Wildside - 10 Commandments

Wildside June 2, 2019

The Ten Commandments: Love God

Bible Passage: ;

Main Point: God gave us rules to show that He is holy and we are sinners.

Key Passage:

Big Picture Question: What is God’s plan? God’s plan is to rescue His people from captivity.

Small Group opening

(10–15 minutes)

Large Group Bible study

(25–30 minutes)

Small Group activities

(25–30 minutes)

Leader BIBLE STUDY

God rescued His people from slavery in Egypt. He then led them into the desert toward Mount Sinai. The Israelites camped at the base of the mountain while Moses went up the mountain to talk to God. God gave Moses the laws the Israelites were to obey. God renewed the covenant He made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob with the whole nation of Israel. They were His people, and He was their God. ()

God wanted perfect obedience from His people. His laws covered every part of their lives, and the laws were summed up in the Ten Commandments. God did not give laws just for the sake of having laws. His laws had a purpose; they revealed to the people what life will be like when Christ establishes His kingdom. They showed how righteous people live and interact with God and with others.

The Ten Commandments can be grouped into two categories: The first four laws deal with a person’s relationship with God and the last six laws deal with a person’s relationship with others.

Just 10. It would be easy enough to keep just 10 rules, right? The Israelites proved they could not keep a single one of God’s laws. Their hearts were full of sin. Moses mediated for the Israelites, asking God to forgive the people’s sin. Moses was a good mediator, but he wasn’t perfect. The Israelites needed someone who could keep the laws perfectly for them, mediate between them and God, and satisfy God’s wrath against them. They needed Jesus. (See .)

The kids you teach this week have sinful hearts. They cannot obey God perfectly, and they need a Savior. Point kids to Jesus and help them understand that God is pleased with us because He looks at Jesus, who never sinned. Because of Christ, we can have a right relationship with God.

The BIBLE Story

The Ten Commandments: Love God

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Three months after the Israelites left Egypt, they came into the Wilderness of Sinai (SIGH nigh). They camped in front of the mountain. God had a plan to make the Israelites His special people. God wanted to make a covenant, or agreement, with the people of Israel.

Moses went up the mountain. God called to him, saying, “This is what you should tell the Israelites: ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I rescued you and brought you to Me. If you listen carefully to Me and you keep My covenant, you will be My people.’ ”

Moses went back to the people and told them what God had said. All the people agreed. They responded together, “We will do all that the Lord has spoken.” So Moses went back to the Lord.

The Lord said to Moses, “I am going to come to you in a dense cloud. I want the people to hear Me speak to you so that they will believe you.”

Moses told the people what God said, and he got the people ready for the Lord to come down on the mountain. God told Moses to put boundaries around the mountain so no one would get too close.

On the morning of the third day, thunder rumbled and lightning lit up the sky. A thick cloud came down on the mountain, and a loud trumpet sounded. Everyone in the camp shuddered. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.

God came down on Mount Sinai in a fire, and smoke covered the mountain. The mountain shook, and the sound of the trumpet got louder and louder. God told the people not to come up the mountain.

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. I freed you from slavery,” He said.

Then God gave Moses the Ten Commandments. These are the first four commandments. These commandments told the Israelites what it looks like to have a right relationship with God: “Do not have other gods besides Me. Do not make an idol for yourself. Do not misuse the name of the Lord your God. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.”

When God finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, He gave Moses two stone tablets that He had written on with His own finger.

Christ Connection: God is holy and separate from sin. His law shows us what He requires—perfect righteousness. Our sin separates us from God, but Jesus came to bring us back to God. Jesus is perfectly righteous. When we trust in Jesus, He takes away our sin and welcomes us into God’s family.

Small Group Opening

Welcome time

Greet each kid as he or she arrives. Use this time to connect to your group and make sure each student is checked in.

As kids arrive, ask for volunteers to share their family’s rules.

Say • Which rules are the most challenging for you to obey? Why?

Table Wars

Large Group LEADER

Session Title: The Ten Commandments: Love God

Bible Passage: ;

Main Point: God gave us rules to show that He is holy and we are sinners.

Key Passage:

Big Picture Question: What is God’s plan? God’s plan is to rescue His people from captivity.

Introduce the session

Hi, everyone! I’m [your name] and I am excited you’re here today! Before we get started I want to know if some of you have rules in your house. Things that you must do, or ways that you have to act. Raise your hand!

In today’s Bible story, we will see that God gave us rules to show He is holy and we are sinners.

Leader In today’s Bible story, God renewed with the Israelites the covenant, or promise, He had made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Do you remember what God promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob? (God made a covenant to bless His people.)

Big picture question

Leader • Our big picture question is, What is God’s plan? God’s plan is to rescue His people from captivity. And He has! In today’s Bible story, God gave the Israelites a new way to worship Him after He rescued them from slavery: by living in obedience to the rules that He gave them. Let’s listen to our Bible story to learn more.

Tell the Bible story

Open your Bible to . Let’s watch the Bible story video “The Ten Commandments: Love God.”

Leader • What is God’s plan? God’s plan is to rescue His people from captivity. And He has! Three months after God rescued the Israelites from physical captivity in Egypt, He led them into the desert to Mount Sinai (SIGH nigh). Let’s see if you know the answer to these questions. Raise your hand if you know the answer.

