Lesson 2: Jesus rejected in his hometown.
Passage: Matthew 13:53-58 - Once Jesus went to teach in the synagogue of his hometown, and the people were shocked and offended at what he was saying. They whispered amongst themselves, asking where he could have gotten his wisdom and miraculous powers, since they’ve seen him growing up and knew his whole family. Jesus told them that a prophet is honoured everywhere except in their own hometown, and he went away and didn’t do many miracles due to their lack of faith.
Big Idea: Facing rejection witih confidence.
For Teachers:
Lesson plan.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Have the children sit in a circle on the circle time rug. Welcome them to class.
Warm Up Activity: — Activity Leader
Preliminary Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Last Sunday, we started talking about some times in the Bible when Jesus went through different challenges. We talked about how a challenge can be like a test or something hard that you have to do, but it can also mean when someone else is fighting against you in some way.
So we learned last time that Jesus was challenged by the Villain, the enemy of God, who tested Jesus three times to try to make him prove that he is really the Son of God.
Does anyone remember what Jesus said to the Villain? (Jesus refused to do anything the Villain told him to do, and used the words of the Bible to defend himself)
Today we’ll learn about another time when Jesus was challenged. This time, he was not being challenged by the Villain but by the people from his own hometown, like his neighbors and friends that he grew up with.
Has there ever been a time when one of your friends tried to fight against you?
Let’s watch our video to find out more about the story…
Video Lesson —Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
In the story, we learned that Jesus went to his own hometown to teach the people about the kingdom of God and to show them that he is the Son of God, through his miracles… But the people didn’t listen to him or believe him.
Why do you think they didn’t believe Jesus?
Have you ever had a time when people didn’t listen to you or believe you? How did you feel when that happened?
When people were challenging Jesus, did he listen to them and feel bad about himself and give up?
What do you think is the best thing to do when people don’t listen to you or aren’t nice to you?
Prayer — Bible Story Leader
“Dear God, thank you for the story we heard today about how Jesus was challenged by the people in his own hometown. Thank you for the things we can learn from this story - that even though Jesus went through challenges, he still kept on going and didn’t give up. When people didn’t listen to him, he just shook it off and walked away to teach somewhere else. Please help us to not feel bad about ourselves when other people don’t treat us well or don’t listen to us, but to remember that we are your children and you love and care for each of us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Activity: Build a City of Shapes — Activity Leader
Using various shapes of paper cut outs, kids can design their home “hometown” and glue the pieces onto construction paper. Colouring sheets will also be available.
If a child is uninterested in the activity, allow them to move to free play.
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure each child leaves with their caregiver.
-
Welcome — Activity Leader
Have the children sit in a circle on the circle time rug. Welcome them to class.
Warm Up Activity: — Activity Leader
Preliminary Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Last Sunday, we started talking about some times in the Bible when Jesus went through different challenges. We talked about how a challenge can be like a test or something hard that you have to do, but it can also mean when someone else is fighting against you in some way.
So we learned last time that Jesus was challenged by the Villain, the enemy of God, who tested Jesus three times to try to make him prove that he is really the Son of God.
Does anyone remember what Jesus said to the Villain? (Jesus refused to do anything the Villain told him to do, and used the words of the Bible to defend himself)
Today we’ll learn about another time when Jesus was challenged. This time, he was not being challenged by the Villain but by the people from his own hometown, like his neighbors and friends that he grew up with.
Has there ever been a time when one of your friends tried to fight against you?
Let’s watch our video to find out more about the story…
Video Lesson —Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
In the story, we learned that Jesus went to his own hometown to teach the people about the kingdom of God and to show them that he is the Son of God, through his miracles… But the people didn’t listen to him or believe him.
Why do you think they didn’t believe Jesus?
Have you ever had a time when people didn’t listen to you or believe you? How did you feel when that happened?
When people were challenging Jesus, did he listen to them and feel bad about himself and give up?
What do you think is the best thing to do when people don’t listen to you or aren’t nice to you?
Prayer — Bible Story Leader
“Dear God, thank you for the story we heard today about how Jesus was challenged by the people in his own hometown. Thank you for the things we can learn from this story - that even though Jesus went through challenges, he still kept on going and didn’t give up. When people didn’t listen to him, he just shook it off and walked away to teach somewhere else. Please help us to not feel bad about ourselves when other people don’t treat us well or don’t listen to us, but to remember that we are your children and you love and care for each of us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Activity: Build a City of Shapes — Activity Leader
Using various shapes of paper cut outs, kids can design their home “hometown” and glue the pieces onto construction paper. Colouring sheets will also be available.
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure each child leaves with their caregiver.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Introduce yourself, welcome the kids to class. Ask kids about their weeks, and one interesting thing that happened this week.
Warm Up Activity: — Activity Leader
Preliminary Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Today we’re continuing our new series called Challenger, which is all about some of the times in the Bible when Jesus faced different challenges. Last Sunday we learned about the time when Jesus was challenged by the Villain, the enemy of God.
Does anyone remember what that story was all about?
Today we’ll be learning about another story where Jesus was challenged, but this time, it was by the people from his own hometown - his neighbors and friends and the people he grew up with.
Let’s watch our video to find out more about the story…
Video Lesson — Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Why do you think the people in Jesus’ hometown didn’t believe in him?
Have you ever had a time when people didn’t take you seriously or didn’t listen to you when you were telling them something important? How did you react?
How did Jesus react in the story when people were questioning him?
Why do you think Jesus was able to not let it bother him so much?
Do you find it easy or hard to feel confident in yourself when other people don’t take you seriously or even reject you? Why?
Prayer — Bible Story Leader
“Dear God, thank you for the story we heard today about how Jesus was challenged by the people in his own hometown. Thank you for the things we can learn from this story - that even though Jesus went through challenges, he still kept on going and didn’t give up his mission. When people didn’t listen to him, he just shook it off and walked away to teach somewhere else. Please help us to also have the same kind of confidence in ourselves, so that we won’t get discouraged when others reject us or don’t treat us with respect, but that we’ll know our value and worth as children of God. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Activity: Build a City of Shapes — Activity Leader
Using various shapes of paper cut outs, kids can design their home “hometown” and glue the pieces onto construction paper.
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure each child leaves with their caregiver.
For Parents:
Follow-up questions.
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What was the story you learned about in class today?
How do you think Jesus felt when the people from his hometown didn’t believe in him? What did he do?
Is it hard to feel good about ourselves when other people are saying mean things or not listening to us?
What kind of things can we remind ourselves when that happens?
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What was the story you learned about in class today?
How do you think Jesus felt when the people from his hometown didn’t believe in him? What did he do?
If you were talking in front of your class, and your classmates were whispering and laughing at what you were saying - how do you think it would it make you feel?
What do you think is the best thing to do when other people are saying mean things or not listening to you or not treating you well?
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What was the story you learned about in class today?
How do you think Jesus felt when the people in his own hometown wouldn’t take him seriously?
Have you ever experienced a similar situation? What was that like?
Do you think it’s easy to just walk away and not let people’s words affect you? What kind of things can you do to help build confidence in yourself?
