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Unit 1 Birth of Christ
NT1.2 Angel Visits
Scripture: Luke 1: 5-80; Matthew 1: 18-24
Lesson Goal: From the beginning of time with Adam and Eve and
then later to Abraham and then to King David, God had promised to
send a Savior to the world. In this lesson we will learn how God
sent His angel Gabriel to tell Mary and Joseph and Elizabeth and
Zachariah about the coming birth of Jesus.
Introduction: This is the second lesson in Unit 1: The Birth of
Christ. In this lesson we will learn how God sent His angel Gabriel
to tell Mary and Joseph and Elizabeth and Zachariah about the
coming birth of Jesus. These events are told in the books of
Matthew and Luke. The first four books of the New Testament are
called the gospels--Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. They tell about
the life and ministry of Christ. Let's say the first four books of
the New Testament together--Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
Today we begin lessons from the New Testament. The first four
books of the New Testament are called the Gospels. These are four
stories about Jesus given to us by four different men. They are
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Matthew was the apostle who was once
a tax collector. He wrote the first book of the New Testament
called Matthew. Matthew shows us that Jesus is our King and Savior.
Mark was a young man who followed Jesus. Although he was not an
apostle he probably knew Jesus personally. He wrote the second book
of the New Testament. He shows us that Jesus is our Servant and
that He came to give His life for us. Luke was a Greek doctor who
traveled with Paul the Apostle. He wrote the third book in the New
Testament . Luke gives us many details about the life of Christ.
Luke shows us that Jesus was indeed human—a perfect man. And,
finally the fourth book of the Gospels is John. It was written by
John the Apostle who was one of Jesus' closest disciples. The book
of John shows us that Jesus is the Mighty God, full of power.
Attention Getter: Do you always keep your room neat and clean?
Are all your toys picked up? Are there any clothes on the floor or
hanging over the back of a chair? Did you make your bed this
morning? If you knew I was coming to visit this afternoon, would
you have to rush home to make sure everything was in order? My
mother was a very good housekeeper. When company came to visit at
our house, my mother would bring out the broom, the mop and pail,
sponges, window cleaner, bathroom cleaner, dust rags, and furniture
polish. Then she called all of us girls together and assigned each
of us the jobs that we were to do. When we were finished, she
checked to make sure that not a speck of dirt or dust remained. Can
you imagine what it would have been like around our house if we had
been expecting somebody really important -- someone like a king or
queen? Well, that is what our Bible lesson is about--the coming of
a King. Not just any king -- the King of Kings! Jesus!
Opening Prayer: Let's pray "Dear Jesus, thank you for coming to
earth as a baby. We believe that you really are the Son of God and
that you came to take away our sins. Thank you Jesus for saving us.
We look forward to your return. You said that you were "Coming
Soon." We pray that we will be ready when you come. In Jesus' name,
Amen.
Memory Verse: Our memory verse is Matthew 1:21 says "She will
give birth to a son and you are to call His name Jesus because He
will save his people from their sins."
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Lesson Video: http://youtu.be/W26rbtaabpo This lesson is from
the books of Matthew and Luke. Luke begins the story of Jesus
before He was even born. It starts with two people named Zechariah
and Elizabeth, relatives of Jesus. Zechariah was a priest. He and
his wife Elizabeth were very good people. They believed in God with
all their heart and kept all His commandments.
Zechariah and Elizabeth were very old and they had never had any
children. Even though they loved God He had not given them even one
child. This made Zechariah and Elizabeth very sad because they so
wanted a child.
In the land of Israel there were many priests who worked in the
temple. Each morning a priest entered the Holy Place in the temple
and burned incense. When the people saw the smoke from the burning
incense, they prayed. The smoke going upward was like their prayers
going upward to God. Since there were so many priests they took
turns serving. The privilege of going into the temple might only
happen once in the priest's lifetime. That was why it was such a
special day when Zechariah was chosen.
While Zechariah was serving in the temple, something amazing
happened to him. Suddenly, the angel Gabriel appeared to him. When
Zechariah saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. The
angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer is
heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall
call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many
will rejoice at his birth.
Wow! What kind of a child would this be? John the Baptist’s
birth was so important that it was announced by an angel. It had
been over 400 years since Israel had heard any messages from God.
Many people had given up believing in Him. So, God sent John the
Baptist to come ahead of Jesus to help prepare the people for
Jesus’ arrival.
But, Zechariah didn’t believe Gabriel, he thought it would be
impossible for Elizabeth to have a baby because they were so old.
Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an
old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.” Zechariah doubted
God, because to him having a child at his age seemed impossible.
But with God, nothing is impossible.
