I recently needed a children’s message on peacemaking, so this is what I came up with…

Title: “What Does Jesus Smell Like?”

Scripture text: 2 Corinthians 2:15

Materials you need: a spray bottle of air freshener; a spray bottle of Deer-Off (or something else that smells terrible!)

Opening question: Are you a peacemaker or a peace-breaker?

Message: God tells us to make peace wherever and whenever we can. But sometimes we get into fights, don’t we? Sometimes we complain, and whine, and fuss, and demand we get our way. In James 4:1 God says, “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?”

When we lose control and let our passions take over, we become peace-breakers. It’s like we spread an awful smell. Take a whiff of this, boys and girls. (Spray some Deer-Off into a bowl and let the children smell it. Careful! Don’t spill it on the floor or let anyone put their fingers in the bowl! If you’ve never smelled Deer-Off, it’s horrible!)

But when we try to make peace with others, it’s like we spread a nice, sweet smell, like this (spray some good air freshener around the children). 

What are some ways you can spread peace? (Help the kids think of being a peacemaker at home with their siblings, or at school with friends, or in the neighborhood with people they may not like). 

Every time you’re a peacemaker, you spread the aroma of Jesus. It says in 2 Corinthians 2:15, “For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.”

Jesus died on the cross so that we could be at peace with God. He calls you to make peace with people around you. When you fail, confess your sin to God. The blood of Jesus will cleanse you from sin and help you spread the pleasing aroma of Jesus wherever you go.