What is the meaning of the Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl of Great Price? Why did Jesus often speak using parables instead of teaching more clearly?

The Parables of the Hidden Treasure are a fun and visually rich lesson to teach kids in Sunday School. Use these free lesson plans to teach kids that Knowing God is the most valuable thing in life. They are based on Matthew 13:44-45 and include everything you need for your lesson plan.

This week's lesson are three parables from Jesus. These are the visuals I set up. The barn is a bird house I found at a craft store and painted. I found the grain stalks during the fall and added some Fisher Price fencing and more bales of grain. The Pearl of Great Price is a basket with larger (8 mm) pearl beads. The treasure is a wood box that I found at Hobby Lobby. I just used brown fabric (or felt or actual dirt). I let the students have a treasure chest, added a pearl bead and a grain stalk. Then, add stickers of Jesus, the Bible, Heaven and discuss what real treasure is. In Jesus’ day, usually when a father died, the oldest son inherited two times what the other children received. There was crowd of people where Jesus was teaching and someone said to Jesus “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Jesus asked him who made Jesus the judge? Jesus isn’t here to settle these problems; He wants to preach the gospel. Jesus said to be careful of being greedy because your life isn’t about having an great quantity of things. Jesus told this parable in Luke 12:13-21 to help the people understand the point He wanted to make. There was a rich man and his fields had produced so much that he thought to himself: “Now what should I do? I do not have enough room to store all my crops?” The rich man told himself, I’m going to do this… I will tear down the barns that I have and build BIGGER barns. That’s where I’ll store my crops and property. And I will say to myself, You have so much stored up, enough for many years. I’ll take it easy and celebrate! But God said to the rich man, “You’re a fool! Tonight you will die, then who will prosper from all your possessions?" There are a lot I’s in today’s parable.. vs. 21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” Jesus told them not to worry about THINGS, but our Bible verse for today says: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Jesus is telling the people, what good does it do for you to make a lot of money, and save it and not help others and give back to God? This rich man should have thought about who needed his help, since he had more than he needed. Let's look at two other short parables that Jesus told in Mathew 13:44-46. They tell us about how great the kingdom of Heaven is and how our whole goal should be to go there. This first parable is about a man that found a hidden treasure in a field. The man hid the treasure, then he went and sold everything he had so he could buy that field. Since he now owned the field, he also owned the treasure! It was worth the cost to sell everything he had! This next parable Jesus told is about a merchant. He was looking for beautiful pearls. The merchant found a pearl that was worth a lot of money! The merchant sold everything he had, just so he could buy that one pearl! Jesus, said it is worth giving all you can to enter the kingdom of Heaven! All of these parables are telling us to make sure we have our priorities in the right place, and Jesus said that it worth giving up all the worldly stuff to go to heaven. This project requires some work on the teacher's part before class, but it is a great discussion starter. I left some of the jewels blank for the students to add thoughts that are brought up during the discussion. You can print it here. This is another printable to be used with the Parable of the Rich Fool. It is a discussion starter for 'Do we really need it' things or 'Do we just want it'. This is available in color or black & white. You see the main chart on the left. The kids can stack the hay bales on the correct side as you discuss each 'thing'. There is also another page of just blank hay bales for the students to write different items on. If you don't want to print the hay bales, the students can just write different things under each header. Click here to download the color and black & white. Click here to print the worksheet. Click here for lapbook printables. Bible Verse: Luke 12:34 Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. Click here to download the lesson. Click here to download the Rich Fool visuals. Click here to download the Rich Fool pictures to color. Click here to download the updated visuals. Visuals in this file: Tares, Mustard Seed, Leaven in Bread, Hidden treasure in the Field, Pearl of Great Price Click here to download the pictures to color. (These are the same as the visuals but are black & white.)

