| This John the Baptist craft makes a very simple dove from two strips of paper. It’s a perfect craft for younger kids and a selection could make a stunning hanging display. |  |
The story of John the Baptist has many elements that be drawn out. There is the survivalist, wearing skins and eating honey, the prophet, a new Elijah, the rabbi, whose disciples join Jesus, the transformer, baptising people in repentance, and the humble, who recognises Jesus before many of the others. This story focuses on the last, though any of the themes could easily be given more emphasis.
This retold version of the Bible passage is supplied for inspiration, feel free to omit or embellish to give it your personal voice.
Main passage: Mark 1
Additional Passages: Matthew 3, John 1
John’s life was amazing. His dad, Zechariah, had been an old priest in the temple and his mum, Elizabeth, was old when he was born too. It’s not surprising that John wasn’t like other kids. When he got old enough, he set off into the wilderness and desert. He made himself clothes from camel skins, he ate locusts and wild honey.
John knew God had a plan for him, and that was to get people ready for what was coming. So, John started telling people that they needed to change their lives, to think differently, to turn around and face towards God, to get rid of all the nasty stuff in their lives, to act right. “Someone special was coming”, said John, “someone who would change everything.”
Lots of people were impressed with John the Baptist and would go and listen to him. John used a symbol to show that people agreed to change. He would walk out into the cool river with them and dip them under the water. This was called a baptism. He did this to show that their old ways of living life were washing away with the water, and they could start living a new kind of life with God.
One day, Jesus came to see John. John saw him coming and knew exactly who he was. He told his disciples, “This is the one I meant when I said, ‘One who is more powerful than I am is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the strap of his sandals. I baptise you with water, but he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit.’”
Jesus walked up to John and asked to be baptised. John was amazed. Jesus didn’t need to be baptised. Jesus already had the new kind of life with God. John tried to say no. John had a special quality called humility. Humility means that you recognise that you are God’s servant, that God is much greater than you, and you respect great things in other people. John said ‘no’ to Jesus because John thought he wasn’t worthy.
But Jesus had other plans. He led John into the water and whispered, “It’s part of the big plan, John. Please baptise me.” John dipped Jesus into the water and then stood back as Jesus stood up, water dripping from his hair and his clothes. The clouds in the sky seemed to disappear, the light got brighter and something seemed to be falling from the sky onto Jesus. Like a bird, a dove, it floated down and rested on him. Then a voice came, not from John, or Jesus, or the crowd, but from Heaven:
“This is my son,” said the voice, “and I am very happy with him.”
John shows us the gift of Humility
This lesson is all about 3 things, shoes, water, and humility. The first two are games idea gifts, if you have a favourite game that in some ways involves either, then do use that.
The big shoe dash
All Ages
Big group
Requires setup time
Noisy game
Space needed
This is great if you have a big enough group. Throw a third of the left shoes into a massive pile under a large sheet or parachute. Lift the cover a couple of times and then hold it at waist height, and those missing a shoe race to get back to their places with the missing shoe replaced.
Broken Man
All Ages
Any size group
Requires setup time
Quiet game
Space needed
A character recognition tool, basically a simple puzzle game for any age but perfect for small groups and younger children. Find a bold cartoon picture of the character depicted in the lesson (you can use the image that I’ll provide with the lesson) and cut it out along the black lines. You’ll be left with many odd shapes and colours, which you pin round the room and reassemble as a group.
Drowning men
Ages 7+
Big group
Requires setup time
Noisy game
Space needed
This is a variation of tug of rope. You mark out two areas of water and use a rope with 3 knots. The middle knot is the ‘man’ and the other two must be held at all times by one team member. If any of your team, or the ‘man’ reaches the water, they drown. The aim is to drown the other team, for every team member you drown you score 2 points, and lose 1 point if you drown the ‘man’! The game ends when 1 team score a score -/+5.
Shoe removal
Ages 7+
Small group
Requires setup time
Noisy game
Space needed
It can be a tricky game when played with the original bucket of water, but can be made easier by varying the objects, perhaps an empty cardboard box would be better for a first attempt. The idea is that 4 youngsters of similar height, lay on their backs with their feet in the air forming a table on which a bucket of water is balanced. They must each remove their shoes without either standing up or spilling the water.
3 legged races
All Ages
Any size group
No Setup time
Noisy game
Space needed
The old ones are always popular and so simple to work. Using shoelaces is a good way into the lesson as well.
| This is a more traditional craft for John the Baptist, it gives the wonderful illusion of water by using baking parchment to give the semi transparent quality of the river. It’s a really simple craft for any age and there are templates with and without the words showing for groups using different translations. |  |
| This John 1 logos activity is a simple alternative to a craft and can be a used as a logic puzzle. It ties into John 1 where Jesus is described as ‘The Word’ or as John would have written ‘Logos’. I’ve tried to keep the style or lettering that was similar to what may have originally been penned. |  |
This passage in John 1 lends itself to word games, hunts for letters, light, and order. John was beginning, but he was aware that he wasn’t starting the story, it was already alive. Choose the game or games that suit your group and setup best.
Beginning
All Ages
Any size group
No Setup time
Quiet game
Can be seated
Have you ever turned a doodle into a picture? Give each child a sheet of paper and a pencil. Have them draw a circle. They then have 1 minute to turn it into a picture of something. Repeat with other shapes: triangle, square, zigzag, spiral, etc.
Link : How to start a gospel.
Find a word
Ages 7+
Small group
Requires setup time
Quiet game
Can be seated
Grab a letter-based game and put out the letters. Explain that the kids have to make a word using the letters that link to the word you give them. This can be against the clock or against another team. Words to give : sport, food, family, write, Jesus.
Link : John trying to describe Jesus
Light hunt
Under 7’s
Any size group
Requires setup time
Noisy game
Space needed
Crack a bunch of glow-sticks and then hide them around the room, drop the lights and challenge the kids to find them. If you have many colours, you can hide different colours according to age group or have kids only collect one of each colour.
Link : Darkness can’t stop the light.
Order
Ages 7+
Any size group
Requires setup time
Quiet game
Can be seated
Grab a selection of random objects and give them to the youngsters. Tell them they have to put them in ‘order’. Let them decide of what that order will be. Talk about how when we put something together, we send messages about the order we see. Challenge them to choose another way of ordering them: how many can they do? If they are stuck, try size, colour, usefulness, beauty, or purpose.
Link : John was sending the message that Jesus’ story was part of the big story from the beginning.
Echoes
All Ages
Any size group
Requires setup time
Noisy game
Can be seated
A simple mimic game where the first person taps out a small beat and passes it around the group, once it reaches the last person they change the beat. Add in sound effects as your group gets more confident.
Link : John was echoing something familiar — Genesis 1.
| This John 1 candle craft ties into John 1:5 “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” The craft jumps out of the page and is made entirely from a single sheet printout. |  |
Here are the images you need for the hero’s attributes linked to ‘The Word’ (John 1).
Each hero set contains a high quality graphic of the character, a take home bible card and a colouring page.
The images are displayed small here, click on the image you wish to have, then save the image that loads.
(These images are not copyright free, they are for personal/classroom use only.)
