Children’s Sermon

John 17:6-19

Complete Joy

Note: Popsicle is a brand name in the U.S. The patent has been sold; the frozen treat on a stick may be known by a different name in other countries.

Have you ever enjoyed a Popsicle treat? That’s a fun thing to do, especially on a warm summer day.

Would it surprise you to know that an eleven year old boy invented the Popsicle? The boy was stirring a fruit-flavored power into a cup of water with a stick. He left the mixture out on the porch overnight and the next morning he found that what he had blended together was frozen to the stick. He tasted it and found that he liked it. He made more and shared them with his friends. When he was an adult he remembered that special treat and began making Popsicles and selling them. Millions and millions of Popsicles have been sold since that time.

Having a frozen treat on a hot summer day is enjoyable, but it is joy that doesn’t last. When we eat the last bite of a Popsicle we have only the stick left; just as if we leave a Popsicle out of the freezer it melts and is gone.

In our lesson for today Jesus talks about joy that lasts. He says, “But now I come to you, and I say these things in the world, that they may have my joy made full in themselves” (17:13).

Jesus offers us his Spirit of Love which stays with us always. His love causes us to feel joy that is complete––gives us what we need to feel satisfied.

Scripture quotations from the World English Bible