Because Zechariah did not believe, the angel said, "I am
Gabriel. And now you will be silent and not be able to speak until
the day your son is born. This will happen because you did not
believe my words."
Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah and they kept
wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. When he came out, he
could not speak to them. They realized that he had seen a vision in
the temple because he kept making signs to them but he could not
talk. Zechariah could hardly wait to tell Elizabeth the good news.
When he arrived home, he wrote on a piece of paper: “We are going
to have a son!” In a very short time, Elizabeth got pregnant after
all the years of waiting!
At the time that Elizabeth was pregnant with John and was only
about 6 months along, her cousin Mary was engaged to be married to
Joseph. Mary lived in Nazareth which was a city in Galilee. She was
a very good young girl who loved and served God with all her heart.
Mary and Joseph weren't married yet. Mary was still living at home
with her parents. She was probably excited about her upcoming
marriage to Joseph. She probably wondered what kind of a life she'd
have as the wife of a carpenter.
One day an angel suddenly appeared to Mary. He told her that God
would do a miracle in her, like he did for her cousin, Elizabeth!
The angel said, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you;
You are blessed among women!" But when Mary saw him, she was
startled. You can imagine how surprising it would be to suddenly
have a visit from the angel Gabriel! It must have frightened
her!
Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have
found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a
son and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and
will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him
the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of
Jacob forever; His kingdom will never end.
Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not
know a man?" Mary knew that she had kept herself pure for her
future husband. She wondered how she could possibly get pregnant.
Mary wasn’t doubting God’s ability to perform a miracle, she just
wondered how He was going to do this.
http://youtu.be/W26rbtaabpo
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And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will
come upon you, and the power of the Highest will over shadow you;
therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the
Son of God." What a miracle this birth would be! Joseph would not
be the father--God would! Truly only God could do a thing like
this! But remember nothing is too hard for God to do? Here’s what
the angel Gabriel said..."For with God nothing will be impossible.
"
Then the angel Gabriel told Mary about her cousin Elizabeth. He
said, "Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her
old age and she who was said to be too old is now in her sixth
month!" What a surprise this must have been to Mary!
But Mary's reply is so beautiful. She said, "I am the Lord's
servant. May it be done to me as you have said!" Mary was totally
obedient to God. She was willing to be the woman God had chosen to
give birth to His Son Jesus! We be like Mary and want to follow
God's plan for our lives! Then the angel Gabriel disappeared.
Mary was so excited that she got ready immediately and hurried
to a town in the hill country of Judea to visit her cousin
Elizabeth and her husband Zechariah. When Mary came to their house
she called out to Elizabeth. "Elizabeth! I have come to visit
you."
Then a very special thing happened. The Bible says that as soon
as Elizabeth saw Mary, she felt the baby John in her womb jump for
joy. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and He gave her
special wisdom. She said to Mary, "You are blessed among women
because you are going to have the baby Jesus. I am highly favored
to have you come to visit me! You are the mother of my Lord." Both
Mary and Elizabeth were so overjoyed that they had been chosen to
serve God by being the mother of Jesus and the mother of John the
Baptist.
They began to sing praises to God. Mary's song of joy was "My
God is so great, so strong and so mighty there’s nothing my God
cannot do! The mountains are His, the rivers are His, the stars are
His handiwork, too. He made them all! God said, “Let there be
light,” and there was light. Making Mary pregnant was a synch for
Him!
Mary stayed with her cousin Elizabeth and Zechariah for about
three months. What a time of encouragement this must have been for
Mary to stay with her older cousin Elizabeth! Both were
experiencing a great miracle of God! They must have talked together
excitedly while old Zechariah could say nothing! Then Mary returned
home to Nazareth.
And when it was time for the baby to be born, it was a boy just
as the angel had said. Zechariah probably shouted for joy when the
baby was born. To him having a child at his age seemed impossible.
But with God, nothing is impossible.
When everyone asked what name should be given to his son,
Zechariah wrote "His name is John." This surprised everyone because
they expected him to be named after his father. Telling everyone
that his name was to be John showed that Zechariah now believed! .
Now Zechariah could speak again just as the angel Gabriel had
promised. Zechariah told everyone how God had said that his son
John the Baptist would have an important job. He would be the one
that would preach to all the nation of Israel and announce the
coming of Jesus. He would help prepare the hearts of the people to
believe in Jesus as the Lord.