This week's lesson are three parables from Jesus. These are the visuals I set up. The barn is a bird house I found at a craft store and painted. I found the grain stalks during the fall and added some Fisher Price fencing and more bales of grain. The Pearl of Great Price is a basket with larger (8 mm) pearl beads. The treasure is a wood box that I found at Hobby Lobby. I just used brown fabric (or felt or actual dirt). I let the students have a treasure chest, added a pearl bead and a grain stalk. Then, add stickers of Jesus, the Bible, Heaven and discuss what real treasure is. In Jesus’ day, usually when a father died, the oldest son inherited two times what the other children received. There was crowd of people where Jesus was teaching and someone said to Jesus “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Jesus asked him who made Jesus the judge? Jesus isn’t here to settle these problems; He wants to preach the gospel. Jesus said to be careful of being greedy because your life isn’t about having an great quantity of things. Jesus told this parable in Luke 12:13-21 to help the people understand the point He wanted to make. There was a rich man and his fields had produced so much that he thought to himself: “Now what should I do? I do not have enough room to store all my crops?” The rich man told himself, I’m going to do this… I will tear down the barns that I have and build BIGGER barns. That’s where I’ll store my crops and property. And I will say to myself, You have so much stored up, enough for many years. I’ll take it easy and celebrate! But God said to the rich man, “You’re a fool! Tonight you will die, then who will prosper from all your possessions?" There are a lot I’s in today’s parable.. vs. 21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” Jesus told them not to worry about THINGS, but our Bible verse for today says: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Jesus is telling the people, what good does it do for you to make a lot of money, and save it and not help others and give back to God? This rich man should have thought about who needed his help, since he had more than he needed. Let's look at two other short parables that Jesus told in Mathew 13:44-46. They tell us about how great the kingdom of Heaven is and how our whole goal should be to go there. This first parable is about a man that found a hidden treasure in a field. The man hid the treasure, then he went and sold everything he had so he could buy that field. Since he now owned the field, he also owned the treasure! It was worth the cost to sell everything he had! This next parable Jesus told is about a merchant. He was looking for beautiful pearls. The merchant found a pearl that was worth a lot of money! The merchant sold everything he had, just so he could buy that one pearl! Jesus, said it is worth giving all you can to enter the kingdom of Heaven! All of these parables are telling us to make sure we have our priorities in the right place, and Jesus said that it worth giving up all the worldly stuff to go to heaven. This project requires some work on the teacher's part before class, but it is a great discussion starter. I left some of the jewels blank for the students to add thoughts that are brought up during the discussion. You can print it here. This is another printable to be used with the Parable of the Rich Fool. It is a discussion starter for 'Do we really need it' things or 'Do we just want it'. This is available in color or black & white. You see the main chart on the left. The kids can stack the hay bales on the correct side as you discuss each 'thing'. There is also another page of just blank hay bales for the students to write different items on. If you don't want to print the hay bales, the students can just write different things under each header. Click here to download the color and black & white. Click here to print the worksheet. Click here for lapbook printables. Bible Verse: Luke 12:34 Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. Click here to download the lesson. Click here to download the Rich Fool visuals. Click here to download the Rich Fool pictures to color. Click here to download the updated visuals. Visuals in this file: Tares, Mustard Seed, Leaven in Bread, Hidden treasure in the Field, Pearl of Great Price Click here to download the pictures to color. (These are the same as the visuals but are black & white.)

