Locations & Times

Preschoolers help Howie with his everyday troubles in a fun, video gameshow. Then they hear four stories about Jesus helping people by healing them. Through video teaching, kids learn that God always helps us.

WORSHIP

BIBLE VERSE

“... God always helps us in times of trouble,” Psalm 46:1.

GROUP Q&A

What was wrong with the man in the story? (He had a broken hand.)

What did Jesus do when he saw him? (He helped his hand work again.)
Who always helps in times of trouble? (God)

PARENT BIBLE STUDY

Read: Matthew 12:9-14, Mark 3:1-6

Somewhere along the way, the religious leaders started creating rules that oppressed people rather than supported them. They chose to value their politics and the privilege they earned within their own legalistic system rather than the lives of people. And Jesus came to turn this upside down.

This healing miracle of Jesus on the Sabbath acted as a metaphorical shake of the shoulders. Jesus was telling the Pharisees that this is not what he intended. They’d taken a good thing and used it as an excuse to check out of serving, helping, and loving other people.

Jesus made it clear through words and action that the value of a life trumped all other things. And yet, the Pharisees didn’t get it. They still conspired to trap and destroy Jesus. Why? It is easy to read this story and pick a side. Truthfully, it’s easy to side with Jesus. But there is a Pharisee in all of us. What is getting in the way of us valuing other people’s lives and meeting their needs? Maybe we value our own comfort and security. Maybe we value tidiness and predictability, because it’s messy and risky to enter into other people’s lives and needs. Maybe in the name of good boundaries, we push away the very people God placed in our path to love and lift up.

But there is another side to this story. The man with the withered hand had to make a step towards Jesus right in front of the angry, self-righteous Pharisees. Can you imagine how threatening that must’ve felt? He had to decide that trusting Jesus, and the potential of healing and freedom, was worth the risk of his safety and everything he’d known as a man with a disability. Whenever we are making steps towards healing in our own lives, we have to take the same risk. There is always something at stake, or we would’ve changed the broken things in our lives already. The good news is that Jesus took the man’s hand and healed him completely. And that is exactly what he is after in our lives, too. Full restoration.

Take a humble look inside. In what ways do you identify with the Pharisees in this story?

What is at risk for you to come towards Jesus and ask for healing in the broken parts of your life?

How have you seen Jesus restore and heal you?