It Costs To Follow Jesus
Children's sermon
The Giant Book Of Children's Sermons
Matthew To Revelation
Object: a bank statement
Good morning, boys and girls. Do any of you ever go to the bank with your mother or father? (let them answer) What do they do at a bank? (let them answer) That's right, they put money in the bank and they take money out of the bank. The bank is a place where they save their money, or a place where they can borrow money. I brought along a bank statement that tells me how much money I have saved at this bank. It tells me how much I can spend if I want to build a new house, or buy a house or a car, or anything else that I think that I need to use my money for. That is very important because you do not want to spend more money than you have in the bank.
This little statement tells me exactly how much I can spend. Just think how awful it would be if you decided to build a house with the money that you had in the bank, and then you made the house so big that you could not pay for it. The house would never get finished. You might only have three walls, or a house with no windows or doors. You must plan what you are going to do, and spend the right amount of money on it, but not too much.
Jesus told us that the same kind of thing is true about being his disciple. He says that being his disciple is not free. It is going to cost you something, and you must decide if it is worth it. It will cost you time. You must worship Jesus, if you are going to be his disciple. You can't stay home and read the funny papers and still be in church at the same time; but being a disciple says that you must worship Jesus. You must share your things with others, too. You cannot be a disciple of Jesus and be selfish. Jesus makes you promise him that you will be ready to share what you have with others. And you must be forgiving. That means when someone does something wrong to you and it makes you angry, you cannot stay angry. You must be ready to forgive the person who hurt you, and show him how much you love him. These are some of the things that you must do if you want to be a disciple of Jesus and follow him. We call these things "counting the cost." It is like building a house. If you want to build a house, then you must have some money in the bank. If you want to be a follower of Jesus, you must have love and be ready to share it with all of the people of this world. Being a Christian isn't cheap. It is very expensive because you must spend yourself, and follow the teachings of Jesus.
The next time that see your mother or father look at their bank statement, I hope that you will think about what it is costing you to be a Christian, and that you will be glad that you have your life to spend for Jesus. God bless you.
Good morning, boys and girls. Do any of you ever go to the bank with your mother or father? (let them answer) What do they do at a bank? (let them answer) That's right, they put money in the bank and they take money out of the bank. The bank is a place where they save their money, or a place where they can borrow money. I brought along a bank statement that tells me how much money I have saved at this bank. It tells me how much I can spend if I want to build a new house, or buy a house or a car, or anything else that I think that I need to use my money for. That is very important because you do not want to spend more money than you have in the bank.
This little statement tells me exactly how much I can spend. Just think how awful it would be if you decided to build a house with the money that you had in the bank, and then you made the house so big that you could not pay for it. The house would never get finished. You might only have three walls, or a house with no windows or doors. You must plan what you are going to do, and spend the right amount of money on it, but not too much.
Jesus told us that the same kind of thing is true about being his disciple. He says that being his disciple is not free. It is going to cost you something, and you must decide if it is worth it. It will cost you time. You must worship Jesus, if you are going to be his disciple. You can't stay home and read the funny papers and still be in church at the same time; but being a disciple says that you must worship Jesus. You must share your things with others, too. You cannot be a disciple of Jesus and be selfish. Jesus makes you promise him that you will be ready to share what you have with others. And you must be forgiving. That means when someone does something wrong to you and it makes you angry, you cannot stay angry. You must be ready to forgive the person who hurt you, and show him how much you love him. These are some of the things that you must do if you want to be a disciple of Jesus and follow him. We call these things "counting the cost." It is like building a house. If you want to build a house, then you must have some money in the bank. If you want to be a follower of Jesus, you must have love and be ready to share it with all of the people of this world. Being a Christian isn't cheap. It is very expensive because you must spend yourself, and follow the teachings of Jesus.
The next time that see your mother or father look at their bank statement, I hope that you will think about what it is costing you to be a Christian, and that you will be glad that you have your life to spend for Jesus. God bless you.