When Mary returned to Nazareth her future husband Joseph found
out that she was pregnant. He knew that they had never been
together because they were not married yet. Who was the father of
this baby? He knew it was NOT his baby. What was he to do? Joseph
was a very good man and he loved God. But what could he do? He
could not marry a woman who was pregnant. He wanted a woman that
was pure and holy. He loved Mary and he did not want to hurt
her
As he was thinking about what to do, an angel appeared to Joseph
in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to
take Mary home as your wife because the baby she is going to have
is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you are
to give him the name Jesus because he will save his people from
their sins. This child is the Savior that your people, the Jews,
have been waiting for since the beginning of time!"
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No other child had ever been or would ever be born like this.
Our loving God was coming into the world miraculously, born as a
baby. He would be God in a human body. And, because He would be
both perfect God and perfect man, He alone could pay the price for
all the sin of the world. He would die on the cross to pay for the
sins of everyone.
When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had
commanded him. Joseph took Mary as his wife because He knew that
Mary had not been unfaithful. Joseph loved his wife Mary and took
her home to live with him. Joseph trusted God and he lovingly cared
for Mary because he knew that she was going to give birth to the
Son of God. He would call his name Jesus. God knew that Mary would
need help to give birth to His Son Jesus and so he used a strong
man like Joseph who loved and obey Him to be her husband.
Do you see what God's greatest promise means for you? God sent
His only son Jesus to be born on earth so your sins and mine can be
forgiven. That was the best gift that could ever be given to us.
All we need to do to be saved from our sins is to believe in God's
promised One, the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Bible tells us that in the days before Jesus began his
ministry, a man called John began preaching and telling the people
to prepare for the coming King. This was the son of Zechariah and
Elizabeth. When John told people to prepare for the King, he didn't
mean that they should go home and sweep the floor, pick up their
toys, and make their beds.
He meant that they should prepare their hearts. How? By
repenting of their sins and turning toward God. When they did this,
John would baptize them in the Jordan River. That is how he got the
name, "John the Baptist."
It is important for you and me to make our hearts ready for the
coming King too. We do that by confessing our sins and asking God
to forgive us. If we will do that, the Bible tells us that he will
forgive us and make our hearts clean. Then we will be ready for
Jesus when he comes. The promise that the angel made to Joseph came
true!
Matthew 1:21 says "She will give birth to a son and you are to
call His name Jesus because He will save his people from their
sins." That is our memory verse. Let's say it again together.
Matthew 1:21 "She will give birth to a son and you are to call His
name Jesus because He will save his people from their sins. Let's
get ready to meet the King!
Review Questions: “Christmas Musical Chairs” Preparation: You
will need a CD or DVD of Christmas carols that have “Angels” in the
lyrics. You will also need to set up chairs to play the traditional
game of musical chairs. Procedure: Play several Christmas songs as
children play musical chairs. Set up chairs with the chair backs
against each other. You will need to set up one less chair than the
number of children in your class. Begin the Christmas song. Have
the children walk around the chairs when the music starts. Have
students find a chair to sit in when the music stops. As one child
is eliminated from game he or she is to answer one of the following
review questions. Continue playing the game in rounds until there
is one person left. The last child in the game can pick a small
"wrapped" Christmas gift.
1. What are some of the Old Testament prophesies concerning the
coming of Jesus? (He would be born of a virgin, born in Bethlehem,
a descendant of David.)
2. What was it about the announcement of Jesus’ birth that shows
us that He would be more than an ordinary man? (His birth was
announced by an angel, He would be born of a virgin, and called,
“Son of the Most High.”)
3. From what we read about Mary, what can we tell about her?
(She's honest; she kept herself pure; she was eager to please God
in everything she did.)
4. How did Mary feel when she first heard the angel's news about
the Savior? (Confused; then joyful.)
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5. What kind of person was Joseph? (Matthew 1:19 says he was a
just man. He immediately obeyed God.)
6. How do you think Joseph felt when he first found out Mary was
having a baby? (Confused, sad, angry, disappointed)
7. What changed Joseph's mind? (A visit from an angel in a
dream.) 8. How did Joseph know that Mary's baby would be special —
unlike any other person ever born?
(The angel explained that the child was sent from God, and the
baby was to be named “Jesus”, a name that means “Savior.”)
9. How do you think Joseph felt when he realized he would be
helping Mary take care of God’s Son? (Happy, proud, anxious to do
God’s will.)
10. Why did God come to earth in the form of a baby? Why did God
have to become a man? (He came specifically to take the punishment
for our sins.)
11. Why is it important to understand that Jesus is God? (He was
sinless and had all power.) 12. Why does sin have to be punished?
(God is perfect and He cannot tolerate any impurity in His
presence. Since He wants us to spend eternity with Him in
heaven, He knew He had to do something about our sin problem.)
