Jesus shows what true followers of God look like by going deeper than outward behavior. This episode helps kids understand that anger, dishonest words, and revenge are not just “small issues” — they matter to God, and he calls us to a different way of living.
Along the way, kids are pointed to God’s heart: he is truthful, patient, kind, and generous even toward those who don’t deserve it. The big takeaway is not “try harder,” but “be like your heavenly Father” and ask him for help when obedience feels hard.
There’s also a practical reminder that when we fail, God is ready to forgive and keep shaping us. God does not leave his children alone — he helps, forgives, and keeps teaching us how to live as his people.
To access every episode of Stories of a Faithful God for Kids, and to discover other great benefits, become a club member at faithfulgod.net/membership
Show your thanks and support for Dave and help other people hear Stories of a Faithful God by signing up for the prayer letter and by becoming a regular financial supporter here.
To ask a question, make a comment, give encouragement or invite Dave to speak, you can make contact here.
Check out this playlist on Spotify to hear lots of great songs that link to things we've discussed in the show.
If you're a teen or adult, be sure to check out the sister podcast, Stories of a Faithful God, to take a deeper dive into these same passages.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
[00:00:01] - [Speaker 0]
Grown ups, the latest episode of running the race is out now. It's a short monthly encouragement podcast designed specifically for you. The latest episode is called worry well, and it looks at how we can have healthy worry and unhealthy worry for our kids, and how we can rest in God. You can access it by joining the super club at faithfulgod.net/membership. You'll also get access to the memory verse podcast for the whole family, bible in your brain, plus over 90 earlier episodes of stories of a faithful god for kids.
[00:00:35] - [Speaker 0]
So don't delay. Hit pause and head to faithfulgod.net/membership. That's faithfulgod.net/membership. Good day, and welcome to stories of a faithful god for kids. I'm Dave Whittingham.
[00:00:55] - [Speaker 0]
I'm so glad you're here with me to learn about our great, great god. If you could pick anyone in the Bible to be like, who would it be? Would it be king David? David did lots of great things. Unfortunately, he also did lots of bad things as well.
[00:01:14] - [Speaker 0]
What about Noah? He was the best man on the planet, but even he messed things up. Well, how about Simon Peter, Jesus' top disciple? Surely it's him. He stuck with Jesus when almost everyone else ran away.
[00:01:30] - [Speaker 0]
But even he, the best disciple, messed up big time. All these guys did great and wonderful things, and there are lots of ways we should try to be like them. But there's someone even greater we should try to be like. Do you know who? It's time to find out.
[00:01:50] - [Speaker 0]
Get ready for our next episode of stories of a faithful god for kids. At the end of our last episode, Jesus had told his disciples to be better than the best people around. Well, sort of. People thought of them as the best people around, but, really, they weren't. They made it look like they were obeying God.
[00:02:33] - [Speaker 0]
They did things that impressed a lot of people, but they didn't love like God loves. They didn't speak like God speaks. They didn't live the way God wants them to live. Now Jesus tells his disciples how God wants them and us to live, how to live as true followers of Jesus. The first thing he talks about is murder.
[00:03:01] - [Speaker 0]
Oh, I suspect most of you listening to this have never murdered anyone. Some of you might have, and if so, I'm glad you're here, learning how Jesus can forgive you and make you better. Most of you, though, probably haven't done it, just like Jesus' disciples who I suspect hadn't murdered anyone either. One of the 10 commandments God gave his people, the Israelites, in the Old Testament was do not murder. And the disciples are probably sitting there thinking, yep.
[00:03:30] - [Speaker 0]
Never done that. I've obeyed God completely there. Now, though, Jesus tells them something really shocking about murder, something they don't expect. He tells them that getting angry at someone deserves exactly the same punishment as if you'd murdered them. Seriously, listen to his words from Matthew chapter five verse 21.
[00:03:57] - [Speaker 0]
He says, you have heard that it was said to our people long ago, you must not murder anyone. Anyone who murders another will be judged. But I tell you, if you are angry with your brother, you will be judged. And if you say bad things to your brother, you'll be judged by the Jewish council. And if you call your brother a fool, then you will be in danger of the fire of hell.
[00:04:22] - [Speaker 0]
It's really easy to get angry, isn't it? How often do you get angry with people? Your mom or dad or brother or sister or your friends or other people you just don't like? There is such a thing as good anger. God gets angry at all the badness in the world.
[00:04:40] - [Speaker 0]
It's right to be angry at badness. But, generally, when we're angry, it's because we're not getting what we want. We're putting ourselves first. We're treating ourselves as more important than the person we're angry at. Think about the last thing you got angry about.
[00:04:59] - [Speaker 0]
Were you angry because you saw how someone was being rude to God or hurting other people? Or were you angry because people weren't doing what you wanted, like not letting you choose what to watch on TV or not making what you wanted for dinner or not playing the game that you wanted to play? Jesus is saying that that sort of anger deserves the same punishment as if you'd murdered someone. That is really serious. In fact, it's so serious that if someone's angry with you, Jesus tells us to protect that person by helping them not to be angry.
[00:05:40] - [Speaker 0]
Don't use an excuse like, oh, I'm too busy worshiping God to go and help them not be angry. No. That's not what God wants. He wants you to go and help that person. Anger is really dangerous.
[00:05:55] - [Speaker 0]
So pray that God will help you not to get angry. Pray and ask for his help to make you a peacemaker just like he is a peacemaker. Ask him to make it so that you work hard to be kind, not so that you get angry quickly. Jesus also talks about marriage. I'm gonna skip over that beat here.
