Welcome

            Thank kids for coming.

            Just for fun, have kids high-five three of their friends.

            Make announcements.

            Introduce new kids.

            Celebrate birthdays by whispering the “Happy Birthday” song.

            Collect the offering.

Introduce the Lesson

            Say: Jesus is the light of the world. Today we’ll learn about the night Jesus was born.

Share

            Tell a story about when you were a baby.

            Have kids get in pairs and tell stories about when they were babies or about babies they know.

Summarize

            Open a Bible, and say: Today we’ll explore how Jesus is the light of the world and what that means to us. We’ll dig in to the Bible to find out. The Bible isn’t an ordinary book; it’s God’s special book. The Bible is one way God talks to us. God is here right now, ready to talk to you.

            Pray, thanking Jesus for being the light of the world.

Tip 

• Don’t have internet in your classroom? That’s okay! You can choose your own worship songs from our Best Of Dig In Music DVD here. 

Sing Songs to God

          Sing the three songs in any order. 

Tip

• For safety reasons, it's better to use thicker glow sticks, as the thinner, bracelet glow sticks can break.

A Dark Night

          Turn off all the lights and darken the room as much as possible.

          Say: It’s dark in our room, just like the night Jesus was born. Sometimes, even though it’s light outside, we can feel dark or sad inside. We might feel sad, afraid, or lonely.

          Have kids form small groups with a teenage or adult leader to discuss this question.

          Ask: • Tell about a time you felt sad, afraid, or lonely.

          Play music quietly while kids talk together. (This fills some of the background silence and makes it more comfortable for kids to share.)

          Say: When we go through dark times like the ones we’ve talked about, we need God’s love. God sent Jesus to be born! Jesus is the light of the world who came to show God’s love!

Angels Visit Shepherds

          Say: The Bible tells us that shepherds were out in a field that night, protecting their sheep from wild animals. Have kids imagine they are the shepherds in the dark field as you read aloud Luke 2:8-12, with expression. Turn on the lights.

          Say: I need your help celebrating this good news like the angels did.

          Read aloud Luke 2:13-14.

          Have kids pretend to be angels, crouch, and whisper “Glory to God” when your hand is low. Practice that. Have kids jump and shout “Glory to God” when your hand is high. Practice that.

          Say: There was one angel (hand low)

          And then more (hand medium)

          And then all the angels in heaven. (hand high)

          Do this again.

Heading to the Manger

          Say: After the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds hurried to find Jesus. And they found baby Jesus in the manger—just as the angel had said.

          Motion to the manger.

          Say: A manger is kind of like a big tub and is something you’d find in a barn. Animals eat out of a manger. It would be scratchy, dirty, and smelly!

          Read aloud Luke 2:6-7, and then have kids make baby crying sound effects.

          And the baby was in a dirty stable.

          Pass around the bag of potting soil and have kids smell it.

          Ask: • What would it be like to put a tiny baby in a dirty stable?

Shining God’s Light

          Have children gather around the manger; then turn off the lights.

          Say: Jesus was no ordinary baby; Jesus is God. Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus came to show God’s love to a world that was dark with sadness, fear, and sin.

          Pull back the blanket to show the glow cross. Let kids take turns looking inside the manger.

          Give children each a glow stick, but tell them not to crack it.

          Ask: • What do you usually do with a glow stick like this?

          Say: The shepherds had the most important news in the world. They ran and told everyone about the light of the world. The shepherds wanted to tell everyone about the light of the world—Jesus.

          Let kids crack their glow sticks and hold them up high.

Light Party

          Tell kids to hurry and tell as many people as possible that Jesus is the light of the world before you call “Stop!”

          Say: That was fun! We can tell everyone that Jesus is the light of the world. We can celebrate and share this amazing gift of God’s love for us!

To use this feature, please ask your DIG IN Director to create a One Room classroom. For instructions and tips on creating a classroom for at-home lessons, click here.

Tip 

• Don’t have internet in your classroom? That’s okay! You can download the videos before class using the “download” button at the link provided, or purchase DVDs here.

