EXPLORING MY MISSION

WITH JESUS

Day 1 Mission Celebration Lesson: Matthew 21:1-17--Triumphal Entry Bible Verse: Matthew 21:9a Day 2 Mission Preparation Lesson: Matthew 26:6:13, Mark 14:39, John 12:1-11 Mary Anoints Jesus Bible Verse: Matthew 22:37 Day 3 Mission Accepted Lesson: Taken from 4 Gospels--Lord’s Supper and Garden of Gethsemane Bible Verse: John 3:16 Day 4 Mission Accomplished Lesson: Matthew 28:1-10--Jesus’ Death and Resurrection Bible Verse: Matthew 28:6 Day 5 Mission Continues Lesson: John 21:1-14--Jesus asks Peter If He Loves Him Bible Verse: Mark 16:15

This material is taken from the VBS Curriculum for 2006 put out by Lifeway. Day 1 Mission Celebration (Taken from Matthew 21:1-17) (Hold up theme card found in this packet.) Our theme for the whole week is “Exploring My Mission With Jesus” What does the word explore mean? (Allow children to respond.) Dictionary definitions for the word explore include: *to look into something closely *to investigate *to examine carefully This week we will be examining carefully why Jesus came to earth to live--to learn what His mission was on earth. And we will also learn about what our mission is--about what we are suppose to do to better love and serve Jesus Christ. When Jesus came to earth to live, He was on a mission to provide a way for you and me to go to heaven someday. This week we will be talking about the last few weeks of Jesus’ life here on earth. Today we will be learning how we can celebrate and worship Jesus. Today I want you to help me teach the story by helping read some scripture cards. The cards are numbered so be ready to come up front when I call out your number. (Hand out scripture cards found in this packet. Have the child holding the card come to the front, hold up the card and let everybody read together.) Let me set the scene for the story. Jesus had been going to many different places teaching people and healing people and now He is about to enter the city of Jerusalem. This is the Sunday before the Friday that He will die on the cross. This is what we call Palm Sunday--the Sunday before Easter. Many people had come to Jerusalem because it was the time of a big festival that the Jewish people celebrated called Passover. Many of the people who came had heard about Jesus. Jesus chose this time to enter Jerusalem because there would be lots of people there. (This scripture is on two cards.)

Scripture #1 Jesus and his followers were coming closer to Jerusalem. But first they stopped at Bethphage at the hill called the Mount of Olives. From there Jesus sent two of his followers Scripture #1 continued into the town. He said to them, "Go to the town you can see there. When you enter it, you will find a donkey tied there with its colt. Untie them and bring them to me. Matthew 21:1-2 When it talks about Jesus’ followers, it means His disciples. Jesus sends a couple of His disciples to borrow two donkeys that belong to somebody else and to bring them back to Jesus. Let’s see what else Jesus said. Scripture #2 If anyone asks you why you are taking the donkeys, tell him, “The Master needs them. He will send them back soon.” Matthew 21:3 This fulfills a scripture that is in the Old Testament of the Bible. Scripture #3 Rejoice, people of Jerusalem. Shout for joy, people of Jerusalem. Your king is coming to you. He does what is right, and he saves. He is gentle and riding on a donkey. He is on the colt of a donkey. Zechariah 9:9 This scripture was recorded in God’s Word 500 years before it actually happened. Jesus fulfilled exactly what the Old Testament scripture said. This was just more proof that Jesus was who He said He was--the Messiah--the Son of God. The disciples probably felt a little strange about just going and

taking somebody else’s donkeys, but they obeyed and did exactly what Jesus told them to do. Scripture #4 The followers went and did what Jesus told them to do. They brought the donkey and the colt to Jesus. They laid their coats on the donkeys, and Jesus sat on them. Matthew 21:6-7 This is what we call Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Scripture #5 Many people spread their coats on the road before Jesus. Others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Matthew 21:8 At this point during Jesus’ final week before His death on the cross, the people were honoring Him like a King. Let’s see what they said. Scripture #6 Some of the people were walking ahead of Jesus. Others were walking behind him. All the people were shouting, "Praise to the Son of David! God bless the One who comes in the name of the Lord! Praise to God in heaven!" Matthew 21:9 Some translations of the Bible say: “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. These people were so excited about seeing Jesus. They were praising Him. They were bowing down and worshiping Him. They were celebrating Jesus. Scripture #7 Then Jesus went into Jerusalem. The city was filled with excitement. The people asked, "Who is this man?" The crowd answered, "This man is Jesus. He is the prophet from the town of Nazareth in Galilee." Matthew 21:10-11

