Who Is Jesus?
Children's sermon
Children's Sermons A To Z
Exegetical Aim: To give an understanding of John's prologue and his understanding of Jesus' nature.
Props: Flash Cards: nine pieces of paper with the following words boldly written: WORD, GOD, LIFE, LIGHT, FLESH, GLORY, GRACE , TRUTH, ONE and ONLY. Distribute the words around the sanctuary for the children to find. You will need a good grasp of the sequence of the words and the basic development of John's thought. It is necessary to commit to memory the following synopsis of John's prologue: So Jesus is the Word who was God and in him was life. And, Jesus' life has given us light. Then the Word became flesh and lived among us. In him we see God's glory. He is full of grace and truth. And, he is the one and only. There are no others.
Lesson: Good morning. (response) I have always wondered, "Who is Jesus?" There is a book in the Bible that helps me understand who Jesus is. The book is by a man named John, and John tried to describe Jesus. This morning I want you to go out into the sanctuary and find some words; these are words that John used to describe Jesus. Assign one person or two person teams to find each word or set of words as you retell John's prologue. [Child's name], would you please go out and find the piece of paper that says WORD. John said that in the very beginning of the world, before any thing else existed, before there were stars or moons or even starfish, there was the WORD. What do you think John meant when he called Jesus the Word? (response) Hold up the paper:
• So Jesus is the Word.
Now, [Child's name], go find the word GOD. John also said that the Word was GOD. What do you think John meant when he said that Jesus was God? (response) Flip the cards in sequence:
• So Jesus is the Word who was God.
Now, [Children's names], go find the words LIFE and LIGHT. John also said that in Jesus was LIFE. What do you think John meant when he said that Life was in Jesus? (response) Maybe this will help you a little: He also said that this Life was our LIGHT. Flip the cards in sequence:
• So Jesus is the Word who was God and in him was life. And, Jesus' life has given us light.
[Child's name], go find the word FLESH. John also said that the Word became FLESH. What do you think John meant when he said that the Word became FLESH? (response) It's amazing but what that means is that God himself became a person, and we call him Jesus. Flip the cards in sequence:
• So Jesus is the Word who was God and in him was life. And, Jesus' life has given us light. Then the Word became flesh and lived among us.
[Children's names], go find the words GLORY, GRACE, and TRUTH. John also said that in Jesus we have seen God's glory - that Jesus is full of GRACE and TRUTH. What do you think John meant by that? (response) Flip the cards in sequence:
• So Jesus is the Word who was God and in him was life. And, Jesus' life has given us light. Then the Word became flesh and lived among us. In him we see God's glory. He is full of grace and truth.
[Children's names], go find the words ONE and ONLY. John said a lot of things, didn't he? Well, here is the last of them. John said that Jesus is the One and Only. What do you think John meant by that? (response) Flip the cards in sequence:
• Here is what John said about Jesus: Hold all the cards above your head and flip through them - allow the children to say each word as you come to them. Jesus is the (Word) who was (God) and in him was (life). And, Jesus' life has given us (light). Then the Word became (flesh) and lived among us. In him we see God's (glory). He is full of (grace) and (truth). And, he is the (One) and (Only). There are no others.
John used a lot of words to describe Jesus, and whenever I am trying to figure out who Jesus is, I turn to the beginning of John's book and read these words, and they help me understand.
Let's Pray: Father, you have sent your One and Only Son to us, and we have received life through him. Thank you for your grace and truth. Amen.
?
Epiphany
Ephesians 3:1--12
Fellow Heirs
Exegetical Aim: To explain the meaning of "heirs" in terms of salvation. Key verse: 6.
Props: Two sheets of paper with the word "Will" written across the top, a coffee mug, and a piece of jewelry.
Lesson: Good morning! Today I want to talk to you about something very important. Gather closely to me. Sometimes people own things that are very special to them. And if they die, they want their children to have those special things. So they decide to make what is called a "will." Hold up the "will." A will explains that certain things are to be given to others. The people that receive something from a will are called heirs. For instance, this is my coffee mug. Hold up the coffee mug. Use two of the children to include in the will. I could write in my will, "When I am no longer here, I want Joe to have my coffee mug." Write on the piece of paper: Joe gets my coffee mug. Show them the will. What does my will say? (Joe gets my coffee mug) Hold up the jewelry. Or, if I owned a piece of jewelry, I would write "Mary gets my jewelry." Write this on the will. Now what does my will say? (Mary gets my jewelry) Now, what would Joe and Mary be called? (heirs) They are heirs to my will. Look at Joe and Mary and say, I would give you my coffee mug and jewelry, but I'm not gone yet!
Application: Did you know that you are an heir to a really great fortune? The Bible says that we are fellow heirs of the promise in Jesus Christ. You are heirs! What do you think God has left us? (response) You think he has left us all coffee mugs and jewelry? (response) I don't think so. In fact he has left us his love, forgiveness, and a promise of eternal life. That's what he has left us. We will always be loved and we will live forever. What great gifts! The best thing is we don't have to wait for the gift. These things have already been given to us in Jesus Christ. On the other "will" now write the words, love, forgiveness, and eternal life. We are already loved by God, forgiven by God, and given eternal life through Jesus Christ. Show them the new will and have them read it. You are heirs of a very great fortune!
