Jesus cares for people.

Transcription

1 Friends Bring a Paralyzed Man to Jesus Lesson 6 Bible Point Jesus cares for people. Bible Verse With God everything is possible (Matthew 19:26b). Growing Closer to Jesus Children will n hear how Jesus healed a paralyzed man, n practice helping others and being helped, n hear how Whiskers helped a boy in a wheelchair, and n name caring actions they ll do for others this week. Teacher Enrichment Bible Basis n Friends bring a paralyzed man to Jesus. Luke 5:17-26 Prior to the healing in today s passage, Jesus had become known for healing people of all sorts of diseases (see Luke 4:38-40; 5:12-16). This healing seems unusual, however, because the faith of the men carrying the paralyzed man seems to be more involved than the man s own faith. They were so determined to present their friend to Jesus that they took apart the tiles on the roof to lower him through! When Jesus pronounced the man s healing because of their faith, he likely was not referring just to the men who had done the lowering but to the faith of all of the men, including the one who was healed. The faith of the men bringing the paralytic gave him the opportunity for Jesus to see his faith, and thus he was healed. Notice that Jesus didn t just heal the man of his paralysis. More importantly, he forgave him of his sins. Jesus love for the man didn t just relate to the man s physical needs. Jesus was even more concerned with his spiritual condition and the forgiveness of sins that only God could offer. How amazing it is that God cares that much for simple, sinful human beings! Prayer Read 1 Peter 5:6-7. What does God s caring for you mean to you? How can you show God s love to your preschoolers? Pray: Dear God, help me to show your love for my class by 83

2 Lesson 6 Before the Lesson n Collect the necessary items for the activities you plan to use, referring to the Classroom Supplies and Learning Lab Supplies listed on the chart. n Make photocopies of the Today I Learned handout (at the end of this lesson) to send home with your children. n Pray for the children in your class and for God s direction as you teach the lesson. This Lesson at a Glance Welcome Time Let s Get Started Direct children to one or more of the optional activities until everyone arrives. What Children Will Do Classroom Supplies Learning Lab Supplies Welcome! Receive name tags, and be greeted by the teacher. Option 1: Stretcher Rides Pull each other across the room on a stretcher. Option 2: Mud and Straw Build their own roofs with mud and straw. Option 3: Lifting the Roof Lift the roof off a shoe box. Caring Hearts Name Tags (p. 95), scissors, marker, safety pins or tape Blanket, elastic bandages Chocolate pudding, chow mein noodles, plastic tablecloth, wax paper, spoons, baby wipes Shoe box with lid, dowels, hole punch, people or animal figures Bible Story Time Pick-Up time Sing a song as they pick up toys and gather for Bible Story Time. Setting the Stage Practice ways they can care for people, and sing a song about caring. Bible Song and Prayer Time Sing a song, bring out the Bible, and pray together. Hear and Tell the Bible Story Hear from Luke 5:17-26 how Jesus healed a man who couldn't walk. Do the Bible Story Lower a toy through a pretend roof. CD player Gift-wrapped box and lid, scissors, Caring Actions handouts (pp ), stopand-go sign from Lesson 1, CD player Bible, CD player Bible Bible, poster board, tape, small action figure, chairs, CD player Closing Whiskers Cares Hear how Whiskers helped a boy in a wheelchair. Bugle Buddies Eat Bugle snacks, and name caring actions they'll do this week. Bag of Bugle snacks, napkins, baby wipes 84 *See the end of this lesson for extra-time ideas and supplies.

