Spirit of Adoption

Acts 2:1-4, New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost

2When the day of Pentecost came, all the believers gathered in one place. 2Suddenly a sound came from heaven. It was like a strong wind blowing. It filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3They saw something that looked like fire in the shape of tongues. The flames separated and came to rest on each of them. 4All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit. They began to speak in languages they had not known before. The Spirit gave them the ability to do this.

New International Reader's Version (NIRV) Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Pentecost Sunday is an excellent time to offer an intergenerational opportunity during worship. Have a young person say the Lord’s Prayer in a language different from what is typically spoken in your service. If you have a child who speaks a different language, encourage him or her to say the prayer in the worship service on this day .

Supplies:

Provide a small bottle of bubbles for each child. Try to get red containers for the bubbles. Find a big bubble fan so the leader can make many bubbles at once.

Message:

How do you celebrate your birthday? Do you have a birthday cake with candles? Do you have a party and invite friends? Do you hand out party favors? (Allow children to respond to the questions.) I have a party favor for each of you. Bubbles! Birthdays celebrate the day you were born and your becoming another year older.

Today is Pentecost Sunday. Pentecost is like a birthday party for the church. Each year, the church celebrates Pentecost, just like you celebrate your birthday each year. It is a time to remember how God powerfully sent the Holy Spirit as the promised helper. We celebrate each year and remember how the church was born by the power of the Holy Spirit.

When you have a party, do you send out invitations? Do you invite only friends your age? (Allow children to answer.) During the birthday party of Pentecost, God’s Spirit blew like a wind onto everybody there, both old and young, people of all ages. They saw little flames of fire above their heads. The Holy Spirit filled all of them.

They began talking about what had happened in many different languages, and all the people from other lands understood all that was said. The Spirit was poured out onto every nation and every language. That tells us that God is with ALL people, regardless of their language. That means there is room for ALL people in the church. It was the birthday of the New Testament church! When the church has a party, everyone is invited.

When you go to a birthday party, you either get or give a gift. What is amazing about Pentecost is that we ALL have been given the gift of the Spirit. We don’t keep this gift to ourselves. We share this gift of the Holy Spirit with everyone we meet to show them Jesus’ love.

To celebrate this birthday, let’s all blow bubbles from our red bottle. Red reminds us of the little flames of fire that were present. On Pentecost, a big wind filled the place where the disciples were while they experienced the Holy Spirit. We’re going to play with the wind while we blow bubbles. Let’s blow wind into our bubble wands after we say “Amen” at the end of our prayer to send it on its way.

Prayer:

God, thank you for the birthday of the church. Thank you for the church having room for a person like me. Fill me with the Holy Spirit! In Christ’s name, Amen. (Blow bubbles from both individual wands and the big bubble blowing fan while the children leave the altar area.)