Children’s Sermon

Matthew 16: 13-20

Do You Know Me?

OBJECTS SUGGESTED:
Photos of people or story characters the children might recognize.

How do you recognize someone? It seems like a simple question doesn’t it? You use your eyes and you see a face that is familiar. You recognize your mom, your dad, brothers, sisters, friends, grandparents, teachers, and many other people as well.

(Show series of photos.)

Sometimes you can recognize someone without first seeing them. You may smell a special perfume or a person you know may carry the scent of pine trees or cookies, giving you a clue as to who is nearby.

You may have a family member or friend who whistles or sings. Then you can use your ears to know that someone familiar is near. There are different ways of identifying who someone is.

When Jesus was with his disciples he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” (16:15).

Peter, one of the disciples replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (16:16).

Peter recognized Jesus as God’s Son because of what he felt in his heart. God’s love gives us the ability to recognize love in others. It is not something we see or hear or smell; it is something we feel inside. The ability to recognize Jesus as the Son of the living God is a gift from God.

Peter uses the word Messiah, a word that means someone who is expected, someone who comes to fulfill a promise, to bring God’s love to each one of us. We all are given the ability to recognize Jesus as the Son of God and receive his love.

Scripture quotations from the World English Bible