30 November 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Carrie

Asst 1 : Junita

Asst 2 : Laila

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Iwan & Shevica

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Yungcien

JESUS KING

1. LESSON: Jesus King (Matthew 1:1-17)

• It’s December already!
• We’re entering the Christmas season. Why do we celebrate Christmas? <invite response>
• Christmas comes once a year, and we usually start preparing for it around this time.
• But do you know God prepared for Christmas a long, long time ago? He planned and prepared for the coming of His son, Jesus, into this world even from the very beginning.
• It was not an afterthought, a last-minute decision or a Plan B.
• God always knew that He would have to send His one and only begotten Son to come to give His life to save the world He loves.
• The 1st chapter of Matthew traces Jesus’ lineage from Abraham, to whom God promised to make the Father of many nations and from whom will come a Seed who will bless the whole world. (Gen 12:3)

REVIEW: JESUS’ LINEAGE

• So this Christmas, we can celebrate this King who came to give His life for us so that we can be Princes and Princesses of God!

2. Suggested Activities

• King-related activity/craft

23 November 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Ci Dewi

Asst 1 : Adeline

Asst 2 : Tasya

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Susi Tjio (asst. Fenny)

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Tjipto S.

NEW Covenant Family

1. Hook

• Younger kids: Stack ‘em UpGet kids to stack blocks as high as they can.
• Younger kids: Farmyard NoisesPrepare cards with pictures of 3 different farm animals. Tell the kids they have to make the animal sounds and find others in the same “family”.
• Older kids: Human knotEveryone stands in a circle. Put their arms across and grabs the hands of someone else (each hand must be a different person). Then try to untangle themselves.

2. LESSON: New Covenant Family

• What is church? <invite responses>
• Church is not just a group of people coming together every week. It is not an exclusive organisation or country club.
• The church is the body of people who believe in Jesus — they become a big family.

• What did the early church (Jesus’ disciples) do?
  • Acts 2:42-47 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
  • They gathered together to fellowship and listen to the teaching about Jesus; they had Holy Communion and prayed.
  • They shared what they had with those who needed.
  • They praised God.
  • God performed many miracles and brought many to the church who accepted Jesus.
  
  
• Why do we need to be part of this family?
• We are all part of a body
  • Church is a living, growing body with Jesus as the head.
  • All of us are part of this body, and we all have parts to play. (1 Cor 12:12-26)
  • 15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
  • Use 1 of these ideas/activities to expand this point
  
  
  • We all need one another
  • In Kyoto, Japan, there is a magnificent bamboo grove, with bamboo trees growing tall, up to 30m, in one season!
  • A bamboo is tall and thin. How does it grow so tall without toppling over?
  • First, all the bamboo trees are connected by a underground network — all its roots are connected to one another, so they hold each other steady underground.
  • Secondly, once it’s reached its full height, they start branching out and their leaves also grow widespread, holding on to each other on the top.
  • So on our own, we cannot stand. We need to support and encourage each other so we can grow strong and tall together.
  
  
  • Jesus holds us all together
  • We’ve learned that Jesus is the head of the body. Without the head, the body cannot function. Have you seen anyone walking around without a head
  • In a building, all the bricks need to “interlock” with each other to be secure(illustrate with Megabloks or Lego pieces). The Bible also tells us that Jesus is the Chief Cornerstone — the main/first stone that is laid so that all the other bricks can be aligned to it. It’s the most important brick in the whole building, because without it, the walls will not be straight.
  
• Conclusion: Jesus came to die on the cross so that we can have a relationship with God the Father. All of us who belong to Jesus can call God Daddy. And on earth, we have a whole family of brothers and sisters who can support and encourage us to grow more and more in Jesus’ love.

16 November 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Junita

Asst 1 : Awan

Asst 2 : Felicia

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Iwan & Shevica

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches :  Savitri (Asst. Miguel)

