Christmas: Pass the Parcel

Tell the Christmas story via a simple interactive party game.

A Son is Given

 1. Lesson:

• Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given
• Why do we celebrate Christmas? To remember God coming down to earth as a little baby.
• When man chose not to rely on God but to go their own way, they were separated from God by sin. Nothing they did could bring them back to God. We were lost. Hopeless. Helpless.
• But God had a solution — Thousands of years ago, God promised that He will send a very special Saviour to save us. He would send Himself.
• This Saviour was special. He would be:
•  A Child
•  A Son

Jesus meets Zacchaeus

 

1. Story:

• Tell the story of Zacchaeus meeting Jesus (based on Luke 19:1-10)

2. Lesson

a. INTRO:

• Last week, we heard how Jesus met and healed someone on the road to Jericho. Who can remember who it was? Bartimaeus the blind beggar.
• Today, we will learn about how Jesus met another person in Jericho. He wasn’t blind. He wasn’t poor. In fact, he was very rich. But he wasn’t well liked and he was short. His name was Zacchaeus, and he was a chief tax collector.

Jesus heals blind Bartimaeus

1. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus healing the blind man (based on Mark 10:46-52 or Luke 18:35-42)

2. Lesson:

• The blind beggar, Bartimaeus, could not see. But he could hear the crowd passing by. And he could shout. So he shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.”
• How did the crowd react? They scolded him. They asked him to be quiet. In their eyes, blind people should be seen and not heard — maybe they thought he was unworthy to disturb Jesus.

God's word on Joy

 1. Lesson

•  Song: Introduce a song on “Joy” (suggestions below)
• I’ve got Joy and it’s down in my heart
• I’ve got a joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart
• This joy that I have
• Rejoice in the Lord always
• 
  
• Next month we celebrate Christmas. Does anyone know any Christmas songs?
• <open for suggestions of carols … answer to highlight:  “Joy to the World!”>
•  Why do we sing “Joy to the World”? Because when Jesus came, He brought His joy!
• 
  
• What is joy? <Some kids will say “happiness”>
• <Get kids to share>What was your happiest moment? What was your saddest?

Jesus and the Rich Young Ruler

Lesson: Let us trust in Jesus

1. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus and the rich young ruler, based on Luke 18:18-27.
• This young man asked Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” — He thought he could earn eternal life by what he does

Jesus welcomes the Children

Lesson: Let us come to Jesus

1. Tell the story of Jesus and the children from Luke 18:15-17. 

• As Jesus was busy teaching one day, some people wanted to bring their children and babies to see Jesus. They wanted Jesus to touch their babies and bless them. But as they tried to come near, some of the disciples saw them and stopped them. Maybe they thought that Jesus wouldn’t want to be interrupted by a drooling baby or a grubby kid. What if they started crying and disturbed everyone else?
• But Jesus saw them and said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not stop them, because the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these." 
• Isn’t that wonderful? Jesus wasn’t too busy for the children. He wasn’t too important for little toddlers. He said that the Kingdom of God belonged to them, so they should be allowed to come whenever they wanted.

The Pharisee and the Tax Collector

Lesson: Let us boast in Jesus

1. Story: Tell the Parable of the "Pharisee and the Tax Collector" based on Luke 18:9-13.

God's word on Protection in Jesus

1. Lesson:

• Psalm 91 tells us about the protection God gives to us, His children.

• Let’s read Psalm 91 together: 
• (Good News Version or Plain EnglishVersion)
• Psalm 91 tells us about the protection God gives to us, His children.

Jesus heals 10 lepers

1. Lesson: Tell the story of Jesus healing the 10 lepers from Luke 17:11-18. You can some pix from here.

• We’ve learnt about leprosy before. What is leprosy? 
• A dreaded and contagious skin disease that causes disfigurement. Lepers had to leave their family and homes and live outside the city. They can’t go near other people. They have to call out, “Unclean, unclean” every time they come into the city.
• That’s why when the 10 lepers saw Jesus, they stood at a distance from him.
• They called “Jesus, Master, have pity on us.” They must have known that Jesus was not an ordinary person. That He cared for people, and He had the power to do something about their situation.