13. What prophesies concerning Jesus have not been fulfilled
yet? (He's coming back!) 14. If Jesus had never been born, what
would be different in our lives? (No Christmas, our calendar
years would be numbered different.)
Bible Memory Verse Activity: “Angel Wings” The memory verse is
Matthew 1:21 says "She will give birth to a son and you are to call
His name Jesus because He will save his people from their sins."
Let's say the verse again together. Have children locate the verse
in the Bible. Read the verse aloud with children several times.
Say: “This verse tells us the meaning of the name Jesus. Jesus
means “the Lord saves.”Jesus came to earth to save us because we
can’t save ourselves from sin. Only Jesus can eliminate our sin and
its consequences. He is our Savior.” Preparation: You will need an
angel costume that has angel wings. Have angel wings available to
hook on children with a piece of elastic around their arms.
Procedure: Take turns allowing the children to try and recite the
Bible verse while wearing the angel wings. Be sure everyone has an
opportunity to say the verse. Angel wings are often a part of
inexpensive Halloween costumes. These can be purchased very cheaply
after Halloween and just before Christmas!
Group Learning Activity: “Baby Names” (Grades 2-5) Preparation:
You will need a baby book of names. You will also need a set of
letters and trays from the commercial game of Scrabble so that each
child can “spell” out the names of Jesus on his or her letter tray.
Say: (Show the baby book of names) “What kind of book is this?
(This is a baby book of names) What does this book contain? (The
book has suggestions for names that parents might choose for their
baby.) What other information does the book contain? (The book may
also contain the meaning of names and different versions of the
same name. It may have the origin of the name.) Why would parents
want a book like this? (Choosing a name for a new baby may be a
challenge and they want suggestions. Parents may want to use a name
that is popular. Parents may also want to know the meaning of the
name so they can choose a good name that describes their baby.)”
Say: “In this lesson we learned that Mary and Joseph heard the good
news about the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. The good news was
told to them by the angel Gabriel. Gabriel also told them the name
that
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they were to call the new baby. His birth was special and they
were to choose a name that was special too! It was to describe the
Son of God. Today we are going to learn about the names of Jesus
and his earthly family.” Procedure: Distribute the sets of Scrabble
letters and the letter trays to each child. Place the letter square
on a table with the face side up so the letter is visible and
accessible for children to reach. As you talk about each of the
following names in this lesson, have the children “spell” the name
on their tray. After you discuss each name, have students return
the letters to the table before you go on to the net name. Younger
students may need adult help in spelling the names. Say: “We can
read about the birth of Christ in the books of Matthew and Luke in
the New Testament. We are going to spell the names as we talk about
each character in our lesson today.”
Mary—“Our first name is Mary. (Spell the word Mary.) Mary was
the young woman whom God chose to have his Son Jesus. She was a
good girl who loved and obeyed God. She was engaged to be married
but she had never been with any man. The angel said that she was
chosen by God to bear the Son of God. The baby was to be from the
Spirit of God. God was His father. Mary was obedient to God and was
willing to be the mother of the baby Jesus.” (Luke 1:26-33)
Joseph—“Joseph is our next name. (Spell the name Joseph.) Joseph
was the man whom Mary was engaged to marry. Joseph was a good man
who loved God and wanted to obey Him. He was a carpenter. At first
he did not want to marry Mary because he did not understand who the
Child was that Mary was carrying. The angel appeared to Joseph and
told him to marry Mary and that the child she had was the Son of
God. The angel told Joseph not to name him after himself. Instead
he was to call the baby Jesus.” (Matthew 1:18-21) Jesus—“Jesus is
our next name. (Spell the name Jesus.) Jesus is the name of the
baby that was born to Mary. He was special because He was the Son
of God. He was different than any other baby because he would never
sin or do anything wrong. That was because He was really God. The
angel told Joseph to name the baby Jesus. The name Jesus is from
the Hebrew word “Yahweh Saves.” Jesus was the one that had been
promised by God to bring salvation to all the people of the world.
The name of Jesus is very powerful because it brings the
forgiveness of sins! (Matthew 1:21) Emmanuel—“Emmanuel is the next
name. (Spell the word Emmanuel.) This is the name of Jesus that
Isaiah the prophet said would be born in Bethlehem. (Isaiah 9:6)
The name means “God is with us.” This means that the baby would be
God Himself who would come to earth in the form of a man who would
live among His people. This name was also repeated by Matthew in
his account of the birth of Christ Jesus. (Matthew 1:23)”
Zechariah—“Zechariah is our next word. (Spell the name Zechariah.)
