During the lesson, the information for you to know is written in regular type, and what we suggest speaking or reading aloud to children is in bold. All resources for this lesson, including the Teacher Guide and Student Page, can be downloaded in a ZIP file by clicking on the following link:
In some lessons you will find "resource articles." These are articles written by experts from around the world to help equip you for your work with children and adolescents. Share them with parents or guardians if you consider it appropriate.
Before class, prepare a short story to share with the children. It should only take about 2 minutes to tell the story. You can use a story from your life, one from The Action Bible, or a folk tale. You will tell the story to the children 2 times. The first time you will tell it as if you are bored, without expression or details. The second time, you will tell it using movements, different voices, facial expressions, and many details. You may feel silly telling a story this way, but you will find that it is much more engaging for the children. If possible, practice telling the story both ways in front of a mirror.
Cut or tear apart the signs from the end of the lesson.
Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
Psalm 90:2
It can be easy to think of the Bible as a collection of short stories, each with a different main character—Abraham, David, Esther, and Paul. But the Bible is not a collection of individual stories. It is 1 story and it tells the story of 1 Person—God! It is the story of God’s enduring, eternal love for His people.
All of the Bible—and all of history—is God’s story from creation to Jesus’ return. And from the day God began forming you in the womb until the moment you breathe your last breath, it is all about Him. His love. His plan. His kingdom. And He has invited you to be a part of all that He is doing. This week, ask God to show you how He is transforming hearts, lives, and even nations within the context of His great story.
Let families know that this week their children are learning about God’s grand story. Encourage family members to ask their children to share the story with them.
Teacher Tip: If possible, email or text the Family Connection Card to the families of your students.
Greet your children warmly as they arrive.
Today we will learn the most amazing story in the whole world. But first let’s talk about good storytelling. Everyone tells stories, but some are exciting or funny and some are not.
What makes some stories more interesting?
Listen as I tell you the same story 2 times. Listen carefully so you can tell me which time you liked better and why.
Start by telling the story as though you are bored. Only share the facts. Do not change your voice or use any movement. Bow as you finish the story. Then tell the same story again using good storytelling techniques. Use different voices for different characters. Use lots of emotion in your voice. Use your face, hands, and body to express emotions. Use words that bring in all the senses as appropriate. Bow when you finish the story. After you complete your story, ask the children:
Which story did you like better? Why?
What were some things that made the second story better?
Allow 3–4 children to share.
Stories that we remember are ones that touch our emotions or make us think or laugh. A good storyteller will help us feel as if we are part of the story. When Jesus lived on earth, He used good storytelling to share the message of God’s love with the people around Him. Many of you know some of the stories Jesus told and other wonderful stories from the Bible.
Which Bible story is your favourite? Why?
Allow several children to give their answers.
I like those stories too, but they are just small parts of 1 grand story about God’s amazing love for us. That story is even better! We do not have time to tell every part of the story today, but we have heard many parts of God’s story before. When we are done today, you will be able to retell some of the most important parts in God’s grand story.
As I tell God’s grand story, I will use a lot of expression and details. When I am done, you will retell the story using expression and details too, so listen carefully!
Give the signs from the end of the lesson to 9 children. They will remain seated until you ask them to come forward. As you tell the story, you will ask each child to come up to the front of the class, stand next to the child who came before him, and hold his sign in front of him for the rest of the class to see.
There are notes in the story to let you know when to call each child forward. The students with the signs will form a long line across the front of your teaching space, facing the rest of the class.
These children will stay lined up where you place them. The only child who will change places is the one holding the sign that reads THE PROMISE. Tell that child where to stand as you tell the story. Be sure that she shows the rest of the class the side of her sign that reads THE PROMISE until you tell her to turn the sign around.
This is the order the children will be in when the story is complete: God ⎝ Adam and Eve ⎝ Noah ⎝ Abraham ⎝ Moses ⎝ David ⎝ Holy Spirit ⎝ Me ⎝ Jesus
Call the child holding the GOD sign to stand in front of the class and show his sign.
God created everything—including people. He wanted the people He created to love Him, but He did not force them. When people are forced to love, it is not real love, so God allowed them to choose to love Him or not.
Call the child holding the ADAM and EVE sign to stand beside GOD and show his sign.
God created Adam and Eve, the first man and woman, and placed them in a garden to live with Him. But they chose to disobey God. Their punishment was separation from God because He is perfect and sinful people cannot be in His presence. The consequence of their sin was death for them and all their descendants.
Call the child holding the THE PROMISE sign to stand beside ADAM and EVE and show the side of her sign that reads THE PROMISE.
Even though Adam and Eve could no longer live in the garden with God, He gave them an amazing promise—God said that He would send a Saviour. That Saviour would save people from their sins and give everyone an opportunity to have a restored relationship with God.
Call the child holding the NOAH sign to stand beside THE PROMISE and show his sign.
As more people filled the earth, the world became more and more sinful. Only Noah chose to follow God. God told Noah to build a big boat. Noah was to take animals of every kind with him and his family on the boat. Then God flooded the whole earth. Noah and his family were the only people who survived.
Move the child holding THE PROMISE to stand after NOAH.
God sent the first rainbow as a promise that He would never destroy the earth by flood again. God’s bigger promise of the Saviour was still to come. In spite of God’s faithfulness, people continued to sin.
Call the child holding the ABRAHAM sign to stand beside THE PROMISE and show her sign.