Parable of the Lost Sons

Lesson: The Father's heart is full of compassion

1. Story: Tell the parable of The Lost Sons based on Luke 15:11-31. You can choose to get kids to act the story out as you narrate, with props (e.g. fake money, ring, shoes etc)

Parable of The Lost Coin

Lesson: We are important to Jesus (Part II)

  
1. Icebreaker: 

Hide coins/circles/chocolate coins around the room. Divide kids into 2 groups and and get them to look for the coins (QUIETLY). Group with most coins wins.

2. Story:

• Tell the story of the woman who lost her silver coin from Luke15:8-10. 
• Heart for the lost:
• Remember that Jesus was friends with the “sinners” — the tax collectors and prostitutes and those who knew that they couldn’t help themselves?
• Each of these people was like the lost silver coin in the story. They were valuable. Important. Not forgotten.
• Jesus wanted the religious leaders to understand how he felt about those who were lost.

Parable of the Lost Sheep

Lesson: We are important to Jesus

1. Story & Lesson

• The lesson is based on Luke 15:1-7
• When Jesus was on earth, many people liked to be His friends. However, many of them were not “respectable” people in the community. They were the outcasts — the tax collectors and the sinners.
• The Pharisees and scribes saw Jesus eating with these “sinners” — these unholy people — and they criticised Him. “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.” These
• Pharisees didn’t like that Jesus was getting so popular. And they thought that He couldn’t be a holy man because He hung out with the “bad” crowd. After all, they were the holy ones — they kept all the laws and did all the right things.
• So Jesus told them this parable of the Lost Sheep. 

God's word on Peace in Jesus

Lesson: Jesus is our Peace

1. Intro: Hurricane facts (bring pix, vids etc)

• Who knows what a hurricane is?
• A hurricane is a huge storm. It starts from the sea, with strong winds.
• It can reach a speed of 600 miles an hour. (give example of how fast that is)
• When the hurricane reaches land, it causes big damage to buildings, plants, animals, people ... due to flooding, heavy rains and strong winds.
• The winds blow in anti-clockwise direction and the centre of the wind is called the "eye" of the hurricane.
• In the "eye" of the hurricane, it is very calm. 

• In Malaysia, we are very blessed to be safe from hurricanes.
• But in life, we all face different types of storms or hurricanes.
• Someone may be sick, or have trouble with homework, or lost something precious. These can all feel like storms that rob us of our peace and joy. We may end up worried or lose sleep over it.
• Do you know that peace is not just a feeling you get when everything is going well and there are no problems in the world?
• Do you know that you can still have peace even when everything goes horribly wrong around you?

Jesus heals the bent-over woman

Lesson: We are more important to God than ox and goats

1. Intro: OUT OF SHAPE WALK AROUND: Tell children to walk slowly and quietly (NO running or shouting) as if they are bent out of shape. And when the teacher calls out “FREEZE”, they have to freeze in their best “bent” pose.

Do it 2-3 times, depending on class response and control. 

2. Story: “Let me tell you about a woman who was bent like this for a very, very long time.”
(based on Luke 13:10-17)

Do not Worry (Pt 2)

Lesson: God takes care of the flowers. God takes care of me!

Luke 12:27-31. Matt 6:28-34

1. Intro: Show pictures of King Solomon and/or models in beautiful dresses

• Take a look at these pictures of these beautiful clothes.
• Do you know that all these splendid clothes needed a lot of money and effort to be made? All the silk and sequins and satin and sashes.
• But do you know that they cannot compare with the flowers of the field, with the beauty of God’s creation?

Do not Worry (Pt 1)

Lesson: God feeds the birds. And I am more valuable than birds.

1.  Intro: Fun facts about birds or Fun facts about ravens <use pictures, soft toys etc to illustrate; or as pop quiz>

     e.g.

