Main Idea: Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life
Suggested Schedule: (90 mins)
- Welcome (5 mins)
- Balloon Blow Up Game (5mins)
- Review Big Verse (5 mins)
- Set the Scene: Bible story/skit and review questions (10-15 mins)
- Object Lesson 1 talk (5mins)
- Balloon Relay Game (5 mins)
- Object Lesson 2 talk (5 mins)
- Balloon Drop Game (5 mins)
- Object Lesson 3 game and talk (10 mins)
- Who am I? Game (5 mins)
- Sense How You Feel activity (10 – 25 mins)
- Seek God Prayer (5 mins)
Supplies:
- Balloons
- Sack
- One large box with Problems written on one side and God on the other, volunteer, plain paper and a pen, Names or pictures of Chris Pratt, Jim Carey & Daniel Craig.
- One large box and one small box. Have two labels – one saying ‘God’, the other saying ‘problems’ – that are sticky and can be easily moved from one box to another.
- a brush
- Balloons with “I am the resurrection and the life” written inside. Balloons with “The one believing in Me, even if he should die, he will live” written inside others.
- Lazarus craft printable
- bandages
- Cross
- Sign “I am the resurrection and the Life” on it.
- Playdough or clay
- Lego or construction toys
SONG and BIBLE STORY VIDEO IDEAS available via our dedicated Pinterest Board.
GAME IDEAS:
BALLOON BLOW UP – 5 mins
Description: Upfront Game
Supplies: Balloons, sack
Details: (regular) Children need to blow up as many balloons as they can in 2 minutes (you might need an adult to tie them). Each balloon is worth one point and needs to be put in the sack to win the point. The team with the most points wins.
BALLOON RELAY – 10 mins
Description: Teams Game
Supplies: Inflated Balloons
Details: (regular) Children need to split into two teams, lined up facing the same way. First child takes a balloon and passes it over their head to the child behind who then passes it under their legs to the child behind them. That pattern repeats until the balloon is with the last child who then runs to the front of the line with the balloon. The game continues until all the children have been to the front. When the first child has returned to the front the game ends.
WHO AM I? – MINS
Description: PowerPoint game
Supplies: PowerPoint and a way to show it
Details: (Keynote/PowerPoint) Can you guess these animals by the clue that is given?
BIG VERSE: Fear not for I am with you; be not dismayed for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10
(regular/widescreen/social media image) Download the Bible cards here.
SET THE SCENE: 10-15 MINS
Description: Story time
Supplies: Bible and/or Bible skit
Details: Read or act John 11: 38 – 44 Then ask a few of the review questions below:
REVIEW QUESTIONS:
1. What did Jesus say to do at Lazarus’s tomb? (v39)
2. How long had Lazarus been in the tomb? (v39)
3. Why did Jesus thank God? (v42)
4. What did Jesus call out? (v43)
5. And what happened? (v44)
SPOT THE SIMPLE MEANING:
1) LIFE CAN BRING BIG PROBLEMS – 5 MINS
Description: Object Lesson 1
Supplies: One large box with Problems written on one side and God on the other, volunteer, plain paper and a pen, Names or pictures of Chris Pratt, Jim Carey & Daniel Craig.
Details:
Say: Now we all have problems. Even celebrities! Show picture of Celebrities. Now you look at these and think – what problems could they have? Well, all these celebrities were once homeless!
That’s a pretty BIG problem!
And life isn’t going to be straightforward for anyone. Ask volunteer to come up. So how’s your life going?
Oh I have HUGE problems….I lost my job, I fell out with my best friend, I don’t have any money.
As the volunteer is talking write the problem out on a sheet of paper and put it in the box.
WOW those are really BIG problems. Maybe you or someone you know is facing big problems too. But we have an even bigger God. He defeated death and so can help us with any thing we have to face!
2) JESUS IS BIGGER THAN ANY BIG PROBLEM – 5 MINS
Description: Object Lesson 2
Supplies: One large box and one small box. Have two labels – one saying ‘God’, the other saying ‘problems’ – that are sticky and can be easily moved from one box to another.
Details: [Hold up box with problems. Say that we have lots of problems, pretend to fill box.]
