Luke 6:17-26, New International Reader's Version

Jesus Gives Blessings and Warnings

¹⁷Jesus went down the mountain with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there. A large number of other people were there too. They came from all over Judea, including Jerusalem. They also came from the coastland around Tyre and Sidon. ¹⁸They had all come to hear Jesus and to be healed of their sicknesses. People who were troubled by evil spirits were made well ¹⁹Everyone tried to touch Jesus. Power was coming from him and healing them all.

²⁰Jesus looked at his disciples. He said to them,

“Blessed are you who are needy.
God’s kingdom belongs to you.
²¹Blessed are you who are hungry now.
You will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who are sad now.
You will laugh.
²²Blessed are you when people hate you,
when they have nothing to do with you
and say bad things about you,
and when they treat your name as something evil.
They do all this because you are followers of the Son of Man.

²³“The prophets of long ago were treated the same way. When these things happen to you, be glad and jump for joy. You will receive many blessings in heaven.

²⁴“But how terrible it will be for you who are rich!
You have already had your easy life.
²⁵How terrible for you who are well fed now!
You will go hungry.
How terrible for you who laugh now!
You will cry and be sad.
²⁶How terrible for you when everyone says good things about you!
Their people treated the false prophets the same way long ago.

Message:

Today, let’s sing a song that you may remember. Do you know this song? (Sing “If You’re Happy and You Know It.”)

If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands
If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands
If you're happy and you know it
Then your face will surely show it
If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands.

If You're Happy and You Know It lyrics © Act Iv Music, Skyship Music Limited

Let’s play a game with our faces. I will make a statement. I want you to help me decide if this would make you feel good (happy) or sad. Show me with your face how you would feel. Let’s practice. Show me a happy face. (Have children show smiles on their faces.) Now, show me a sad face. (Allow children to pantomime a sad face.)

Sarah always wanted to be a mom. More than anything, she wanted to have a baby. But for eighty-nine years, she couldn’t have a child. Show on your face how she must have felt. (Allow children to demonstrate sad faces.) But then, at ninety years old, Sarah became a mom! Now show on your face how she felt. (Allow children to smile.).

Hebrews 11:11, New International Reader's Version tells us about Sarah’s faith.

¹¹And Sarah had faith. So God made it possible for her to become a mother. She became a mother even though she was too old to have children. But Sarah believed that the God who made the promise was faithful.

How about this passage from Psalms? Let’s make a face, happy or sad, with each line of this Psalm. I will read a line, and you show me your face.

Psalm 40:1-2, New International Reader's Version

40 I was patient while I waited for the Lord.
He turned to me and heard my cry for help. (Allow children to show their faces.)

²I was sliding down into the pit of death (happy or sad face?), and he pulled me out (happy or sad?)

He brought me up out of the mud and dirt. (Happy or sad face?)

He set my feet on a rock. (Happy or sad?)

He gave me a firm place to stand on. (Happy or sad face?)

This one is easy. It’s found in Exodus and is a story from the life of Moses.

Exodus 15:24-25, New International Reader's Version

²⁴The people told Moses they weren’t happy with him. They said, “What are we supposed to drink?” (Happy or sad faces?)

²⁵Then Moses cried out to the Lord. The Lord showed him a stick. Moses threw it into the water. The water became fit to drink. (Happy or sad faces?)

The Bible is filled with stories that begin sad or upsetting. However, throughout the Old Testament, God proves God’s love repeatedly. In the New Testament, Jesus tells us that he loves us all the time, no matter if we’re happy or sad. In this passage from Luke’s Gospel Jesus also tells us that even if we’re poor, hungry, sad, or lonely, we can be one hundred percent sure that he loves us.

What do you think the word blessed from this scripture means? (Allow children to respond.) Being blessed means being helped by God. It means that your life is made joyful. That sounds awesome!

This passage from Luke’s Gospel finds Jesus teaching the disciples about all the many ways they will be blessed as they follow him. This passage is called the Beatitudes. An easy way to remember what Jesus taught us from these verses, is to call them the BEattitudes. Jesus teaches us by following him that he will teach us how our attitudes should BE! Jesus teaches us to BE kind, BE humble, BE loving, and BE gentle.

Jesus teaches us the right way to BE, to act and interact with others.

Jesus reminds his followers that our attitude changes as we discover our blessings in life.

I wonder how we can share our blessings with others. I wonder how we can BE kind, humble, loving, and gentle to someone else. I want you to think about someone you know. Now, think about how your attitude towards them, and how being made joyful might affect them. I wonder if an attitude of Jesus changes your own life. This week, I encourage you to find moments to show others how happy we are to have Jesus in our life. You can certainly do this by BEING kind, BEING humble, BEING loving, and BEING gentle. Our blessings are those moments that are made more joyful as we follow Jesus. Our blessings should make our faces surely show it. Our blessings should make us want to give God the thanks.

(Sing “If You’re Happy and You Know It Again,” but this time, change the lyrics from clap your hands to make praying hands).

If you're happy and you know it, make praying hands
If you're happy and you know it, make praying hands
If you're happy and you know it
Then your face will surely show it
If you're happy and you know it, make praying hands

And give God the thanks!

Prayer:

God of love, thank you for loving us no matter the situation. No matter if we’re happy or sad. We know that the love you have for us makes us joyful. Help us remember your love all the time as we let our faces show it. Amen.

Between the Sundays: Family Conversation Starters

We have added conversation starters to each children’s message series to help spark conversations within families during the week. We encourage families to use these questions to guide them through conversations and subject matter discussed during the worship service, including the children’s messages on Sundays. These conversations will reinforce learning and nurture faith formation for the entire family.

Discuss, as a family, how we often see wealth and success as being blessed. How does Jesus’ teaching challenge that thought?
Discuss how Jesus wants us to live life differently. What does having a BEattitude mean to you? What does a BEattitude look like in your daily life?
Have you ever heard the phrase “money can’t buy happiness?” Talk about a time this week that you encountered someone who struggled with finding “joy.” Did that person seem to think that having more “stuff” would make them happy? What do you think it means to be “rich in life”? Can you buy the type of joy that Jesus talks about? Do you think having more “stuff” in life will make you happier? Why or why not?
If Jesus were sharing blessings and warnings with us today, what do you think he would say? What current day “blessings” or “troubles” can you think of?
Discuss, as a family, what things you feel are blessings this week. Where did you encounter trouble in your life? How did Jesus’ words from this week’s passage help you find comfort and joy?
As a family, think of one way to add spiritual practices, (a BEattitude) into your life this week. Some examples may include going out of your way to demonstrate kindness to someone, offering to pray for a friend who is “troubled” or hurting, or reminding someone else how grateful they should be for what they already have. Spend time each night sharing those moments that you felt God’s blessing. Share encounters from this this week where your attitude and response reflected Jesus. (BE kind. BE humble. BE loving. BE gentle.)