Leave the Fake Out, Give the Kid’s Real Jesus!
High voltage screams, wailing limbs, and snapping chains creates a ruckus among fearful neighbors as they watch the demonized man in the tombs flail (Mark 5:1-20). Parents are limited to protecting the kids from watching and left with the Americanized feeling of powerlessness. The kids witness a possessed man, a potential for their future, and ask questions like “what is wrong with the man?” American parents may respond with tucking the kids into the home, avoiding the situation, putting on a video for the little ones or marking it up to a psychological problem “over there”.
High voltage screams, wailing limbs, and snapping chains creates a ruckus among fearful neighbors as they watch the demonized man in the tombs flail (Mark 5:1-20). Parents are limited to protecting the kids from watching and left with the Americanized feeling of powerlessness. The kids witness a possessed man, a potential for their future, and ask questions like “what is wrong with the man?” American parents may respond with tucking the kids into the home, avoiding the situation, putting on a video for the little ones or marking it up to a psychological problem “over there”.
Humpty Dumpty Reality
Dumbing down kid’s ministry curriculum to engage their concrete minds with cartoons and colors removes the deep imagery of reality like the demon-possessed man. As kids grow older in the church, they tend to hear Bible stories in the same light as “Humpty Dumpty” and “Harry Potter”. However, please do not hear me promoting a dull, slumber library environment where kids sleep more than play; rather, teaching the kids now as if they were actually in the Bible context.
Hollywood Ministry Family
If ministry kids only hear of Jesus during the church service teaching context, they will (over time) gain a subtle doubt to Christianity. If Jesus only shows up on Sundays from my ministry parents, then he must not be important during the week. Reality becomes skewed and threatens their belief system. Jesus becomes more like a Hollywood character or perception trend than fact.
Non Teddy Bear Jesus
Jesus walked up to the demon-possessed man after many unsuccessful attempts by the town to subdue the man, and authoritatively commanded the demon to reveal his name and depart (Mark 5:1-13). If Jesus has controls over nature, disease and demons he must be the creator of them. If the creator, he then is God. If God, Jesus is real, true and trustworthy.
Give ‘em Jesus
Who do we desire our kid’s to believe in? Protective mommy? Boring librarian Sunday school teacher? Hip, young, cool, clueless VeggieTales teenager teacher? Never there during the week pastor dad? Follow the rules in order to follow Jesus legalism? Moral tugboat that stays afloat based on works? No truth, details, fluffy and ignorant faith denomination? Or Jesus, the one who shows mercy to a town and man in great need to be freed from Satan’s tyranny which produces such rejoicing that it spreads to other friends and family (Mark 5:19-20). Let the kids be left in awe of the reality of Jesus (Mark 5:20).
To be continued …
Further Reading:
Vintage Church: Timeless Truths and Timely Methods
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This is part of the blog posts series from Missional Education on the gospel in children’s ministry.
