Have you ever felt like you have run out of ideas? All the time? Same! Constantly coming up with new lesson ideas can leave us all sometimes a little “idea dry”! Since love is such a universal topic, we thought we would share some of our ideas for Sunday School lessons on love!
AND if you are searching for something Valentine’s Day specific, we’ve got you covered there too! Here is the link to a Valentine’s Day lesson on agape love!
Valentine's Day Children's Church Lesson - Agape Love
VERSES ON LOVE – Center your lesson for the day around a verse.
1 CORINTHIANS 16:14 – “Do everything in love.”
Background Discussion: Discuss the book of Corinthians, and how a long time ago before phones, electronics, screens, TV’s, etc. if someone wanted to tell someone, who lived far away, something they had to write a letter! This is what the books of 1 and 2 Corinthians are! They are letters to a church in the city of Corinth in Greece. If you have a map, pull it out and show them where Corinth is! It will drive the idea home that you are talking about real people from a real place.
Classroom Activity: Have the word EVERYTHING written at the top of the board, and then under it ask each of the kids to tell you something that they do. Then discuss with them how they could do that in love and what that looks like.
Verse Game: Put the kids into pairs and have one kid memorize the verse and then have the other memorize where it is found. Challenge them to race to be the first to be able to stand in front of the whole group and say the verse and where it is found from memory. After one group has done it allows others to try as well until everyone has had a chance to say the verse.
PSALM 143:8 – “Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life.”
Background Discussion: Talk about the book of Psalms. Do they know that psalm means song? So, this verse is from what was meant to be a song from David. Make the connection that this is the same David from the story of David and Goliath. (This verse could even be a good memory verse when teaching a Sunday School Lesson on the story of David & Goliath as well). If you have the time and their attention, try reading all of Psalm 143, and explain that sometimes our prayers can become a song we sing to God, or vice versa the songs we sing in worship can also be something we pray to God. Have an instrument on hand to play and ask them if this verse were to be a song what would it sound like. OR if you are not instrumentally inclined, have a worship song on hand to play and discuss the lyrics in the song.
Classroom Activity: What do you do in the morning? Talk to them about what they do in the morning! Do they read? Do they eat breakfast? Do they watch tv? Talk to them about the importance of starting your day with God in the morning, kind of like what David was talking about. Discuss how great it feels to be reminded of how much God loves us at the beginning of each day.
Salvation Talk: This is a great verse to discuss along with the topic of salvation. Talk about how David is expressing that he has put his trust in God. Tell them what putting their trust in God looks like, just like David said that he entrusts his life to God. Give them a chance at the end of class to pray the Salvation Prayer.
1 JOHN 4:8 “Whoever does not love, does not know God, because God is love.”
Background Discussion: Talk about Jesus’ disciples, ask them if they remember any of their names. John the writer of this book in the Bible was one of them. He wrote this book as a letter to followers of Jesus everywhere. Talk about how sometimes in life we will encounter people who are not loving. When we show them, love, they will see God and His love shining through us.
Object Lesson: Have a flashlight or a lamp or set of string lights to show them. Attempt to turn whatever you have chosen on, but it should not work if it doesn’t have a battery or isn’t plugged into an outlet. See if they can help you figure out what it needs to shine. Once the object has its source, talk about how we are the same way. The light of love inside of all of us comes from God. If we show that light of love to others then they will see God’s love in us too!
Memory Verse Game: Make a bunch of hearts and in each of the hearts write a word from the verse on a dry erase board or chalkboard. Have each kid take a chance helping you decide which word in the verse to erase. Every time you erase a word, they have to say the verse over again until all of the words are gone.
BIBLE STORIES ABOUT LOVE
ZACCHEUS – Luke 19:1-10
Main Point: As Jesus did, we are to love others even when they are not easy to love.
Story Prop: Have a ladder on hand as your “tree” (a simple step ladder will do). As you are reading the story, have a leader act out the part of Zacchaeus, or as you are reading it acts out the part of Zacchaeus by stepping up and down the ladder.
THE GOOD SAMARITAN – Luke 10:26-37
Main Point: We are to show love to others no matter who they are.
Bible Verse: Luke 10:27
Start off by reading your Bible verse, and then ask them who they think their neighbor is. Discuss with them that someone asked Jesus that same question and that he responded by telling them this story.
Classroom Activity: As you read the story create a LOVE LIST on the board. Have the kids stop you and tell you each time the Samaritan did something that was loving (stops to check on the man, lets him ride his animal, etc. Then after you have finished the story have them add to the list ways they can be loving to others.
JESUS & THE CROSS – Matthew 27:32-54, Mark 15: 21-38, Luke 23:22-49 and John 19:16-42
Main Point: God loved us so much that He sent Jesus to take the punishment for our sins.
Telling the Easter story, not on Easter: You can choose which passage you think will be most helpful for your audience. To avoid repeating what was taught on Easter you can make the lesson more about love and the love God shows for us in all ways. Talk to them about the most important way Jesus showed his love, which was through the sacrifice of dying on the cross.
Object Lesson: Have different objects from nature on a table. Examples: An apple, a tree branch, a pretty or fun rock, grass, milk from a cow, water, etc. Discuss how God created all of these and their benefit to us. Discuss his amazing creation of them too, and how He made each of them so special and different and he loves them more than anything else in all Creation. Let them be a part of the discussion too and have them talk about their favorite things that He has made.
