Big Idea: God wants to be with His people.

Bible Passage: Exodus 35-40

This week the kids learned that God wanted to 'tabernacle', or 'dwell' with His people. He wanted to be with them. What a beautiful thought! God told His people to build the tabernacle, and gave the people instructions to follow in order to make it. People brought their best offerings to help build it together, because it was a special place. It was where the presence of God was, and so the people made it beautiful, just as God told them.

Our God wanted to be with us so much that He came to earth himself as Jesus. Jesus dwelt on earth and 'tabernacled' with His people, and showed them how to live. Then Jesus paid the ultimate price for sin – His own death, so that we can be forgiven of our sin, and have nothing stand between us and God. Jesus rose again so that we can know He is trustworthy – He has power over everything! One day Jesus will come back for all those who trust Him and we will dwell with us forever in a new heaven and new earth. Until that day, we are promised that His Spirit will dwell with us here on earth and never leave us. Our God wants to be with His people!

Family Activity

Isn't it great that God wants to be with us? We talked about ways we can be with God. When you love someone, and they love you, it's great to spend time together. How can we spend time with the God who loves to be with us? As a family, build a fort out of blankets together, or set up a tent in the back yard. Decorate it beautifully together. Climb in the tent/fort together and read Hebrews 13:5. Our God's promise is for those that trust in Him: "Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you!" Praise God together by singing a song in your tent. 

Big Idea: We miss the mark, but God has made a way for us to be His children.

Bible Passage: Exodus 20

This week the kids learned about the 10 commandments. God made a covenant (a special agreement) with His people. God called Moses up a mountain and gave His people rules to show how to love Him and others. God promised His people to be their God if they kept His covenant. 

We know that 'all fall short of the glory of God' (Romans 3:23) and no one can keep God's holy standard perfectly. That is why God made a way for us to still be called His people, even though we broke His covenant. God himself in Jesus Christ came to earth, lived a perfect, holy life, and then died to pay the price we deserved for breaking God's covenant. (The payment for sin is death -Romans 6:23). This is God's good grace to us: making a way for us to be His even though we broke His rules and His covenant. Because of Jesus payment for our sin, we can repent (or, 'realign') ourselves to God's ways and live a life of following Jesus. This means loving Him most, and loving other people the way Jesus loves us. 

Family Activity

We talked about how God gave us rules because He loves us. God's rules help us to know how holy and perfect He is. We also talked about why we need to repent or 'realign' ourselves daily with God and follow Jesus, because we miss the mark over and over again! Play a game together like 'Simon Says', or a family board game. Talk about what it would be like to play the game without any rules. Talk about what it would be like to have no rules. God gives us rules because He loves us. Even when we mess up and don't follow His ways, we can still realign and repent and are forgiven because of Jesus!

Big Idea: Our God made a way for us to be saved from sin and death. We can choose FAITH over FEAR and trust Him.

Bible Passage: Exodus 13:17-17:7

This week we talked about the amazing story of the crossing of the Red Sea. After God rescued His people from Pharaoh, they walked through the wilderness. God led them by going before them as a cloud during the day, and as cloud of fire by night. The people knew God was with them, and they followed Him. Then, as the Egyptian army began to chase them, at the banks of the Red Sea, God used Moses to open up a path through the sea that they could walk through. Walls of water stood on either side, and the pathway was dry through the middle. The Israelites passed through the sea on dry land and escaped the Egyptian army! In the wilderness, God provided for His people by sending bread from heaven, water from dry rocks and quail to eat. 

Our God provided a way for His people to be saved from the Egyptians, and proved He is in control of the whole of creation. God displayed His power to save and provide for His people time and time again. Our God provided a way for us to be saved from sin and death and provided a Saviour for us in Jesus Christ. We celebrate our God's victory in Jesus. We learned that our God never changes, and He is still as powerful now as He was then for His children. We can choose FAITH instead of FEAR no matter what we are facing because our mighty God never fails His children.

Family Activity

Ask children to write down some things that they are afraid of at the moment. It can be big or small things. Read the story of God parting the red sea for the Israelites. Then watch this video of the story of Jesus calming the storm for His disciples. Our God is the same yesterday, today and forever. Remind children of the promise that God's Holy Spirit (the same Holy Spirit who raised Christ from the dead!) 'will never leave or forsake them' (Hebrews 13:5-6). Now look at the list of things that are scary again. Ask children if they think the God who saved the Israelites, and calmed the storm, can handle these things. Raise your hands together in surrender and praise as Moses did, and pray that God will help you choose FAITH over FEAR in facing what is ahead. 

Big Idea: Jesus paid the price for our sin so we can be free.

Bible Passage: Exodus 11-12

This week we learned about the Passover. We talked about how God kept His promse to rescue His people from Egypt. God gave special instructions for His people to follow. They made a special meal together and had their shoes on ready to escape. God said to take the blood of a lamb and paint it on the door frames of their homes, and all who did this would be saved from the tenth plague that God would send on Egypt. All who obeyed this instruction were saved, just as God said, and the people left Egypt and fled from Pharaoh. God displayed His power over life and death to Pharaoh, to all of Egypt and to His people so that they would know His mighty power to save. In Exodus 9:16, God says, "I have let you live for this purpose: to show you my power and make my name known on the whole earth." God is all powerful, almighty and kept His promise to rescue His children. 

We often call Jesus the 'Lamb of God'. This is because Jesus died to pay the price for our sin, so that we could also be set free. Hebrews 9:22 tells us that without the 'shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.' Our sin needs to be paid for, and because our God is perfectly just, there must be a sacrifice for sin. But our God is also perfect in His love, and made a way for our sin to be paid for by Himself. Jesus was the once-and-for all sacrifice for our sin, so that we could be rescued. Praise God for making a way for His children to be free!

Family Activity

This week, around the dinner table, talk about God's special instructions to His people during Passover. Remind children that we have our own way of remembering the sacrifice that set us free in Jesus when we meet around the communion table. When we break bread and drink the cup together we are thanking God for setting us free from the slavery of sin and death. Praise God for making a way for us to be saved. We too, like the Israelites, are to have our 'shoes on' ready to go anywhere God sends us to share the good news of the gospel. As children put their shoes on this week, talk about how we can take the gospel wherever we go, ready to share the hope that we have in Jesus.