Teaching 1 Thess 4v1 to 12

3-5s

Theme: Make God happy by what you do

Intro:

Sometimes we make our mummies and daddies sad or cross [hold up sad face]. How do we do that? Maybe we do things they have asked us not to do. [take suggestions]

Often we make our mummies and daddies really happy [hold up happy face]. When do we make our mummies and daddies really happy? [take suggestions] When we do what they’ve asked us to do. When we bring them presents or say nice things to them.

Did you know that because of Jesus, God is your perfect Daddy in heaven? So we want to make Him happy, we want to please God more than anything else. We are going to see this morning how to please God.

Teaching:

Recap – do you remember, Paul was writing this letter [hold up letter] to the friends of Jesus in a town called Thessalonica? They hadn’t been friends with Jesus for long but they were doing really well at loving God and loving each other. [hold up Terry the Thessalonian]. Maybe you remember Terry – he had big ears to listen to God’s words, he had big hands to do what God wanted and everyone could see how much he loved and trusted God.

Terry wanted to make God happy and was trying, but Terry had not always loved and trusted Jesus. Not long ago he had never even heard of Jesus and had lived a completely different way, and the things Terry did would have made God really sad. But now he loved and trusted Jesus and that made God really happy! Read 4v1. So Paul writes in his letter, telling him to please God more and more, enjoy making God happy.

1. Terry used to get really cross when someone upset him [give Terry an angry face] and he used to do things he didn’t mean. Have you ever had that? Have you had a time when you’ve ended up hitting someone when you didn’t mean to, because you were so cross? Or breaking something by mistake because you were mad. [act out] Paul says, that it pleases God to be in control, to not completely lose it! And God’s Spirit helps us to do that.
2.  Terry didn’t use to care for other people either. If they needed his help he’d just say, ‘Nothing to do with me!’ [have some pictures of people who need help and act out] But because of Jesus, Terry and the Thessalonians now care for each other. Read v9-10. This pleases God, makes God happy.
3. Terry also used to be lazy, he wouldn’t bother tidying his toys away or brushing his teeth. [act out or use pictures] But Paul says that to make God happy he is to work hard. Read v11-12. Then other people will see how much you love God.

We are to please God, to make God happy, more and more. When we trust Him and love Him wherever we are and whatever we’re doing then God smiles on us, we are pleasing Him.

Pray

Stick Smiley Face onto old letters

Craft:

• ·         Have pictures of pleasing God and not pleasing God from 1-3 above – they need to stick in the right place

·          

Songs:

• ·         He overflows with love and He overflows with Love (from J is for Jesus)

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5-11s

Theme: Try to please God more and more by what you do

Intro:

What makes you happy? – sliding scale in the room from 1-10 [include some of the examples from below, eg school work!]

What makes God happy?

Teaching:

[set out the room like a running race – two lines of masking tape for a track]

Recap – Paul speaking to baby followers of Jesus, had only been with them 3 weeks, but they’re doing really well, so he wants them to keep going.

It’s like being in a race – how do we keep going? By faith, trusting in Jesus and his death for us. How do we keep others going? Loving each other.

And by running this race, trusting Jesus, we’re making God really happy. [have runner on the track] But we want to please God more and more. So how do we do that?

Well a runner stays within the lines of their track, and if they keep running they’ll finish the race. So what does it mean for the Thessalonians and for us to stay within the track? Read 4v2-6. [Place certain words inside and outside the track and explain what they mean, giving examples: holy, self-control, treating others badly, live in sin, wrong and cheat your brother]. When we run in the lines it makes God happy and we want to please God more and more.

But Paul gives a warning – read v7-8. If we ignore this, then we’re ignoring God and that’s a BIG mistake!

What else does it mean to run in the lines, run in a way that pleases God? Read v9-10. Again Paul wants us to love each other more and more. The Thessalonians were doing this really well, but still Paul said, keep doing it more and more.

There’s one more thing: read v11-12. Some of the Thessalonians were being lazy. Maybe they thought, ‘Jesus is coming back soon so there’s no point working hard at school learning to read and write or earning money!’ But Paul said that’s here [place outside the lines ‘laziness’] It pleases God to work hard. When we work hard it helps others to see how great God is.

Table time [younger ones have a track on the table and they have to get their runner to the end by answering questions]

Knowledge

• ·         What did Paul want them to do? (v2)
• ·         How were they to please God?

Understanding

• ·         How might they displease God?
• ·         Why is it a good thing to want to please God?
• ·         What effect will have on others if you live to make God happy? (v12)

Application

• ·         How can you please God more and more?
• ·         Do you want to please God more and more?

Add picture to letter – smiley face [pleasing God]

Pray for ‘people who are not believers’ (v12)