Sin Entered The World- Sunday September 26, 2021

Sunday September 26, 2021 (Vol 1, Unit 2, Session 1)

Hi there, and thanks for joining us this week. FriendshipKids exists to help families bring their children to Christ and disciple them to be maturing, lifelong, reproducing followers of Jesus Christ. We hope this blog will be a useful tool for you to use to fulfill that call on your life. Week by week, we will review the previous Sunday’s Children’s church lesson and help your kids grow in their faith. Please feel free to use as much of it as you choose. You know your kids and are the best possible teacher for them. God has given you the power of the Holy Spirit to enable you to do more than you think possible (Eph 3:20). So, let’s have some fun and teach our kids from the scriptures.

Parent Devotional

Sin Enters the World

Does the story of the fall surprise you? How could Adam and Eve—who had everything they needed—rebel against a loving God? Do you think you would have acted differently?

Adam and Eve’s story is our story. Think about the last time you blatantly sinned. What lies were you believing in that moment? Satan wants us to believe the same lie that Eve believed: Maybe God is holding out on me. Maybe He isn’t good or loving. Maybe I would do a better job than Him. Do you ever wonder if you know better than God?

Before the fall, Adam and Eve enjoyed a loving, two-way relationship with God. The garden was a true paradise. God filled the garden with good gifts so that they might enjoy them and give Him thanks. This glorifies God. All of that changed when Adam and Eve gave in to the serpent’s temptation.

Adam and Eve desired something more: the wisdom the fruit offered. But when their eyes were opened, they didn’t get what they hoped for. Instead, they were aware of their nakedness. They felt ashamed. Surely the Lord’s heart broke at their act of disobedience and rebellion. Can you think of a time your own sin produced regret and sorrow?

Because of their sin, God cast Adam and Eve out of the garden. Though they did not die right away, sin’s effect was immediate and thorough. Their lives and their children’s lives—and the lives of all of humanity—would be forever affected by their choice. We see this in the world around us. We experience God’s grace, but we are very aware that the world is broken. It was not meant to be this way.

Sin is a big problem that needs a big solution. At just the right time, God sent His Son into the world, born as a baby. Matthew 1:21 says, “You are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

As the kids you teach become increasingly aware of the bad news—that we are all sinners from birth—rejoice with them over the good news: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Tim. 1:15).

TERMS TO KNOW

The Fall: The first sin of Adam and Eve that brought judgment upon both nature and mankind. By rejecting God’s authority and choosing to eat the fruit God had forbidden, Adam threw God’s creation into chaos.

Parent Guidance and Instructions

As we begin to explore this week’s devotional, take a moment to pray and meditate on the verse from Deuteronomy about teaching your children the scriptures. Deuteronomy 6:7 says: “You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” Maybe you do not have time to sit and have an hour of Bible time all at once, or perhaps your children are too young to sit for that long. Consider the key points of the lesson and ask God to give you opportunities to speak them into the hearts of your children throughout the week. Let the Bible become a part of your day-to-day. Be blessed this week, my friends!

Each week we include songs, activity pages, the bible lesson video, and memory verses. We pray this will help you find ways to engage your kids spiritually. It is written in script form from the K-2nd grade lesson, so you can read directly from it or change it to suit your children. Take some time to look at and print the activity pages and to review the lesson so you can adjust as needed. Once you are ready, go ahead and start with these songs if you would like, or pick some of your favorite worship songs and then jump right in! Have fun! And remember, this does not need to be done in one sitting! Feel free to break it up over the week. Please contact us at the church if you have any questions or suggestions. We would love to hear from you!

Opening

“Blessings and Bummers”

Let’s get started. Tell me, what have you seen the Lord doing in your lives this week? What have your greatest blessings been? How about your biggest challenges?

Parents share your blessings and bummers, encourage the kids to do the same. The goal is for kids to see God at work in the everyday, seemingly small and mundane things. It doesn’t matter if it is something as small as getting to watch a favorite TV show or something big like a new baby sibling being born, God is active and in our midst.

Prayer

Let’s go to the Lord in prayer: Father God, Thank you. Thank you for providing for our needs. You are so good to us even though we do not deserve it! Thank you for continuing to bless us, Lord. Thank you for being patient with us. Thank you to our friends as well as our families. Most importantly, we thank you always for sending Jesus to live a perfect life and die to pay for our sins. Thank you for raising Him from the dead and promising us life with you forever if we believe in Him. Please help us be thankful for all you do for us and look to you in all that we do. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

(Please add to or customize prayer time to fit your family)

Praise the Lord for hearing our prayers!

Let’s go!

   SAY   Hello! It is so good to see you today. If you brought your Bible today, hold it up. [Provide Bibles for kids who need one.] Can anyone tell me what the Bible is about? [Allow kids to respond.] The Bible is God’s Word. It tells us the wonderful story of God’s plan to rescue sinners.

The Bible tells us what is true about God and about ourselves. So, because the Bible tells us that God rescues sinners, we can know that we are sinners who need to be rescued.  

Big Picture Question

SAY: Today and over the next few weeks, we are going to be thinking about a big picture question. The big picture question is a question that helps us remember something that is true about God or ourselves. It reminds us that beyond the smaller details of a Bible story, God is working out a greater plan.

Our big picture question is, What does it mean to sin? What do you think? What does it mean to sin? [Allow kids to respond.] Those are some good ideas. Here is the answer to our big picture question: To sin is to think, speak, or behave in any way that goes against God and His commands. We’ll talk more about that after we hear today’s Bible story.   