This week's lesson are three parables from Jesus. These are the visuals I set up. The barn is a bird house I found at a craft store and painted. I found the grain stalks during the fall and added some Fisher Price fencing and more bales of grain. The Pearl of Great Price is a basket with larger (8 mm) pearl beads. The treasure is a wood box that I found at Hobby Lobby. I just used brown fabric (or felt or actual dirt). I let the students have a treasure chest, added a pearl bead and a grain stalk. Then, add stickers of Jesus, the Bible, Heaven and discuss what real treasure is. In Jesus’ day, usually when a father died, the oldest son inherited two times what the other children received. There was crowd of people where Jesus was teaching and someone said to Jesus “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Jesus asked him who made Jesus the judge? Jesus isn’t here to settle these problems; He wants to preach the gospel. Jesus said to be careful of being greedy because your life isn’t about having an great quantity of things. Jesus told this parable in Luke 12:13-21 to help the people understand the point He wanted to make. There was a rich man and his fields had produced so much that he thought to himself: “Now what should I do? I do not have enough room to store all my crops?” The rich man told himself, I’m going to do this… I will tear down the barns that I have and build BIGGER barns. That’s where I’ll store my crops and property. And I will say to myself, You have so much stored up, enough for many years. I’ll take it easy and celebrate! But God said to the rich man, “You’re a fool! Tonight you will die, then who will prosper from all your possessions?" There are a lot I’s in today’s parable.. vs. 21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” Jesus told them not to worry about THINGS, but our Bible verse for today says: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Jesus is telling the people, what good does it do for you to make a lot of money, and save it and not help others and give back to God? This rich man should have thought about who needed his help, since he had more than he needed. Let's look at two other short parables that Jesus told in Mathew 13:44-46. They tell us about how great the kingdom of Heaven is and how our whole goal should be to go there. This first parable is about a man that found a hidden treasure in a field. The man hid the treasure, then he went and sold everything he had so he could buy that field. Since he now owned the field, he also owned the treasure! It was worth the cost to sell everything he had! This next parable Jesus told is about a merchant. He was looking for beautiful pearls. The merchant found a pearl that was worth a lot of money! The merchant sold everything he had, just so he could buy that one pearl! Jesus, said it is worth giving all you can to enter the kingdom of Heaven! All of these parables are telling us to make sure we have our priorities in the right place, and Jesus said that it worth giving up all the worldly stuff to go to heaven. This project requires some work on the teacher's part before class, but it is a great discussion starter. I left some of the jewels blank for the students to add thoughts that are brought up during the discussion. You can print it here. This is another printable to be used with the Parable of the Rich Fool. It is a discussion starter for 'Do we really need it' things or 'Do we just want it'. This is available in color or black & white. You see the main chart on the left. The kids can stack the hay bales on the correct side as you discuss each 'thing'. There is also another page of just blank hay bales for the students to write different items on. If you don't want to print the hay bales, the students can just write different things under each header. Click here to download the color and black & white. Click here to print the worksheet. Click here for lapbook printables. Bible Verse: Luke 12:34 Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. Click here to download the lesson. Click here to download the Rich Fool visuals. Click here to download the Rich Fool pictures to color. Click here to download the updated visuals. Visuals in this file: Tares, Mustard Seed, Leaven in Bread, Hidden treasure in the Field, Pearl of Great Price Click here to download the pictures to color. (These are the same as the visuals but are black & white.)

In the parable of the sower, Jesus teaches people’s response to the Kingdom will be mixed. In parable of the wheat and the weeds, Jesus taught that the kingdom itself would be mixed. There would be…

"Pearl of Great Price" Prophetic Art Watercolor Fine Art Print 8x10 This is a blending of two parables about the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 13:44-46 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. . . . "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it. . . The significance is that the Lord has looked for and found you. He has given all He has, the life and blood of His son, Jesus just for you. You are a treasure to Him and he takes you just as you are-dirt and all. He knows the value of what is hidden from other eyes. He sees past all the debris to a “Pearl of Great Price” – You. Prints are printed with archival pigment ink on archival quality paper for years of enjoyment. Copyright info as shown on the images are not on the paintings or prints. Purchasing my photographs or art does not transfer the copyright or any of the reproduction rights. Images may NOT be reproduced or used anywhere without the express written permission from the artist/photographer (me). Your fine art print will arrive in an acid-free protective closure, secured in a flat mailer. Prints will ship within one week of purchase. International shipping is available. Shipping is for the first print only. Each additional print, the same size or smaller, ships free so fill up your shopping cart! Combine orders to save on shipping.

Surprises Are Fun! You will prepare a white paper before class by drawing or writing something on it with a white crayon. Nothing is visible to the children at first but your drawing will begin to…

Games to play for the parable of the pearl as found in Matthew 13. part of a whole lesson on-line.

This week's lesson are three parables from Jesus. These are the visuals I set up. The barn is a bird house I found at a craft store and p...

This week's lesson are three parables from Jesus. These are the visuals I set up. The barn is a bird house I found at a craft store and p...