Even those people who really didn’t know who Jesus was were caught up in the excitement. They too were saying, “Hosanna”. Let’s see what happened after Jesus entered the city of Jerusalem. His first stop was the temple. When the people came to the temple, they came to worship and they did this by offering an animal sacrifice to God. Most of the time they bought an animal after they got there. The people selling the animals were selling them at a really high price. Let’s just say they were cheating the people. They were taking advantage of people who had traveled a long way and who probably didn’t have very much money to spend. The people had to use a certain kind of temple coin to buy the animals so they had to exchange their own money for the temple coins. The money changers were also taking advantage of the people and cheating them. All of this trading and buying and selling in the temple was making it very hard for people to worship. And this is one of the few times in scripture where we see Jesus get really angry. (This scripture is on two cards.) Scripture #8 Jesus went into the Temple. He threw out all the people who were buying and selling there. He turned over the tables that belonged to the men who were exchanging different kinds of money. And he upset the benches of those who were selling doves. Jesus said to all Scripture #8 continued the people there, "It is written in the Scriptures, My Temple will be a house where people will pray. But you are changing God's house into a hideout for robbers.” Matthew 21:12-13 After getting angry and letting off some steam, Jesus went back to doing the kinds of things that He had been doing all along. Scripture #9 The blind and crippled people came to Jesus in the Temple, and Jesus healed them.

Matthew 21:14 Jesus was always busy doing good things for other people. And these things that He did showed who He was--that He was the Son of God. Scripture #10 The leading priests and the teachers of the law saw that Jesus was doing wonderful things. They saw the children praising him in the Temple. The children were saying, "Praise to the Son of David." All these things made the priests and the teachers of the law very angry. Matthew 21:15 These religious leaders were very jealous of Jesus. They thought that He was getting too popular with the people. That’s why they ended up having Him crucified. Let’s see what these religious leaders ask Jesus and how Jesus responds. Scripture #11 They asked Jesus, "Do you hear the things these children are saying?" Jesus answered, "Yes. Haven't you read in the Scriptures, 'You have taught children and babies to sing praises'?" Matthew 21:16 Even the children were praising Jesus--which is exactly what we are suppose to do. What are ways that we praise God? (Allow children to respond.) One way that we can praise God is through scripture. (Hand out choral reading sheets--Psalm 150. Have your helpers practice this coral reading and be prepared to help lead the two groups. Talk about the meaning of some of the words before beginning. Pictures of the instruments to show would be helpful.) *sanctuary--a holy place, a place of worship *surpassing--His greatness is better than anything else *lyre--a small stringed instrument of the harp family *tambourine--a musical instrument played by shaking it *cymbals--a kind of instrument that you play by crashing them

together *resounding--it keeps on sounding (Let the children read the choral reading: Psalm 150.) Music and song were an important part of Old Testament worship. The music must have been loud and joyous as evidenced by the list of instruments. The writer of this psalm is telling us to praise God. And we are to remember to praise God everyday. (Let the children read the choral reading again.) Bible Verse: Our Bible verse today comes some of the scripture that we read today. (Display Bible Verse card provided in this packet.)

All the people were shouting, "Praise to the Son of David!” Matthew 21:9a

When were these words spoken in our story today? (Allow children to respond.) Were those people praising God? (Allow children to respond.) Prayer Time: Dear God, thank you for sending your Son Jesus to earth. Help us to always be thankful and to praise You everyday.

Day 2 Mission Preparation

(Taken from Matthew 26:6-13, Mark 14:3-9, John 12:1-11) (Hold up theme card found in this packet.) Let’s read our theme for this week: Exploring My Mission With Jesus Today we will talk about being prepared. We will learn that we are suppose to give our best to Jesus. I want us to start today by looking at our Bible verse. (Hold up Bible Verse card found in this packet.)

