Home > Teaching > Themed Series > The Evidence Intro > WK1 John - God’s Town Crier

The Evidence

Week 1 - John - God’s Town Crier

(Gospel of Luke chapter 3 verses 1 – 17)

Outline for Leaders

This week we’ll look at how John the Baptist was like a town crier who gave evidence that Jesus was coming. John was actually the last of a whole succession of people in the Bible who foretold the coming of Jesus the Messiah. There were various people in the Old Testament who hundreds of years before Jesus’ birth proclaimed the coming of the Messiah. Then in the New Testament, God’s messenger angels told Mary and Joseph, Elizabeth and Zechariah of Jesus’ coming. Finally along came John, the most dramatic of prophets, he really was like a herald, a town crier shouting out to the people to prepare themselves for the coming of Jesus.  

(A town crier is a person who is employed by a town council to make public announcements in the streets. The crier can also be used in court or for official announcements. Criers often dress elaborately, a tradition known from the 18th century, in a red and gold robe, white breeches, black boots and a tricorne hat. They typically carry a bell rung to attract people’s attention making known that an important announcement is about to be made. They also usually carry a paper bearing the message to be given.)

Part 1

Lead-in session drama - THE TOWN CRIER

Characters:
Bill – Town Crier (TC)
Tom
Puppets x 2 (puppets to appear at back of drama area in a puppet window, above a dummy wall or the like.) If you don’t have this just leave it out.

Props:
Hand bell of some description, scroll (paper roll, official and period looking), hammer, mock up post or something similar to stick the town crier’s notice to, handkerchief.

Drama:

Bill (TC) – (enters in a light hearted but important looking way through the stage door, stands still, begins to swing his bell and reads from his notice)
Hear ye, hear ye, I announce that this week we will be having a colouring competition. Hear ye, hear ye, this will be on tonight’s take home sheet. A bar of chocolate will be given for each completed picture.
(Tom is circulating the platform wondering what on earth is going on, the bell has also woken a puppet who rises dazed from the window and disappears as soon as Tom engages Bill in conversation.)       

Tom: OK, OK Bill, we get the message, we’re having a colouring competition this week but we have one every week, why are you making such a fuss tonight, what’s with the bell and all of the shouting? You even woke Arthur (puppet) up who was asleep back stage.
(Arthur puppet makes a another brief appearance and nods before disappearing again)

Bill: I’m practicing to be a town crier.

Tom: (Walks across the stage circling Bill – and pulls a handkerchief from his pocket.) Well if you’re going to be a town crier, here you’d better have this handkerchief but you don’t seem to be doing much crying to me.

Bill: (Bursts out laughing – Arthur puppet also appears briefly, falling about laughing and then disappears.) Ha. Ha, ha, ha. Tom, the town crier doesn’t cry with his eyes, he cries out in a loud voice!

Tom: You what?

Bill: Years ago before, TV and radio, the crier would go onto the streets, ring his bell to get people’s attention and then read out an important announcement. Then he’d post the announcement on a tree or pole so that people could read it for themselves. (Bill takes his notice and posts it up)

Tom: OK I think I get it, but what do you want to do that for?

Bill: Later we are going to hear about a man that God sent as a kind of town crier to tell lots of people about a very important event that was going to happen. This man’s name was John. But first let’s look at this town crier.

(At this point you may like to show a YouTube clip of a town crier as there are plenty of folk who re-enact this old tradition in costume. Equally a town crier scene from a kid’s film is also an option.)

Part 2

Bible chat

John God’s Town Crier - (John the Baptist - Luke 3 verses 1 -18)

There is a PowerPoint to go with this chat, alternatively it may be done as a story tell with a few props. PowerPoint download at the bottom of this page.

Hey kids if you wanted to make an important announcement to all of the people around where you live, how would you do it? How do you draw a crowd and get people to listen to you? You have to get people’s attention. (Take answers and discuss with the kids.)

Part 3 - Response time (small groups)

1.    Today people use all sorts of ways to get a crowd to listen to them; sometimes people do very odd things. We’ve talked about some ways people get a crowd, if you wanted to draw people’s attention so that you could tell them something you thought was really important how might you do it? (hold up a placard / banner, use a mic and amplifier, blow a trumpet, put on a funny suit, dye your hair yellow.)

2.    John the Baptist had very important evidence to give to the people about someone God had asked him to tell them about. What was John’s message?
(Jesus was coming, that they should share what they have with people who didn’t have much. That they shouldn’t cheat people that they shouldn’t lie to people. That they should turn away from the wrong things they were doing and God would forgive them.)

Get the kids to draw a person with a megaphone or mic and amplifier and write a couple of things coming from the speaker end that John had to say.

WEEK 1 DOWNLOADS

Week 1 Lead-in Drama Script, Bible Chat and response time Leaders’ notes.
PowerPoint Week 1 - Series theme slide and this week’s title slide.
PowerPoint  ‘God’s Town Crier’ to accompany week 1 Bible Chat