Description
Objects That Talk and Teach
by
Louis T. Talbot
2014
Contents
LET ME GUIDE A LITTLE CHILD! 5
HE THAT HATH THE SON HATH LIFE. 34
LET JESUS COME INTO YOUR HEART. 51
THOUGH YOUR SINS BE AS SCARLET. 57
THE KITE THAT WANTED TO BE FREE. 59
FOUR CUPS AND FOUR TYPES OF PEOPLE. 62
CAN THE LORD DEPEND ON YOU?. 81
THE MAGNET AND THE NAIL FAMILY. 93
MUSICAL BRUSHES OR CURRY COMBS—WHICH?. 96
THREE QUALITIES THAT SHOULD BE FOUND IN THE LIFE OF EVERY CHRISTIAN 107
BREAD SERIES Jesus said, “I am the Bread of Life” John 6:48. 110
Jesus said, “Suffer little children to come unto Me, and forbid them not; for of such is the kingdom of God” (Luke 18:16).
To
The Boys and Girls
of
The Church of the Open Door
who, by their interest, have furnished inspiration
for these object lessons
This Book
Is Affectionately
Dedicated
“Come, ye children, hearken unto Me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord” (Ps. 34:11).
LET ME GUIDE A LITTLE CHILD!
Dear Lord, I do not ask
That Thou should’st give me some high work of Thine,
Some noble calling, or some wondrous task.
Give me a little hand to hold in mine;
Give me a little child to point the way;
Give me a little voice to teach to pray;
Over the strange, sweet path that leads to Thee;
Give me two shining eyes Thy face to see.
The only crown I ask, dear Lord, to wear
Is this: That I may teach a little child.
I do not ask that I may ever stand
Among the wise, the worthy, or the great;
I only ask that softly, hand in hand,
A child and I may enter at the gate.
— King’s Business
FOREWORD
It has always been the custom of the writer, from the beginning of his ministry, to set aside from five to ten minutes of the morning service for the children, using an object by which can be illustrated the saving grace and keeping power of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The object lessons contained in this book were delivered in The Church of the Open Door, during the year 1933.
God has been pleased to bless these messages, and because of that, this little book is sent forth with the prayer that it may be of service to pastors, teachers, children’s evangelists, and all those who may be called upon to minister to “these little ones.”
Louis T. Talbot
INTRODUCTION
The importance of presenting the Gospel message in terms which the little child can understand is inestimable. During His earthly ministry, our Lord Jesus Christ recognized this need for simplicity, and constantly taught the people spiritual lessons through reference to objects with which they were most familiar. The wise pastor today must be ever on the alert to employ this method in presenting the truth to the children of his congregation. Since fully eighty-five per cent of our knowledge is acquired through the eye-gate, this avenue of approach should be more widely utilized than is generally the case.
As a part of the morning service each Lord’s day, in the Church of the Open Door, Los Angeles, California, the pastor, Rev. Louis T. Talbot, gives an object lesson for children, presenting vital spiritual truths applicable to young and old alike. To meet the demand of many who know of this plan, and in order to furnish practical examples for those desiring to follow this method, Mr. Talbot is making available much of the material which he has recently used.
It gives me great pleasure to write this note of commendation of the illuminating and appealing lessons which have been used with such benefit in the services of the Church of the Open Door. I, for one, rejoice greatly that this suggestive material is now accessible to all those who seek to utilize the object lesson method in leading the children into a deeper interest in the things of God.
Elbert L. McCreery.
Dean of the Bible Institute of Los Angeles,
March, 1934.
THE SINGING HEART
OBJECTS: Two large hearts; one black and one white. Heartshaped candy boxes may be used. Fill the black box with filthy rags, and other articles mentioned. Put a red cardboard heart in the white box, also a music box, taken from a vanity case. Cut a door in both boxes and leave closed.
These two hearts, boys and girls, picture two classes of people in the world today, folks with black sinful hearts and folks with clean white hearts. Now I ’m sure that not one of you boys and girls really want a black heart; do you? How, then, may folks with blackhearts have them changed to white hearts?
Let us look closely at these two large hearts. There is a door to each, but the latch that opens the door is not seen, that is, it is on the inside of the door. Like the heart’s doors of boys and girls, they must be opened from the inside.
The Lord Jesus stands at the heart’s door of every boy and girl, knocking—and His hand is nail scarred. He has been to the Cross of Calvary. His Word says, “Behold I stand at the door and knock, if any man open I will come in.”—Rev. 3:20.
When some one knocks at the door of your home, you say, “Come in,” don’t you? And the one who knocks comes in. There are some folks, however, who do not want visitors because their houses are all topsy-turvy, so they don’t say, “Come in,” when any one knocks. Have you ever known folks like these?
