Lesson 3: Paul’s connections.
Passage: Acts 17 - Paul travels to various cities and towns to spread the message of Jesus. In this chapter, he visits Thessalonica, Berea, and Athens. His custom when traveling to a new place is to visit the local Synagogue and point people towards Jesus through the Scriptures. Many believed in his message while others saw him and his traveling companions as trouble makers. In Athens, Paul spoke to people in the Synagogue as well as in the local marketplace. A group of philosophers debated with him there and asked him to give an explanation of his teachings. He explained it to them by pointing to one of their altars with the inscription: “To an unknown God", stating that this is the God he had come to tell them about.
Big Idea: Sharing Jesus with kindness and respect.
For Teachers:
Lesson plan.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Have the children sit in a circle on the circle time rug. Welcome them to class.
Warm Up Activity: Going on a Bear Hunt — Activity Leader
Lyric print out will be available in class. Kids will sing the song and act out the words together.
Preliminary Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Today is our last Sunday learning about Paul.
Can anyone remember who Paul is? What are some things you remember about him?
Last Sunday we learned that Paul started lots of different churches and he would also write letters to those churches to teach them. In one of his letters he taught the people that Jesus was better than anything in the whole world, better anything that he could ever brag about. And that to him, everything else was garbage compared to knowing Jesus.
Today we’ll be learning about about some of his travels and what he was doing in the different places he went. Let’s watch our video to find out more…
Video Lesson — Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Can anyone remember the names of some of the places Paul traveled to? Have you ever traveled to different places?
What did Paul usually do when he traveled to a new place? (he would visit the place where people worship God and teach them about Jesus; he would also talk to people in the marketplaces)
When he was in a city called Athens, and the people asked him to explain his teachings to them, what did he say?
Do you think people would listen to Paul’s message if he was rude to them? What do you think is the best way to talk to people about Jesus?
Prayer — Bible Story Leader
"Dear God, thank you for the lesson we learned today about Paul’s travels and how he went from place to place talking to people about Jesus. Thank you that we can learn from Paul’s example and talk to people kindly so that they can see Jesus through us. In Jesus' name, Amen."
Activity: Draw the Story — Activity Leader
Kids will make a drawing or collage of what they learned about in the story. It could be a map with a ship on it to show where Paul traveled, or a picture of Paul in Athens talking to the people.
Print outs with characters/objects will be provided which the kids can cut out and glue to their picture.
If a child is not interested in the activity, allow them to move to free play.
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure each child leaves with their caregiver.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Have the children sit in a circle on the circle time rug. Welcome them to class.
Warm Up Activity: Freeze Dance — Activity Leader
When the music plays, kids will dance, and when the music stops, they freeze. Kids who get caught moving when the music stops will sit down until the end of the round.
Preliminary Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Today is our last Sunday learning about Paul.
Can anyone remember who Paul is? What are some things you remember about him?
Last Sunday we learned that Paul started lots of different churches and he would also write letters to those churches to teach them. In one of his letters he taught the people that Jesus was better than anything in the whole world, better anything that he could ever brag about. And that to him, everything else was garbage compared to knowing Jesus.
Today we’ll be learning about about some of his travels and what he was doing in the different places he went. Let’s watch our video to find out more…
Video Lesson — Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Can anyone remember the names of some of the places Paul traveled to? What are some different places you’ve been to?
What did Paul usually do when he traveled to a new place? (he would visit the place where people worship God and teach them about Jesus; he would also talk to people in the marketplaces)
When he was in a city called Athens, and the people asked him to explain his teachings to them, what did he say?
Do you think people would listen to Paul’s message if he was rude to them? What do you think is the best way to talk to people about Jesus?
Prayer — Bible Story Leader
"Dear God, thank you for the lesson we learned today about Paul’s travels and how he went from place to place talking to people about Jesus. Thank you that we can learn from Paul’s example and talk to people kindly so that they can see Jesus through us. In Jesus' name, Amen."
Activity: Draw the Story — Activity Leader
Kids will make a drawing or collage of what they learned about in the story. It could be a map with a ship on it to show where Paul traveled, or a picture of Paul in Athens talking to the people.
Print outs with characters/objects will be provided which the kids can cut out and glue to their picture.
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure each child leaves with their caregiver.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Have the children sit in a circle on the circle time rug. Welcome them to class.
Warm Up Activity: Mad Libs — Activity Leader
Printed templates will be available in the classroom. The Activity Leader will go around asking the kids for necessary words (appropriate words only). At the end, one of the kids or the Leader can read out the finished silly story.
Preliminary Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Today is the last week of our new series on the Apostle Paul, his life and teachings.
Last week we learned about how Paul started a bunch of different churches, and how he would stay in touch with those church through letters meant to teach and encourage them. In one of those letters to the church of Philippi, he talked about how his perspective changed. He once thought that certain things were important, but now he saw them as garbage.
Can anyone remember what things he was talking about, which were once important to him?
What did he say they were garbage compared to?
Well today we’ll be learning about some of Paul’s travels and what he was up to in the different cities he visited. Let’s watch our video to find out more…
Video Lesson — Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Can anyone remember what some of the cities/towns were that Paul visited? (Thessalonica, Berea, Athens…) Can you guess what country those cities are in? (Greece)
What did Paul do when he was in Athens? Who were some of the people he spoke to there? (religious people and philosophers)
When Paul was asked to explain his teachings to the people, how did he go about it?
What do you think of Paul’s approach? Do you think it was respectful? Why or why not?
What do you think is the best approach to sharing Jesus with others?
Prayer — Bible Story Leader
"Dear God, thank you for the lesson we learned today about Paul’s travels and how he spread the message of Jesus everywhere he went with kindness and respect. When he went to Athens and saw that the people worshipped many gods, he didn’t insult them but found a way to connect with them instead. Please help up to learn from his example and always treat others with kindness and respect so that they can see you through us. In Jesus' name, Amen."
Activity: Draw the Story — Activity Leader
Kids will make a drawing or collage of what they learned about in the story. It could be a map with a ship on it to show where Paul traveled, or a picture of Paul in Athens talking to the people.
Print outs with characters/objects will be provided which the kids can cut out and glue to their picture.
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure each child leaves with their caregiver.
For Parents:
Follow-up questions.
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Who was the Bible character you learned about in class today?
What was Paul up to in the story? What did he do in the different places he visited?
When Paul was in the city of Athens, what were some things he saw there?
How did Paul talk to the people about Jesus? Do you think he spoke to them rudely or with kindness? How so?
What do you think are some good ways to show God’s love to others?
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Who was the Bible character you learned about in class today?
What were some of the different cities Paul traveled to?
What was he doing when he was in these different places?
When Paul was in the city of Athens and the people asked him about his teachings, how did he explain it?
What do you think about Paul’s way of sharing Jesus? What can we learn from his example?
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Who was the Bible character you learned about in class today?
Can you remember some of the cities that Paul visited on his travels?
What were some of the places he would usually go to in each new city he visited? (the local place of worship and the marketplace)
What happened when Paul was in the city of Athens? What did he see there?
How did Paul explain his message to them? What do you think of his approach and what can we learn from it?
