The gift of a Savior
key words
biblical reference
Luke 2:1-7 and John 3:16 and 1 John 4:9
lesson objective
To help the students understand why people need a Savior
memory verse
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16, NIV*).
prepare yourself to teach
Perhaps one of the most difficult tasks for elementary teachers is to help these students understand why the gift of Jesus as Savior is so special. To fully appreciate Jesus as Savior, the person must have a feeling of needing to be saved. To have that feeling, you must know that you sinned and repent.
We cannot force children to understand this spiritual truth before they are able to do so. However, we can present this truth to them and ask the Holy Spirit to speak to their hearts and give them understanding, even at their young age. This lesson will help students understand why they need a Savior and why the birth of Jesus is so special. Some of those children may make a personal decision for Christ if you talk to them about the plan of salvation during the session. It is likely that others will enjoy the Bible story, but do not accept Christ. However, you will have planted the seed of truth, and the Holy Spirit will give the growth in his time.
biblical commentary
Read Luke 2:1-7; John 3:16 and 1 John 4:9. Giving presents is one of the most deeply rooted traditions at Christmas time, and in many cases, it has become the central part of the celebration. However, Scripture reminds us of the importance of this special celebration.
John 3:16 gives us the perfect example of the best Christmas gift. The whole world can receive this beautiful gift. Everyone who believes in the Son of God will receive eternal life. 1 John 4:9 tells us about this same gift, but in a more personal way: God showed us his genuine love through Jesus Christ. Then, in Luke 2:1-7, we find the special gift of God: the baby Jesus, the Savior of the world.
The great love of God manifested to the world is the best Christmas gift that people can receive. The Bible is clear in telling us that ... “he will save the people from their sins.” And we, as recipients of that wonderful gift, have the mission of taking it to all those who live in darkness and without hope.
Pray that during this Christmas season, the Lord will allow you and the students to be instruments of blessing for others. Train these young ones so that they can reach others and take them to the feet of Christ. Children are also part of God’s plan.
introduce the lesson
Important gifts
Briefly review what they learned about the gift of obedience in the last session. Then, it is time to open the second gift box, which contains the card that says: Savior. Choose the student who arrived earliest, or who already knows the verse by memory, to open today’s box and read the card out loud. Explain that in this session they will study about the most wonderful gift of all time.
teach the lesson
Help your students visualize the context of the story. It is important that they understand that the birth of Jesus occurred in the midst of special and unexpected circumstances. To visualize the story, you can use pictures or physical objects. If you do not have any, you can make them. Maybe someone has a nativity set that you can use to represent the characters in the Bible story. If you wish, you can photocopy the scene from the student book, enlarge the figures, color them, stick magnets or flannel on the back, and use them on a metal sheet or the flannel graph.
The wonderful gift of God
A messenger of the Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus arrived on his horse to a market in the city of Nazareth, took a parchment from his bag and began to read aloud for all to hear: “Caesar Augustus, the great emperor, will take a census, because he wants to count all the people who live in his kingdom. For this, everyone must travel to the city where they were born.” The messenger closed the parchment and went to another city to give the same announcement.
It had been nearly 9 months since the angel had appeared to Mary and Joseph. The baby was going to be born very soon. “We must go to Bethlehem,” said Joseph, “since all my family is from there.” “My family is also from Bethlehem,” Mary said. They both packed for the long trip. They would need food, water and blankets to sleep. Mary also prepared some clothes she had made for the baby. These would be very necessary. Back then, there were no disposable diapers like the ones many babies wear today. It was a long way to get to Bethlehem. They finally arrived when it was already night. Joseph hurried to find a place to rest. Mary was very tired from the long trip and soon the child would be born. However, all the inns were full. Many people were there because they had to register because of the census.
Finally, they arrived at the last place in town and although it was full, the innkeeper allowed them to stay in the barn. That was not the place where Mary imagined for her son to be born. Her family was very far away and they did not have any friends or relatives nearby to help them, nor did they have a bed to sleep in.
However, that night, in a stable in Bethlehem, the baby Jesus, the Savior of the world, was born. Mary took the baby in her arms and cleaned it, then wrapped it in the blankets she had brought, and put him in a manger filled with clean straw so he could sleep. That night, God gave humanity the best Christmas gift ever: Jesus, his only Son.
After the story, ask the children to bow their heads and lead them to repeat this prayer after you. Pause each time you find this sign (/). If you wish, you can make a more personal invitation to each student to give their life to Christ. If the children accept Jesus, we suggest that you spend a little time at the end of the session to pray with them individually. Dear God, / thank you for loving us. / Thank you for making / a perfect plan for us / and for sending Jesus to earth. / We praise you / and adore you God / for the wonderful gift / that you gave us / through your Son Jesus, / our Savior. / Amen.
connect the lesson
A stable
Give each child Student Activity Sheet #259-A, #259-B, #259-C and #259-D, plus scissors and tape. Before the session, read the instructions carefully and follow them step by step to prepare the stable where Jesus was born. Help the children do their craft and ask questions about the lesson to review the story as they work. Encourage them to use the scene of Jesus’ birth to tell their friends and family about what they learned in this session.
practice the memory verse
Use the cards you made in the last session with the Bible verse. Stick them on the board so that the children read the verse a couple of times, then remove them one by one, until the board is empty and they can say the entire passage by memory. If you wish and time allows, ask some volunteers to come forward and say the verse by memory.
wrap-up
Pray
Pay special attention to those who prayed to accept Jesus, and explain the importance of this step of faith. Make a plan to start discipling them. (A good English resource to use are the six sessions of “Following Jesus, My Friend – Children’s Lessons” found at: https://whdl.org/following-jesus-my-friend-childrens-lessons). Give them time to share their prayer requests and intercede for each other before saying goodbye.
Encourage
Encourage the children to continue attending the group to learn more about the gifts we offer God.
Invite
Be sure to say something interesting about the next session to encourage the children to attend and to invite others.
* Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™