Jesus is the Reason for the Season! So what do we do now? Hello, everyone! In place of a January Sunday School, we are implementing a winter break until we meet again on February 3rd! The days after Christmas are just as crucial to study as the season of Advent (the weeks leading up to Christmas)! This is because we often spend so much time celebrating baby Jesus in the manger and opening presents that we forget to continue celebrating that he is here now! - Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means, God is with us. (Matt. 1:23 NRSV) The goal for this January study is for you and your family, friends or neighbors, to get together and study what it means for our faith now that Jesus is here. Some examples of things we will be thinking about together are; What does it mean to have God enter the world as a defenseless baby? What does it mean that everyone kept calling Jesus king of the Jews and why did they kill him for it? How can we live our lives after hearing what Jesus did for us and how he wants us to treat our neighbors and the least of these? This packet does not have all the answers, but we believe it will at least get people talking! Through this time together, we can become stronger by learning from those around us and by exploring the unknown together. So, let s get started.
Read: Matthew 2: 1-12 Week 1: What Now? 2 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 asking, Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage. 3 When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 They told him, In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: 6 And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel. 7 Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage. 9 When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road. (NRSV) Discussion: How many wise men do you think there were? Does the story say? o Why do you think they decided to find Jesus? Did they want to see who their new king would be? o Were they afraid of what King Herod would do if they told him where the baby was? (Our reading says they were told in a dream not to tell Herod.) What do you think King Herod thought when the wise men never came back after searching for baby Jesus?
Do you think the wise men believed in Jesus being the king when Herod told them to search for him? Do you think they believed in him after seeing him under the star they were following? How do you think the wise men s lives change after meeting Jesus? How did our lives change because of Jesus being born? Do you think the wise men ever wanted to give up? Why do you think the wise men brought gifts to the baby Jesus? What would you have brought Jesus if you were at his birth? Game: Journey to the Newborn King Spend time making a star out of arts and crafts and if multiple kids are present; have all of their stars create one large star (the more the merrier-this was a BRIGHT star they were following!) Feel free to get creative if kids want to dress their part of wise kids! Set up an obstacle course around a room and hang the clumped stars in a corner somewhere they can see from all angles of the room. (Here s the tricky part; try not to let the kids see where you hide it! They must first find the star before they can follow it!) Once the star(s) and obstacle course are in place; round up your kids for the game in a different area so they can t see. They must all listen to King Herod (sorry, today you are a villan!) give instructions to find this baby who will be King of the Jews! Feel free to be as creative as possible! Use voices, make-up a script or just read from our readings! After you are done meeting with these wise-children, send them on their way to find baby Jesus! Perhaps you don t have a lot of space, some alternate ideas could be to go in the yard, go to a playground (indoor OR outdoor), or have your kids create their own obstacles to have barbies, superheroes, legos, etc. follow in order to find baby Jesus. When all paths have lead to baby Jesus, feel free to sit down and read the story again to see how it felt to try and find Jesus without much help other than a star. Talk about the challenges the wise men could have had when trying to find Jesus and maybe even have a snack together because long journeys sure take a lot of energy! Songs to Listen to on Youtube: Born on Christmas Day by Kristen Chenoweth (Cover by One Voice Children s Choir) Noel by Chris Tomlin and Lauren Daigle
Challenge: What gifts do you think you can bring to people this week? (Gift of music, gift of reading, gifts of playtime, gifts of food or snacks ) (Writing cards to people, visiting Good Shepherd, saying thank you and I love you more often )
Week Two: King of the Jews from? Read: Matthew 2: 13-23. 13 Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him. 14 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, 15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, Out of Egypt I have called my son. 16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. 17 Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: 18 A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more. 19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, 20 Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child s life are dead. 21 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee. 23 There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, He will be called a Nazorean. Discussion: (NRSV) Do you think Joseph and Mary (Jesus parents) were scared that someone was trying to kill their son? What does a king do? Are King Herod and Jesus the same type of king? Why do you think Herod killed the children in all those families? Some say that Joseph and Mary waited in Egypt for 2 years before they moved out of Egypt to Nazareth. Have you ever waited a long time for God to answer your prayers? Are our prayers always what God wants too? Can God use us for good even when we don t think our situation is good?