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind. Matthew 22:37

If we love God with all of our heart and soul and mind, we have to give Him our best. Our story today is about a lady who gave her very best to Jesus. This story takes place shortly before the crucifixion of Jesus. Jesus was in a town called Bethany. He was having dinner at the home of a man named Simon. There were other men from the community there and the disciples. All of the men were sitting (scripture says reclining) around the table. The table was low and they sat on cushions on the floor. Women were not invited to the dinner, but a woman named Mary heard that Jesus was there and she wanted to see Him, to honor Him and to worship Him. She came to the house and she brought with her an alabaster jar which contained expensive perfume. Now what Mary did will seem strange to us, but for that time and that culture it was an act of showing how much she honored and wanted to worship Jesus. Mary took the perfume and poured it on Jesus’ head. She didn’t pour just a few drops. She poured all of the perfume. Since the perfume was very expensive, she was giving Jesus the very best that she had.

The men sitting around the table thought that it was very foolish and they scolded her. They were saying that she was wasting the perfume and that she should have sold the perfume and given the money to the poor. Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing for me.” Jesus had been telling His followers that He would soon be killed. Even though they had not totally understood, Jesus had been trying to prepare them for His soon to be crucifixion. Jesus told them that they would have many opportunities to serve the poor in the future, but that they were not going to have Him for very long. Jesus said, “This woman did the only thing that she could for me. She poured perfume on my body. She did this before I die to prepare me for burial.” This probably startled the disciples, but once again Jesus was preparing them for His death. He said that the woman was preparing Him for burial. Jesus continued to say, “The Good News will be told to people in all the world. And in every place it is preached, what this woman has done will be told. And people will remember her.” And it is still told. It was recorded in God’s Word and we are studying about it today. Even though what she did seems strange to us today, the point of the story is that she gave her best to Jesus. And, that’s what we are suppose to do. Let play a game discussing ways that we can give our best at school, at home and at church. (Attach the 3 headings: At School, At Home, At Church on display board. Give out the individual cards to children and have them come to the front one at a time and tape their card under the appropriate heading. Talk about each one and why it is “giving your best“.) At School: *make good grades *complete my homework each day *obey my school teacher

*be kind to kids in my class At Home: *clean up my room *obey my parents *be kind to brothers and sisters *share my toys and the TV with brothers and sisters *do my chores without having to be told every time At Church: *listen to my Sunday School teacher *be quiet and listen during the worship service *bring an offering *be faithful in my church attendance Bible Verse: In order for us to be totally prepared to give the best that we have to Jesus, we have to do what today’s Bible verse says. (Display Bible verse card provided in this packet.)

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind. Matthew 22:37

How do we love God with all of our heart? (Allow children to respond.) We have to put Him first in all that we do. We have to want to learn more about Him by exploring His Word. We have to show love and kindness to other people. Prayer Time: Dear God, we love You and we want to give our best in all that we do. Help us to put you first in our lives. Help us to want to learn more about You everyday and to always show love and kindness to other people.

Day 3 Mission Accepted

(Taken from all four Gospels) (Hold up theme card and let children read it.) Exploring My Mission With Jesus. Today we will learn that we can choose to do what God wants us to do. We will talk about choices that please God. You make choices everyday. You choose the kind of cereal that you will eat for breakfast. You choose what you will wear for the day. As I hold up these cards, I will read them and you can think of a way to finish the sentence, I want you to raise your hand. I want you to decide what would be a good choice in each situation. (Hold up one card at a time. These cards are found in this packet.) *When a friend doesn’t tell the truth, I will..... *When my grandma is sick, I will..... *When a friend wants me to do something I shouldn’t, I will.... *When I don’t feel like obeying my parents, I will.... *When I don’t feel like going to church, I will.... *When my family members fight, I will.... Jesus was on a mission to provide a way for you and me to go to heaven when we die. This was a tough mission, but because God gave Him strength, Jesus accepted that mission. He made the choice to die on the cross for us. Today we will talk about two events that took place just before Jesus died on the cross. On the night before Jesus died on the cross, He met with His disciples and they had a meal together. They reclined at the table just like in the story that we had yesterday about the woman who gave her best to Jesus. As they were having their meal, Jesus told the disciples that one of them would betray Him. That meant that one of them

