Week of 1.16.2022 | Day One
This week’s Bible lesson from the Gospel Project for Kids focuses on how God’s people sinned and made an idol to worship instead of God. Moses talked to God on behalf of the people as their mediator, asking Him to forgive their sin. When we think about the reasons why Israel fell into idolatry, we recognize that we are vulnerable to the same mistakes. We will read through this story from Exodus 32-34 to see our own sinful hearts depicted in Israel and God’s benevolent character that is faithful to us today.
Weekly Challenge
As a family, identify the idols in your own hearts. Confess that to the Lord and repent from it. Then ask the Lord together to help you replace those idols with the One who is truly worthy of our worship and gives us the deep satisfaction we long for. Spend the rest of the week putting into practice habits and rhythms that promote the worship of God and obedience to His word. (One example would be surrendering our personal “me time” that we often guard so much and replacing it with intentional time spent focusing on our family or others.)
Big Picture Question
What is worship? Worship is celebrating the greatness of God.
Christ Connection
Moses acted as the people’s mediator, standing for them before God. Moses could not do anything to make up for their sin, but we have a better mediator—Jesus. Jesus paid for our sin on the cross and stands for us before God. When we trust in Jesus, our sins are forgiven.
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
For families with younger kids, Read Exodus 32:1-26 or highlight the main points of this section.
For older kids you can read the whole chapter and be prepared to discuss some difficult content in 32:27-35.
Discuss
In this chapter we see a part of God that can be difficult for us to understand. As hard as it is for us in our finite minds to grasp the wrath of God, we must remember, and teach our kids, that a perfect holy God is rightly justified in having wrath against all that is imperfect and sinful. “God’s wrath is His love in action against sin.” (5 Truths About the Wrath of God by Joseph Scheumann, DesiringGod.com) The good news for us today is that Jesus satisfied the wrath of God, taking it all on himself, on our behalf. It is important to teach these truths, keeping in mind the specific age and stage of your kids.
Go back and Read Exodus 20:1-6 from last week’s lesson.
What did Israel fail to do in today’s story?
They failed to obey God’s commandments.
What was God’s response to this?
He was angry. God, the Creator of All, who had rescued them from slavery, had been present with them through their journey, provided for their needs in the wilderness and was leading them into the Promiseland, had been forgotten by His people. He saw their sin and sin deserves punishment (Romans 6:23).
What is an idol?
Idols are anything or anyone our sinful hearts look to, seeking what only God provides—such as true joy, meaning, or hope.
What things in your life do you sometimes idolize?
Encourage your kids to answer honestly. Be prepared to share some examples from your life, and discuss other things that people often idolize or seek above God, such as power, control, comfort, or approval.
How can we redirect our worship from idols back to God?
Direct your kids to consider the role of the church in helping us see our sin. Remind kids that as we read and study God’s Word, He reveals His love to us and helps us understand who He is. When we have faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit lives in us to help us love and worship God.
Pray
God, forgive us for seeing other things as more important than you. Help us to remember your faithfulness and help us keep you first in our lives. Thank you for Jesus and for His sacrifice to save people from their sins.