Repeating Game

Read Matthew 16:13–14:

¹³ When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”  ¹⁴ “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.

The people had different opinions about Jesus. It is likely that several of these people simply repeated what they had heard others say instead of really trying to discover His true identity. The religious leaders were blind to the truth and refused to believe Jesus was God’s Son.   

Have you ever played the Telephone Game? Our game today is like it. We will play in teams. One player on each team will be given a word or phrase. He/she will whisper it to the next player and so on down the line until it reaches the last player. The last player will stand up and say the word or phrase aloud, and we will see if it is accurate and matches the original word or phrase. Listen carefully—players can only say the word or phrase once, not repeating it, and it must be whispered so others can’t hear. If you don’t understand what someone whispers to you, you can’t ask them to say it again. Simply tell the next person what you thought you heard, even if it doesn’t make sense.

Divide the class into two or more even teams. For smaller classes, you may play as one large group.  

Each team stands or sits in a circle or straight line several feet from the other team.

Players must be close enough to lean over and whisper to the player beside them.

Whisper the same word or phrase to the first player on each team. Say it only once. Use the list provided below or make up your own. Use longer or more difficult phrases as children become familiar with the game, especially if they are older.  

Players cannot ask for the word or phrase to be repeated at any time.  

The first player whispers the word or phrase into the ear of the next player, who then whispers it to the next person. Repeat until the word or phrase reaches the last player on each team.    

The last players say the word or phrase aloud so all can see if it is accurate and matches the original word or phrase.

Play as many rounds as time allows. If you choose, you may award points to the team which matches the original word or phrase or is the closest.   

Word and Phrase List

• Bethsaida
• Blind Bartimaeus
• Galatians and Ephesians
• Jesus had twelve disciples.
• The Ten Commandments 
• The man washed in the pool of Siloam.
• Jesus is the light of the world.      
• Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John    
• Jesus preached to crowds of people. 
• Phillip, Matthew, Judas, and Mark were all disciples.  
• Jesus opens the eyes of the blind.   
• There are 27 books in the New Testament.
• Prayer, worship and thanksgiving
• Jesus asked, “Who do you say that I am?”
• The Old Testament has 39 books. 

Conclusion: In this game, the farther the information traveled from the source, the less likely it was to be true. As we discussed in our teaching today, we need to pray and read our Bibles so the Holy Spirit can speak directly to our hearts. God is the source of truth.