Christmas Lesson for Youth Group, Teenage Ministry FREE
- Eljoh Hartzer
- Feb 28
- 19 min read
Lesson Title: JOY to the world
Lesson Objective: Students will learn how the birth of Jesus was foretold to Mary by the angels and will celebrate the birth of Jesus as the promised Savior of the world.
Sticky Statement: JESUS: Joy Eternal Stirs Up Souls.
Key Verse: Luke 1:28
Definitions: Joy: “rejoicing, in spite of circumstances, that God is in control of everything and always has our best in mind”
Checklist:
A PowerPoint is described at the end of this post for this lesson.
Candy (Hook)
Video: 1minute 40 seconds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dj0MEV7d1NE (Lesson Content)
Worship music ready to be played over a speaker (Next Steps)
GENERAL LESSON INSTRUCTIONS
Teacher’s Note: Today’s lesson is all about the birth of Jesus. You’ll look at how the world pursues joy and happiness (e.g. like a Happy Meal) and then find out the definition of true joy. You’ll discover that Jesus was a great source of joy for God’s people. The Scripture studied will show how the angel Gabriel and Mary (Luke 1:26-28) and the shepherds and the angels (Luke 2:8-14) rejoiced about the birth of Jesus. A brief overview will be given of the big story between God and His people (the Old Testament) and how it all led to Jesus. Finally, the students will be invited to choose JOY because 1) God is writing a big story and 2) He is a promise-keeper. Students will be encouraged to trust God for purpose and promises in areas of life where they have lost hope. In the end, you can spend some time in worship thanking God for the gift of Jesus.
The instructions for interactive parts like questions or acting something out are in the text, you don’t need to prepare any props or anything out of the ordinary.
GENERAL LESSON FORMAT
Hook:
Human beings have been obsessed with the pursuit of joy and happiness since the beginning of time. Raise your hand if you’ve ever heard a phrase like “the pursuit of joy” or “the search for happiness”. [Wait for them to respond, then say “Thanks, you can lower your hands!”]
Today we are going on such a journey ourselves. We are on a pursuit to understand joy so that we can understand why the birth of Jesus, what we now call Christmas, is sometimes called “Joy to the world!”
[Show the PowerPoint slide that is the title: Joy to the world!]
In popular music, there are songs with lyrics like “I’m on the pursuit of happiness…”
In advertizing, we are convinced to buy a “Happy Meal”.
Best-selling books have titles like “The Happiness Equation” or “Solve for Happy”.
People are likely to wear clothes with messages about happiness or joy, like a t-shirt with the word “happy” in big letters across the front.
In Denmark there is even a place that is called the ‘Happiness Research Institute’. This company makes it their aim to understand happiness. Imagine if that was your job, to find out what makes people happy!
Let’s brainstorm and see if you can think of some more examples like these… Raise your hand if you have an example and you’ll receive a reward. Let’s begin![Allow students to raise their hands.] [Allow for 2 student responses and reward with candy.]
Can you think of another song with lyrics that has something to do with joy or happiness?
What other foods are branded with the word ‘joy’ or ‘happy’ in it?
Can you think of a movie about joy or happiness?
People have always been looking for happiness or joy. The thing is, there is truth in some of these examples and we can certainly learn from them. But most people will say that those feelings don’t last. There is a difference between happiness and joy... Happiness lasts for a minute or a moment, but joy goes beyond circumstances. Happiness is like a little kid eating an ice cream - but what happens when the ice cream melts or falls on the floor? Joy, on the other hand, is a kid who knows they are loved by their parents. Joy can never be taken away from you, but happiness is attached to something that can change.
Can you think of a time when you felt happy but that feeling went away because something changed? [Pause, giving them a moment to think]
Happiness is fleeting - that is why people are so desperately searching for it.
[Show the PowerPoint slide with the definition of the word “joy.”]
“Joy” can be defined as “rejoicing, in spite of circumstances, that God is in control of everything and always has our best in mind”. Now, I’m going to ask you some questions based on this definition. Raise your hand if you know the correct answer…
Teacher’s Note: Have the students answer each of the following questions. You can reward the ones who answer correctly with candy again, if you want to. Be sure to encourage correct answers and then elaborate a bit on it.
Q: What does “rejoicing” mean?
A: This means ‘to rejoice’, to experience joy and to celebrate.
Q: What does it mean when it says “in spite of circumstances”?
A: This means that our joy is not directly dependent on a feeling, but rather on faith.
Q: What does it mean that God “has our best in mind”?
