Peter Healed a Man - Sunday December 13, 2020
Sunday December 13, 2020 (Vol 10, Unit 28, Session 2)
Hi-there parents! Welcome back! Or if you're new here, welcome! The following blog is here to be a tool for you to help your kids grow in their faith. Please feel free to use as much of it as you choose. You know your kids and are the best possible teacher for them. God has given you the power of the Holy Spirit to enable you to do more than you think possible (Eph 3:20).
If you would like to join us in person, we are excited to announce that Children's Church for Kindergarten through 5th grade has resumed and is meeting during the 10:30 service. We would love to see your kids there!
Pre-k is back as well! Consider joining us at 10:30 for in-person children's church!
Parent Devotional: This week’s lesson, "Peter Healed a Man" is found in Acts 3-4.
With the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Jesus’ disciples were empowered to carry out Jesus’ mission for them: to take the gospel to all the nations. More and more people believed in Jesus. They met together at the temple to praise and worship God, and the first church began.
One afternoon, two of Jesus’ disciples—Peter and John—went to the temple to pray. They encountered at the gate a man who could not walk. Rather than give the man money, Peter gave him something much more valuable: immediate physical healing in Jesus’ name.
As you teach this Bible story to kids, keep three things in mind. First, Peter’s healing the beggar was not magic; it was a miracle. Beginning in Acts 3:12, Peter responded to the people who were amazed at what had happened. “Why are you amazed at this … as though we had made him walk by our own power?” The man wasn’t healed because Peter was a super-believer. Peter explained that it was by Jesus’ power the man was healed.
Second, the man’s healing made him happy and thankful. He entered the temple and rejoiced! Consider the wonderful miracle of salvation. We are dead in our sin, and God makes us alive in Christ! How we should rejoice and give thanks to the Lord!
Finally, Peter and John were bold in their witness. When confronted by the religious leaders, they did not shy away. Peter and John preached about the salvation found in Jesus. In fact, they said they were “unable to stop speaking about what [they had] seen and heard” (Acts 4:20).
The same power that enabled Peter to heal the man who was lame—the power of the Holy Spirit—enables believers today to live on mission for Jesus. Pray that God would give the kids you teach a willingness to be used by Him for His glory and for the fame of Jesus’ name.
As we begin to explore this week’s lesson, take a moment to remember the verse from Deuteronomy about teaching your children the scriptures. Deuteronomy 6:9 says: "You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." Maybe you don't have time to sit and have an hour of Bible time all at once, or maybe your children are to young to sit for that long. Take the key points and ask God to give you opportunities to speak them into the hearts of your children throughout the week. Let the Bible become a part of your day to day. Be blessed this week my friends!
Each week we include songs, activity pages, the bible lesson video, memory verses and possibly a craft or 2. We pray this will help you find ways to engage your kids spiritually. It is written in script form from the K-2nd grade lesson so you can read directly from it or change it up to suit your children. Take a few moments to look at and print the activity pages as well as the additional activities and information (found in the links at the bottom of the page) also to review the lesson so you can make adjustments as needed. I have included the Bible and Discussion questions along with a breakdown of the Gospel in the Older Kids Activities pages and loads of activities and crafts on the Preschool Extra Activity Pages. Once you are ready,go ahead and start with these songs if you'd like or pick some of your favorite worship songs and then jump right in! Have fun! And remember, this does not need to be done in one sitting! Feel free to break it up over the course of the week. Please contact me if you have any questions or suggestions. I'd love to hear from you!
So, let's get started. I like to begin each week with Blessings and Bummers. Tell me, what have you seen the Lord doing in your lives this week? What have your greatest blessings been? How about your biggest bummers?
Parents share your blessings and bummers and encourage the kids to do the same.
Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Father God, Thank you. Thank you for providing for our needs. You are so good to us even though we don't deserve it! Thank you for continuing to bless us Lord. Thank you for being patient with us. Thank you for our friends as well as our families. Most importantly, thank you for sending Jesus to live a perfect life and die to pay for our sins. Thank you for raising Him from the dead and promising us life with you forever if we believe. Help us to appreciate all you do for us and to look to you in all that we do. In Jesus name, Amen. (please add to or customize prayer time to fit your family)
Praise the Lord for hearing our prayers!
Prompt kids to tell about the best gifts they have ever received.
Say • On your birthday or certain holidays, you probably received gifts from your friends or family. Often though, the best gifts aren’t toys, gadgets, or money. Today we will learn about a time Peter gave a wonderful gift to a man who asked for money.
Optional Session Starter Activity Pick one of two options, or do both, this is your party. These are found in the activity pages attached below.
Last week we learned a new big picture question and answer. How does the Holy Spirit help Christians? The Holy Spirit comforts us, shows us our sin, and guides us as we live for God’s glory. That means that when we repent of our sins and believe the gospel, the Holy Spirit lives within us to give us the power and wisdom we need to live on mission for God’s glory. He helps us avoid temptation and say no to sin. He helps us remember God’s love and goodness even in hard times. He even helps us remember and understand God’s Word so we can obey it each day.
