Sermons4Kids

[Soldier4Christ]

 Kids Pay Taxes Too!

 
Theme:    What do we owe to God? We owe Him our all! - Proper 24 (29)
Object:    A dollar bill or a coin with the image of a president or ruler imprinted on it.
Scripture:    Then he said to them, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." Matthew 22:21 (NIV)

Have you ever heard your parents or other adults complaining about having to pay taxes? You probably have. Most people are not too fond of having to pay taxes. Do any of you pay taxes? Well, it might surprise you to learn that kids pay taxes, too!

How many of you receive an allowance from your parents? Have any of you ever received some money as a birthday gift from your grandparents? How many of you have ever earned some money for doing some chores around the house? How many of you have ever bought anything with your very own money?

If you answered, "Yes" to any of these questions, you have probably paid some taxes. Did you know that every time you buy something, you pay a sales tax? In our state, that tax is about eight cents for every dollar you spend. I wonder what Jesus would say if we asked him whether kids should pay taxes? That is a tough question. If he answered, "Yes," all the kids would probably get mad at him. If he answered, "No," the politicians who make our laws would probably get mad at him because the state needs that money to operate. It seems that someone would get mad at him no matter which way he answered! It looks like a no-win situation, doesn't it?

Did you know that something like that actually happened? In Jesus' day, the people were required to pay a poll tax. It was not a very popular tax with the people. One day some religious leaders came to Jesus and asked him if he thought the people should pay the poll tax. They were actually trying to trick Jesus, because they knew if he said, "Yes," the people would be angry. But if he said, "No," he would get into trouble with the authorities.

Jesus saw right through their plan and he did a very wise thing. He asked them for a coin, then he said, "Whose picture is on this coin?"

They answered, "It is Caesar." Caesar was the Roman ruler and all taxes had to be paid to him.

Jesus then said to them, "Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God."

Look at this dollar. Whose picture is on it? It is a picture of George Washington, our first president. What does it say right above his picture? It says, "The United States of America." Well, I guess that means that this dollar belongs to "George" and we will have to pay our taxes.

But what about God? Jesus also said "Give to God what belongs to God." The Bible says that we were created by God and that we were created in the image of God. If we are created by God, and we were created in His image, we must belong to Him. That means we must give ourselves to Him!

Dear Father, you created us in your image and we belong to you. Because of that, we give our hearts and lives to you. Amen.

[Soldier4Christ]

"For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."  Genesis 3: 5  [NKJV]

How many of you have ever eaten Cracker Jacks?  Cracker Jacks have been around for a long time.  I used to eat them when I was a boy so you know they have been around for a long time.  Do you think I ate Cracker Jacks because I liked them?  Well, the taste pretty good, but that isn't why I ate them.   I ate them because of what it says right here on the box.  "A prize inside!"  I wanted that prize!  You know, after I got the prize, I was always disappointed because the prize was some cheap little toy that wasn't worth anything.  You could say, the prize wasn't what it was "cracked up to be!"  But I kept on buying those Cracker Jacks and hoping that some day I would get a really great prize.  I never did.

I wonder if the prizes are any better now than they were when I was a boy?  Let's open this box and see.  I may have to have some of you help me eat some of these Cracker Jacks so I can get to that prize.  Look at that prize!  Why, it is just a little piece of paper.  What a disappointment.  I can't believe that after all these years people are still falling for that trick.

I don't guess I should be surprised.  After all, it is the oldest trick in the Book.  It is the same trick that Satan used on Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.  Satan went to Eve and said to her, "If you will eat of that tree over there, you will be like God.  You will be as wise as He is."  So, Eve ate the fruit and gave some to Adam, and it sure wasn't like Satan promised.  In fact, they lost their place in that beautiful garden.  That is one of Satan's very best tricks and he still uses it today.  He will promise us great things if we will just do what he wants us to do, but the prize is never what he promised.  In fact, it may just end up costing us our place in God's kingdom.

Dear Lord, help us to remember that Satan will use every trick he knows to get us to do what he wants us to do.  Help us to remember that nothing he promises can compare to what we have in You.   Amen.

