Elementary Level, Block 10—Apostles / Paul
Week 100
Apostle John—Being Faithful to the End
Point to Emphasize: We can be those who are faithful to God all the days of our lives.
Reading Reference: 1 John 2:1, note 1; 2 John 3, note 1; Ephesians 6:1-3; CWWN, vol. 4, “The Christian,” ch. 1; Life-study of 1, 2, 3 John and Jude, msgs. 13, 19; CWWN, vol. 35, “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,” ch. 11
Memory Verse: Train up a child according to the way he should go; / Even when he is old, he will not depart from it. (Proverbs 22:6)
Story Sample
Who knows someone who is over ninety years old? Maybe your great grandparent? Wow! Ninety-four! That’s a lot of years! How old are you now? Five, six, or seven-years-old? This means you have lived very few years. Someone who is over ninety has lived for many years. They’ve had a full life. It is a blessing to live a long life.
There was a person in the New Testament who lived for over ninety years old. His name was John. John was a young person when Jesus lived on earth. John knew Jesus and became a close follower of Him. And he remained a follower all the years that he lived. If we were to use one word to describe John, we can use the word faithful. John remained faithful, loyal, and steadfast all the days of his life. This is just wonderful! He was faithful not just for a few days or for a few years. He was faithful his entire life!
One of my grandfathers lived until he was eighty-seven years old. He was so sweet and caring. Whenever we would visit him, he was out in the backyard humming the melody of a hymn. He was a happy person. Even when he was getting older and was using a cane to help him walk, he always had a smile on his face. He loved all his grandchildren so much. He had all our pictures on his wall and would pray for each one of us every day. He enjoyed singing. I would play the guitar, and he would sit next to me to sing to God. My grandfather was faithful to his wife, to his children, and to all his grandchildren. But most importantly, he was faithful to God. From the first day he heard about God, all the way until his last day, he loved God and was faithful to God. [Storyteller, please insert your personal story of someone you know who was faithful to God until their last days.]
I hope by hearing this today, you will be inspired to live a long life and to be a faithful person. You were born into a family that loves God. And your life has only started. I hope you all live a long life. The Bible says it is a blessing to live a long life. John was blessed to live a very long life and he was faithful to God all those years. You can start being faithful today. You can be faithful to God every time you learn a verse and sing a children’s meeting song. You are also faithful to God when you get ready quickly to be on time for children’s meeting. As you continue to grow, you can also be faithful as a young person and as an adult. I hope we all have a blessed long life like John and remain faithful to God all our years.