A: God’s plans are for us to prosper, never to harm us. He is kind and good.
Let’s read together what the definition says again… In one voice… 1,2,3…
Teacher’s Note: Have the students read the definition with you. First read it slowly and then super fast. If they are enjoying it, you can also have them read it in different voices: robot-voice, whale-voice etc.
Now, we are going to remove the slide [Go to title slide in PowerPoint]
Who can remember the definition of “Joy” that we just read? [If they struggle to remember, you can help by giving the first letters of the words… Joy is… R(rejoicing) I(in) S(spite) O(of) C(circumstances) - and so forth.]
The pursuit of happiness or the search for joy is present all around us, remember the Happy Meal example?. For some reason or another, there is a lot of joy surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ. When Jesus’ mother, Mary, found out she was expecting, the angel told her to “Rejoice!” The wise shepherds who followed the star, celebrated and were overjoyed when they met Jesus. People seemed to be really happy about the birth of this baby. Today we will discover why that was…
Lesson Content:
[Show the PowerPoint slide with this sticky statement]
Joy Eternal Stirs Up Souls
The fact that Jesus came to earth had a few implications for the people of God: Sure, you might have heard that the big reason why He came was for salvation. This is often called Soteriology by people who study the Bible. It is all about how and why we are saved by Jesus. Maybe you’ve heard adults call Jesus their Savior or something like that. But there is another implication for the people of God that is often missed - this was really good news for them! It was a source of great joy, eternal joy. A joy that couldn’t run out or end! This joy was not a byproduct or a random consequence that came after the realization of salvation. No, the joy came first! Remember that joy means rejoicing, in spite of circumstances, that God is in control of everything and always has our best in mind. God’s people and all of heaven rejoiced and celebrated at the birth of Jesus - before he could do anything for them.
This is why we say: Joy Eternal Stirs Up Souls. The joy is like the first spark of a match that starts a wildfire! It is like the first single drop of rain that starts a storm! It is like the first splash of paint on a canvas that starts a painting!
Let’s begin by turning in our Bibles to the Gospel of Luke. The Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) are the 4 books that tell us the story of Jesus’ life on earth from beginning to end. These are the first 4 books in the New Testament and they were written after Jesus’ birth. You can open your Bible to the book named Luke.
This book of the Bible was written by a doctor, called Luke, who wrote down everything that he heard about Jesus. Do you think Luke was a disciple of Jesus? [Let them guess.] Actually, interestingly, Luke didn’t know Jesus personally, in-person, like the disciples did. Luke heard the Good News about Jesus from Paul, so he knew Jesus very much in the same way that you and I do. He was a doctor living a normal life until he heard the joyful news about Jesus. Isn’t that amazing!?
Angel Gabriel “rejoices” (Luke 1:16-28)
Today we are reading from Luke chapter 1. Let’s start in verse 26 and read to verse 28. Who would be willing to read this for us out loud? [Choose a volunteer and allow time for the Scripture to be read.] That was great, thank you!
The story goes on that the angel tells Mary that she will give birth to a son and that she should name him “Jesus”. Notice how the angel shared the message with Mary - what do you think his facial expression was as he shared this? [Allow answers] Would Mary have been afraid to see the angel? [Allow a few answers. Optional: Act it out and show how Mary gets a fright when she sees the angel] How would she feel after hearing the angel’s words: to rejoice? [Allow answers]
Let’s see what it looked like…
Remember this is just somebody’s interpretation of the Bible for a film, this is not meant to be a perfect depiction of Mary or the angel, but it helps us to imagine what might have happened.
[Show the video]
What stood out for you from the video? [Allow answers]
The big story between God and His people (Old Testament)
Through the perspective of Mary, this was the best news ever - and it was not entirely new to her. Look at your Bible in your hands. It’s a pretty big book. There’s a whole big story between God and His people leading up to this moment. This is the climax of the movie. It is the highlight of the story. It is the moment that God’s people have been waiting for for many generations - that is why the angel tells Mary to rejoice. It is finally happening! The time is here!
Think about a time when you were waiting for someone or something… Maybe you were counting down the days until school closes for the holidays or you were looking forward to a birthday celebration or something like that. [Pause to give them a moment to think]
THIS moment, the birth of Jesus, was prophesied about years ago. In the Old Testament, God promised His people that He would bring them back to Him and walk with them again like they did in the garden of Eden in the beginning. He promised them that He would do this by sending someone… a Messiah. Can you say mes-si-ah? [Let them say it] That word means ‘Savior’.
