Ephesians – Teaching Children the Gospel

[ad_1]

Ephesians CHAPTER 1 The Saints are foreordained to receive the gospel—The gospel is to be restored in the latter days—The Saints are sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise—They know God and Christ by revelation.

Ephesians CHAPTER 2 We are saved by grace through faith—The blood of Christ saves Jew and Gentile alike—The Church is built upon the foundation of apostles and prophets.

Ephesians CHAPTER 3 The Gentiles are fellow heirs with Israel—The love of Christ surpasses all understanding.

Ephesians CHAPTER 4 There is one Lord, one faith, and one baptism—Apostles and prophets are essential to the Church—The Saints are exhorted to live righteously—They are sealed unto the day of redemption.

Ephesians CHAPTER 5 The Saints are exhorted to avoid uncleanness and walk uprightly—Husbands and wives should love each other.

Ephesians CHAPTER 6 Children should honor their parents—Servants and masters are judged by the same law—Saints should put on the whole armor of God.

Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” When the gospel began to spread in Ephesus, it caused “no small stir” (Acts 19:23) among the Ephesians. Local craftsmen who produced shrines to a pagan goddess saw Christianity as a threat to their livelihood, and soon “they were full of wrath, … and the whole city was filled with confusion” (see Acts 19:27–29). Imagine being a new convert to the gospel in such a setting. Many Ephesians did accept and live the gospel amid this “uproar” (Acts 19:40), and Paul assured them that “Christ … is our peace” (Ephesians 2:13–14). These words, along with his invitation to “let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away” (Ephesians 4:31), seem as timely and comforting now as they were then. For the Ephesians, as for each of us, the strength to face adversity comes “in the Lord, and in the power of his might” (see Ephesians 6:10–13).

Members of the Church should be friends and “fellowcitizens.” (Jr)

Ephesians 2:19

Place a picture of the Savior in the center of the room. Invite the children to stand in different parts of the room to represent “strangers” or “foreigners.” Help them understand that these words mean people we don’t know yet. As you read Ephesians 2:19, invite them to move toward the picture of Christ until they are standing close together. Tell them that as we come closer to the Savior, we can become united with others as “fellowcitizens,” or friends. (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

Friend February 2020 “A Kind Primary Class” Jayden was nervous to go to a different ward when he was out of town. But when he got to Primary he felt better because the other kids included him and were kind. They shared their scriptures with him, talked to him, and helped him. They became his friends. Activity: Aria is new at church. Fill in the speech bubbles with what you could say. How could you help a visitor feel welcome?

Friend September 2021 “New Amigos” Brigit’s family had just moved to Venezuela and she was worried and scared about going to church because she didn’t speak Spanish. When they walked into the chapel, two girls her age rushed over to meet her. When they realized she didn’t speak English they told her their names, sat with her, and started teaching her Spanish. The girls helped Brigit feel welcomed and happy .

Friend May 2021 “Tara’s New Friend” Tara sees a boy sitting alone at church. She doesn’t speak his language so she decides to draw pictures for him.

Find pictures of children from different parts of the world, and hide them around the room. Place a picture of the Savior in the front of the room. Invite your class to pair up like missionaries and take turns finding a picture of a “stranger” to place near the picture of the Savior. Help them understand that when people are baptized, they become part of our Church family, or the “household of God.” How can we help someone who is new feel welcome? (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

Clipart Library

Friend July 2017 Matt and Mandy

Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” Your family might enjoy building walls out of pillows or other objects you have at home and then knocking them down. While Paul referred to the “wall” between Gentiles and Jews, what kinds of walls separate people today? How has Jesus Christ “broken down” these walls? How does He “reconcile [us] unto God”? (verse 16).

We are “fellowcitizens” in the household of God. (Sr)

Ephesians 2:13–19

Read Ephesians 2:19 together, and discuss what it means to be a stranger or foreigner. Share an experience in which you felt like a stranger or foreigner and someone helped you feel welcome and accepted. Invite the children to share similar experiences. What can we do to become “fellowcitizens” rather than strangers? Are there any children in your class who do not attend often, perhaps because they feel like strangers? Help the children come up with a plan to help those members feel welcomed and loved. (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

Friend September 2016 “Musical Chairs” A new boy starts attending Elizabeth’s Primary class and he isn’t like the other children, so they start avoiding sitting near him. He stops coming for a while.

image

Friend August 2017 “Reaching Out to New Friends” Elder Anderson shares a story of a boy in Uganda fellowshipping another boy and a story about children behind a fence being invited into a meeting. Sometimes people at church feel like they are behind a fence looking in and need a friend and an invitation to join in.