had worked out a deal with the Roman soldiers and this one would make sure that the soldiers knew where Jesus was when they were ready to arrest Jesus. As the disciples continued to share their meal, Jesus took the loaf of bread and He thanked God for it. Then He broke off a piece of the bread and passed it around to each of the disciples. Each of the disciples took a piece of bread. Jesus told them to eat the piece of bread and as they did to remember Him. He said that the bread represented His body. Then He took the cup of wine and thanked God for it. Each disciple drank from the cup. Jesus told them as they drank the wine to remember Him. The wine represented His blood. Jesus was preparing the disciples for His death on the cross, but they did not understand. His body would be broken when He died for our sins and His blood would be spilled out. This was Jesus’ way of sharing His body, heart and life with His disciples. We still do this today in our churches. We call it The Lord’s Supper. Sometimes it is referred to as Communion. Later that night Jesus and His disciples went to a place called Gethsemane. Jesus told them to stay there while He went further into the garden to pray. Jesus took Peter, James and John with Him. Jesus was sad and troubled. He told the three disciples that He was full of sorrow. He said, “My heart is breaking with sadness. Stay here and watch while I pray. Jesus walked a little farther away from them. Then He fell on the ground and prayed. He prayed that, if it was possible, that God would not make Him go through what He was about to face. But then He said, “Father, I want to do Your will--not My will.” When Jesus went back to Peter, James and John, He found them asleep. He said to them. “Why are you sleeping? Could you not stay awake with me for one hour?” Jesus said, “Stay awake and pray that you will not be tempted. Your spirit wants to do what is right, but your body is weak.” Again Jesus went away and prayed the same thing. And when He went back to His disciples, He found them asleep again. They did not know what to say to Jesus. I’m sure that they were embarrassed, but their eyes were heavy and they couldn’t

stay awake. After Jesus prayed a third time, He went back to His followers. He said to them, “You are still sleeping and resting? That’s enough! The time has come for the Son of Man to be given to sinful people. Get up! We must go. Here comes the man who has turned against me.” The disciples really did not understand what lay ahead for Jesus. Jesus knew the terrible suffering that He was about to endure on the cross, but God had given Him a mission. And Jesus had made the choice to do God’s will. Isn’t it amazing when we think how much Jesus loved us that He was willing to suffer on the cross to pay for your sins and to pay for my sins. Let’s talk about why it was so important for Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. (Give out the colored circles. Make a Salvation Worm by taping the circles to the display board as you tell what each color represents. Hold up the scripture cards {provided in this packet} and let the children read with you. Each time you talk about a color, the child holding that colored circle comes forward and adds the circle to the Salvation Worm. You can elaborate and discuss each of the scriptures.) Yellow stands for Love. Let’s find out how much God loves us. (There are two yellow circles. The child holding the one with the face drawn on it comes forward and attaches to display board. Read scripture.)

For God so loved the world, that He gave His one an only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish,

but have eternal life. John 3:16

Black stands for sin. (The child holding the black circle comes forward and tapes the circle to the display board. There are two scripture cards for this one. Read both scriptures.)

We have all sinned and we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.

Romans 3:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6:23

*What is sin? (disobeying God) *What are some things that people do that displease God? *How does God feel about sin? *Does God still love us when we sin?

Red represents the blood that Jesus shed for our sins. (Child holding red circles comes forward and attaches circle to display board. Read scripture.)

God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die on the cross for us.

Romans 5:8 God loves us so much that He did not want us to be separated from Him. He made a way for your sins to be forgiven so you can one day live with Him in heaven. White stands for purity. Purity means clean--free from sin. God is willing to forgive us our sins and clean us up when we put our trust in Him. (Child holding white circle comes forward and attaches circle to display board. Read scripture.)

Now turn from your sins and turn to God, so you can be cleansed of your sins.

Acts 3:19

*Do you know a Bible word for “turn from your sins”? (repent)

*Just because Jesus died on the cross for our sins, does that mean that we automatically go to heaven? God’s gift to us is eternal life, but knowing about the gift is not enough. We must each accept this gift. Part of God’s special plan for your life is that you receive His gift of eternal life

through His Son, Jesus. You do that by believing that Jesus died for you and is alive today. You must also believe that Jesus is the only way for you to get to heaven. You have to understand that you are a sinner and turn away from your sin (repent). And, you have to invite Jesus to come into your life to be your Lord and Savior. By inviting Him, you are promising to obey Him in all areas of your life.

Green stands for growth which occurs as we pray, worship, and read the Bible. (Child holding green circle comes forward and attaches circle to display board. Read scripture.)

Grow in the special favor and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

2 Peter 3:18

*What are ways that you can grow spiritually? Yellow stands for heaven. (Child holding yellow circle comes forward and attaches circle to display board. Read scripture.)

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only son that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.

