Week 972 · about 45 minutes
Matthew 11
Matthew 11 · Memory verse Matthew 11:25
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Queues the lesson plan, this story’s coloring page (Matthew 11), the matching word search and answer key (Matthew 11 word search), the memory-verse tracer, and a parent slip.
Five-minute object lesson
Prop: a paper crown
Hold a paper crown. Read Matthew 11 in about four minutes, stopping at Matthew 11:25: “At that time, Jesus answered, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you hid these things from the wise and understanding, and revealed them to infants.” Ask, “What does this prop have to do with Matthew 11?” Let two children answer, then say the memory verse together.
Story script
Matthew 11 is a real chapter from the New Testament. It starts, “When Jesus had finished directing his twelve disciples, he departed from there to teach and preach in their cities.” 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, ““But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces, who call to their companions” Matthew 11 opens with these words: “When Jesus had finished directing his twelve disciples, he departed from there to teach and preach in their cities.” The line to keep is Matthew 11:25: “At that time, Jesus answered, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you hid these things from the wise and understanding, and revealed them to…” Carry the word “time” from that verse into the rest of the day.
The line worth learning out loud is Matthew 11:25: “At that time, Jesus answered, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you hid these things from the wise and understanding, and revealed them to infants.” If the rest of the chapter feels crowded, hold that one sentence until the room is quiet.
What happens first in Matthew 11? Then try this: Read “At that time, Jesus answered, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you hid these things from…” 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 Matthew 11. Every time you freeze, a child says one word from Matthew 11:25. The last child says the whole verse.
Craft
On a US Letter sheet, draw one picture from Matthew 11 and write Matthew 11:25 under it. Send it home as tonight’s reminder, not as a decoration contest.
Memory verse
Matthew 11:25
“At that time, Jesus answered, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you hid these things from the wise and understanding, and revealed them to infants.”
Take-home prayer
Father, thank you for Matthew 11. Help us remember Matthew 11:25 when we wake up, and teach us to notice you in an ordinary night. Amen.