Read Exodus 20:1-6 Then God gave the people all these instructions: I am the your, who rescued you from the land of, the place of your slavery. You must not have any other but me. You must not bow down to them or them, for I, the LORD you God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected even children in the third and fourth generations of those who me. But I lavish for a thousand generations on those who me and my commands. (NLT) Now we don t build idols or have burnt sacrifices like they did in Moses time, but you might be surprised by some of the idols that we do have in our life! Anything that we value more, or put before God, can become an idol. For some people idols are things that they spend a lot of time doing, when maybe God is calling them to spend some time with Him. Idols might include things like technology (phones, computer/video games, TV, social media, etc.) or for others an idol might be accomplishing certain awards, achievements, or recognition. We even sometimes make ourselves our own idol! Like when we spend so much time focusing on our own looks & needs, while ignoring what God is calling us to do. None of these things are inherently bad or wrong. But we must always make sure that God comes FIRST in our lives! Take a moment to reflect on some of the things in your life that you might be putting before God. Pray that God would help you to eagerly seek after Him before anything else. And, maybe even fast by giving up that idol and devoting whatever time you would have spent on that thing to God. Use this space to write out a prayer to God. Ask Him for forgiveness for anything that you have made an idol in your life. Draw or write about something that might be an idol in your life that you want to give to God this week.
Read Exodus 20:7-11 You must not misuse the of the LORD you God. The LORD will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name. Remember to observe the day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of dedicated to the LORD your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. For in six days the LORD made the, the earth, the sea, and in them; but on the seventh day he. That is why the LORD the Sabbath day and set it apart as (NLT) In our culture we use a lot of slang that misuses the name of God. It can be easy to use some of the terminology ourselves if we are not careful! Think about someone that you respect and admire maybe it s your grandmother. You probably wouldn t exclaim, Oh my Granny Smith! when something goes wrong, however we often hear God s name used in that context. God has commanded us to treat his name with respect. It is important to honor God in the way that we speak about him. Did you know that the Jewish people would not even mention the name of God because they considered it to be so holy? How can you worship & honor God on the Sabbath? Write your ideas in the hearts: Use this space to journal to God:
Read Exodus 20:12 Honor your and. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the LORD your God is giving you. (NLT) List some ways that you can honor your parents in the bubbles. It can be difficult sometimes to honor our parents, but by honoring them we give glory to God. What promise does God make to those who follow this command? Look up the following stories in the Bible and write how each person honored his/her parents (or parental/authority figure): Genesis 47:7 12 (Joseph & his father) My Family: 1 Samuel 3:1 10 (Samuel & Eli) 1 Samuel 16:18 23 (David sent to Saul)
Exodus 20:13 & 14 You must not. You must not commit. Matthew 5:21 & 22 You have heard that our ancestors were told, You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment. But I say, if you are even with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. Matthew 5:27 & 28 You have heard the commandment that says, You must not commit adultery. But I say, anyone who even at a woman [or man] with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (NLT) The commandments are meant to be more than just a list of do s and don ts. Jesus explains in Matthew 5 that the heart (or our attitude ) is more important than just following rules. Most people can avoid actually killing someone! But, we need to be genuinely concerned for others. It s all about our heart! Is there any anger that you ve been holding on to in your heart? Why not give it to God Asking God to help you to forgive and to heal? Use the space below to talk to God.
Exodus 20:15 You must not. Exodus 20:17 You must not your neighbor s house. You must not covet your neighbor s wife, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or that belongs to your neighbor. (NLT) What are you thankful for? Take some time to thank God for the blessings and wonderful things that He has given you! See if you can fill every star with something that you thank God for! He who is not contented with what he has, would not be contented with what he would like to have. - Socrates
Exodus 20:16 You must not falsely against your neighbor. (NLT) It s important to always tell the truth! Sometimes it s difficult, but it s the right thing to do. The Bible is full of stories to show what can go wrong when people lie. Check out the stories below and write about what happened when the person lied. Joshua 7 & Psalm 86:5 6 & 11 (The story of Achan) Acts 5:1 11 (Annanias & Sappihra) Genesis 20:1 28 (Abraham deceives Abimelech) Jeremiah 5:1 3, 12 17 (Jerusalem s Dishonesty) Jeremiah 28 (A false prophet, vs. 15-17) 2 Kings 5:19 27 (The Greedy Gehazi) Use this space to talk to God. He loves you more than you can imagine and wants to hear from you!
The Commandments Key Words Word Search D A V M S A B B A T H E T O N R A C N A C R O X H I L E U J O T H A L O A N D X L O R E F V N B N S M O T H E R A E E S K D O D L S U D T Y T A F O I R A S E P H N R H U G L E U M A S E K T M L R T A C L E M R U X E J U D I V A D T R D I L O O V Y X N S T E H O N S Y S D A B E F U V L G A D U M E H I N G S O A T R M B T E R S A M T C H O X L S U D O X E R H C L L X I V A D N M A A Y E L C P E S O J O E N T R O N B J O S E P H K A Y B L E S S I N G S V Commandments LORD your God Mother David Ten Sabbath Joseph Saul Exodus Honor Samuel Heart Idols Father Eli Covet Thankful Blessings Achan Tell the Truth