Let's Pray: Thank you, God, for making us your heirs and leaving us your love, forgiveness, and eternal life in Christ. Amen.
?
Props: Flash Cards: nine pieces of paper with the following words boldly written: WORD, GOD, LIFE, LIGHT, FLESH, GLORY, GRACE , TRUTH, ONE and ONLY. Distribute the words around the sanctuary for the children to find. You will need a good grasp of the sequence of the words and the basic development of John's thought. It is necessary to commit to memory the following synopsis of John's prologue: So Jesus is the Word who was God and in him was life. And, Jesus' life has given us light. Then the Word became flesh and lived among us. In him we see God's glory. He is full of grace and truth. And, he is the one and only. There are no others.
Lesson: Good morning. (response) I have always wondered, "Who is Jesus?" There is a book in the Bible that helps me understand who Jesus is. The book is by a man named John, and John tried to describe Jesus. This morning I want you to go out into the sanctuary and find some words; these are words that John used to describe Jesus. Assign one person or two person teams to find each word or set of words as you retell John's prologue. [Child's name], would you please go out and find the piece of paper that says WORD. John said that in the very beginning of the world, before any thing else existed, before there were stars or moons or even starfish, there was the WORD. What do you think John meant when he called Jesus the Word? (response) Hold up the paper:
• So Jesus is the Word.
Now, [Child's name], go find the word GOD. John also said that the Word was GOD. What do you think John meant when he said that Jesus was God? (response) Flip the cards in sequence:
• So Jesus is the Word who was God.
Now, [Children's names], go find the words LIFE and LIGHT. John also said that in Jesus was LIFE. What do you think John meant when he said that Life was in Jesus? (response) Maybe this will help you a little: He also said that this Life was our LIGHT. Flip the cards in sequence:
• So Jesus is the Word who was God and in him was life. And, Jesus' life has given us light.
[Child's name], go find the word FLESH. John also said that the Word became FLESH. What do you think John meant when he said that the Word became FLESH? (response) It's amazing but what that means is that God himself became a person, and we call him Jesus. Flip the cards in sequence:
• So Jesus is the Word who was God and in him was life. And, Jesus' life has given us light. Then the Word became flesh and lived among us.
[Children's names], go find the words GLORY, GRACE, and TRUTH. John also said that in Jesus we have seen God's glory - that Jesus is full of GRACE and TRUTH. What do you think John meant by that? (response) Flip the cards in sequence:
• So Jesus is the Word who was God and in him was life. And, Jesus' life has given us light. Then the Word became flesh and lived among us. In him we see God's glory. He is full of grace and truth.
[Children's names], go find the words ONE and ONLY. John said a lot of things, didn't he? Well, here is the last of them. John said that Jesus is the One and Only. What do you think John meant by that? (response) Flip the cards in sequence:
• Here is what John said about Jesus: Hold all the cards above your head and flip through them - allow the children to say each word as you come to them. Jesus is the (Word) who was (God) and in him was (life). And, Jesus' life has given us (light). Then the Word became (flesh) and lived among us. In him we see God's (glory). He is full of (grace) and (truth). And, he is the (One) and (Only). There are no others.
John used a lot of words to describe Jesus, and whenever I am trying to figure out who Jesus is, I turn to the beginning of John's book and read these words, and they help me understand.
Let's Pray: Father, you have sent your One and Only Son to us, and we have received life through him. Thank you for your grace and truth. Amen.
?
Epiphany
Ephesians 3:1--12
Fellow Heirs
Exegetical Aim: To explain the meaning of "heirs" in terms of salvation. Key verse: 6.
Props: Two sheets of paper with the word "Will" written across the top, a coffee mug, and a piece of jewelry.
Lesson: Good morning! Today I want to talk to you about something very important. Gather closely to me. Sometimes people own things that are very special to them. And if they die, they want their children to have those special things. So they decide to make what is called a "will." Hold up the "will." A will explains that certain things are to be given to others. The people that receive something from a will are called heirs. For instance, this is my coffee mug. Hold up the coffee mug. Use two of the children to include in the will. I could write in my will, "When I am no longer here, I want Joe to have my coffee mug." Write on the piece of paper: Joe gets my coffee mug. Show them the will. What does my will say? (Joe gets my coffee mug) Hold up the jewelry. Or, if I owned a piece of jewelry, I would write "Mary gets my jewelry." Write this on the will. Now what does my will say? (Mary gets my jewelry) Now, what would Joe and Mary be called? (heirs) They are heirs to my will. Look at Joe and Mary and say, I would give you my coffee mug and jewelry, but I'm not gone yet!
Application: Did you know that you are an heir to a really great fortune? The Bible says that we are fellow heirs of the promise in Jesus Christ. You are heirs! What do you think God has left us? (response) You think he has left us all coffee mugs and jewelry? (response) I don't think so. In fact he has left us his love, forgiveness, and a promise of eternal life. That's what he has left us. We will always be loved and we will live forever. What great gifts! The best thing is we don't have to wait for the gift. These things have already been given to us in Jesus Christ. On the other "will" now write the words, love, forgiveness, and eternal life. We are already loved by God, forgiven by God, and given eternal life through Jesus Christ. Show them the new will and have them read it. You are heirs of a very great fortune!
Let's Pray: Thank you, God, for making us your heirs and leaving us your love, forgiveness, and eternal life in Christ. Amen.
?