Activity: Crowing Our King Normal Printer paper will be fine for this but you might need some scissors and a lot of tape! Glitter, stickers, feathers, sticks and anything else your kids can imagine are perfect decorations for this crown. Tell these wise kids that they are making a crown for Jesus, the King of the Jews. They can decorate it however they want and make it look however they want. You may want to help them cut out their ideas. (They can make similar crowns to go on their own heads, they just need a flat one for the next game.) *Before you start or during their craft, make a large cross and cut out the provided crown of thorns this is a huge spoiler so don t let the kids see!* On the top of the cross, put the letters INRI in bold. It is important for later! Game: Crown our King Tape this picture of Jesus on a door or wall and have your kids play pin the crown on Jesus. Blindfold each kid one at a time for their turn and spin them however many times your group decides, and then have them walk towards the door/wall where they think Jesus head is and try to pin his crown on. After each kid/family member is done, debate who got the closest! After this fun game, there is a large plot twist! Bring your cross that you previously created, tape it behind Jesus head and bring YOUR crown over; the crown of thorns! Show them what crown you are holding and explain that many people were as mean to Jesus as Herod was. There were many people who did not like the idea of Jesus being their king that they were willing to kill him for it. They were mean to Jesus and beat him and bullying him, making him carry this cross a long ways and crowned him with a fake crown; one of thorns that is super painful. Like at the end of our reading today, Jesus and his family went to Nazareth because so many people were nervous about the birth of a new king. He then lived in Nazareth and grew up there! However, even on Jesus dying day, people mocked him on his cross spelling in INRI; which means Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews. Takeaway Discussion: It might seem sad, but Jesus dying actually saved us all. Jesus rose again three days later and now lives with God, but walks through life with us all the time! He is our King.
Songs to Listen to on YouTube: This is Amazing Grace by Phil Wickham How Great is Our God world version (by Chris Tomlin) King of Love by I AM THEY Challenge: Throughout this week, remember who wore the crown of thorns for us all! Jesus died on the cross for all of our sins! To remember, try memorizing what INRI means that was on his cross!
Week Three: Remembering Baptism Read: Matthew 3: 1-7, 11, 13-17 3 In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judea, proclaiming, 2 Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. 3 This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said, The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 4 Now John wore clothing of camel s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judea were going out to him, and all the region along the Jordan, 6 and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. 11 I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. 13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. 14 John would have prevented him, saying, I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me? 15 But Jesus answered him, Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness. Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased. (NRSV) Discussion: Why do you think John the Baptist lived in the wilderness and ate locusts? Do you think you would have more time to listen to God if you were away from a city and in the wilderness? Have you ever felt God before? If not, how can we see God working in our lives? Do you know what baptism is? Have you been baptized? o If you have, do your parents remember anything from that day?
o If you haven t been baptized, have you ever heard of baptism before? Did you know Jesus was baptized? How can we remind ourselves Jesus is with us when we are going through tough times? How can we be there for others when they are sad? How can Jesus use us in the world? During a baptism in the church, the congregation usually participates with the pastor and the family reassuring them that the whole church supports the family and the person getting baptized! Finding Deeper Understanding: In the Lutheran church, you will often hear, remember your baptism, but for a lot of us, we were baptized when we were babies (or not at all)! How are we supposed to remember our baptisms and who was there during them? A pastor named Craig S. wrote in one of his books that, when our church invites us to remember our baptism, it usually means to remember Jesus baptism and what He did for us in his life and through His death. Baptism brings us all together as a family of God! When we can t remember our baptism or if we ve never been baptized, we can read in our Bibles and remind ourselves that Jesus silenced the storms of sin, death, and fear that are all over in the world. Christ is with us when we are sad and suffering, and He will be with us in our future storms. Another way we are reminded of our baptism and Jesus baptism is when people come with us through our storms. Jesus never has us do anything alone, He is always with us. And sometimes He goes with us through His people! Sometimes, when we feel God with us, and we feel peaceful and loved during a crazy time, we can remember our baptism because Jesus is here and while we might be scared, there is nothing to be afraid of because He defeated death and we have a whole big family with us and loving us. Next time someone says, remember your baptism, we can try and think of how God might be with us right then, or remember a time where God helped us through tough times. A cool way to remember this often is, whenever we see water, we dip our finger in it and mark the sign of the cross on our forehead. We can do this when we wash our face, when we take a bath, when we go to the pool, when we go into church, when we are at the lake and so many other places! Let s try that with our families to remind us that we are all family through Jesus! When marking the sign on your forehead, remind yourself you are a beloved child of God! Take away question: what does remember your baptism mean to you?
