Saul meets Jesus
key words
bible reference
Acts 9:1-19
lesson objective
To learn that God has the power to transform people.
memory verse
“And walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us” (Ephesians 5:2, NIV*).
prepare yourself to teach
Saul was a Jew who was passionate about the law. As a religious leader, he believed that his responsibility was to get rid of the followers of Jesus. Therefore, he was a persecutor of Christians. Saul wanted to stop the spread of Christianity in a very important city. Damascus was a city dedicated to commerce, so many merchants went by there. He thought stopping Christianity in Damascus would mean a setback for the followers of Jesus.
However, while Saul was on his way to Damascus, he had an experience that changed his life completely. A bright light and voice from heaven appeared before him, and as the persecutor, he knew him whom he persecuted: Jesus. Having been blinded by that bright light, and hearing the voice of Jesus, Saul discovered that he was wrong and surrendered his life to Jesus Christ.
God called Ananias, who lived in the city of Damascus, to visit the new convert and bring healing to his sight. Ananias was afraid because of the terrible things he had heard of this man, but he faithfully obeyed God and went to the house where Saul was staying. God had told Saul that Ananias would come to see him. When this faithful disciple arrived and prayed for him, Saul regained his sight. His life was transformed, and he was ready to preach the message of the Good News of Jesus.
Saul stopped being a persecutor of Jesus and became a courageous disciple who took the gospel to many places.
As you prepare this lesson, pray that you may know Jesus better. Ask him to work in your heart and empower you to announce the gospel to your children and their families.
adaptation
We live in a changing world. People, circumstances, times, everything changes. It is normal for preschoolers to go through periods of change. For example, moving to a new home or city will separate us from family and friends. However, often, change can help us. Children will meet new friends and the family can be more united from far away. Saul’s life changed dramatically and immediately when he had a personal encounter with Jesus.
Help your children understand that the change Saul experienced was for the best. After being a persecutor, he became a faithful messenger of Jesus. Lead them to understand that when we know Jesus, we should talk to others about him.
introduce the lesson
Let’s go on a trip!
For this activity, you will need drawings or figures of travel vehicles: cars, airplanes, trains, buses, boats, etc.
Show the drawings and ask what these means of transportation are used for. Listen to their answers. Then make a list of the things you need to travel. Tell them that today’s story is about a man who had something very important happen to him while on a trip.
teach the lesson
Use these activities to help introduce children to the Bible lesson.
A bright light
For this activity, you will need a flashlight.
If you are inside a room turn off the lights and try to keep the meeting area as dark as possible. If you cannot darken the meeting area, ask the children to line up and close their eyes and pretend they are blind. Allow them to hold hands. (Be sure to remove any obstacles that could make them stumble.) Then, have them follow you/ your light until they reach their seats to hear the story.
When everyone is seated, turn on the lights and tell them: “Our Bible story is about a man going down a path and being blinded by a bright light.”
Saul meets Jesus
Tell the children that at first Saul did not believe that Jesus was the Son of God, and neither did he love Jesus’ followers. Every time he found someone who talked about Jesus, Saul got very angry and ordered that they be taken to jail.
One day Saul went to see a very important leader from Jerusalem and said, “I have go to the city of Damascus. I want you to give me a letter of authorization to put anyone who follows Jesus in jail.”
That man gave him the letter and Saul began the journey. He traveled a long time. When he was near the city of Damascus, suddenly a very bright light from the sky stunned him and he fell to the ground. “Who are you Lord?” asked Saul, scared.
“I am Jesus, whom you persecute. Get up and go to the city; there you will be told what you have to do,” said Jesus.
These who accompanied Saul heard the voice, but saw no one. Saul got up, but he could not see. He was blind! His companions helped him get to the city. There Saul waited for three days.
In Damascus lived a man who loved God. His name was Ananias. The Lord asked Ananias to go and see Saul and pray for him. But, Ananias replied, “I have heard about Saul. He persecutes the people who love you, and he came to Damascus to arrest and hurt us.”
Then God told Ananias, “Saul is different now. I have chosen him to serve me. He will tell others about me. Go without fear.” Ananias did what God asked him to do. He went to see Saul, and putting Saul’s hands over his eyes, prayed for him. God immediately restored his sight and from that day forward, Saul became a faithful follower of Jesus.
connect the lesson
A transformed man
Hand out Student Activity Sheet #83-A and #83-B plus pencils to write their name and trace the words of faith: Good News.
Help the children identify the four figures on Student Activity Sheet #83-A and number the figures according to their order in the story. Allow time for the activity sheets to be colored.
Encourage the children to use their activity sheets to tell the lesson to their families and friends.
practice the memory verse
Choose a leader. Explain to the children that they should follow that leader through the meeting area, doing what he says while they repeat the memory verse. Repeat the game until the majority have the opportunity to be the leader.
wrap-up
Pray
Ask your children if they have prayer requests and have a special prayer time. Pray with them for their leaders (parents, pastors, teachers, etc.).
Encourage
Encourage the group to tell their family and friends how much they love them this week.
Invite
Sing a song before saying goodbye, and invite the children to the next session in which they will continue studying about Saul.
* 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.™