This week's lesson are three parables from Jesus. These are the visuals I set up. The barn is a bird house I found at a craft store and painted. I found the grain stalks during the fall and added some Fisher Price fencing and more bales of grain. The Pearl of Great Price is a basket with larger (8 mm) pearl beads. The treasure is a wood box that I found at Hobby Lobby. I just used brown fabric (or felt or actual dirt). I let the students have a treasure chest, added a pearl bead and a grain stalk. Then, add stickers of Jesus, the Bible, Heaven and discuss what real treasure is. In Jesus’ day, usually when a father died, the oldest son inherited two times what the other children received. There was crowd of people where Jesus was teaching and someone said to Jesus “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Jesus asked him who made Jesus the judge? Jesus isn’t here to settle these problems; He wants to preach the gospel. Jesus said to be careful of being greedy because your life isn’t about having an great quantity of things. Jesus told this parable in Luke 12:13-21 to help the people understand the point He wanted to make. There was a rich man and his fields had produced so much that he thought to himself: “Now what should I do? I do not have enough room to store all my crops?” The rich man told himself, I’m going to do this… I will tear down the barns that I have and build BIGGER barns. That’s where I’ll store my crops and property. And I will say to myself, You have so much stored up, enough for many years. I’ll take it easy and celebrate! But God said to the rich man, “You’re a fool! Tonight you will die, then who will prosper from all your possessions?" There are a lot I’s in today’s parable.. vs. 21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” Jesus told them not to worry about THINGS, but our Bible verse for today says: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Jesus is telling the people, what good does it do for you to make a lot of money, and save it and not help others and give back to God? This rich man should have thought about who needed his help, since he had more than he needed. Let's look at two other short parables that Jesus told in Mathew 13:44-46. They tell us about how great the kingdom of Heaven is and how our whole goal should be to go there. This first parable is about a man that found a hidden treasure in a field. The man hid the treasure, then he went and sold everything he had so he could buy that field. Since he now owned the field, he also owned the treasure! It was worth the cost to sell everything he had! This next parable Jesus told is about a merchant. He was looking for beautiful pearls. The merchant found a pearl that was worth a lot of money! The merchant sold everything he had, just so he could buy that one pearl! Jesus, said it is worth giving all you can to enter the kingdom of Heaven! All of these parables are telling us to make sure we have our priorities in the right place, and Jesus said that it worth giving up all the worldly stuff to go to heaven. This project requires some work on the teacher's part before class, but it is a great discussion starter. I left some of the jewels blank for the students to add thoughts that are brought up during the discussion. You can print it here. This is another printable to be used with the Parable of the Rich Fool. It is a discussion starter for 'Do we really need it' things or 'Do we just want it'. This is available in color or black & white. You see the main chart on the left. The kids can stack the hay bales on the correct side as you discuss each 'thing'. There is also another page of just blank hay bales for the students to write different items on. If you don't want to print the hay bales, the students can just write different things under each header. Click here to download the color and black & white. Click here to print the worksheet. Click here for lapbook printables. Bible Verse: Luke 12:34 Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. Click here to download the lesson. Click here to download the Rich Fool visuals. Click here to download the Rich Fool pictures to color. Click here to download the updated visuals. Visuals in this file: Tares, Mustard Seed, Leaven in Bread, Hidden treasure in the Field, Pearl of Great Price Click here to download the pictures to color. (These are the same as the visuals but are black & white.)

Children love the idea of finding hidden treasures. Honestly, don’t we ALL enjoy the thought of finding hidden treasures? Jesus must have known this when he used treasure and a valuable pear…

The Parable of the Hidden Treasure is one is a series of skits by SSS designed to teach the parables Jesus told in the Gospels. Each story is also an opportunity to teach about Matthew, Mark, Luke, & John. The Parable of the Hidden Treasure, children are asked to think about their own greatest t...

This week we discuss Peter being set free from prison. God sent an angel, and they walked right past the guards! There is a game to play ...