Review

SAY: Last time, we talked about God’s glory. Creation glorifies God! We see that truth in all God has made. We first heard how God created the world. On the sixth day, God created people. Everything God created exists for His glory.

When God created everything, His creation was good. In fact, God saw that it was very good. Everything was just how God wanted it. The first two people—Adam and Eve—had a close relationship with God. He loved them, and they loved Him. But as we will see in today’s Bible story, something happened that ruined creation.

Bible Lesson

SAY: How do you think Adam and Eve felt before they sinned? What was their relationship with God like? [Allow kids to respond.] They had a right relationship with God. He gave them everything they needed. They were completely known and loved.

Then one day, this serpent came along. The serpent wasn’t just a tricky snake. Who was he? The serpent was actually Satan, an enemy of God. Satan—also known as the devil—is against everything that God is for. Satan came along and led Adam and Eve to doubt God. What question did Satan ask Eve? Look at Genesis 3:1. [Choose a volunteer to read aloud Gen. 3:1.] Satan lied and told Eve that she would not die if she disobeyed God.

Eve believed the lie, and she ate the fruit. Adam ate it too. Sin entered the world when Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s command. God still loved Adam and Eve, but He did not let them stay in the garden.

After Adam and Eve sinned, how do you think they felt? [Allow kids to respond.] They felt ashamed and tried to hide from God. What did Adam and Eve think God would do? What did God do? Look at Genesis 3:21,23. [Choose a volunteer to read aloud Gen. 3:21,23.]

Before Adam and Eve left the garden, God explained the consequences of their sin. Adam, Eve, and the serpent all faced consequences. What were some of the consequences? Look at Genesis 3:14-19. [Allow kids to scan the passage and share some of the consequences.] God judged Adam and Eve. He said their lives would be marked by pain and suffering. Their sin separated them from God. God sent them out of the garden, but God also showed them grace. He clothed them, and they did not die right away.

Look at Genesis 3:15. God told the serpent that someone would come from Eve’s family to destroy the serpent. One day, Satan and his evil work would be stopped for good. What a wonderful promise.  

Christ Connection

SAY   Ever since Adam and Eve sinned, all people have been born as sinners. Sin separates us from God, but God still loves us. God promised a Rescuer would come from Eve’s family. God sent His Son, Jesus, to rescue people from sin and bring them back to God.   

Bible Time!

Distribute Bibles and display the Old Testament Mediterranean Map. Guide kids to open their Bibles to Genesis 3. Explain that we don’t know exactly where the garden of Eden was located. Point to the region in the bottom right corner of the map, and explain that some people think it may have been in that area.

Consider comparing the Old Testament Mediterranean Map to a modern-day map to help kids understand where these stories took place. Locate the areas in and around modern-day Iraq. Then Choose a volunteer to read aloud Genesis 3:23.

Say    God sent Adam and Eve out of the garden with a promise—that Eve’s descendant would defeat the snake—and with a job: to work the ground. Next time, we will see what happened to Adam and Eve outside of the garden.  

DISCUSSION

Ask the following questions. Lead the group to discuss.

Say: Why did the snake tempt Eve?  

Remind kids that Satan was behind the temptation. Satan is against God and everything that He is for. The snake tempted Eve to doubt God’s goodness. Emphasize that when Satan tempts us to sin, he may try to get us to doubt God’s goodness too. Kids must be aware of Satan and his tactics in order to resist them.

(Option: Choose a volunteer to read Jas. 4:7.)

Say: Can we hide from God? Why do you think people might try to hide from God?  

Point out that after Adam and Eve sinned, they heard God in the garden and hid among the trees. God asked, “Where are you?” but that doesn’t mean that God could not see them. God gave Adam an opportunity to confess his sin. Ask if a parent has ever said, “Who did this?” when finding a mess in the house. The parent may know the answer but gives a kid the opportunity to tell the truth. Discuss why people might try to hide from God (fear, shame, and so on). Emphasize that we cannot hide from God.

(Option: Choose a volunteer to read Heb. 4:13.)

Say: Does sin always have consequences? Explain.  

Lead kids to recognize that although we may not see the consequences immediately, sin always has consequences. Point out that the biggest consequence of sin is that it separates us from God.

(Option: Choose a volunteer to read Isa. 59:2.)

Key Memory Verse

Before the session, print a few extra copies of the key passage poster. Cut each poster into several large pieces and place each set of pieces in a ziplock bag.

Show the key passage poster. Lead kids in reading Romans 3:23 aloud together. Form groups of kids based on the number of posters you prepared. Give each group a bag and challenge groups to put together the key passage puzzle. When kids finish, lead them to say the key passage together.

SAY: What does it mean to sin? To sin is to think, speak, or behave in any way that goes against God and His commands. Satan is against God. Eve believed his lies and chose to sin. Praise God for His great plan to send a Savior!

Lead kids to sing “For All Have Sinned (Romans 3:23).” You may also choose to sing a worship song of your choice. 

That is all I have for this week. Let’s pray together:

SAY: Lord God, thank You for Your Word. In it, we see the truth about who we are as sinners. We see Your love in how You provided a way for people to be saved from death. We need Jesus. Help us turn to You in our need and receive Your grace. Amen.   

Thanks for joining us! I hope to meet you here again next week!

Thank you to Lifeway for allowing us to publish this lesson using their Gospel Project materials.