• The raven is the largest bird of the crow family: it is 2x heavier than a common crow at 1.3kg
•  Ravens can live 40 years in the wild and 70 in captivity
•  Ravens can soar high above the trees and are capable of aerial stunts 
•  Ravens can live from deserts to forests and cliffs, nesting in either stick-made nests or rock cavities
• Ravens feed on almost anything — fruits, seeds, nuts, fish, carrion, small animals, food remains and garbage. They even dig on snow to inspect plastic bags with waste. They also follow fishers and hunters for days to “glean” from their hunts
• Ravens are considered one of the most intelligent birds in puzzle solving or performing series of complex actions, such as counting or opening a zipped bag
•  They often get other animals to do their work for them — e.g. making calls to attract wolves and foxes to break the carcass of a dead animal so that they can access the meat inside
•  Ravens have different dialects according to the area they are in
• In the Bible, the raven was the first animal to fly or leave Noah's Ark, to see if the flood had died down.
•  Ravens are mentioned in 7 verses of the Bible

God's Word on Faith

1. Lesson

• The Bible tells us that our Christian walk is a walk of faith. 
• 2 Cor 5:7 For we walk by faith, not by sight.

• What is faith?
• Believing that God keeps His promises even when we cannot see it fulfilled yet.
• Heb 1:1 To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see.
• Just like when cannot see air, but we can trust that when we take our next breath, we will get what our body needs. Just like when we cannot see gravity, we can take a step knowing we won’t float away.

• What is our faith based on?
• Jesus’ finished work on the cross.
• Our faith is NOT wishy-washy. Not based on hopeful day dreams. Our faith is based on who God is (unchanging, faithful), and what Jesus has done to bring us into relationship with Him.
• Because of Jesus, we qualify for God’s promises!

The Parable of the Rich Fool

Lesson: Jesus is all we need

1.       Story

• Tell the story based on Luke 12:13-21; 32-34
• Once there were two brothers. Their daddy had died and left some money, and they both were fighting over it. They came to Jesus to complain about how to divide up what their father had given them.
• Jesus reminded them that our life is not measured by how many possessions or money we have. “Because your true life is not made up of the things you own, no matter how rich you may be.” (Luke 12:14)
• He tells us a story of a rich man who had big harvest from his land. When he ran out of space to keep his crops, he decided to tear down his barns and build bigger ones. He thought, “If I keep all these for myself, I don’t have to worry about what I will eat or drink for many, many years. I can now enjoy life.” But one night, he died. And he couldn’t bring any of the crops or money with him.

Light of the World

1. Lesson: We are children of light (Luke 11:33-36)

• Intro <optional> Pop quiz/Interesting facts about light, e.g.:
• What is the fastest thing in the world?Light — travels 300,000 km per second; light can reach the moon in about 1.2 seconds
• Who invented the light bulb for common use?
  Thomas Edison
• What are the primary colours of light?RGB — red, green, blue
• Why is light important? (for discussion)So we can see in the dark, shows what is around us etc
• Turn off the lights in the room (props: a torch and a bag)
• Imagine: You and your friends are in a dark, dark place. You are all lost and cannot find your way out because you cannot see. You remember that your mummy had given you a torch light. What would you do with the torch? Would you decide to keep it in your bag? Or hide it in your pocket? Of course not! You would take it out and use it so that you and your friends can see where you are supposed to go.

Ask, Seek, Knock (II)

1.       Lesson: Daddy God Gives Good Gifts

• Based on Luke 11:11-13, Matthew 7:9-12.
• Intro: Prepare 3 paper bags/boxes. Inside each bag/box:

Label on the bag/box	Inside (either put object or a picture of it)
Bread	Stone
Fish	Snake
Egg	Scorpion

• Tell the kids that it’s “Snack time”. Three kids get to choose which “snack” they want.
• As each kid choose, give them the unopened bag/box and have them stand in front.
• Then have each kid open the bag/box one by one and show the class what’s inside.
• Ask them how they feel when they ask for something good and get something bad.

Jesus is the King and I reign with Him (Eph 1)

1.       Lesson

• Eph 1:20-23 God raised Jesus from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. ²² And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, ²³ which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Ask, Seek, Knock

Lesson: God loves to give

1. Story:

• Tell the story based on Luke 11:5-10.
• Once there was a man. He was about to sleep at night when there was a knock on his door. It was a friend visiting him. The visitor had come from a long journey and was hungry.
• The man went to check his cupboards. Uh oh! There’s no food in there.

Mary & Martha

Lesson: Jesus calls us to rest in Him

1. Story:

• Tell story based on Luke 10:38-42.
• When Jesus visited his two friends, Martha and Mary, they must have been so excited to have Jesus in their house.

