Sunday, May 17, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group TEACHER BIBLE STUDY The Emmaus Disciples Mark 16:12-13; Luke 24:13-35 Jesus death and resurrection should not have surprised the disciples. Sometimes Jesus spoke metaphorically about His death and resurrection. (See Matt. 12:39; Mark 14:58; John 2:19; 3:14-15.) Other times, Jesus plainly told the disciples that He would be betrayed, crucified, buried, and resurrected three days later. (Matt. 17:12; Mark 8:31; Luke 9:22) In fact, Jesus had spoken so frequently of His death and resurrection, the chief priests and Pharisees asked Pilate to place guards at the tomb in case the disciples stole Jesus body. (See Matt. 27:62-66.) On resurrection morning, the angel at Jesus tomb asked the women, Why are you looking for the living among the dead? (Luke 24:5). Even when Peter and John ran to the empty tomb to see it for themselves, Peter was amazed but uncertain (Luke 24:12), while John believed (John 20:8). That same day, two disciples were walking to Emmaus, arguing about recent events. Jesus began walking next to them, but God prevented them from recognizing Him. (Luke 24:16) Jesus simply asked them what they were arguing about. They stopped walking. How could He not have heard about what happened over the last three days? The two disciples had hoped Jesus was the Redeemer of Israel. Their hopes were crushed because Jesus had died. Graciously, Jesus explained to them why the Messiah had to die, starting with Moses and the Prophets. Jesus showed them how the Scriptures point to Him. (Luke 24:27; cf. John 5:39) When they reached Emmaus, the disciples urged Him to stay and eat. As soon as Jesus blessed the bread and broke it, their eyes were opened and they knew they d seen Jesus. (Luke 24:31) Teach your kids the Bible is not a moralistic tale. The Bible is about Jesus. When Adam and Eve sinned, God began working out His plan to send Jesus to rescue people from sin. (Gen. 3:15) All of the Old Testament points forward to Jesus life, death, and resurrection the time when Jesus would bring God s promised salvation for sinners. YOUNGER KIDS BIBLE STUDY OVERVIEW Session Title: The Emmaus Disciples Bible Passage: Mark 16:12-13; Luke 24:13-35 Big Picture Question: What did Jesus explain to the disciples on the road to Emmaus? Jesus explained how the Bible is about Him. Key Passage: Matthew 28:19-20 Unit Christ Connection: Jesus prepared His disciples for a life of ministry. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be with us until He returns. Unit 33 Session 1 Younger Elementary 1
Sunday, May 17, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group Welcome time Activity page (5 minutes) Session starter (10 minutes) Key passage activity (5 minutes) Small Group Time Bible story review (10 minutes) Activity choice (10 minutes) Journal (5 minutes) Prayer (5 minutes) THE BIBLE STORY The Emmaus Disciples Mark 16:12-13; Luke 24:13-35 So much had been happening in Jerusalem! Jesus had been killed on the cross. Three days later, two women went to His tomb and the tomb was empty. Angels told the women that Jesus had risen from the dead! Jesus followers could hardly believe the news. Jesus disciple, Peter, had also gone to the tomb, but Jesus body was not there. On that day, two of Jesus disciples were walking to a village called Emmaus (eh MAY uhs). Emmaus was about seven miles from Jerusalem. The two disciples were talking about everything that had happened. While they were talking, Jesus came up and began walking with them. They did not recognize Jesus. What are you talking about? Jesus asked. The disciples stopped walking. They looked sad. One of the disciples said, Are You the only person in Jerusalem who doesn t know what has happened these last few days? What happened? Jesus asked. The disciples told Him about Jesus, the man from Nazareth. He was a Prophet, they said. He was powerful, and He did and said wonderful things. But the religious leaders handed Him over to be killed, and He died on a cross. We were hoping that He was the One who was going to save Israel. The disciples said that these things happened three days ago. They said that some women had gone to the tomb that morning, but they could not find Jesus body. The women said they had seen angels, and the angels said Jesus was alive. Some of us who followed Jesus went to the tomb, and it was just as the women said, they explained. They did not see Jesus. His body was not there. Jesus said to them, Don t you believe everything the prophets said? Didn t the Messiah have to suffer and die to be glorified? Then Jesus taught the two disciples everything in the Scriptures that was written about Him. He talked about the books written by Moses and the prophets. Jesus and the two disciples arrived at Emmaus, and they asked Jesus to stay with them. So Unit 33 Session 1 Younger Elementary 2
