June 26 in KidQuest and FirstLook

KIDQUEST

In Acts 3, we hear about how God used Peter to heal the crippled beggar. Peter healed the man at the gate called Beautiful, which encompassed the outer wall of the temple precinct. After the man was healed, “He jumped to his feet and began to walk … with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.” (Acts 3:8–9)

The temple in 1st century Jerusalem was divided into sections. Social status determined how far into the temple one could go. Solomon’s portico was known as the Court of the Gentiles. It was a section of the temple that most anyone was welcome in. It was the only section that the crippled man had ever been allowed to visit. A Jewish historian named Josephus described warning signs that plastered the walls of the Gentile court. One of these read, “No foreigner is to go beyond the balustrade and the plaza of the temple zone. Whoever is caught doing so will have himself to blame for his death, which will follow.”

The crippled man may not have been able to read the inscription, but he probably knew he was not allowed past Solomon’s portico. He risked his life by entering the temple, but he also knew God’s power had changed everything in his life.

Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Peter emulated the work of his Savior by healing the lame. With God’s power, Peter restored this man’s dignity, his body, and his soul—just as Jesus had done during His earthly ministry. God gave the beggar a position of dignity as a child of God.

Just for fun, gather your family together this week, take a blanket, and find a gate or a fence to sit by. While you are there, have your children close their eyes and imagine how it would feel to sit in a place for a long time and not be able to move. Tell them you are going to read about a man in The Big God Story who could not move his legs and had to sit by a gate and beg. Read the biblical account of Peter healing the crippled beggar in Acts 3:1–10.

After you have finished reading, ask your children what kind of healing this man needed. Then discuss together what the man did once he was healed. Now have them get up and walk around. Ask them, “How do you think you would feel if you were walking now for the first time?” “Where is the first place you would go?” and “What would your response be to God?”

Share with your children that what they just heard is a part of The Big God Story, and they will hear more about how God’s power changes everything at church this week.

FIRSTLOOK

After many years of praying for a child, Hannah vowed to give the son she was blessed with into the service of the Lord. Hannah kept her promise, for when Samuel was a young child (some scholars speculate him to be around three or four years old) his parents brought him to the temple of the Lord in Shiloh. They offered a sacrifice and gave him to minister to God under the guidance of the priest, Eli. Here Samuel would learn the ways of worship and acts of service within the temple. Samuel
faithfully served the Lord and “continued to grow in stature and in favor with the Lord and with men” (1 Samuel 2:26).

In this period of the judges, the Word from the Lord (a spoken message to the people through a prophet) was rare, nor were many people experiencing visions from the Lord. When God began to call Samuel by name, he got up from his bed and ran to Eli, thinking it was the priest who called him. Finally, Eli realized it was the Lord who was calling to Samuel and directed the child as to how he should respond. When the Lord came and stood there, again calling as He had the other times, Samuel responded by saying, “Speak, for your servant is listening” (1 Samuel 3:10).

This was the day Samuel was initiated by the Lord as a prophet to Israel. God was withSamuel as he grew up, and the Lord continued to reveal Himself to Samuel through His Word. Samuel faithfully brought God’s Word to the people as His prophet and as the last judge of Israel, all the days of his life.

This week, Just for fun, play a “name game” with your family. Have your children stand in a different room than you. Call their names, but in a fun way (for instance, use a funny voice, a silly nickname, or sing). When your children come running to where you are, give them a hug and then send them back to the other room. Continue to call them into your room in different ways a few more times.

Tell your children that you’re now going to read them a story about a little boy named Samuel who heard God calling to him (read 1 Samuel 3:8–10). When you finish reading, explain to your children that God wants to talk to them, too! Tell them it may not sound exactly like a human voice, like Samuel heard, but God will speak in different ways. Talk about the ways God will speak to them: the Bible, prayer, His Holy Spirit.

Explain to your children that what they just heard is true and a part of The Big God Story. Remind them they’ll learn more about how God wants us to know His voice while they’re at church this week. Then pray and thank God that He speaks to us and wants us to know Him.