3 Welcome Time Friends Bring a Paralyzed Man to Jesus SUPPLIES: Caring Hearts Name Tags (p. 95), scissors, marker, safety pins or tape Bend down and make eye contact with children as they arrive. Greet each child individually with an enthusiastic smile. Thank each child for coming to class today. As children arrive, ask them how they put last week s lesson into practice. Use questions such as What did you tell your friends about the wise men? or How did you show Jesus love this week? Say: Today we re going to learn that Jesus cares for people. Give each child a photocopy of a caring heart name tag. Write children s names on their name tags, and pin or tape the name tags to their clothing. Direct children to the Let s Get Started activities you ve set up. You may want to laminate the name tags with clear adhesive plastic so they ll last through the module. Let s Get Started Set up one or more of the following activities for children to do as they arrive. After you greet each child, invite him or her to choose an activity. Circulate between the activities to offer help as needed and direct children s conversation toward the point of today s lesson. Ask questions such as How would you get around your house if you couldn t use your legs? or Tell me about a time you were hurt and somebody carried you. n Option 1: Stretcher Rides SUPPLIES: blanket, elastic bandages Set out a blanket and several elastic bandages. If you don t have elastic bandages, children can use rolls of gauze or bathroom tissue to bandage each other. Let the children take turns putting on the bandages. Have children who aren t wearing bandages gently pull the bandaged children across the room on the blanket. Tell children that today s Bible story is about men who carried a hurt friend on a stretcher like the way they re pulling each other on the blanket. If a child in your class is unable to use his or her legs, be sure you re sensitive to this child s feelings and situation throughout this lesson. It s important to say the Bible Point just as it s written in each activity. Repeating the Bible Point again and again will help children remember it and apply it to their lives. n Option 2: Mud and Straw SUPPLIES: chocolate pudding, chow mein noodles or frosted shredded wheat cereal, plastic tablecloth, wax paper, spoons, baby wipes Cover your work area with a plastic tablecloth. Then set out a square of wax paper for each child. Help children clean their hands with baby wipes or at a nearby sink. Give each child a handful of chow mein noodles or frosted shredded wheat cereal and several spoonfuls of chocolate pudding. Explain to children that in Bible times, roofs were made out of mud and straw. Give children spoons, and show them how to layer their chocolate pudding and chow mein noodles or cereal to make roofs. As they work, tell them that today s Bible story is about some men who dug through a roof so they could see Jesus. When children have layered all their pudding and noodles, have them eat holes in their roofs. Help children clean their hands with baby wipes when they re done with this activity. 85

4 Lesson 6 n Option 3: Lifting the Roof SUPPLIES: shoe box with lid, dowels, hole punch, people or animal figures Before class, punch holes in a shoe box and lid as shown in the margin. Insert small dowels through the holes so the lid can t be removed. Let the children take turns pulling the dowels out, taking the lid off, and putting people or animal figures inside. Tell them that today s Bible story is about men who took part of the roof off a house so they could see Jesus. When everyone has arrived and you re ready to move on to Bible Story Time, encourage the children to finish what they re doing and get ready to clean up. n Pick-Up Time SUPPLIES: CD player Lead children in singing Come Along With Me (track 2) with track 2 the CD to the tune of Come and Go With Me. Encourage children to sing along as they help clean up the room. Come along with me and pick up all our things, Pick up all our things, Pick up all our things. Come along with me and pick up all our things So our room will be clean. (Repeat 2x.) If the ink pad is dry, moisten it with three to five drops of water. Bible Story Time n Setting the Stage SUPPLIES: gift-wrapped box with lid, scissors, Caring Actions handouts (pp ), stop-and-go sign (from Lesson 1), CD player Before class, gift-wrap a small box and lid. This will be your track 11 Caring Box. Cut a hole in the lid large enough for a child s hand to fit through. Photocopy and cut apart the Caring Actions 1 and Caring Actions 2 handouts. Put the pictures from the handouts in the box. Tell children you ll hold up the stop-and-go sign to get their attention. Explain that when you show the red side, the children are to stop what they re doing and listen for your directions. When you show the green side, you ll stop talking and listen to them. Encourage children to respond quickly so you ll have time for all the fun activities you ve planned. Ask: What did you make or do when you came to our class today? (Played with pudding; got a blanket ride; took the roof off a box.) 86