This week's lesson are three parables from Jesus. These are the visuals I set up. The barn is a bird house I found at a craft store and painted. I found the grain stalks during the fall and added some Fisher Price fencing and more bales of grain. The Pearl of Great Price is a basket with larger (8 mm) pearl beads. The treasure is a wood box that I found at Hobby Lobby. I just used brown fabric (or felt or actual dirt). I let the students have a treasure chest, added a pearl bead and a grain stalk. Then, add stickers of Jesus, the Bible, Heaven and discuss what real treasure is. In Jesus’ day, usually when a father died, the oldest son inherited two times what the other children received. There was crowd of people where Jesus was teaching and someone said to Jesus “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Jesus asked him who made Jesus the judge? Jesus isn’t here to settle these problems; He wants to preach the gospel. Jesus said to be careful of being greedy because your life isn’t about having an great quantity of things. Jesus told this parable in Luke 12:13-21 to help the people understand the point He wanted to make. There was a rich man and his fields had produced so much that he thought to himself: “Now what should I do? I do not have enough room to store all my crops?” The rich man told himself, I’m going to do this… I will tear down the barns that I have and build BIGGER barns. That’s where I’ll store my crops and property. And I will say to myself, You have so much stored up, enough for many years. I’ll take it easy and celebrate! But God said to the rich man, “You’re a fool! Tonight you will die, then who will prosper from all your possessions?" There are a lot I’s in today’s parable.. vs. 21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” Jesus told them not to worry about THINGS, but our Bible verse for today says: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Jesus is telling the people, what good does it do for you to make a lot of money, and save it and not help others and give back to God? This rich man should have thought about who needed his help, since he had more than he needed. Let's look at two other short parables that Jesus told in Mathew 13:44-46. They tell us about how great the kingdom of Heaven is and how our whole goal should be to go there. This first parable is about a man that found a hidden treasure in a field. The man hid the treasure, then he went and sold everything he had so he could buy that field. Since he now owned the field, he also owned the treasure! It was worth the cost to sell everything he had! This next parable Jesus told is about a merchant. He was looking for beautiful pearls. The merchant found a pearl that was worth a lot of money! The merchant sold everything he had, just so he could buy that one pearl! Jesus, said it is worth giving all you can to enter the kingdom of Heaven! All of these parables are telling us to make sure we have our priorities in the right place, and Jesus said that it worth giving up all the worldly stuff to go to heaven. This project requires some work on the teacher's part before class, but it is a great discussion starter. I left some of the jewels blank for the students to add thoughts that are brought up during the discussion. You can print it here. This is another printable to be used with the Parable of the Rich Fool. It is a discussion starter for 'Do we really need it' things or 'Do we just want it'. This is available in color or black & white. You see the main chart on the left. The kids can stack the hay bales on the correct side as you discuss each 'thing'. There is also another page of just blank hay bales for the students to write different items on. If you don't want to print the hay bales, the students can just write different things under each header. Click here to download the color and black & white. Click here to print the worksheet. Click here for lapbook printables. Bible Verse: Luke 12:34 Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. Click here to download the lesson. Click here to download the Rich Fool visuals. Click here to download the Rich Fool pictures to color. Click here to download the updated visuals. Visuals in this file: Tares, Mustard Seed, Leaven in Bread, Hidden treasure in the Field, Pearl of Great Price Click here to download the pictures to color. (These are the same as the visuals but are black & white.)

Sample this Pearl of Great Price Sunday School Lesson from our Bible Cookies 6-Week Children's Ministry Curriculum! Teach kids about Jesus' parables with our Bible Cookies 6-Week Children's Ministry Curriculum!  Cookies are small, often bite-sized treats. Jesus taught his followers using short and sweet stories called parables that can teach us a lot about how God wants us to live and how much he loves us. Pearl of Great Price Sample Lesson Overview: Memory Verse: “Apply your heart to what you are taught.  Listen carefully to words of knowledge.” Proverbs 23:12 (NIRV) Oreos - Hidden Treasure: If you take the top off of an Oreo you are left with a big white circle. That circle can remind us of the parable Jesus told about a big white pearl. In that parable Jesus shows us we should ask Jesus into our hearts, and make him our number one priority.  Scripture: Matthew 13:45-46 Looking for more free Sunday School Lessons?  Check out our collection of over 150 FREE Sunday School Lessons for Kids. Or take a look at our chronological list of Bible Stories for Kids.   To view the entire Bible Cookies series, click HERE

