Opening:

Who Am I?
Ask “who am I?” and say the second part of the beatitude in first person form, i.e., “I will receive mercy.” Have the children point to the child holding the appropriate maraca. Then they say together “Blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy.” 

Using paper plate maracas (shakers), select children equal to the number of maracas prepared. Have the children respond by pointing to the child with the maraca answer to the “Who am I?” maraca. 

Pass out 2 paper plates to each child and assign them a verse number 3-11. Children are to illustrate on the backside of each plate a picture of the person/s being described and on the other what that person receives from God. (for example, vs. 4 could be someone who is crying on the front and a drawing of a quilt – comforter – on the back) If a child is stuck, work together as a group to come up with ideas. 

Tape a craft stick or paint stirrer to the inside of one plate. Staple the plates together, adding a few beans or beads to make maraca

Bible Story

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8). 

Jesus spoke this during His famous Sermon on the Mount. So what did He mean by “pure in heart?”

Pure means to be “clean, blameless, and unstained from guilt.” The word can refer specifically to that which is purified by fire or by pruning. John the Baptist told people that Jesus would baptise with the Holy Spirit and fire (Matthew 3:11). Malachi speaks of the Messiah as being like a “refiner’s fire” (Malachi 3:2). Jesus refers to believers as being the branches and to Himself as being the vine (John 15:1-17). For a vine to produce fruit, it must be pruned. Those who are truly “pure,” then, are those who have been declared innocent because of the work of Jesus and who are being sanctified by His refining fire and His pruning.

Heart can mean the physical heart. But it also refers to the spiritual centre of life. It is where thoughts, desires, sense of purpose, will, understanding, and character reside. So, to be pure in heart means to be blameless in who we actually are. Being pure in heart involves having a singleness of heart toward God. A pure heart has no hypocrisy, no guile, and no hidden motives. The pure heart is marked by transparency and an uncompromising desire to please God in all things. It is more than an external purity of behaviour; it is an internal purity of soul. The only way we can be truly pure in heart is to give our lives to Jesus and ask Him to do the cleansing work. Psalm 51:10 says, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” God is the one who makes our hearts pure – by the sacrifice of His Son and through His  sanctifying work in our lives (see also 1 John 3:1-3).

Before Jesus ASCENDED into heaven, He promised His disciples that the Holy Spirit will come and He will be in them. He will be their teacher, advocate and sanctify them by bringing them into all truth. To sanctify is to cleanse. To purify. When the Holy Spirit came during the day of Pentecost, Peter taught the people asking them to repent. He said: “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

Peter replied, “Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” Those who accepted his message were baptised, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. They then built a fellowship of believers that was dedicated to God. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

God calls us to be blameless, to be holy. He alone can help us achieve this. Purity of heart is an attribute only God can grant. We should be encouraged because we have a helper, the Holy Spirit, who is able to guide us into all truth, and sanctify us.

Find time each day to pray. If you’re old enough to write, keep a prayer journal. If you’re not quite a reader yet, draw your prayers, and keep a journal of the pictures.

Application: 

Write down good deeds that you intend to do this week, like; sharing your lunch with someone who doesn’t have, ask someone older to keep you accountable.