Sunday, May 17, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group Jesus joined them at the dinner table. He took the bread, thanked God for it, and broke it into pieces. Then He gave the pieces to the disciples. Right away, the men realized who the Man was: Jesus! But immediately, Jesus disappeared from their sight. The two disciples thought about their walk to Emmaus. When Jesus talked to us on the road and explained the Scriptures, didn t our hearts feel like they were on fire? They immediately left Emmaus and went back to Jerusalem. They found Jesus Eleven disciples and others who gathered with them. They told them what happened and how they recognized Jesus when He was at dinner with them. The Eleven had news for them, too! They said Jesus had appeared to Simon Peter. Jesus is alive! Christ Connection: The Bible is about Jesus. When Adam and Eve sinned, God began working out His plan to send Jesus to rescue people from sin. (Genesis 3:15) All of the Old Testament points forward to Jesus life, death, and resurrection the time when Jesus would bring God s promised salvation for sinners. SMALL GROUP OPENING Session Title: The Emmaus Disciples Bible Passage: Mark 16:12-13; Luke 24:13-35 Big Picture Question: What did Jesus explain to the disciples on the road to Emmaus? Jesus explained how the Bible is about Him. Key Passage: Matthew 28:19-20 Unit Christ Connection: Jesus prepared His disciples for a life of ministry. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be with us until He returns. Welcome time: Arriving Activity: Jesus in the Old Testament hunt Bibles, 1 per kid As each kid arrives make sure he has a Bible. Encourage kids to look through the Old Testament to see how many times they see Jesus name. Say Did any of you find Jesus name in the Old Testament? No? You did not because the Old Testament writers did not know the Messiah woud be named Jesus. Even though we do not see the name Jesus in the Old Testament, the Old Testament points forward to His work. In our Bible story today, Jesus showed His disciples how the Old Testament Scriptures told about Him. Unit 33 Session 1 Younger Elementary 3
Sunday, May 17, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group Activity page (5 minutes) The Road to Emmaus activity page, 1 per kid pencils Guide boys and girls to complete the activity page. Kids will complete the maze to help Jesus and the disciples find the way to Emmaus. Say In today s Bible story, some disciples were walking to Emmaus when the risen Jesus joined them! Session starter (10 minutes) Option 1: Story- story Lead kids to stand in a circle. Explain to kids that they will make up a story about you. Give them an opening line such as One day, [Leader s name] was in his/her yard, when all of a sudden... and guide one child to start the story. After that child tells a few sentences, point to the next child in the circle. He will pick up the story where the other child left off. Continue until all the kids who want to participate have a turn or until time runs out. Say In today s Bible story, some of Jesus disciples told Jesus about everything that happened to Him. Unlike the story you told about me, their story was true! Let s discover what they said! Option 2: Funny walks Lead kids to walk around the room in funny ways. Allow kids to be creative. If kids need some direction, suggest: duck walk (walking in a squat), bear crawl (walking on hands and feet, facing the floor), crab walk (walking on hands and feet, facing the ceiling), high knees (walking while bringing knees up to the chest), and so forth. Say In today s Bible story, two of Jesus disciples were walking to the village of Emmaus. They probably walked normally instead of walking silly like us. While they were walking, they met with someone very special. Let s find out whom! Unit 33 Session 1 Younger Elementary 4
Sunday, May 17, 2015 SMALL GROUP LEADER Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group Session Title: The Emmaus Disciples Bible Passage: Mark 16:12-13; Luke 24:13-35 Big Picture Question: What did Jesus explain to the disciples on the road to Emmaus? Jesus explained how the Bible is about Him. Key Passage: Matthew 28:19-20 Unit Christ Connection: Jesus prepared His disciples for a life of ministry. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be with us until He returns. Key passage activity (5 minutes) Key Passage Slide or Poster dry erase board and markers (optional) paper markers scissors tape Make sure the key passage, Matthew 28:19-20, is visible for each child, either as the printed poster or written on a dry erase board. Read the verse together. Say Our key passage for this unit has a special name, the Great Commission. A commission is a command or instruction given to a person or a group of people. The Great Commission is a command that Jesus gave to His followers to tell people about Him. Before class, write the key passage on a piece of paper. On the other side of the paper, write The Great Commission in a different color. Cut the paper into pieces. Hide the pieces around the room. Invite kids to search for the pieces of the key passage. Once kids find all the pieces, lead them to put the pieces together. Tape the pieces together and flip the page over to reveal the Great Commission. Bible story review (10 minutes) Bibles, 1 per kid Small Group Visual Pack Big Picture Question Slide or Poster paper, two sheets marker tape Encourage the kids to find Luke 24 or Mark 16 in their Bibles. Help them as needed. Say Today s story comes from Luke 24 and Mark 16. Are the Books of Luke and Mark in the Unit 33 Session 1 Younger Elementary 5
