Nobody Ordered Water

Object Lesson · Early elementary · 5 min

Bear Valley Community Church

POWERED BY KIDOLOGY

OBJECT LESSON · Ages 6–8 · 5 MIN · John 2:1-11

Nobody Ordered Water

BIG IDEA

Following Jesus means doing what he says even when it looks like it won't help — he does the miracle, we just carry the water.

SUPPLIES · 6 ITEMS

	About 10 paper or plastic cups		A jug or water bottle with only a splash of water in the bottom
	One large empty container (mixing bowl, bucket, or big jug)		A spoon or very small cup for each child
	A Bible		A towel for spills

HOW TO SHOW IT

YOUR NOTES

Read this first (leader note)

The whole thing runs 5 minutes. The four discussion questions on this sheet are already built into Steps 1, 2, 3 and 5 — they are not extra, and they don't need extra time. The prayer is at the end of Step 5. If your group is chatty, take two answers per question, not ten, and keep moving. Set the cups out before they arrive.

Ten Empty Cups (50 sec)

Line the cups up on a table where everyone can see. Stand behind them holding the jug with its splash of water. Say: "Welcome to the party. Here's your drink." Tip the jug over the first cup so they see there's basically nothing in it. Say: "That's it. That's all the drink there is. Ten cups, one splash. The drink has run out and everybody can see it. What would you do?" Take three answers fast — go to the shop, share it, add water, cancel the party. All of them are fine. Nod at whatever they say. Then say: "That exact thing happened at a wedding Jesus went to. The drink ran out. His mum told the servants one thing: 'Do whatever he tells you.'"

"Fill Them With Water" (1 min 20 sec)

Say: "So here's what Jesus said to do. Ready? He said: 'Fill the jars with water.'" Pause and let them react. Ask: "Does water fix this party?" Let them shout no. Then ask: "If you were one of the servants, would you have done it straight away — or would you have asked him why first?" Take two answers, quickly. Say: "Nobody at a party puts their hand up and asks for warm water. But watch what the servants do." Hand every child a spoon or small cup. Put the big container in the middle. Say: "Your job is to fill this. Go!" Let them run spoonfuls of water from the jug (or a tap, if it's close) into the big container for 60 seconds. While they work, keep repeating, cheerfully and loudly: "Do whatever he tells you! Keep carrying! Do whatever he tells you!" Stop them. Say: "Shake your arms out. Now — the real servants filled six stone jars, and each one held more than a bathtub. No taps. Buckets. That was a long, heavy, boring afternoon."

The Only Ones Who Knew (1 min)

Say: "Then Jesus says, 'Now take some out and give it to the man in charge of the feast.' So they do." Open your Bible to John 2 and read verses 9 and 10 out loud, word for word, whatever version you have. Don't summarise it — read it. Then, in your own words, say: "Did you catch that? The man in charge said the best drink came last. And he had no idea where it came from. The man holding the cup didn't know. The servants did. The Bible doesn't tell us when the water changed, or what their faces did when they worked it out. We don't get to know that. What it does tell us is this: the people stuck with the boring job were the only ones in the room who saw it up close." Ask: "Would you rather be the man who got the best drink and never knew — or one of the servants who carried the water?" Take two answers and move on.

Who Made The Wine? (40 sec)

Hold up a spoon. Ask: "Who made the good drink? Did the servants make it?" Let them answer. Say: "No. They carried water. Water is all they ever carried. Jesus made it — and then he handed it out to a whole party full of guests who hadn't lifted one finger. Nobody earned that cup. So following Jesus isn't doing jobs so he'll be nice to us. He's already good to us. It's trusting him enough to carry the water when carrying water looks like a waste of time."

Your Water Jar This Week (1 min 10 sec)

Ask: "What's a job a grown-up asks you to do that feels totally pointless?" Take two answers, fast. Then say: "Now think of one thing Jesus says to do that feels too small to fix anything. Maybe it's saying sorry first to your brother or your sister — even though you're sure they should go first. Do that tomorrow, before tea. Or maybe there's a kid at your table at school that nobody talks to and you don't even know their name. Find out their name tomorrow morning." Say: "Turn to the person next to you. Tell them two things: who, and when." Let all of them talk at once for 20 seconds — don't go round the circle, you haven't got time. Then ask two volunteers to say theirs out loud. Take whatever they say. Finish: "Say it with me — I carry the water. Jesus does the rest." Say it once together, then pray the closing prayer.

THE PASSAGE · John 2:1-11

Jesus is at a wedding party and the drink runs out. His mother tells the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." Jesus tells them to fill six huge stone jars with water. They do it — heavy, boring work — and then take a cupful to the man in charge of the feast, who tastes it and says it's the best drink of the whole day. He has no idea where it came from. The servants who carried the water do. It's the first miraculous sign Jesus does, and his disciples believe in him.

TALK ABOUT IT · PICK ONE OR TWO

YOUNGER

The drink has run out and everybody at the party can see it. What would you do?

Jesus says, "Fill the jars with water." If you were one of the servants, would you have done it straight away, or asked him why first?

The man in charge of the feast got the best drink and never found out where it came from. Would you rather be him, or one of the servants who carried the water?

What's a job a grown-up asks you to do that feels totally pointless to you?

BEFORE YOU TEACH IT

Please review and adapt all generated content before use.

Bear Valley Community Church · OBJECT LESSON · Nobody Ordered Water KIDOLOGY.ORG

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