Aim

To explore children's ambitions.
To familiarize children with story of Jesus' dedication

Lesson

Revise what was taught last week about the different stages of life and Christian beliefs about God.

Christians believe that God could have come to earth as a grown-up, but instead He chose to be born as a baby and grow up normally.

Do the children know any of the circumstances of Jesus' birth? If not, remind them.

Forty days after his birth, when He was still a baby, His parents took Him to the temple to be dedicated to God. Do any of the children know what this means? Mary and Joseph were making a promise that they would try to bring up Jesus to love and serve God.

What do the children want to be / do when they grow up? Following discussion, ask them to draw a picture of themselves as they would like to be in the future. What will they look like? What will they be doing? Who will be with them?

What about Jesus' future? Share with the children Simeon's prophecy about the future of Jesus.

Then Simeon said to Mary, " Many in Israel will fall and many will rise because of this child. He will be a sign from God that many people will not accept. The things they think in secret will be made known. And the things that will happen will make your heart sad, too."

How must Mary have felt? From what they know already about the life of Jesus, was Simeon right?

Conclusion

Conclude by informing children that many Christians bring their children to Church to dedicate them to God.

Notes

Many Christian denominations do not baptise infants, but instead follow the Biblical example whereby children are dedicated to God. This act of dedication can take the form of a simple ceremony. Should you wish to know more about the act of dedication, I am sure that the pastor of your local Baptist church would be willing to help you.

Exploring the theme of 'dedication', also gives children the opportunity to project their hopes about themselves into the future.