Discuss and Watch "Karl, Light of the World"

          Have kids get into groups of three. Say: Today we’re going to watch a video about a guy who got confused about something that was said at church. In your group, tell about a time you got confused about something someone said—it can be something you heard at church or someplace else. I’ll go first. Share your own story about a time you were confused about what someone said. Take about a minute to share so you model the type of sharing you’d like kids to do. Then invite children to share their own stories with their groups.

          Allow three minutes for sharing, and then have kids return their attention to you.

          Say: Let’s watch our video and see what happens.

          Watch “Karl, Light of the World.”

          Say: Karl was confused about what the pastor at his church said. He thought the pastor said that Karl should be the light of the world, and Karl thought that meant wearing a funny sunshine costume.  

          Ask: • What did Karl get wrong when he thought he was the light of the world? Allow another three minutes for kids to share in their groups, and then invite a few kids to share their answers with the larger group.

          Ask: • We know that Jesus is the light of the world, not us. But how can we show Jesus’ light in the world?

          Say: Jesus is the light of the world! We have the great opportunity to reflect the light and love of Jesus to others so they can experience that light and love, too.

Not available for this age level.

Try Without Light

          Say: Jesus is the light of the world, and he came to show us God’s love. Let’s have fun showing love to our friends.

          Have kids scatter around the room so they’re as far apart as possible. Dim the lights, and ask children to cover or close their eyes tightly—and keep them closed!

          Call out the following tasks one at a time, reminding children to keep their eyes closed or covered the whole time:

• hug a friend
• kindly pat someone on the back
• give a high-five
• find a friend and say, “Jesus is the light of the world!”

Celebrate Jesus

          Let children open their eyes and form a circle on the floor.

          Say: It looked like you had some trouble showing love.

          Ask: • Why was showing love hard?

          Say: When God sent Jesus to be born, it was like God saying, “I love you so much that I’m sending my very own Son to help you!” Jesus was like a light, shining God’s love to people who felt sad and lonely. Jesus is the light of the world.

          Turn on the lights. Say: Now that we have light, let’s play our game again!

          Repeat the activity, but keep the lights on and let kids keep their eyes open. Each time they show God’s love to a friend, call out “Jesus is the light of the world!”

          Say: The light made a big difference! Jesus is the light of the world, and that makes a big difference in our lives every day.

Wonder

          Read aloud Luke 2:13-14. Repeat the end where it says “with whom God is pleased.”

          Say: This verse makes it sound like God is going to give peace to only those people he likes. Does God have favorites? Let’s dig in to that.

Favorite Kids

          Choose a few of the kids as your “favorites.” If you have a large group, stop when you reach 20. Have your “favorites” come to you and get candy or another treat.

          Let your “favorites” eat their candy up front, and ask the other kids: • What’s this activity like for you?

          Ask the “favorite” kids: • What was this activity like for you?

          Ask everyone: • Do you think this is the way God treats people? Explain.

          Have the “favorites” rejoin the rest of the kids. Give everyone candy.

Peace on Earth

          Say: Some of you probably didn’t have a very peaceful feeling about that experience.

          Tell the kids about a time you felt God’s peace.

          Ask: • Turn to a partner and share about something that makes you feel peaceful.

          Say: That peaceful feeling is like God’s love filling your heart. True peace can only come from God. Jesus came to show God’s love—and to give us true peace—because Jesus is the light of the world.

Look at Verse Context

          Tell kids to listen to a Bible verse so they can answer this question: According to this verse, who is God’s good news for?

          Read Luke 2:10.

          Ask: • According to this verse, who is God’s good news for?

Look at Other Verses

          Tell kids to listen to a Bible verse so they can answer this question: What do these verses show you about favorites?

          Read Acts 10:34-36.

          Ask: • What do these verses show you about favorites?

          • Based on these verses, who can receive God’s peace?

Summarize

          Say: Everyone is special to God, and peace is available for everyone. Jesus is the light of the world, not just parts of it! What this verse is really saying is: “Glory to God in the highest, and peace and good will toward all people on earth.”

Glow Together

            Say: When the angels appeared to the shepherds, there were lots of angels shining God’s light together. Let’s play a game to think about what that was like.

            Hand each child a glow stick, and direct kids to scatter around the room.

