold up the teakettle.] Her name is Tillie Teakettle and she is quite a girl. Old Tillie has done a lot of work in her time and once in a while you might say she has blown her stack. By the way, Tillie asked me if I would check to see if any of her relatives lived in your houses. If you have a teakettle at your house, it might be one of her aunts or uncles or even a cousin. If you have one, will you please raise your hand? Wonderful! Tillie is pleased about that.
I told you that Tilly has blown her stack on more than one occasion and when she does, everyone knows it. It kind of bothers me, because she screams so loudly that she is finished doing her job. How many of you know what kind of whistle Tillie makes when she gets hot? [Here you can demonstrate with a shrill whistle or let the whole group do so together.] That's kind of what she sounds like and she just keeps on doing it until you turn her off.
The reason that I am telling you this story is that Peter says the world is a lot like Tillie, because of the way it treats Christians. Sometimes, Peter says, you have to turn the world off just like you turn off Tillie. When people tell you that they don't pray, or worship, or attend Sunday School, or do any of the other things that we like to do to show the Lord Jesus how much we love him, we have to turn them off. Now, we can't do that to the world like we can turn off Tillie, so Peter tells us another way. He says that, as Christians, we must turn them off with love. We don't hit back when they hit us. No, we ask how we can help them. When they eat all of their candy and don't give us any, we don't keep all our candy to ourselves. No, we share it with them. We Christians always do good for those who try to hurt us and that is the way that we turn them off or change them.
The next time that you see Tillie Teakettle, you remember what St. Peter taught us to do. Turn the world off with kindness and love and everyone will be better because of it.
GOD NEVER CHANGES
James 1:17-21, vs. 17: Every good endowment and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
Object: a strong light, a white sheet, finger shadows made from different angles.
Good morning, boys and girls. We have talked a lot about change lately, and we have spoken about how good it is for us. Sometimes we think that changing is painful, but we still have to do it because it is better for us in the long run. Every day brings change, and we often can't do anything about it. For instance, you can't stop your hair from getting longer when it grows, or your feet from changing sizes. They just change. Everything changes except one thing and I am sure that you can guess what doesn't change. [Let them guess.] That's right, God doesn't change.
Let me show you what I am talking about. Here is an ordinary flashlight which I am sure that most of you have in your homes, and a piece of very white paper. Now I am going to shine this light on my hand which is close to the paper and make a what? [Let them guess.] That's right, a shadow. If I were very clever I could make shadows that looked like dogs or cats or rabbits, but for right now I am just going to make a shadow. Now I need a volunteer. [Select someone to help you who would not ordinarily volunteer.] I want my volunteer to hold the flashlight at different places but still shine it on my hand. Do you see what happens to the shadow? It gets longer and shorter and sometimes if you are not careful where you are shining it you can't see it at all. The shadow is always changing because the light is always changing.
Now, God made the light and the paper and even the hand and, while all of these things change, the One who made them does not change at all. God doesn't change. You change, the light changes, and the shadow changes, but God doesn't change.
Is it good for God not to change? It surely is, because you know now and you always will know that God is love and that God is always forgiving, and that God will never change into anything else but the way that he is today. You and I may change so that we understand him better, but God will not change.
Now, the next time you see a shadow on the sidewalk or in your yard, you can say that it reminds you about the way that God is and always has been. You will say, "The light changes, the shadow changes, but God never changes. He loves me today, tomorrow, and forever."
LISTENING IS NOT ENOUGH
James 1:22-27, vs. 22: But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
Object:
an exercise record, or you can simply make up your own set of exercises that you can give at the proper time. To make this work best, you must divide the group in two with some just listening and the others doing the exercises.