VERSES: Matthew 14:45-46 MEMORY VERSE: Matthew 14:45 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls." BOOK TO REMEMBER: Review all 27 books of the New Testament. Perhaps, it would help to sing The Books Of The New Testament (see March - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #3. Click on orange circle to hear tune.) PRAYER: Pray that we will learn how valuable the church is and that we will love and appreciate it. SPECIAL SONG: Jesus Taught By Parable And Miracle (see March - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #4 on this blog. Click on orange circle to hear tune.) VISUAL AID: Large Activity (see below) LESSON POINTS: Jesus taught many parables about the kingdom of heaven, showing how precious and valuable it is. Another name for the kingdom of heaven is the church. The church is precious and valuable because Jesus paid for the church with His own blood. (Ephesians 5: 25). It is precious indeed. After the people went back to their cities and homes, Jesus went into the house. His disciples came to Him and asked Him about certain parables. Jesus continued teaching His disciples about the kingdom of heaven, the church, as they were sitting and standing around Him, listening to His lessons. He told them that the kingdom of heaven was like a merchant man, one who bought and sold things, and was seeking or trying to find pearls of good quality. Finally, he found a good, beautiful pearl, but it was very expensive. Do you know what the merchant man did? He went and sold everything he had and, then, went back and bought that valuable pearl. When we find something that we are searching for, even if it is very costly, we should do what the merchant man did and sacrifice all that we have when we find it. Sometimes, it doesn't cost money. Sometimes, it costs family and friends, ones who may not understand the value of the church. We have already studied in Matthew 6:33 about seeking the kingdom of God first--above everything else--and His righteousness and the things of this life will be given to us, things like food and clothing and shelter. We must always put God first and seek the spiritual things instead of the physical things. "Older Student" Tips: The parable of the pearl of great price and the parable of the hidden treasure are much alike, yet there is one difference. That difference is the man who found the hidden treasure simply came across the treasure , but the merchant man in the parable of the pearl of great price was actually seeking--searching for--the pearls. (Matthew 14:44-46) ACTIVITY: The Parable of the Pearl of Great Price - Sequence Materials needed: 8.5 x 11 piece of white paper, 5" x 9" piece of any color construction paper, markers, staples, stapler, scissors. Hand out white paper. Fold in half, and then in half again. Cut out four big circles. (These should look like pearls.) One one circle, write "I am looking for pearls!" (or draw a picture). On the second circle, write "I found one! I found one!" (or draw a picture). On the third circle, write "I have sold all that I have!" (or draw a picture). On the fourth circle, write "I have bought the pearl of great price!" (or draw a picture). Hand out the 5" x 9" paper. Fold paper almost in half, leaving an inch at the top. Staple the two sides, leaving the top open. This is a pocket. On the front of the pocket, write "The kingdom of heaven is like..." and "Matthew 14:45, 46" and, in small letters "Which comes first?" Shuffle the circles. Place in the proper sequence. Place all circles inside pocket to take home.

Scripture Reference: Matthew 13:44-46 Suggested Emphasis: The Kingdom of God is more precious than anything considered valuable in this world. Memory Verse: “The thing you should want most is…

Scripture Reference: Matthew 13:44-46 Suggested Emphasis: The Kingdom of God is more precious than anything considered valuable in this world. Memory Verse: “The thing you should want most is…

This week's lesson are three parables from Jesus. These are the visuals I set up. The barn is a bird house I found at a craft store and p...

