First Thoughts: This passage gives us the prophetic message of John the Baptist as he paved the way for the coming of Christ. As John argued, being righteous wasn't accomplished by being part of a righteous family or heritage. We might make the opposite argument as easily: It's not okay to ask for a "pass" on righteous living because we lack the support of a great family or background. If we want to be ready for the coming of Christ we must begin by looking at ourselves, by delving deeply into the dark places in our own hearts and lives. This is a call to real spiritual maturity. It offers us the opportunity to deepen and grow in love. After all, love requires a long-term commitment to righteous living, which supports the health and well-being of another. The choice to love belongs to each individual soul and is made in every moment of our lives. How deeply, how regularly, and how truly we love depends on how honestly, how courageously, and how faithfully we have examined and purged the dark places of our lives.
Teaching On Your Own: Hey everybody. I've had kind of a bad week. I thought I was going to be playing on the competitive baseball league this spring, but I guess I'm not. I was just sure I would get on the team. I mean, my entire family plays baseball, all the way back to my grandparents. My mom and dad, my cousins, my brothers and sisters -- everybody plays baseball, and they're all really good. I thought with all the baseball in my family, surely I would get on a team. Don't you think that if my family is really good at baseball that I should have gotten on a team? No? You don't think what my family does is important? What is important? Oh, how well I play! Now that I think about it, I really didn't prepare for the tryouts. I didn't think I needed to prepare myself. I guess that was my mistake. It reminds me of our lesson this morning.
John the Baptist was a prophet who was trying to get people ready for the coming of Jesus. He spent a lot of time preaching, telling people they needed to clean up their lives so they would be ready. But some people thought they didn't have to get ready. See, they were part of very religious families, families who had served God for generations. They figured that because their parents and grandparents and great-grandparents had served God well, they would just be able to breeze on through. But John told them that everyone is responsible for their own hearts and lives, God doesn't judge people based on what their families did but based on the choices they made in their own lives. Everyone is judged by their own fruits -- the things that they actually do themselves. Like in baseball, you're judged to be a good player if you can throw and catch well, and hit the ball and run. I've learned my lesson. Next year I'll start early working on the basics, so I can show everybody that I can be a good player. Then I'll be ready for the season! And being kind to others, forgiving people who hurt us, spreading peace and joy -- that gets us ready for the season too -- the Christmas season!
Teaching On A Team:
Leader 1: Hey (name), what have you been up to?
Leader 2: (looks down) Well, I thought I was going to be playing on the competitive baseball league this spring, but I guess I'm not.
Leader 1: Oh, no? Why not?
Leader 2: I tried out last week, but I didn't get on the team. I just don't know what happened. I was sure I would make it.
Leader 1: I guess you practiced a lot to get ready, huh?
Leader 2: Not exactly.
Leader 1: But you've probably been doing special exercises or something to help get your muscles in good shape?
Leader 2: No.
Leader 1: Well, what did you do to prepare?
Leader 2: Nothing. I didn't think I had to prepare. My entire family plays baseball, all the way back to my grandparents. My mom and dad, my cousins, my brothers and sisters -- everybody plays baseball, and they're all really good. I thought with all the baseball in my family, surely I would get on a team.
Leader 1: But it doesn't matter to a baseball team how well your parents or cousins or anybody else in your family plays baseball. All they care about is how well you can play. It reminds me of our lesson this morning. John the Baptist was a prophet who was trying to get people ready for the coming of Jesus. He spent a lot of time preaching, telling people they needed to clean up their lives so they would be ready. But some people thought they didn't have to get ready.
Leader 2: Why would they think that?
Leader 1: They were part of very religious families, families who had served God for generations. They figured that because their parents and grandparents and great-grandparents had served God well, they would just be able to breeze on through.
Leader 2: But that didn't work?
Leader 1: No. John told them that everyone is responsible for their own hearts and lives, God doesn't judge people based on what their families did but based on the choices they made in their own lives. Everyone is judged by their own fruits -- the things that they actually do themselves.
Leader 2: Like in baseball, you're judged to be a good player if you can throw and catch well, and hit the ball and run. I've learned my lesson. Next year I'll start early working on the basics, so I can show everybody that I can be a good player.
Leader 1: That'll get you ready for the season, all right. And being kind to others, forgiving people who hurt us, spreading peace and joy -- that gets us ready for the season too -- the Christmas season!
Closing Prayer: Loving God, help us to take responsibility for being loving and faithful in our own lives and not relying on others or blaming others for the things we choose to do. Strengthen us so that we are ready to meet and receive Jesus this Christmas season. In the name of the one who comes, Amen.
Follow-Up Lesson: To reinforce this lesson in a home or classroom environment, spend some time talking about what it means to be responsible for our own lives. Of course we are influenced by other people -- our family, our friends, the world around us -- but we still need to make decisions about how we're going to act in the world. The decisions we make every day combine to make our whole lives. Give the children some scenarios and ask them to come up with two or three decisions they might make about the scenarios. A few scenarios you might use are the following: they have a fight with a friend, someone pushes them down on the playground, their mother or father has a cold and is resting in bed, their room is a mess and needs to be straightened and cleaned. Now ask the children how their proposed responses match up with Christ's requirements for a holy life. Remind them that we know we are behaving in a way that is Christian because our hearts are loving and kind and because our actions produce good fruit. The Bible tells us that some of the fruits of the Spirit are kindness, patience, faith, joy, gentleness, peace, and self-control. Invite them to look at their responses more carefully, checking to see if any of them are likely to produce one of these fruits.
For a craft idea, help the children create a "Fruits of Love" picture. You can either use the template here or provide the children with construction paper to create their own tree and fruits. Ask the children to think of things they can do in their daily lives to create the different fruits of the Spirit. Then have them write their ideas on the fruits they can cut out and glue onto the tree. (Fruits can be placed on the tree as well as on the ground around the tree.) Remind the children that God has given us fruits and vegetables because they have lots of minerals and vitamins, and eating them helps our bodies grow strong and healthy. Fruits of the Spirit are just as important to us but, instead of making our bodies strong, these make our hearts strong. Also, the benefit isn't just to ourselves but to the whole world. Close with prayer.