Why Jesus is Good News
I need 3 volunteers to come help me.
Okay, first volunteer, you will be the example of God. [Have volunteer 1 (God) stand in front of you]
Second volunteer, you will be the example of people or all of mankind. [Have volunteer 2 (people) stand with volunteer 1]
In the beginning, God was with people in the garden of Eden. They were walking together, and they were best friends. But when people sinned there was a problem… [Slowly push the two volunteers away from each other] There was a distance that was created between God and people. [Have them go as far away from each other as possible, to the faaaar ends of the room].
In the Old Testament we read about this and the conversation that they were trying to have with each other.
[Have Volunteer 1 (God) shout “I miss you”]
[Have Volunteer 2 (people) shout “I can’t hear you”]
Something needed to change. So God made a promise that He will fix it!
Third volunteer, you will be the example of Jesus. God sent Jesus to be the bridge. [Have volunteer 3 (Jesus) take volunteer 2 (people) hand and walk with them towards the other side where God is standing. Have the group of students cheer and clap their hands when they are reunited with each other.]
Well done you guys, that was really great!
Let me show you something: [Pick up your Bible and open it at the end of the Old Testament so that you can show what a big part of the Bible that is] All 39 books of the Old Testament tell the story of what happened while they were waiting in great anticipation of being reunited with God. God’s people went through a lot of hardships: They were slaves to other kingdoms. They were at war and they often lost. They were hungry and they suffered. And the rest of the world did not like them because they were different. They would not bow to the statues of powerful kings and they were punished for that. They had a set of 10 rules that they lived by that made them seem very strange to the rest of the world.
But it was all worth it because someday… some wonderful day far in the future… God would do as He promised. He would send a Messiah, a Savior, to be their king! They would be redeemed and victorious! They would be reunited with God once again.
Mary in prophecies (Isaiah 7:14)(Micah 5:2-3)
So then, do you think we can find places in the Old Testament where this moment between Mary and the angel was predicted? It was not a plot twist or a surprise after all - it was a fulfillment! We are going to look at some of the prophecies in the Old Testament that predicted and pointed to a future Messiah for God’s people.
[Show the PowerPoint slide with the title: Mary in prophecies]
Isaiah 7:14
[Read the verse out loud]
What we see here is a specific description of the birth of Jesus.
Can you see where it talks about Mary? [Allow them to interact]
Who knows what “Immanuel” means? [It means God with us]
Micah 5:2-3
[Read the verses out loud]
In what place was Jesus born? [Bethlehem, the prophecy came true!]
Can you see where it talks about Mary? [Allow some interaction again]
The moment when the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary was such a joyous occasion! Mary realized that she was chosen, and that is why the angel said to her: “Blessed are you among women”. Turn to the person next to you and say to them: Blessed are you! [Give them time to do so by pausing for a minute or two] How did that make you feel hearing that? Good, right? You might even say - joyful!
The angels celebrate (Luke 2:8-14)
Let’s pick up the story we read again in Luke chapter 2. Who would be willing to read verses 8 to 20 for us out loud? [Choose a volunteer and allow time for the Scripture to be read. Optional: You could have one person read verses 8-14 and another read 15-20 if it feels too long] Thank you, that was great!
Let’s see if you can answer some questions again, about this Scripture.
Teacher’s Note: Have the students answer each of the following questions. You can reward the ones who answer correctly with candy again, if you want to. Be sure to encourage correct answers and then add onto it.
Q: What is the first emotion that the shepherds experience?
A: Fear - they were afraid.
Q: Is the angel bringing good news or bad news?
A: “good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.”
Q: Did the shepherds wait for this moment, did they expect it?
A: Yes it says they celebrated because it happened “as it was told”
Awesome! You guys are doing so great.
Connection:
So, that’s fun and all, but what does this joyful news actually mean for us today - right? Jesus was born over two thousand years ago and sometimes we can feel disconnected from the story of his birth.
We saw now how the birth of Jesus was foretold to Mary by the angels and it was the climax of the big story between God and His people. There’s a lot that can be said about the birth of Jesus, but today we will focus on one key word: the JOY.
[Show the PowerPoint slide that is the title: Joy to the world!”]
There is an invitation for all of us to discover, perhaps for the first time or perhaps anew, the wonderful joy found in Jesus.
VI. The Choice: Choose JOY
[Show the PowerPoint slide that says: We have JOY because…]
Firstly, we have joy because we are part of a bigger story
God has been busy, since the days of the garden, to write a story. He saw the giant gap between Himself and His people and it broke his heart.