Sunday, May 17, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group Old Testament or New Testament? (New Testament) In what division are these books found? (Gospels) The Gospels tell us about Jesus life on earth. 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. Before class, write the words Jerusalem and Emmaus on separate sheets of paper. Post them at opposite ends of the room. Assemble your group at the Jerusalem sign while holding the Bible. As you retell the story, slowly walk with the kids toward the Emmaus sign. Stop when you read about the disciples stopping to explain what they were talking about to Jesus. Continue on to the Emmaus sign. As you reach the part of the story where the disciples hurried back to Jerusalem, lead the group to walk quickly back to the Jerusalem sign. Say God has given us such a precious gift in the Bible. The Emmaus disciples only had the first part of the story, the Old Testament Scriptures. Jesus showed the Emmaus disciples how He fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies about Himself. We are blessed that we have the full story. We can read about Jesus in the Old Testament and the New Testament. We can clearly see that Jesus is our Rescuer! Show the big picture question slide or poster. Say What did Jesus explain to the disciples on the road to Emmaus? Jesus explained how the Bible is about Him. Even though we do not see Jesus name in every story of the Bible, we know that every story points to the bigger story of how God sent His Son to save His people from sin and bring glory to Himself! Activity choice (10 minutes) Option 1: Bible skills Bibles, 1 per kid Spend some time leading kids to explore the Bible. Provide a Bible for any child who does not have one. Demonstrate how to use the table of contents. Point out the Old Testament and the New Testament. Tell kids that the Gospels are the first four books of the New Testament. Explain that the chapter numbers are usually printed large and the verse numbers are usually printed small. Point out that words Jesus spoke are sometimes printed in red. Share tips to help kids navigate their Bibles, such as opening it toward the middle to find the Book of Psalms or dividing it into fourths. The first three- fourths of the Bible make up the Old Testament. The last fourth makes up the New Testament. You may choose to challenge kids to look up verses for speed and accuracy. Consider calling out verses in the Old Testament that point to Jesus. Unit 33 Session 1 Younger Elementary 6
Sunday, May 17, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group Genesis 22:18 Jesus is the offspring of Abraham. 2 Samuel 7:12,13 Jesus is the Son of David. Psalm 78:2-4 Jesus spoke in parables. Isaiah 53 Jesus was a suffering servant. Micah 5:2 Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Say The Bible is the most important book there ever was or ever will be. Everything in the Bible is true. The Bible tells us everything we need to know about God, Jesus, and even ourselves. It is God s Word. What did Jesus explain to the disciples on the road to Emmaus? Jesus explained how the Bible is about Him. Option 2: Invisible ink messages white paper cotton swab lemon juice bowl lamp or hair dryer Encourage kids to write messages about Jesus with invisible ink. Invite kids to dip a cotton swab in lemon juice and write a message on their white paper. Allow kids to be creative in what they would like to say, but keep the messages about Jesus. Suggest Jesus is alive! Jesus is God s Son! or Jesus saves sinners! Direct kids to let their messages dry completely. Hidden messages may be revealed by holding the paper over a heat source such as a lightbulb or hair dryer. Encourage kids to give their message to someone who needs to hear about Jesus. Say Jesus disciples were not able to recognize Jesus until God made them see Him. Let s ask God to use our secret messages to help other people see how wonderful Jesus is. What did Jesus explain to the disciples on the road to Emmaus? Jesus explained how the Bible is about Him. Unit 33 Session 1 Younger Elementary 7
Sunday, May 17, 2015 Kidzone KG and 1st Grade Small Group 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 the Bible. Writers can write a favorite Bible verse or the big picture question and answer. Say Does anyone know the answer to our big picture question? What did Jesus explain to the disciples on the road to Emmaus? Jesus explained how the Bible is about Him. If time remains, take prayer requests or allow kids to complete the coloring page provided with this session. Pray, thanking God for fulfilling His promises in Jesus. Pray for each child by name, asking God to show them that Jesus is the Risen Savior and that the Bible is about Him. Dismiss to parents Make sure to check security tags when dismissing children. Unit 33 Session 1 Younger Elementary 8
Unit 33 Session 1 The Emmaus Disciples 2014 LifeWay OK TO PRINT Jesus Prepared the Disciples
UNIT 33 Session 1 Younger Kids Activity Pages Instructions: Help the disciples get to Jesus. Then help Jesus and the disciples get to Emmaus. Jesus Prepared the Disciples