YEA Lesson Library
The Right Stuff
About This Lesson
This lesson describes the humility and servanthood of Jesus, demonstrated in the Triumphal Entry, and contrasts that with Jesus’ return as King of kings.
Scriptures
2 Chronicles 7:14
Proverbs 16:9
Ecclesiastes 5:1-10
Matthew 21:1-11
John 12:12-19
James 4: 5-10
James 4:10
1 Peter 2:21-22
Words to Know
HUMILITY - a modest opinion of one’s own importance or rank; meekness
DONKEY - a long-eared, slow, surefooted domesticated mammal, related to the horse, used chiefly as a beast of burden
The Lesson
Have you ever visited England? Did you get to go to the stables at Buckingham Palace and see the royal carriages? At a royal wedding or coronation there’s not just a lot of stuff, there’s a lot of very expensive stuff – horse drawn carriages, jeweled crowns, beautiful clothing, pomp and circumstance, and pageantry. It’s awesome!
In England, the royal couple rides in a glass coach from Buckingham Palace through the streets of London to St. Paul’s Cathedral for their wedding. Six beautiful sleek horses pull this carriage. Nothing is too good for a king, queen or future king or queen.
The King of England certainly isn’t the first person to be very rich. Jesus’ ancestor, King David’s son, Solomon, was the wealthiest king on earth. God appeared to Solomon in a dream one night and told him to ask for anything he wanted, and it would be given to him. Wow, what an offer!
What would you have asked for? Solomon didn’t ask for riches or honor. He asked for wisdom. It pleased God so much that Solomon asked for wisdom, that He gave him riches and honor as well. This king had plenty of stuff. He became the richest and wisest of all the kings of the earth.
Jesus and His disciples approached Jerusalem one day. They were near the town of Bethphage on the Mount of Olives. Jesus sent two of the disciples ahead to get a donkey for Him to ride on as He made His entry into Jerusalem – the Holy City. His instructions to the disciples were “Just as you enter, you will see a donkey tied there, with its colt beside it. Untie them and bring them here. If anyone asks you what you are doing, just say, ‘The Master needs them,’ and there will be no trouble.”
The two disciples followed Jesus’ instructions and brought the colt to Him. They threw their coats over the donkey for Jesus to sit on. People in the crowd threw their coats on the road in front of Jesus and the colt. Others cut branches from trees and spread them out before Jesus.
As the crowd went ahead and behind Jesus they announced His coming by shouting “God bless King David’s Son!”. . . “God’s Man is here! Bless him, Lord!”. . . “Praise God in highest heaven!”
This didn’t go unnoticed. The entire city of Jerusalem paid close attention as Jesus entered and they ask, “Who is this?” The crowd responded by saying “It is Jesus of Nazareth.” This journey took Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem where He entered.
But why did Jesus tell His disciples to get a mere donkey, rather than a beautiful sleek horse with a carriage for Him to ride in to Jerusalem? After all, He is the King of kings! Like other kings, He could afford it because His Father owns everything! But more stuff wasn’t what He was after.
As the promised Messiah, there were many Old Testament prophecies that Jesus had to fulfill while He was on this earth. This was one of them. But what was the point of the prophecy? It was to “Tell Jerusalem her King is coming to her, riding humbly on a donkey’s colt!” Do you think King Charles III or Prince William would be caught dead riding on a mere donkey to Buckingham Palace? Jesus didn’t choose a beautiful sleek horse to make His entry into Jerusalem. Instead, He chose a long-eared, slow, surefooted domesticated beast of burden to ride. But even stranger than that, it was a donkey’s colt! Why, because it symbolized the humility and peace. Jesus made His entry into Jerusalem as a lowly humble servant.
Physical stuff just wasn’t important to Jesus. Even Solomon, with all of his riches, learned that stuff just isn’t that important. He said, “The more you have, the more you spend, right up to the limits of your income, so what is the advantage of wealth – except perhaps to watch it as it runs through your fingers!”( Ecclesiastes 5:11 TLB). Solomon concluded this book by saying “fear God and obey his commandments, for this is the entire duty of man. For God will judge us for everything we do, including every hidden thing, good or bad.”