Zechariah was a priest in Israel. He was the first to know about
the birth of Jesus through the birth of his own son John the
Baptist. His son would be the one who would announce the birth of
Jesus and help prepare the people of Israel to know who Jesus was
and to believe in Him as the Savior. At first Zechariah did not
believe the angel and so was unable to talk until John his son was
born.(Luke 1:13-17) Elizabeth— “The next name is Elizabeth. (Spell
the name Elizabeth.) Elizabeth was the wife of Zechariah. She was a
righteous woman who had never had any children. She was chosen by
God to bear the baby name John the Baptist. She was given a special
understanding of who Jesus was when Mary came to visit her. Her
baby was John the Baptist who “leaped for joy” when Elizabeth saw
Mary the mother of Jesus.(Luke 1:39-46) Gabriel—“The next name is
Gabriel. (Spell the word Gabriel.) Gabriel was the angel that God
sent to Mary, Joseph, and Zechariah. Angels are messengers of God
that appear to men on special occasions to tell the message of God.
Gabriel told Mary that she was chosen by God and
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that Jesus would be great and be called the Son of the Most High
and that He would reign someday on the throne of David.”
Review the memory verse Matthew 1:21 says "She will give birth
to a son and you are to call His name Jesus because He will save
his people from their sins." Say: “This verse tells us the meaning
of the name Jesus. Jesus means “the Lord saves.”Jesus came to earth
to save us because we can’t save ourselves from sin. Only Jesus can
eliminate our sin and its consequences. He is our Savior.” Conclude
in prayer thanking God for sending us His Son Jesus to be our
Savior.
Group Learning Activity: “WLH-Where Life Happens TV Show”
(Grades 2-5) Preparation: You will need to provide Biblical
costumes for the following characters: Mary and Joseph. You will
also need to provide copies of the following script for the TV Host
and Mary and Joseph. Provide a microphone for the TV Host to use as
each question is asked of Mary and Joseph. Say: “Today we are going
to review our lesson by have a television game show. The TV Host or
announcer is going to interview the characters in our story. Our
announcer needs to sound very important as they talk to the
characters and tell the good news of the birth of Christ. The other
characters are Mary and Joseph. They will use these costumes to
dress up as his or her character.”
TV Announcer: Thank you for joining us here today at WKS—Where
Life Happens Channel. Today I have two very special people with me.
I’m excited about your hearing their stories of how life happened
to them. Let me introduce you to Mary and Joseph. (Mary and Joseph
enter in costume.) Thank you for coming. We are excited to hear
about your lives. First let’s just give everyone a little
background information. Mary and Joseph were engaged and planning
to be married. Joseph is a carpenter and a descendant of King
David. So, Mary, tell us what happened before your marriage.” Mary:
God sent the angel Gabriel to speak to me. Gabriel told me I had
found favor with God and that God was with me. TV Announcer: What
did you do? I mean how did you respond? Mary: Gabriel’s statement
confused me. I did not understand what type of greeting that was.
However, Gabriel told me not to be afraid. The angel told me that I
was to have a baby, a son. Gabriel even informed me that I was to
name Him Jesus. TV Announcer: I imagine this scared you. Mary:
Gabriel explained how all of this would take place. He told me
nothing is impossible with God. I told Gabriel that I would do
whatever God wanted me to do. Then Gabriel left. TV Announcer: Very
interesting. Now, Joseph, how did you react to hearing this?
Joseph: At first I did not know what to do. I mean, Mary and I were
engaged to be married. I did not want to disgrace Mary, so I
decided to secretly break off the marriage. TV Announcer: Obviously
you did not do this. Joseph: No after I considered these things,
God sent an angel to speak to me. The angel told me to not fear
marrying Mary because what was taking place was God’s plan. The
angel told me that the baby would be a boy and I was to name Him
Jesus. The angel also told me not to fear
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marrying Mary because what was taking place was God’s plan. The
angel told me that the baby would be a boy and I was to name Him
Jesus. The angel also said Jesus would save people from their sins.
TV Announcer: I’m not sure I understand why you and Mary went
through all of this. Joseph: We were willing to allow God to use us
to fulfill what the prophet Isaiah had said.
TV Announcer: What an amazing event. (To children) Well folks,
you heard it here on the WLH—Where Life Happens Channel. Until next
time, I’m Bill your announcer, and I’m not sure about you, but I
understand I can know that Jesus is the Son of God. (Actors
exit.)
Group Learning Activity: “Questions in a Box--John or Jesus?”
Preparation: You will need to prepare paper strips with the
following sentences written on them. Put the questions in a box
that is wrapped on the outside like a present.
