PRESCHOOL & KINDERGARTEN KIDS & FAMILIES date
3.7
My son’s first attempt at sharing the good news of Jesus Christ was not successful, but it was a very proud moment for me. Inspire (for parents) When I was in first grade, my favorite part of the school day was lunchtime. This was true for my youngest son as well. As a mom, I enjoyed working in the classroom and hanging out for lunch. I noticed that lunchrooms hadn’t changed much over the years. The chaos, noise, and mess were very familiar, and I was happy to be sitting amongst it all one day with my youngest son, Kevin. Across the table, a little girl with fire-red curly hair smiled brightly. “Hi, Kevin,” she said with great enthusiasm. “Hi,” he replied, with considerably less enthusiasm. Kevin’s friendly lunch mate was about to continue the conversation when he bowed his head, folded his hands, and closed his eyes. The little girl looked confused. She leaned across the table and yelled, “What are you doing?” Without moving a muscle, Kevin gently said, “I’m praying.” His reply failed to appease her. “What are you doing that for?” she queried.
Kevin looked up, sighed quietly, and replied, “I’m praying to Jesus to thank Him for my food. Everything comes from Jesus—He’s my best friend. Do you want me to tell you about Him?” “Nope,” she answered abruptly as she bit into her sandwich. My son’s first attempt at sharing the good news of Jesus Christ was not successful, but it was a very proud moment for me. I prayed that Kevin would have more opportunities to tell the good news with genuine love and kindness so others might be drawn to Jesus and the salvation He freely gives. Sue Funkhouser
d Starte Getting ew 28:16–20
atth Scripture: M mission) (The Great Com d News sus Is the Goo Main Point: Je your family to signed to allow de is n ce ur so This re re your childre od’s Word befo G in e r fo tim is ve ha ’s plan . Because God of attend church tual nurturers iri sp y ar the prim grow u yo as parents to be at th faith, we know well. their children’s ow spiritually as children will gr ur yo ly, al tu iri sp
Equip (for parents) Equip is additional background information that will help as you introduce this passage of Scripture to your children this week. Jesus is the Good News. Shortly after the resurrection He appeared to the women outside of His tomb. He instructed them to go tell the Eleven to meet Him at Galilee (Matthew 28:10). The fact that Jesus had His disciples meet Him in Galilee suggests they had a predetermined meeting place following the resurrection (Matthew 26:32). When Jesus met with His disciples, He commissioned them to go and carry on His work. To commission is to give “authority to act for, in behalf of, or in place of another, or a task or matter entrusted to one as the agent for another” (Merriam-Webster). In His commissioning of the 11 men, Jesus gave them His authority—to act on His behalf—and instructed them to make disciples of all nations, declaring the universal nature of the gospel. Raising disciples was common among philosophers, pagan religious cults, and also the Jewish faith. Within the Jewish religion, sages are spoken of as having raised disciples and encouraged many to become students of the ways of the Law and faith by studying Torah. However, what differentiates Jesus’ commissioning from others’ was His directive to go make disciples of all nations—not a particular people group, but all people. In addition, the disciples, unlike other ancient teachers, would not raise disciples for themselves, but only for Jesus. The Great Commission is not for the 11 disciples alone. It is for all who come to faith and call Jesus Christ Lord. Each of us are called to cross whatever boundaries are necessary to reach those who have not yet heard the good news that Jesus is the Christ. Whether in the deepest, remote locations, or in everyday relationships, we must go.
REMEMBER VERSE
“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Isaiah 6:3
Support (for parents & kids) JUST FOR FUN this week, get a newspaper, sit down with your children, and show them how the newspaper works. Share with them that the newspaper gives us the news both locally and around the world. Read a couple of age-appropriate stories of the day. Then tell them you’re going to read from The Big God Story, which is the best news of all! Read together Matthew 28:16–20. After reading, ask your children what they think the good news is. Tell them that Jesus wants us to share the news, to everyone we meet, that He loves us and we can all be part of His family. Remind your children they’ll hear more in church this week about Jesus being the Good News.
… cross whatever boundaries are necessary to reach those who have not yet heard …
© 2012 David C Cook. TruResources are developed in partnership with ROCKHARBOR Church and a national network of family and children’s ministry leaders. All rights reserved.