Consequences
Children's sermon
Object:
Dominoes
"Therefore just as one man's trespass led to condemnation for all, so one man's act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all." (v. 18)
Good morning, boys and girls! How are you this morning? (allow answers) Who can tell me what these are? (show dominoes; allow answers) These are called dominoes. How many of you have ever played with dominoes? (allow answers) Dominoes are a very old game. Your parents or grandparents probably played when they were your age! Dominoes are kind of like playing cards: with one set of dominoes, you can play many different games.
But even though domino games are fun, there is another way that people entertain themselves with dominoes. Instead of playing a game, many times people like to set up the dominoes in neat rows. They balance the dominoes on the short end and stand them up in an orderly line. Then what do you think they do? (allow answers) They give the first domino in the line a little push. What happens then? (allow answers) That first domino falls on the second domino. The second domino falls over and knocks down the third domino. And it just keeps going! It can be fun to watch a whole line of dominoes fall down.
Dominoes falling on each other is called a "chain reaction." How many of you have ever heard of a chain reaction? (allow answers) A chain reaction is when one decision affects another decision, and that decision affects the next decision, and so on. For example, let's say that you decide not to pick up your toys and leave them on the floor. At night, your brother decides he wants a drink of water. So he walks downstairs in the dark -- and steps on your toy! Ouch! He yells because his foot hurts, which wakes up the dog, who starts barking. The barking dog wakes up your parents. Look at all of the events that happened just because you decided not to put away your toys! Another word for "chain reaction" is "domino effect." All of those events that happen one after the other are like dominoes falling down.
Sometimes, like in our example, one wrong decision can lead to a chain reaction that causes many people to be hurt or angry. But do you know what? It can work the other way, too! Sometimes one right decision can lead to a chain reaction that can help many people and make them glad. One example of good decisions like this is the Easter story. In the Easter story, God sends Jesus to die for our sins. One painful decision -- but the right decision. Jesus' sacrifice created a chain of events that is still unfolding today, as we do things to help others because God has given us his grace and eternal life. Amen.
Good morning, boys and girls! How are you this morning? (allow answers) Who can tell me what these are? (show dominoes; allow answers) These are called dominoes. How many of you have ever played with dominoes? (allow answers) Dominoes are a very old game. Your parents or grandparents probably played when they were your age! Dominoes are kind of like playing cards: with one set of dominoes, you can play many different games.
But even though domino games are fun, there is another way that people entertain themselves with dominoes. Instead of playing a game, many times people like to set up the dominoes in neat rows. They balance the dominoes on the short end and stand them up in an orderly line. Then what do you think they do? (allow answers) They give the first domino in the line a little push. What happens then? (allow answers) That first domino falls on the second domino. The second domino falls over and knocks down the third domino. And it just keeps going! It can be fun to watch a whole line of dominoes fall down.
Dominoes falling on each other is called a "chain reaction." How many of you have ever heard of a chain reaction? (allow answers) A chain reaction is when one decision affects another decision, and that decision affects the next decision, and so on. For example, let's say that you decide not to pick up your toys and leave them on the floor. At night, your brother decides he wants a drink of water. So he walks downstairs in the dark -- and steps on your toy! Ouch! He yells because his foot hurts, which wakes up the dog, who starts barking. The barking dog wakes up your parents. Look at all of the events that happened just because you decided not to put away your toys! Another word for "chain reaction" is "domino effect." All of those events that happen one after the other are like dominoes falling down.
Sometimes, like in our example, one wrong decision can lead to a chain reaction that causes many people to be hurt or angry. But do you know what? It can work the other way, too! Sometimes one right decision can lead to a chain reaction that can help many people and make them glad. One example of good decisions like this is the Easter story. In the Easter story, God sends Jesus to die for our sins. One painful decision -- but the right decision. Jesus' sacrifice created a chain of events that is still unfolding today, as we do things to help others because God has given us his grace and eternal life. Amen.
