New Testament Unit 10: Jesus Grew the Church Lesson 2: Paul Escaped in a Basket God s Unfolding Story Suggested Schedule: Bible Story: Paul Escaped in a Basket (Acts 9:20-25) Bible Phrase: I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. (Phil. 4:13) Bible Truth: Jesus gives me strength to do what He asks me to do. 1. God created everything. 2. People disobeyed God. 3. God chose a special people. 4. God sent Jesus to help us. 5. Jesus began the Church. 6. Jesus is preparing heaven for us. Arrival Centers 25 minutes Clean-up Time 5 minutes Bible Story Time 15 minutes Craft Time 10 minutes Snack Time 10 minutes Game Time/Dismissal Hour A Unfolding God s Story for Teachers Our passage from Acts 9:20-25 is only six short verses. Yet the story embodies so much more than just a daring escape. Between the lines of these few verses we see both the way and the cost of discipleship. Conversion is not just a private experience; the Bible says faith without works is dead (see James 2:26). Now a Christian, Saul set out to proclaim Christ as Lord and the Son of God. Conversion involves repentance a total turn-around of one s life from what it was to what it will become in Christ. One s purpose, passion, and direction totally change. Accordingly, Saul stopped persecuting Christians and began promoting Christ. To become a Christian, Saul had to surrender to Christ, as must everyone. Saul had to decide if the voice he heard on the Damascus Road was real and if this Christ was worth pursuing. Saul chose to chase joyfully after the living Christ instead of hunting down Christians to put them to death. It was only a matter of time, though, before Saul faced resistance. Now he was experiencing what he himself had inflicted on other followers of the Way (see Acts 9:2). The courage he had seen in the faces of believers he had pursued now was in his own soul, and it could be seen in his actions. God had more much more for Saul to do, and a band of self-righteous Damascus Jews was not going to thwart God s plans! God provided Saul a way of escape. Saul saw that his duty to follow the God of the universe would mean facing danger. Yet He probably also understood that the Holy Spirit would be with him and would give him strength to press on. This courage enabled Saul to abandon himself and all he otherwise had believed in to respond to a call of apostleship. Thus Saul figuratively shed his pharisaical cloak and wrapped a servant s towel around his waist. He began the journey of conforming his will to the will of the resurrected Lord. He spent the rest of his life running the race of endurance for Christ and looking forward to the heavenly prize (see Phil. 3:13-14). Christ s call to Saul is our call as well. If our hearts are not Christ s, then we are in a sense persecuting Christ. Through His death on the cross, Jesus showed the depth of His love. God gave up everything to redeem us and to give us abundant life, both now and throughout eternity. Our response must be to love Him back with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strength. We must acknowledge our sin and our need for a Savior. We must chase after Christ and follow Him with abandon, regardless of cost. Lesson Plan Arrival Greet children at eye level and express how happy you are to see them. Be sure each child has a name tag and the security measures of your church are followed. Label all coats and personal belongings. Strongly encourage children who have brought items from home, such as toys and books, to place them on a shelf while they are working with other materials. Assure children their items will be safe and they can take them home at the end of the session. Help each child make a choice where he or she would like to begin his or her Center Time. God s Unfolding Story for Older Preschoolers, Copyright 2013 - SundaySchoolZone.com NT10 Lesson 2 Hour A Page 1
Block Center: Build with Blocks Wooden blocks Transportation toys What to Do: Provide a small carpet if possible. Blocks are best located in a corner of the room away from the traffic flow. Link to the Bible Story: As children build, listen for opportunities to share the Bible Phrase or to tell a part of the Bible story. Home Living Center: Role Play Small rocking chair, sink and stove unit, small table and chairs; plastic dishes, child pots and pans, plastic food items; and doll items such as baby doll, doll bed, doll bag, blanket, clothes, bottles, and diapers. What to Do: Home living items will encourage children to role play home activities such as cooking, cleaning and caring for the baby. Link to the Bible Story: As children play, look for opportunities to engage in conversation about the Bible story, Bible Phrase, or Bible truth. Center Time Art Center: Color with Chalk and Water White paper, colored chalk Paper bowls, sponge brushes What to Do: Print today s Bible Phrase at the bottom of each paper. Fill bowls slightly with water. Invite children to draw and color a picture with the