Scripture: for teacher background: Acts 16:16-40
Making contact:
Play a game of catches where the children
who are “caught” must stand still on that spot and be “in jail”.
Other children
who have not yet been caught can then come and either crawl through their legs
to free them or touch their hands – you decide.
You can have more than one
“catcher.”
Today’s lesson is about being in jail.
Exploration:
(This is a good story for acting out. You
need chains, a sword, a bowl of water and a towel and some breakfast cereal.)
One day, Paul and his friend Silas had been
preaching in the town of Philippi
Their feet were fastened with
heavy blocks of wood. They were not afraid and at midnight they were singing
hymns and praising God. All the other prisoners were listening to them.
Suddenly there was a violent earthquake and
all the doors opened and the chains fell off the prisoners. The jailer rushed
in and was about to kill himself because he thought all the prisoners had
escaped, but they called out to him –“We are all here.”
The jailer came to Paul and Silas and
trembling before them he asked what he must do to be saved.
They answered:
“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved – you and your family.”
The jailer took them to his house and
washed their wounds and gave them food. He and his family were filled with joy.
They were all baptized right away. The next day the Roman officers came and
apologized to Paul and Silas and released them from jail.
Application
Even today when there
are tsunamis and floods, God can use them to call people to believe.
Paul and
Silas were praising God and this is a powerful weapon. Instead of sitting in a
heap and feeling sorry for ourselves, let’s praise God and watch to see what
miracles He does.
Challenge to Mission
God wants all people
to be saved and we need to pray and witness to people that God leads us to.
Don’t give up because the person seems to have a hard heart.
Let your prayers
soften that heart and then one day you might have the chance to speak to them
about Jesus.
Paul and Silas’ singing, and the earthquake prepared the way. The
man even asked what he must do to be saved, and then they told him about Jesus.
They didn’t say to themselves – “Oh no, he is a bully and a rough jailer – he
can stay there!”
Did you know that
there are people who go and visit prisoners and tell them about Jesus?
They too can be
forgiven and saved.
The worksheet has
pictures of Paul and Silas singing during the earthquake and then preaching the
Gospel to the jailer. It has the memory verse and another verse of comfort.
Memory Verse
“God our Saviour wants all everyone to be
saved and to come to know the truth.”
1 Timothy 2:4
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