The Greatest Invitation


Scripture: Luke 14:7-35

Learning Objectives:

  • Students will learn God expects us to be humble.
  • Students will learn God expects us to be unselfish when we serve others.
  • Students will learn being a disciple of Jesus may mean sacrificing many things.
  • Students will participate in an activity to invite others to learn about Jesus.

Guiding Question: How do we need to respond to God’s invitations to us?

Materials: paper or blank invitation, markers, sample invitation

Procedure: Tell students the Parable of a Wedding Banquet from the scriptures above.. Explain that just like the other parables, these parables also mean more than just the obvious story. Ask older students if they know what those additional deeper meanings might be. Explain that God provides us with several invitations during our lives. The most important invitation is whether or not we will follow and serve Him by becoming a Christian. After we become Christians though, there are other invitations from God: to worship Him, to obey Him, to serve Him by serving others and the Church, by sharing our faith.

Explain to students that although God could make us do all of these things if He wanted to do so, God wants us to choose to accept these invitations because we want to do so.

Tell students that today they will design an invitation to invite one of their friends to come to a church service or activity with them. (If time allows, they can make more than one invitation and invite additional friends.) Show them some samples of invitations to other events.

Encourage students to make their invitations really nice, so the other person will enjoy reading them. Discuss the information that should go on the invitation. Talk about the different types of illustrations they may want to draw on their invitations. Encourage students to personally deliver their invitations if possible. Try to remember during the next class to discuss how the invitations were received. Discuss the necessity of continuing to pray for those they invited and to continue to invite them to other things.

Additional Questions: How does practice sharing our faith help others who are “lost”?

Supplemental Activity: Have students pair up – one pretending to be “lost” and one inviting them to church or Bible study. Have the student inviting practice talking to the “lost” student and encouraging them to come to church/Bible study. Have students take turns and after everyone is finished, allow time for the students to ask questions about how to minister to others.

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