Kelly listened and thought about the story from the Holy Bible. She understood that Jesus expected the people of his day to honor the Temple as God’s house. What are some ways we can honor the church? (Allow children to respond.) We honor the church by not throwing papers on the floor. And like Kelly, we honor our church by not bringing things inside that don’t belong inside a church building.
Did you know that you are like a holy temple? A holy place is anyplace where God is. When you accept God's love His Spirit becomes a part of who you are. God's Spirit lives in you and your body is a holy place––a holy temple. One of the things we can learn from this Bible story is that we must respect our bodies because they are holy. We respect our bodies by doing things to keep ourselves healthy and safe.
In this Bible story Jesus also talked about his body being the temple of God. In the same way God's Spirit lives in us and we can think of our bodies as temples that honor God. The ways we show respect for our church are the same ways each one of us can show respect for our bodies. Take care of your body; keep it clean and healthy, and let your behavior be pleasing to God.
This makes Jesus very angry and he goes and turns over their tables and knocks their money on the floor. He tells them to stop doing their business in the temple - which is a place for honoring God. It's a good reminder that what's OK at some times and places may not be all right in others.
If you are rich with computer knowledge be willing to teach those who want to learn how to use a computer. If you know how to be a friend reach out to others with your friendship. If you are an athletic person help those who are not as strong as you. We are all rich and each one of us can find ways to share our richness with others.
The lesson of this Bible story is that we should care for one another, especially those who are less fortunate and have greater needs. Elephants, which are such beautiful, intelligent animals, take care of each other. Thinking about elephants can remind us to care for people who need our help.
This was the first of the miracles Jesus performed and he did this as a sign that he was the Son of God. The Bible tells us that when the disciples saw what he had done they "believed in him" (2:11). Look around at the beautiful things in nature and the love that comes from others and see what signs you find that point to God. Then, believe.
Each day we have the opportunity to make many decisions to be faithful. We can choose to be honest, loving, trustworthy and helpful to others. And, we must decide to be conscientious or careless about those decisions. Choosing to be conscientious - to be honest, loving, trustworthy and helpful in every small decision we make will prevent many problems from occurring later. We will develop into the sort of person who is able to handle larger challenges and be "faithful also in much."
This season of year we see gifts beneath the Christmas tree and we can hardly wait to open them to see what's inside. We like to be surprised. Wow, were the shepherds, ever surprised!
Jesus’ words must have surprised Nathanael because Jesus’ words changed Nathanael’s mind. Nathanael called out, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! (vs. 49) That very day, Nathanael became a follower of Jesus.