A Birthday Party in Heaven - Lk. 15

LUKE 15 - A BIRTHDAY PARTY IN HEAVEN AWANA BIRTHDAY – Spiritual Birthdays 3 signs in large letters with string to hang around neck: "Sinner" "Looking Good" "Nobody Likes Me" 3 additional signs in large letters: "Child of God" Tape Well, tonight is a very special night for AWANA. Maybe you guessed from the games we played tonight, or you remember the announcement last week that today we’re celebrating AWANA’s birthday! 20 years! Everybody has a birthday – if you’re here, it’s pretty obvious that you were born, so you have a birthday too. What kinds of things happen on a birthday? Do you have any family traditions for birthdays? Do you invite special people to come? Grandparents? Cousins? Friends? I want to tell you about a birthday party that takes place in an amazing place and has amazing guests. You know Jesus loved to tell stories to help people understand more about God, and people really loved to hear his stories. Jesus one time told this story: There was a woman who had 10 coins, and somehow she lost one. She turned her house upside down (not really!) looking for the coin. She looked everywhere and when she finally found the coin, she shouted to all her friends – look! I’ve found the coin I lost! Come celebrate with me. Now maybe you know this story, but I wonder if you remember who was there listening when Jesus told this story to. There were three different types of people listening, so we’re going to need 3 volunteers Let me introduce you to Ms. #1 – She is what they called in Jesus time a “sinner”. (Give her “Sinner” sign and ask her to put it around her neck) These were people who didn’t even try to be good. They never went to church. They didn’t bother. Maybe they never learned about God from their moms and dads, or maybe they thought it was too hard. But Jesus hung around people like Ms. #1 – sinners. I wonder - would Jesus hang around people like that? And I wonder why people like Ms. Sinner here would like to be with Jesus? Let’s Meet Mr. #2 – Mr. #2 couldn’t be more different from Ms. Sinner! He is part of a group called Pharisees. Now the Pharisees weren’t like the tax collectors and sinners – oh no! They were serious about obeying God. Every little thing they did was looked at under a microscope – they wanted to get it right and please God! Maybe at night they would go through a check list – did I kill anyone? (Give him “Looking Good” sign and ask him to put it around his neck). No – okay! Did I worship a false god? No – okay? And on and on and on. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I would enjoy hanging around someone who thought it was really, really important to be perfect. That makes me wonder - Now why would Jesus hang around people like this? Finally, here is our third person – he was also listening to Jesus. He was with a group called the Tax collectors. Maybe people didn’t like sinners in Jesus’ time, and maybe some felt the Pharisees were creepy. But they really, really didn’t like tax collectors – sorry. Please put this sign on (Nobody Likes Me). And this is why. Maybe your mom and dad don’t really like to pay their taxes – it’s hard to give some of you money away. But in Jesus’ time, not only did people have to pay taxes, but the person who collected the taxes got to take some of that money for himself – in a way he was like a thief. Why would Jesus hang around people like this? And so Jesus looks around at this group – a tax collector sitting over there – a sinner over there, and a Pharisees over there – and he tells this story. Now when he tells them the woman finally finds the coin and calls her friends to celebrate with her, this is what Jesus says – In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. I’d imagine some people said – what? I thought Jesus was talking about lost money. Why does he say there’s joy in heaven over one sinner who repents? What do you think Jesus was talking about? Right, Jesus was saying that there’s a big party in heaven when a sinner repents. When someone says – God, I’m sorry – it’s like the angels begin blowing up the balloons, the streamers begin to fly down from heaven and all the angels are cheering! Heaven is waiting and hoping for sinners to repent. The angels are on tip-toe watching what happens here on earth. Now I call this a heavenly birthday party. It’s a birthday party because when someone talked with God and says – God, you’re right – I’m a sinner and I need help. I need Jesus to take away my sins. Whether I’m a sinner, or Looking Good, or Nobody Likes Me. When THAT happens, God does something absolutely amazing. This person suddenly gets a second birthday. It’s not the day they got born as a little baby. It’s a new spiritual birthday – the time when a new child of God is born. You can’t become a child of God by being good, but you CAN if you tell God you are sorry (put Child of God over #2). You can’t become a child of God because your mom and dad believe in Jesus. Maybe you’ve heard of Jesus all your life. Maybe you’ve learned many, many Bible verses – but have you ever talked to God about the sin in your life? God is looking for you just the way that woman tore her house apart looking for her coin. Boys and girls, it is so important for you to understand that sin pushes God away from us, and that God offers a way for you to become God’s own child if you put your faith in Jesus. Maybe you’ve already done this – if so, hooray! And God says when you sin after you put your faith in Jesus, God will forgive you. Once you belong to him, you will always belong to Him. But maybe this is something new to you. Today could be the day you have a spiritual birthday – when you turn away from sin and turn to God. The angels are up there, ready to blow up the balloons and celebrate. Let’s pray: Game Scores Dismiss Leaders 1st to go down to Fwp. Hall, then 3rd graders, 4th, 5th and 6th.