5 Say: Some of you pulled each other across the room on blanket stretchers, some of you made Bible-times roofs with pudding, and some of you took the roof off a shoe box. You were all learning important things about our Bible story. Today we re going to learn that Jesus cares for people. We ll hear how Jesus took care of a man who couldn t walk. We ll also find out how the man s friends showed that they cared. Let s talk about some ways we can care for people. Hold up the box you ve prepared. Say: This is the Caring Box. Inside the Caring Box, there are pictures of ways we can care for people. Each week, we ll pick out two or three pictures and practice doing those things with a partner. Form pairs, and say: I need one set of partners to come up and choose our first picture. Choose two children. Have one child pull a picture out of the Caring Box. Have the other child hold up the picture for the rest of the class to see. Say: Show me how you would [caring action shown in picture]. Have all the children demonstrate how they d practice the caring action in the picture; then hold up the red sign to regain their attention. Collect the picture, and then say: Let s show that we ve practiced the actions in this picture by stamping it with our Jesus cares stamp. Choose a new pair of children to stamp the picture. Have them come up, stamp it, and then return to their place. Then choose another pair, and have them select a new picture from the Caring Box. Have all the children practice the action in the second picture; then hold up the red sign to regain their attention. Collect the picture, and choose another pair to come up and stamp it. Then return all the pictures to the Caring Box. Say: Good job practicing caring actions. Jesus cares for people, and he wants us to care for people, too. Let s learn a song to help us remember to do that. Lead children in singing God Cares (1 Peter 5:7) (track 11) with the CD to the tune of Looby Loo. Friends Bring a Paralyzed Man to Jesus Give all your cares to God. Give God your worries, too. Give all your cares to God. God cares what happens to you. (Repeat 2x.) After you sing the song, say: Now let s bring out our Bible and find out how Jesus cared for a man who couldn t walk. 87

6 Lesson 6 Include more children each week by asking others to be the Bible Replacer (to put the Bible away) and the Cheerleader. Just be sure to keep track of who fills your roles each week so each child gets a chance to feel special. n Bible Song and Prayer Time SUPPLIES: Bible, CD player Say: Now it s time to choose a Bible person to bring tracks 3 & 4 me the Bible marked with today s Bible story. As we sing our Bible song, we ll pass around our special Bible. The person who s holding the Bible when the music stops will be our Bible person today. Remember that everyone will get a chance to hold the Bible one week. Lead children in singing I m So Glad for the Bible (track 3) with the CD to the tune of Give Me Oil in My Lamp. As you sing, pass around the special Bible. I m so glad for the Bible. Keep me learnin, learnin, learnin. I m so glad for God s book today. I m so glad for the Bible. Keep me learnin, learnin, learnin Keep me learnin all about his way. (Repeat first verse.) Let me hear bout God s love Keep me learnin, learnin, learnin. Let me hear bout God s love for me. Let me hear bout God s love Keep me learnin, learnin, learnin. Let s shine the light for all to see. When the music stops, invite the child who s holding the Bible to bring it to you. Lead the class in clapping for the Bible person, cheering, and making fun applause sound effects by slapping your thighs with your palms. Stamp the child s hand with the Jesus cares stamp, and thank the child for bringing you the Bible. Then stamp the other children s hands. Return the Jesus cares stamp and ink pad to the Learning Lab. Say: I m thankful for [name of child who brought the Bible], and I m thankful for everyone in our class today. Each of you is a special part of our class! Let s thank God together for all our friends in this class. Lead children in singing I m So Glad We re Together (track 4) with the CD to the tune of Give Me Oil in My Lamp. Lead children in folding their hands and bowing their heads as you sing the second verse. I m so glad we re together. Keep us prayin, prayin, prayin. I m so glad we re all here today. I m so glad we re together. Keep us prayin, prayin, prayin Prayin for each other every day. Thank you, Lord, for each one. Keep me thankful, thankful, thankful. Thank you for everyone who s here. Thank you, Lord, for each one. Keep me thankful, thankful, thankful Thankful for our friends both far and near. n Hear and Tell the Bible Story SUPPLIES: Bible Set the Learning Mat: Jesus Cares in the center of the room, and have children gather around it. Open the Bible to Luke 5:17-26, and show it to the children. Say: Our story comes from the Bible, God s special book. Our Learning Mat shows us pictures of our Bible story. Who can find the picture of the roof with a hole in it? 88

