April 20, 2010, John 10

Key Verse:

"A thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. But, I came so that you may have life and have it to the full."

(John 10:10)

Central Truth:

God so loved the world that He sent us a Hero. Our Rescuer and Redeemer is Christ Jesus.

GOD SENT US A HERO

One night, when I was putting the girls in the bed, my oldest daughter asked me why Jesus came to save us. I know; pretty deep question for a 5 year old, right? So here is how I answered:

When I was growing up, I had a neighbor who was a bully. This kid was mean and horrible. Every day he would take a jar of jelly outside and put some of it on the sidewalk. He would then wait until a large number of ants would come out of their hill and cover the jelly. Once all of the ants were out of their ant hill, he would take his big wheel and run all over the ants and crush them. I began to have compassion for these ants, and it made me feel bad when the bully would do this. Each day I would yell at the ants telling them to go back to their homes and stay away from the jelly. I warned them repeatedly that it was just a trick to get them out. But they never listened. No matter how hard I tried, the ants just wouldn't listen to me. But one day, God turned me into an ant. I immediately went outside to the ants and told them what the bully was doing and that they were in danger. To my surprise, they understood me perfectly. I was able to communicate with them because I was one of them. From that day forward, I was able to save a lot of ants from the jelly and the bully.

You see, Satan is putting jelly and other things in your life right now to steal your joy, kill your witness, and destroy your life. But the good news is is that God sent us a hero. He sent someone who could communicate with us . . . walk among us . . . save us. Jesus came to rescue us from the "bully" so to speak. He came so that we would not be destroyed, but that we would have life. Do you know Him? Has He rescued you?

*Story illustration was taken from a message I heard spoken by Doug Fields. But every night, I use it to share the gospel with my kids. They seem to understand and love the story.