The Emmaus Disciples - Sunday November 15, 2020

Sunday November 15, 2020 (Vol 9, Unit 27, 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!   

Parent Devotional: This week’s lesson, "The Emmaus Disciples" is found in Luke 24.

Jesus’ death and resurrection should not have surprised the disciples. Sometimes Jesus spoke metaphorically about His death and resurrection. (See Matt. 12:39; Mark 14:58; John 2:19; 3:14-15.) Other times, Jesus plainly told the disciples that He would be betrayed, crucified, buried, and resurrected on the third day. (Matt. 17:12; Mark 8:31; Luke 9:22) In fact, Jesus had spoken so frequently of His death and resurrection, the chief priests and Pharisees asked Pilate to place guards at the tomb in case the disciples stole Jesus’ body. (See Matt. 27:62-66.)

On resurrection morning, the angel at Jesus’ tomb asked the women, “Why are you looking for the living among the dead?” (Luke 24:5). Even when Peter and John ran to the empty tomb to see it for themselves, Peter was amazed but uncertain (Luke 24:12), while John believed (John 20:8).

That same day, two disciples were walking to Emmaus, arguing about recent events. Jesus began walking next to them, but God prevented them from recognizing Jesus. (Luke 24:16) Jesus simply asked them what they were arguing about. They stopped walking. How could He not have heard about what happened over the last three days?

The two disciples had hoped Jesus was the Redeemer of Israel. Their hopes were crushed when Jesus died. Now Jesus explained to them why the Messiah had to die, starting with Moses and the Prophets. Jesus showed how the Scriptures point to Him. (Luke 24:27; John 5:39)

Remind kids that the Bible is not a collection of unrelated stories. The whole Bible is about Jesus. When Adam and Eve sinned, God began working out His plan to send Jesus to rescue people from sin. (Gen. 3:15) All of the Old Testament points forward to Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection—the time when Jesus would bring God’s promised salvation for sinners.

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 a time they took a long walk. Where were they going?

Say • Nowadays, if we have a long way to travel, we usually drive a car or ride in a plane, train, or bus. In Jesus’ day you had to walk just about anywhere you wanted to go! Today we will learn about a time two disciples met Jesus while traveling from one city to another.

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.

Who can remember our big picture question? [Allow responses.] Great job! Where is Jesus now? Jesus ascended to heaven where He is seated at the right hand of the Father. Jesus rose from the dead, never to die again. We don’t see Jesus on earth because He went back to heaven. His position—seated at the Father’s right hand—shows us that He is honored and glorified, and His work is complete. By dying and rising again, Jesus completely paid for sin and defeated death.

Though Jesus had been crucified by the Romans to please the Jewish religious leaders, Jesus did not remain dead for long. God raised Jesus from the dead to defeat sin and death. Though Jesus is alive, it took a bit of time before word got around. They didn’t have text messages, email, or social media back then, so news had to travel with people. Speaking of which, in our story today, two disciples traveling to Emmaus were speaking about all the things that had been happening when Jesus came and helped them understand it all. Let’s get to it!

This story helps guide everything we have talked about and learned each week. The reason we have gone through the Bible pointing to Jesus each week is that Jesus Himself said that’s the main point of Scripture!

We don’t just want to understand the stories of the Bible, we want to understand them in the context of what God has been doing in the world all along. Even before sin entered the world with Adam and Eve’s first act of disobedience, God has been working out His perfect plan.

God reveals Himself to us in His Word. Without the Bible, we could not know God personally or come to faith in Jesus. To understand the Bible, we must understand that everything God does is part of His plan to rescue sinners through His Son, Jesus.

When we are lost, we have no way of understanding how far away from God we really are. The good news is that God sent Jesus to rescue us just as He had promised. When we have faith in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, God forgives all our sin and gives us life that lasts forever. That means that even after our physical lives end, we will live forever with Jesus.

The whole Bible is about Jesus. When Adam and Eve sinned, God began working out His plan to send Jesus to rescue people from sin. All of the Old Testament points forward to Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection—the time when Jesus would bring God’s promised salvation for sinners.

Bible Time! 

Distribute a Bible to each kid. Help kids find Luke 24. Consider using the New Testament Israel Map to point out Jerusalem and Emmaus. (H4 and H3, respectively) Explain that the two cities are about 7 miles apart (a bit over 11 kilometers), and it would likely take more than 2 hours to walk the distance. The Bible is about real people and places.

 Ask the following questions. Lead the group to discuss:

Did the two disciples know Jesus was talking with them? (no, Luke 24:16)

What had the people hoped Jesus would do? (redeem Israel, Luke 24:21)

What did Jesus use to teach about Himself? (all of the Scriptures, Luke 24:27)

What is your favorite Old Testament story, and how does it point to Jesus? Guide kids to discuss stories they enjoyed learning about from the Old Testament. Consider using the Small Group Timeline to point out specific stories your group has covered. Help the kids remember how those stories connect to the one big story of Jesus.

When do you feel most excited about Jesus and the gospel? Encourage the kids to be honest about their feelings. Some kids may feel most excited when learning new things about the Bible. Other kids may feel most excited when doing good deeds to honor Jesus with their lives. And still others may feel most excited when they are singing praises or praying to Him. Help kids see that all three are normal, good responses to the truth of Jesus.

How can we be a part of the story of Jesus? Guide kids to think about the ways we can live on mission and allow God’s power to work through us. Discuss the importance of using our time, talents, and resources to glorify Jesus in the world.

Say • Jesus taught that all the Scriptures point to Him. When we study the Old Testament, it helps us understand much more about God when we look at it the way Jesus did. Knowing the truth about Jesus helps us worship and obey Him out of love. 

Great job with the discussion guys! Let's take a look at our memory verse: John 11:25.

Jesus said He is the resurrection and the life. Then, Jesus proved it by rising from the dead. Jesus’ resurrection defeated sin and death for all time. We can be certain we will live with God forever if we have faith that Jesus died for our sin and rose again.

Optional Memory Verse Activity:

Choose a path to walk around the house. Use tape to mark a spot as start and finish. Challenge the kids to begin walking the path as they say the key passage. Count how many times they can say the key passage before the kid who started on the tape gets back to that spot on the floor. 

Say • Jesus said He is the resurrection and the life. When Jesus rose from the dead, He proved this was the truth. Everyone who has faith in Jesus is forgiven of sin and receives eternal life. That means that even when our bodies die, we know that our souls will be with God. And when Jesus comes back, we will gain new, heavenly bodies and live in Jesus’ perfect kingdom forever. 

That's it for this week!

Let's pray: Lord, thank You for giving us Your Word. Help us trust You. Give us wisdom to understand Scripture and the ways it teaches us about You, Your Son, and ourselves. Amen.

Thanks for joining us! I hope to meet you here again next week!

Additional Activities and Information