Jesus’ Temptation – Alone in the Desert?

Cooking Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Making Tempting Muffins.

Supplies List:

• Sugar
• Flour
• Butter
• Cinnamon
• Baking powder
• Salt
• Milk
• Egg
• Oil
• Vanilla
• Chocolate chips
• 2 Mashed bananas
• measuring cups and spoons
• mixing bowls
• spoons
• fork
• muffin pan
• muffin liners
• napkins or paper towels
• oven mitt

Preparation and Room Set up:

• Place a bowl of Tootsie Rolls on the table. Make a sign saying “Do Not Sample!” and place it in front of the bowl. Do not say anything about the candy. If the children ask, tell them it is for another activity.
• Read the scripture ahead of time. 
• Gather the materials.

Important Note for Cooking Workshop Leaders:

Children LOVE to cook and create various concoctions in this workshop. But occasionally the cooking activity does not have as obvious or concrete a connection with the lesson as do some of the other activities. Help the children make that connection by intentionally discussing the way the activity relates to the lesson of the day. Discuss during preparation, eating and clean-up times. When finished with the activity of the day, please be sure to bag up the trash and replace the trashcan liner (extras are found in the hallway closet if needed) if any food items were used.

ALLERGY NOTE: Several of our children are severely allergic to peanuts and other nuts. Check ingredient labels to make sure nuts and nut oils are not included in any cooking activities!!

Presentatio

Opening-Welcome and Lesson Introduction:

Start on time!

Time Guidelines:
Introductions/Opening Prayer: 10 minutes
Bible Study/Discussion: 15 minutes
Tempting Muffins 25 minutes
Reflection/Closing Prayer: 10 minutes

Welcome the children and introduce yourself. Make sure all children have nametags. Give the children a simple one or two sentence synopsis of what you will be doing during the workshop. Tell the children that today they will be learning about Jesus and how Satan tried to tempt Jesus away from God and God’s plan.

Opening Prayer:
Dear Father In Heaven, Thank you for sending us your Son Jesus Christ to show us how to resist temptation and how we can always be faithful to you. Help us to know what is right in your eyes and keep us obedient to your word. In Jesus Christ’s name we pray, Amen.

Dig-Main Content and Reflection:

Bible Study:
Each workshop begins with the Bible story. One of our primary goals is to improve the children’s Bible literacy! For older children: Have them locate and read the selected verses. For younger children: Have them locate the selected verses. (Refer to the teacher handout “Helping Children Learn to Use their Bibles for suggestions). Shepherds can assist the children in locating the stories.

For Younger children: Read the story “Jesus is Tempted in the Desert,” on pages 295-296 of The Little Kids’ Adventure Bible. Be sure to read the Did You Know and Let’s Live It notes on those pages and discuss with the children. Make sure children understand the meaning of the words: fast and temptation.

For Older children: Tell the children that this Bible story is found in three places (Matthew, Mark and Luke). Choose either the Matthew or Luke version to read, but older children can practice locating both stories. Have the children locate the scripture and follow along as you read, or let the children take turns reading aloud. After reading the text, find the Let’s Live It note in Matthew 4:1-11 and the Did You Know note in Luke 4:4. Read these together and discuss briefly.

NOTE: As the rotation progresses, the children will become more familiar with the scripture. Encourage them to find the scripture each week, but be flexible and modify your presentation of this part of the lesson by allowing children to tell the story, pausing to let them fill in the details, add more details, etc.

Discussion:
Refer to the background information sheet in preparation for classroom discussion. Make sure the children know what the following words mean:

1. Fast - to go without food which produces a clarity of mind and spirit.
2. Temptation - lured to do the wrong thing, take the easy way out.
3. Satan- the devil, described as an angel of the heavenly court who rebelled against God and became the personification of evil.

Discuss the following ideas with the children:

1. Who sent Jesus into the desert? (Holy Spirit)
2. How much time did Jesus spend in the desert? (40 days)
3. What were the three temptations told in this story? (food/physical desires, power or bowing down to Satan, miracles/testing God.)
4. Why did Satan tempt Jesus to turn stones into bread? (he was hungry from the fast.)
5. What did Jesus mean when he said “man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God? (physical things are not as important as spiritual, we need to depend on God, not try to do everything on our own.)

Activity: Tempting Muffins
(Adapted from a recipe by Maria Stewart-Bates at ohio.com/food/kidscooks - note link no longer active)
Have all the children wash their hands and put on aprons.
Say to the children: Temptation is in all of our lives. We just need to recognize it and learn how to resist it. Learning about God’s law and his scripture, helps us resist temptation. Jesus showed us that God can help us resist temptation if we learn to lean on him.