The Good Samaritan

Lesson: While we were God's enemies, Christ died for us

1. Story:

• Tell story based on Luke 10:25-35.

2. Lesson:

• In Jesus’ parable: it was not the religious and “good” people who stopped to help the Jewish man. It was the enemy — a despised Samaritan. The Jews hated the Samaritans.
• The Samaritan could have walked on, and nobody would fault him for that. But he had compassion for the man. He cleaned and bandaged his wounds. Put him on his donkey and paid for his care at the inn.
• Who would do that for an enemy? Somebody who hated you? Who wouldn’t walk on the same side of the road as you?

Because of Jesus, I am a CHILD of GOD (Eph 1)

1.       Lesson

Eph 1:3-6 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

• Introduction:
• Last month, we learnt that we are SAINTS of GOD. Because of Jesus, God looks at us as if we were holy and righteous.
•  Today, we look at what God has done so that we can be called Sons & Daughters of God

Jesus feeds the 5,000 +++

Lesson: Jesus provides in abundance (Luke 9:10-17)

1. Story:

• Props: Some bread and “fish” (either fish-shaped biscuits or kueh bahulu) that can be handed out as part of the story
• Jesus and his disciples went to a town called Bethsaida, which was a remote place. But when the crowds heard he was there, they all followed him.
• Jesus welcomed them. He spoke to them about God’s kingdom and healed all who needed healing. There were about 5,000 men and many other women and children there … a very big crowd.
• Late in the afternoon, his disciples came to him and told him to send the crowd away to go find food and a place to stay because it was getting late.
•  Instead, Jesus asked them to give the crowd something to eat.
•  There were probably more than 10,000 people! How do you feed so many people?

Jesus raises Jairus' daughter

Lesson: Jesus gives life (Luke 8:40-56; Mark 5:21-42)

1. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus raising Jairus' daughter from Luke 8:40-56 and Mark 5:21-42.
• Last week we learned about a woman who had been bleeding for 12 years. When she touched Jesus, He was actually on His way to see a little girl.
• This little girl was 12 years old, and she was very sick.

Jesus heals the woman with an issue of blood

Lesson: A touch from Jesus heals (Luke 8:43-48; Mark 5:25-34)

1. Icebreaker:

• Who touched me? Have the children sit in a circle. One person sits in the middle and is blindfolded. Children will take turns as the teacher quietly points to each one, to go to the child in the middle and TOUCH that children and quietly run back to the circle. Then the blindfold can be removed and the child can try to guess who TOUCHED him/her. If he guesses it correctly, then that child goes to the middle to be blindfolded, etc.

Because of Jesus, I am a SAINT of GOD (Eph 1)

1.       Lesson

Eph 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus ...

• Introduction:
• The apostle Paul visited a place called Ephesus and taught about Jesus. Later on, He wrote a letter to the believers there. He wanted to remind them about what Jesus has done for them, and who they are.
• Isn’t that funny? Reminding someone about who they are. Imagine someone coming up to me and saying, “Hi. You are Anne/Joanna etc.” Who will forget who they are?
• But many people do. When they look at themselves, they see the physical. They see the short, fat person, or the one who didn’t do well in exams, or the one with a pimple, or the one with a bad temper.
• They don’t see the person whom God sees. They focus on what is outside and forget who they really are.
• So today we’re going to remind ourselves of who we are in Jesus. Who God sees when He looks at us.

Jesus has authority over evil spirits

1. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus casting out the legion of demons from Luke 8:26-39.
• Remember what we learnt last week? Jesus and his disciples were in a boat on the lake when there was a sudden large thunderstorm!
• After Jesus calmed the storm, the boat reached the other side of the lake to the country of Gerasenes. (Get them to try to pronounce word)
• When they went on shore, suddenly, a demon-possessed man came running up to them.

Jesus calms the storm

Lesson: Jesus has authority over the wind and waves 

1. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus calming the storm from Luke 8:22-25 and Mark 4:35-41.
• One day Jesus and his disciples went into a boat and set off for the other side of the lake.
• As they sailed, Jesus fell asleep.
• Suddenly, there was a thunderstorm. The wind howled. The waves roared.