[Soldier4Christ]

 His eyes are on the ways of men; he sees their every step. Job 34:21

How many of you have a pair of binoculars? Binoculars are really amazing. You can look at something that is very far away and it brings it right up to you. A lot of people take binoculars to ballgames so that they can see the action better. Some people take binoculars when they go hunting to help them find the animals they are hunting. I have a friend who likes to watch birds. She can look through a pair of binoculars and she can watch birds from a great distance and watch what they are doing. The birds don’t even know that she is watching.

This reminds me that we are all being watched. Other people are watching us to see what we are doing, but more important to remember is that the Bible tells us that God is watching us. It says “His eyes are on the ways of men; he sees their every step.” That means that He sees us when we are fighting with our brother or sister. He sees us when we don’t act the way we should act in school. He sees us when we talk back to our parents. He sees every thing we do.

Since God is watching us and sees everything we do, we should be very careful and make sure that we are doing things that will please Him.

Dear Lord, we know you see everything we do, help us to live in such a way that all that we do is pleasing in your sight. Amen

[nChrist]

Pastor Roger,

Amen Brother! - Thank you. These will be going to my grandchildren pretty quickly.

Love in Christ,
Tom

Hebrews 7:18-19 NASB  For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness (for the Law made nothing perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.

[Soldier4Christ]

Brother Tom, That is good to hear. These are from the web site

http://www.sermons4kids.com/index.htm

They have a lot for kids there and with these mini-sermons they also have coloring pages, word searches, crossword puzzles, and a word jumble to go along with each one all for free.

They are a great aid for Sunday School teachers and home schoolers as well.

I know that CU has there own childrens site now but one can never have enough of such material for their kids. (Keeps them busy in a good, edifying way)

[Soldier4Christ]

And God heard them, for their prayer reached heaven.  2 Chronicles 30:27

Everywhere I go these days, I see people talking on the phone.  I see people driving down the street talking on the phone.  I see people shopping in stores talking on the phone.  I was watching a baseball game on TV the other day and every time they put the camera on the fans, I would see people talking on the phone.

I heard about a preacher that brought his cell phone to church one Sunday.  During the sermon, he looked around the congregation to see who wasn’t there and then he called them to see why they weren’t at Church!  He doesn’t pastor that Church any more!  Cell phones are handy though, because we can call our friends and family no matter where we may be.

Prayer is like that.  No matter where we are or what we are doing, we can always talk to God. While driving down the street, shopping in a store, or at a baseball game....no matter where we are, we can talk to God.

Dear Lord, thank you for the privilege of prayer.  Help us to remember that you are always there when we need to talk to you.  Amen.

[nChrist]

Pastor Roger,

Thanks for the link and the information Brother. I added it to my favorites. I've already gotten some really good material from ChristiansUniteKids, but material is somewhat limited for grandchildren as young as mine are. The coloring always works, and you can make real simple lessons with them. My 5 year old will be growing into a lot of this material pretty soon, and he does like Bible stories. They really might understand more than we think, including my 2 year old. Regardless, we are trying.

Love in Christ,
Tom

Proverbs 22:6 NASB  Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it.

[Soldier4Christ]

It is really unbelievable sometimes just how much little children really pick up and remember. It is believed by some that children don't remember anything prior to the age of 5 or 6. Yet my son remembers things from when he was less than one year old that I am positive was not told to him either by anyone else.

So it is an important part of their learning process to include all that we can about God in their early training as well.

[ForHisGlory]

I have found lots of help here, why don't you try them?

http://www.mssscrafts.com/

http://calvarychapel.com/children/site/curriculum.htm

http://www.kidssundayschool.com/

http://www.makingfriends.com/friends/f_spiritual.htm#Angel%20Friends

Have fun with the kids while learning!

