What is the best gift you've ever received? What made it so great?
What is the best gift you've ever given someone? Why was it such a great gift?
Referring to the gift wrapped box, say, "I have a gift for you. It's just a small expression of my love for you, but I tried to think of something I thought you would really enjoy."
- Do you have any idea what's inside the box I'm giving you?
- Do you think it's something you should be afraid of? Why or why not?
- What is the job of the gift giver? (Find something you will like or need. Purchase or make the gift - select something that requires my time, my money, my effort and/or usually some kind of sacrifice.)
- What is your job as the gift receiver? (Take the gift - If you don't take it, it never really becomes yours. Open the gift so that you can enjoy what's inside.)
Tell your kids: "I can hold this gift out forever, but until you take it and open it, it does you no good and it's not really yours. SOOO, are you going to receive the gift?" (
Let your kids take it and open it. If there are treats, they can go ahead and eat it.)
What is God's greatest gift of love? The Bible tells us about God's greatest gift of love:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life." (
John 3:16
)
In this verse, who is the Gift Giver?
Who is the Gift Receiver?
What is God's Gift?
Read the words of Jesus in
John 14:6.
- Who is the only Way to get to God? (Jesus)
- What does Jesus say happens to those who do not accept the gift? (They can't have a relationship with God.)
A pastor was speaking to his church about God's love and grace. He pulled out a $10 bill and said,
“The first person who comes to take this from my hand can have it as a free
gift.” Out of the hundreds of people seated before him, not a single person moved.
Finally, a middle-aged man, stood timidly to his feet and asked, “Do you really mean it?”
The pastor said, “Sure, come and get it; it is yours.” He almost ran to grasp it, then he thanked the pastor and returned to his seat. The rest of the crowd began mumbling, as if to say, “Why didn’t I have the faith to go and accept the gift?”
We do not earn God’s love. God’s love is a gift to all who will receive it by faith; He offers it to us freely. Nothing we do will make God love us any more; nothing we do will make Him love us any less. He loves us because He is gracious, not because of who we are,
but because of who He is.
WHY DOES THIS MATTER:
God has always loved us, but our sin stands in the way of our relationship with Him. Christ's gift of love was paying for our sin so that we can experience God's love, but He won't force the gift on us. Some people accept it, some don't. God's gift of love is offered to everyone. The only question is: Will he or she accept it or not?
TAKING ACTION:
Thank Him again for His great love for you and the gift He gave you in Jesus. If you haven't received Jesus' gift, you can do it right now! If you have any questions, reach out to someone at
Florence Baptist Temple for more information. Thank God that nothing can take away His gift.
CRAFT TEACHING TIME:
Make a wordless book, any way you want:
- Have your children collect the necessary colors of felt or construction paper that you have on hand and staple them together.
- Send your children outside on a scavenger hunt, collecting objects that represent each color.
- You may also assemble colored beads, ribbon, shirts, crayons, push pins, etc.
When you have all the pieces together, discuss the colors and what they represent.
- BLACK = sin: this is how our hearts looked before accepting Christ - full of sin
- RED = Jesus' blood: Jesus died on the cross for our sins
- WHITE = clean heart: Jesus washes our sins away and makes us as white as snow
- GREEN = growing in Christ: Once we are clean from sin we can begin to grow a new relationship with God.
- YELLOW = streets of gold: the Bible tells us that someday when we are in Heaven with Jesus we will walk the streets of gold (Revelation 21:21).
What a wonderful day when Jesus washes our sins away and makes us clean and pure. Do you know for sure that you will one day walk the streets of gold in Heaven with Jesus?
