Free Children's Sunday School Lessons, Teacher Training, Creative Teaching Techniques, Bible software, and more.
Rotation.org's Sunday School Lesson & Resource Forums
We are an online community of Sunday School teachers, Christian educators, and pastors creating, collecting, and sharing free and premium Sunday School lesson plans, creative ideas, and discussion. We are also the official website of the Workshop Rotation Model (The "WoRM"), a creative way to organize and teach Sunday School. Visit our Bible story lesson forums. View our creative Writing Team Lesson Sets. Explore our 24 downloadable Bible story software programs. Get a free Registered Membership or become a Supporting Member for full access to all site resources. Learn more about our volunteer-led, ecumenical, non-profit, ad-free resource ministry!
In this "art" project, the kids are going to create "SIN MAKEUP" ...making themselves look ugly using stage latex make-up, rubber scars, nose putty, etc. Halloween shops have these, and they can be found online. It's fun to apply and will present you with a memorable hook for the lesson's meaning.
Scripture: Luke 17: 11-19
Supplies List:
stage latex make-up, rubber scars, nose putty
Leader Preparation:
Read the story ahead of time.
Gather the materials.
Presentation
Opening-Welcome and Lesson Introduction:
Greet the children and introduce yourself.
Open with a prayer.
Dig-Main Content and Reflection:
This particular project is grounded in the understanding that this miracle isn't just about "saying thank you". The miracles of Jesus are never" just about" Jesus' care for others.
Jesus uses miracles to:
1. Reveal his identity as Messiah to those who understood what he was doing.
2. Give us a sign of what his Kingdom would be like, ...who would be included (even the leperous Samaritans!).
3. Present a challenge to the religious authorities who thought they had God and righteousness all figured out. Notice in how many miracle stories, the authorities are present, or hear word, and start to complain and conspire.
4. Teach his disciples important ideas in a lasting manner. To teach us what the resurrection is about, for example, Jesus resurrects Lazarus, and himself!
While compassionate, the miracles are not primarily meant to display Jesus' compassion, but his power and authority, i.e., his true identity. Jesus was moved to cure ten lepers, but he left hundreds more uncured. He issued a "calling card" to the scribes, priests and Pharisees.
The curing of the lepers a blessed event AND a provocation.
"Go show yourselves to the priests" Jesus told the lepers. And Jesus knew FULL WELL that their healing, especially the healing of a leprous Samaritan, would raise a challenge to the priests which would have to be dealt with.
The priests considered the Samaritans to be religious heretics and impure. How dare Jesus forgive people's sins, and cure them outside the Temple laws and practices.
Teaching this story to children...
> Leprosy is a metaphor for sin. We are disabled, diseased and disfigured by our sin, and need a doctor/savior. Like leprosy, sin turns us into outcasts in God's Kingdom. Jesus is the one who can heal our sin and bring us back into right relationship with God and with each other. In the Make-Up activity, the kids will visually represent this.
> Jesus forgives our sins and expects a response. He lifts up the example of the one who said "thank you".
Notes on Leprosy
You have probably already read that the people in Jesus' day thought leprosy, like other diseases and deformities, were signs of sin, either by the person or the person's family. Leprosy was a particularly gruesome sign of sin, and because it could be contagious, it also meant you had to leave your home and live as an outcast. In that sense, it is the perfect disease for Jesus to cure because sin not only racks your body, but sin is also contagious, can spread in a family, and can cause people to be cast out (think Prodigal Son). Healing leprosy can thus be thought of a sign of the restoration of God's community.
We can express this idea to children by saying that when Jesus healed the Lepers, he was restoring them to normal life and restoring their reputation and that of their family. Being "clean" they could marry, hold their children, and hold a job. They could go to worship. They could join in religious festivals.
Interestingly, Jesus does NOT condemn the 9 who didn't return.They still got their healing, but you can bet they told the priests WHO had healed them. You could say that it is a GOOD THING that they didn't go back to Jesus --because Jesus needed the religious authorities to know that the Messiah had arrived.
The Make-Up Project
In this "art" project, the kids are going to create "SIN MAKEUP" ...making themselves look ugly using stage latex make-up, rubber scars, nose putty, etc. Halloween shops have these, and they can be found online. It's fun to apply and will present you with a memorable hook for the lesson's meaning.
Remember to take plenty of photos!!
Take about 20 minutes to apply the "monster" makeup, then gather around for discussion.
Discuss what leprosy was. How it caused people to be cast out of their families and communities. Teach the children that people back then thought leprosy was a punishment for sin, either your own or the sins of your family.
What kind of sins break up friendships and families today?
What kinds of sin destroy churches and communities?
Who is without sin in our world?
Who "looks good" to God? None. All sin. We are all like lepers.
In our world, we judge people by their looks. We think some are better than others based on looks, money, skin color, family history, country. (give examples)
The priests had a system of religious rules that said, "if you do exactly what we tell you, you will be a righteous/saved person." They believe that certain people DESERVED leprosy, deserved God's punishment. And that they themselves did NOT deserve God's punishment. They thought they were BETTER THAN the lepers. The truth is, we're all "made ugly by sin."
When Jesus cured the lepers and told them to go show the priests, he was sending the priests a message: that the Messiah had come, and the very people you had rejected, were the first to be saved! Jesus came to heal the sick, and the religious leaders didn't think they were the sick ones.