Many years later a man named Abraham loved and followed God. God honoured him and made him the father of the nation of Israel.
I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.
Genesis 12:2
Move the child holding THE PROMISE to stand after ABRAHAM.
God chose the nation of Israel to be His special people. God promised Abraham that the promised Saviour would come from that nation.
And through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.
Genesis 22:18
Call the child holding the MOSES sign to stand beside THE PROMISE and show his sign.
Abraham’s descendants moved to Egypt where they became slaves. But after 400 years God called Moses to lead His people out of slavery and into a land of their own.
Move the child holding THE PROMISE to stand after MOSES.
God used Moses to lead the people to a Promised Land where they would live. This is where God’s promised Saviour would be born.
Call the child holding the DAVID sign to stand beside THE PROMISE and show her sign.
Eventually Israel made a home in the Promised Land. David became their king. He loved God, but he was not perfect. He sinned. He was not the promised Saviour, but God made him a
great king.
Move the child holding THE PROMISE to stand after DAVID.
God told David that the Saviour would be one of his descendants. The time for God’s promise to come true was getting closer.
He made David their king. God testified concerning him: “I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.” From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised.
Acts 13:22b–23
Tell the child holding THE PROMISE sign to turn it around so that the name JESUS shows.
God’s promise came true! Jesus, God’s Son, was born here on earth. He lived a perfect life and never sinned. Because He was without sin, Jesus could pay for our sins by dying on the cross. But the story was not over yet. Death is not as strong as Jesus, our promised Saviour. He rose from the dead!
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
1 Corinthians 15:3–4
Call the child holding the HOLY SPIRIT sign to come stand beside JESUS and show his sign.
Jesus went back to heaven to be with His Father. Because of this, our broken relationship with God can be restored. But Jesus did not leave those who love Him alone. He sent God’s Holy Spirit to live in the hearts of believers and help them follow God’s truth.
Call the child holding the ME sign to come stand beside JESUS and show his sign.
When we love and follow Jesus, we become part of God’s grand story. We become God’s children and get to live with Him forever! Our place in this line is right here. (Stand behind ME and place your hands on his shoulders, if you think the child will be okay with the touch.) This is amazing!
God chose us to belong to Christ before the world was created. He chose us to be holy and without blame in his eyes. He loved us. So he decided long ago to adopt us. He adopted us as his children with all the rights children have. He did it because of what Jesus Christ has done. It pleased God to do it.
Ephesians 1:4–5, NIrV
Move the child holding JESUS to stand beside ME.
Jesus will return, and there will be no more sin in the world! There will be no more death or tears! Everyone who has ever loved and followed Him throughout all history will live with Him forever. If we choose to love and follow Jesus, we too can be with Him forever. Wow!
My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
John 14:2–3
This is God’s big, grand story that we find in the Bible. It is all about Him and the great love that He has for us!
If you have tape, have the children tape their signs to the wall in the order that they were standing in. Tape the JESUS sign above the others. If you do not have tape, place the signs in order on the floor.
Ask for a volunteer to retell God’s grand story to the rest of the class. Encourage the volunteer to use good storytelling techniques. He can look at the signs to help him remember all the parts. When he is finished, thank him for his courage and effort. Point out the good storytelling techniques he used. Ask the other children to fill in the parts he may have forgotten. You may need to read some sections of the story to the class again.
For many generations, people have shared God’s grand story with others. Let’s practice telling the story to a partner. Remember to use expression in your voice and body and to include as many details as possible!
Divide your children into pairs. Have 1 child in each pair tell the story to her partner. Encourage pairs to help their partners fill in details they miss. Both children in each pair should have a turn.
Optional: If you are using the Student Pages, there is space for children to fill in the missing parts of God’s grand story.
When all the children have had a chance to retell the story, gather the class to discuss these questions:
If someone said, “The Bible is lots of different stories,” what would you say?
What do you think is the most important thing to know from God’s grand story? Why?
Allow several children to answer. If they do not mention it, remind them that the entire story shows us who God is and how He loves us.
When people sinned, God could have destroyed all of creation. What did God do instead?
Why do you think God promised and sent a Saviour?
Help the children understand that God did it because He loves us.
What price did God pay for our sins to restore our relationship with Him?
Jesus dying on the cross and being raised again.
One of the most well-known verses in the Bible is John 3:16. You may have heard it before.
If you are using the Memory Verse Poster, show it to the students.
God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son. Anyone who believes in him will not die but will have eternal life.
John 3:16, NIrV
God’s story is more than just an interesting story. It is an amazing story that God invites each of us to be a part of! We will now spend some time responding to God’s grand story.
I will read 3 different ways you can respond to God’s grand story. Think about each response as I read it. I will then read them again and you will choose your response. Show with your fingers which response you chose, 1, 2, or 3.
Now, everyone will hold up the number of fingers that represents the response you chose.
Have the children hold up their fingers long enough for you to look around and see which response they choose. Show your excitement for children’s decisions by giving them high fives or hugs or simply telling them how excited you are for them! Be sensitive to any children who prefer not to be touched.
Ask the children to stand together for the blessing from John 3:16.
Blessing: God loves you so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for you. He loves you! May you know that you can have a place in God’s grand story and be part of His family forever!
Lead the children in singing this quarter’s song, if possible.
Life on Life ©2020 David C Cook. Reproducible for home or classroom use only. All other uses require written permission from David C Cook [email protected]. All rights reserved.
