Luke 18.15-17

When the disciples tried to stop people from bringing their babies to Jesus, he told them to let the children come to him! Jesus used that moment to remind them that the kingdom of heaven belongs those who come to God like children. We want our children to remember that we’re as dependent on God as a baby is on it’s mother!

Key Verse

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

– Matt. 19.14 (NIV)

Lesson

Supplies: A baby doll, baby food (real or pretend), baby clothes, stroller.

Lesson Intro

Holding the baby doll, ask the kids how many of them have a baby brother or sister. Ask them who looks after the baby. What does it look like to care for a baby? Does the mommy and the daddy love the baby? Does the baby love the mommy and daddy?

When you have a baby you do a lot to look after the baby because the baby can’t do anything for itself. Hold up the baby food, baby clothes and stroller and speak about how the baby depends on its parents to be fed and changed and to get around.

Bible story

Tell the story from Luke 18.15-17

  • Try acting it out by appointing a child to be Jesus, others to be the disciples and someone to be a parent bringing the baby doll to Jesus.
Application

Jesus wanted the children to come to him! Jesus wants each one of you to come to him. You might be big kids but each one of us needs God, just like a baby needs it’s parents. There were three ways that you guys mentioned that a mommy looks after her baby. She feeds her baby, she changes her baby, and she carries her baby around with her. Jesus does the same us. When we come to him he feeds us by his word, he changes us by taking away our sin, and he leads us into the kingdom of God!

Prayer: Thank you Jesus that you love each and every one of us and that you love it when we come to you. Lord we come to you so that you can feed us and change us and lead us into your kingdom. We know that nothing can satisfy us like knowing and loving you!

Review Questions

  • Why were parents bringing their babies to Jesus?
  • What did the disciples do?
  • What did Jesus say when the disciples tried to stop the parents?
  • What does it mean for us to come to Jesus?
  • How does Jesus feeds us, change us, and leads us?

Game

Baby Grow Over-Under

Supplies: 2 baby dolls with a baby grow, diaper and bottle for each doll.

The object of the game is to get the baby dolls dressed and fed and then get them to Jesus. Divide the kids into two teams. Have the two teams form two lines. Make sure that there’s about a foot distance between each child. On the other side of the room have one of the adult helpers be Jesus. Jesus will have a diaper, a baby grow, and a bottle for each baby. The baby dolls will be with the children at the back of the two lines.

When the game starts, the child at the front of the line runs to Jesus and gets the diaper. That child returns to the front of the line and has to pass the baby-grow back over his/her head to the next child. The second child has to pass it under his/her legs to the third child who then passes it over his/her head, and so it goes; over, under, over, under… Until it gets to the last child who then has to put the diaper on the baby. As soon as the diaper is on the baby the child yells: “RUN TO JESUS”, at which the child in the front of the line repeats the process with the baby grow and then the bottle. As soon as the baby is fully dressed and has its bottle the children all turn around and pass the baby back over, under, over, under until it get to the child closest to Jesus who runs the dressed and fed baby doll over to Jesus.

The first team to get the baby doll to Jesus is the winner!

Image: Let the Children Come to Jesus, Byzantine Icon