I give my offering to God
key words
bible reference
Acts 11:27-30
lesson objective
To help the children learn that it is important to give tithes and offerings.
memory verse
“And let us not give up meeting together” (Hebrews 10:25, NIRV*).
prepare yourself to teach
In this story, prophecy is mentioned in Acts for the first time. The prophets of God are messengers sent to preach, teach, explain and predict future events.
In this passage, the prophet Agabus announced to the church of Antioch that a time of famine was approaching all the Roman world. The Early Church did not question his message, because it was revealed to him by the Holy Spirit. They also did not discuss whether the Judean brothers deserved the help or not. They immediately agreed to gather help and send it to the Christians of that region.
In this passage we are also shown that the Church was still maturing under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We see how the congregation of the Antioch church helped the congregation of the church in Judea in their time of need. As a result of this obedience, God decided to send the prophet to them and entrust them with the mission of helping another church. When a member of our family is in need, we do everything possible to help them. God also used the Christians of Antioch to help the Christian brothers and sisters of Judea.
The church is a family strengthened by the Holy Spirit and unified by Christ. When we accept the sacrifice of Jesus, repent of our sins, and invite Jesus into our lives, we are adopted by God into His family. Therefore, we are brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus. As the family of God, it is our duty to help each other.
As you prepare this lesson, think about: What is your attitude in giving? How much do you care about the family of faith? Do you feel giving is an obligation or a privilege? Pray, asking God to allow you to be a role model for your children in how to give to others.
adaptation
Some of your children may receive an allowance or a small amount of money from time to time, and they may keep it to buy something later. It is exciting for them to receive money on their birthday or for some special celebration. They can buy the thing they have wanted for a long time. Children like to give their money when they can receive something tangible in return.
When they give their offerings to the church, many may not understand what the true purpose is. Through this lesson, explain specific ways that the tithes and offerings are used. Teach them the principles of tithing so they will be joyful givers.
introduce the lesson
Offerings
For this activity you will need sheets of paper, coins, and crayons.
Place materials on a table. Teach your children that by putting the coins under the sheets of paper and rubbing them, the coins will show on the surface of the paper. (We suggest that you pay close attention as some small children have a habit of putting coins into their mouths. If this happens, take the coin away from the child, and ask the child to draw a picture of something he would like to have.)
When the children finish marking their coins, help them to write their names. You can write this phrase on the paper: “I can give an offering.”
teach the lesson
Use these activities to help children have a better understanding of the biblical truth.
Giving an offering
Before class, on yellow paper draw enough large circles for each child to have one coin. Cut out the circles which will represent coins. Find a small basket or box to represent an offering plate.
In class, place the container for the offering in front of you. Before you begin the story, give each child one paper coin. They will hold the coin until you direct them during the story to put it in the offering basket (or box).
The disciples share
Agabus was a man who loved God and studied God’s Word. He was a prophet. That means that he was a person who listened to God, obeyed Him, and told the people messages from God.
One day God spoke to Agabus and sent him to a place called Antioch. Agabus obeyed the Lord and did what God asked. When he arrived, God gave him a special message for the church of Antioch.
“Listen carefully,” said Agabus. “I have something important to tell you. God wants you to know that some parts of the world, including Judea and Jerusalem, will not have food for some time. It will not rain and people will be very hungry.”
Everyone who was there was very worried because they knew that many Christians lived in those places.
“What can we do to help?” someone asked. “Maybe we should send them help so they do not go hungry,” said another person. The people in the church at Antioch decided to send something to help the Christians of Judea. They collected a special offering to send. (Ask the children to deposit the paper coins in the container for the offering.)
Barnabas and Saul were in Antioch, but they were going to return to Judea. So, the people asked them, “Could you take this offering to the Christians in Judea?”
Barnabas and Saul agreed to do that. They took the offering to Jerusalem and gave it to the leaders of the church. Those leaders gave it to the Christians there who needed help. The believers in Antioch were happy to help the believers in Jerusalem.
connect the lesson
A bag for the coins
Before the session, gather Student Activity Sheet #82-A and #82-B. Cut out the nine coins from Student Activity Sheet #82-B and place each set of coins in a small bag for each child.
During the session, distribute the activity sheets. Help the children write their names and trace the word of faith of the unit. Then, ask the children to take the nine coins out of the bags and count them. Let the children return the coins to the bags. Ask, “Why were coins important in today’s story? Why did the church members bring an offering to church to share with others? We brought money to church to give to the pastor to help someone who has a need. Did you do anything to earn your offering money?”
Say, “God wants us to share with others who need food, clothing, or housing. It feels good to do something to help someone. How do you feel about the offering today?”
Encourage the children to take home their activity sheets and share the lesson with their families and friends.
practice the memory verse
Say the verse with me
Say the words of Hebrews 10:25. Then tell the children you want someone to say the verse with you. When someone volunteers, say: “(name), will you say the verse with me?” Then say the verse with the child. Then that child can ask someone else to say the verse with him. “(name), will you say the verse with me?” Continue until every child has asked someone else to say the verse.
wrap-up
Pray
Ask the children if God answered any of their prayers from last week. Then let the children mention prayer requests for today. Let volunteers say a prayer. Close by thanking God for all he gives to us, all he does for us, and for all his love for us.
Encourage
Tell the children that God helped the people in the Early Church. God is with the people in your church today. He loves us and wants us to have everything we need. Christians can help God meet the needs of people around them.
Invite
This is the end of this unit, but there are exciting lessons that begin in the next session. Tell the children to come again and bring someone with them.
* Scripture quotations marked (NIRV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Reader'sVersion, copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.