            Choose one child to be the Messenger Angel. He or she will hop on one foot to another child and say, “Good news! Jesus is born!”

            Then the two children will join hands and hop to another child, where they’ll both share the exciting message.

            Continue until you have a “host” of angels telling you the good news.

            Allow children to play the game a few times. You can change the message to “Peace on earth” or “Jesus is the light!”

Talk About It

            After a few rounds, gather the glow sticks and set them in a corner of the room.

            Have children sit in a circle.

            Ask: • What was the most fun about our game?

            • Why is it fun to share good news?

         Say: The angels had the fun job of letting people know that Jesus—the light of the world—had been born! The angels even had God’s special light glowing all around them for the shepherds to see. We can be like those angels, sharing with our family and friends the good news that Jesus is the light of the world.

Tip

• Hide some of the pictures by taping them under a table or chair.

Find the Baby

            Give each child a glow stick if he or she doesn’t already have one.

            Say: In our Bible story, shepherds went to search for baby Jesus. Let’s look for Jesus just like the shepherds did.

            Hold up a picture of baby Jesus so kids know what to look for.

            Dim the lights. If the room is too dark with the lights dimmed, set a small lamp to one side of the room for safety.

            Have children use their glow sticks to find the hidden pictures.

            Optionally, play the sound effect of a baby crying while children search.

            As each child finds a picture, have him or her sit in the middle of the room.

            Once everyone has found a picture, have all the kids hold their lights high in the air and shout, “Jesus is the light of the world!”

            Play a few rounds, hiding the pictures between each round. You can even choose a few children to hide the pictures.

Pray

            Gather children. Say: Just as the shepherds found Jesus, you found Jesus, too. Jesus is the light of the world, and he showed God’s love to everyone.

            Have kids each think about a friend or family member who would be encouraged to know God loves him or her. Let kids pray silently for those people, asking God to shine Jesus’ light into their lives.

Make a Light

            Say: Jesus was born to show how much God loves us. Jesus is the light of the world! That means Jesus shines God’s love to us. Let’s make candles to help us remember that Jesus is the light of the world.

            Have kids color their craft sticks with markers.

            As kids color, ask: • When are you really glad to have a light?

            Have kids tear pieces of orange, yellow, and red tissue paper to make flames. Let kids use glue sticks to glue the “flames” to the top of their craft sticks. Let children glue glitter on the flames, too.

            Say: Let’s make stands so we can set out our candles to shine!

            Have kids use crayons to decorate foam cups and then turn the cups upside down and stick their “candles” in the bottoms of the cups.

Let It Shine

            Say: The shepherds ran and told everyone the good news that Jesus had been born.

            Ask: • Who do you want to tell about Jesus?

            • What will you tell about Jesus?

            Say: When you go home, you can use your candle to share the good news that Jesus is the light of the world!

Glow

            Darken the room. Have kids get out their glow sticks.

            Say: You’re special to God—so special that Jesus came to the world for you. Jesus brought God’s love to the world like a light.

Thank God

            Say: Hold your glow stick close to your body as we thank God for sending Jesus, the light of the world, to be with us.

            Lead kids in thanking God for Jesus.

Hide the Light

            Have kids each set their glow sticks on the floor in front of them and use their hands to cover the light.

            Say: We have something great to share. God doesn’t want us to hide the news that Jesus is the light of the world. Let’s show our lights!

Show the Light

            Say: Jesus wants us to shine his light and show love to others so they can know him, too.

            Have kids name some people they would like to share Jesus’ love with.

            Ask: • What things can you do to show Jesus’ love to others?

            Say: Hold your glow stick out in front of you as we ask God to help us share Jesus’ light with others.

            Lead kids in asking God to help them show Jesus’ love.

Shine

            Lead kids in holding up their lights and calling out ways they’ll share Jesus’ love.

            Say: Let’s thank God for sending Jesus because God loves us so much. Lead kids in shouting, “Thank you, God, for Jesus—the light of the world!”

            Thank kids for coming, and tell them you look forward to seeing them next week.

           Distribute a copy of the “Dig In @ Home” handout to kids as they leave, or email it to parents during the week.