Sunday, July 19, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group TEACHER BIBLE STUDY Paul s Conversion and Baptism Acts 8:1-3; 9:1-31 Saul was no stranger to religion. He grew up in a religious household. He was a devout Jew who was born in Tarsus (Phil. 3:5) and inherited his Roman citizenship from his father. So when people began talking about this man named Jesus and claiming that He was the promised Messiah, Saul was defensive. Saul believed strongly in the Jewish faith of his ancestors. He violently persecuted God s church and tried to destroy it. (Gal. 1:13-14) He dragged believers from their houses and put them in prison. He approved of the stoning of Stephen, the first Christian martyr. Saul thought he was doing the right thing by defending Judaism, but God s purposes could not be stopped. As Saul was on his way to arrest believers in Damascus, the Lord stopped him in his tracks. Jesus revealed Himself to Saul, and Saul was never the same. He was struck blind and led into Damascus, where a believer named Ananias placed his hands on Saul. Suddenly, Saul could see again. Saul was convinced that Jesus is Lord. Saul later described the experience as being like dying and receiving a new life. (Gal. 2:20; 2 Cor. 5:17) God had a purpose and a plan for Saul. He had set Saul apart before Saul was even born. (Gal. 1:15) God said, This man is My chosen instrument to take My name to the Gentiles (Acts 9:15). Jesus changed Saul s life. As you teach kids, clarify that conversion happens when a person recognizes his sin, repents, believes in Jesus, and confesses Jesus as Savior and Lord. Jesus changes a person s heart, and as a result, his or her life is changed too. Jesus appeared to Saul and changed him inside and out. Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. (1 Tim. 1:15) Jesus called Saul, who was once an enemy of Christians, to spend the rest of his life telling people the gospel and leading them to trust Jesus as Lord and Savior. YOUNGER KIDS BIBLE STUDY OVERVIEW Session Title: Paul s Conversion and Baptism Bible Passage: Acts 8:1-3; 9:1-31 Big Picture Question: How did Jesus change Saul s life? Jesus saved Saul from his sins. Key Passage: Romans 1:16 Unit Christ Connection: God chose Paul to be a witness to all he had seen and heard of the risen Christ. Unit 35 Session 1 Younger Elementary 1
Sunday, July 19, 2015 Welcome time Activity page (5 minutes) Session starter (10 minutes) Key passage activity (5 minutes) Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group Small Group Time THE BIBLE STORY Paul s Conversion and Baptism Acts 8:1-3; 9:1-31 Bible story review (10 minutes) Activity choice (10 minutes) Journal (5 minutes) Prayer (5 minutes) When Stephen, a follower of Jesus, was killed for his faith, a man named Saul thought it was the right thing to do. At that time, the believers of the church in Jerusalem were being persecuted. Saul wanted to put an end to the church. He went into the houses of the people who believed in Jesus, dragged them out, and put them in jail. Many believers fled the city. Saul headed to Damascus (duh MASS kuhs) to arrest believers there. But on the way, a very bright light from heaven suddenly flashed around him. Saul fell to the ground. He heard a voice saying, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? Who are You, Lord? Saul asked. I am Jesus, He replied. Get up and go into the city. Then you will be told what you must do. Saul got up and opened his eyes, but he couldn t see! So the men who were traveling with Saul led him by the hand into Damascus. A disciple of Jesus lived in Damascus. His name was Ananias (an uh NIGH uhs). The Lord spoke to Ananias in a vision. He told him to go to the house where Saul was staying. Ananias had heard of Saul. He knew that Saul had hurt many believers in Jerusalem and that he arrested anyone who believed in Jesus. But the Lord said, Go! I have chosen this man to take My name to Gentiles, kings, and the Israelites. Ananias obeyed the Lord. He found Saul and told Saul that Jesus had sent him to help Saul. Ananias put his hands on Saul, and suddenly Saul could see again. Saul got up and was baptized. For the next few days, Saul stayed with the believers in Damascus. He began to go to the synagogues to preach about Jesus. Saul told the people, Jesus is the Son of God! The people were amazed. They recognized Saul and knew he had wanted to put an end to the church and all the believers. Now he was one of them! The Jews did not like Saul s message, so they planned to kill him. Saul heard what the Jews wanted to do, so one night he left the city. The disciples helped Saul escape by lowering him down the city wall in a basket. Saul went to Jerusalem. He tried to join in with the other believers, but they did not trust him. Unit 35 Session 1 Younger Elementary 2
