6A ORD

Can anyone tell me what a Law is? (children reply)

Do we have laws about driving a car? (children: Yes)

What are some of the driving laws that you know about? (children reply)

Why? (children reply: to keep people safe)

Are people free to break the law? (children: Yes)

What can happen when people break the law? (Hurt, Kill, Jail, etc.)

Does God have any laws? (children: Yes)

Do you know any of God’s laws? (children: various answers)

Are people free to break God’s laws?

• Yes. God does not force us to be good.
• If we are naughty, it is something that we choose to be.
• God wants us to do what is right, to follow his laws, but he lets us choose whether we will be naughty – and not follow his law or nice – and keep his laws.
• Why do you think that God wants us to keep his laws?
• We just sang a song that gives us the answer: “Blest are they who follow the law of the Lord!”

Has anyone heard a story of how people first broke God’s law?

• Adam and Eve – Choosing to eat from the tree that God told them not to eat from.
• After that, people started breaking God’s laws all the time. People started hurting each other, stealing from each other, being jealous of each other.
• God wanted all of his children to be happy – but many were afraid and not very happy at all.
• Finally God took a man named Moses up a high hill to talk to him about some very important laws that people really need to follow.
• The story says that God carved them into big stones and asked Moses to give them to the people.
• One of those laws was “Thou Shalt Not Kill.”?
• Because of this law, most people don’t go around killing other people. Right?
• But Jesus told his friends that they should try not to fight with people, or hit people, or say nasty things to people. That was the new law.

As a matter of fact, Jesus took all of God’s laws and told people that . . .

• If they could just Love God with their whole heart and love other people, like they loved themselves,
• And if all people would grow to love God and love their neighbors throughout the world – then they would then be happy and the whole world would be happy too.
• And that’s what Jesus is telling us to do today. Just two things – love God and love your neighbor – love other people.
• We call this new law – the Gospel of Jesus – because Gospel means Good News.
• And keeping that good news is the best way for us all to be happy.

So, let’s end with a little song. Okay?
Your job is to clap your hands. (You’ll know when)

If you really want to be happy – love the Lord. (Clap 2X)
And love your neighbor as you – love yourself. (Clap 2X)
If you really want to be happy (2x)
love God and your neighbor as yourself. (Clap 2X)

One more time!

A . . . . Men!