Children’s Sermon

Matthew 28:16-20

Teaching God’s Love

By Dr. Dan Wuori

It’s almost summer and the school year is coming to an end – so I thought today might be a nice time to stop and think about a very important group of people: teachers.

You probably see your teachers as much as you see your moms and dads some days. But have you ever really thought about their jobs? What does it mean to be a teacher? What do teachers do? (Solicit children’s responses.)

That’s right – being a teacher is a very important (and busy) job! Teachers do lots of things, but their most important job is to help you learn. They teach you to be readers and writers, mathematicians and scientists…the list goes on and on!

But there’s something important that I want you to pay attention to as you watch them this week. Great teachers don’t just tell us things – they show us how to do the things we’re trying to learn. When teachers give us examples to follow, learning becomes much easier.

In this week’s Gospel lesson Jesus asks his disciples to teach others about God – and to help bring new followers to Him through their teachings.

Wow – that’s an important job! Did you realize that you are teachers too?

If we want to teach others about what it means to follow Jesus’ teachings, what kind of examples will we need to set? (Solicit children’s responses and link back to the importance of setting an example. For instance: If we want to teach about kindness – or taking care of the less fortunate – how could we model this in our own lives?)

It sounds like you’re ready to be teachers for God!

Will you pray with me?

Dear God,

We are ready to be your teachers in the world. Help us to be examples of your love so that others may come to know you better.

Amen.

Copyright 2008, Dan Wuori. Used by permission.