Today was the right day for fat people to come to church. That's right, I have a lesson today for all who feel that they have an extra pound or so that they would like to lose in a hurry. Is there anyone here who thinks he is too fat and needs a little help in getting rid of it? [Take all the volunteers that you can get; the skinnier the better.] That is terrific. I am going to see that you all lose an ounce or two before you leave. Before losing weight, I am going to let this group of very fat people do some exercising that is really a lot of fun. The other group of people is going to sit and listen to every word, but they must just sit there and do nothing. Use your ears, but don't even lift a finger. Only this group of fat people get to do the exercises.
[Play the exercise record here if you have one, but first instruct them to listen carefully and do whatever they are instructed to do. If you have your own exercises then the instructions are also very important. Do it for a few minutes so that they know that they have done some exercising.] Boy, you were great and I know that you have lost at least four ounces.
Now, let's look at the other group and see what has happened to them. Well, I know that they haven't exercised and built up their muscles so they are not any stronger than they were before they came this morning. However, they did watch pretty closely and it will be interesting to see if they could lose any weight just watching. Is there anyone in this group who thinks they lost weight while they were watching the other group doing some exercises? I don't think so. You see we learn a very valuable lesson when we understand that just listening is not enough. We have to do what we are taught as well.
St. James teaches us that we must do what we hear or otherwise our Christian teaching is lost. If we just hear that we must be kind and love one another, but we don't do anything about it, then we are not Christians at all. Christians are doers like the group that not only hear the exercises, but did them. Christians are not like the group that just listened and did nothing. We must practice our Christianity by doing things that God wants us to do. You can't lose weight or build muscles just sitting around and you can't be a Christian if you don't use the things that God gives you to help others. Remember, do what you hear God tell you to do and you will be called Christian.
COUGH DROPS, LIKE LOVE?
1 Peter 4:7b-11, vs. 8: Above all hold unfailing your love for one another, since love covers a multitude of sins.
Object:
cough drops, some plain menthol and a lot of different flavored ones.
Good morning, boys and girls. I hope that you feel good this morning. I just love to come to church on Sunday morning when I feel good. Every once in a while I get here and find out that my throat is a little scratchy, or I have a little cough, and then I feel bad. Of course, when that happens I just take a cough drop and suck on it and pretty soon the bad feeling passes away. How many of you take a cough drop when your throat is a little scratchy or you have a cough? Lots of you do.
Has anyone ever told you that cough drops are a lot like love? They haven't? Well, let me show you how they work and then maybe you will understand how cough drops and love are a lot alike. [Pass out cough drops to the children, but tell them not to put them into their mouths until you tell them to.] Now, we are all going to have to pretend that we have very scratchy throats, the kind that make you cough and clear your throats a lot. Think of how awful that throat must feel. Are you getting the idea? Pretty sore, isn't it? I tell you I can hardly talk, my throat is getting so scratchy. Now I think to myself when I have such a sore throat with such a bad cough [Can you all cough a little bit? That's fine.] that I had better find something for my throat. How many of you are starting to feel the same way that I do? Don't you wish that you had something for your throat, too? You do? Well, it just so happens that I gave you a very special cough drop, and I want you to put it into your mouth right now and begin to suck on it and see if that doesn't help. That's right, see how it begins to make that old sore throat feel better. You see, the cough drop has some very soothing medicine in it that just covers over the spots that hurt in your throat. Now, when you swallow or cough a little bit, your throat won't hurt a bit.
Now, how are cough drops and love alike? Well, St. Peter tells us that love covers a multitude of sins. The cough drop covers the sore places in our throats just like love covers sins. You see, St. Peter says that God knows that we are not perfect, and that sometimes we do things that he doesn't approve of, but if we try always to love everybody and love what we are doing, and love even the things that other people find hard to love, then some of the things that we have done wrong are a little easier for God to understand. That's what St. Peter means when he says that love covers a multitude of sins.
So you see how cough drops and love are a lot alike? Now, the next time that you take a cough drop you can think to yourself, "This is a lot like love, for when I love others I make them feel good just like the cough drop makes me feel good." And you know what? You're right!
Pastor:
If you plan to use Acts 2:1-11 next week, be sure to ask children to bring a gift for next Sunday.
