Lesson Objective:
The children will learn that the choices we make carry consequences.
Scripture:
Genesis 3:1-24
Arrival:
Bring the children to the singing area of the classroom. Sing with them, including the song “The Wise Man Built His House Upon the Rock.” After singing that song, ask the children which man made the best choice. Ask what the consequence of the foolish man’s choice was (his house fell down).
Prayer Time:
Take prayer requests and have an older child who wants to volunteer pray. If no one wants to volunteer, you lead prayer.
Lesson:
Before the class starts, prepare an object lesson. Take a small piece of candy and wrap it in cellophane and then in a piece of newspaper (the older the better). Take a small rock that is about the same size and wrap it in wrapping paper or a candy wrapper so that it looks appealing. Let a small child choose between the two at the beginning of the lesson. Chances are he will choose the appealing one. Then let him see that it is a rock. Open the candy and show him what the other choice was. To be kind, go ahead and give him the candy, but only after pointing out that his choice (taking the pretty package) had a consequence (no candy!)
Ask the children what they remember about creation. Take their responses, then lead them into a discussion about how God called all that He made “good.” Talk about the Garden of Eden. Tell the children that it was a beautiful place filled with fruit trees, fresh water, and animals. Help the children imagine life where animals did not eat one another, people could lie down next to lions or bears without concern, and everything was peaceful. There were no thorns on plants, no weeds to pull, and no violence of any kind.
Tell the children that this is where Adam and Eve lived, and they could do anything they wanted, except for one thing. God told them they had to obey one rule (they could not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.) Ask the children if they think it would be easy to follow just one rule.
Tell them that it was not as easy as they might think. Narrate the story of Eve’s temptation (found in the Bible passage). Emphasize how all that Eve had to do was obey one rule, and she didn’t.
Talk about the consequences of the decision to eat the fruit. Now Adam and Eve had to leave their beautiful garden, they would die some day, and they could no longer walk and talk with God. The world was going to be cursed, there would be thorns and weeds to deal with when planting crops, and people would experience pain.
Make the lesson personal by talking about times when you have made a bad choice, and the consequences of that choice. Allow children to share stories of their choices. Then, talk about making good choices and the ways that would bring good consequences.
End on a positive note by reminding the children that God had to take Adam and Eve out of the garden because they sinned, but He provided a way for people to be with Him in heaven through sending His Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins.
Memory Verse:
Romans 5:8 – take some time to talk about this verse and practice it as a group. Send a print off of the verse home for children to work on. It is more important that they understand the meaning behind the verse than memorize it in class.
Craft Time:
Let the children create their own Garden of Eden.
Dismissal:
Pray with the children and ask review questions from the lesson. Remind them to make good choices throughout the week.