John 3:16 It’s all about where we are going to spend eternity--where we will live when we die. And the only way to get to heaven is through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus had a hard mission facing Him. Going to the cross would not be an easy task. God loved us so much that He was willing to send His only son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins and Jesus loved us so much that He was willing to complete the mission.

Bible Verse: Today we are using the verse that tells how much God loves us. (Display Bible verse card provided in this packet. Have children read the verse together.)

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only son that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.

John 3:16

I want us to read the verse again, but where it says “the world”, I want you to say your name. (Hold up the Bible verse card {provided in this packet} that has the blank on it and let children read verse substituting their own name.) If there is anyone here today who has never asked Jesus to come into your heart and asked Him to become your Lord and Savior, please talk to one of the workers before you leave today. Prayer Time: Dear God, Thank you so much for loving us enough to provide a way for us to go to heaven when we die. Help us all to understand this love and to want you to come and live in our hearts.

Day 4 Mission Accomplished

(Taken from Matthew 28:1-10) (Hold up theme card and let children read it.) Exploring My Mission With Jesus. Today we will learn about what we have to do to ask Jesus to come into our hearts. Today we will continue the story that we started yesterday. Remember Jesus had participated in the Lord’s Supper with His disciples. He had gone to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. At the end of our story Jesus was arrested. He had not committed a crime. The Jewish religious leaders were angry because they did not understand what Jesus had been doing and saying. They accused Jesus of things He did not do. The Roman governor, Pilate, ordered Jesus to be crucified. Jesus had known He must die. This was part of God’s plan for Jesus and God’s plan for all people. (Display word cards {provided in this packet} on display board as you discuss the scripture the word comes from.) (Display word card: Golgotha--Place of the Skull) Jesus was being led to the place where He was to be crucified. This place was called Golgotha which means “Place of the Skull”. Being crucified or dying on a cross was a terrible way to die. It was very painful. Jesus was nailed to that cross. (Display word card: This is Jesus, the King of the Jews) The soldiers were intending to make fun of Jesus when they hung a sign above His head, but the sign actually told the truth. The sign said: This is Jesus, the King of the Jews. The sign told the truth because Jesus was the King of the Jews. (Display the word card: two robbers)

Jesus was not the only one crucified that day. There were two other men hanging on crosses, one on each side of Jesus. These men were guilty of a crime. They were both robbers. Tell me what the word robber means. (Allow children to respond.) One of the robbers made fun of Jesus, but the other one realized that Jesus truly was the Son of God. He asked Jesus to forgive him of his sins and Jesus promised him that he would go to heaven. Jesus hung on the cross all day and finally He died. (Display word card: Joseph of Arimathea) There was a man who knew about Jesus’ death and he wanted to get Jesus’ body down from the cross and bury his body. He was known as Joseph of Arimathea. He was a follower of Jesus and He was from the town call Arimathea. Joseph got permission from Pilate to get Jesus’ body. He took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and put the body in a tomb which was like a cave in the side of a mountain. He rolled a very large stone to block the entrance to the tomb. Then Joseph went away. All of this took place on Friday. (Display word card: Mary Magdalene and Mary) Now it’s Sunday. There were two ladies named Mary Magdalene and Mary who had come to the tomb to see Jesus’ body. At that time there was a strong earthquake. An angel of the Lord came down from heaven. The angel went to the tomb and rolled the stone away from the entrance. Then he sat on the stone. He was shining as bright as lightning. His clothes were white as snow. The soldiers guarding the tomb were very frightened of the angel. They shook with fear and then became like dead men. The ladies were also afraid. The angel said to the women, "Don't be afraid. I know that you are looking for Jesus, the one who was killed on the cross. But he is not here. He has risen from death as he said he would. Come and see the place where his body was.

The angel told the ladies to go quickly and tell Jesus’ followers that Jesus had risen from the dead. The women left the tomb quickly. They were afraid, but they were also very happy. They ran to tell Jesus' followers what had happened. (Display word card: Jesus) Then something very exciting happened. Someone else appeared to the ladies. Suddenly, Jesus met them and said, "Greetings." The women came up to Jesus, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Don't be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go on to Galilee. They will see me there." We’ve seen in our lessons this week how Jesus has been on a mission. And this mission was accomplished when He died on the cross. You see God loves us so much and He wants us to go to heaven when we die. But because we have so much sin in our lives, it doesn’t just automatically happen. Because God loved us so much, He allowed His Son Jesus to leave heaven for awhile, to come to earth to live and do take all of our sins on His shoulders when He died on the cross. Jesus did that for you and me so that we can go to heaven when we die. One way to understand more about this is to talk about the ABC’s of becoming a Christian (There are definition cards for the ABC words and more than one scriptures for each one. The scripture cards are color coded. As you hold up a definition card, tell all the children with a certain colored card to come to the front and then let everybody read the scriptures together. All cards are provided in this packet.) Admit: Admit to God that you are a sinner. Repent, turning away from your sin. We have to admit that we are sinners. Sin is disobeying God. A person sins when he chooses his way instead of God’s way. We have to understand that we are sinners. We have to be sorry for our sin, and we have to want to change. The word “repent” means that we change. We turn away from our sin.