Switcheroo: So who were the REAL lepers? Who was on the OUTSIDE in Jesus' Kingdom? The answer is EVERYONE is the lepers, even the religious authorities need Jesus to heal/save them.
Reflection:
If you haven't yet heard Mercy Me's "Beautiful" you need to hear it with your kids in full makeup."You're beautiful in his eyes."
A debrief the video/lyrics, pass out nametags to your gruesome looking group that read: "Hello My Name is Beautiful (according to the one who heals me)"
Lyric debrief:
What makes a person BEAUTIFUL in the EYES OF GOD?
How does a person get all this ugliness off of themselves? By turning to Christ. Only he can save us from the leprosy of the heart and spirit.
When Jesus restores/saves you, you become part of HIS community, his Kingdom, and should want to say thank you with your life. "You are meant for so much more than this." Jesus wants the lepers to be thankful, to return to him, and help bring his Kingdom to others.
Here's an excerpt of the lyrics:
MercyMe - Beautiful
~Lyrics~
Days will come when you don't have the strength When all you hear is you're not worth anything Wondering if you ever could be loved And if they truly saw your heart They'd see too much
You're beautiful, You're beautiful You are made for so much more than all of this You're beautiful, You're beautiful You are treasured, you are sacred, you are His You're beautiful
and Praying that you have the heart to fight Cuz you are more than what is hurting you tonight For all the lies you've held inside so long and they are nothing in the shadow of the cross
Closing:
Finish with a prayer of thanksgiving.
I hope you improve on this make-up project!
A lesson written by Neil MacQueen
A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.
Posted by Debbie Coe
We had the kids smear their arms and faces with a simple oatmeal and water mixture that looked really gross when it started to dry. It really helped sell the point about judging by people's looks, and the kids really enjoyed it. they wanted to keep it on so that they could show their parents!!
contact the kids/parents to bring a name & address of someone to who they will be sending a thank you card.
Gather the materials.
Presentation
Opening-Welcome and Lesson Introduction:
Greet the children and introduce yourself.
Open with a prayer.
Dig-Main Content and Reflection:
Has anyone ever done something nice for you?
Who was it? (Could be a grandparent, mom, dad, pastor, teacher, neighbor, friend, stranger, etc)
What was the nice deed? (Took you to your practice, comes to your games, made your favorite meal, helped with your homework, took you to the doctor, brings you to Sunday school, etc)
Today we are making Thank You cards for someone that has done something nice for you. You will have to make a decision about who will receive the card. I want you to put some thought into this. We will put the addresses on them today and I will mail them soon. (Hopefully most will already know to who they are sending this.)
Why do you think we are doing this activity with this rotation? What does the healing of the 10 lepers have to do with our thank you cards? (Jesus did something nice for the 10 lepers, yet only one of them came back to say thank you. We don’t want to act like the 9 that forgot. We want to mind our manors and say thank you for the good things in our lives.)
Read: The Story of the Ten Lepers (older children can read the scripture directly from the bible (Luke 17: 11-19) / for younger children use an illustrated storybook or story bible).
Make ‘Thank You’ Cards
Select card stock paper that fits your envelopes
Cards can be folded in half or in thirds.
Decorate the cards (decorative punches, add on stickers or silk flower petals, etc.)
Write your thank you in the card (Be specific so the person knows what this is about.)
Place the thank you in the envelope.
May want to add a small piece of paper with an explanation
“Our Sunday school class is studying about ‘Healing and the 10 Lepers’ – Luke 17: 11-19. Only one of the lepers came back to Jesus to say thank you. We are encouraging our kids to be grateful, whether it is to Jesus or to others on earth.”
On the envelope, add the mailing address, return address (child’s address) & a stamp.
The teacher will mail these the next day. (May need to call parents for some addresses.)
Discussion (To be used while they are working – as needed)
Jesus was traveling to Jerusalem. What is Jerusalem? A city/town. Often called the Holy City. The Holy Temple was built in Jerusalem.
What is leprosy – a leper? A person with a skin disease. Reddish-white patches, oozing sores, an infection. Probably contagious.
Why did the lepers have to live alone, outside of the village? He was unclean, was contagious/afraid of spreading germs.
Have you ever felt alone? How do you handle it? What do you do to feel better?
If someone walked by, what did the leper have to yell? ‘Unclean’ – this alerted the healthy person to stay away.
Why did the 10 lepers seek out Jesus to heal them? They had heard of His miracles. Knew Jesus had special powers. Hoped Jesus could heal them.
What do you do to seek out Jesus?
Why do you think one man came back to say thank you? Was grateful
Why do you think the other 9 lepers left without saying thank you? Ran to their families. Were so excited. Didn’t care. Were ungrateful
What is one way you are like the 9 lepers – ungrateful.
What is one way you are like the 1 leper – grateful.
Tell of one improvement you can do in the ‘grateful’ department. How will you improve being thankful.
Have each child tell who they are sending a card to and why – don’t force them.
Closing:
End with a prayer.
A lesson posted by member Rachel Haugland from: Elim Lutheran
Randall, IA
A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.
When you block a person, they can no longer invite you to a private message or post to your profile wall. Replies and comments they make will be collapsed/hidden by default. Finally, you'll never receive email notifications about content they create or likes they designate for your content.
Note: if you proceed, you will no longer be following .
If you are not yet a Supporting Member, or if you are renewing an expired Supporting Membership, you will see a PURCHASE option below and may see a form to fill out. You can also update your CC info using the link below.
