FEBRUARY – TEACHINGS & MIRACLES OF JESUSJESUS
PARABLE OF SOWER – FEBRUARY 4

THEME VERSES: Mark 4:1-20 “Once again Jesus began teaching by the lakeshore. There was such a large crowd along the shore that He got into a boat and sat down and spoke from there. He began to teach the people by telling many stories such as this one: Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate it. Other seed fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The plant sprang up quickly, but it soon wilted beneath the hot sun and died because the roots had no nourishment in the shallow soil. Other seed fell among thorns that shot up and choked out the tender blades so that it produced no grain. Still other seed fell on fertile soil and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted. Then he said, ‘Anyone who is willing to hear should listen and understand.’ Later, when Jesus was alone with the twelve disciples and with the others who were gathered around, they asked Him, ‘What do your stories mean?’ He replied, ‘You are permitted to understand the secret about the Kingdom of God. But I am using these stories to conceal everything about it from outsiders, so that the Scriptures might be fulfilled: They see what I do, but they don’t perceive its meaning. They hear my words, but they don’t understand. So they will not turn from their sins and be forgiven.’ But if you can’t understand this story, how will you understand all the others I am going to tell? The farmer I talked about is the one who brings God’s message to others. The seed that fell on the hard path represents those who hear the message, but then Satan comes at once and takes it away from them. The rocky soil represents those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But like young plant in such soil, their roots don’t go very deep. At first they get along fine, but they wilt as soon as they have problems or are persecuted because they believe the Word. The thorn ground represents those who hear and accept the Good News, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for nice things, so no crop is produced. But the good soil represents those who hear and accept God’s message and produce a huge harvest – thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted.’”

LESSON: When Jesus came from heaven to earth because His Father, God, had sent him and He obeyed: He told His followers many stores. His stories were always about everyday situations that they could understand but they also had a hidden meaning to teach them about the kingdom of heaven. We call His stories “Parables”, which means a story that has a hidden message. Today we are going to read and act out the parable of the “sower” and then learn the heavenly meaning of this story: what Jesus was really wanting to teach His followers. Matthew 13:10-11

LOST SHEEP – FEBRUARY 11

THEME VERSES: Luke 15:3-7; Matthew 18:10-14 “So Jesus used this illustration: ‘If you had one hundred sheep, and one of them strayed away and was lost in the wilderness, wouldn’t you leave the ninety-nine others to go and search for the lost one until you found it? And then you would joyfully carry it home on your shoulde4rs. When you arrived, you would call together your friends and neighbors to rejoice with you because your lost sheep was found. In the same way, heaven will be happier over one lost sinner who returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!’”; “’Beware that you don’t despise a single one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels are always in the presence of my heavenly Father. If a shepherd has one hundred sheep, and one wanders away and is lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others and go out into the hills to search for the lost one? And if he finds it, he will surely rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away! In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish.’”

LESSON: Last week we learned the parable Jesus told His followers about the “Sower” and learned that a parable is a story with a hidden message. Can anyone remember the hidden message of the “Sower”? (Teacher will do a short question and answer review.) Today we are going to learn about the “Lost sheep” parable and then play a game.

Teacher will read Luke 15:3-6 and Matthew 18:10-13. Ask them if they know the hidden heavenly message. After children’s response, read Luke 15:7 and Matthew 18:14 and discuss the great Father’s love God has toward His children that are lost in sin. We respond in judgment to sin in others, people who are lost and separated from God’; but His message in this story tells us He never stops looking for His lost children and they are very important to Him and all of heaven rejoices when they are found. He doesn’t wait for us to find Him. He will go and look for us if we get lost.

HEALING THE LEPER – FEBRUARY 25

THEME VERSES: Matthew 8:1-3 “Large crowds followed Jesus as He came down the mountainside. Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached Jesus. He knelt before Him, worshiping. ‘Lord,’ the man said, ‘if You want to, You can make me well again.’ Jesus touched him, ‘I want to,’ He said. ‘Be healed.’ And instantly the leprosy disappeared.”

LESSON: The last two lessons we learned Jesus taught hidden truth in the stories (parables), that He told. Can anyone remember the stories and their hidden messages? (short question and answer review.)

Today we are going to study one of the miracles that Jesus did and find out there is also a hidden lesson for us in it.

Have a child read Matthew 8:1-3 or teacher can read. Ask if anyone knows the hidden message. Teacher will have picture and definition of the disease of leprosy. Explain that in Jesus’ time, leprosy caused people to be considered “unclean”, sinful, and were called untouchable. They had to live alone outside of the city walls. Discuss how important Jesus’ response to this man was. He touched an untouchable!

Explain that the disease of leprosy gives us a picture of what sin does to our spirit. Just as leprosy eats away someones’s body, sin eats away spiritually, physically and emotionally.

MARCH – HOLY SPIRIT
FRUITS – MARCH 4

THEME VERSES: Gal. 5:22 & 23 “But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, He will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Here there is no conflict with the law.”

LESSON: Teach on the nine fruits of the Spirit.

CHARACTER AND SYMBOLS OF HOLY SPIRIT – MARCH 11

THEME VERSES: John 14:16-17 and 26 “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world at large cannot receive Him, because it isn’t looking for Him and doesn’t recognize Him. But you do, because He lives, with you now and later will be in you.” “But when the Father sends the Counselor as my representative-and by the Counselor I mean the Holy Spirit-He will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I myself have told you.”

LESSON: Teacher will do a short review of last lesson – Fruit of the Spirit (good fruit, bad fruit and perverted fruit – poster board listing fruits will be in classroom.)

Today we are going to learn about who the Holy Spirit is and what the Bible has to tell and teach us about Him.

First, He is the third person in the Trinity. We worship one God, made up of three separate persons: Father, Son (Jesus) and Holy Spirit. He is sometimes called the “Holy Ghost”. He is Spirit and the Bible teaches us that we can better understand Him through symbols.
Water: He cleanses us – Acts 10:44-48
Fire: He changes us – Luke 3:16 and Acts 2:3-4
Wind: He gives us power – Acts 2:1-2
Dove: He makes us pure – John 1:32-34

(After lesson, children will go to prayer station @ 10:50 a.m.)

MANIFESTATION GIFTS – MARCH 25

THEME VERSES: I Cor. 12:4-11 “Now there are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but it is the same Holy Spirit who is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service in the church, but it is the same Lord we are serving. There are different ways God works in our lives, but it is the same God who does the work through all of us. A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a means of helping the entire church. To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advise; to another He gives the gift of special knowledge. The Spirit gives special faith to another, and to someone else He gives the power to heal the sick. He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and to another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to know whether it is really the Spirit of God or another spirit that is speaking. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, and another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. It is the one and only Holy Spirit who distributes these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.”

LESSON: Lesson will be during prayer station.

CREATIVE PROJECT:

PRAYER STATION: Children will each take the “Spiritual Gifts” test.

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