This black heart represents the boys and girls who have never let the Lord Jesus come into their hearts to be their Saviour, though He has been knocking, knocking. They have refused to open their heart’s door.
Let us look inside this black heart and see what is in it, then we will know why it’s so black and why the Lord Jesus has been kept out.
Why here is a filthy rag (open door, take out articles as mentioned).
What does this mean? Ah, this pictures self-righteousness and good deeds. You know some folks are trying to make their hearts white by good works— but God says in Isaiah 64:6—“All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.” Fancy a man or woman, boy or girl, priding themselves on their good works which in God’s sight look just like this dirty rag!
And, whit is this box I find in the black heart,—oh,—“a package of cigarettes,” you say. Yes, some folks are holding on to some bad habits which they are not willing to give up for the Lord Jesus.
Here’s another box—a box of playing cards. This tells us of the worldly amusements which some folks love so much that they have no time for the Lord or the church and Sunday school. As for these cards, boys and girls, did you know that they were originally made to entertain an insane king in Europe?
What do you suppose I will find next in this heart—Why, here are some green pieces of paper—dollar bills. These tell us of “the love of money” which so dominates the lives of some people that they lose sight of the Lord and His work.
And now, last of all, see this ugly serpent which I found hidden away in the black heart. Who does this make you think of, boys and girls? “Satan”—of course— and he it is who is responsible for all these things found in this heart. No wonder the heart is black and the door shut, keeping the Lord Jesus out. I wouldn’t want a heart like this, would you?
Let us look now at the beautiful white one. Why, this heart is full of melody. Hear the sweet music. (Music box inside.). Let us see why this heart is full of joy. (Open door of heart.) The door has been opened to the knock of the Lord Jesus. This white heart tells us of the boy or girl who has said to the Lord Jesus, “Come in and be my Saviour,”—and He has come in, for in Rev. 3:20 we read, “If any man opens I will come in.” As we look past the door we see a red heart (red heart inside). This tells us of the precious blood of Jesus which was shed on Calvary’s Cross. This heart has been washed in the Blood of Jesus and so has been made white as snow,—all the blackness of sin has been washed away. This is the only way to make black hearts white. “The Blood of Jesus Christ, His son, cleanseth us from all sin.”— 1 John 1:7. “Without the shedding of blood there is no remission for sins.”—Heb. 9:22.
Are your hearts black or white in His sight, boys and girls? If black with sin, won’t you open your heart’s door today, and let Him come in. Not only will He wash away all the blackness of sin and make you white as snow, but He will put a “new song in your heart, even praise unto our God.”— Ps.40:3. Yours will be a Singing Heart, making music like this white one.
“What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
What can таke тe whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”
BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD
OBJECTS: A Lamb (real or toy one), red and blue ribbon tied around its neck.
One of the most wonderful statements in God’s Word, boys and girls, concerns the Lord Jesus as the “Lamb of God.”
John the Baptist, as you know, was a herald or forerunner of Jesus. One day, as he was preaching and baptizing beyond the Jordan, the Lord Jesus came. Many had gathered about John to hear his preaching, but as soon as he saw Jesus, he turned the attention of all to Him, as he said, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”—John 1:29. John identified the Lord Jesus with the lambs of the Old Testament. The people understood the meaning and purpose of a lamb.
All through the Old Testament God had been preparing the people for the coming of His Son, who was to shed His precious blood on the Cross. He taught them through object lessons. The lamb in sacrifice always pointed to the Cross. The people’s sins were covered and passed over by the blood of a sacrifice which pictured the death of the Lord Jesus. On Passover night, down in Egypt, lambs were slain at God’s command (Exodus 12:1-13), and the blood placed over the door. God said, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you” (Exodus 12:13). All of those who were in houses which had the blood on the door were spared that night, when the angel of death passed over the land.
Perhaps some of you are wondering why we don’t kill Iambs today, and use the blood for an atonement for our sins. The reason is, that the Lord Jesus is God’s Lamb. He has come and fulfilled in every detail the Passover lamb of the Old Testament. He died on the Cross and shed His precious blood; all of those who have received Him as their Saviour, are sheltered today by the blood. The Christian can truly say, “For even Christ Our Passover is sacrificed for us.”—1 Cor. 5:7.
I have here a little lamb (present lamb) with a blue and red ribbon around its neck. The blue ribbon is a heavenly color and tells us that the Lord Jesus was God’s Lamb from heaven. The red ribbon is the picture of blood and sacrifice and tells us that God’s Lamb died on the Cross (Romans 5:8). I trust, boys and girls, that whenever you see a little lamb you will be reminded of the Lord Jesus, the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world. Have you ever received Him as your Lamb, the One who died for your sins? If not, won’t you do so today?
*A live lamb was given by the pastor to the child who brought the most children to the church service to hear the Object Lesson.