The different grounds visual aid included. A parable is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning. In Greek, Parables mean to compare together. Today’s lesson is a parable about a Sower. Scripture: Mathew 13:1-23; Mark 4:1-20, Luke 8:4-18 In today's lesson, Jesus was sitting by the Sea of Tiberius. There were a lot of people standing on the shore because they wanted to hear Jesus speak. Jesus went onto a boat and sat down to talk to them. Jesus taught many lessons using parables. A Sower, being a person that is planting seeds or a farmer, is sowing seeds. (Pretend to reach inside the bag and throw out seed.) In Jesus’ time, farmers didn’t have the farm machinery we have now, so the farmer would have a sack with seed. He would walk across the field throwing it to plant it. As the farmer threw the seeds some fell on the hard path of ground that had not been plowed or where people had walked and made the ground hard. Because the seeds couldn’t sink into the dug-up dirt, the birds came and ate the seeds. Some of the seeds fell on stony (rocky) ground. It had a thin layer of dirt on top but stones underneath and unable to get a good root. Those seeds grew fast, but when it became hot, they died right away. (Some of the seeds fell into thorns. The thorns grew up and choked the seeds. But the other seeds fell on good ground. It brought good fruit. Jesus doesn’t expect us to all bring in the same fruit, like bringing the same number of friends to worship service or teaching our friends about Jesus. He does expect us all to do the best we can! Everyone we meet is different, same as the different soils that the seeds were planted in, people we teach will react different. Think about your friends, or neighbors, or family that you might tell about Jesus. God's Word, the Bible is the seed Jesus is telling us about. I made this sower bag (my husband is wearing it so I could take the picture!). Super easy to sew. I made the strap 4' long and 3" wide. The fabric is a type of burlap, I just happened to have it from some other project. I cut the fabric 24" X 30", folded it half so it is long with right sides together. I sewed the 2 sides together, then folded and sewed the edge round the top to finish it off. I folded the strap edges toward the center, (fold over one end to cover salvage if necessary), then attached to the sides. As I told the Bible lesson, I pretended to "sow the seeds". simple, but great for this age group! While I talked about the last soil, the good soil, I handed out fruit snacks from the bag, of course, they loved that! Just a note, the strap is long, and I knotted it in the back for me. I wanted it changeable for others that might help me. At this point, I had the class come to the visual and discuss each soil: These are Ziploc plastic containers. I added dirt in each. The first was dirt with a lot of clay and made it hard on top. I added seeds on top and pretend birds. The second I added rocks and artificial flower stems w/o the flowers. The third one had straw-like vines and thorns. The last had the good ground they could run their fingers through and green artificial plants. I would probably add a healthy green plant, but just wasn't thinking clear today! (1) Some will be like the hard soil, will not listen and brush off what you tell them about Jesus. They are too worried about their life and activities that they are involved in. (2) Some, like the stony ground, will listen and be baptized, then fall away. (3) Others, like the thorns, won’t want anything to do with you or Jesus. (4) Then you will have those like the good soil. The seed will get planted and they will grow. They will listen, study the Bible with you and learn, be baptized and be faithful telling their friends about God. Jesus ended the parable by saying he who has ears, let him hear (we have 2 ears!). Jesus wants everyone to listen to His words. But not everyone will do His will. Click here to download the updated visuals. All are not shown. There are real photos included in the color file. Click here to download the pictures to color. (These are the same as the visuals but are black & white.) Click here to download poster. This is the take home project for the lesson today. Everything from Dollar tree, 3 pots for $1.00, the flowers, green potting foam inside the pot, (I added Aleene's Tacky Glue on foam before adding the moss), and the moss. Print the sign here and attach it to a large craft stick. I used this printable with the lapbook/workbook. The teacher's download has all the grounds in place like the photo. The students has the 4 grounds on the next page for them to cut and glue. Teacher or Student Bible Verse: Luke 8:11 This is the lapbook printable for this lesson. You can find all the download links for the Life of Jesus lapbooks and the lapbook worksheets here. Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.

In his clear and accessible signature style, Derek Prince employs his extraordinary understanding of Scripture to lay out the depth of Jesus's great love for individuals and to help them discover their worth. Using powerful biblical teachings on the parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl of Great Price, Prince helps free readers from guilt, insecurity, fear, and shame, in order to help them realize how incredibly loved they are. Paperback.

Use the Parables Of The Kingdom Spiral as a fun activity for your next children's sermon.

I wanted to show you this cute and easy craft M brought home yesterday from her preschool. It's a small paper plate, folded in half, painted gray on the outside and pink on the inside. Inside they glued a small white pompom to be the pearl. The girls like making it "talk." :-)