This Get Rid of the Sin Object Lesson is based on Acts 19 which took place during the years of Paul’s 3rd missionary journey. Teach children to locate Ephesus on a map, define repentance, and to describe the actions of a heart changed by belief in Jesus.
Scripture Focus: Acts 19:11-20
Materials:
- 4 clear/glass bowls;
- water-based paint;
- chocolate syrup,
- crushed crackers or cereal,
- clean water
Preparation: Put one messy item per bowl. Put enough in each bowl so that you can cover at least half, or more, of your hand. Be able to clean your hand in the water bowl.
Geography: Antioch, Galatia, Phrygia, Ephesus
**If you are doing the MAP activity as we go through Acts, please move Paul as he travels to the locations mentioned in this chapter.
Background: Paul completed his 2nd journey and returned to Antioch. After “spending some time there,” he began his 3rd journey by traveling back to the cities in Galatia and Phrygia, “strengthening the disciples.” While Paul was traveling, a man named Apollos was preaching in the area of Ephesus. Evidently he was a gifted and eloquent man. But there was a problem. Even though he was accurate about the way of the Lord and the things of the Lord, he was not accurate about baptism in the Lord. He taught about the baptism of John, or a baptism of repentance. So Aquilla and Priscilla pulled Apollos aside and taught him accurately. Then there was no stopping him! He preached and preached and he traveled on to Corinth.
Bible Lesson for Acts 19:
{Read the scripture or tell the story. This is a crazy, amazing event, so be sure to read with enthusiasm.}
[Ask:]
- Who is in this scripture? [God, Paul, Jewish exorcists, the seven sons of Sceva, the evil spirit, the man with the evil spirit]
- What was God allowing to happen? [During this two years, God allowed many unusual miracles to happen through Paul. People could take handkerchiefs and aprons that belonged to Paul and give them to the sick, diseased, and demon possessed and they would be healed.]
Paul stayed in Ephesus for two years and the scriptures say that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word.
Some unbelieving Jews decided to get in on the action and use the name of Jesus to cast out demons. There were seven sons of a Jewish leader, named Sceva. As they attempted to cast out a demon in a man, the demon responded with, “Jesus I know. Paul I know. But who are you?” And the man with the demons attacked the seven brothers and left them wounded and naked.
[Ask:]
- What can we learn from the evil spirit? [This tells us that Satan knows who belongs to Jesus and that Jesus is powerful!!]
Because of this incident, the people feared the Lord and Jesus was magnified! Many people who believed in Jesus began to tell about and confess their wrong ways of living. In fact, many of those who practiced witchcraft and magic gathered all of their spell books and made bonfires in the streets of the town.
[Ask:]
- Think about books that were written two thousand years ago. [Lead the children through a conversation talking about how long it took to get a book written in those days. They didn’t have printing presses. Their books were hand written and were very expensive. I would think only the more rich people would have had books.]
- What does the scripture tell us about these books? [That the value of everything burned totaled 50,000 pieces of silver.]
The burning of books was a HUGE deal!
The people didn’t stop there, they stopped buying the silver shrines that were made in Ephesus. This upset the silversmiths because they were not able to make money if people stopped buying the fake gods. Riots broke out and people were angry.
Life Application and Object Lesson for Acts 19:
{Show the 4 bowls.}
The Bible tells us that we have all sinned. We were born into sin. Our parents sin, so when we are born, we have sin.
{Put your hand into the bowl of paint.}
As we grow and learn, we do wrong things. We make selfish decisions. Sometimes we are mean to other people. We disobey our parents. We think bad things in our minds.
{Put your hand in the chocolate syrup.}
Sin is messy. And it clings to us. And it grows.
{Put your hand in the crushed crackers.}
[Ask:] Can my hand clean itself? [No]
{Carefully shake your hand, or slide it across the top of a bowl. DON’T use the water bowl.}
There is nothing my hand can do to clean off all the yucky stuff. There is nothing you or I can do to cleanse ourselves of sin.
The Bible tells us that is we confess Jesus with our mouth, then we will be saved.
[Ask:]
- Saved from what? [Our sins. The Bible also tells us that if we confess our sins, Jesus is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us, or cleanse us, from all unrighteousness.]
- What is unrighteousness? [Anything we say, think, or do that goes against God’s law]
- What does it mean to confess? [Be honest about the wrong done and tell God, and sometimes others, about it.]
This is what the people of Ephesus did. They began to confess their sins. They told of their deeds. The believers in Ephesus burned their books and stopped buying certain items they used to buy. They got rid of so much “stuff” that they messed up their economy!
[Ask:]
- Have you ever stopped doing something because it was wrong, or it could hurt you or someone else? [Allow for answers]
- Is there something you need to stop doing because it does not please God? [Lead a discussion about activities that might be ok by the world’s standards, but not ok by God’s. Examples – watching violent movies or video games, teasing children who look or act differently, wearing clothes because they are popular, reading comic books too much and not doing a quiet Bible reading time, etc.]
Once we believe in Jesus, we need to be sure that every part of our life is pleasing to Him.We need to confess our sins, our short comings to Him. Jesus is the only one who can make us right before God.
{Put your hand in the clean water and wash it.}
Jesus cleans us. We cannot do it by ourselves. We must repent. Repentance is so much more than “just being or feeling sorry.” We must have a change of heart. This means choosing to live for Jesus and NOT living for ourselves. It’s fighting against the fleshly desires with the armor of God. We should be protecting ourselves from the lies of this world. It’s desiring to do what God wants, and not what we want.
What can we learn from Acts 19? We need to stay focused on Jesus as the Holy Spirit teaches us what is good and pleasing to the Lord. And if we mess up and sin (which we will), then we must take action by confessing our sins and then being obedient to the Lord.
