Prayer is how we can communicate with God. But there are times when we ask for something small when God wants to bless us with something greater. Use this object lesson to teach children from Acts 3 about Peter, John, and the lame man.
Scripture Focus: Acts 3:1-10
Materials: Inductive Bible Study Form; 3 non-seethrough cups (label them 1, 2 and 3); 1 quarter; $1 bill; $20 bill
Geography: Israel; Jerusalem
Background: On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit swooped down onto the disciples in power and over 3,000 people were added to the newly formed church.
Object Lesson for Acts 3:
{SET UP: Without the students watching, place the three cups upside down on a table. Under one place the dollar. Under another one place the $20. You will play a version of “Let’s Make a Deal.”}
{Give the students the quarter.}
You, as a group, have one quarter.
{Ask:}
- How much is that worth? (25 cents)
- Would you like to have something better? Something that is worth more? (Yes)
I have three cups in front of me. You don’t know what is under them. If you want to, I am going to let you choose which cup you would like, BUT you have to give me the quarter. You lose it when you give it to me. You do not HAVE to choose a cup. You CAN keep the quarter.
{If the group decides to choose a cup, take away the quarter, and here are the options for what to say. Allow the students to continue “trading” until all of the cups have been turned over.}
Empty cup– {If chosen first or after the $1 or $20 bills} You exchanged your (quarter, $1 bill, or $20 bill) and received NOTHING! Oh no! It was a risk you took and unfortunately it did not turn out well for you.
$1 cup – {If chosen first, or after the empty cup} This is better! Instead of (a quarter or nothing), now you have $1 bill! That is better. But is this the BEST that can happen?
{If chosen after the $20 bill} Oh no! You already had the BEST thing! And now you lost it. Well, $1 is better than nothing or a just a quarter.
$20 cup – {If chosen first or second.} WOW! $20! That’s better than a (quarter, $1, or nothing). I wonder if this is the best you can do? What else could be under these cups? Do you want to keep the $20 bill, or choose a new cup?
{If chosen as the last cup} WOW!! You now have the BEST! A $1 bill is better, but a $20 bill is best.
Bible Lesson for Acts 3:
After the day of Pentecost, Peter and John went to the temple to pray around 3:00 in the afternoon. At the same time, a lame man was being carried by some people and placed at his normal spot to beg for money, or alms. He was a poor man, lame from birth. The lame man saw Peter and John and asked for alms.
{Ask:}
- What does God want to do for us? Give us something better? Or give us His best? (Give us His best)
The man called out for alms and Peter replied that he had no silver or gold. How disappointing for the lame man! He needed money so he could eat, and to have a place to live. Imagine how disappointed him might have felt. He didn’t even had a quarter to exchange. He had nothing!
{Hold up the cup that had nothing under it.}
Peter continued, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I will give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ, rise up and WALK!” And Peter grabbed the hand of the lame man and pulled him to his feet. The bible says that strength came immediately to his feet!
{Hold up the one dollar bill.}
The lame man wanted something better than he had. He wanted money for his immediate needs. Peter could have given him a few coins, maybe enough for dinner that night, but then the next day the man would be begging again.
{Hold up the $20 bill.}
What Peter gave, what GOD gave, was something that was BEST! After being healed, he lame man could walk, fend for himself, get a job, and do everything any other person could do. The man was so overjoyed that he went walking and leaping and praising God all the way into the temple with Peter and John.
Everyone around knew who the lame man was and praised God with him. He had sat in that begging place for years and now he was healed!
Peter noticed how all of the people were in awe and he started to preach just as he did on the day of Pentecost. He taught about the Old Testament, Jesus, Jesus dying and being raised from the dead.
Life Application for Acts 3:
In the name of Jesus, Peter healed the lame man.
{Hold up the $1 bill.}
The lame man was seeking something better than what he had.
{Hold up the $20 bill.}
But God wanted to give the lame man what was best for him: healing.
There are times when we pray to God asking Him for something that would improve our lives or the lives of people we love. Sometimes we are seek a specific answer. Usually its an answer we really want. It could be anything. A good grade on a test. A better friendship with someone. An awesome present at Christmas time. Maybe for parents to stop fighting. Perhaps, you want to be able to read better, or work math problems better. Perhaps someone is bothering you at school. Whatever it might be that we ask from God is fine. It’s good. It is good to ask. But what if it isn’t God’s best for us? Should we pray differently?
What if instead of asking God to do something specific, we give Him the issue and asked Him to handle it His way? For example, perhaps you ask God to help you be a better friend to someone. That is a great request. Ask it. However, what if you said: “Lord, please help me to be a better friend to (name). But Lord, I want your best. I want Your will to be done. If there is anything else I can do, please let me know.”
This means we have to trust God with the understanding that He loves us and desires to do what is best for us. This also means that we might have to wait for an answer.
The lame man was healed immediately, but that does not mean God will answer our prayers immediately. He might, but we can trust Him that He WILL answer.
Because of what God did, the man went walking and leaping and praising God. Do you do that when God blesses you? Do you thank God for the good things in your life? Not just material items, but what about your family? school? church? the nation you live in? your health? the fact that you CAN walk? What about thanking God for your weaknesses? That sounds crazy, doesn’t it? But scripture over and over tells us that through the weakness of people, God is strong.
{Ask:}
- When you chose a different cup, you risked losing something. What did the lame man have to lose? (Allow for answers, but probably nothing.)
When you swapped cups, you took a risk. It was risky to trade the quarter and $1 bill. It was not so risky if you had nothing.
Serving God seems risky. But in reality, everything we have belongs to God. We don’t know what He is going to do when we come to Him with our prayers, but we CAN trust Him completely. When we surrender to God, we are telling Him that He is in totally charge.
God is the only One who is completely faithful. Sometimes because of our own sin choices, we come to God with nothing and all we can do is offer ourselves….and that is what He wants. Everything!
What can we learn from Peter, John, and the lame man? Sometimes we hold out our prayers and ask from something little when God has something much bigger and better in mind for us. We must be willing to give everything to the One who is absolutely trustworthy.