chalk. Next, ask children to dip a brush into the water and spread it across their chalk drawings. The water brush allows the paint to be less dusty and creates an interesting effect. Link to the Bible Story: As children work, repeat the Bible Phrase, I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength (Phil. 4:13). Explain to children that a man named Paul wrote these words, and we can read them in our Bibles. Express to them that Paul had to escape from a town in a basket because some people did not want him to tell people about Jesus but God gave Paul strength to keep on preaching. Bible Learning Center: Find the Hidden Baskets Copies of Activity Page: Hidden Pictures, Paul Escaped in a Basket (Reproducible) Crayons or washable markers What to Do: Invite children to use a crayon or washable marker to circle the hidden baskets in the Bible story picture. Encourage children to color the picture. Link to the Bible Story: Explain that the objects in the picture are from the Bible story. Say: In our story a man named Paul had to escape from a town by being lowered from a wall to the ground in a basket. God took care of Paul and continued to give him strength to preach the good news about Jesus to many people. Puzzle Center: Work Puzzles Offer a variety of non-fantasy wooden or cardboard puzzles for children to work. What to Do: Encourage each child to finish a puzzle before leaving the center. Offer guidance rather than doing the puzzle for the child. Link to the Bible Story: As children work, look for opportunities to say the Bible Phrase or briefly tell the Bible story. God s Unfolding Story for Older Preschoolers, Copyright 2013 - SundaySchoolZone.com NT10 Lesson 2 Hour A Page 2
Clean-up Time Encourage preschoolers to help at clean-up time. Assign specific tasks for preschoolers to do such as placing all the crayons in the basket, throwing away the trash, gathering all the glue sticks, etc. Guide children to the Bible Story Time area. Bible Story Time Bible Teaching Picture Paul Escaped in a Basket (Reproducible) God s Unfolding Story Cube (Reproducible/Cardstock) Introduction Show the God s Unfolding Story Cube. Point to each symbol and tell God s Unfolding Story. (Refer to page 1.) Encourage children recite the points of the story with you. Comment to boys and girls that today s story is from the fifth point, Jesus Began the Church. (Point to that symbol on the cube.) Express the following in your own words: Have you ever wanted to do something that was really hard to do? Perhaps you wanted to learn how to ride a bike without training wheels. Remember it or imagine it: You get on your bike and you might feel a little scared. Someone gives you a push and you go for just a moment, and then you fall. Oh boy, does that hurt! But you keep trying. Maybe some other kids even laugh at you if you don t do so well. But does that make you stop trying? No, not if you really want to learn to ride your bike. You keep on trying. In our Bible story today a man named Paul really wanted to tell people about Jesus, but some people tried to stop him. Listen to hear how God helped Paul. Bible Story Paul Escaped in a Basket (Acts 9:20-25) A man named Paul had just become a follower of Jesus. Paul loved Jesus, and he wanted to tell everyone that Jesus was God s Son. Many people listened to Paul and they, too, became Jesus followers; but others did not like Paul or what he was teaching. They came up with a plan to stop him from preaching, but Paul learned about the plan. His enemies sat at the city s gate. At this place people passed through an opening in the wall that surrounded the city. They thought if Paul walked through the gate they could jump on him and kill him. Paul s friends came up with a plan to help Paul. If he could not leave the city through the opening at the gate, then maybe he could leave through the city wall. At night, Paul s friends walked with him to a special place along the wall. The special spot was high up, but there was a hole in the wall. Paul may have looked through that hole and thought, That is a long way down! How am I going to get to the ground? His friends knew what to do. They had brought a big basket and some strong rope. They put Paul in the basket and tied the ropes to it. Then they pushed the basket through the hole and lowered Paul down with the ropes. Down, down, down went Paul in the basket. Finally, the basket touched the ground. Paul climbed out of the basket and safely left the city. Paul surely was happy that he had friends who loved Jesus and cared about him. Paul went to many other cities and told people about Jesus. Talk Time 1. Show the teaching picture for today s Bible story. Ask the following: Why did some people not like Paul? What did they want to do? How did Paul s friends help him? Even though people tried to hurt Paul for preaching about Jesus, did this stop him from telling others about Him? 2. Say today s Bible Phrase together, I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength (Phil. 4:13). Express to boys and girls that Paul loved Jesus so much that he wanted others to know about Him. Even though people tried to stop Paul, God gave Paul strength and courage to continue to tell others about Jesus. Explain that Jesus wants us to tell others about Him, too. 3. Conclude with prayer. Ask God to help each one in your group tell people about Jesus. 4. Direct children to Craft Time. God s Unfolding Story for Older Preschoolers, Copyright 2013 - SundaySchoolZone.com NT10 Lesson 2 Hour A Page 3
