The concepts of kings and queens are somewhat foreign to us. While our children have models of royalty in books and movies they watch, they don’t have a strong sense of what it is like to live in a time and place ruled by monarchs. They have, however, seen and experienced leaders who are service-oriented and just and those who are self-serving and unfair. On Christ the King Sunday, children will explore what it means to be a Christ-like leader.
Starting off
Begin your time with the children by asking them to think of leaders in their lives. These may be people they come in close contact with like teachers, church elders or coaches, but they can also be leaders who they do not know well but who make decisions that affect their lives such as politicians. Have them pick out a few of these people who they consider “successful” or “good” leaders and a few they think of as “unsuccessful” or “bad” leaders. Discuss what makes someone a “successful” or “good” leader and what makes a person an “unsuccessful” or “bad” leader. Which of these leaders would they want leading them? Why? Record their responses on a sheet of chart paper so they can look back at them later in the lesson.
Prepare to read aloud the Gospel lectionary reading, John 18:33-37. Provide some context for the passage for the children. Explain this story takes place after Jesus has been arrested in Jerusalem. He appears before Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor in charge of the land of Judea, where Jerusalem was located. Jerusalem is a holy city for the Jewish people. Their temple is there, and it is a place where many of them go for important holidays. They make offerings to God at the Temple in Jerusalem. It is there that they feel closest to God.
As governor, Pilate is acting on behalf of the Roman Emperor. The emperor is the “king” of the lands under the control of the Roman Empire, including Judea. People in Jerusalem have been saying that Jesus is the “King of the Jews.” Because there is already a king, the emperor, there is concern about who the people should and will follow. In this reading, Pilate will ask Jesus about this name people are calling him. Encourage the children to notice how Jesus responds.
Exploring the passage
Read aloud John 18:33-37. Ask the children to recount what Jesus says when Pontius Pilate asks him if he rules over the Jewish people, if he is their king. Focus in on Jesus’ second response (v. 36). Have the children wonder what Jesus means when he says, “my kingdom is not from this world” and “my kingdom is not from here.”
Note that Jesus is presenting himself as a different kind of king than any the people have seen before. He is a king who doesn’t just rule people and places in a particular time. He is king of all creation for all time. And Jesus lives differently than other kings do. Ask the children to reflect on Jesus’ life. What does he do throughout his ministry on Earth? How does he interact with people? How is this likely different than other rulers? Highlight Jesus’ focus on those who are at the margins of society as well as his desire to heal and teach those he meets.
Relating the passage to our lives
Ask the children to wonder about what Jesus is hoping to teach others who will become leaders through his own leadership. Jesus wants not only to share the truth with those he teaches; he also hopes to develop them as leaders modeled after him.
Return to the earlier conversation about leaders. Have the children to look back at the list of leaders they made at the start of the lesson. Discuss which of these people leads as Jesus did. What makes them Christ-like leaders? Encourage the children to add any other individuals who they see lead as Christ did to the list.
Provide each of the children with cards, envelopes and stamps. Ask each to write a note to one of the leaders from your discussion who emulate Christ’s leadership. Help them address and mail these cards. Alternately, you can locate email addresses for these individuals and provide the children with opportunities to write messages via email.
Conclude your time together by praying for these leaders.
Joelle Brummit-Yale is the director of children’s and youth ministries at Chapel in the Pines Presbyterian in Chapel Hill, N.C. When not at the church, she can usually be found at home with her son and husband caring for their many animals and developing their family homestead.
