Looking Ahead…Mark your calendars! April 8th: Kids’ Choir dress rehearsal, 3:00pm April 9th: Palm Sunday (All kids will lay Palm Branches), Kids’ Choir Sings in PM service April 16th: Easter Sunday, No Children’s activities during PM Service May 17: Final Kids’ Choir May 21st: Final TeamKID May 26th: End of School Bash for all OCBC Kids, 6pm June 4th-8th: VBS…Rome, Paul and the Undergound Church June 14th: Summer Kids’ program begins June 25th-28th: PowerPlus Preteen Camp @ Pineywoods DON’T FORGET TO SIGN UP FOR PRETEEN CAMP! PowerPlus Preteen Camp 2017 @Pineywoods “CONSUMED” Psalm 119:17-24 Camp Cost: $205 if registered on or before May 16th $220 if registered after May 16th $75 deposit due April 17th. Remainder of cost due June 1st. TeamKID, Sundays @ 6pm
Does God Love People Even Though They Sin? Memory Verse: 1 John 1:9 Bible Passage: Joseph Forgives His Brothers – Genesis 45:1-15; 50:15-21 Missions Emphasis: Norway What We Learned: In this week’s lesson, your child learned the joy of being forgiven from the story of Joseph. Even though Joseph was betrayed and mistreated, he didn’t become bitter or grumble about the path his life had taken. He knew God had a purpose. Joseph used his strengths and circumstances to rescue people. Because Joseph trusted God, he could give the gift of forgiveness to his brothers. He freed them from the punishment they deserved. Ultimately, that’s what forgiveness is for us: mercy—where God withholds the punishment we deserve and gives grace instead. God also freed us from the punishment we all deserve by sending Jesus to pay for our sin on the cross. Jesus triumphed over death, and now He offers forgiveness to people who believe His position, His words, and His authority to erase sin. The greatest news of all is that God loves people despite the reality that we all sin. God desires to restore His relationship with each person, and through His Son, Jesus, He made the provision to do just that. Not everyone will choose to take Him up on His offer of love. Because so much about life feels performance-based, it’s easy for kids to feel as if they must earn God’s love. Knowing that we can’t earn God’s love might just inspire the strong-willed child to try anyway. Ultimately, there is so much comfort knowing that “while we are still sinners” (Romans 5:8), God loved us enough to send Christ to die for us. This truth eliminates the need to try so hard and allows us to fully rest in God’s promises. At-Home: As a picture of forgiveness, fill a jar with water, and have your child squirt and stir various food coloring into the water. Carefully pour bleach little by little into the water, stir more, and wait for the water to become clear again (take safety precautions so that no bleach splashes on skin or in eyes). Talk about how great it is when people and God forgive those who have done wrong. Bonus Verse: Luke 6:37 Kids' Choir, Wednesdays @ 7pm Hymn of the month: At the Cross Getting ready for Easter! Everyone needs to be at all rehearsals…don’t forget to bring your books! THE GOSPEL PROJECT FOR KIDS, Sundays @ 9:30am Unit Description: After Jesus was born in Bethlehem, He grew up and began to prepare for His ministry. Jesus demonstrated from a young age that He understood His role as God’s Son. When Jesus was baptized, God confirmed His sonship. Jesus was subsequently tempted by Satan, but He did not sin. Bible Story: Jesus Was Baptized Bible Passage: Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:1-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:19-34 Main Point: Jesus obeyed God by being baptized. Zechariah’s son, John, grew up in the wilderness. John’s ministry began when God’s word came to him, and he began preaching near the Jordan River. John worked to get the people ready for the coming of Jesus, fulfilling the Old Testament prophecy, “A voice of one crying out: Prepare the way of the Lord in the wilderness” (Isa. 40:3). John called the people to repent of their sins, and he baptized them in the Jordan River. John also instructed the people on right living. (See Luke 3:10-14.) Some of the people suspected that John might be the Messiah, but John insisted, “One is coming who is more powerful than I” (Luke 3:16). Jesus came from Galilee to be baptized by John at the Jordan River. Wait a second. John was calling people to a baptism of repentance. We know Jesus never sinned (see Heb. 4:15; 2 Cor. 5:21), so why did Jesus come to be baptized? John was right when he said, “I need to be baptized by You, and yet You come to me?” (Matt. 3:14). Commentators’ ideas vary about why Jesus was baptized. Perhaps He was affirming John’s work. Maybe He was identifying with sinners or showing them how they would be saved—through His death, burial, and resurrection. Jesus answered John, “Allow it for now, because this is the way for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matt. 3:15). Jesus never sinned, but He obeyed God and was baptized like sinners are baptized. Baptism reminds us of Jesus’ death and resurrection. It reminds us that when we trust in Jesus, we turn from sin and start a new life—a life lived for Jesus. Help your kids understand that baptism is not what saves us; baptism is a way we show that we have been saved. Baptism reminds us that when we trust in Jesus, we die to sin and come into a new way of life—a life lived for Jesus. (See Rom. 6:3-4.) Check this session’s Activity Page and Big Picture Card as well as the Gospel Project for Kids Family App for ways to interact with the Bible content this week. FAMILY STARTING POINTS ● Babies and Toddlers ○ Jesus is God’s Son. ○ Jesus always obeyed God perfectly. ○ John baptized Jesus to do God’s plan. ○ Everything Jesus does makes God happy. ● Preschool ○ What makes Jesus different? Jesus is God’s One and Only Son. ○ John baptized Jesus. ● Kids ○ What makes Jesus different? Jesus is fully God and fully man. ○ Jesus obeyed God by being baptized. UNIT KEY PASSAGE ● 1 Timothy 1:15 NEXT WEEK ● “Jesus’ Triumphal Entry” (Matthew 21:1-17; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-44; John 12:12-19) In Christ, Stephenie
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AuthorStephenie Stokes, Archives
October 2020
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