FNC An Encounter with Jesus

 Sorry, this is so raw that it is almost unuseable. I will work on getting a version that actually makes sense up here in the near future.

I think this is the way that I want to go with this. I like the idea of coming up with some sort of “encounter” with Jesus. I don’t know what this means though. I guess I would do something about Jesus and how we come in contact with Jesus. So what am I thinking about?

Jesus as healer/comforter (salty v sweat : tears v joy)

(oversalt some crackers so that they are almost too salty to eat) 

Matthew 15:30 (NIV)

Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them.

Jesus was and is a healer. He came to earth to heal the physical problems of so many people, and he also came to heal the more serious wounds, those deep wounds within our own hearts. As we encounter Jesus it is important that we seek after His healing touch. Only Jesus can restore the hurts in your heart.

Take a cracker from the table and eat it. Spend some time focusing on the salty taste. Ask God to bring to your mind things that have hurt you or things in your life that need healing. As you taste the salt in your mouth think of the tears that have been shed about this hurt in your life.

Once you have dwelt on the taste of your tears take a piece of chocolate from the bowl and find a place to be alone. Jesus wants to heal your life and bring you from the salty tears of pain to the sweet taste of healing. Pray and ask him to be a healer for you. Ask him for the miracle of healing on the hurts that are in your life. Once you have prayed, eat the piece of chocolate. Savor the sweet taste. Think about how different the taste of the salt is from the taste of the chocolate. That is the same difference that Jesus wants to bring to your life. Encounter him in this place as your healer.

Jesus as Lord/worthy of worship (table covered with paper and art supplies write "Jesus is Worthy of Worship" on the paper  and allow students to write or draw why they feel that Jesus is worthy of worship)

Matthew 16:13-16 (NIV)

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"

[14] They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

[15] "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?"

[16] Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

Any encounter with Jesus must begin with an encounter with Jesus as LORD. Jesus wasn’t just a good man; He wasn’t just a good teacher; He wasn’t just a healer or a worker of miracles. Jesus was God, and He still is God. As God Jesus is worthy of all of our praise and all of devotion.

Use the art supplies on the table to draw a picture of why you feel that Jesus is worthy of worship. You can also write a poem or a paragraph describing the worthiness of Jesus as well. Jesus is Lord. Don’t leave this place without encountering Him as the Lord of your life.

Jesus as non-conformist (Place some clay and some cookie cutters on a table.)

Look at this and think of the many molds you try to fit into. Good student, jock, comedian, popular kid, athlete, class clown, the good kid, or whatever. Think of the effort that you put out to try and make other people think you fit in.

Now take the clay and roll it up into a ball. Shape the clay into some sort of design that is different from all of the molds. Think about how God created you to be more than just a cookie cutter like everyone else person. God created you to be you, and what everyone else thinks about you isn’t as important as what God thinks about you. When you are finished roll the clay back into a ball for the next person

Mark 4:39-41 (NIV)

[Jesus] got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

[40] He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"

[41] They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"

Jesus is hard to summarize. He is the only man to ever live life the way that God intended and yet the religious people of the day never could understand Him. He ate with outcasts and did things that everyone thought was wrong or crazy. Even those people closest to him, the disciples, didn’t really understand who He was and were often awed to the point of fear at what He did and who He was. Jesus was the ultimate non-conformists. He refused to fit into anyone’s mold of Him except for God’s.

Take a ball of clay and use the cookie cutters to mold it into various shapes. As you do think of how many molds you try to fit into: Popular Kid, Jock, Class Clown, Good Student, Comedian, The Pretty Girl, The Best Friend, The Crazy One, The Good Kid, or whatever. Think about the effort that you put off so that other people will think that you matter, so that you can fit in with others and fit into their idea of who you should be.

Now take the clay and ball it up again. This time don’t use any of the molds other than what is in your head and make your own shape. As you do think about who it is that God created you to be, not who other people think you should be, but who God made you to me. The amazing thing about Jesus is that He lived outside of the expectations of others. He lived for God and God alone. That is very powerful for those of us who are trapped in the molds of other people. Take a moment and encounter Jesus as Mold-Breaker and ask Him to form you to His plan for you life.

Once you have finished please roll the clay back into a ball for the next person.

Jesus as savior/forgiver (a table with handheld chalkboard and chalk. You can get some small ones cheap at Oriental Trading)

Col. 2:13-15 (NIV)

When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, [14] having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. [15] And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

Jesus took the penalty for all of your mistakes, all of your sins. On the cross He chose to substitute His life for yours. Jesus knew who you were. He knew how you would mess up, and He knew all of the stuff that you do that you are ashamed of, and He chose to die for you anyway. The most amazing aspect of Jesus for me is Jesus as forgiver. He chose to forgive me and he chose to forgive you.

Take one of the chalk boards and a piece of chalk from the table and find a place to be by yourself. Draw a large outline of a cross on your board. Use the chalk to write down the things that you have done wrong.

Once you have your list ask Jesus to forgive you for those sins and if you have never encountered him as Savior before, to come into your heart and forgive you of all of your sins.

After you have prayed take the side of the chalk and fill in the cross. Be sure to cover up everything that you have written there. As someone who has accepted the forgiveness and the gift of Jesus’ sacrifice for you that is all that God sees when he looks at your life. All of the sins that you feel so ashamed about are covered by the cross. Leave here knowing that you have encountered your Savior in the person of Jesus and He has forgiven you and made you clean.

Jesus as lover/and one who reached out to outcasts (make student sheets with 3 concentric circles arranged likea target)

On the back of this sheet you will find 2 circles.
In the middle circle write the initials of people who are your closest friend. In the outer circle write initials of people who you are friends with, but maybe not hang out with. Outside the circles write the initials of people who you come in contact with, but whom you never really interact with. Ask God to bring people to your mind who are beyond your normal circle.

Pray for each of these groups of people that you can be a real witness to each of them. Ask God to give you a heart like Jesus to reach out to the marginalized of society.

(if you want to make this even more interectatice you can have a spiral of candles that students can light one candle in each section as a symbol of being a witness to these people.)

 

Pray for each of these groups of people that you can be a real witness to each of them. Ask God to give you a heart like Jesus to reach out to the marginalized of society.

Luke 7:37-38; 44-48 (NIV)

When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, [38] and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.

Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. [45] You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. [46] You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. [47] Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven--for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."

[48] Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."

Jesus was always reaching out to the people that the rest of society marginalized. He was a friend of outcasts and sinners not just as part of his public life, but he hung out with them, had dinner with them, and called them His friends. He could have used His position to hang out with the most powerful people of His day, but instead He chose to live with people that most other people didn’t give a second glance. It is amazing to encounter this side of Jesus. Jesus is fully God and yet He wants to hang out with everyone, even those people that other people say are unworthy.