Bringing them in
Children's sermon
Object:
a fishing pole and a lasso
My brothers and sisters, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and is
brought back by another, you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from
wandering will save the sinner's soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
(vv. 19-20)
Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you have ever gone fishing? (let them answer) That is good. Did you catch any fish? (let them answer) How big was the fish that you caught? (let them tell you) That's good. I like it when I send someone out to bring back a fish and they come back with a big one.
Let me ask you another question. How many of you have ever lassoed a horse or a big bull? (let them answer) No one has ever brought back a horse or a bull with a lasso on the end of a rope. You have to be pretty big to be a cowboy and very good with a rope. But cowboys do it all of the time. They ride close to the bull and then throw it over the head and around the neck of the running bull and then they bring it back to the ranch.
Sometimes Christians run away from the truth and they get lost. They run away because they are afraid to tell the truth or because they are afraid to see someone that they hurt or because they want to do something that they know is bad but they want to do it anyway. There are a lot of reasons why we run from God. We try to hide. We think he will not miss us and the people we have hurt will forget about us.
But it doesn't work and we really don't want it to work. As a matter of fact, God wants you to be his cowboys and cowgirls. God wants us to find people who have run away and then bring them back. People who are hiding from God are very unhappy people. Hiding from God and all of his people makes you sad, lonely, and mean. When we know that someone is trying to hide from God, we should be real cowboys and cowgirls and bring those who are hiding back into our friendships and a time to meet with God.
Let's say that someone is your friend or used to be your friend and they attended Sunday school with you, but they don't come anymore. You could give them a call and invite them to come back to church. Maybe you see them in school or play baseball with them and you could say something to them then. Or maybe your mom or dad would drive you over to their house so that you could invite them. If you tell me their names, I could also ask them to come back. We have a lot of ways to lasso a friend who is staying away from God and the love of Jesus. If you were hiding, I would come to find you so please don't forget how much God wants all of us to be together. Amen.
Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you have ever gone fishing? (let them answer) That is good. Did you catch any fish? (let them answer) How big was the fish that you caught? (let them tell you) That's good. I like it when I send someone out to bring back a fish and they come back with a big one.
Let me ask you another question. How many of you have ever lassoed a horse or a big bull? (let them answer) No one has ever brought back a horse or a bull with a lasso on the end of a rope. You have to be pretty big to be a cowboy and very good with a rope. But cowboys do it all of the time. They ride close to the bull and then throw it over the head and around the neck of the running bull and then they bring it back to the ranch.
Sometimes Christians run away from the truth and they get lost. They run away because they are afraid to tell the truth or because they are afraid to see someone that they hurt or because they want to do something that they know is bad but they want to do it anyway. There are a lot of reasons why we run from God. We try to hide. We think he will not miss us and the people we have hurt will forget about us.
But it doesn't work and we really don't want it to work. As a matter of fact, God wants you to be his cowboys and cowgirls. God wants us to find people who have run away and then bring them back. People who are hiding from God are very unhappy people. Hiding from God and all of his people makes you sad, lonely, and mean. When we know that someone is trying to hide from God, we should be real cowboys and cowgirls and bring those who are hiding back into our friendships and a time to meet with God.
Let's say that someone is your friend or used to be your friend and they attended Sunday school with you, but they don't come anymore. You could give them a call and invite them to come back to church. Maybe you see them in school or play baseball with them and you could say something to them then. Or maybe your mom or dad would drive you over to their house so that you could invite them. If you tell me their names, I could also ask them to come back. We have a lot of ways to lasso a friend who is staying away from God and the love of Jesus. If you were hiding, I would come to find you so please don't forget how much God wants all of us to be together. Amen.