7 Friends Bring a Paralyzed Man to Jesus Let children find the picture, and then say: The men on the roof are lowering their friend down to Jesus. Their friend wanted to see Jesus, but he couldn t walk. Let s pretend we can t walk. Everyone spread out along the walls, and then get down on your tummy and pull yourself across the floor. Let s see if we can pull ourselves to our Learning Mat. Let the children scoot around on the floor. As they re scooting, point to the picture of the paralyzed man. Say: This man wanted to be able to walk and run and jump, but he couldn t. Imagine how long it would take him to get to Jesus by himself! Have children gather around the Learning Mat again. Then continue: But the man had some good friends. His friends wanted him to be able to walk with them. They heard that Jesus was coming and that Jesus cares for people. Maybe Jesus would help our friend, they said. Let s take him to see Jesus. Can you find Jesus on our Learning Mat? Pause. So they put him on a stretcher and carried him to the house where Jesus was staying. When they came to the house, there were so many people standing around, they couldn t get in. What would you do if you wanted to get into that house? (Climb through the roof; crawl under people s legs; go through the hole in the wall.) The men tried and tried, but the people wouldn t let them in the house. All those people wanted to see Jesus, too! So the men climbed up on the roof and started digging. Remember, the roofs in Bible times weren t like our roofs today. They didn t have shingles. They had to make roofs out of mud and straw. Let s pretend we re digging on that roof. First, we have to scrape off the top layer of mud. It s all dried out from the sun, and it makes a lot of dust. Let s blow the dust away. Now let s pull the straw out. We ll have to pull hard because some of the ends are stuck in the mud. We just have to dig through one more layer of mud to make it through the roof. Careful, we wouldn t want any mud from the roof to fall on people s heads. You can stop digging now. We ve made it through the roof. What do you think the man s friends did when they made it through the roof? (Shouted; hugged each other; stayed away from the edge so they wouldn t fall in.) The friends carefully lowered the man who couldn t walk through the hole in the roof so he landed right in front of Jesus. Remember that Jesus cares for people. Do you think Jesus was mad when this happened? No! Jesus was glad the kind men worked so hard to help their friend. Wiggle your fingers. Ask: How did the men use their fingers to help their friend? (They dug through the roof; they picked up his mat.) How can your fingers help? (By picking up toys; by putting on clothes.) Say: Use your fingers right now to gently pat the back of the person next to you. Pause. Now tap your feet on the floor. How can feet help? Pause. Feet can walk nicely in our room. Touch your mouth. How can mouths help? Pause. Mouths can say nice words to people. They can smile. Smile at me. Those are wonderful smiles. Now use your ears and listen while I tell you what Jesus did. If there are children in your class who are unable to walk or use their legs, let them share about the challenges they face instead of having children scoot on their tummies. Ask them how other children can show they care. Jesus appears in more than one picture on the Learning Mat. Encourage children to find the picture of Jesus in the house with the paralyzed man. If they point out other pictures of Jesus, tell them that they ll learn about more ways Jesus helped people next week. 89

8 Lesson 6 Jesus wanted the man to be able to walk and run and jump. Jesus is God s Son. He can make people well. Jesus took the man s hand and said, Get up and walk. The man could walk! He did what Jesus told him. He got up, picked up his stretcher, and ran outside to tell everyone that Jesus cares for people. We can tell everyone about Jesus, too. Let s say our Bible Point together. Jesus cares for people. Ask: How did Jesus show he cared for people? (He helped the man walk; he didn t get mad when they made a hole in the roof; he let all those people come in and see him.) What are some ways we can care for people? (We can smile; we can say nice things; we can help wash the dishes.) Say: Jesus showed how much he loved and cared for the man in the story by helping him and by healing him. Jesus loves each of us, too, and he wants to be our friend. Let s thank Jesus for being our friend. Ask any of the children if they would like to pray aloud. If so, let them offer their thanks to Jesus. If not, go ahead and pray: Dear Jesus, thank you that you love us so much that you want to be our friend. You re the best friend of all! Amen. n Do the Bible Story SUPPLIES: Bible, poster board, tape, small action figure, chairs, CD player Say: Let s see what it might have been like to put the track 6 man through the roof. Place a 5x7-inch rectangle of poster board where children can reach it. Place the action figure or lightweight stuffed animal on this mat to represent the paralyzed man. Set up four chairs with the backs facing one another. Tell the children this is the house and the roof has been removed. Let the children take turns, four at a time, kneeling on the chairs and lowering the mat through the roof onto the floor of the house. After everyone has had a turn, ask: What do you think it would be like to lower a person through a roof like this? (It would be hard; it might be scary because I might drop my friend!) Say: Isn t it great that Jesus cares for people? He made the paralyzed man well so he could walk again. Jesus cares for us, too, and he wants us to care for others. Open your Bible to Matthew 19:26, and show children the words. Then continue: The man who was sick might have thought it was impossible for Jesus to heal him. But the Bible tells us in Matthew 19:26, With God everything is possible. That s our verse from the Bible this week. Have children repeat the verse with you. Let s learn a song to help us remember this verse. Lead children in singing Everything Is Possible (Matthew 19:26b) (track 6) with the CD to the tune of The Mulberry Bush. 90

