Thankful: Week 1

Memory Verse: Matthew 9:38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest. During the month of October you were taught Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Juda, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. We are to GO everywhere to tell others about Jesus and His great love, but we have to start at home or in the Greater Waco area. Today actually kicks off Missions Week and Thankfulness Month. What do you think you are most thankful for above everything else? I know what I am thankful for. I am so thankful that God sent His only son Jesus to come to earth and die on the cross for our sins. I am also thankful for someone telling me about Gods great love and taught me how to accept Jesus as my personal Savior! (If you would like and have time, this would be a good time to share your testimony.) Today we will be in Matthew 9:35-38. A few weeks ago you were taught the parable of the sower. The seeds fell and the birds ate the seed, some fell on rocky ground, some fell among the thorns, and the rest fell on good soil. Where would you like your seed to fall? Of course, we want it to fall where the good soil is. Why? Well if you remember in the parable the good soil represents the people that are ready to hear about Gods love and want to learn. Read Matthew 9:35-36 What is a synagogue? According to blueletterbible.org a synagogue is An assembly of Jews formally gathered together to offer prayers and listen to the reading and expositions (pieces) of the scriptures; assemblies of that sort were held every Sabbath and feast day. With that definition it sounds a lot like a church. So Jesus was going from cities and villages preaching and healing every sickness and every disease among the people in the synagogues. As Jesus saw the large groups of people he had compassion for them. What does the word compassion mean? According to dictionary.com compassion is, Feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune. That is still a tough definition, so lets go with a visual! Lets say that there is a kid at your school named Jack. Jack

is quiet, polite, and always allows others to go before him in line. One day Jack is being beaten up by the school bully. How do you feel toward Jack? Do you feel bad for him? Do you feel like you want to help him? Well, that is compassion! Well, Jesus had compassion for these people because they had no one teaching or preaching the Gospel to them. Read Matthew 9:37-38 In the parable of the sower, the person sowing would be like the missionary or the pastor. What was the sower trying to grow? Christians. In the story, Jesus was comparing the seed to how people listen and accept the truth about Jesus. Who or what is the harvest? People that need to know about Jesus. What is a labourer? A worker! In our story today Jesus makes the statement, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; What do you think Jesus meant by that? Well, it means that there are so many people who need to know about Jesus and not enough people to tell everyone. Reread verse 38. Who can be workers for the Harvest? Hint* Its the same answer as who can be a missionary. Anyone who has Jesus in their heart can tell others about Jesus and Gods great love. In conclusion, I am thankful that someone came to tell me about Gods great love and showed me in the Bible to accept Jesus Christ as my personal Saviour. What is sad is that chances are not everyone knows, there might even be someone in this room that doesnt have Jesus living in their heart, but the good news is that we have someone here that would love to tell you how. If you do have Jesus in your heart you should be thankful and share Jesus with others!