Philip and Nathanael

John 1:43-49

Our true story comes from a part of the Bible called the Gospel of John. John was one of the friends and helpers of Jesus. And the word “Gospel” means “good news!”

One day, Jesus decided to go to a town called Galilee. There, He met a man named Philip. Jesus smiled at Philip and said, “Follow Me!” Philip was so excited to follow Jesus! He knew Jesus was special.


Philip had a friend named Nathanael. Philip wanted to tell Nathanael about Jesus. So, he found Nathanael sitting under a tree and said, “We found Him! We found the special one God promised, the one Moses and the prophets talked about. His name is Jesus!”


But Nathanael wasn’t sure. He asked, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Nathanael didn’t know much about Jesus yet.


Philip didn’t try to argue. He just said, “Come and see!” So, Nathanael got up and went with Philip to meet Jesus. When Jesus saw Nathanael coming, He said, “Here is a man who always tells the truth!” 


Nathanael was surprised. He asked, “How do You know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the tree before Philip called you.” 


Nathanael couldn’t believe it! Jesus knew all about him, even though they had never met. Nathanael said, “You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Nathanael was so happy he got to meet Jesus. He believed in Jesus and decided to follow Him, just like Philip.


Jesus knows everything about us, and He wants us to follow Him, just like Philip and Nathanael. We can tell our friends about Jesus, too!


Dear God,

Thank You for knowing everything about us and for loving us so much. Thank You for calling Philip and Nathanael to follow Jesus. Please help us to follow Jesus, too, and to tell our friends about Him. We love You, God. 

In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.





Bible Verse: “Come, follow Me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” — Matthew 4:19, BSB

Paraphrase: “Come, follow Me,” Jesus said.



Activities

These activities will help preschoolers engage with the story of Jesus Calling Philip and Nathanael, reinforcing the themes of following Jesus, sharing His love, and knowing that Jesus sees and cares for us. 

1. Come and See Scavenger Hunt

Objective: Help children connect with Philip’s invitation to Nathanael to “Come and see” Jesus.

Materials: Small items or pictures representing Jesus (e.g., a cross, a heart, or a picture of Jesus) hidden around the room.

Activity: Hide the items or pictures and have the children look for them. As they search, remind them that Philip told Nathanael to “Come and see” Jesus, and Nathanael followed. When all the items are found, talk about how we can tell our friends about Jesus, just like Philip did.


2. Follow the Leader Game (Musical Activity)

Objective: Reinforce the idea of following Jesus through a fun music-based game.

Materials: Music (any upbeat or calming instrumental song).

Activity: Play music and have one child act as the leader while the others follow their actions (walking, clapping, hopping, etc.). Pause the music occasionally and ask, “Who are we following?” The children can answer, “Jesus!” Switch leaders so everyone gets a turn. This activity helps preschoolers understand what it means to follow Jesus.


3. Tree Craft for Nathanael

Objective: Help children visualize Nathanael sitting under the tree.

Materials: Construction paper, crayons, glue, and green tissue paper.

Activity: Provide each child with a piece of construction paper and have them draw a tree. Use green tissue paper to create leaves and glue them to the tree. Talk about how Jesus saw Nathanael under the tree and knew all about him, even before they met. Remind the children that Jesus knows and loves each of us, too.


4. Act It Out: Philip and Nathanael

Objective: Help children remember the story by role-playing.

Materials: None.

Activity: Assign roles: one child can be Jesus, another Philip, and another Nathanael. The rest can act as trees or other friends. Have the children act out the story, with Philip inviting Nathanael to “Come and see” Jesus and Jesus talking to Nathanael. Afterward, talk about how happy Nathanael was to meet Jesus and how we can be happy to follow Him, too.

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Story illustrations are the copyright of Sweet Publishing and licensed by FreeBibleimages (http://freebibleimages.org) for free download under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike 3.0 unported license.
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