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Romans 3:23

Repent and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out. Acts 3:19

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our

sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

Believe: Believe that Jesus is God’s son and that God sent Jesus to pay the penalty for sin We have to believe that Jesus is God’s Son and that God sent Jesus to pay the penalty for our sin. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still

sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth and the life. No one comes to

the Father except through me.” John 14:6

Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under

heaven given to men by which we must be saved. Acts 4:12

For by grace you have been saved, through faith. This is not from

yourselves. It is the gift of God and not by your works. Ephesians 2:8-9

Confess: Confess your faith in Jesus as you Savior and Lord. When a person admits and believes, then he is ready to confess. Confess means to tell others that you have asked Jesus to be your Savior and Lord.

Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Romans 10:13

If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your

heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9-10

Jesus’ mission on earth made it possible for all people to have forgiveness for their sins and be saved. Jesus accomplished His mission. Bible Verse The best part about Jesus dying is that He did not stay dead. That was part of the mission that He was suppose to complete. God sent Jesus to die on the cross, but in order to complete the mission and be able to save us from our sins, Jesus had to rise from the dead.

Jesus is not here. He has risen from the dead as He said He would. Matthew 28:6

Yesterday and today we have talked about what you have to do to ask Jesus to come into your heart. That is the most important decision that you will ever make. Prayer Time: For our prayer time today, I want you to answer some questions in your heart--not out loud. So everybody bow your heads and close your eyes and think about what I am saying in our prayer time. Do you believe in your heart that you are a sinner? Do you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins? Do you believe that Jesus rose from the dead on the third day? If you have never asked Jesus to come and live in your heart, are you ready to do that today? Dear God, I want to pray for each of these boys and girls and I ask you Lord to help them understand how much You love them and why you were willing to send Your Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for their sins. If you answered “yes” to the questions that I asked during the

prayer time, I want to encourage you to tell one of the leaders and let us talk to you some more about what it means to ask Jesus to come into your heart to live. Day 5 Mission Continues

(Taken from John 21:1-14) Can you say our theme for the week without looking at the card? Exploring My Mission With Jesus. Today we will learn that we have a mission. Our mission is to tell others about Jesus. When we truly know who Jesus is and come to trust Him as our personal Savior, He expects us to tell other people about Him. When we lead other people to Jesus, we try to help them discover Jesus’ love and forgiveness. Today we will talk about why it’s important to share Jesus with other people. Our telling other people about Jesus will help them know, love and follow the Lord. Several times in scripture, Jesus is referred to as the Good Shepherd. And we are referred to as His sheep. Sheep will just wander off and get into danger if the shepherd is not watching out for them. The shepherd cares about his sheep and wants to protect them. Jesus wants us to know that He cares for us, leads us, and feeds us with God’s truths. How do you think that we can get fed with God’s truths? (Allow children to respond.) He wants us to know that we are His sheep and that we should follow and love Him. Our story takes place after Jesus died on the cross and rose from the grave. Peter and some of the other disciples were out in their boats fishing. Early that morning Jesus was standing on the shore. He had started a fire so that He and the disciples could cook some fish for their meal. When they had finished eating, Jesus began to talk to Peter. Jesus said, “Peter, do you truly love me more than anything or anybody else?” Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my lambs.”

