Jesus Wants to Be Our Friend

Jesus Wants to Be Our Friend Scripture Passage: Proverbs 18:24; John 15:13-15 Lesson Objective and Application.................................. Children will know that God s Word says Jesus wants to be their friend. They will begin to understand that Jesus loves them so much that He gave His life for them. At the conclusion of this lesson, the children will have the opportunity to accept the gift of salvation. Supply List........................................................... Bible Lesson Bible Andy Gopher Puppet Emily Gopher Puppet Scripture Memory Bible Game Time BASIC GAME Fruit flavored, circle-shaped cereal A piece of yarn for each child ADVANCED GAME Portable CD or tape player and music Chairs Home Connection Page Note: You will need to write or copy the reference of the verse you are currently working on in the Your Child Should Say section of the Home Connection for this week. Bible Lesson......................................................... Gopher Puppet Dialog Teacher: Hi, boys and girls. Tonight is a special night here at Gopher Buddies. It s Friend Night! Wow, it looks like a lot of you have brought a friend with you tonight. It s great to invite friends to come with you to Gopher Buddies and to church. Hey, let s think of some other places you might invite your friends to come with you. Friend Night 251

Allow time for responses. Teacher: Those are all great answers. It s exciting to get to invite a friend over to your house to play or to go with you to the park. Sometimes at our house we invite friends to go out to eat with us. But one of our favorite things to invite friends to is a birthday party! Andy and Emily enter and are very excited. Andy: Birthday party! Did we hear someone is having a birthday party? Emily: We love birthday parties! Do you boys and girls love birthday parties, too? Allow time for response. Andy is still very excited and talking fast. Andy: So, who s having a birthday party? Is it your birthday, (insert teacher s name)? Are Emily and I invited to your party? Teacher: Whoa, Andy! Hang on for a minute. No, it s not my birthday, but if it were you would certainly be invited to my party. Emily looks around anxiously. Emily: So who s having the birthday party? Teacher: Well, no one is having a party, Emily. Andy and Emily act disappointed. Andy: Ahh, but (insert teacher s name), I know I heard you say the words, birthday party. Teacher: You re right about that, Andy. But the boys and girls and I were just talking about places and things we can invite our friends to. And I said my family likes to invite friends to our birthday parties. Emily is very sad and disappointed. Emily: So, there s no birthday party? Teacher: No, there s not Emily. I m sorry to disappoint you but you know what? I m glad you and Andy are here because now you can help us think of all the things we like about birthday parties. Andy and Emily are happy and excited again. 252 Friend Night

Andy: (Insert teacher s name), we ll be glad to help. Can I go first, please, please? Teacher: Okay, Andy. Tell us one thing you like about birthday parties. Andy: I love the games you get to play like Pin the Tail On the Hamster. Hey, boys and girls, what s your favorite birthday party game to play? Allow time for response. Teacher: Birthday party games are a lot of fun. Emily, how about you? What do you like about birthday parties? Emily: I love eating the birthday cake! Teacher: I like eating the cake, too, Emily. What s your favorite kind of birthday cake? Emily: Chocolate cake with purple frosting! Teacher: That sounds so good, Emily. I m getting hungry just thinking about it. Boys and girls, what is your favorite kind of birthday cake? Allow time for response Teacher: Okay, boys and girls, so far we know what Andy and Emily like best about birthday parties. Now I would like to know what you like best about parties. Allow time for response. Teacher: Wow, there are a lot of things to like about birthday parties balloons, goody bags, the decorations, and, of course, the presents. Andy: Oh, yeah, I agree with the boys and girls. Getting presents is a great part of a party. That s the part I always want to do first! Emily: You know what, (insert teacher s name)? Last year one of my friends gave me a whole box of purple bows for my hair. I loved it! That was a great gift. Teacher: That is a great gift, Emily. How about you, Andy? What s the best gift a friend has given you? Andy thinks hard. Friend Night 253

Andy: Hmm, I think it was the great big remote control dinosaur my best friend gave to me. Its legs and tail and head all moved around. It s sooo cool! Teacher: Boy, that does sound really cool! Okay, boys and girls, it s your turn now. What is the best gift a friend has given you? Allow time for response. Teacher: It sounds like you have all received some great presents from your friends. But did you know the Bible tells us about a Friend who has given us the best gift ever? Andy looks confused. Andy: Are you sure about this, (insert teacher s name)? Teacher: Yes, I m sure, Andy. And I want to tell you and all our friends here tonight about this friend. Teacher opens Bible to John 15. Teacher: In the Bible, in the Book of John, Jesus tells us that we are His friends. And just like your friends give you gifts, Jesus has also given you a very special gift. Emily: Better than a box of purple bows? Teacher: Yes, Emily, better than a box of purple bows. Andy: Well, Jesus gift couldn t be better than a remote-control dinosaur. Teacher: It is, Andy. Jesus has given us the best gift ever. Emily is anxious to hear about the gift. Emily: Tell us. Tell us. I want to hear about this gift. Teacher: Well, the Bible goes on to tell us that Jesus loves us so much that He gave His life for us. Andy is quiet and thoughtful. Andy: Wow! But why did Jesus have to do that? Why did He have to give the gift of His very own life? Teacher: The Bible tells us in Romans 3:23 that we all do, say, or think wrong things. God calls these wrong things sin. Our sin makes God sad and 254 Friend Night

