The gift that keeps on giving — Weekly Christian ed lesson

Lesson background

During Lent, I shared with the children of my church that the Sundays aren’t part of the 40-day season because every Sunday is a “mini-Easter.” This immediately delighted the children who gave up something for Lent because they saw it as a “hack” for avoiding their Lenten discipline. But as we dug into the idea more deeply, they realized that Jesus’ resurrection was a gift that keeps on giving. We celebrate Christ’s triumph over death because it is a mark of God’s unending and unwavering love. Throughout time people can continue to experience this love and are called to spread it throughout the world. In this lesson, children will explore John 20:19-31 noticing the connection and call Jesus offers in his words to his disciples days after his resurrection. 

What you’ll need

• A Bible
• A ball of yarn
• Upcycled Message of Peace: a variety of recycled art materials or scraps, broken crayons, glue sticks, and blank white paper (optional)
• Peace Across the World: several copies of Peace in Many Languages, 3”x 10” strips of colored paper or sentence strips, markers, glue, and roll paper (optional)

Starting out

Greet the children as they enter.

Passing the “Piece” Game

Have the children sit in a circle.

Say, “The peace of Christ be with you.” The children will likely respond with “and also with you” automatically. Discuss why we say these words in worship.

Then hold the end of the ball of yarn. Turn to the person next to you and say, “I give you a piece of peace” and hand them the ball of yarn while you continue to hold on to its end. Ask the child you handed the ball of yarn to do the same except they will hold on to the unraveled part of the yarn that connects to the piece you are holding. Continue until the ball of yarn has moved around the room.

Ask the children:

• Was there enough yarn for us all to hold on to a piece?
• How many more people might be able to join the circle and hold a piece of yarn before the ball of yarn would be completely unraveled?
• If the yarn represents the peace of Christ, what does this activity say about that peace?

Hearing and exploring the story

Prepare to read aloud John 20:19-31.

Provide the children with a context for the reading:

• This story is from the New Testament Gospel of John.
• The story takes place after Jesus’ death on the cross. Jesus had told the disciples that he would die, but he would return. However, they had difficulty believing this promise was true.
• The disciples watched how Jesus was treated and they were scared for their safety. They were not sure if they would be captured and punished for being followers of Jesus.
• Following Jesus’ death, the disciples hid in a house. They kept the doors locked out of concern for their safety.
• Thomas is one of the characters in the story. He was one of Jesus’ original twelve disciples.

Read aloud John 20:19-31. 

After reading the story invite the children to wonder:

• I wonder how you would have felt after Jesus’ death if you were one of his disciples…
• I wonder what you might have done when you discovered Jesus died…
• I wonder how you would react if someone who you believed had died showed up at your home…
• I wonder why Jesus chose to say and do these things when he encountered the disciples for the first time after his resurrection…
• I wonder how this story connects to our lives today… 

Responding to the story

To help the children connect the story to their own lives and experiences, invite them to engage in one or more of the following activities:

• Upcycled message of peace Gather the materials you’ll need for this activity: a variety of recycled art materials or scraps, broken crayons, glue sticks, and blank white paper. Recall when the resurrected Jesus visits his disciples he calls on them to continue his work on earth. They are to take what they learned from him and use it. We can use what we already have been gifted to continue to share Jesus’ message of peace. Place the recycled materials in front of the children. Give each child a sheet of blank sheet of white paper. Ask them to use the recycled materials, broken crayons, and glue to create a piece of art that shares the peace of Christ. They can create any image that reminds them of Jesus’ message of peace. When they are finished, have the children share their art with one another or the larger congregation.
• Peace across the world Gather the materials you’ll need for this activity: several copies of Peace in Many Languages, 3”x 10” strips of colored paper or sentence strips, markers, glue, and roll paper. Re-read verses 19-21 of the scripture passage. Note the words Jesus repeats to the disciples—Peace be with you. Have the children wonder why Jesus says these particular words the first time he sees the disciples after his resurrection. Note that peace is an important part of Jesus’ message to the world. It is something Jesus hopes the disciples will spread and will create everywhere they go. Hand out copies of Peace in Many Languages. Have the children explore what the word peace looks like in different languages. Ask each child to pick a few of the translations of peace to write on sentence strips or strips of colored paper. After they have copied the words on to the strips, glue them to a large sheet of roll paper. Hang the sheet up as a reminder of the many ways to say peace and the importance of it.