Week of 1.23.2022 | Day One
This week’s lesson from The Gospel Project for Kids finishes up Exodus and focuses on building the tabernacle. What is the tabernacle? Be sure to define this for your kids. A tabernacle is a portable tent where God met with His people. The word tabernacle means “dwelling place.” God wanted to dwell among them. (See Ex. 29:45-46.) Wherever the Israelites traveled, they would set up the tabernacle in the center of camp as a powerful reminder that God was with His people.
God has always wanted to be with His people. Even when sin separated Adam and Eve from God in the garden, God had a plan to be with His people. God sent His son, Jesus, to live on earth with the people. Through Jesus, all who believe can be reunited with God, and one day they will dwell with Him for all eternity.
Weekly Challenge
Throughout the week, make a point to think about God’s presence dwelling with His people, both in the Old Testament in the Tabernacle then the Temple, in the New Testament as Jesus, and now through the Holy Spirit. God loves us so much He wants to dwell with us! (For added fun, consider making a visual reminder with your kids. You could color a flag that you put up in your home, make bracelets with your favorite colors to remind you of the details God put into His tabernacle, or even light a candle as you have your family devotional time.)
Big Picture Question
What is worship? Worship is celebrating the greatness of God.
Christ Connection
God told the Israelites to build a tabernacle where He would dwell with them. God wants to be with His people. As part of His plan to save sinners, God sent Jesus to dwell on earth with people.
Key Passage
Come, let’s worship and bow down; let’s kneel before the LORD our Maker. For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, the sheep under his care.
Psalm 95:6-7
Read
Exodus 35 and 36
For families with young kids, focus on these main parts of the chapters: (35:4-35, 36:4-9)
Discuss
Think about what has happened leading up to this part of the story. God’s people disobeyed Him repeatedly! They were unfaithful to Him, even though He was faithful to save them, provide for them, and be with them. In this story, we see God’s gracious and forgiving character on display! Isn’t it amazing how he still loved them and wanted to dwell with them, even though they sinned. It is the same for us!
Why does God want to live with people?
Remind the kids that God’s desire to be with us grows out of His love for us, which in turn is a result of His creating us for His glory. Help them understand that God’s love is unconditional—there’s nothing we can do to make God love us more, and nothing we can do will cause Him to stop loving us. His love is perfect, and His desire to be with us is real.
Why does sin separate us from God?
Encourage the kids to think about God’s holiness. Because God is perfectly holy, He will destroy all sin and evil. We are all born in sin, with hearts that rebel against God and want to go our own way. The fair payment of sin is death, and so our sin prevents us from living with God.
Pray
God, thank You for loving us with an everlasting love and always wanting to be with Your people. Even though people chose to sin against You, You sent Jesus to dwell with people. Help us trust in Him so that we can have a new life and dwell with You forever.