Following Jesus Matthew 4:18-22 lesson idea

Following Jesus                             (For children ages 2-4)

    With Small children it’s good to refresh basic truths in each lesson. After reviewing our rules and praying for our requests. I prepare the children for the lesson.

   In this lesson the Children will be learning to follow Jesus. To follow Jesus is to obey him and letting him lead you. Even though Jesus isn’t here physically. He still leads us through the holy spirit in prayer, his word the Bible church (Pastors and Sunday School teachers)

    In refreshing basic truths I remind our preschoolers the importance of Jesus with questions who is Jesus? (God) why did he come? He paid so we could go where? (To heaven) what do we need to do? (Follow Jesus, and have him in our hearts)

   Matthew 4:18-22New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

Jesus Chooses His First Disciples

¹⁸ One day Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee. There he saw two brothers, Simon Peter and his brother Andrew. They were throwing a net into the lake, because they were fishermen. ¹⁹ “Come and follow me,” Jesus said. “I will send you out to fish for people.” ²⁰ At once they left their nets and followed him.

²¹ Going on from there, he saw two other brothers. They were James, son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee. As they were preparing their nets, Jesus called out to them. ²² Right away they left the boat and their father and followed Jesus.

For the scripture we’re studying I used a children’s bible with picture of Jesus calling the disciples.  In our story the Disciples are fishing but Jesus called them. The disciples left their boats and nets and followed Jesus.

Here I played the game Jesus Says it’s played like Simon says

   When Jesus says to do something we should do it.

I then had the children follow me around the room and they need to follow my example.so if I walked with my arms out like an air plane they followed etc. to follow Jesus is to obey and do as He says.   

Jesus wants us to follow him (obey) so he can lead us in the way we should go.

To follow Jesus we have to have Jesus in our hearts (accepting him) so he can lead us.

Did Jesus Look for us? (yes) did he find you (yes) Here I played a game with the kids

find the sheep. I found and assortment of cardboard cutout from my local Dollar tree store and in the package where five sheep. I had the kids bow their heads as I placed the sheep throughout the room. One by one I called the children to find one of the lost sheep.  

      Its good to end the class by leading the children in accepting Jesus in their hearts with a prayer where the kids repeat after you accepting Jesus in and asking him to lead them.

For this lesson craft I had the kids build a flag so they can lift it up as a banner so he could lead them