NEW Covenant Worship

1. LESSON: New Covenant Worship

• What is worship? <invite responses>
• Non-Christians also worship their gods and idols.
• Under the Old Covenant, the Jews also worshipped God.
• But the reasons for worshipping may be out of fear.
• There were also a lot of rules, regulations and procedures. E.g. Do you remember Solomon’s Temple? There were elaborate rituals and sacrifices that had to be made from the outer courts, and only the High Priest could enter the Holy of Holies, where God’s presence was manifest.
• When Jesus came, He wanted to show us a new way to worship God.
• One day, Jesus was resting at a well in Samaria (John 4). A woman came to draw water from the well, and they started talking.The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.”
  21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.
  22 You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.
  23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.
  24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
  25 The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.”
  26 Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”
• The Samaritan woman said that the Jews worship at the temple in Jerusalem, whereas the Samaritans worship on a mountain. But Jesus told her that the time was coming where it didn’t matter where you worshipped God because you could worship Him in spirit and in truth.
• Truth: Jesus is the truth.Spirit: When we have Jesus, His Holy Spirit lives in us.So when we have Jesus, we can worship Him in spirit and in truth. You don’t have to be big or tall before you can worship Jesus. If Jesus lives in you, you can worship Him! He loves it when you do.

• Why do we worship Jesus?
  • The word “worship” = worth-ship; acknowledgment of worth
  • We worship Jesus because He is worthy of worship — His finished work on the Cross. It’s an outflow of thanksgiving from our hearts!
  • Jesus is God
    • Jesus died for us on the cross, taking our sins and punishment
    • Jesus gave us eternal life and His righteousness
    • In Jesus, we have everything! All of God’s blessings.
• How do we worship Jesus?
  • Worship songs: with our voices (sing), talents (music), hands (clapping/raising hands); when we sing, we declare what Jesus has done and tell everyone why He is worthy of worship
  • But more than just singing, we worship Jesus with our Lives:
  • When we allow the Holy Spirit to work in us and transform us from the inside out, our lives reflect Jesus — giving Him all the praise and glory. We worship Jesus when we go to school, when we come home, when we meet with friends etc.
• So the difference between Old Covenant worship and New Covenant worship is:
  • Old Covenant: have to enter from outside and move into the Holy of Holies
  • New Covenant: God’s Spirit dwells in us already. And it flows out from us as we respond to what Jesus has done for us in worship. 

2. Suggested Activities

• Worship: choose 1-2 (age-appropriate) songs. Go through the lyrics with the children to show them how it reflects Jesus’ glory and gives Him worth. And lead them to sing it together. Encourage them to lift their hands/clap/pray in thanksgiving to Jesus.
• Song: I Worship You
• Ask the children to complete the following poem (sung to the rune of “Row Your Boat”), ending with a rhyming word.
  • Jesus, you are good,
    I will worship you.
    ________________,
    ________________.
• Close in prayer

9 November 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Susan

Asst 1 : Felianti

Asst 2 : Jemima

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Lily Bun (Asst. Santi)

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Lusiana (Asst. Theresia)

NEW Covenant Prayer

1. HOOK: Sullen Joe

• Choose one kid to be Sullen Joe — must be poker-faced
• Another kid has 30sec to do anything to try to get a response from Sullen Joe (sing, dance, funny faces etc)
  • Without touching
  • From a short distance away
• If unsuccessful, another kid gets to try.

2. LESSON: New Covenant Prayer

• When praying, many people think God is like Sullen Joe. We have to do all sorts of tricks to get His attention. We say, “Please” and beg and cry to get what we want.
• Under the New Covenant, prayer is not begging God. It’s not even like writing a wish list to Santa Claus. It’s a conversation with our Father in Heaven.
• Jesus told this story once:
• Luke 11 5 Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ 7 And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.
• A common misinterpretation of this story is that we have to be persistent to beg Goduntil He answers.
• This comes from a wrong image/picture of God:
  • God is reluctant to answer
  • God is probably asleep and doesn’t want to get up

• However the truth is:
• God is not a reluctant friend but a Loving Father
  • He is ever ready to hear us and bless us.
  • He is not grumpy; don’t have to be pestered
  • We can go boldly and freely to Him anytime(e.g. son of the President of the USA doesn’t need appointment to see his dad)
  • Knowing God as Father changes the way we pray.

• God has given us all things through Jesus’ Finished Work on the Cross
  • Romans 8:32 He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?
  • We don’t pray to ask God to do something. We look back to the Cross and claim what Jesus has done for us already! We speak it into our lives and see it come to being.
  • Our prayers move from “Please God” to “Thank you God”. We thank God for what He has done for us.

