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(WT) Jesus the Boy in the Temple ~ Drama

 Rotation.org Writing Team

Jesus the Boy in the Temple

Drama Workshop

 

Summary of Lesson Activity

Through a series of fun "posing," quirky "StuffJesusNeverSaid" skits, and a hashtag "#Jesus-a-tude" reflection, students will examine the actions, attitudes and "vibe" they and other students sometimes act out at church, and look toward Jesus' actions and attitude in the Temple as their standard.

Scripture

Passage: Luke 2:41-52

Key/Memory Verse: Luke 2:46-47   After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.

Objectives

See the Bible Background for this set's complete list of objectives.

Particular Objectives for this Workshop:

  • Students will examine some of the excuses and attitudes that fellow students, teachers, and parents sometimes bring to church.
  • Students will see Jesus as the role model for their behavior at "the Temple" that goes beyond merely being polite, but rather reflects their faith in God.

Preparation & Supplies

  • Read Bible Background, scripture, and this lesson.
  • Make copies of the StuffJesusNeverSaid Scripts Slips
  • Get several permanent markers for Closing
  • Get a white robe for Jesus in the skit
  • Have a camera/smart phone and way to plug it into a larger screen for viewing. (Learn how here.)


Lesson Plan

Selfie Poser Opening Activity

Welcome the students and invite them to play a game of "Selfie Poser."

How to play: Invite a student to come forward. Show them an "attitude card," and have them "pose that attitude" for the camera. (The camera captures the moment and oddly enough, makes them feel less self-conscious when posing.)  Go through the cards twice for fun and effect.

Selfie Poser Attitude Cards:bored

  • Totally bored
  • Seriously?
  • What's that smell?
  • I really don't want to be here
  • When is this over?

A "Poser" Reading of the Bible Story

Say: As we read through the story of Jesus in the Temple, I'm going to pause us at several points, point to some of you, and ask you to "strike a pose" showing the Bible character's attitude at that moment. For example, when Mary realizes Jesus isn't with them, I'll say "pose" and you have to do your best "Mary being frantic" pose.  Let's practice that one

Teaching Tip:  During the read-through, use your camera again to take photos of the poses. Pose Points are secretly your "ponder" points during the reading for you to add add comments and ask follow-up questions.

Have fun and if you have time, go through it a second time. [One of the things you're doing here is creating a strong memory in each student about their behavior in your class, what's "like Jesus" and what isn't helpful.

Luke 2:41-52 Bible Study with "pose points" and suggested comments:

41 Now every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover.

42 And when Jesus was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival.

[POSE – what a kid looks like when they feel they are being forced to go to church. Follow up: What do you look like when you don't feel like getting up on Sunday morning.]

43 When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it.

[POSE – the clueless Parents]

44 Assuming that he was in the group of travelers, they went a day’s journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends.

45 When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him.

[POSE – as the Searching Parents]

46 After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.

[POSE – as Jesus listening. See who can strike their best "listening" pose.]

47 And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.

[POSE – as Teachers. For fun, have the kids pose as you too!]

48 When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, “Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.”  

[POSE – as upset Mary or Joseph]

49 He said to them, “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”  

[POSE – Jesus. Do you think he was being polite or snotty?]

50 But they did not understand what he said to them. 51 Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart.

52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.

[POSE – as Jesus looking wise beyond his years.

Questions for Further Discussion:

  • What does it mean to look "wise beyond your years"?   Show us.
  • What did Jesus DO that made him seem "wise beyond his years" to those around him?  
  • Strike a pose or describe something that you could do in Sunday School to look like you were as into the lesson as Jesus was.
  • What kinds of things do people do to look "immature" to others?

 Make a list of things people do around teachers and students that makes them look immature and unwise.

 

Reflection:  "Hashtag: Stuff Jesus Never Said"

stuffjesusneversaid-churchStudents will perform a series of very quick two-line skits using the funny twist of having Jesus give wrong answers to questions.

Perhaps you've seen the clever online "meme" page on Facebook: StuffJesusNeverSaid.  A familiar illustration of Jesus teaching includes an absurd caption — obvious words that Jesus wouldn't have said. The pointed and often comedic twist of this approach creates discussion and leaves a poignant impression.

How to Play:

In this classroom version of "Stuff Jesus Never Said," you will give pairs of your students two or three of the following script slips and let them practice delivering these lines. Then, back together, call each pair forward to do one of their cards.  One student will play "person" and the other will play "Jesus." 

 After each pair performs ask: "What WOULD Jesus say for real?"

hashtagfingersInstructions to the students:

Get in character!  Remember how to pose to get your attitude across. When you read the word: "#StuffJesusNeverSaid," read # as "hashtag" and cross your fingers over each other in the sign of a hashtag. Then be prepared to tell what you think Jesus WOULD say.

Pictured: Jimmy Fallon and Justin Timberlake talking back and forth with funny hashtags.

