Lesson No. ( 12 ) Jesus Cares for The Disciples

References

Matthew 8:23-27, Mark 4:35-41, Luke 8:22-25.

Notes for Servants

«         The sea was rough, the wind was stormy and the waves were high.  We are like small ships in the sea of the world, the winds of temptation must blow and cause the small ship to face danger.

«         The disciples were very happy because of the Lord’s miraculous deeds, but that did not prevent them from facing the trouble of being in the middle of a rough sea.  The Lord may sometimes deprive us of spiritual comfort so that our souls may long for Him more and more with humbleness.

«         The ship will never be destroyed as long as Jesus is with us, and in our hearts.  Let us have faith in the Lord so that we may not fear.

Objectives

General: God's power and His care for us.

Specific:

The children will be able to ...

1. Express how they feel when they face danger.
2. Say why they are afraid of bad things happening.
3. Explain how the disciples felt before and after the storm.

Bible Verse

                              "Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid."

Mark 6:50

Teaching Aids

1) A sailing boat of wood or paper, a net, and plastic fish.

2) Use these items to tell the story.

Introduction

(1) Review last week's lesson.

(2) Who remembers the verse?

(3) Remind the children about the church occasions for the coming week.

Story Time

One day a big crowd of people stood by the Sea of Galilee.  They listened to Jesus teach.  The crowd grew and grew.  Soon the people in the back could not see Jesus.  And they could not hear Him.

Jesus saw a boat floating in the water, so got into it.  Now all the people could see His face.  Everyone could hear His voice.  Jesus told the people about the kingdom of God.  The people listened to all of His words.  They stayed and listened to Jesus all day.  At the end of the day Jesus told His disciples, "Let's row to the other side of the lake."  The disciples stepped into the boat with Jesus and began to row.  Jesus went to the back of the boat to lie down to rest.

The lake was quiet and calm.  The boat rocked gently.  Jesus soon fell asleep.  Suddenly a bad storm blew across the lake.  Strong winds howled; the sky turned black; dark clouds covered the stars; the waves got bigger and bigger; lots of water splashed into the boat.  The disciples tried to row; but the wild waves tossed the little boat up and down.  More water rushed in.

Soon the bottom of the boat was filled with water.  The disciples thought, "We're sinking.  We will all drown!"  So they went to the back of the boat to wake Jesus.  They shouted, "Save us, Lord!  Save us before we all drown!"

Jesus stood up.  He spoke to the wind and the waves.  He said to them, "Peace!  Be still!"  The waves stopped tossing; the wind stopped blowing; stars shone in a clear sky; the lake was calm again.  It was perfectly quiet.

Jesus turned to His disciples.  He looked at them and said, "Why are you so afraid?  Don't you believe in Me?  Don't you know that I can always help you?"

The disciples looked at each other.  They were amazed.  They said, "How does Jesus have such power?  Even the winds and waves obey Him."

1. What did Lord Jesus say to the sea? to the winds?
2. What should you do if you walk in a dark place?
3. What should you say?

Discussion

1 - Follow up the story by talking about it with the children.

2 - Continue the discussion while they do the activity.

Learning Activities

Activity Sheet.