Luke 19:1-10

Gratefulness (The Story of Zacchaeus)

HOOK:

ASK THE CHILDREN:
“Who has ever tried climbing a tree?”  Why do we climb trees?

-Tell them a story from your past of the fun you had climbing trees.

(Example:  When I was young, I climbed a tree in the woods that we called the crooked tree.  It looked like a number 4.  {Show them a number four}.  We used to sit on a very thick branch that looked like the L part of the four.  {Show them}  I loved just sitting up there singing and looking down.  I loved just spending time in that tree.)

-In the Bible, there is a man who climbed a tree for a different reason.  Let’s find out why.”

 BOOK:
Luke 19:1-10

LOOK:

Use a children’s Bible or flannel board to tell the story.

Jesus was walking through an area called Jericho.  Jesus is very special so a lot of people were gathered around Him.  Zaccheus, who was a very short man, couldn’t see Jesus because there were so many people gathered around Him.  So Zaccheus decided to climb a tree.  (I imagine the tree to look like the crooked tree I used to climb, with a strong branch for Zaccheus to sit on.)  When Jesus came up the the tree, He looked up and said, “Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.”

Zaccheus was so happy, that he rushed down the tree.  Some of the people who were there were complaining that Jesus was going to the house of a tax collector…a sinner.  Tax collectors collected money from people and sometimes they would steal some of the money and keep it for themselves.

Zaccheus’ heart was changed when he met Jesus.  He believed that Jesus was God’s son.  When he came down from the tree, he told Jesus he was going to give half of everything he had to the poor.

CRAFT: (Instructions and templates coming soon!!!)

MEMORY VERSE:

“For the son of man came to seek and save those who are lost.” Luke 19:10