How to Become One of Jesus' Sheep
Theme: Good News to Share
Theme Verse: "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10b NIV
Readings: John 3: 1-21
Memory Verse: "If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Romans 10:9-10
Reread the Memory Verse. Verse 13 continues, "For all, whoever shall call on the Name of the Lord, shall be saved." Remember the parables of the lost sheep. Part of Jesus seeking us out is to make us desire to know him and find out who he is. (This is sometimes called "pre-venient grace", grace that comes before we turn to God.) Word received: Be willing for the shepherd to seek you out.
Look at Nicodemus, a leader and teacher of the Jewish people. He came at night, in secret, so no one would see him. He must have been afraid. He believed Jesus was a teacher sent by God. Many other leaders did not. But this means Nicodemus was sincere. He was not showing off or trying to get credit from others. Jesus, in turn, is also open, sincere and quickly goes to the heart of the matter. Word received: No matter when you come to Me, I will be there for you. I will always be there for you. I just want you to come to Me. Word received: I Am willing for you to come to Me any time of the day or night. Remember the parable of the workers hired at the end of the day, getting paid the same as those who worked all day. God did not hold it against those who come to him very late in life. He doesn't want to lose anyone Jesus died for.
Nicodemus doesn't really know who Jesus is. It is a puzzle to him but he comes seeking. Jesus wastes no time in getting to the point about being "born again". Nicodemus is mystified and asks, "How...?" Word received: I can do what you cannot. Come to Me and I will bring you to new life. Word received: I want you to know, I want to write it on your heart, that the shepherd can do for the sheep what they cannot do for themselves. In verses 5 and 6 Jesus talks about spiritual birth as opposed to physical birth.
Jesus provokes more questions from Nicodemus and asks why he doesn't know these things even though he is a teacher and leader of God's people. We can be very involved in the church, even be a professor of religion, a minister or a bishop and not know Jesus personally or spiritually! Jesus wants Nicodemus and us to be convicted of what we are missing so we will turn to him for this spiritual birth and receive his salvation.
Jesus knows Nicodemus's heart -- and ours. Out of this honest encounter Jesus explains the truth of God in a nutshell. Open your heart to Jesus and come to him honestly as Nicodemus did. Ask him about whatever troubles you or you do not understand and he will answer you. PRAYER: Lord, I come to you with my troubles and questions. (Keep silent while each person fills in his own blanks.) Please speak to me as you spoke to Nicodemus. I believe in you and I want to live by your truth.
Then Jesus tells Nicodemus who he is in verses 13-18. Look at what he tells us. (1) Jesus, the Son of Man, has descended from heaven. (2) The Son of Man must be lifted up like the serpent Moses put up in the desert (Jesus' death on the cross). (3) God gave his only Son so that those who believe/put their faith in him will have eternal life and not perish. Word received: Believing is a choice that you make. Choose to believe in Me. I AM the Good Shepherd.
Some think they have to understand first. All you have to know is that Jesus is the One sent from God, God Himself in a human life, who offers eternal life, now and always -- and choose him. Understand that and more comes later. St. Augustine said, "I believe in order to understand". Read John 3:16 again. Word received: Love is a choice. I made a choice to love you and sent My son to die for you. Jesus asks us to make the choice for him, both once for all and daily.
This is not a neutral situation. Verse 18 says we are already condemned, lost, living in sin and darkness. The way out of this is to believe/trust/choose Jesus because God sent him so that "through him the world might be saved." (vs.17) PRAYER: There is no darkness dark enough to hide me from your light, Jesus. Please help me to walk by your light. (from Psalm 139:11-12)
Word received: Believe My word to you, "Whoever believes on him will not be put to shame" (Romans 10:11) I will guard you and guide you if you will let Me. I AM the Good Shepherd.
Jesus tells Nicodemus that the new life, new birth in God means we receive this by the Holy Spirit whom we receive when we choose to believe Jesus and put our trust in him. Then the Holy Spirit gives new life to our spirit. Then we can see God's kingdom (vs. 3) and enter it (vs. 5). The natural world doesn't understand this work of the Spirit of God any more than ordinary people know about where the wind comes from and goes.
Now look at Acts 2: 38-39. When the crowd that gathered on the day of Pentecost realized who Jesus was and that they had agreed to his death, they cried out, "What shall we do?" Peter said, (1) Repent turn away form you old ways **. (2) Be baptized (with water) and receive the Holy Spirit. Be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins" (3) and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. To be baptized was to make a public confession of faith in Jesus, asking for him to forgive your sins. Being baptized is both something we do and something God does. (The Holy Spirit's coming is associated with being baptized but sometimes in the book of Acts, God did that in a variety of ways.) The Holy Spirit in us is necessary to leading a new life in Jesus. (Sometimes the power of the Holy Spirit came later.) As we live with Jesus and His Spirit we learn to think more and more like him and "put on the mind of Christ".
Acts tell us that there is "no other name" (Acts 4:12)by which people may be saved. Jesus said, "I am the door" "whoever enters through me will be saved" (John 10:9) "he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in another way, that man is a thief and a robber.(John 10:1).
Word received: Trust in My words, believe in what I say. Use actions in addition to words when you show My love to others. I will always be there for you. PRAYER: Thank you for your mercy and forgiveness when I stray from your flock. Thank you for your loving earthly shepherds who welcome us back.
Finally, there must be fruit that others can see. "But he who does what is true comes to the light, that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been wrought in God."(John 3:21) The goal is to point to Jesus in what we do and say. When we know Jesus personally this should happen in our lives.
**We repent by confessing our sins and he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9 and 6-7) Then we have to walk in the Light as He is in the light and the blood of Jesus cleanses us from sin. If we walk in the darkness we lie.
Teaching Ideas for Lesson 03
Please read the Study Guide first. Go over Memory Verse to make sure the children understand it and then if they have memorized it.
Remind them their parents need to sign a report slip monthly if they have read the lessons, so they will get credit at the end of the year.
Make sure they know what happened in the story. Get them to tell you.
Basic points of the lesson for little ones:
1.Jesus likes it when we ask questions like Nicodemus did. Jesus will always tell us the truth. He also wants us to come to him any time.
2. Jesus told Nicodemus how he could make Jesus his Savior and Lord.
3. Jesus also wants to be our own Savior and Lord. You can do it right now by asking forgiveness for the things you have done wrong and then ask Jesus to come into your heart and live.
4. Jesus wants us to choose Him as our Shepherd. He can do for us what we can't do for ourselves.
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