Ask the following review questions:

What did God tell Moses to say to the Israelites? (“If you will listen to Me and carefully keep My covenant, you will be My own possession” ; )

How did God’s people respond to what God had said? (They said, “We will do all that the Lord has spoken” ; )

Why did God want the Israelites to hear Him speak to Moses? (God wanted the Israelites to believe Moses, )

How did God tell Moses to protect the people from His presence? (God told Moses to put boundaries around the mountain so no one would get too close, )

How did God come down on Mount Sinai? (God came down in a fire, and smoke covered the mountain. The mountain shook; )

Read aloud from your Bible.

Leader • When God finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, He gave Moses two stone tablets containing the Ten Commandments.

Explain that you will read the first four commandments from the Bible story. Challenge kids to determine if the commandment said do or do not. Precede each commandment with

“God commanded the Israelites, do or do not…”

… have other gods besides Me. (Do not, )

… make an idol for yourself. (Do not, )

… misuse the name of the Lord your God.
(Do not, )

… remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
(Do, )

Leader • God’s rules, the Ten Commandments, had a purpose. God gave us rules to show that He is holy and we are sinners. His law shows us what He requires—perfect righteousness. Our sin separates us from God, but Jesus brings us back to God. When we trust in Jesus, He takes away our sin and welcomes us into God’s family.

Key passage

Show the key passage. Lead the boys and girls to read together .

Leader • Jesus Christ is faithful as a Son over God’s household by obeying God’s law perfectly. Jesus never sinned. When we trust in Jesus, He takes away our sin and welcomes us into God’s household.

If any kids have memorized the key passage, allow them to recite it from memory.

Discussion starter video

Leader • Because God is holy, our sin separates us from Him. God cannot be around sin. Think about that as you watch this video.

Show the “Unit 4, Session 5” discussion starter video.

Leader • Did Nigel’s lunch get better or worse when he mixed the yucky food with the yummy food?

Discuss whether doing good things can make up for the bad things we do. Point out that sin separates us from God, no matter how good we try to be. Only Jesus can take away our sin and bring us back to God.

Pray

Invite kids to pray before dismissing to small groups.

Leader • Lord God, thank You for Your plan to rescue Your people from captivity. You are holy and we are sinners. We know that our sin separates us from You. Thank You for sending Jesus, who is perfectly righteous, to take away our sin. We love you. Amen.

Dismiss to small groups

Small Group LEADER

Session Title: The Ten Commandments: Love God

Bible Passage: ;

Main Point: God gave us rules to show that He is holy and we are sinners.

Key Passage:

Big Picture Question: What is God’s plan? God’s plan is to rescue His people from captivity.

Key passage activity

Before the session, write the key passage as phrases on separate index cards. Prepare two more cards containing the main point (God gave us rules to show that He is holy and we are sinners.). Make a set for every two or three kids.

Have kids look us the key passage in their bible. Lead the kids to read it aloud together. Guide kids to form pairs or groups of three. Distribute the key passage phrase cards. Challenge pairs or groups of three to race to arrange the key passage phrase cards into the completed key passage. Inform kids that there are two extra phrase cards not included in the key passage. Tell kids to stand up as a signal for their group’s completion.

Say • Awesome job! What are the extra phrase cards? (God gave us rules to show us that He is holy and we are sinners.) That’s right! Today’s Bible story main point is, God gave us rules to show us that He is holy and we are sinners.

While Moses was a faithful servant, not even he obeyed all the rules. Only Jesus, God’s Son, obeys God perfectly. When we trust that Jesus died the death we deserved to die for our sin and rose again defeating death, we are part of God’s household!

Bible story review

Instruct kids to open their Bibles to .

Say • God gave us rules to show that He is holy and we are sinners. We can read about God’s rules, the Ten Commandments, in . The first four commandments told the Israelites how to have a right relationship with God.

Call out a reference and invite kids to find it in the Bible. For each reference, ask kids to tell what God commanded.

(Do not have any other gods beside Me.)

(Do not make an idol for yourself.)

(Do not misuse the name of the Lord your God.)

(Remember the Sabbath day.)

Begin a slow pat-pat-clap-clap rhythm as you teach them a rhyme to remember the first four commandants. Pat or clap each syllable. Kids may pat their legs or the floor.

“God’s commandments, 1 through 4
Teach us how to love God more.
God’s commandment, number 1:
God is God, the only One.
God’s commandment, number 2:
Idol worshiping is through.
God’s commandment, number 3:
We use God’s name respectfully.
God’s commandment, number 4:
The Sabbath you must not ignore.”

Say the rhyme a few times, encouraging kids to repeat the words after you for each of the first four commandments.

Explain that we will soon find out what God commanded in the last six commandants.

prayer

Distribute pencils and prayer cards. These are new to half of the room, so explain that our leaders see these requests and pray for them each week. Read from your Bible. Point out that when the Israelites were at the mountain, they shuddered with fear.

Encourage kids to list or draw pictures of things they are very good at. Ask them to circle anything they are perfect at doing. Ask questions to gently challenge anyone who claims perfection. Lead kids to consider if anyone is perfect at keeping God’s laws.

Then have them write out any prayer requests that they may have.

Lead kids in a short prayer, thanking God for sending His Son—who is perfectly righteous—to take away our sin and bring us back to God.