Receiving the Kingdom Like a Child

Short Talk (SHT118a) Receive the Kingdom of God like a child © Jane Hulme 2018 SHORT TALK: “Receive the Kingdom of God like a child” Aim of Short talk: Use of Short talk: Main themes: Biblical references: Lectionary: Props: To encourage people to receive the Kingdom of God like a child. This is a short All Age talk picking out one issue from the Lectionary Gospel reading of the Sunday main service. The talk stands alone and assumes that the Gospel Bible reading may not yet have been read to the congregation. It could be used for example, for the whole congregation before the children go out to their age specific groups, leaving the adults with a full sermon later. Kingdom of God, Childlike, Receiving Mark 10:2-16 Year B – The 18th Sunday after Trinity You need a large box that you fill with small bags of sweets (eg mini bags of Haribos, mini boxes of smarties etc) [NOTE: This talk requires a reasonable knowledge of how your congregation responds when invited to join you. The hope is that mainly the children will come forward! You need enough bags of sweets for all of the children/people who will come forward when you invite anyone to come to the front to receive a gift, so ensure that you over-cater!] Attach to each bag of sweets a label that says one of the following blessings: • Loved by God • Peace with God • Forgiven • Accepted • Joy • Never alone • Provided for • Guided • Helped • Given Wisdom • Given Strength • Set Free • Healed and Restored • Given Eternal Life • Given Hope • Become a Child of God • Fruitfulness • Given the gift of the Holy Spirit Wrap up the box containing the labelled sweets in decorative wrapping paper with a ribbon to make it look really attractive. Attach a label to it that says: “The Kingdom of God.” Place the box on a table at the front of the church. You also need to have a pair of scissors available. .................................................................................................................. © Jane Hulme 2018 2 Who enjoys receiving gifts? (Receive response) • This is a very special gift....it looks amazing doesn’t it? • I wonder what is inside. (Shake it) Let’s have a look and see what this label says. (Read from the label) • The label says: “The Kingdom of God” • That’s interesting isn’t it? • The gift is: “The Kingdom of God.” • Who would like to come and open this gift? Come on and join me around the table. (Receive as many children/young people/adults to the front who would like to open the gift and gather them around the table) Would one of you like to open up the gift? (Choose a volunteer to open up the box. Offer them the scissors to help them) • What is inside? • Packets of sweets! Share them out between you but don’t go back to your seats yet as there is a label on each one of your sweets, which I would like you to read out to me in a moment. (Sweets are shared out amongst the volunteers ONLY) The Kingdom of God is a gift and it is the place where God rules and reigns. • Now that may seem hard to understand as we cannot see God’s Kingdom with our eyes, • but when we come on our knees before Jesus and invite Him to be our Lord and Saviour we are brought into God’s wonderful Kingdom. When we do that we discover that the Kingdom of God comes with many blessings. • Let’s find out what some of those blessings are. (Invite your volunteers to read out the words attached to their sweets) Wow what a lot of wonderful blessings there are in God’s kingdom.... • Take your sweets and go and sit down. (Volunteers return to their seats) Jesus said something very interesting about the Kingdom of God. He said this: “Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” (Mark 10:15) • According to Jesus we need to receive the Kingdom of God like a child. So how do we do that? • When we look at how children respond to the offer of a gift they will normally receive it with excitement [like they did today]. • They are naturally trusting and won’t doubt that what is being given to them is good. We as adults on the other hand can often become suspicious as we grow older, • thinking that there is no such thing as a free gift. © Jane Hulme 2018 3 We may look at the gift that God offers us and think that we don’t really need it. • We are getting on fine without it. We may look at the gift that God offers us and wonder what we have to do to earn it, • as we couldn’t possibly simply receive it! We may even doubt that the gift on offer is good. Jesus says that the only way to receive the Kingdom of God is like a child; • Trustingly coming to our Heavenly Father, • holding out our hands in humility towards the One who loves to give us good gifts. Today only those who were willing to come to the front received the gift of sweets, • [and as you may have noticed, most of those who came were children!] Can I encourage you if you haven’t already done so, to humble yourself like a child before God; • trust that He is good and loves you, • and receive His precious gift of the Kingdom? © Jane Hulme 2018 4