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Wormy the Helpful WormSite Admin Supporting Member!

This topic is for posting lesson ideas related to Matthew 25, "I was hungry and you gave me something to eat..." etc. This is also known as the separation of the Sheep from the Goats.

NOTE:

This story is not a typical one for Rotation Churches so we don't have a lot on it. Why not typical? Because in Rotation we spend 4 to 5 weeks in a row on a single story, and thus, have to prioritize which stories we teach in elementary Sunday School. This particular story doesn't often make the final cut. If you think it should, then add your lessons and ideas in this post!

The teaching has a Good memory verse in it, and a strong Visual-dramatic component. See more ideas below on that.

Ideas needed for:

Art
Drama
Video
Games
Computer
Puppets
Creative Writing
Storytelling
and Service

Scripture Reference:

Matthew 25: 31-46

New International Version (NIV)

The Sheep and the Goats

31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

12/10/133:20 PM

Original Post

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Wormy the Helpful WormSite Admin Supporting Member!

Originally posted by member Kari, with additional ideas from Neil MacQueen

We turned this story into a Rotation of "Service Workshops" which dovetailed into events at our church during the spring.

Flower Pot Workshop

"I was hungry..." we painted flower pots, potted petunias and sold them after worship the next week. We took the proceeds and had a field trip to our local Sav-a-lot to buy canned goods for the food bank.

Water Bottle Workshop

"I was thirsty..." We bought white plastic water bottles and decorated them with images and words from the Bible verse. One was filled with chilled water and given to workers at a church workday. The other went home with the kids.

Get Well Card Workshop

"I was sick...." We made "get well" cards for specific people in our church. We also had the kids make one to send to someone in their family who was recently sick. We had all the kids in the class sign it.

Prison Ministry Visitor

"I was in prison..." We had a prison minister speak to our kids and show a short video.

Greeter Workshop

"I was a stranger..." We spent some time practicing how to greet people at our church, different scenarios, what to say, how to shake hands (and how not to, that was fun!) Then each class greeted people as they came to worship. We also practiced "how to invite friends to church."

The "Nakedness" Workshop

"I was naked..." Instead of clothing, we talked about "embarrassment" as a form of nakedness, and how we can help preserve a person's dignity when someone is putting them down, or something embarrassing happens. Lots of skits.

12/10/133:31 PM

Lesson WranglerResource Wrassler Supporting Member!

What Does God Want Us To See & Do ?

Song: "Open the Eyes of My Heart, Lord"

An at-home, in class, or fellowship time lesson or devotion
Matthew 25:31-40, Micah 6:8, Isaiah 6:8, Ephesians 1:16

Discussion Outline:

1. How do we "see" God? What does God want us to do with our lives? Let a few people try and answer those questions, then read these two short passages and then ask the questions again.

Matthew 25:31-40 I was hungry, I was a stranger, I was sick, I was in prison... just as you did it to one of the least of these --- you did it to me.’

Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly[a] with your God.

2. How can we learn to see and do what God wants us to? Let a few answer that question, then play the video and ask the question again. What does the song suggest?"

The song, "Open The Eyes of My Heart," is about as good as it gets. More importantly, this contemporary song raises an important issue these days: "Lord, what do we need to have our eyes opened about right now? Where are you in all this mess?" And on that subject, Jesus had some profound words.

Famed Christian songwriter and performer Paul Baloche wrote the song and it has been covered by many different artists in many different styles, Here are several recommended version:

Paul Baloche's live version: https://youtu.be/ViBNqNukgzE?s...wfZAr-c3Xo5&t=58
Michael W. Smith's live version rocks: https://youtu.be/A9mcrjQjD1k?si=vNZL3RD5BR0lje75
God Behind Bars live version: https://youtu.be/NBDUX_B45hs?si=sx9WUc0kj5ArqqHc Recorded in a prison worship service (kind of amazing)
DeAngelo Carter's acapella version of "Open the Eyes of My Heart" (Currently offline) https://youtu.be/0HDCRS-gsi0

3. Lyrics and Questions to Ponder:

What does it mean to have your eyes "opened" to something?
What have your eyes been "opened" about during the past year or two in your personal life, in our family, in our society?
On a scale of 1 to 10, how cool would it be to close your eyes, then open them to find JESUS sitting right here with us?
What questions would you ask him?
What question about your life do you think Jesus would ask YOU?

4. What Now?

The lyrics to "Open the Eyes of My Heart" are based on the opening prayer in Ephesians 1:16 where Paul prays for the Ephesians, "so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you." It's about "seeing" what God has done for you. What is this "hope" that Paul refers to? You have to read the preceding verses to get all of it, but basically, it's opening our eyes to WHO Jesus really is, and what he has done for us.

They also reference Isaiah 6 where the prophet Isaiah sees six-winged "Seraphs" hovering over the presence of God and shouting "Holy, Holy, Holy." Then Isaiah hears God's voice saying:

⁸ “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”

(And Isaiah responds) “Here am I. Send me!”

Ask: What and when have I said to God, "here I am, send me"?

Ask: Name a couple of things each of you could be "sent" to do by God right now and in the days and weeks ahead. (Be sure to consider Matthew 25's suggestions.)

Ask: What's it going to take to get us to raise our hand to God and do what these three scriptures are talking about?

End with prayer thanking God for the eyes of faith showing you how God wants you to live your life and serve others, and for the strength to carry through on this calling.

Written by Neil MacQueen, member of the Rotation.org Writing Team

7/8/222:19 PM

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