Leader Guide

Video Leader Guide

Welcome (1 min)

Hello, everyone! I don’t know if any of you have started thinking about it yet… (with great excitement) but did you know that we are only four Sundays from Christmas? Are you excited? Good. Me, too! (This may be an excellent time to ask students what they look forward to at Christmas.)

We are going to celebrate the coming of Christmas—and the greatest gift ever, Jesus—all month long. Let’s start by checking in with Chris, Joy, and Gizmo, who are helping Chris’s mom with Christmas decorations!

PLAY VIDEO: The Birth of John the Baptist

The Birth of John the Baptist

Main Lesson

INTRODUCTION TO ADVENT (7 min)

Be honest...we were five minutes into the video before we ever saw Chris, Joy, or Gizmo. Did you get anxious? Did you wonder if we would ever see them? What about Christmas—have you ever wondered if it would ever get here? You hope it’s coming, but after a while, you start to wonder, right?

Let me introduce you to “Advent.” Advent is our way of ramping up to the celebration of Jesus’ birth—Christmas! (Slide: Advent Definition) The word Advent means “the first appearance of something.” In this case, it’s "God with us as a person"—Jesus! So during Advent, we celebrate the coming of Jesus AND the coming of Christmas. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?

(Approach Advent Wreath.) This is our Advent Wreath. It’s a circle of evergreen branches. The circle is like God’s love—it has no beginning and no end. And evergreens stay green even during the dead of winter, no matter how cold life gets. So they represent how Jesus gives us everlasting life. There are four advent candles: purple represents royalty or kings because Jesus is our King. It’s also the color of the sky right before the sun comes up because Jesus is the Light of the World. And pink is for joy. Cool, huh? Each week, we will light one more candle and tell a little more of the Christmas story. Ready to begin?

This first (purple) candle represents Hope. We call it the Prophets’ Candle because the Hope it represents comes from God’s promises that He made through people He spoke through—prophets.

Here’s the first part of the Christmas story: God’s people, Israel, were being ruled very strictly by the Romans. Israel had once been a powerful nation under King David, but since then, God had punished them for worshiping other, false gods. He had allowed their enemies to take them out of their country and destroy their great temple and their capital city, Jerusalem. Many had returned, and they even built another temple. But they now had a selfish king and religious leaders who cared more about being rich and powerful than pleasing God. These were dark times. But God’s promises offered Hope. This one is from the Prophet Isaiah, 700 years earlier: 

Who wants to help me light this? (Choose a student volunteer and introduce them.)

This Prophets’ candle represents Hope. 

SUPERVERSE:

SuperVerse

(Graphic loops one minute without audio; turn off or freeze video after children repeat verse.)

SUPERTRUTH:

We can have hope because of God’s promises. (Help the student ‘light’ the candle, if needed, then direct them back to their seat and pray.)

ADVENT PRAYER 

(1 min)

Father in heaven, thank you so much for the Hope that You give us. Even when our lives feel dark, and it seems like we don’t have many choices, You promise us Your great light. Lord, we are so excited that Christmas is coming! Help us to understand what it means to wait for You and trust Your promises. We know You have great things for us. In Jesus’ name, amen.

BIBLE STORY

Now let’s get into our Bible story. Today we'll see the part of the Christmas story before the Christmas Story. Does that make sense? It will after you see this.

PLAY VIDEO: Bible Story & Resolution (16 min)

Bible Story and Resolution

SUPERQUIZ: (7 min)

Wasn’t that great? Let’s see how much you remember of the story.

(To amp this up, divide the room into teams and have them compete. Or ask a different student each question and offer prizes for correct answers—be sure to have consolation prizes, too.)

Who was Elizabeth to Mary?

A: Her sister

B: Her aunt

C: Her cousin

D: Her sister’s aunt’s cousin

Elizabeth’s husband, Zechariah, was away working. What was his job?

A: Priest (He was away serving in the Temple when Chris, Joy, and Gizmo arrived.)

B: Carpenter

C: Prophet

D: Waiter

Why did the angel Gabriel make Zechariah unable to speak?

A: Zechariah was interrupting

B: Zechariah did not believe what he was told (Gabriel said he would be silent until it happened.)

C: To keep Zechariah from telling anyone else

D: To keep Zechariah from telling corny jokes

How many sons and daughters did Zechariah and Elizabeth have before John was born?

A: 12

B: 2

C: 3

D: 0 (Elizabeth was barren, or unable to have children, before then.)

What was Zechariah and Elizabeth’s son called as an adult?

A: Joseph

B: The Gospel of John

C: John the Baptist (or John the Baptizer)

D: Jesus

DISMISSAL: (1 min)

That was exciting! And so is this: we’ve only got three more candles to light before Christmas comes. Wow, huh? That’s why we do this—to help us remember what an exciting thing the coming of Jesus is. So this week, as you wait patiently—or not so patiently—for Christmas, think of God’s people, Israel, living in dark times and faithfully hoping for the light God promised them through His prophets. And remember this: (SuperTruth) We can have hope because of God’s promises.

(Leader dismisses here or continues into the "People Living in Darkness" optional activity.)

The People Living in Darkness (Optional Activity)

How to Play:

• Choose two players and blindfold them.
• Have one player stand on a mark on the floor (masking tape works well for this).
• Have everyone else form a circle around the player, just the past player's arm’s reach.
• Have the second player join the circle and give them the tennis ball.
• The second player holds out the ball in the circle as everyone says, “Find the light!”
• The player in the center, using only one hand, stays on the mark and finds the ball.
• Once the player in the center finds the light, move the other blindfolded player to a new position in the circle and have the center player pass the ball back to them the same way.
• Switch the center player to the other player’s position and repeat the game.
• Play again with a new pair of players.

Notes: The fun of this game is watching the players. Focus on that, and fight the urge to find a competitive angle. Also, stress this fact if time constraints keep everyone from a turn as a player.

Be sure the circle stays large enough to avoid the center player’s flailing hands. People may have a tendency to ‘squeeze in,’ especially with a small number of students. If you have younger students, it may be worthwhile to tape a circle on the floor to show them where to stand.

Discussion:

How did it feel to be one of the blindfolded players? Confusing, fun, etc. 

How was it to see the blindfolded players trying to pass the ball to each other? Funny, frustrating, etc. 

Would it have been as much fun without the blindfolds? No. It would be too easy. 

It was fun watching them mess up, wasn’t it? And it was fun trying. But what if you were doing something important...would it be fun to be blindfolded? No. It would be frustrating. 

That’s how Israel was operating when Jesus came. Their religious leaders were not sure how to understand God’s words. It was like they were blind to God’s instruction. They were also blinded by their situation of being ruled by Rome. They needed help. Jesus came to shine His light, not just for them, but for everyone who came after.