Topping:
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp. cinnamon

Let the children help measure, pour in a bowl all of the topping ingredients, stir and mash with a fork, until pea-sized globs form. Set aside.

Batter:
2 1/3 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
pinch of salt
1 cup of milk
1 large egg
1/4 cup oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chocolate chips
2 mashed bananas

Again, let the children help measure, pour and mix.
In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
Add milk, egg, oil and vanilla; stir just until ingredients are moistened.
Stir in chocolate chips and bananas.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place muffin liners into 18 muffin tin cups.
Fill cups 3/4 full. Sprinkle topping over batter. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

As you are preparing the above, and while it is baking discuss the following:

1. Does Satan know the Bible? (Yes, he quoted scripture, but twisted its meaning.)
2. Why did Satan tempt Jesus? (tried to stop God’s plan for Jesus’ ministry )
3. How did Jesus respond to the temptations? (resisted them, quoted scripture, let the Holy Spirit strengthen him )
4. Which Old Testament book did Jesus quote scripture from when resisting the devil? (Deuteronomy)
5. Which temptation do you think was the most difficult for Jesus to resist? (no right or wrong answer, just explore )

As the temptation muffins are baking, everyone can be cleaning up the cooking utensils.

Memory Verse:
Review the Memory Verse with the children. Encourage the children to memorize the memory verse for this rotation. If you have time, you can use the attached memory verse review activity.

“It is written: Worship the Lord your God. He is the only one you should serve.” Luke 4:8
(Pg. 296 Little Kids’ Adventure Bible)

After the muffins cool, it is time to eat!

As you are eating, discuss the following:

1. What did Satan show Jesus he could be in charge of? (all the kingdoms of the world )
2. What would Jesus have to do to have that power? (worship Satan )
3. Jesus knew that only God is worthy of his worship and put first in his life.
4. What type of things do we “worship” today by putting them first in our lives and making them more important than God? (toys, TV, money, video games status, computers, etc. 
5. What are you most tempted to worship?
6. Who can help you resist temptation? (the Holy Spirit within you )
7. What else can help you resist temptation? (knowledge of the scriptures )
8. What would have happened to our temptation rocks, if we had not followed the recipe? What if we had put in 1/2 cup of salt instead of the sugar for the topping?
9.  Why is it important to follow directions and obey them?
10. Whom should you obey? (God, Bible, parents, teachers )

Reflection:
The last 10 minutes of class are reserved for Faith Journals. Ask the shepherds to pass out the journals and pencils/pens from the class box. Reflection questions for each workshop are printed on stickers. Pass out the stickers and have children stick them to the top of a sheet of paper in their journals. Workshop leaders and shepherds should sit down with children in small groups to facilitate discussion and writing in Faith Journals. This time is an opportunity for processing and reflection about what the children have learned. Memory verse stickers are also included for each lesson. Children can copy the memory verse and illustrate it as an alternative to journal questions.

Journal Questions:
Grades 1-2: Draw a picture of a time you were tempted to do something wrong.
Grades 3-4: Write about a time you were tempted to do something wrong.
Grades 4-6: Write about a time you were tempted to do something wrong. Write a prayer asking God to help you with this temptation.

Temptation Relay:
(Adapted from Bible Zone, Abingdon Press)

If you have extra time, play this game with the children.

Supplies:
Large pieces of paper
Magazines
Scissors
Markers
Tape
Stopwatch

Preparations:
Write “Temptation” and “Really Big Temptation” on each sheet of paper. Tape the papers to the wall opposite the children. Place some tape near the Temptation papers.

Divide the class into pairs. Have the children look through magazines to find tempting advertisements and cut them out. Tell them to ask themselves:
a. What is the ad trying to sell? (clothes, cars, computers, games, etc.)
b. What is the temptation? (fast food, to be popular, to have fun, look good, have lots of things, etc.)
Have the pairs save the pictures they found.

Say: We face temptations all the time. Some temptations are bigger than others. Give the groups four minutes to decide which of their pictures are temptations, and which are really big temptations. Groups should then run and tape them to the paper.

Use the stopwatch to time the four minutes. After all the pictures have been taped, discuss the various temptations with the class.

Closing:

Circle up and hold hands. Tell the children that you will start the prayer and pass it on to the next child, if anyone does not want to say a prayer, let them squeeze the hand of the next child to pass it on. When it comes back to you finish the prayer.

As the children leave, hand out the Tootsie Rolls and say:
God blesses those who resist temptation and are obedient.

Release children only to parents, older siblings, or by prior permission of parents. Make sure parents sign out their children on the class clipboards.

A lesson written by Jaymie Derden from: State Street UMC

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