To help the children strengthen their relationships with each other, write some questions on the board that prompt them to share something about themselves, such as When have you had a prayer answered? or What’s your favorite thing to do with your family? Divide the children into pairs, and invite them to ask each other the questions. What did we learn about each other? (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

The Red Crystal

Heavenly Father wants me to obey my parents.(Jr)

Ephesians 6:1–3

Read Ephesians 6:1 to the class, or help one of the children read it. Help them think of times when they obeyed their parents. Ask them to share how they were blessed for obeying and how they felt when they obeyed. Why is it important to obey our parents? (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

The Red Crystal

Friend August 2018 “Puddles and Blessings” Marcel doesn’t want to go on a hike in the rain with his mom and the Young Women. His mom  tells him something good might happen because there are blessings from obeying parents. At the hike he finds that his friend Noah is there and they have a blast playing in puddles together.

Friend August 2015 “Fire” As a young boy, President Monson starts a fire with forbidden matches and he learns an important lesson about obedience.

Friend August 2017 “The Rocket Fiasco” Andrew’s friends convince him to try out his birthday rocket that he’s supposed to wait and do with his dad’s supervision. The rocket lands in the neighbors car and starts a fire.

Sing together a song about obedience, such as “Quickly I’ll Obey” (Children’s Songbook, 197). Let the children take turns naming something their parents ask them to do, and invite them to pretend to do that thing. (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

Show a picture of Jesus Christ being baptized (see Gospel Art Book, no. 35), and share how the Savior obeyed Heavenly Father by being baptized (see 2 Nephi 31:6–7). Share an experience in which you obeyed your parents and were blessed. Why does Heavenly Father want us to obey our parents? (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

Friend March 2023 “Jesus Christ Was Baptized”

Come Follow Me for Kids “New Testament Activities: Download #36” For the Perfecting of the Saints”

Puppet Roleplay: Let kids take turns being either the “Obedient Oscar” or “Disobedient Doug”
puppet. Remind them of what obedient and disobedient mean. Give scenarios for them to respond
to using both puppets. Help them see the blessings that come from being obedient and remind
them that they’ll be happier when they are obedient. Possible scenarios:
 Mom asks you to eat your healthy food at dinner before you eat a cookie. How would
Obedient Oscar respond? What would Disobedient Doug do?
 Dad asks you to turn the TV off and do your chores.
 Mom asks you to kneel down for family prayer.
 Dad asks you to sit quietly during scripture study time.
 Mom asks you to share your toys with your sister.
 Dad asks you to stay off of a busy road near your house.
 Mom asks you to be kind to your neighbors.
 Remind them that we are “Dear children” of God (Ephesians 5:1) and encourage them to also be
obedient to their Heavenly Father

Heavenly Father wants me to obey and honor my parents. (Sr)

Ephesians 6:1–3

Invite the children to read Ephesians 6:1–3 individually and identify phrases that stand out to them. Invite them to share these phrases and why they feel the phrases are important. (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

Explain that to “honor” someone can mean to show respect for them or to bring them happiness.

Friend November 2021 “Jesus Honored His Parents” As He grew up, Jesus obeyed His earthly parents. He loved and cared for them. Even when He was dying on the cross, He asked one of His disciples to take care of His mother. He also honored His Heavenly Father by keeping the commandments.

Help the children find and talk about examples of people in the scriptures who obeyed and honored their parents, such as the Savior (see Luke 2:42–52), Ruth (see Ruth 1), or Nephi (see 1 Nephi 3:1–8). Why is it important to obey and honor our parents? (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

John 2:1–11

Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “John 2–4” At the wedding in Cana, Mary told Jesus that the wine had run out. According to the Joseph Smith Translation, Jesus responded to His mother by asking, “Woman, what wilt thou have me to do for thee? that will I do” (in John 2:4, footnote a). Jesus is an example of how we should treat our mothers.

Friend June 2022 “Ruth and Naomi”

Give each child a piece of paper with the word honor at the top. Discuss what the word means. Invite the children to write or draw on their papers something they can do to show that they honor their parents. (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

Friend September 2023 “I Can Follow Jesus by Honoring My Parents”

The armor of God can protect me from evil. (Jr)

Ephesians 6:10–18

Show a picture of a person wearing armor, such as the one in this week’s activity page or this week’s outline in Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families. As you summarize Ephesians 6:10–18, show the children how different pieces of armor protect different parts of the body. (See “The Whole Armor of God,” Friend, June 2016, 24–25.) (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

Friend June 2016

Friend June 2016

Bring several items to class that could represent the pieces of armor mentioned in Ephesians 6:14–17 (for example, a hat or an apron), or make simple pieces of armor from paper. Let the children take turns putting on the “armor.” Help them understand how we put on the armor of God (for example, by studying the scriptures, serving others, praying, obeying, and so on). Discuss how doing these things protects us from evil. (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

Friend March 1987

The Red Crystal

Come Follow Me for Kids “New Testament Activities: Download #36” For the Perfecting of the Saints”

Armor pieces: If using household items, here’s a list of possible items that could be used:
 Breastplate: apron or a flat pan
 Shoes: Mom or Dad’s boots
 Girdle: a belt
 Sword: a stick
 Shield: muffin tin or a piece of cardboard
 Helmet: a hat, helmet, or pot
 Have all items in a pile or in a large bag, and let everyone take turn choosing one piece. As each
piece is chosen, read and discuss the card for it and show them how to wear/use that piece of
armor.
 After all of the pieces have been taken out of the bag/pile, discuss: what does the armor of God
protect us from? How can we put on these pieces of armor every day?