• New Covenant Prayer:
  • Knowing who our Father is
  • Declaring what Christ has done and expressing our thankfulness

3. Suggested Activities

• Break into groups to share and get kids to pray for their/each other’s various needs.
• Close in prayer

2 November 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Carrie

Asst 1 : Kasey

Asst 2 : Laila

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Susi Tjio (Asst. Fenny)

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Swanky

New Covenant Giving

1. LESSON

• Most churches, Christian workers and pastors live off people’s giving. When we give, our money goes to help others and help the Good News about Jesus to go out to more people.
• In tNCC, the money given by all of you goes towards paying for the rental of this Wisma TA, the electricity and water bills, lunch etc. It also goes towards supporting missionaries and workers all over the world — Cambodia, North Africa, Indonesia, East Malaysia etc.
• It’s important to understand why we give and how we should give.
• Under the Old Covenant, people gave by law. God gave this law, the tithe, to provide for the Levites, one of the 12 tribes of Israel that serve God and did not have land of their own.

• Tithe: a 10th of agricultural produce or the 10th animal in a herd (Lev 27:30-34) 

New Covenant

• Under the New Covenant, we are not under the Law, so we no longer have to give by law (because we HAVE to).
• However many Christians still give out of 2 wrong reasons:
  • Insurance: God will punish me if I do not give
  • Investment: God will bless me if I give
• What is the right attitude in giving?
  • Know our Source of Blessing
    • In Jesus, we have everything that we need. On the cross, He took our poverty and gave us His ample supply!
    • He has more than enough for us, so we don’t have to be afraid of not having enough.
    • 2 Cor 8:9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.
  • Because we are already blessed, we can bless others
    • We don’t give so we can receive.
    • We give because we have already received from Jesus.
    • Matt 10:8 Freely you have received; freely give.
  • Give from the Heart
    • 2 Cor 9:7 So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.
    • Give generously. Give happily. Give joyfully.
    • True giving comes from a happy heart, and it gives us a happy heart.
    • The more we give, the happier we become.
    • That’s why in tNCC, we don’t pass around offering bags every service to ask you to give money. We just provide boxes around the halls so that you are free to give whenever and however much you wish.
• How can I give?
  • I can give my time, money, gifts
  • When we serve in ministry, we are giving our time.
  • When we give part of our allowance, ang pow money, birthday money, we are giving our money.
  • We can also give things, e.g. toys, clothes, food, to those who don’t have as much as we do.
  • Christmas is coming up. Instead of just looking for what toys or presents we want to receive, let’s think about what we can give and how we can bless those who are less fortunate than us!

2. Suggested Activities

• Song: God Loves A Cheerful Giver
• Discuss ways the class can come up with a giving project
• Close in prayer

26 Oktober 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Carrie

Asst 1 : Adeline

Asst 2 : Awan

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Sianty & Dewi

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches : Yungcien

 

Baptism — New Life in Christ                                        Source by : TNCC, Malaysia

1. LESSON: Baptism — New Life in Christ

• In Acts 2, the Holy Spirit came down on the disciples and Peter preached the gospel. 3000 people wanted to receive Jesus that day!
• They wanted to know what to do next. Peter told them, “Repent, and be baptised, every one of you.” (Acts 2:38)
• Repent: to “change your mind” and believe that Jesus is the only way.
• Baptise: an outward act to tell everyone that we believe Jesus is the only hope for salvation.

• Significance of Baptism:
• Water Baptism is a declaration of our faith in the finished work of Jesus; it is NOT a ritual to ensure salvation.
• When we are baptised, we identify with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
• We die with Christ — our old self died with Him.
• We rise again — we have new life (Jesus’ life) in us now.
• Romans 6:3-5Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus werebaptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.
• Colossians 2:12 And you were buried with him in baptism, in which you werealso raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.
• Baptism is an act of faith. Faith is the “active ingredient” at baptism, and without faith, baptism means nothing. This is what distinguishes baptism from bathing.
• When we have faith in Christ and His finished work on the cross, then we can identify with Christ’s own death, burial and resurrection.
• We need to understand and believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that He died for our sins and that He was raised from the dead.
• In being baptized into Christ we “clothe” ourselves with Him or “put on Christ”. When God looks at us he does not see our sins, but Christ’s righteousness instead.
• In Genesis 3:21, after Adam and Eve sinned (and died spiritually), God provided them with animal skins to clothe them and give them a covering. This required the shedding of the blood of animals. In the Old Testament a sacrifice for sin always required the shedding of blood.
• Under the New Covenant the shedding of blood was still required, but this time it was to be by the sinless Lamb of God that Jesus Himself shed on the cross. And just as God clothed Adam and Eve, so too, He now clothes us — but now it is with Christ Jesus. Amen!