Activity: Spend the week memorizing this verse! For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:13 NIV) Hint: If you need help, try memorizing it in chunks and repeating it in the car, walking around your house or when you re in the shower! Songs to Listen to on YouTube: Something in the Water by Carrie Underwood (singing about baptism) Peace Be Still by Lauren Daigle and the Belonging Co. (singing about Jesus calming her storms when she is scared) Amazing Grace (any version) Challenge: This week, spend time remembering Jesus baptism and the times you have felt surrounded or comforted by people who are not your blood family, but your family through Jesus. Whenever you experience water this week, try dipping your finger and marking the cross on your forehead repeating the words, I am a beloved child of God and I am never alone with Jesus. Activity: Spot the Difference! Find as many differences between the two pictures as you can! (Some are color-related but looking for actual differences I could at least find 8!) Activity #2: Coloring Page
Week Four: Our Identity Through Jesus Read: Acts 9: 1-19 (Last week of Prepared Lessons) 9 Meanwhile Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3 Now as he was going along and approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? 5 He asked, Who are you, Lord? The reply came, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 6 But get up and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do. 7 The men who were traveling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one. 8 Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 For three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. 10 Now there was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, Ananias. He answered, Here I am, Lord. 11 The Lord said to him, Get up and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul. At this moment he is praying, 12 and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight. 13 But Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints in Jerusalem; 14 and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who invoke your name. 15 But the Lord said to him, Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel; 16 I myself will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name. 17 So Ananias went and entered the house. He laid his hands on Saul and said, Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit. 18 And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and his sight was restored. Then he got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength. Discussion: Who was Saul? What was he doing? Was he good or bad? Who spoke to Saul after the lightning-like flash? Who was Ananias? Was Ananias good or bad?
What did God say when Ananias didn t want to heal Saul? What types of people do we think are bad? How does the story end? What does this ending mean for how we treat people we don t like? Game: Storytelling/ Reenacting After going through the discussion questions, ask your kid(s) if anyone knows the story well enough to tell it themselves! If not, re-read the story and have your kids act out what is happening in the story. Before jumping right in to the acting, make sure everyone has a part and understands what their character does in the story. Activity: Following our Footsteps Have your kids trace their foot or shoe (or just draw a foot) and if they can, have them answer these questions: What do you know for sure? Who can you trust for sure? What do you love? Who do you love? What are your gifts/what are you good at? What do you want to be when you grow up? *Saul thought he had all of the answers, too! Until Jesus flipped his whole world upside down. Sometimes the only think we know FOR SURE is that Jesus loves us. People mess up, trust can be broken and we can lose our gifts. Jesus is forever* Keep using your gifts and believing what you believe! All we can do is keep walking by faith and trust that Jesus will lead us where we need to go! Finding the Deeper Meaning: This story takes place after Jesus was alive, and Saul used to arrest people who believed in Jesus. He would bring them to the city to be put in jail or WORSE! Saul had some bad friends who believed the same things he did. One day, when he was out looking for people to arrest and bring to jail for believing in Jesus, there is a strike of light and Saul falls down and can t see anymore. God talks to him asking him why he is killing people that believe in Jesus? God then tells Saul that he has to be healed by a man in his own house. So Saul s friends brought him to the house and waited while God called out to
Ananias. When Ananias heard that God wanted to heal SAUL, a well-known capturer and killer of Christians, Ananias tried to talk God out of it! God heard what Ananias said and still responded by saying, Go.. God didn t look at what Saul USED to do, God looked at Saul right now, who now believes in God and Jesus. God knew that Saul would soon do great things, but God didn t just let Saul go about killing and capturing Christians. God made sure Saul was done with his bad habits. God called Ananias to love Saul, someone who seemed un-lovable because he was bad. Later in our Bible, Saul becomes baptized and is renamed to Paul. And a fun fact about Paul (who is Saul with a new name), is that he wrote half of the books in our New Testament of the Bible! Takeaway Discussion: If God can use a bad person like Saul to do great things (like write half of the New Testament of our Bible!), how should we treat those who we think are bad? How do we love people that we don t want to love? *might be a little advanced for some ages* What does it mean to love someone but still hold them accountable to their actions? Songs to Listen to on YouTube: Forgiveness by Matthew West Rooftops (live version) by Jesus Culture Christ in Me by Jeremy Camp Chain Breaker by Zach Williams So where do we go from here? How do we treat people that we don t want to talk to? How do we love people that we don t think deserve our love? Sometimes it feels like WE can t. Even those we really don t like are still God s children. When we aren t strong enough to love our enemies, praying to be strong is a great first step. We can t wait to see you when we come back to Sunday School! We have lots to talk about!