Dear Parents,

Our KidLife Preschool and Elementary Class are currently studying through the entire Bible while focusing on the Gospel. As they learn the incredible stories of Scripture, they’ll be taught how Christ is connected to all of it.

We have a deep desire to come along side you, the parent, and help you disciple your children. We want to help you teach them about God’s Word. Every week, we will send home information about the lesson your child learned. We also plan to include the lesson in our church program and post a weekly summary here, on the Grace Life Blog.

Take the time each day to go over what they learn, memorize the Scripture verse with them, and continue to show them Jesus. The greatest responsibility we have as parents is to disciple are kids and to show them how to follow Jesus. For more information on the importance of Family Discipleship, here’s a quick Facebook Live video or you can listen to this sermon on Family Discipleship from Pastor Matt.

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Here is this week’s summary:

Malachi the Prophet

Malachi

Story Point: God’s people repented and promised to be faithful.

Big Picture Question: Who is in control of everything? God is in control of everything in heaven and on earth.

Christ Connection: God’s Word is powerful. When Ezra read God’s Word, the people loved God more and changed their ways. The Bible says that Jesus is “the Word.” Jesus is God who came to live with people on earth. Jesus has the power to change our hearts.

Key Passage: 1 Peter 5:10

Dear Parents,

After many years living as prisoners in Babylon, God’s people had returned to Judah. They had worked hard and overcome opposition to rebuild the temple and the walls around Jerusalem. Surely God would restore them … finally! But nothing happened. As they waited, they faced drought and economic uncertainty. God’s people probably didn’t feel like God had blessed them at all.

“It is useless to serve God,” they said. “What have we gained by keeping his requirements?” (Mal. 3:14). Did God still care? It wasn’t long until God’s people fell back into the same patterns of sin that led to their exile in the first place: idolatry, covetousness, hypocrisy, arrogance, and abuse of the poor.

But God did still love His people. He had been working out His divine plan of redemption, and He never gave up on them. God sent a message to His people through the prophet Malachi.

Malachi was the last of the Old Testament prophets. He spoke to God’s people approximately 100 years after the end of the Babylonian captivity. Malachi’s message from God was a wake-up call.

God communicated through Malachi that the people’s lack of blessing didn’t mean that God didn’t care. God exposed His people’s sin and made clear that their actions merited a curse. God’s people needed to repent and turn back to God. “But for you who fear my name,” God said, “the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings” (Mal. 4:2).

Explain to your kids that 400 years of silence followed Malachi’s prophecy; God did not communicate to His people. This period brings us to the New Testament, when the silence would be broken by the last prophet before Jesus, John the Baptist. His words about Jesus in John 1:29 offered hope to all who heard: “Here is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”

Malachi was a messenger—a prophet—who told God’s people to repent. Malachi also told about another messenger God would send. This messenger, John the Baptist, would call people to repent and get them ready for a final Messenger, Jesus Christ. Jesus would bring good news of salvation.

Check this session’s Activity Page and Big Picture Card as well as the Gospel Project for Kids Family App for ways to interact with the Bible content this week.

FAMILY STARTING POINTS

• • Babies and Toddlers
    • Nothing can stop God’s good plan.
    • Jesus came to give us good news.
    • Malachi told people God’s words.
    • God promised to send a messenger before the Messiah.
    • Jesus is God’s Son, the Messiah.
  • Preschool
    • Who is in control of everything? God is in control of everything.
    • Malachi said a messenger would get people ready for the Messiah.
  • Kids
    • Who is in control of everything? God is in control of everything in heaven and on earth.
    • Malachi called God’s people to repent to prepare for the Messiah.

UNIT KEY PASSAGE

• • 1 Peter 5:10

NEXT WEEK

• • “From Adam to Jesus” (Matthew 1; Luke 3; John 1)