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We’re learning about the Sermon on the Mount. It’s Jesus’ most famous sermon! It’s called the Sermon on the Mount because he stood up on a hill—or mountain—to preach. Today we’re learning that Jesus preached about how God helps us calm our anger. SUNDAY SCHOOL WORSHIPWe’re learning that God helps us calm our anger. Have you ever had a day where things just kept making you feel angry? Talk about that. Let’s see how our friend Carl handles it when one thing after another goes wrong. Which of the things that happened to Carl would make you the angriest? • After everything that happened, what do you think Carl is going to do next? • What would be a healthy way for Carl to handle his anger? • How did Carl’s story show how anger can build up if we don’t ask God to help us calm down? When one thing after another happens to make us angry, anger can build up and make us feel like we’re going to explode. But when we feel anger starting to build up, we can ask God for help because God helps us calm our anger. BIBLE LESSONToday we’re going to see what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount about how God helps us calm our anger. The Bible is God’s special book, written so we can know how to get help from him! We’ll need some paper people. Everyone, draw a person that fills up a piece of paper. You'll need some paper and markers or crayons. Angry words can really hurt people. I’ll show you what I mean. A lot of times, when we’re feeling mad, we say some pretty angry or hurtful things. So let’s think of some angry things we’ve heard people say. Maybe you were even the one who said it! Say the words you’re thinking of, and everyone will tear a piece off their paper person each time angry words are spoken. Based on what you just saw, are the angry words we wrote down that big of a deal? Explain. • What negative effects have angry words had on you? You know, sometimes we think angry words are okay as long as we don’t physically hurt anyone. But here’s what Jesus said about that: You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell. Matthew 5:21 - 22 How can angry words be as serious as murder? The fact is, angry words may not physically hurt people, but they do hurt them. Our paper people showed us the kind of emotional hurt people can experience when we speak out of anger. Anger is a feeling we’ll all have sometimes. But we have a choice about how to act when we’re angry. Acting out in anger can really hurt people—and even hurt us! But God helps us calm our anger. So let’s see how well you can handle a situation where it’s easy to get angry. Hold On to Anger Have everyone write the word “God” on a new piece of paper. Older family members can help younger kids. How easy is it to see the word on your paper? Right now, it’s pretty easy to see the word “God.” But let’s see what happens when we get angry. Ask family members to share about events or circumstances that have made them angry. For each thing people share, they’ll twist their paper tighter and tighter. How easy is it to see the word on your paper now? • How is that like the way we connect with God when we’re angry? • How could anger at a person hurt your friendship with God? The more we got angry, the more the word “God” was hidden in the twisted paper. And that can happen in life, too! The more we hold on to anger, the more distant God feels. Our anger can hurt ourselves, our relationships with God, and our relationships with other people. Calm Down That’s why God wants us to let go of our anger, with his help. God helps us calm our anger. Here’s what Jesus said about letting go of our anger: So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God. Matthew 5:23-24 Since God helps us calm our anger, let’s think of ways he helps us calm down. What are some things that help you calm down when you feel angry? Some ideas might be: taking deep breaths, counting to 10, praying, or exercising. What ideas do you have? God helps us calm our anger. With our poor torn up paper friends, we saw how angry words are a really big deal to God—as big as murder! And we saw how filling up with anger makes it harder to see God in our lives. But holding in our angry words and reaching peaceful agreements can be hard to do! That’s why we explored ways to tap into God’s strength and ask him to help us calm our anger. Let’s close with a prayer asking for God’s help. PRAYERGod, help us calm our anger. Thank you that you do want to help us. Our anger often hurts us most of all, so we ask you to calm anything we’re angry about now. When we want to say angry words or do angry things, help us make peace instead. In Jesus’ name, amen.   Thanks for joining us for online Sunday School! See you next week! Here's some activities for you to do at home: 
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