Say: We can often face lots of problems in life. We think that our problems are very big. [Start filling the big box with paper that has problems written on it. Put the ‘problems label on the big box.’] We ask God to take the problems but then we think that the problems are too big for God. We think God is too small and our problems are too big! [Put the ‘God’ label on the small box. Try and put the problems box in the God box] But that isn’t true. God is BIGGER than any problems! [Change the labels from one box to another so that the big box has the word ‘God on it and the small one says ‘problems].
The biggest problem in life is death… we all dies… but sometimes people die unexpectedly or it feels like too soon. [Leave space here for if anyone wants to share something]. Jesus overcame death! He overcame the biggest problem anyone will ever face, not just for Himself, but for Lazarus – and for us! [Put the small box inside the big box]. So we can give all our problems to Him because He is able to overcome them and help us with them.
3) JESUS CAN HELP ME OVERCOME – 5 MINS
Description: Object Lesson 3
Supplies: a brush
Details: The brushing your hair challenge can only be won if someone helps you to do it.
Say: I wonder if anyone can come up here and do this challenge. You see, I want to see if you can brush your hair with straight arms. [Invite child up to try, when they fail ask if there is anything that might help them…. Or anyone? Then let them use their friend to brush their hair with straight arms.]
It is impossible to brush your own hair with straight arms. Yet it wasn’t impossible for someone to help you to do it! You overcame the challenge by getting someone to help you.
Just as you overcame that small challenge Jesus overcame a much greater one. Jesus overcame death; that means that we can overcome death too! It means that when we die we no longer have to just be dead or go to a horrible place but we can live with Jesus in Heaven… if we ask Him into our lives!
It also means that when we have Jesus on our side that He helps us to be “an overcomer” and “more than a conqueror.” That means that no problem is too big for us to overcome. With Jesus on our side we can have the victory! All we need is to have faith and know that He is with us, and to keep going even when things try to stop us and pull us down! We need to pray and talk to Him and ask Him to help us when things get tough. It may take a while, but He promises to be with us and bring us through the problem!
SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES:
BALLOON DROP – 10 MINS
Description: (regular)
Supplies: Balloons with “I am the resurrection and the life” written inside. Balloons with “The one believing in Me, even if he should die, he will live” written inside others. There should be enough for every child so you might need lots of balloons. Scatter the balloons around the room.
Details: Print off the sheets and cut them up, placing the slips into different balloons. Blow the balloons up and place them around the room. Children need to find the two parts of the verse to form the scripture by popping the balloons!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
- How do you think Mary and Martha felt when they saw Lazarus was alive?
- What does this tell us about Jesus?
- Do you have any problems that you think are too big for God? Why?
SENSE HOW YOU FEEL – 10 MINS EACH OR IN TANDEM/ROTATION
Encourage the children to think about the questions above as they do one of the activities:
Description: Craft.
Supplies: Lazarus craft printable, bandages, coloring pens
Details: Colour in the Lazarus figure and then wrap bandages around.
Description: Moulding activity.
Supplies: Playdough or clay.
Details: Mould Mary, Martha, Lazarus and Jesus.
Description: Building activity.
Supplies: Lego or construction toys.
Details: Build the scene of Lazarus leaving the tomb.
Description: Sensory activity.
Supplies: Toilet rolls or bandages
Details: Ask it anyone needs healing and then bandage them. Pray for them and then unbandage them.
Description: Activity Booklets.
Supplies: 5-7s and 8-11s booklets (included in download), markers.
Details: Fill in or color the 5-7s (PDF) and 8-11s (PDF) booklets.
SEEK GOD: 5 MINS
Description: Prayer activity
Supplies: Cross, sign “I am the resurrection and the Life” on it. Testimony cards. If possible, a Leader with a testimony of healing.
Details:
Place “I am the resurrection and the life” on the cross or at the front.
If someone has a testimony of how God has healed them then ask them to share (this will increase faith in the room!)
In small groups as the children to talk about miracles that they would like to see happen. God always hears us when we pray. If there is anyone who needs prayer then get the children to pray for them. Expect God to do a miracle!
As this is the end of the series finish with a praise party – there should be plenty of balloons to throw around!
Create some testimony cards and ask the children to write down what happened during the week.
ZOOM FRIENDLY LESSON:
HOW LONG DID THEY LIVE? (Keynote/PowerPoint)
IMPOSSIBLE OR NOT? (Keynote/PowerPoint)
BIBLE BALLOONS (Keynote/PowerPoint)