Can you see that the stuff Jesus was made of was humility? But what kind of stuff should you be made of? In 1 Peter 2:21b it says “Christ, who suffered for you is your example. Follow in his steps.” What did He do that shows His humility? Verse 22 says, “He never sinned, never told a lie, never answered back when insulted; when he suffered he did not threaten to get even; he left his case in the hands of God who always judges fairly.
The stuff the King of kings chose was not more physical things. It was humility and service. He chose to ride the long-eared beast of burden. Then He carried our burdens on Himself and gave up everything He had when He died for our sins. This was the greatest act of service anyone could do and He did it humbly. Will you follow in Jesus’ footsteps, repent of your ego, pride and vanity and humbly follow Jesus’ example? Will you start putting sin out of your life, stop lying and stop answering back even when insulted? Will you start humbly serving others?
Jesus humbled Himself more than any man. When Jesus returns to this earth He will come with great glory riding on a horse, not a long-eared beast of burden. He will have the exalted position as King of kings! God wants to exalt you as well. But before He can, you must humble yourself. “Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up” (James 4:10).
Humility pays big! It’s the right stuff!
Student Prayer
Almighty God,
Thank you for your Son who was truly made of the right stuff. He didn’t choose physical stuff such as riches and fame. He made His entry into the Holy City on a long-eared beast of burden and humbly gave His life for my sins. It was the greatest act of service ever! Help me to show humility by putting sin out of my life, stop lying and stop answering back even when I’m insulted.
In Jesus’ name I pray.
Amen.
Daily Devotions
Sunday: Matthew 21:1-11
Monday: John 12: 12-15
Tuesday: 1 Peter 2:21
Wednesday: Ecclesiastes 5:1-10
Thursday: James 4: 5-10
Friday: Proverbs 16:9
Saturday: 2 Chronicles 7:14
Objectives
At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
1. Evaluate the pros and cons of having a lot of physical stuff.
2. Explain that when Jesus walked this earth, physical stuff wasn’t important to Him. He gave everything He had for us – His life.
3. Discuss what humility can do for them and how it is the right stuff.
4. State that Jesus set us an example in humility that we should follow.
Topics & Themes
Donkey
Fulfillment of Prophecy
Humility
Jesus, Messiah
Jesus, Return of
Jesus, Servant
Jesus Sets Example
King of kings
Peace
Repentance
Sin
Triumphal Entry
Wealth
Wisdom
Materials Needed
Bible, YEA students’ and teacher’s books, attendance and memory verse charts, songbook, cassette tape or CD, music player, newsprint pad, marker, paper, pencils
How to Teach This Lesson
Begin the class by playing this game. Pass out a piece of paper and a pencil to every student. Ask them to write down everything they have on their person and in their possession, and put a price on it. This should include their contact lenses, braces, jewelry, clothing, wallet, purses and contents, money, things in their pockets, etc. Then they are to add up the prices. Join the students in doing the same thing. Now ask for the total amount of possessions they have on them. Mention that what each person has could be greater than the average income in many Third World countries.
Personal Possessions - Debrief by asking: Is all of the stuff you have with you necessary? Which of this stuff would have really been important had you been in the World Trade Center on 9-11? Which of the stuff that you listed on your paper makes you better able to serve other people? Let everyone read the stuff from his list that equips him to better serve others, and add those things to a list on the newsprint pad.
Expectations - What kinds of things do you feel a teenager should be allowed to own? Allow the students to debate this. What does having all of this stuff do to your attitude? How could having all of this stuff stand between you and serving God? How will this stuff help you in setting a Christian example? How will this stuff help you in bringing others to Christ?
That Rich Stuff - How did King Solomon, the richest king of earth, look at having a lot of physical stuff? Ask one of the students to read Ecclesiastes 5:11.