Close your eyes and imagine with me: Imagine that you are seeing yourself from above right now- see, you are sitting in this room. Now, zoom out a little and see the whole room with the rest of us too. Now, zoom out a little further and see the whole building, the whole street, the whole area. Let’s zoom all the way out and see our whole country.
You can open your eyes.
When we trust that God is writing a big story, it has BIG implications for how we live our lives:
Choose to give the pen back to God, give over control
It means that we can hand over the pen to God, since we were never meant to hold it in the first place. [Motion with your hand as if you are writing] This relieves a lot of pressure from our shoulders. We can rely on God to make something beautiful from our lives and to give us a calling and a purpose. His story is bigger and better than our own.
[Invitation 1] Think of a situation in your life where you’ve been holding the pen: maybe it’s a relationship, a family member, a need to control something or someone. You could give that over to God today. We can have joy because we give the pen back to God.
b) Choose to be a part of something bigger, God’s story
It also means that we are part of something bigger than ourselves. God is weaving a beautiful tapestry together using all of our stories. He is creating a beautiful painting with all of us as the colors on the canvas. God’s story covers many timelines, decades, and centuries.
[Invitation 2] Have you ever felt small and insignificant? Forgotten perhaps? You can rest assured that you ARE part of something bigger. You were created for a purpose and you have a specific role to play. We can have joy because we are part of a bigger story.
Secondly, we have joy because God keeps His promises
The joy of Jesus’ birth is based on one thing: the faithfulness of God. He does what He says He’s going to do. He’s a man of His word. When He says it will happen, it will be.
We’re going to close our eyes again. Raise your hand if you have ever felt joyful? You can lower your hand. Raise your hand if you have ever made a promise to someone and kept that promise? You can lower your hand. Raise your hand if someone ever broke a promise that they made to you? You can lower your hand. Raise your hand if you have ever broken a promise that you made to someone else? You can lower your hand.
You can open your eyes.
When we trust that God keeps His promises, it has BIG implications for how we live our lives:
c) Choose God’s promises in the Bible are for you
It means that God makes promises to us. Since the beginning of time, God has been speaking to His people and making promises to them. He promised Abraham that he would become a father of many, and He promised that a Messiah would come that would be a Savior for His people.
[Invitation 3] Did you know that God is also speaking to you and He wants to make promises to you? The promises in the Bible are yours too. You can invite the Holy Spirit to speak to you today. We can have joy because God promises that we have a purpose.
d) Choose to have faith that God is a promise-keeper
It also means that God is faithful to keep those promises. God has never said He will do something and then changed His mind. He is good and kind and gracious, but most of all He is faithful. His faithfulness means that He is trustworthy and He is always right on time, even when we can’t see it.
[Invitation 4] God keeps his promises. Perhaps you have trusted God with something in the past: the salvation of a loved one, or a breakthrough in an impossible situation. He did forget about those prayers. We can have joy because we have faith in God.
Yes - it’s true! The joy of the Good News of Jesus is for you today. The same news that the angel shared with Mary, and the same news that the shepherds heard in the field: God has sent His Son to be the bridge so that we can be reunited with Him again. What a joy!
[Show the PowerPoint slide with the definition of the word “joy” again]
We can have joy because we give the pen back to God.
We can have joy because we are part of a bigger story.
We can have joy because God promises that we have a purpose.
We can have joy because we have faith in God.
Choice:
We’re going to take a few minutes to discuss questions in groups. But there’s a catch: You are not allowed to use the words ‘yes’ or ‘no’ when giving your answers. If someone says either of those words, the rest of the group will shout out the word ‘JOY’ as loud as they can!
Here’s an example question:
Have you ever heard the Christmas message told this way?
I’ll answer it… let’s see if I can get it right… [pause to get their attention, then do the following response, and see if they catch you. When they catch you, they need to shout out ‘JOY’]“I have never heard the Christmas story like this, or NO actually I have… One time my grandma … YES, my granny… told me that NO other news is as good as this…”
Turn to a group of 2-3 friends. Here are your questions:
[Show the PowerPoint slide with the questions]
Have you ever heard the Christmas message told this way?
Why is the birth of Jesus a source of joy to the world?
[Give about 5 minutes for the groups. You can guide them and say something like “You have 1 minute left in your groups” or “Let’s bring it back together” to get the students settled back for the final part of the lesson]
You have a choice today and every day:
Choose JOY because Jesus’ birth is good news: He is the promised Savior of the world.
