Scripture: Leviticus 1-27
Learning Objectives:
- Students will learn God gave the Israelites many laws.
- Students will learn the Law God gave Moses contain laws not just for religion, but laws that would be the rules for their society as well.
- Students will learn it was impossible for the people to keep all of these laws, so God already had a plan for Jesus to come to earth and die for our sins.
- Students will learn about the different laws that God gave the Israelites.
Guiding Question: How can students learn about the types of laws God gave the Israelites and the purpose of the laws?
Materials: Bibles, paper, pencil
Procedure: Introduce the purpose of Leviticus 1-27. Emphasize God’s commands for the scapegoat and sacrifices in chapter 16. Explain that Leviticus lists many detailed laws for the Israelites to follow. Many laws were focused on sacrifice. This was because sacrificing an animal was how the people showed they were sorry for their sins and the people were willing to rely on God. Divide students into groups of two or three and have them write down the laws they think God may have given the Israelites on Mt Sinai. In some cases, you may allow students to consult their Bibles. Make sure students understand there were many laws in addition to the 10 commandments. Help students understand that God gave them laws not only for spiritual reasons, but these laws also covered their civic, dietary and other needs for rules and laws normally provided by a government. Since God was their king, He gave them all of the laws they would need. Have students compare and contrast their lists. Point out some of the more interesting laws they probably missed in their search.
Additional Questions: How can students compare God’s laws to laws we see in our world today?
Supplemental Activity: Have students work together to come up with a list of God’s laws and a list of laws in our world today. Have the students compare and contrast the laws. Then have the students create a summary about the similarities and differences in the laws.