Week 1019 · about 45 minutes
Luke 16
Luke 16 · Memory verse Luke 16:8
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Queues the lesson plan, this story’s coloring page (Luke 16), the matching word search and answer key (Luke 16 word search), the memory-verse tracer, and a parent slip.
Five-minute object lesson
Prop: a key
Hold a key. Read Luke 16 in about four minutes, stopping at Luke 16:8: ““His lord commended the dishonest manager because he had done wisely, for the children of this world are, in their own generation, wiser than the children of the light.” Ask, “What does this prop have to do with Luke 16?” Let two children answer, then say the memory verse together.
Story script
Luke 16 is a real chapter from the New Testament. It starts, “He also said to his disciples, “There was a certain rich man who had a manager. An accusation was made to him that this man was wasting his possessions.” That is not a motto invented for a poster. It is the first sentence a family hears when this page is opened at night.
Keep going a little further. The chapter also says, “The law and the prophets were until John. From that time the Good News of God’s Kingdom is preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it.” Luke 16 opens with these words: “He also said to his disciples, “There was a certain rich man who had a manager. An accusation was made to him that this man was wasting…” The line to keep is Luke 16:8: ““His lord commended the dishonest manager because he had done wisely, for the children of this world are, in their own generation, wiser than the children of…” Carry the word “commended” from that verse into the rest of the day.
The line worth learning out loud is Luke 16:8: ““His lord commended the dishonest manager because he had done wisely, for the children of this world are, in their own generation, wiser than the children of the light.” If the rest of the chapter feels crowded, hold that one sentence until the room is quiet.
What happens first in Luke 16? Then try this: Read ““His lord commended the dishonest manager because he had done wisely, for the children of this world are, in…” once more. What does it show you about God? You do not have to finish every verse. You can close the book after the memory verse and still have read the Bible together.
Group game
Walk the room as if you are moving through Luke 16. Every time you freeze, a child says one word from Luke 16:8. The last child says the whole verse.
Craft
On a US Letter sheet, draw one picture from Luke 16 and write Luke 16:8 under it. Send it home as tonight’s reminder, not as a decoration contest.
Memory verse
Luke 16:8
““His lord commended the dishonest manager because he had done wisely, for the children of this world are, in their own generation, wiser than the children of the light.”
Take-home prayer
Father, thank you for Luke 16. Help us remember Luke 16:8 when we wake up, and teach us to notice you in an ordinary night. Amen.