Opening

Ask the children to share how different and similar they are. Draw a table on the board to highlight the differences. List them, then tell them that despite their differences, they are now one in Christ.

Bible Story

● After the 12 disciples other missionaries grew up. One of the missionaries that the Bible teaches us a lot about is Paul. Paul moved across many cities.
● Paul was in Athens and he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. So he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there.
● A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.
● Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean.”
● Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.
● “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek
him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’
● “Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”
● When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.” At that, Paul left the Council. Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others. Paul was deeply moved by the state of affairs in Athens, and he decided to minister to the people, both Jews and God fearing Greeks.
We should also be moved by what we observe and step into action, by informing people about God and how much God loves people. Like Paul, we should share the gospel with everyone. People’s national or racial identities should not stop us from telling them about God. Paul was wise in how he engaged them, by relating with them. He was informed about their culture and city and he was able to minister effectively. It is important to know about the people we are going to minister to, and we should also be respectful of their culture, but not tolerate their sin. Invite the children to give their lives to Christ and lead them in a salvation prayer.

Application

Identify a friend who you would want to share the gospel with, write down things that you know about them, pray that God will reveal to you how to
approach them and share the good news with them.