Week 4: January 26

Our theme for January is "Who is Jesus and Why Does it Matter?" 

Week 4- Jesus' First Disciples: Why We Are Called (Luke 5:1-11, 9:1-9)

To finish out this month's theme, I found this Go Tell All craft from Oriental Trading. 

I'll paraphrase Luke 5:1-11 for the kids, then hand out the bags. I walk through the beginning of projects like this, then let kids finish on their own. I'll start out by saying, "Get out your big yellow oval. This will be your background. Now find your..." While kids are working, I'll ask these questions about the lesson:

1. What were Simon, James, and John doing when Jesus met them? (Cleaning their nets.)

2. Did they have much luck fishing? (No. They didn't catch anything at all.)

3. Jesus told them to let down their nets again. What happened next? (The nets were full of fish.)

4. Why do you think Simon and the others were amazed? (They knew that fish wouldn't just suddenly swim into nets on their own- Jesus made it happen.)

5. Simon told Jesus to leave. Why do you think He did that? (He was embarrassed that He had done so many things, knowing that Jesus was sinless.) Sometimes we try to hide from God when we make mistakes. That's why a lot of people stop coming to church. They know they are doing bad things but don't want to stop doing them.

6. Did Simon want to stop sinning and follow Jesus (Yes!) Jesus told them that they would be fishing for people from then on.

7. What does that mean? Fishing for people? (Telling others about Jesus... Just like we catch fish and put them in a net, we tell people about Jesus and they start coming to church.

That's pretty awesome. What Jesus did was so amazing that the three guys decided to leave everything and start following Him. We don't have to leave our families to follow Jesus; we can tell others about Him at school, home, you can tell your cousins, friends, and kids on the playground. Jesus wants us to tell others about Him, so they can be followers just like us! 

Luke 5:1-11 One day Jesus was preaching when he noticed three men washing their fishing nets beside their empty boats. Jesus asked the boat's owner, Simon, if He could stand in the boat to talk to the crowd so everyone could see him better. Simon let Him, and when He was finished preaching he told Simon to go out where it was deeper so they could catch some fish. 

But Simon replied, "We worked all night long and didn't catch anything! But if you say so, then I'll lower the nets down again." This time when they lifted the nets, they were so full of fish they began to tear! Simon shouted for help from his friends, James and John, and soon both boats were filled with fish. 

When Simon realized what Jesus had done, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, "Lord, please leave me! I'm too much of a sinner to be around you!" He couldn't believe how many fish he had caught. His friends were amazed, too.

But Jesus said, "Don't be afraid. From now on, you'll be fishing for people!" As soon as they got back to shore, Simon, James, and John left everything and followed Jesus.