Old Testament – Jonah 3:1-5, 10
We all know the story of Jonah and how he was swallowed by a big fish. Here
Jonah finally does what God wanted him to do in the first place. God had asked
Jonah to tell the people who lived in Nineveh to turn away from being evil. When
Jonah does this, everyone in Nineveh is sad and turns away from evil. God
doesn’t destroy Nineveh as He originally planned.
So what is God’s message to us in this lesson? The first lesson is that one person
can be a powerful agent for good when they obey God. When Jonah finally
obeyed God, Jonah’s words made everyone in Nineveh do what God wanted. This
changes God’s mind and He doesn’t destroy the town.
The second lesson is how powerful it is when everybody obeys God and works
together. We should always work together even when we don’t like the people
we are working with. God is pleased with unity.
Below is Jonah’s story. After watching it, act it out with friends and/or family.
Have fun!
Old Testament – Psalm 62:5-12
David sings about God’s never-changing love. David reminds us that God is our
Rock and salvation. Where has God shown you His unchanging love? Sing along
with the verses of Psalm 62 below.
New Testament – 1 Corinthians 7:29-31
These two verses are hard to understand. But, the main lesson is that we, as
believers, are not to make the world our primary focus. We need to make Jesus
our primary focus.
New Testament – Mark 1:14-20
This lesson from Mark is a perfect example of what Paul is talking about in
Corinthians. Jesus is walking along the seashore and He sees Simon and Andrew
fishing. Simon and Andrew fished for a living. He calls them to follow Him and
they immediately stop what they are doing and follow Him. As Jesus walked
further down the seashore, He sees James and John. He calls them and they leave
everything and everybody behind immediately. Their focus was on Jesus and it
allowed them to make a hard decision.
While God may never call us to leave everything we love behind, He does
command that He is our first and highest priority. Ask yourself if God is your first
and highest priority. Watch this story below.
Younger Children's Lesson:
All our lessons this Sunday teach us that God wants us to put Him first and when
He tells us to do something He needs to be obeyed. The first lesson shows what
happens when Jonah doesn’t do what God wanted him to do. Watch the video
below.
Mark tells us about Jesus asking His first disciples to come with Him. This story
shows they obeyed Jesus immediately. Listen to Miss Kristen as she tells us the
importance of putting Jesus first.
Draw the story of Jonah and the whale or draw the story of Jesus calling His first
disciples.
