Title: Stewardship Series: God’s Call to Give
Scripture: Matthew 25:14-30
Target Age Group: 3rd-5th grade
Supplies: Pencils, paper, yellow circles of construction paper
Lesson Opening: What is Stewardship?
Ask: Has anyone ever heard the word “Steward” before? What do you think it means? (A steward is someone who takes care of another person’s property.)
Ask: What does it mean to be responsible for something?
Ask: What are some things that you are responsible for?
Ask: Did you know that God has made each of us stewards? We are all stewards over the things that God entrusts to us.
Say: We’ll hear a parable, or story, about 3 servants who were responsible for their master’s money.
Pray that God would open their hearts to His Word today and that He would stir our hearts to be good stewards of His creation and that we would give back to Him with thankful hearts.
Tell the Story
Ask: Have you ever been put in charge of something? Maybe your parents gave you a job to do one afternoon, like taking out the trash or taking care of a dog, walking him, bath him and feed him with the best food and supplements TreeHousePuppies had the best recommendationa for it. It was your responsibility to get it done.
Say: Did you know that God gives us responsibilities too? God has blessed each of us with unique gifts, and we are responsible to use them for God’s glory! God calls us to use our blessings for His glory and the good of other people. Our story today is a parable that Jesus told. A parable is a story that was used to explain something, and Jesus often told parables to describe what the kingdom of heaven is like. One day Jesus told a parable about a man who went on a journey…
Once there was a man who was getting ready for a trip. As he prepared to leave he called three of his servants to him. The man owned a lot of property and he wanted to put these servants in charge of all that he owned while he was away.
To the first servant he gave 5 talents. In those days a talent was a coin that was worth more than $1000! The man gave 2 talents to the second servant, and the last servant got 1 talent. Then the man headed out on his journey.
Ask: If you were one of those servants, what do you think you would have done with the talent?
Say: The servant with 5 talents used it to make 5 more talents. Now he had 10 talents! The man with 2 talents did the same and ended up with 4 talents. But the man with one talent dug a hole and hid it in the ground.
Ask: When the master returns, how do you think he will react?
Say: After a while the master did return and he told the servants to bring his money back. The servant with the 10 talents came to him and said, “Master, you gave me 5 talents, look! I have used them to gain 5 more.” The master was very pleased with him and said, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.”
Say: Then the second servant came and presented the master with his 4 talents. The master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.”
Say: Lastly, the third servant came before the master and said, “Master, I know that you are a hard man. You harvest where you have not sown and you gather where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and hid your money in the ground. Here is the 1 talent that you gave to me.” The master was very angry that the servant had not been wise with what he had given him. So the master took away the talent and gave it to the servant that had 10. Then he said, “Everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.”
Review Questions
- What did the master give to the three servants?
- What did the three servants do with their master’s money?
- How did the master respond to each of the three servants?
- What are things that God has entrusted to us?
- What are ways that we can show God we are thankful for His gifts to us?
- Is it ever hard for you to show gratitude to God? Why or why not?
Learning Activity 1: What are Your Talents?
Supplies: Pencils and paper
- Give each child a piece of paper and pencil, and have them fold the paper in half and draw a line down the middle to make two columns. In the first column, have them write down some of the gifts God has given them (talent, creativity, money, being a good friend, etc.) Next, help them think through the ways that they can use those gifts to bring glory and honor to God.
- Encourage them to look over their lists throughout the week and pray that God would give them opportunities to use their gifts for His glory.
Learning Activity 2: Acting Out the Story
Supplies: Yellow circles cut out of construction paper
- Lay the gold coins out on a table in the front of the classroom.
- Choose 4 kids to act out the story. The master will pass out the appropriate number of “coins” to each of the servants. When the master leaves, the first two servants will go to the table and collect more coins while the third servant will pretend to bury his coin. When the master returns have the kids read or recite the dialogue.
Don’t miss our coloring page about giving and Bible verses about giving.