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Jesus: Son of God
I believe Jesus is the Son of God
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4 weeks at a glance
One lesson a week. Lesson 1 is free to read and print. The rest come with the curriculum.
- 1I Believe Jesus Is the Son of GodThe Parable of the Sower · Matthew 13You’re reading this one
- 2I Believe Jesus Is the Sacrifice for SinPeter’s denial and forgiveness · Luke 22Included when you buy
- 3I Believe Jesus Is the Risen KingJudas and the Parable of the Sower · Matthew 26Included when you buy
- 4I Believe Jesus Is Coming Back Again!Thomas · John 20Included when you buy
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Preparation for the I Believe Curriculum
What do the children in your ministry believe? Do they believe Jesus was raised from the dead? Do they believe that the Bible is true? Their answers may or may not surprise you!
Before diving into the I Believe curriculum, please take a moment to have the children complete the following questionnaire. This activity will provide them with an opportunity to reflect, and express for themselves, what they believe.
This will also give you valuable insight as to what biblical truths need to be reinforced. As part of the final lesson, children will revisit the questionnaire to see if their beliefs have changed through the study of God’s Word.
Items Needed
Instructions
Please hand out the questionnaire to each child, along with a pencil to complete it. Make sure to have leaders available to help assist the younger ones with reading and circling their answers. They should be instructed not to guide the children in their answers.
Print the questionnaire from your curriculum download.
Music
- I Believe
- Lord I Lift Your Name on High
- Christ Arose
- Christ the Lord is Risen Today
Previews play here. The full music videos, with lyrics on screen, come with the curriculum.
Decoration Ideas
- Plants, flowers, or herbs
- Various garden tools: rake, shovel, hoe, hand fork and trowel
- Gardening gloves
- Seedbags
- Dirt or potting soil
- Watering can
- Hose
- Garden cart
Prepare with Scripture
Teachers: Here are some additional passages of Scripture to read beforehand as you pray and prepare to teach from God’s Word.
But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.”
“I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.”
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Opening Activity
Items Needed:
Before the children arrive have John 3:16-18 written somewhere that can be displayed for the large group to read together at a later time. It would be best to have the verses hidden and not available for the children to see as they come in so they make use of their Bibles. Have a way to highlight the repeated words in the passage when discussing with the group (i.e. red marker to circle, easy access to toolbar in order to highlight on screen, additional slide for powerpoint, etc). You will be referencing back to these displayed verses for Lessons 2, 3, and 4.
As the children arrive make sure they have brought a Bible. If they do not have one, pair them up with another child who does. With their partner, or on their own, have them look up John 3:16-18. Ask them to pay close attention to any words that are repeated in this passage and talk about it with their partner. Share with them that when a word is repeated in the Bible, it usually means it is very important and that God wants us to remember it. Make sure to have leaders available to assist the younger ones in reading the passage, or you can pair younger ones with an older child.
Begin music videos now.
Large Group Opening
Items Needed:
When you think about the Easter story, who do you think about?
Answer: Jesus!
Jesus is the main character in the Easter story. He is also the key person in the Christmas story. As a matter of fact, the whole Bible talks about God’s only Son, Jesus! The true stories tell about the Father sending His Son into the world to save people from their sins.
When you came in this morning, you looked up a very well known passage that talks about this. You probably have some of it memorized and can recite it without much effort, but have you ever thought about what these verses mean? Let’s read John 3:16-18 together. If you can’t read yet, just listen closely so you can hear God’s words to us.
Read John 3:16-18 together. Make sure to read from your Bible.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
There were some key words in these verses that were repeated over and over again. Which ones did you see or hear more than once?
At this time show the prepared verses on the slide, whiteboard, or poster.
The word ‘believe’ was mentioned four times!
If time allows, choose a volunteer to circle where they see the word ‘believe’ used four different times as you continue to speak.
If this word is repeated FOUR times in the passage that describes why God sent Jesus to live and die on the Earth, then it must be VERY important! Who does God want us to believe in?
