Sunday Club 10th March 2019
The Golden Rule – Love one another – even your enemies
(adapted from Sermon4kids and activities from Pinterest)
Christine asked “What do you think when you see a heart?” (Held up a heart). Alfie said 'Love' which is what most of us would probably say that when we see a heart.
Then asked “Who do you love?” As expected the children said: parents/friends/brothers & sisters). It is easy to love these people, because they love us too.
We played a game called Opposites (Audrey explained that she was going to say a series of words and they must shout out the opposite word. The last word she used was Love; the opposite being Hate. Hate is a strong word and frequently used out of context.
We asked “Are there any children that are mean to you at school and has anyone said something about you that isn’t true?” and discussed how this made them feel.
Then asked “Do you love these boys or girls? Should we be expected to love people who are mean to us, treat us badly and say ugly things about us?” it was heartwarming to hear that the children said they would.
Alfie then read what Jesus told us to do:
Story:
One day Jesus was teaching out on a hillside. We call his lesson that day “The Sermon on the Mount.” In his sermon, Jesus said somethings that really surprised his listeners. “You have heard that you should love your neighbours and hate your enemies,” Jesus said. “But I say, love your enemies –and if someone does mean and horrible things to you – pray for them.”
Why should we love our enemies? Jesus said that when we love our enemies, we are acting like children of God. If we only love those who love us, will God reward us for that? If we are only kind to our friends, what is so great about that? Everybody does that.
It isn’t always easy to love our enemies, but there are some good reasons for doing it:
- It shows the love of God to others
- It sets a good example for others to follow
- It turns enemies into friends
Prayer: It is easy to love those who love us. Help us to love our enemies so that they might know that we are your children. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen
Activity:
Bean Bag Toss. Three container were placed at increasing intervals and the children had to throw bean bags into each one. It was easier to get the bags in the first two buckets but harder to get them in the last one. It is the same with loving people. It is easy for us to love our family and friennds but a little harder to love our enemies but we can still do it.