__________________________________________________________________
Choose from the following Children's Sermons:
- Seed: Believing the Impossible,
John 20:19-31 submitted by Jim in CT
(see below)
- Seed: God Heals All Scars, John
20:19-31
submitted by DGinNYC (please scroll down)
- Hard Questions for God, John 20:19-31
Frank Schaefer
(please scroll down)
- Doctor God--Revival-ologist, John 20:19-31
Frank Schaefer
(please scroll down)
__________________________________________________________________
Believing the Impossible
a children's sermon idea based on John 20:19-31
submitted by Jim in CT
Try at your own risk =)
Here's a fun one on doubt and believing. Fill a large plastic bag
(maybe a gallon zip-lock) with water. Have 4-5 pencils ready. Do this
over a basin - just in case you drop it. Talk about believing and
doubting - can the children believe that they could poke a pencil
right thru the bag of water and none will leak? Have a few do it.
(Practice yourself - go straight and steady - no wiggling or funny
moves!) . It does work. You can relate it to believing what Jesus says
- like Thomas and we must do.
God Heals All Scars
a children's sermon idea based on John 20:19-31
submitted by DGinNYC
I'm going to ask the kids of any of them have a scar? Have them talk about their scars. I have a scar on my finger from where my pet rabbit bit me. I also have a scar on my leg from where a horse kicked me.
Scars tell a story about our lives. My scars show that I grew up in the country (or maybe that animals hate me???- not really). Do you think Jesus ever got any scars? Talk about the scars on his hands. They also tell a story about Jesus, how he loves us and suffered for us.
Recap story from John.
And end by thanking God for the story of our lives with all its bumps
and bruises, and thank God for healing and love.
? Hard
Questions for God
a children's sermon on John 20:19-31
by Rev. F. Schaefer
Props: picture of a question mark or a cardboard figure of a question
mark.
Good morning, children. Everybody probably knows what this is, right?
That's right, it's a question mark. Who can tell me what a question mark stands for? (let
the children give some answers.)
You know, the reason I brought this question mark is because there was
one disciple who had a lot of questions. Can anybody guess who it was? Do you think
it was Peter, or John...? It was Thomas. Have you ever heard the expression:
"Doubting Thomas?" That comes right from our Gospel text this morning.
For instance, when Jesus had risen from the dead and he appeared to the
disciples the first time, Thomas wasn't there. And, of course, all the other disciples
told Thomas: "we have seen Jesus, he appeared to us. "
And as the story goes, Thomas didn't believe them. He had a lot of
questions, like: "How can you be sure it was Jesus? Did he look like Jesus? Did you
check whether he had marks on his hands and a wound in his side (that's where they pierced
Jesus on the cross)? In fact, Thomas said: "unless I see the marks in his hand and I
can put my hand in his side to feel the wound, I will refuse to believe that it is
Jesus!"
Do you think it is ok to have questions about Jesus? Or about God? (let
the children talk).
You know, what happened next is kind of interesting, because the next
time Jesus appeared to the disciples, Thomas was there too. What do you think Jesus said
to Thomas? Did Jesus punish Thomas? Was he angry at him? Or was Jesus sad that Thomas had
questions about him? (nod head slightly after every question).
No, Jesus wasn't angry or sad. He said: "Thomas, just put your hand
in my side. Feel and see for yourself that it is me. Now do you know that it is really
me?"
And Thomas said: "My Lord and my God!" You know what's amazing
about that? Thomas was the first one in the bible to call Jesus God. Yes, he had a lot of
questions about Jesus' resurrection, a lot of doubt. But after he asked his questions,
Jesus answered him and that's when he knew more than the other disciples, that Jesus was
more than a messiah, Jesus was God.
So if you have a question about God, or the church, or about the pastor,
or about anything, don't be afraid to ask that question. It's o.k. to have questions;
asking questions is definitely a very good thing to do. Asking God questions is good
too, even when they are hard questions. An example of a hard question is: "why
does God allow so many children to suffer hunger and illness in the world?" Can
you think of any hard questions for God?
Let us bow for a prayer: "Dear God, thank you that we can
always be open and honest with you. Thank you that you always listen to our
questions, and that you even understand our doubts. Help us to have the courage to ask ask
honest questions and be open to your answers. Amen."
Doctor
God--Revival-ologist
a children's sermon based on John 20:19-31
by Rev. Frank Schaefer
props: a stethoscope or first aid case
God morning, my little friends, today I want to start by asking you a
question: "who of you believes that the Lord Jesus was dead, and after 3 days made
alive again by God?"
OK, it looks like this is not really difficult to believe for you.
Would you know that there was one disciple who didn't believe it--at least not right
away. This disciple was Thomas. Well, it was harder for him to believe simply
because he was missing the first time Jesus showed himself after he came back from the
dead.
Peter, John, James and all the other disciple told him excitedly: "we
have seen Jesus; he's alive." But Thomas said he needed to see Jesus with his
own eyes; he even wanted to feel his hands and side to see if it was really Jesus.
Anyhow, the story has a happy ending, because Jesus appeared among the
disciples again. This time Thomas was there and he believed. But Jesus said:
"blessed are those who do not see and still believe."
Today I brought something that you may know from the doctor's office (show
your first aid case or stethoscope). What do you think; should I switch jobs?
Maybe I could be a nurse or a doctor instead of being a pastor, what do you think?
Well, I wasn't really serious about switching jobs; I'm quite happy being a pastor.
Well, the reason I brought this medical equipment is to make a point about
resurrection. You know, even doctors can bring people back to life sometimes, even
after they have been dead for a few minutes. It's called resuscitation. So, it
shouldn't surprise us all that much that God can revive Jesus from the dead--even after
three days.
The bible says that God is our great physician--the greatest doctor ever.
You could even call him "Doctor God," because he has not only made
Jesus alive again, but he is also in the business of healing and giving strength to people
all the time. That's why we often pray to God to make us better when we are
sick.
And the best news is that Doctor God has also promised to make us alive
again some time after we die. He promised to raise us from the dead, just as he
raised our Lord Jesus, so we can live with him in heaven.
