Put on God’s armour: be alert, stand firm, pray, and speak
Sun 12 November 2017
| Bible Bite | Put on God's armour: be alert, stand firm, pray, and speak. |
|---|---|
| Date | 2017-11-12 |
| Passage | Ephesians 6:10-11 |
| Other Refs | Ephesians 6:10-20 for context |
| PTC EPH Study 9, p 93 | |
| Passage Text | Finally, let the mighty strength of the Lord make you strong. Put on all the armour that God gives, so you can defend yourself against the devil's tricks. |
| Tags | Ephesians, Prayer, |
| Key Points | Be Strong in the Lord |
| This strength comes from God, not from us | |
| 'Stand firm' -- noted four times | |
| Truth: of Go | |
| Righteousness | |
| Gospel of Peace | |
| Faith | |
| Salvation | |
| Gospel doesn't grow through violence, soldiers, but by speaking the gospel. | |
| Who/What do we fight against? Against the devil, the world's thinking, and our own sinful nature. | |
| Context: We are living on earth already members of the new age, that puts us in a battle, conflict. | |
| Props/Materials | Bag/backpack with soldier equipment: binoculars, walkie-talkie, shield. |
| Preparation | |
| Debrief |
[ Introduction: leader picks child to knock on bin, everyone calls 'come out Stinky!', Stinky comes out singing his intro tune ]
STINKY: Hello little monkeys! Oh Mr Dave, I've got some stuff to show you -- look! [hands over back pack]
LEADER: Oh, what's all this soldier stuff?
STINKY: I saw a soldier movie. I want to be a soldier now! Yeah! Arrgh!
LEADER: OK! Well, I'm glad you got all the gear.
STINKY: Yeah! Arrgh! Ah... Hey Mr Dave, how do you use all this stuff?
[ Leader pulls each out, and puts it aside (table, floor). ]
LEADER: This is a binocular. It helps you stay alert, and see when the enemy is coming.
STINKY: Aha! Stay alert... Got it.
LEADER: This is a walkie-talkie. It helps you call your commander and ask for help and hear your orders.
STINKY: Ask for help, hear your orders. Got it.
LEADER: This is a shield, that helps you stand and keep going when the enemy attacks.
STINKY: Stand and keep going. Got it.
LEADER: This gear is very important to a soldier. He makes sure he uses all of it, and uses it well.
STINKY: Oh. Hey Mr Dave, I have a question. What gear does God give us to help us be Christians?
LEADER: Ah, good question. Let's see what the Bible says:
[ Slide (verse): Finally, let the mighty strength of the Lord make you strong. Put on all the armour that God gives, so you can defend yourself against the devil's tricks. (Ephesians 6:10-11) ]
LEADER: See, following Jesus is a spiritual fight, so God gives us spiritual gear.
STINKY: But why are we in a fight? It's starting to sound scary...
LEADER: Because when we say yes to God, we say no to Satan. God wants us to put off our old self and our old way of living. But Satan wants us to keep lying, stealing, being nasty, and all that ugly stuff.
STINKY: Who are we fighting then?
LEADER: You see it there? We fight the devil, and all his tricks and lies. We don't hurt people, we tell them the truth of God's good news.
STINKY: But how do we fight then?
[ Hold up each object, then put it back in Stinky's back pack ]
LEADER: [Hold up binocular] Paul tells us to be alert, and look out for the devil's lies.
STINKY: Alert, got it.
LEADER: [Hold up shield] To stand firm and not give up, when the devil is telling us lies.
STINKY: Stand firm, got it.
LEADER: [Hold up walkie-talkie] And to pray to God, ask for help, and listen to his commands.
STINKY: Pray, got it.
LEADER: [Hold up Bible] Lastly, we speak God's Word to defeat our enemy.
STINKY: Speak God's Word, got it.
LEADER: Stay alert, stand firm, pray, and speak God's truth -- well done! Let's see our Bible Bite:
[ Slide: Bible Bite: Put on God's armour: be alert, stand firm, pray, and speak. ]
LEADER: OK, let's read it together.
[ Read aloud with kids. ]
LEADER: Stinky, can you say it?
STINKY: Ah... Stand firm on your armour, and alert a soldier.
LEADER: Stinky! Let's help Stinky everyone, let's say it again. [Repeat]
STINKY: Thank you Mr Dave!
LEADER: No problem. Here's your back pack Stinky, with all your gear.
STINKY: Thank you! Oh, I better go now. Bye bye little monkeys!