Do you remember that all the stories in the Bible fit together to form one big story? All the stories in the Bible are true. Let’s look at our timeline so we can see where and when our stories took place.
Last week, we learned how God kept His promise to send the Holy Spirit to His people. This week, we will learn more about the Holy Spirit. In today’s story, the Holy Spirit filled Jesus’ followers so that they were able to do things they could never do on their own. Peter and John used the Holy Spirit’s power to do something wonderful.
I wonder what the man who was healed thought Peter was about to give him when Peter first said, “I don’t have money, but I’ll give you what I do have.” Maybe he thought he was about to get some food. Or maybe he thought Peter would give him some life advice. The Bible doesn’t say. But the Bible does tell us how the man reacted after the healing.
The man immediately got up and began to jump, run, and praise God! In those days, a person who could not walk really couldn’t work either. Things like wheelchairs didn’t exist yet, so the man had little choice but to sit near the temple and beg for money to help him make ends meet. It’s very likely that he felt hopeless much of the time.
When Peter healed him, Peter gave the man hope for his future. But Peter didn’t heal the man by his own power or goodness. The Holy Spirit gave Peter power to heal a man. Peter used this miracle as an opportunity to tell others about Jesus. When people asked how the man had been healed, Peter was clear and confident in his reply. It was in the power and name of Jesus that the man had been healed.
More than that, Peter and John remained bold even when the religious leaders threatened them, had them arrested, and beat them. They knew that obeying God to preach the gospel was better than being comfortable or safe in this life.
After Jesus returned to heaven, the Holy Spirit gave the disciples power to begin working. With the power of Jesus’ name, Peter healed a man who was lame. Not even the religious leaders could stop Jesus’ followers from sharing the good news about Jesus.
Bible Time!
Distribute a Bible to each kid. Help them find Acts 3–4. Do an internet search for a New Testament Israel Map to point out Jerusalem, where the story today took place. Ask the kids which division of the New Testament Acts is in. (History)
Ask the following questions. Lead the group to discuss:
What did the man who couldn’t walk ask for? (money, Acts 3:3)
What did Peter do when people were gathered in amazement at the healing? (preached the gospel, Acts 3:12-26)
What did Peter and John do when ordered to stop talking about Jesus? (refused to obey humans and chose to obey God, Acts 4:19)
Will God heal every person who has an illness or disability? Guide kids to think through two lenses: the lens of our physical lives now and our eternal lives with God. Even though not everyone will have their physical ailments healed now, everyone who believes in Jesus will one day live in a restored world with no pain, sadness, sickness, or death.
Why was it OK for Peter and John to refuse to obey the authorities who arrested them? Remind kids that the Bible contains many commands to obey leaders and submit to government authorities, but that God’s authority always supersedes human authority. We obey human authorities as long as they do not command us to disobey God.
When can we preach the gospel? Guide kids to think beyond the simple answer of “all the time.” Remind them that Peter used the opportunities in front of him to preach. We can preach all the time, and we can be strategic and plan specific ways to tell people about Jesus’ work to save us.
Say • The Holy Spirit gave Peter power to heal a man. We have access to the same power through Jesus. God wants us to share the gospel boldly.
Let's take a look at our memory verse, 2 Peter 1:3, and say it together:
Peter wrote these words to help believers know that God gives us everything we need through the Holy Spirit.
Memory Verse Activity:
Print the “Key Passage Flip Cards” printable (included in the K-2 options tab at the bottom of the page) double sided to heavyweight paper and cut apart. Provide one flip card to each kid. Challenge the kids to fold their flip cards to show only one level at a time. Kids will fill in the missing words on each level before flipping the card to work on the next level. Each level will have more words missing.
Say • Peter wrote this letter to encourage believers who faced suffering because they loved Jesus. Peter wanted them to know that God gives us the power we need to honor Him with our lives.
Alternate Memory Verse Activity:
Write each word of the key passage on a separate piece of masking tape and attach each piece to a domino.
Challenge kids to work together to line up the dominoes in the correct order, standing them on end about 1-1/2 inches apart. Once kids arrange them in order, they can knock down the dominoes. Repeat as time allows.
Say • Great job! It is so important to hide God’s Word in our hearts! The Holy Spirit reminds Christians of Scripture at just the time we need to remember them! We will keep working on memorizing our key passage over the next few weeks.
When we put our faith in Jesus, God gives us access to the same power through the Holy Spirit. How does the Holy Spirit help Christians? The Holy Spirit comforts us, shows us our sin, and guides us as we live for God’s glory.
That's it for this week!
Let's pray: Thank You, Lord, for allowing the Holy Spirit to work in our lives. Thank You that through Him, we can have the confidence and power to share the good news. May we always be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s leading in our lives and be joyful and quick to obey. Thank You for caring for Your children and always providing everything we need. Amen.
Thanks for joining us! I hope to meet you here again next week!
Additional Activities and Information