[00:06:21] - [Speaker 0]
Grown ups, if you wanna think about what Jesus says about marriage and adultery and divorce, check out my longer podcast, stories of a faithful God, on this passage. For now, we're gonna jump down to what Jesus says about promises and how we speak. Have you ever noticed how people sometimes get others to believe them? Maybe even you've done this. They'll say, no.
[00:06:46] - [Speaker 0]
No. I I promise. I promise it really happened, or I swear it really happened. Sometimes they'll go even further and say something like, I swear it on my mother's life, as though that somehow makes it even more true. Part of the problem is, what does that say about your words when you don't say, I promise?
[00:07:09] - [Speaker 0]
Were you lying then, but it's okay to lie because you didn't say, I promise? Did you take the dog for a walk? Yes. Then they find out that you never did, and you're like, oh, I never promised that I took the dog for a walk. I never swore it.
[00:07:24] - [Speaker 0]
Do you think that would be okay? Jesus says it's not. He says people use words like I promise and I swear to cover up lies and evil. Instead, he says, you should just always tell the truth. When you say yes, it's because the true answer is yes.
[00:07:46] - [Speaker 0]
If you say no, it's because the true answer is no. Our God is a truth teller. He's faithful in all his words, so we should be truth tellers. Let me read you his words. And when he says oath here, don't make an oath, that's the same as saying I swear.
[00:08:07] - [Speaker 0]
So in verse 33, he says, you have heard that it was said to our people long ago, when you make a promise, don't break your promise. Keep the promises that you make to the Lord. But I tell you, never make an oath. Don't make an oath using the name of heaven because heaven is God's throne. Don't make an oath using the name of the earth because the earth belongs to God.
[00:08:32] - [Speaker 0]
Don't make an oath using the name of Jerusalem because this is the city of the great king. And don't even say that your own head is proof that you will keep your oath. You cannot make one hair of your head become white or black. Say only yes if you mean yes, and say only no if you mean no. If you must say more than yes or no, it is from the evil one.
[00:09:00] - [Speaker 0]
The last thing we're gonna look at today that Jesus says is to love everyone. Be kind to everyone. And you might be like, oh, yeah. That's obvious. That's an easy one.
[00:09:14] - [Speaker 0]
Maybe not when you hear what Jesus has to say, though. Often people think that you be kind to someone unless they've been unkind to you. Then you're allowed to be unkind back. If they hurt you, you can hurt them. If they knock out your tooth, it's totally fine for you to knock their tooth out.
[00:09:35] - [Speaker 0]
Jesus says the complete opposite. He says in verse 38, you have heard that it was said an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, but I tell you, don't stand up against an evil person. If someone slaps you on the right cheek, then turn and let him slap the other cheek too. If someone wants to sue you in court and take your shirt, then let him have your coat as well. If a soldier forces you to go with him one mile, then go with him two miles.
[00:10:07] - [Speaker 0]
If a person asks you for something, then give it to him. Don't refuse to give to a person who wants to borrow from you. And you might be like, say what now? Is Jesus serious? This is not the sort of kindness you generally see in the world, which is exactly the point.
[00:10:30] - [Speaker 0]
We're not meant to be kind like the rest of the world is kind. The rest of the world is only kind to people who are kind to them. We're meant to be kind, not like the world, but like God, like our father in heaven. He really is kind to everyone. Jesus says in verse 38, you have heard that it was said, love your neighbor and hate your enemies.
[00:10:57] - [Speaker 0]
But I tell you, love your enemies. Pray for those who hurt you. If you do this, then you will be true sons of your father in heaven. Your father causes the sun to rise on good people and on bad people. Your father sends rain to those who do good and to those who do wrong.
[00:11:16] - [Speaker 0]
If you love only the people who love you, then you'll get no reward. Even the tax collectors do that. And if you are nice only to your friends, then you are no better than other people. Even people without God are nice to their friends. So you must be perfect just as your father in heaven is perfect.
[00:11:40] - [Speaker 0]
Jesus is not telling us to be like everyone else. He's telling us to be like God, our father in heaven. There are probably things in you that are like your parents on Earth. Maybe you tell the same sorts of jokes or you look the same or you like the same kinds of games or clothes. Jesus said we should be like our heavenly father as well by being patient instead of getting angry really quickly, by being truth tellers, and by loving our enemies, being kind to people who are unkind to us.
[00:12:19] - [Speaker 0]
That can all be really hard, can't it? When someone's mean to me, I want to be mean right back. When the truth is a little bit embarrassing, I want to tell a lie. When someone does something I don't like, I get angry really quickly. Thankfully, our heavenly father isn't just standing there going, oh, you're very naughty.
[00:12:43] - [Speaker 0]
No. He loves us and wants to help us. So pray and ask for his help. Ask him to help you with your anger. Ask him to help you tell the truth.
[00:12:55] - [Speaker 0]
Ask him to help you love your enemies. And when you get it wrong, ask him to forgive you. In fact, Jesus is about to teach us how to ask for forgiveness. But that's a story for next time. Thanks, everyone, for listening.
[00:13:28] - [Speaker 0]
Hey. I didn't get to do any shout outs today. I'd love to give you a shout out. Just get a grown up to send me a message on the contact page of faithfulgod.net. Tell me where you're from and what you like about the show.
[00:13:40] - [Speaker 0]
Also, don't forget to sign up for club membership to get loads of benefits. There is so much stuff there. Just go to faithfulgod.net/membership. That's faithfulgod.net/membership. Keep trusting Jesus.
[00:13:57] - [Speaker 0]
Bye for now.