1. My mother visited her cousin for three months. 2. I jumped in
my mother’s womb when the Messiah’s mother came to
visit. 3. My mom sang a song of praise to God when she knew I
was going
to be born. 4. I was almost named after my father. But Mom and
Dad gave me the
name that the angel told them to give me. 5. My mom was pretty
old when she gave birth to me. 6. My father sang a song of praise
to God after I was born. 7. When I grow up I will help get people
ready for Jesus. 8. When I grow up I will save people from their
sins. 9. My father is Zechariah. 10. My Father is God.
Procedure: Review the stories of Mary and Elizabeth and the
babies they were expecting. Place the sentence strips in a box and
have the children decide if these sentences tell about Jesus or
John:
Group Learning Activity Game: “Name Game” (Grades K-4)
Preparation: Print all of the children’s first name initials on
index cards. Print Mary and Joseph on separate cards. Spread the
cards on the floor. You will also need a bean bag to toss onto the
cards. Say: “Everyone should stand up. I’ll call out letters or
names. If I call a letter and your name starts with that letter,
raise your hand.” Procedure: Have everyone stand. Call out letters
of the beginning letters of the names of students in your class.
Continue this preliminary activity to make sure that all children
understand what letter their name begins with and what their
initials are. Have children take turns throwing the bean bag to the
land on one of the index cards on the floor. The child who throws
the bean bag may choose an action for all those whose names begin
with that letter to do. Example actions might be raise your right
hand, hop on your right (left) foot, clap your hands, jump up and
down 5 times, say “Merry Christmas”, etc. If the bean bag lands on
the name Mary or Joseph then everyone must say the memory verse
together. Matthew 1:21 says "She will give birth to a son and you
are to call His name Jesus because He will save his people from
their sins." Continue playing as time allows.
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Group Learning Activity: “Special Babies in the Bible” (Grades
3-5) Preparation: Each student will need a Bible. You will also
need to hide six pictures of babies around the room. Write the
following texts listed below, one on each of the backs of the
pictures. Procedure: Distribute Bibles to every student. Say: "In
this lesson we learned that God loves us so much that He sent His
Son Jesus to earth as a baby. God loves everyone—babies, children,
and adults. All are special to Him. The Bible tells us about some
special babies. Six pictures of babies are hidden around the room.
When I give a signal, each group of you are to find a picture and
locate the scripture text on the back in your Bible. Be ready to
tell the rest of the class who the baby was and what made that baby
so special.” Divide class into groups of two or three students
each. Have them find a picture card of a baby and look up the
scripture and report back to class who the baby is and why he was
special.
Exodus 2:1-10 Moses was the baby that was given to Amran the
Levi priest and Jochebed his wife. He was given to lead Israel out
of bondage of slavery and to take the people to the Promised Land.
Moses was saved out of the Nile River and raised by the Pharaoh of
Egypt’s daughter.
Judges 13:6, 7, 24 Samson was a baby that was given to Moah and
his wife. An angel came to Moah’s wife and told her that Samson was
to be raised as a Nazarite and that he was to not have his hair
cut. He would become very strong and a mighty warrior who would
kill many of Israel’s enemies—the Philistines.
1 Samuel 1:17-20 Samuel was the son that was promised to Hannah
and her husband Elkanah in answer to her prayer for a son. He would
become the first prophet of Israel and would lead the people of
Israel in the worship of God.
2 Kings 4: 11-17 Shunammite’s son was given to a godly woman and
her husband in the city of Shunam who graciously entertained the
prophet Elisha and his servant when they came to preach in the
area. Later the young boy died and Elisha prayed and God raised him
from the dead.
Genesis 21:1-3 Isaac was the promised son to Abraham and Sarah
and was born when they were very old. Abraham was 100 and Sarah was
90 years old. Isaac was the one in whom God would bless the family
of Abraham by being the ancestor of Jesus the Messiah.
Genesis 30:22-24 Joseph was the son of Jacob and Rachel. He was
the one who would be taken captive into Egypt and eventually become
the leader of Egypt. He would be the one who would save his father
and brothers from starvation and provide a place of safety for them
in Egypt.
Say: “Does God have special plans for other babies besides
Jesus, John, and the other babies we have just learned about? (Yes)
Why? (We are all God’s children. He has a special plan for each of
us. He loves all of us. He promises to show us the way that He has
planned if we ask Him and are willing to follow His will for our
lives.” Say: “What is the best baby gift that God has given to us?
Yes, He sent His Son Jesus to come to this earth. He came to bring
us salvation and the forgiveness of sin. When He comes again, He
wants to take us to be with him in heaven. Aren’t you glad for that
wonderful gift?”