Family Paper Snowball Fight –
 On the shield, write or draw ways we can have faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus.
 On separate pieces of paper, write ways Satan tries to attack us. Crumple these up to turn them into
“snowballs.”
 Use these to have a family paper snowball fight.
 How can our faith help shield us from Satan’s attacks? In what other ways can God arm us against
Satan?

  1. Cake Batter Snowball Cookies- https://www.mybakingbliss.com/cake-batter-snowball-cookies/ Before
    eating, everybody say one thing they’ll do to shield themselves from Satan’s attacks this week.

Latter Day Kids “Put On the Armor of God” Lesson ideas

See additional teaching ideas at Armor of God

The armor of God can protect me from evil. (Sr)

Ephesians 6:10–18

(Think of some of the spiritual dangers that children face and how you can help strengthen the children against them.) As one child reads Ephesians 6:10–18, ask another child to list or draw on the board the pieces of armor mentioned. Why is armor important in a battle? How can we put on spiritual armor every day? (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

For the Strength of Youth October 2023 “Armor Up”

Teaching Children the Gospel “Lesson 25: Captain Moroni Defeats Zerahemnah”

Give each child a piece of paper, crayons, pencil, and a small copy of each piece of armor. Have them draw a picture of themselves on the paper, a size that would fit the small set of armor.  Have them attach their armor pieces to the drawing of themselves using small pieces of removable double-sided tape. Remind them what each piece represents and have them write it on their paper next to the armor piece.

Show the children the orange. Ask a child to catch it and then toss it back. Do this a couple more times. Ask what would happen to the orange, as it is tossed around, if didn’t have a protective shell on it. (It would quickly become dirty and damaged.) Ask the children if they can think of other items that have protective outside coverings. Items might include: bananas, eggs, nuts, etc.

• For what reason might a person wear a protective outside covering such as armor? To protect their body in dangerous situations such as war.

Assign each child to draw and label a piece of armor described in Ephesians 6:14–17. How might these pieces of armor protect us from evil? What does the Lord promise to those who put on the armor of God? (see Ephesians 6:13). What does it mean to “withstand in the evil day”? (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians”)

Friend June 2016

Friend June 2016

Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” Your family could make their own “armour of God” using household items. The video “The Armour of God” (ChurchofJesusChrist.org) can help family members visualize this armor, and they can find simple explanations in “The Whole Armor of God” (Friend, June 2016, 24–25). How does each piece of armor protect us spiritually? What can we do to help each other “put on the whole armour of God” (Ephesians 6:11) every day?

Gather Together all Things in Christ (Ephesians 1:10)

Ephesians 1:10.

To teach about this verse, Elder David A. Bednar used the example of a rope (see “Gather Together in One All Things in Christ”). Consider showing family members a rope and letting them hold and examine it while you share parts of Elder Bednar’s message. How is God gathering all things together in Christ? How are we blessed because of this gathering?

“A rope is an essential tool with which all of us are familiar. Ropes are made from strands of fabric, plants, wire, or other materials that are each individually twisted or braided together. Interestingly, substances that may be quite unexceptional can be woven together and become exceptionally strong. Thus, effectively connecting and binding ordinary materials can produce an extraordinary tool.

Importantly, this vital gathering of truth is centered in and focused upon the Lord Jesus Christ because He is “the way, the truth, and the life.”

Come Follow Me for Kids “New Testament Activities: Download #36” For the Perfecting of the Saints”

Gathering Activity– Read/discuss/summarize Ephesians 1:10. The manual says, “Through the latter-day
Restoration, God is gathering all things in one, including all the principles and ordinances of the gospel. To
demonstrate this idea, you could hide objects or written phrases around your home that represent things
that have been restored in our day (like priesthood keys, temple ordinances, scriptures, and spiritual gifts).
Family members could search for them and ‘gather’ them together. Why are we thankful to live in the
‘dispensation of the fulness of times’?”
 Explain that we live in a time when lots of good things have been “gathered.”
 Hide the pictures around the room. Have family members look for them to “gather” them together.
 After they’ve all been found, have family members take turns explaining how the items they found
can help us or why they’re grateful for them.

 Foundation Picture: Show “The Living Christ” foundation picture from The Friend below. Have them
think about towers they’ve built (or if time/interest, actually build a tower out of blocks). What
happens when the bottom part of the tower is taken away? Ephesians 2:20 says that Jesus Christ is
the “chief cornerstone.” Point out where the picture of Christ is in the foundation picture (where the
chief cornerstone is). What would happen if Christ was taken away? Remind them of how important
He is to us and how much He loves us

Additional Resources

The Red Crystal

Come Follow Me with Living Scriptures

Please follow and like us:



[ad_2]

Source link

Write a comment
Verified by MonsterInsights