Again Jesus said, “Peter, do you love me?” Peter answered, “Yes Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” A third time Jesus said, “Peter, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time. Peter said, ”Lord you know everything. You know that I love you!” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.” When Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep”, he was talking about people. Jesus was telling Peter that He wanted him to lead the people--to tell the people about Jesus--to care for them--to help them understand what it means to trust Christ and to ask Jesus to come into their hearts. Even though Peter still goes fishing for fish to have food to eat, his primary job now is to be a “fisher of men”. He’s suppose to tell other people about Jesus and help them to understand how much Jesus loves them. That’s what Jesus wants from us. Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved Him. Just saying that we love Jesus is not enough. We have to show that we love Him by serving Him. Peter went on to be one of the greatest preachers of his time. He taught many, many people about Jesus and helped them to understand what it means to ask Jesus to come into their hearts. Do you think that you have to be a preacher to tell other people about Jesus? (Allow children to respond.) Jesus wants all of us to tell other people about Him. (Discuss the following situations.) *When somebody is sad because something bad has happened in their lives, what could you do? (You can comfort them by telling them how much Jesus loves them.) *How can you help somebody who is afraid? (You can tell them that Jesus is always there to protect them.) *When somebody wants to learn more about Jesus, What should you do? (You can invite them to go to Bible Club with you.) *When somebody is worried about a sick relative, what could you do? (You could pray with that person.)

*How can you show the love of Jesus to another person? (You can be kind to that person and help that person.) *If somebody asked you how you know that Jesus loves you, what could you say? (You can tell that person what Jesus has done in our life.) When we ask Jesus to come into our hearts and to be our Lord and Savior, then we are suppose to lead others to Jesus. We are suppose to show them and tell them how much Jesus loves them. Let’s look at some scriptures that tell what our mission is. (Give out the sentence cards and scripture cards. Make sure that the children with the sentence cards can read the words. The scripture cards are numbered. Call on the child with the appropriate numbered card to come to the front. Let the group read the scripture together and then the child who has the sentence card that goes with the scripture comes to the front and stands by the child holding the scripture card. Scripture #1

Come, let's bow down and worship him. Psalm 95:6

Worship the Lord.

Scripture #2

Be an example to show the believers how they should live. 1 Timothy 4:12a

Be an example to others.

Scripture #3

Do not worry about anything. But pray and ask God for everything you need.

Philippians 4:6

Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything.

Scripture #4

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind. Matthew 22:37

Love the Lord with everything you have.

Scripture #5

Give thanks whatever happens. That is what God wants for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

Give thanks for everything.

You are the ones who will continue the mission of Jesus. For 2000 years, people have accepted this same challenge--to tell others about Jesus. Now that challenge will pass on to you and your generation. With you, the mission continues.

Bible Verse: Jesus gave us a command about telling others about Him. That’s our Bible verse for today.

Go everywhere in the world. Tell the Good News to everyone. Mark 16:15

Prayer Time: I want you to think about a person you know who doesn’t have a relationship with Jesus. This is a person who has never asked Jesus to come and live in his/her heart. It might be a parent, a grandparent, a brother or sister, a friend. When I say our prayer, I will pause and during that time I want you to pray silently for the person that you just thought about. Dear God, I want to complete Your mission. I know that I am

suppose to tell other people about You. Help me to have the courage to tell____________________ about you. Help me to know what to say. Thank You for giving me this important mission!

PSALM  150  

     

All: Praise the Lord! Boys: Praise God in His sanctuary. Praise Him in His mighty heavens. Girls: Praise Him for His acts of power. Praise Him for His surpassing greatness. Boys: Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet. Praise Him with the harp and lyre. Girls: Praise Him with tambourine and dancing. Praise Him with the strings and flute. Boys: Praise Him with the clash of cymbals. Girls: Praise Him with resounding cymbals. All: Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the Lord!

Things Needed For Lessons

Day 1 Theme Card Scripture Cards 1-11 Pictures of instruments mentioned in choral reading Copies of choral reading--Psalm 150--one per child Bible Verse Card Day 2 Theme Card Bible Verse Card Some type of display board--can be a dry erase board on an easel Tape Labels--At School, At Home, At Church---(need to be cut) Cards to go with game--(need to be cut) Day 3 Theme Card “Choice” situation cards--(need to be cut) Display board Tape Colored circles for Salvation Worm Scripture Cards Bible Verse Cards (2) Day 4 Theme Card Display Board Word cards that go with the scriptures--(need to be cut) ABC Definition Cards Scripture Cards Bible Verse Card Day 5