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Group Learning Activity: “Angel Hunt” (Grades K-3) Preparation:
For each student in your class you will need to make a triangle out
of construction paper for the angel body. You will need to make a
circle out of construction paper for the head. You will need a
white paper doily for each angel. Hide the pieces for the angel
throughout the room. Say: “In this lesson we learned that the angel
Gabriel appeared to Mary, Joseph and Zechariah to tell them about
the coming birth of Jesus and John the Baptist. Angels are
messengers for God. Today we are going to find the parts for our
angel and then put them together to form an angel.” Procedure: Make
3 parts of an angel (triangle for the body, a circle of the head,
and a paper doily for the wings), and make enough angel parts for
each child. When the teacher says GO FIND YOUR ANGEL, each child
will run to hunt for the angel's body, head and wings, and come
back to the table and put the angel together, gluing it to a piece
of construction paper! Have children decorate their angel with
colored glitter glue. You can also add googly eyes to the angel, if
desired. Children can write the Bible verse on the construction
paper background. Matthew 1:21 says "She will give birth to a son
and you are to call His name Jesus because He will save his people
from their sins."
Group Learning Activity: “Praise Microphones” (Grades K-5) Say:
"We have learned that Mary sang a song of praise to God when she
learned that she was going to have baby Jesus. We can sing about
Jesus' birth too. Let's make praise microphones that will help us
sing about Jesus' birth." Preparation: Before class, cut black
construction paper to fit around empty paper towel tubes, one for
each child. You can also use black scrap book paper with a pattern
or sparkle. Procedure: Distribute the construction paper, empty
paper towel tubes, markers, and clear tape. Help the students roll
the papers around the paper tubes and tape the edges of the papers
together. You can glue the paper to the cardboard towel tube also.
To make the head of the microphone, give each child a Styrofoam
ball and a small sheet of aluminum foil. Wrap the foil around the
Styrofoam ball and crunch the foil tightly. (Or you can show the
kids how to ball up a piece of tissue paper to fit into one end,
leaving most of the paper out of the tube.) To attach the ball to
the handle apply hot glue to the tube and lay the ball on top and
hold until secure. ONLY ADULTS should use hot glue guns. Have
students use their microphones to sing “We Will Call Him Lord,”
“Joy to the World,” and “The Night That Jesus Was Born” or other
Christmas carols.
Craft Learning Activity: “Angel Ornament” (Grades K-5) Say:
"What do you put at the very top of your Christmas tree? Some
people put stars and some people put angels. Angels also played an
important part of the Christmas story. Angels are messengers from
God. Today we are going to make a Christmas angel." Preparation: To
make the angel you will need one craft stick, pink or flesh colored
scrap of felt, one gold pipe cleaner, googly eyes and one sheet of
white poster paper, some gold or white wrapping paper and yellow
yarn. Procedure: Fold one sheet of white poster paper (8 1/2" X
11") in half lengthwise. Cut along fold. Save the other half for
another angel. Starting at the
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shorter end, fold up the sheet of paper accordion style. With
the paper all folded up, fold it in half once. Then use your
scissors to cut a small slit at the folded edge. When this is
unfolded you can stick the popsicle stick through this cut. This
will make your angel's wings. Now open up the fan and slide the
craft stick into the slit. Position the wings about 2/3 from the
bottom of the stick. Make a 6" circle from holiday wrapping paper
(gold or white). Cut a slit to the center of the circle. Now wrap
the circle around itself to form a cone. Cut a small slit in the
top of the cone for the craft stick to thread through. Slide the
cone on the bottom of the craft stick. Put a drop of glue where the
cone meets the stick. To make the head, fold a piece of pink or
flesh colored felt in half. You can also use white foam board. Cut
out a small circle so that you end up with two circles the same
size. Glue one half to one side of the craft stick and one half to
the other side. Bend a gold pipe cleaner into a halo shape and
insert it in between the two felt circles of the head. Apply some
glue to the pipe cleaner. Be sure it is sticking to the craft
stick. You may want to use a clothespin to clamp it down to make a
tight seal while it dries. Add features to the face of the angel.
You can glue yarn for the hair, some googly eyes to the face, and
add cord to hang the angel if you desire.
Craft Learning Activity: “Handprint and Footprint Angel
Ornament” (Grades K-3) Preparation: This Christmas angel has a
footprint body and two handprint wings. Use heavy paper, craft foam
or poster board for a more permanent version. You will need besides
the paper, some crayons, scissors, glue, string, and a fairly large
photo of each child. Say: “In this lesson we learned that God sent
his angel Gabriel to proclaim the good news about the coming birth
of His Son Jesus. Angels are special beings that God uses to tell
people God’s message for them. God also wants us to be the
messengers of His good news the “gospel.” Today we are going to
make some special angels that look like you!” Procedure: Have child
stand on paper or poster board to trace their foot print. This will
form the body of the angel. Trace both hands on white paper to form
the wings. They look better if the fingers are not too far apart.