Craft Time Make a Basket for Paul Copies of Paul Figures (1 copy for every 3 children) Crayons or washable markers Tape or glue Brown lunch sacks (1 per child) What to Do: Cut out the Paul figures. Make baskets by cutting off the top of each sack, leaving the bottom three inches. This part will become the basket. Cut two 1-inch-wide strips from the top part of the sack. Cut these strips in half, making four strips. Tape one strip to each corner of bottom of the sack. Bring tops of strips together and staple. If you can, make the baskets ahead of time. Invite children to color their baskets and their Paul figures. Children also can glue their Paul figures inside the baskets. Link to Bible Story: As children work, talk about Paul s experience and how Paul may have been feeling. Explain that even though Paul may have been afraid, God helped him and gave him strength to keep preaching about Jesus. Snack Time Be sure to wash hands or use hand sanitizer. Say a thank-you prayer to God for the snack. When snack time has ended, encourage preschoolers to help with cleaning up. Game Time/Dismissal Who s Missing? None needed What to Do: Ask children to form a circle in the Game Time area. Tell children that in a moment you will ask them to close their eyes. While their eyes are closed you will tap someone on the shoulder. That person is to go somewhere in the room and hide. Explain that you will say the words, Who s Missing? and they are to open their eyes and guess who is gone from the circle. At the close of the activity, remind boys and girls that in today s Bible story Paul s friends helped him to escape from people who did not want him to teach about Jesus. Conclude that Paul knew Jesus loved him, and he knew Jesus would give him the strength to keep telling others about Him. Dismiss children when parents arrive. Be sure to follow your church s security guidelines. God s Unfolding Story for Older Preschoolers, Copyright 2013 - SundaySchoolZone.com NT10 Lesson 2 Hour A Page 4
Resources and Supplies New Testament Unit 10: Jesus Grew the Church Lesson 2: Paul Escaped in a Basket Hour A Standard Art Supplies (Supplies that are generally in the room) Washable markers Crayons Child scissors Playdough and accessories Drawing paper Easel (optional) Glue/glue sticks Tempera paint, 4 colors Tape/masking tape Pencils/colored pencils Hole punch Teacher scissors Stapler/staples Permanent markers Watercolors Paintbrushes Yarn Standard Equipment (Equipment that is generally in the room) Small beanbag for Bible Story Time Assorted wooden/cardboard puzzles Set of wooden blocks Small cars and trucks Doll bed Baby doll (soft plastic) Stove/sink unit Play dishes/pots and pans Small table and chairs Small carpet for block area Play food items Storage shelf for blocks Tables and chairs for art, puzzles, and Bible Learning Center CD player/children s Worship CDs Reproducibles (Included with the lesson plan downloads) Activity Page: Hidden Pictures, Paul Escaped in a Basket (1 copy per child) Paul Figures (1 copy for every 3 children) Teaching Picture: Paul Escaped in a Basket (1 copy per class) God s Unfolding Story Cube (Cardstock 1 copy per class) Parent Page (1 copy per child) Additional Art and Bible Learning Materials Colored chalk Paper bowls Sponge brushes (4) White construction paper God s Unfolding Story for Older Preschoolers, Copyright 2013 - SundaySchoolZone.com NT10 Lesson 2 Hour A
I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13 Activity Page: Paul Escaped in a Basket Instructions: One copy per child. Use a crayon or marker to circle the hidden baskets in the picture. NT10 Lesson 2 Hour A Center Time: Bible Learning Center God s Unfolding Story for Older Preschoolers, Copyright 2013 - SundaySchoolZone.com
Paul Figures Craft: Paul Figures Instructions: Copy 1 sheet for every 3 children. Cut out the Paul figures and follow the additional instructions in the teacher guide. NT10 Lesson 2 Hour A Craft Time God s Unfolding Story for Older Preschoolers, Copyright 2013 - SundaySchoolZone.com
God s Unfolding Story for Older Preschoolers, Copyright 2012 - SundaySchoolZone.com God s Unfolding Story Cube Instructions: Cut out on dotted lines, fold on solid lines. Glue or tape to form a cube.
Coloring Page Paul Escaped in a Basket I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. Phil. 4:13 NT10 Lesson 2 Optional God s Unfolding Story for Older Preschoolers, Copyright 2013 - SundaySchoolZone.com