Sunday, July 19, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group They knew Saul had been an enemy of believers. How could he be their friend? But one believer, Barnabas, accepted Saul. He told the other apostles how God had changed Saul and how Saul had preached about Jesus in Damascus. Saul stayed with the believers in Jerusalem. He spoke boldly for God. But the Jews in the city wanted to kill Saul, so the believers sent Saul away. Now the church was at peace. The group of believers became stronger, and more people joined the church. Later, Saul became known by his Roman name, Paul. Christ Connection: Jesus appeared to Saul and changed him inside and out. Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. (1 Timothy 1:15) Jesus called Saul, also known as Paul, who was once an enemy to Christians, to spend the rest of his life telling people the gospel and leading them to trust Jesus as Lord and Savior. SMALL GROUP OPENING Session Title: Paul s Conversion and Baptism Bible Passage: Acts 8:1-3; 9:1-31 Big Picture Question: How did Jesus change Saul s life? Jesus saved Saul from his sins. Key Passage: Romans 1:16 Unit Christ Connection: God chose Paul to be a witness to all he had seen and heard of the risen Christ. Welcome time: Arriving Activity: Picture pass Place index cards in a stack. Whisper the name of an object to the first kid, and ask him to draw it on the top card. Guide the next kid to look at the drawing, put the first card at the bottom of the stack, and write the name of the object on the top card. The next child will put the top card to the back and draw what was written. Review all cards after each child has had a turn. Say Our object probably changed quite a bit since it was whispered to the first person. A big change happened in a man named Saul s life in our story today. How did Jesus change Saul s life? We ll find out! Unit 35 Session 1 Younger Elementary 3
Sunday, July 19, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group Activity page (5 minutes) What s Different? activity page, 1 per kid pencils Guide boys and girls to complete the activity page. Say Does your family ever go on walks? In our story today, Saul walked to Damascus, but he was going to arrest Christians! Something happened that would change his life forever. What might have happened? Session starter (10 minutes) Option 1: Do the opposite Guide kids to stand. Explain that you will give instructions, but they should not follow them. Instead, they should do the opposite. For example, if you ask them to stand, kids will sit; or if you ask them to yell, kids will whisper. Play for fun, or you may play it Simon Says style with kids who perform the wrong motion sitting out until you have one winner. Say In our story today, Saul was on the road to Damascus when he heard Jesus! Saul went from hurting Christians to being a Christian who loved others and told them about Jesus. His life was the opposite of what it once was! Option 2: Find the opposites index cards, 1 per child marker Write opposite words or phrases on separate cards and hide them around the room. Include stand up, sit down, stop, go, mean, kind, happy, sad, left, and right. Guide each kid to retrieve one card and look at it. Ask kids to find and stand with the kid who has the opposite of their card. Prompt each pair to read their words aloud after all kids have found their matches. Say Today, we ll learn about the time that Saul heard from Jesus and became someone opposite of who he had been. Saul was going to Damascus to find and hurt Christians, but Jesus told him to stop persecuting Him. Saul s life was completely changed, and he began to love and obey Jesus. Unit 35 Session 1 Younger Elementary 4
Sunday, July 19, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group SMALL GROUP LEADER Session Title: Paul s Conversion and Baptism Bible Passage: Acts 8:1-3; 9:1-31 Big Picture Question: How did Jesus change Saul s life? Jesus saved Saul from his sins. Key Passage: Romans 1:16 Unit Christ Connection: God chose Paul to be a witness to all he had seen and heard of the risen Christ. Key passage activity (5 minutes) Key Passage Slide or Poster dry erase board and markers (optional) Tip: If using a poster instead of a dry erase board, cover words with sticky notes. Make sure the key passage, Romans 1:16, is visible for each child, either as the printed poster or written on a dry erase board. Read the verse together. Say Jesus kept God s law perfectly, so He was the only One who could pay for our sins and give us His righteousness. This righteousness is available to anyone who trusts Jesus as Savior and Lord of his life. This is good news! Write the words of the verse on a dry erase board. Ask kids to say the verse together, and then allow a kid to wipe away one word. Say the verse again, correctly replacing the missing word. Continue until all the words have been erased and attempt to say the verse without any help. Bible story review (10 minutes) Bibles, 1 per kid Small Group Visual Pack Big Picture Question Slide or Poster slips of paper pen Encourage the kids to find Acts 8 9 in their Bibles. Help them as needed. Say Where is the Book of Acts located in the Bible? (after the Gospels) Acts is a book of History. It tells about the history of the early church. Use the small group visual pack to show kids where today s Bible story is on the timeline. Review the Bible story provided using the bolded text, or summarize the story in your own words. Explain that these events happened after Jesus death and resurrection. Many people had heard about Jesus, and some passionately opposed Him like Saul. Saul tried to find Jesus followers and throw them in jail, but when Unit 35 Session 1 Younger Elementary 5