9 Friends Bring a Paralyzed Man to Jesus With God everything is possible, Possible, Possible. With God everything is possible The Bible tells us so. (Repeat.) Say: Now let s walk over to our story area and hear how our friend Whiskers showed he cared. Closing n Whiskers Cares SUPPLIES: none Gather the children in a circle on the floor. Bring out Whiskers the Mouse, and go through the following puppet script. When you finish the script, put Whiskers away and out of sight. Teacher: Hello, Whiskers. I hear you have a story to tell us. Whiskers: (Nodding shyly) I heard your story about the man who couldn t walk. I met a boy who couldn t walk when I went to the market last week. Teacher: How did you know he couldn t walk, Whiskers? Whiskers: He was in a wheelchair. Some people stared and pointed at him. Teacher: How do you think the boy felt when people pointed at him? Whiskers: I don t think he felt very happy. I know I d feel bad if people pointed at me. What do you think? (Let children respond.) The boy s mom brought him some Bugle snacks. I think that made him feel better. But then he dropped his bag of Bugles on the ground. He couldn t reach it, so I went over and picked it up for him. Teacher: That was very thoughtful of you, Whiskers. Whiskers: Well, I remembered that Jesus cares for people. I want to be more like Jesus. And I felt good about doing a nice thing for someone. Teacher: Did you talk to the boy? Whiskers: Yes. He thanked me for helping him. He was very nice. He shared his snacks with me. Teacher: When we care about people and do nice things for them, they care about us, too. Children, when have you done a nice thing for someone? (Children might share things such as helping set or clear the table, sharing toys, or washing the car with a parent.) 91

10 Lesson 6 Whiskers: Wow! That s great. Before I go home, I want to do something nice for my friends in this class. Teacher: What s that, Whiskers? Whiskers: Well, I know how happy I was when the boy at the market shared his snack with me. So I brought some Bugle snacks to share with my friends. Can we eat it now? Teacher: We ll eat it during our closing activity. Thanks, Whiskers! Permission to photocopy this script from Group s Hands-On Bible Curriculum Preschool granted for local church use. Copyright Group Publishing, Inc., 1515 Cascade Ave., Loveland, CO group.com Every now and then, let the children tell Whiskers the Bible story. It s a great way to let them review and cement their learning! n Bugle Buddies SUPPLIES: bag of Bugle snacks, napkins, baby wipes Have children clean their hands with the baby wipes or at a nearby sink. Help children form pairs and sit on the floor, facing each other. Set a handful of Bugles on a napkin between each set of partners. Tell children not to eat the snacks until you give them instructions. Remind children to eat one Bugle at a time. Say: Whiskers was so nice to share his Bugles with us. When we do nice things for others, we show them that Jesus cares for people, and we care, too. While we eat it, let s think of some nice things we can do for others this week. Before you eat a Bugle, say one nice thing you ll do. For example, you might pick up your toys, set the table, or help wash the dishes. After you ve said what you ll do, eat a Bugle. Then it will be your partner s turn to say one nice thing and eat a Bugle. You can take turns thinking of nice things and eating Bugles until they re all gone. Let children eat their Bugles as they share. When they run out of Bugles, have children put their napkins in the trash. Gather children and ask: What nice things did you talk about with your partner? (Sharing; picking up; helping.) Say: Jesus cares for people, and he wants us to care for people, too. You ve thought of some great ways to show people that you care. Let s pray and ask God to help us do some of those things this week. Pray: Dear God, we re glad that Jesus cares about people. Help us show people how much Jesus cares and how much we care. In Jesus name, amen. Collect the name tags for next week s use, and remind children to take home any crafts they made today. 92

