Our Bible lesson was done. I wasn’t sure the kids had retained any of the information I had just tried to impart to them. They’d been squirely, seemingly unable to sit still. I had to interrupt my story several times to remind them not to move from their spot. The three in the back had been whispering to one another almost the entire time. No one had been able to answer the comprehension questions.
It’s part of what it means to teach the Wednesday night little kids class. I suppose it’s also part of Sunday mornings. But this week I was feeling it particularly acutely. And it was a little bit discouraging.
But after the lesson was over, one of the girls (who had been whispering through the lesson) came to me with a book and asked me to read it to her. The book covered the triumphal entry, the crucifixion, and the resurrection, in the form of a (poorly written) poem. I read the book to her and was surprised when she continued to sit beside me. She had her “thinking face” on.
And then, the questions came. When is Jesus coming back? Isn’t it sad that Jesus died? People who don’t believe in Jesus go to hell?
And in that moment, I got to speak on a personal level into the life of this young girl. I answered her questions gently and (I hope) clearly. I presented the gospel to her as we talked about the crucifixion. What are those dots on his hands? Those are the nails. Did that hurt? Yes, very much. Oh, that’s sad. It is sad. But do you know why Jesus had to die?
And so I told her about how Jesus had to die because of our sin. The Bible says that we deserve to die because of our sin. Sin separates us from God. But God loved us so much that he sent Jesus to die in our place. Because he died, we can have eternal life with Jesus. We can be in right relationship with him again.
I’m sure it wasn’t any new information to this young girl. She comes from a Christian family. I am positive that her parents have told her these things before. We’ve talked about why Jesus had to die in our class before.
But she still asked questions. She still wanted to talk. So you see, Jesus death was sad, but it is also good news for us. Why? Because in Jesus we don’t have to be separated from God anymore. When you believe in Jesus, you will be saved and God will give you eternal life with him in heaven. Do you believe in Jesus?
Oh the grace of our Father in heaven that he allows my feeble words to be instruments in his hands. Oh the grace of God that he chooses to use me despite my failings and shortcomings to plant seeds in the lives of these little ones. Thank you, Father, for giving me a glimpse into the work he is doing in the heart of this young girl.