I’m deep into a writing assignment this weekend, so I won’t be uploading a Virtual Sunday School lesson today.
Instead, please feel free to use this lesson below on Anna for today. After Jesus was born, he was taken to the temple by His parents to present to the Lord and offer a sacrifice as was the custom. This is a great follow-up lesson to last week’s topic of the Wise Men. You can still watch that one online if you haven’t already (scroll to the bottom).
This lesson is from the Anna Bible Study for Kids that you can get FREE along with all my other Bible Studies under the Shop and FREE tab above.
LESSON ON ANNA
Have you ever traced your family history and found out where your family is from or maybe learned about an interesting descendant?
Anna is mentioned in only 3 verses in the Bible. But, there’s much to learn about her in those verses.
Read Luke 2:36.
First, we will look at Anna’s family tree.
Anna was the daughter of _______________________________________.
He was a descendant of Jacob’s 8th son, Asher.
Anna’s Family History: Jacob had 12 sons. They became the 12 tribes of Israel. Long ago, they split. Ten of the tribes made up their own nation known as the northern kingdom. They became known as Israel. Two of the tribes made up the southern kingdom. They became known as Judah and chose an evil king. The southern kingdom continued with a king in David’s family line. Jerusalem was located in the southern kingdom. The temple was there and this was the only place where the priests could offer sacrifices. There were a few faithful Israelites from the ten tribes that migrated south. They had to give up their family lands to do so. That tells us that they were faithful. Prophets warned the northern kingdom to change their evil ways, but eventually the Assyrians conquered them and took them as slaves. Only a small number returned later after their captivity. Anna’s descendants had either migrated south or were among the group who returned after their capture. Her family was among the northern kingdom and she was a living example of God’s faithfulness to His people. He does not look at where we come from, but at each individual. He chose Anna to be a part of His beautiful story-the Bible.
Can you name some people that you know who are faithful?
What type of place do you want to live in when you grow up? (For example, a farmhouse, an apartment in a big city, etc.)
Re-read Luke 2:36-37.
Anna was a p __________________________________.
This meant that she revealed what the Bible said to others. She probably didn’t make any new revelations, but she knew the Old Testament and taught others.
Anna was a widow. How many years had she been married when her husband died? _________ (Hint: Most versions say she had lived with her husband ________ years.)
After her husband died, Anna never remarried. Instead, she chose to stay at the temple. Most likely, she lived in a small dwelling place in the outer court. We know that there were small living quarters such as these for priests. Since she was a prophetess or perhaps because of her service at the temple, she was allowed to live there.
How old was Anna? about _____________________
How did Anna serve God? With _______________________ and _______________________.
How often did Anna fast and pray? ________________________________________________
Have you ever fasted and prayed? Maybe you could give up watching television for a little while one day and instead spend the time praying.
Have you ever had to do something repeatedly? (For example, wash the dishes every night) Did you get tired of doing it?
Re-read Luke 2:37.
Let’s do a quick word problem…
If Anna was married at the age of 14 (which was a common age to marry back in those times) and she was married for 7 years when her husband died and now she is 84, how many years could she possibly have been serving in the temple? _______________
That means that Anna had been faithfully fasting and praying for that many years!
Do you think she ever wanted to give up? Do you think she ever got tired of doing the same routine every day?
We know that Anna was just going about her normal day when something extraordinary happened. You will read about that tomorrow.
Based on what you’ve learned so far, describe Anna in your own words._________________
What is on your bucket list? In other words, what are some things you’d like to be sure you do in your lifetime? (For example, visit the Grand Canyon)
Read Luke 2:21-24.
Mary and Joseph brought baby Jesus to the temple when He was how many days old? ________
Read Luke 2:25-32.
The Holy Spirit had revealed to Simeon that he would not _______________________ until he had seen Christ. (verse 26)
Simeon faithfully believed that God would keep his promise.
How did Simeon happen to be at the temple right at the moment when Mary and Joseph came with Jesus? He came by the _________________________________ into the temple (verse 27)
When Simeon saw Jesus, he blessed _________________________. (verse 28)
Read Luke 2:33.
What did Mary and Joseph do when they heard what Simeon said? (verse 33)
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Have you ever heard something that made you marvel at what God can do?
Have you ever waited for something exciting that you knew was going to happen? (such as an upcoming vacation) Was it hard to wait?
Read Luke 2:38.
As Simeon was blessing God and Jesus’ parents, Anna walked in at that instant and heard what he was saying.
We have learned that Anna lived on the temple grounds. The temple grounds were large and Anna could have been anywhere on the property.
Who do you think led Anna to the temple at that moment? (Hint, look back and see who led Simeon there in your reading yesterday.)
_______________________________________________________________________________________
What did Anna do when she heard? ________________________________________________
After that, what did she do? ________________________________________________________
Anna faithfully continued to share with all those, who were also expectantly waiting for Christ, that their Savior had been born!
Today, we are expectant of Jesus’ return. Do you faithfully wait in hopes of His return one day?
VIRTUAL SUNDAY SCHOOL LAST WEEK – WISEMEN