His Son, Jesus! The word ‘Son’ was mentioned three times.
Choose another volunteer to circle the word ‘Son’ used three different times as you continue to speak.
Jesus is the One and Only Son of God which makes Him unique or different from any other person who has ever lived. He is God’s Son born of a virgin to be fully God AND fully human. There is no other person in history that is like Jesus! He is the only One qualified to fulfill God’s purpose as the Savior of the World!
There is one more word that is repeated three times in this passage so we shouldn’t skip over it. It’s the word ‘condemned’ and it means to be found guilty. It sounds pretty serious because it is! We’ll spend some time talking more about that later on in the weeks ahead, but right now I have a question for you.
Where did Jesus live before He lived on Earth? Who did He live with?
Answer: In heaven with God the Father
That means Jesus knows everything about God, His Father. If someone wanted to know about your dad, what would you be able to tell them? I’m guessing you could probably share a lot of information about your dad, because you have lived with him and know him better than most people.
Jesus knows His Father more than anyone. He also knows all the secrets and the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven! He was sent to Earth by God the Father so that we can know Him personally and be close to Him.
Do you want to know what Jesus said?
His words can be found right here! (Hold your Bible up high) Jesus gives us the secrets of heaven in the parables He told and they can be found in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
A parable is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning. Even though parables can sometimes be difficult to understand, they tell us more about our Heavenly Father. Reading God’s Word is one of the ways in which we can learn more about Him.
The parable that we are going to read today is called The Parable of the Sower. To sow means to plant seed for growth and a sower is another name for a farmer.
When do farmers and gardeners usually plant their seeds?
Answer: In the Spring!
As we prepare to celebrate Easter this spring, we are going to hear how God plants seeds of faith in us. He wants our faith to grow. We’re going to learn together what we can do to help our faith grow in Jesus. Believing in Jesus and what He did for us on the cross is what Easter is all about!
Do you believe Jesus is God’s Son and that His words are true? Do you believe that if God has the power to raise Jesus from the dead, He also has the power to help you understand the Bible?
Listen carefully in your small groups today so you can learn the same hidden secrets Jesus taught while He was on Earth. Let’s pray together and ask God to help us understand what they are.
Heavenly Father, we want to know the mysteries of Your kingdom. We believe in Your power and the resurrection of Jesus. Thank You for sending Him to Earth to teach us more about You. Please give us wisdom to understand Your Holy Word so we can know You more. Amen.
Dismiss for the small group lesson.
Small Group Bible Lesson
Items Needed
Even though the Scriptures are printed here, make sure you and the children are reading directly from the Bible. For leaders of younger children who will not be able to read on their own, have them follow along in their Bibles while you read.
Boys and girls, I want you to tell me if you have ever felt this way on a Sunday morning…
(Pretend to yawn)
Why do we have to go to church? I could be in bed right now.
(Rub your stomach)
Did you hear that? My stomach just growled SO loud because I’m SOOO hungry! I didn’t have time to eat breakfast this morning.
(Look at your watch and sigh)
I came in late and this is STILL taking FOREVER. Could we just hurry up with the lesson so I can get some pancakes or something? Maybe there’s a good snack today…is anyone having a birthday?
Have you ever come to church with this kind of attitude?
I want to challenge you right now if you are feeling tired, hungry, and grumpy this morning and don’t think you need to be here. I want you to remember that God is choosing you right now to hear His words spoken through His Son, Jesus. He is choosing you to know His secrets. Let’s open our Bibles to Matthew 13 and read together The Parable of the Sower. Remember, to sow means to plant. Let’s do our best to listen carefully. Jesus says that if we understand this parable, it will help us to understand other parables.
Read Matthew 13:1-9
The Parable of the Sower
That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.”
This parable is also known as the parable of the soils, since Jesus is talking about the different types of soil or dirt that the farmer’s seed falls on. What types of soil did you hear Jesus describe?
Answer: hard or shallow, rocky, thorny, and good soil
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