[nChrist]

ForHisGlory,

Thanks for the links - I really appreciate that. My kids use the thought that if they are old enough for any reading, they are old enough for Bible stories. This is also high quality time that everyone enjoys, especially grandparents. Both of my grandsons love for us to read to them, so that's an every night event. It's also a special time to pray with them before they go to bed.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Philippians 1:6 NASB  For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

[Soldier4Christ]

He had a dream in which he saw a stairway [ ladder ] resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. Genesis 28:12 [NIV]

I have something really amazing to show you this morning. This is an wonderful little toy called a Jacob's Ladder. It is a toy that has been around for a many, many years. Watch and see what it does. (demonstrate) I told you it was amazing! Now this looks really complicated and I must confess that I don't understand exactly how it works, but it is so simple to make that you could even make one yourself with a little help from your parents.

Do you remember what I told you this toy is called? That's right! Jacob's ladder. The toy got it's name from a story in the Bible about a man named Jacob who had a dream about a ladder that reached up to heaven. Do you know that story? Well, let me tell it to you.

Jacob started on a long journey to a town called Haran. When he reached a certain place he stopped to spend the night. He took a large stone and rested his head on it and went to sleep. As he slept, Jacob had a dream. In his dream there was a ladder that reached from the ground all the way up to heaven. There were angels running up and down the ladder. He looked and saw God himself standing at the top of the ladder. God spoke to Jacob and told him that he was going to bless him and his people and that he would watch over him and keep him wherever he went. When Jacob woke up he said, "Surely the Lord is in this place." Then he took the stone he had used for a pillow and poured oil on it. He named the place Bethel, which means the house of the Lord.

This is a wonderful story of how God blessed Jacob, but it is much more than that. It is also a picture of what Jesus has done for you and me. Jesus came down to earth to make a way for you and me to get to heaven. Jesus is the way, the only way, for us to get to heaven.

Dear Jesus, thank you for providing a way for us to get to heaven. If there are some here today who have not found the way, we pray that they will find it today.   Amen.

Note:  The following links will take you to a page with instructions for making the "objects" for this sermon.  Either of these objects would also make a good craft activity for the children.  It would require a lot of preparation to make the ladder toy, but would be well worth it.  Perhaps there is someone in your congregation with a gift of woodworking who could help.

[Soldier4Christ]

I have found lots of help here, why don't you try them?

http://www.mssscrafts.com/

http://calvarychapel.com/children/site/curriculum.htm

http://www.kidssundayschool.com/

http://www.makingfriends.com/friends/f_spiritual.htm#Angel%20Friends

Have fun with the kids while learning!

Thank you for links. Those are some great materials for kids and parents.

[Soldier4Christ]

The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.  1 Samuel 16:7

I have a friend who is a rock collector.  I probably wouldn't make a very good rock collector, because if I saw a rock laying on the ground that looks like this one, (show the exterior) I probably would not even bother to stop and pick it up.  But my friend knows that you can't judge a rock by what it looks like on the outside.  A rock that looks like this on the outside may be beautiful on the inside. (show the interior)  So my friend picks up the rocks and looks on the inside and polishes them into something beautiful.

The same thing is true about the way God looks at people.  The Bible says that "the Lord does not look at the things man looks at.  Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."  Do you ever make the mistake of judging people by the way they look on the outside?  I'm ashamed to say that I do.  Wouldn't it be better if we looked at their heart the way God does?

This morning I have a rock for each of you.  My friend took some ugly old rocks and polished them up and turned them into something beautiful.  I want you to have one of these rocks to remind you that we should not judge people by the way they look on the outside.  It's what's inside that counts.

Dear God, we are thankful that you don't judge us by how we look on the outside.  Help us to look at others the same way you look at them.  Amen.

[ForHisGlory]

My kids are all teenagers. But I am the Pre-shooler's Sunday school teacher at our church. I just love spending time with them, and learning about God, from their viewpoint  

[airIam2worship]

Kids are so cute, and they say the most innocent and funny things. I read somewhere about a little girl wriiting a letter to God it read in part "Dear God, my teacher said that Edison invented electricity, but my Bible says you did, I know you can't lie so that must mean my teacher is lying" Sometimes children are so honest and innocent you sure can learn a lot from them. I have learned that from my grandchildren.