11 Friends Bring a Paralyzed Man to Jesus Growing closer to Jesus extends beyond the classroom. Photocopy the Today I Learned handout (at the end of this lesson) for this week, and send it home with the children. Encourage parents to use the handout to plan meaningful family activities to reinforce this week s topic. 93

12 Lesson 6 For Extra Time If you have a long class time or want to add additional elements to your lesson, try one of the following activities. n Lively Learning: Please Let Me Through Form a circle, and have children link elbows. Choose one child to be in the center. Have that child say, Please let me through and then try to break through to get out of the circle. If the child successfully breaks through, he or she can join the circle and choose another person to be in the center. If the child is unable to break through, ask two of the children to show kindness and caring and let the child through the circle. As you play the game, talk about how the paralyzed man couldn t get through the crowd to see Jesus. n Make to Take: Helping Hands Give each child a paper plate and a crayon. Help each child trace one hand on a paper plate. Let children color their hand pictures. As they work, walk around the table and write, [Name] is a helper on each child s plate. Remind children that Jesus cares for people. Tell them that one way we show Jesus love and care is by helping people. Talk about ways children can use their hands to help people. Each week, ask children about ways they ve helped. n Treat to Eat: Stretchers Snacks Help children clean their hands with baby wipes or at a nearby sink. Give each child a paper towel, a slice of bread, four pretzels, and a bear-shaped cookie. Help children spread jelly or flavored cream cheese on the bread and then place a bear-shaped cookie in the center. Have them create stretchers by putting a pretzel on each corner. Before they eat their treats, lead them in thanking God for friends who care enough to help each other. n Story Picture: Friends Bring a Paralyzed Man to Jesus Set out fabric scraps, glue sticks, and crayons. Give each child a copy of the Today I Learned handout. Have them color the picture and then glue the fabric scraps to the paralyzed man s mat in their pictures. As they work, review the details of today s Bible story. 94

13 Caring Hearts Name Tags Photocopy and cut out the name tags. # Permission to photocopy this handout from Group s Hands-On Bible Curriculum, Preschool, granted for local church use. Copyright Group Publishing, Inc., 1515 Cascade Ave., Loveland, CO group.com 95

14 Caring Actions 1 Photocopy and cut apart the pictures on this handout. You ll use them during the Setting the Stage activity each week during Module 2. # 96 Permission to photocopy this handout from Group s Hands-On Bible Curriculum, Preschool, granted for local church use. Copyright Group Publishing, Inc., 1515 Cascade Ave., Loveland, CO group.com

15 Caring Actions 2 Photocopy and cut apart the pictures below. You ll use them during the Setting the Stage activity each week during Module 2. # Permission to photocopy this handout from Group s Hands-On Bible Curriculum, Preschool, granted for local church use. Copyright Group Publishing, Inc., 1515 Cascade Ave., Loveland, CO group.com 97

16 Jesus cares for people. Help me learn this: With God everything is possible (Matthew 19:26b). Ask me: n How did friends help the man who couldn t walk? n How can you help a friend this week? n What can our family do to show others that Jesus cares? Family Fun Lesson 6 Today your child learned that JESUS CARES FOR PEOPLE. The children heard about some men who brought their paralyzed friend to Jesus. They talked about ways they could help others, too. n Decorate a container, and label it Helping Hands. Fill the jar with household jobs children can do, such as setting the table. Let children choose a job each day. At the end of the week, have children use their helping hands to make a favorite treat! n Have family members take off their shoes. Help family members take turns tying their wrists together with a soft cloth and then trying to take off their socks. Talk about what it would be like to live with a disability. Thank God for healthy bodies. Friends Bring a Paralyzed Man to Jesus (Luke 5:17-26) 98 Permission to photocopy this handout from Group s Hands-On Bible Curriculum, Preschool, granted for local church use. Copyright Group Publishing, Inc., 1515 Cascade Ave., Loveland, CO group.com