Scripture Cards 1-5 Sentence Cards--(need to be cut) Bible Verse Card

Resources

Bible Crafts and More Standard Publishing Company Bible Story Coloring Book_-(New Testament) Wesley Press Big Book of Cool Crafts for Kids Gospel Light Christian Crafts from Cardboard Tubes Shining Star Publications Exciting Bible Stories and Activities McGraw Hill Children’s Publishing God’s Special Plan for Children North American Mission Board International Children’s Bible (Computer Program--Quick Verse) Life Application Bible(NIV) Tyndale House Publishers New Testament Bible Story Crafts McGraw-Hill Children’s Publishing Sunday School Materials Lifeway Through the Bible Puzzles Standard Publishing Company VBS Curriculum---2006 Lifeway

Day 1 Craft Sing Hosanna Supplies needed: 1 paper towel tube per child Green crepe paper streamers (cut in different lengths)--at least 6 per child 1 Sing Hosanna strip per child Markers Tape Glue sticks Stapler/staples Pencils Materials to prepare: Copy the Sing Hosanna words on copy paper Cut strips of words Cut crepe paper streamers different lengths--the longest ones twice the length of the paper towel tube Directions: Children write their name inside the tube. Children decorate the tube with markers. Children glue the word strip on tube. Children gather the ends of their crepe paper strips together and staple them together. Children tape the stapled ends of the streamers into one end of the tube. Play music and let the children march around and swing their tubes in the air.

From: Christian Crafts from Cardboard Tubes Shining Star Publications Day 2 Craft Love God Bookmarks Supplies needed: 1 pre-cut bookmark per child 1 precut heart per child Decorative items such as beads, sequins, stickers Markers Glue sticks Pencils Materials to prepare: Copy the bookmark/heart on white or ivory cardstock Cut out bookmarks Cut out hearts Directions: Children write their names on the back of the bookmark. Children glue heart on bookmark. Children decorate bookmarks with markers or decorative items. Another suggestion would be to let the children use glitter on the bookmarks. If you do this, you will need to provide glue in a squeeze bottle such as Elmer’s glue. Also you would need to provide a paper plate or tin foil pan for each child to lay bookmark in while sprinkling the glitter. You could put the glitter in salt shakers.

From: Big Book of Cool Crafts for Kids Gospel Light Day 3 Craft Salvation Worm Supplies needed: Small pom poms (found in craft stores) Each child needs two yellow, 1 black, 1 red, 1 white and 1 green. Tongue depressors--1 per child Wiggly eyes (found in craft stores)--2 per child Ziplock bags Sharpies Craft glue Popsicle sticks for applying glue Small containers to pour glue in Materials to prepare: Count out the appropriate color and number of pom poms needed for each child and put in ziplock bags. You will need to use the scripture cards that were used in the lesson. Copy the sheet with the scriptures (front and back) and cut in half on cardstock. This is for the children to take home. Directions: Give each child a tongue depressor. Children write their name on one side of depressor with sharpie. Give each child a bag of pom poms. Explain to the children that this is a follow the directions craft. Read the appropriate scripture and have the children glue the appropriate colored pom pom on the tongue depressor. The order is yellow, black, red, white, green, and yellow. The children will glue the eyes on the first yellow pom pom. Let the children practice saying what each color stands for.

Day 4 Craft ABC Witnessing Card Supplies needed 1 card with words printed on it per child 1 set of pictures per child Envelopes Crayons Glue sticks Pencils Materials to prepare: Print cards on white or ivory cardstock (front and back) Print picture sheet on copy paper Cut out pictures Put 1 set of pictures in an envelope for each child Directions: Children color the pictures. They glue the pictures on the appropriate page. Children practice the ABC’s of becoming a Christian with each other.

From: New Testament Bible Story Crafts McGraw-Hill Children’s Publishing Day 5 Craft Praise Megaphone Supplies Needed: 1 pre-cut megaphone per child 1 Tell The Good News strip per child Markers Decorative items such as beads, sequins, stickers, etc. Tape Craft glue Staplers/staples pencils Materials to prepare: Trace and cut out 1 megaphone per child out of poster board or heavy card stock--white or ivory Copy Tell The Good News strips on copy paper Cut out the strips Directions: Children decorate megaphones with markers and other decorative items. Children roll the edges together to form a megaphone. Children staple, tape or glue edges in place--experiment and see which works best. Children write their names just inside megaphone. Let the children sing a praise song using their megaphones. Talk about some phrases that explain the Good News such as Jesus is alive!, Jesus is Lord!, Jesus saves!, and God is good! and let the children shout these phrases through their megaphones.

From: Bible Crafts and More Standard Publishing Company