Sunday, July 19, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group Jesus spoke to him on the road to Damascus, Saul s life changed! Let s review our story. Write each scene of Saul s conversion story on a slip of paper. (I hated Christians and wanted to put them in jail. A bright light blinded me, and I heard the voice of Jesus. A man named Ananias prayed for me and I could see again. I tried to preach, but most people didn t trust me. Some Jewish leaders got angry at me, so my friends helped me escape.) Guide each kid to draw a slip of paper. Explain that he will act out what is on his paper. Lead kids to review the story by placing the slips in order. Say Saul was changed because Jesus had saved him from his sins! Show the big picture question slide or poster. Say How did Jesus change Saul s life? Jesus saved Saul from his sins. Saul s life looked very different after he began following Jesus. He treated Christians the opposite of how he had treated them before. Saul went from persecuting Christians to being a Christian and telling others about Jesus. Activity choice (10 minutes) Option 1: A new heart white paper permanent marker markers crayons craft sticks, 1 per child Say When we trust Jesus to forgive our sins and give us eternal life, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of us. He helps us become more and more like Jesus. Draw a large heart shape with a permanent marker on a sheet of white paper for each child. Ask kids to use markers to write words that describe Jesus inside the heart shape. Explain that the Holy Spirit works to make our hearts more and more like Jesus. Then, give kids a dark crayon. Ask them to color over the heart with the crayon. Explain that sin keeps our heart from being like Jesus. After the hearts are covered in dark crayon, show the kids how to scratch off the dark crayon with a craft stick to the reveal their designs underneath. Explain that Jesus takes away our sins and makes our heart new when we repent of our sins and trust Him. He helps us to love others with His love. Say Jesus changes us when we trust Him as our Savior and Lord. How did Jesus change Saul s life? Jesus saved Saul from his sins. Jesus wants to save all people from their sins, and He promises that He will save us and send the Holy Spirit to help us become more and more like Him. Unit 35 Session 1 Younger Elementary 6
Sunday, July 19, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group Option 2: Make play dough Makes 8-10 small balls of dough: 4 c. flour 11/2 c. salt 2 T. vegetable oil 1 c. warm water food color (a few drops) waxed paper (optional) Gather kids around you and mix all dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately before combining in a large bowl. Give each child a small amount and guide them to knead it until smooth on a surface dusted with flour or a piece of wax paper. Explain that the dough has changed. It is no longer flour and water but is now entirely different. Say When we trust Jesus to pay for our sins and ask Him to be in control of our lives, He makes us different and new. Jesus paid for our sins on the cross so that God would see us as if we have never sinned. Jesus made the way for us to have a relationship with God. This good news is for all people. This good news was for Saul, too. The good news about Jesus changed Saul s life. How did Jesus change Saul s life? Jesus saved Saul from his sin. Journal and prayer (5 minutes) Journal Page, 1 per kid markers or crayons Bible Story Coloring Page Distribute each child s journal page provided with this session. Instruct the kids to draw a picture of something they might do that shows they follow Jesus. Writers can list things that they do that show they love Jesus. Say We can show that Jesus has made a change in our hearts by the way we live. We want to please Him with our actions because He paid for our sins on the cross and has given us eternal life. How did Jesus change Saul s life? Jesus saved Saul from his sins. Jesus changes our lives when he saves us from our sins, too! If time remains, take prayer requests or allow kids to complete the coloring page provided with this session. Pray for each child by name, asking that the Holy Spirit would work in her heart so that she may live a life that pleases God. Dismiss to parents Make sure to check security tags when dismissing children. Unit 35 Session 1 Younger Elementary 7
UNIT 35 Session 1 Paul s Conversion and Baptism 2015 LifeWay OK TO PRINT Paul s Conversion and Ministry
UNIT 35 Session 1 Younger Kids Activity Pages Paul s Conversion and Ministry Instructions: Find the 8 differences between the two images. 7