Here are the StuffJesusNeverSaid "Script Slips"

Copy and save these to a document, then print and cut into script slips and give to each pair of students. You can give two or three slips to each pair to prepare. You can also make 2 copies of the script slips so that each "skit" is done twice by different pairs. Feel free to come up with your own, it's fun!

Person: Hey Jesus, it's time to go to the Temple and talk to the teachers about God.

Jesus:   Well that sounds really boring. I'm sure God won't mind if we skip it and go to IHOP.  #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: Hey Jesus, It was a long ride down from Nazareth to Jerusalem, wasn't it.

Jesus: Yeah, I think I'm going to sleep in and blow off going to the Temple.  #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: Sunday School is for losers and wusses.

Jesus: Yeah, but it will get you in good with God, and maybe into heaven.  #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: Today's Bible story is a really good one.

Jesus: Are we having donuts today? #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: I can't believe my parents make me come to this place every Sunday.

Jesus: Yeah, mine too, when they said I had to go, I started acting too cool for Sunday School. Give me five! #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: Hey Jesus, I have a really interesting question to ask you about God. 

Jesus: Sorry pal, but there are no really interesting questions about God! #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: Jesus, I'm feeling guilty about not knowing my Bible stories as well as I should.

Jesus: And you should. It really shows and you should just keep your mouth shut in class from now on. #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: I'm having a hard time paying attention in worship.

Jesus: Me too.  #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: Jesus, I wish some of my students would take learning a little more seriously.

Jesus:  Why don't you make learning fun all the time? ...like by bringing more donuts? #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: Ah! Sometimes church is so dull and boring!

Jesus: Get used to it. It is supposed to be dull and boring. #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: This faith and salvation stuff confuses me. I don't really understand it.

Jesus: It's supposed to be difficult. You just need to grow up. #StuffJesusNeverSaid

Person: I don't have time for reading the Bible and praying, Jesus, I'm a busy person.

Jesus: Then I don't have time for you. Goodbye! #StuffJesusNeverSaid

StuffJesusNeverSaid Options: 

With younger children, pick the slips you give them and have them practice their lines ahead of time. (That's the beauty of this type of drama, they only have to remember one line!)

With older students, go through all the cards once, then shuffle them and redistribute them for a second round of "StuffJesusNeverSaid." 

As with the other activities in this lesson, use your camera by VIDEOTAPING these brief and funny encounters.

A Hand Hashtag Closing

The purpose of a story like Jesus in the Temple is simple: Remember to Be Like Jesus. Wrap up your lesson with this fun hashtag "remembering" activity, then show your photos and video clips.

Using a permanent marker or pen, have students write their favorite hashtag on the back of their hand. Explain what a hashtag is: it identifies what you care about and can be seen by others. In that way, it's like wearing a cross, or drawing the symbol of the fish. Jesus in the Temple tells us what Jesus cares about.

A few suggested hashtags:

# 

#Jesus  

#BeLikeJITT (Be Like Jesus in the Temple)

#YEShua  (Jesus' name in Hebrew looking like the word YES)

#TempleTude  (Temple + attitude)

#Jesus-a-tude

stuffjesusneversaid-ask

What's a Hashtag?  
#WWJD  #fashion #ColbertNation #OhioStateBuckeyes

We see them all over the internet, twitter, social media, Facebook, Instagram, television, and print advertising, but what are they?

Hashtags are a way to 'tag' your internet comments and conversations with a subject (#subject) so that others searching/exploring the same subject can find your comment no matter where you posted it.

For example, if you post a comment on a Whale blog and give it the popular hashtag #SavetheWhales, then others who want to see what people are saying about that subject can find your brilliant comment when they search Google for the hashtag, #SavetheWhales.

The "hash" is the # symbol. It tells the search engines that the word following the # is meant to be a subject.

In that respect, the hashtag symbol # is like the Cross or Fish. Wearing it (or hashtagging it so to speak) helps people find a fellow Christian who is interested in the same subject as you. Another example: Googling #PCUSA shows me all the blogs, tweets, and other social media where people are commenting about my denomination (because they included that hashtag at the end of their comment).

They're also kind of a funny "slang" term for "I'm telling others I want to be like Christ,"

...which sounds like sharing the Gospel  

Your third graders may not use them, but they will have seen them, and soon will be using them! This lesson just makes remembering your #Jesus-a-tude a little more fun and culturally relevant.


 #GreatCommission  #Evangelism  #SundaySchoolHipster

 



Additional Suggestions

Watch your time so you have time to view the photos after the lesson.

Teachers can join younger students to help them act out the "StuffJesusNeverSaid" scripts.

If you have time in a youth or Family event, have them come up with their own "StuffJesusNeverSaid" about being in and going to church.


 

Written by Neil MacQueen for the Rotation.org Writing Team

Copyright © 2015 by Rotation.org 

Printed from https://www.rotation.org

Images used by "Fair Use" copyright principle.

Attachments

Images (5)
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  • stuffjesusneversaid-church
  • stuffjesusneversaid-forgive
  • stuffjesusneversaid-ask
  • hashtagfingers
Last edited by Luanne Payne
Original Post
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