The Parable of The Sower

Lesson: Jesus' Words bear fruits in us 

1. Story:

• Tell Jesus's Parable of The Sower from Luke 8:4-15.
• Jesus likes to tell stories. One day, He told a large crowd the parable of a sower (farmer).

The Gracious Moneylender

Lesson: Forgiven much, Love much

1. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus being anointed in the Pharisee's house from Luke 7:36-50.

God tells Abraham to sacrifice Isaac

Lesson: God Provides the Lamb

1. Story:

• Tell the story of God telling Abraham to sacrifice Isaac from Genesis 22:1-19.

Jesus raises the widow’s son from death

Lesson: Jesus has authority over death (Luke 7:11-16)

1. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus raising the widow's son from death from Luke 7:11-16.

Jesus heals the centurion's servant

Lesson: Jesus has authority over sicknesses

1.  Game: Simon Says

2. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus healing the centurion's servant from Luke 7:1-10.
• Last week we learned about Jesus teaching on the mountain. After Jesus finished teaching, he went to Capernaum.
• A centurion heard that Jesus was in town. A centurion is a very important man. He had about 100 soldiers or more under his command.

The Wise and Foolish Builders

Lesson: Jesus is our Firm Foundation 

1. Story:

• Tell the story of "The Wise and Foolish Builders" based on Luke 6:47-49.
• Jesus liked to use a lot of stories when He taught the people. These stories are called “parables”.

Abraham & the Child of Laughter

Lesson: Nothing is too difficult for God (Gen 11-21)

1.       Game: Laughing Game

Play a simple laughing game; modify as you see fit.

• Mrs Mumble
• Everyone sits in a circle. First person turns to the one on the right and asks “Have you seen Mrs Mumble?” without showing his/her teeth or laughing.
• The next person has to say, “No. I’ll ask my neighbor.” And then ask the following person the same question without showing teeth or laughing.

• Ha Ha game (for younger kids only)
• Get the kids to lie on their backs, with their heads resting on another player’s stomach. Tell the kids that the aim of the game is not to laugh at all. The first kid has to say somberly “Ha”, then the next one says “Ha ha”, the third one says “Ha ha ha” and so on. The person who does not laugh at all wins.

 2.       Story: 

• The last time we learnt that God gave many promises to Abram.
• One of the promises was that Abram will have many children, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the shores.
• But as many years passed (24 years since God first called Abram), Abram and his wife, Sarai, still did not have any children.

Jesus heals the paralytic

Lesson: Jesus has the power to forgive sins

1. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus healing the paralytic from Luke 5:17-26.

Jesus heals the leper

Lesson: Jesus is able and willing to heal 

1. Game: Tag

• Have one kid wear a hat or something distinctive. This kid has to try to tag the other children.
• All other children have to keep away from this kid.
• Once they are tagged/touched by this kid, they have to go behind the kid and hold his/her shoulders. The more children the kid touches, the longer the chain of children behind him/her.
• Game ends when there are 10 or 15 kids in the chain.
  (play by ear, according to crowd and time; avoid over rowdiness)

2. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus healing the leper from Luke 5:12-16.

Jesus calls the fishermen to be His disciples

Lesson: Jesus calls us to follow Him 

1.    Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus calling the fishermen to be His disciples from Luke 5:1-11.

Jesus at a synagogue in Nazareth

Lesson: Jesus ushers in God's favour

1. Game: Set the Captives Free
We played a game that involved people in prison and blindfolded, and others trying to get past the guards to tag them free. But it took a bit longer than expected. So would suggest a simpler game, like Blind Man's Buff.


2. Story:

• Tell the story of Jesus speaking at the synagogue in Nazareth based on Luke 4:16-30.

Jesus tempted in the wilderness

Lesson: Jesus Victorious in Temptation 

1.    Story:

Tell the story of Jesus' temptation based on Luke 4:1-13.

• Last week, what did we learn about Jesus? (He was baptised by John)
• After being baptised, Jesus was filled with Holy Spirit and was led to the desert.
• He prayed in the desert and didn’t eat anything for 40 days.
• There, the devil decided to tempt Him. The devil wanted Jesus to trust His own strength and abilities rather than trust God.