separates us from God. But in John 3:16 we learn that because God loves us so much, He sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. Jesus gave His life for us because He loves us. Jesus gave us the best gift ever. Emily: But, (insert teacher s name), Jesus didn t stay dead, did He? Teacher: That s right, Emily. Jesus didn t stay dead. Jesus came alive again! The Bible tells us that if we tell God we are sorry for our sins and believe Jesus died and came back to life we will be saved. We will get to live in Heaven with our friend, Jesus, forever! Andy: And you were right, (insert teacher s name). Jesus gift is a hundred times better than even the biggest remote control dinosaur. Emily: Hey, Andy, let s go find Mom and Dad and tell them about what the children have learned. Andy: I m right behind you, Emily. Maybe we can talk Mom into making a chocolate cake with purple frosting, too. Emily: I like the way you think, Andy. Goodbye, boys and girls. Andy and Emily exit together. Application Boys and girls, it s so great to know Jesus is our friend! Jesus gave us the very best gift ever; He gave His life for each one of us. Have you told God you are sorry for your sin? Have you asked Him to forgive you and be your Savior? If you would like a teacher to help you understand about this wonderful gift Jesus has given you, please talk to me after the lesson. Have a leader available for counseling. For detailed invitation instructions and an explanation concerning the process of leading Early Learners to Christ, please see the appendix in the Bible Study. Prayer Time Suggestion............................................ Thank God for giving us friends. Thank God that His Son Jesus is our friend, too. Friend Night 255

Review Questions................................................... This week have Andy and Emily ask the review questions to the children. Make it more fun by having Andy and Emily give high-fives to the children for correct answers. 1. What is our special night tonight? (Friend Night) 2. What thing did Andy like best about birthday parties? The games) 3. What thing did Emily like best about birthday parties? (The cake) 4. What s the best gift Emily had received from a friend? (A box of purple bows) 5. What s the best gift Andy had received? (A remote-control dinosaur) Snack Time.......................................................... Friendship Cookies Make or buy heart-shaped cookies. If you want, frost the cookies with red icing. Serve with milk. Discussion Suggestion: During snack time, discuss the lesson with the children. Remind the children that Jesus wants to be our friend. Tell them you hope the heart-shaped cookies will help them remember that Jesus loves them so much He died on the cross for the wrong things they have done. Jesus gave them the best gift ever! Buddy Banana Splits Make banana splits by splitting the banana and giving each child one half of the banana. Turn it into a banana split with the traditional ice cream toppings, or use flavored yogurt and the toppings of your choice as an alternate idea. Discussion Suggestion: During snack time, discuss the lesson with the children. Talk about things they enjoy doing with their friends. Remind the children that Jesus wants to be their friend. Remind them that Jesus loves them so much He died on the cross for the wrong things they have done. Jesus gave them the best gift ever! 256 Friend Night

Discipleship Time................................................... Use Activity Sheet (Friend Night) Questions for Further Discussion: 1. In the Bible, who does Jesus say are His friends? (We are.) 2. What did Jesus give for us? (His life) 3. What does God call the wrong things we do? (Sin) 4. Who died on the cross for our sins? (Jesus) 5. Who gave us the best gift ever? (Jesus) Prayer Time Thank Jesus for our friends. Thank Him that He wants to be our friend, too. Suggested sentence prayer Dear Jesus, thank You for my friend,. Thank you that you are my friend, and for giving your life for me. Scripture Memory Time............................................. Verse: During Scripture Memory time this week, use the suggested activity with the verse the children have been working on this month. If you are between modules, you might wish to start the next verse the children will learn. Scripture Explanation: Read the verse aloud from the Bible in the version the children will be learning. Say the verse, including the reference, aloud several times. Then ask the children to repeat it with you a few more times. Activity Choose a Friend Choose one child to say the verse. Be sure to choose a child who knows the verse. After the child says the verse, have them choose a friend to say the verse with them. After they say the verse together, have the second child choose another friend to say the verse with them. Continue until all of the children are saying the verse together. Repeat as time allows. Friend Night 257

Game Time........................................................... Friendship Bracelet Give each child a piece of yarn and some fruit-flavored, circle-shaped cereal. Have the children string the cereal onto the string to make a bracelet. Tie the ends of the yarn together and have children trade their bracelets with a friend. Explain that you make a friendship bracelet to show your friends you care for them. Note: Tie a knot on end of the yarn with a piece of cereal attached. Wrap a piece of scotch tape around the other end. This makes it easier for the children to string the pieces of cereal. Learning Link: Be sure to tell the children what a great job they did making the bracelets. Remind the children to be good friends to others in the coming week and to remember that Jesus wants to be their friend. Remind them that Jesus loves them so much He died on the cross for the wrong things they have done. Musical Chairs Mix-Up Here s a friendly version of musical chairs where everyone wins! Play musical chairs as usual, but when the music stops, instead of taking away a chair and having a child sit out, just take away a chair. By the end of the game, the whole class has to cooperate to fit everyone on one chair. Learning Link: What a fun game to play with our friends! Remind the children to be good friends to others in the coming week and to remember that Jesus wants to be their friend. Remind them that Jesus loves them so much He died on the cross for the wrong things they have done. 258 Friend Night