Decorate the robe and wings as desired. You can fill in the wings
with sparkles or sparkly glue or glue yellow or gold colored tissue
to the wings. Glue ribbon to the center of the robe as a belt. Cut
a photo of the child to attach to the foot print. Add a string if
you wish to hang on the Christmas tree. Attach a tag that reads:
"This little angel is special because she is a part of me. Her
wings are my hands, her body my feet, and on the tree she'll look
very sweet."
Craft Learning Activity: Mary's Song of Praise Preparation:
Print a copy of Mary's Song of Praise Bell (template included) on
cardstock for each child. You will also need crayons or colored
markers, a paper hole puncher, a metal jingle bell, and a short
strand of paper ribbon approximately 8” long for each student. Say:
“In this lesson we learned that once Mary learned about the coming
birth of Jesus from the angel Gabriel that she went to visit her
cousin Elizabeth. Elizabeth had already learned about the coming
birth of her son who would become John the Baptist. Elizabeth and
her husband Zechariah had been told that he would be the one who
would prepare the way for people to believe in Jesus as the
Messiah. When Mary came to visit Elizabeth it was time of great joy
and happiness as the two women shared the good news that the Son of
God was going to come and bring salvation to all. Today we are
going to share in their joy of the news of salvation.”
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Procedure: Give each child the large cut out bell. Have students
color and decorate the edges. Punch a hole in the top of each bell
and hang a small bell at the top using the strand of ribbon. Have
children ring out Mary's song of Praise! The children should also
read the PRAISE BELL together!
Craft Learning Activity: “Sandpaper Jesus Sign” (Grades K-5)
Preparation: You will need a sheet of sandpaper, scissors, and
crayons for each child. Say: "When the angel of the Lord appeared
to Joseph, he told him, "Do not be afraid to take Mary home as your
wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She
will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,
because he will save His people from their sins." We are going to
make a craft today about the name of Jesus."
Procedure: Distribute the sandpaper and materials to each
student. Have the children cut a sheet of sandpaper in half. Write
Jesus backwards on the sandpaper with a marker as show in the
example. This is called "mirror writing." Go over the marker with
crayon, pressing hard to get a lot of crayon onto the sandpaper.
Turn the sand paper upside down onto a piece of cardstock. ADULTS
ONLY will use an iron on medium high heat. Iron over the sandpaper
until the crayon melts. This won't take long--probably 40 seconds
depending on the iron. Say: “In this lesson we learned that God
sent his angel Gabriel to Joseph to tell him about the coming birth
of Jesus. Joseph believed the angel’s message that he would be the
earthly father of the Son of God. He believed the promise that God
gave him although it seemed impossible. God also made a promise to
Zechariah and Elizabeth and He kept His word. God promised a son to
Mary and Joseph and He kept His Word. God has promised to send
Jesus to us again so that we might live with Him forever. God keeps
His promise! Jesus will come again!”
Snack Learning Activity: “Angel Cookies or Angel Food Cake”
(Grades K-5) Preparation: You will need angel shaped sugar cookies
or cut angel food cake into small squares and serve on napkins.
Procedure: Give children an angel shaped sugar cookie to enjoy for
a snack after singing a Christmas carol about angels. Let children
choose a "carol" with the word "angel" in it! Instead of a cookie,
you can cut an angel food cake loaf into small squares. Serve on
Christmas angel napkins!
Life Application Challenge: “Pleasing to God” Say: “When the
angel appeared to Mary, Gabriel told her that she was "pleasing to
God." There are many words in the English language that mean
"pleasing to God". Virtue, goodness, holiness, righteousness,
honor, uprightness, integrity, and morality are a few. When these
characteristics are missing, the person is not complete. A person
who is pleasing to God and pleasing to others can be used in a
mighty way.” Mary was special because she was pleasing to God!”
Say: “God used Mary above all the other virgins to be the mother of
His only Son. How wonderful! Who knows what great things are in
store for all of us as we live lives that are pleasing to God? The
challenge this week is to try to live a life this week that is
pleasing to God. Be ready to share something next week that you did
that was good and right and brought glory to God.” Conclude in
prayer asking God to help us live holy lives that are pleasing to
Him.
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Angel Visits Mary
Matthew 1:21 She will give birth to a son and you are to call
His name Jesus
because He will save his people from their sins.
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Mary's Song of Praise
"My soul glorifies the
Lord, and my spirit
rejoices in God my Savior.."