Sprouts Ep01: Children Are Important to Jesus

This episode is available to stream on Spotify.

It will be available on most other major platforms soon. 

Lesson Extenders

If you'd like to extend the lesson from today's episode here are a few ideas to help you get started. Please pick and choose which suggestions will work best for your children, and don't feel like you have to do it all.  In my experience, little ones are usually full of questions if you give them time and space to think of them. Follow their lead as their brains try to make connections and cement what they've heard. The best gospel conversations I've had with my own kids are just from following their rabbit trails.

1. I got the name for this lesson from a Beginners Bible song from all way back in my own childhood. This music is available on Spotify (and I think Amazon Music, but don't hold me to it). Listen to this song with your kids to help the message really stick that children are important to Jesus. 
2. The blog, Nicole's Coloring Pages, has several coloring pages that can be used for this lesson as well as Palm Sunday and Easter. If your child likes to color, consider printing off to keep their hands busy while they listen to the podcast. It may even help them retain more of what they're hearing. 
3. Talk with your children about people who love them like Jesus does (Pastor Mike or other church staff, a Sunday School teacher, maybe a relative or a neighbor). Work with your child to make a card or write a simple note to mail that person to thank them. 
4. Use some imaginative play to help children think about what it would've been like to sit and talk with Jesus. Ask what they would've told Jesus, talk about how they would feel afterwards. Then, tie this back into prayer and remind your child that they really can talk to Jesus whenever they want to. 

Episode Transcript 
Children are important to Jesus. Did you know that? I'm going to say it again just to let it sink in really deep. I want this truth to sink into you like a seed planted really deep in the dirt. Children are important to Jesus.

How do I know? The Bible tells me that! The Bible actually has lots of stories where God used kids to do some important things. We're going to talk about lots of those stories in the weeks to come. Today I'm going to tell you a story about Jesus and children.

Jesus spent a lot of time in big groups of people. People who needed healed from sickness or a problem like not being able to walk. People who asked him questions and he had to teach them about God. People who just wanted to be near him. And one day, some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could bless them.

A blessing means to ask God to be kind and generous to someone, or to protect them from bad things. It's asking God to show somebody how much he loves them! A blessing sounds like a good thing, doesn't it? Would you like a blessing like this from Jesus? I would.

But the problem was that Jesus's friends--the disciples--they didn't think that Jesus had time to waste on children. Now, I'm sure these were nice guys but they didn't want a bunch of little kids bugging Jesus. He was important! He had things to do! Places to go! People to heal! Lessons to teach! He didn't have time to listen to a kid tell him a knock-knock joke, or show Jesus where she scraped her knee.

Do you think that the disciples were right? Do you think Jesus was too busy for kids?

You wanna know something? Jesus actually got angry with his friends for telling the children Jesus was too busy for them. It made him mad! He wanted to talk to those kids. He wanted to let them climb on his lap and tell him jokes and show him their ouchies. Jesus deeply loved those kids, just like he did the grown-ups he healed and helped.

This is what He said, "Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. 15 I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it." (Mark 10:14-15)

Jesus actually told all the grown-ups that they needed to be more like the children! You kids are pretty amazing people. You ask lots of questions. You don't think you know everything there is to know about God. You're curious. And just about every kid I know is really generous with hugs and forgiveness and friendship and happiness. All of those things are important. And sometimes grown-ups aren't very good at those things anymore.

So the parents brought their children to Jesus. No one stopped them anymore. And the Bible says that "he took the children in his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them." (Mark 10:16). Try to imagine Jesus for a minute. Just make a picture of him in your mind. And now imagine what it would be like to have him hold you in his lap, or to give you a big, strong hug, or to put his hand on your head and pray for you? Do you think you would feel happy? Loved? Maybe brave?

Children are still important to Jesus. You can talk to Jesus anytime you want to. We call it praying, but it's just talking to Jesus like he's your friend, or your dad, or your favorite uncle. You can talk to him about anything at all.

We're going to talk more about Jesus next week! We'll talk about a miracle Jesus did with a little boy's lunch. And on a bonus episode, we'll talk about about Easter--it's the most important thing you need to know about Jesus.

This week I want you to think about two things. One, think about someone who takes time to listen to you and show you how important you are to them. Pray and thank God for that person! And two, think about this Bible verse: Mark 10:14...Let the children come to me. Don't stop them! I want you to think about those two things so you will always remember that children are important to Jesus. Now I'm going to pray for us.

Available to download here.