Preparation: Ten commandments written into the categories of Love God and Love Neighbor and index cards or pieces of paper rolled up with the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-9 written on them)

Faith+Open: Gather children with you. Have you heard of the ten commandments? Can you tell me what they are? Respond as appropriate, if they know them Yay! If not, respond encouragingly that there are two commands they can learn (or maybe three, I’m partial to Honor father and mother 🙂

Faith+Share: Good, we know that there are ten commandments given to Moses and actually there are a lot more than 10 in the Bible. There are 613! So we are going to learn them today… pause… just kidding! What rules do you have at home or school? Do you think there is one that is the most important? yay, it might be hard to decide what is most important. Jesus was asked by some leaders who knew all the 613 laws very well which one was the most important. And they might have been surprised because he had an answer for them. He said, Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and soul and mind and Love your neighbor as yourself. If you think about it,(show ten commandments divided into these categories) when we talk about how to live as Christians these two commands cover all the other commandments. Go briefly through list. 

When Jesus said to love God and neighbor he was not actually saying something new. He was telling them what scripture said in Deuteronomy and in Leviticus. In fact this was such important part about being Jewish that it has a special name, the Shema. Have them repeat the word Shema. Read Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and explain that this tells us to love God and live in God’s word all the time, everyday and everywhere. Show them a mezuzah or the rolled up paper. The Shema would be in the mezuzah which would go on the doorposts of people’s homes so that would remember that God’s word was on their hearts at home and whenever they left home. Hand out the index cards or scrolls that you have prepared and encourage the children to take them home and put them on their table or by their door or in a special place. Tell them to try to read and say the Shema as a family every day this week.

Faith+Prayer and Blessing: 
God, you love us all the time. Thank you for the gift of your words and your love for us. Help us to show our love for you and our love for others by the way we act and live. In the name of the Father, Son, + and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Extension Ideas: 
1. Have kids repeat the Shema or parts of it.
2. Make mezuzahs or scrolls together instead of handing them out
3. use chart paper and have the kids come up with which category each commandment goes into
4. Teach them the song “Love the Lord your God”  Here is a link to a youtube so you can hear the music

Lyrics:
Love the lord your God
With all your heart and
All your soul
And all your mind
And love all humankind
As you would love
Yourself and…

Love the lord your God
With all your heart
And all your
Soul and mind
And love all humankind

We’ve got Christian
Lives to live
We’ve got Jesus’
Love to give
We’ve got
Nothing to hide
Because in God we abide

Love the lord your God
With all your heart
And all your soul
And all your mind
And love all humankind
As you would love
Yourself and…

Love the lord your God
With all your heart
And all your
Soul and mind
And love all humankind

We’ve got Christian
Lives to live
We’ve got Jesus’
Love to give
We’ve got
Nothing to hide
Because in God we abide  LOVE

~LB