Repeat after me: [Read one line at a time and have them repeat it after you]
The name of JESUS means (The name of JESUS means…)
Joy Eternal Stirs Up Souls (...)
I choose joy today and forevermore (...)
Because God is writing a big story (...)
That I get to be a part of (...)
I choose joy today and forevermore (...)
Because God is a promise-keeper (...)
He will also keep His promises to me (...)
Good job!
Next Steps:
How can we practically choose joy when we go back home today? We are going to respond with thanksgiving for the greatest gift of all: Jesus Christ.
Let’s talk to God in our own voices. You can spread out anywhere in the room. You can decide if you want to lay down or sit or the floor or stay where you are. Close your eyes if that helps you to limit distractions.
I am going to put on some music so you don’t have to worry that anyone can hear your conversation with God. [Play worship music]
[Pray out loud]
God, we want to thank you for the gift of Jesus!
You have promised a Savior for your people and You keep your promises.
Our hearts are filled with JOY when we think about your goodness!
ADDITIONAL ITEMS
SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND GUIDE FOR SMALL GROUP LEADERS
What was the difference between happiness and joy? What is an example of each of these in your own life? (Allow the students to talk about this for a few minutes. Remember that happiness is dependent on something, so it can end, but joy can never run out. If they struggle to think of examples, you can help by giving one of your own.)
How has God been making promises to His people since the beginning of time? Does He still do it? (Allow students to respond and help them connect this question to the lesson… God walked closely with His people in the garden and then we have the whole Old Testament that is full of promises. YES God still makes promises today.)
Give an example of one way that you can celebrate the birth of Jesus as the promised Savior of the world. (Help the students with examples. This week I will celebrate the birth of Jesus by… sharing with someone the true meaning of Christmas / what the song ‘Joy to the world’ means / explaining that the true gift is Jesus.)
Resources and References:
Parent Connection:
Lesson Title: JOY to the world
Objective: Students will learn how the birth of Jesus was foretold to Mary by the angels and will celebrate the birth of Jesus as the promised Savior of the world.
Key Scripture: Luke 1:28 - And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”
Key Thought: JESUS: Joy Eternal Stirs Up Souls.
Lesson Summary:
Today’s lesson was all about the birth of Jesus. We looked at how the world pursues joy and happiness (e.g. like a Happy Meal) and then we found out the definition of true joy. We discovered that Jesus was a great source of joy for God’s people. The Scripture we studied showed how the angel Gabriel and Mary (Luke 1:26-28) and the shepherds and the angels (Luke 2:8-14) rejoiced about the birth of Jesus. A brief overview was given of the big story between God and His people (the Old Testament) and how it all led to Jesus.
The students were invited to choose JOY because 1) God is writing a big story and 2) He is a promise-keeper. Students were encouraged to trust God for purpose and promises in areas of life where they have lost hope. Finally, we spent some time in worship thanking God for the gift of Jesus. As your family goes through Christmas this year, you can redirect your child’s attention to this lesson in the following instances:
You hear Christmas music playing ‘Joy to the world’, so you ask them what it means
You put gifts under the tree, so you ask them what the greatest gift of Christmas is
Artist Notes
VISUALS - Items designed to be placed into the PowerPoint
Visual #1:
Create a TITLE SLIDE for the PPT that uses this picture. Add the title: JOY to the world
Visual #2:
Create a PPT slide with the Sticky Statement in big letters: JESUS: Joy Eternal Stirs Up Souls. (Could work well to use ‘christmas colors’ -red, green, gold)
Visual #3:
Create a PPT slide for the definition of Joy as:Joy “rejoicing, in spite of circumstances, that God is in control of everything and always has our best in mind”
Visual #4:
Create a PPT slide with a link to the video Video: 1minute 40 seconds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dj0MEV7d1NE (Lesson Content)OR (even better) download the video on Youtube so that it can be played without ads…
Visual #5:
Create a PPT slide with the title Mary in prophecies
Add the following Scriptures to the slide
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
Micah 5:2-3
But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting. Therefore He shall give them up, Until the time that she who is in labor has given birth; Then the remnant of His brethren Shall return to the children of Israel.
Visual #6:
Create a PPT slide with the words:
We have JOY because:
God is writing a big story
God is a promise-keeper
Visual #7:
Create a PPT slide with the questions:
Have you ever heard the Christmas message told this way?
Why is the birth of Jesus a source of joy to the world?
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