2. Suggested Activities

• Ask kids who have been baptised to share their testimony.
• Close in prayer

19 Oktober 2014

Kelas Balita

Coach Dewi

Asst 1 : Jemimah

Asst 2 : Kasey

Kelas 1 - 3

Coaches : Iwan & Shevica

Kelas 4 - 6

Coaches :  Savitri (Asst. Miguel)

                The Significance of the Sabbath
                                                                                              Source by : TNCC, Malaysia

1. HOOK: Stop Rest Game

• Play some fast music. Get the children follow you in a vigorous aerobic exercise routine. (You may want to check whether there are any children who are unwell and excuse them from this exercise). Tell them, “I want you all to follow me in doing this exercise. Don’t stop until the music stops”. Then you must sit down on the floor, where you are, close you eyes, rest and not do anything until I tell you what to do”. After you can see that most of them are getting exhausted, signal to your helper to stop the music.
• After settling down, ask the children “How many of you are tired? (Preferably, most of them!) Were you glad that we could stop and rest?”
• Song suggestion 1
  Song suggestion 2

2. LESSON: The Significance of the Sabbath

• We just played a game about “rest”. Today we are going to learn about the “Sabbath”, a day of rest.
• Under the Old Covenant or Mosaic Law, the Israelites were required to rest and not work on Sabbath day.
• Exodus 20:8-10 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work…”
• The Sabbath was a sign given to the Israelites to acknowledge God as both their
  • Creator – God created the world in 6 days and rested on the 7th day. God rested, not because he was tired, but he rested because he had completed his work and he wanted to enjoy his creation.
  • Redeemer – God had rescued the Israelites from being slaves to Pharoah in Egypt. (Deut 5:5).
• There was severe punishment for the Israelites if they did not rest and refrain from work on Sabbath day, i.e. death (Exodus 31:4). The Israelites’ disregard for God and not keeping the Sabbath had in the end, resulted in their enemies, the Babylonians capturing them and taking them as prisoners to Babylon.
• The religious teachers (Pharisees etc) of Israel made many ‘difficult to understand’ rules and regulations concerning the Sabbath. Some of them were strange and did not make sense. Eg women were not allowed to look into a mirror because they may see a white hair and end up pulling it out. Even pulling out a white hair was considered work! Spitting on the ground would disturb the soil and so was likened to ploughing and therefore, also considered work!
• When Jesus came as a man, there were a number of times when Jesus healed sick people on Sabbath day. The hard-hearted religious people were shocked as they considered healing as “work”. But Jesus showed us how God saw the Sabbath and how he saw people. Jesus healed the sick so that they need not feel pain/discomfort and worry about their condition, but be at rest as well as enjoy peace. He would work so that people could rest.
• The Sabbath, which was introduced to the Israelites through the law more than 1000 years before Jesus was born, was a shadow of Jesus. Just as a shadow showed the real person is nearby, the Sabbath showed Jesus would eventually be man’s rest.
• Under the Old Covenant, the Israelites were required to rest on Sabbath day.
• Under the New Covenant, Jesus is our Sabbath “rest”. “Rest” does not mean “not working” but means :
• Rest from our own efforts or worksJesus said in Matthew 11:28, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest”. Who can give us rest? Jesus. Jesus has completed the work for our salvation. We need not try to gain acceptance from God by our own efforts or works. Because of Jesus, we are already accepted and we have God’s favour. We are his precious sons and daughters, and He is our loving heavenly Father.
• Rest from worries and trust God to take care of usEven in the midst of a violent storm, Jesus was sleeping in a boat, while his disciples were panicking and freaking out. They woke him up saying, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” He got up, told the wind and the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” and it was completely calm (Mark 4:35-41). Today, we can also rest from our worries and fears, knowing that this same Jesus is always with us, will never leave us nor forsake us. We trust, because we know that He will take care of us no matter what circumstances we are in.
• Since Jesus, our Sabbath rest is with us 24/7 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week), we can rest from our own efforts and worries all the time!

Today we have learnt that under the New Covenant, Jesus is our Sabbath rest so:

• We can rest from our own efforts or works. Jesus has completed the work for our salvation.
• We can rest from worries and trust in God to take care of us in whatever circumstances.

3. SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES

• Ask if any of the children want to accept Jesus as their personal saviour and experience His rest. Pray together with them.
• Song: With Christ in the Vessel