Jesus is the New and Better…
…David
Intro: What should a king or queen be like? Does it matter what they look like? We’re going to look at a king that God chose for his people, why he chose him, and at a promise God made to King David about a new and better king who God would give his people forever.
Games: To help us think about what a leader should be like.
Bulldog - One child stands in the middle of the room; they are it. The rest of the children begin at one end of the room. Their aim is to reach the other end of the room without being caught. They can only run when something about their outward appearance is called out i.e Wearing Blue, long hair, Wearing trousers, Brown eyes (this means you will have some people at different ends of the room after a while). If a child is tagged as they are running they join the catchers in the middle. Last uncaught person is the winner.
Follow the Leader - Children stand in a long line, the child at the front starts to move and everybody else must copy the way and direction they are moving. Suggest skipping, hopping, jumping, crawling, waving arms, walking backwards etc. Make it more exciting by having lots of obstacles in the room.
Talk: What does God look for in a king and how did David and his sons fail to live up to those standards? This talk shows how King Jesus is the only one who fulfills every requirement for God’s eternal king.
Drama:
If you’re doing these dramas then you do need both together to show both the highs and lows of David’s rule.
David the Hero is a News report about David fighting Goliath, showing why God chose David as his next king.
David the Zero tells the story of David and Bathsheba in a way that is appropriate for younger children, showing how his wrong desires and lack of obedience led to terrible consequences for everybody.
Activity: Put together a timeline of David’s life. Print out these pictures from FreeBibleImages to go with it. A Bible will be helpful to look through to get things in the correct order and you may also want to take photos of any scenes they create.
Songs:
God’s People in God’s Place - Awsome Cutlery
Jesus Rocks the World – Colin Buchanan
Jesus is the King – Emu music
Memory Verse: 2 Sam 7:13 He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
Build a wall with children’s bricks and tape the words of the verse to each brick. Take out a brick each time you repeat it to help them learn it from memory.
“Worship God as king: put a giant crown shape (or two or three smaller ones if it’s better to split them into groups) on the floor and give each child a pen. They need to fill the crown with reasons why God is a good king (3 mins) then spend some time thanking and praising him for those things.”