Our Example - We learned in our lesson that Jesus is our example and we are to follow in His steps. What kind of stuff did He own? What was the Right Stuff that He had? (Humility.) What can we do to follow in His steps? When Jesus comes back to this earth He will be in a very exalted position as King of kings. What do you have to do to be exalted? Ask one of the students to read James 4:10.
Now go over the activity in the students book with your class. Ask how many would like to change any of their answers.
Teacher-Directed Activity
Instead of just talking about humble service, have the students really do it. Use this time as a planning session for a secret service project. Let the kids brainstorm things they can do unnoticed to help other people. These could include such things as taking the trash out when no one is looking, putting an anonymous encouraging note on a student’s locker, picking up cans and trash in an alley way or on a beach when no one is looking, etc. Tell them that everyone is to find as many secret service things as they can do this week and report on them in class two weeks from now. An award will be given to the person who does the most secret services because they love God enough to serve others.
REACH Activity
Spotlight Memory Verse
Read the YEA lesson memory verse carefully and, using your Bible tools, find the meaning of the word humility, the phrase “in the sight of the Lord,” and the meaning of “he shall lift you up.” Taking the verse apart gives you the opportunity to consider its real life application. How does this verse apply to you? In your Bible notebook, write down its application to your life, and find three Scriptures that support or connect to the memory verse.
Where in the World?
Use Bible tools to create a map of Jerusalem in the time of Jesus Christ. How does the ancient city of Jerusalem compare to present day Jerusalem? Write your information in your Bible notebook. What is the meaning of the word Jerusalem? Why is its meaning significant? Research the meaning of at least three different important Bible cities or towns. What is the significance of their meanings? Use your Bible tools to find out and write the information in your Bible notebook. Share the information with your class or family.
They Did What Back Then?
What were the Old Testament prophecies about the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ? Use your Bible tools to locate five to ten Scriptures that are “prophetic” in nature. Then find New Testament Scriptures that fulfill the Old Testament prophecies. Record the information in your Bible notebook and share it with your class or family.
Making It Mine
What is humility? How do you know when you are humble? How do you become humble if you are not? Part of humility is taking, honestly, the attitude of a servant. That means actually working for someone else, even when it’s hard and even if you don’t get anything from it right now. You serve, not to make people think you are somebody wonderful. You serve, not to draw attention to yourself. You quietly serve because you love God and He has called you to follow in the steps of Jesus Christ. When you begin to serve with the right attitude, God can use you for His glory. But, be careful! Our human nature fights against being humble. Pride will creep in to take the glory, not for God, but for yourself. Spend some time praying about this. Then write about the topic of humility in your Bible notebook.
Worldview Collision
On each of the reality TV shows, there is some twist, some surprise, to eliminate a contestant. It has to be that way. If it were completely straightforward and you knew who was going to win before the contest even started, there would be no thrill in watching. The audience would have no curiosity, and therefore, no desire to watch. But that doesn’t stop us from having our favorites and guessing which contestant will win. It’s kind of like that in life. The goal is the Kingdom of God. Some contestants in life don’t realize that’s the goal, but they’re still in the contest. And they think they can win by being the best. Sometimes it’s not possible to be better than someone else. When that happens, the way they get ahead is to try to make the other person look bad. Sometimes being the best means accumulating more stuff than everyone else. Sometimes being the best means saying what people want to hear, instead of the unvarnished truth. Whatever the means, people scratch, claw, struggle, and fight to come out on top. That’s the world’s way. God’s way is through humility. “Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up” (James 4:10). It doesn’t seem like humility is the way. But God says it is. And he’s the director of the biggest reality show there is—Life.
Song
“Here I Am, Lord” is on page 85 of The Group Songbook.
Closing Prayer
Have the students form a circle and join hand. Ask for a volunteer to lead in prayer asking God to help us have the right attitude about physical stuff and to follow Jesus’ example and walk in His steps.
Printable Pages
