Matthew 16:13-20

¹³ When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” ¹⁴ They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”    
¹⁵ “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
 ¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
 ¹⁷ Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. ¹⁸ And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. ¹⁹ I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” ²⁰ Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. 

Materials:  Picture (coloring sheets) of: teacher in front of classroom, doctor with child, parents with child, and a blank sheet of paper.

Good Morning!  How is everybody today?  I brought some drawings today and I wanted to ask you if you could tell me who these people are.  (hold up drawing of teacher.)    Who is this?  A teacher!  That's right; how did you know?  [the kids may say because there's a chalkboard, or desks, or students.]  Have any of you had a teacher?  What do teacher's do?  [let kids answer and fill in as needed].  That's right, they help us learn new things.  Let's try another.  Who is this?  A Doctor!  How could you tell?  [they may say because he has a white coat.]  Have any of you been to the doctor?  What do Doctor's do?  [let kids answer and fill in as needed.]  Yes.  Doctor's help us feel better when we're sick.  Okay, here's another.  You're right--this is a Mommy & Daddy.  What do Moms, & Dads, and sometimes Grandparents or Aunts & Uncles do?  They take care of us and love us.  [One Sunday, a child answered 'they pay taxes' to this question!]  Here's the last one.  Uh Oh!  This page is blank.  Well, instead of showing you a picture.  I'll tell you about this one.  This is someone who like Moms & Dads, cares for us and like a Doctor, makes us feel better, and like a teacher, shows us how to live and how to love one another.  Who do you think I'm talking about?  That's right.  I'm talking about Jesus.  But you all have had teachers and been to the Doctor and have parents/grandparents or someone who lives at home and takes care of you--so I see how it is that you know them.  How is it that you know Jesus?  Because you come to church and learn about him and because your family teaches you about him --but it isn't just because others tell you about Jesus, it is because he lives in your heart!  So you can know him yourself--just like a good friend.

Let's say a prayer about that.  Dear Jesus, we are thankful that we can know you.  Thank you for taking care of us, for helping us, and for teaching us how to love others.   Help us show your love to others everyday.  Amen.