Adam and Eve disobey God
key words
biblical reference
Genesis 2:8-9; 3
lesson objective
To enable the children to learn that Adam and Eve were disobedient to God.
memory verse
“God saw all that he had made, and it was very good” (Genesis 1:31a, NIV*).
prepare yourself to teach
Adam and Eve lived in such a beautiful place that we could hardly imagine it. They were the ones who took care of the garden and the animals that lived there. They could walk with God and talk freely with Him. They had everything they needed, and there was no suffering.
God had made them a very special part of his creation, and he cared for them.
Adam and Eve could eat of all the fruit that the trees produced, except one tree that was in the middle of the garden. That was the only restriction that God put on them. They accepted it without complaining and lived happily in the beautiful garden.
But one day Eve was tempted by a serpent. The temptation was to disobey the commandment that God had given them, to eat the forbidden fruit, and to gain the same knowledge that God possessed. The snake was cunning and succeeded in deceiving the woman, who ate and shared the forbidden fruit with her husband.
Suddenly, their purity of mind and heart had vanished, and both were ashamed of their nakedness. From that moment, they began to experience a series of feelings that were unknown to them.
God rebuked the serpent for his deceit, and he banished Adam and Eve from the garden. Then he sent angels to guard the entrance to the garden, and put a sword of fire to prevent them from having access to the garden. Now they would have to work to be able to eat for the rest of their lives.
Even so, God continued to love them, and provided them with coats of skins to cover themselves. In the same way, even though we are disobedient to God, he is willing to forgive us. He planned for the salvation of sinners through the sacrifice of his Son, Jesus. We receive blessings by serving a God of grace and love.
Obey or disobey? This question can be difficult for young children. Many times the temptation seems too strong to resist. At other times they are likely to feel confused about how they should act, and they will not fully understand the concept of good and evil.
However, all people, whether children or adults, should know that disobedience is a sin against God. Human beings are rebellious by nature. Only the power of God can change our behavior and mold our heart and our emotions. Pre-schoolers are in a formative stage, in which they are beginning to distinguish between what is right from what is wrong. It is important that they know that they can decide how to make right choices, just like Adam and Eve.
This lesson will help them understand that when they disobey, they must also face the consequences. Adam and Eve were separated from God, separated from the garden, and had to work hard to get their food.
Pray that during this class you and your children will be challenged always to obey God and do what he asks.
introduce the lesson
What should I choose?
Before class, gather white paper and crayons or colored pencils. On each paper, write the name of one of the children in large letters that can be colored.
Tell the children they can choose a crayon (or pencil) to color their names. They can choose any color except purple. They are not to use the purple crayon. Give the children time to choose a crayon and color the names.
Then ask, ‘How easy was it to choose a color? Let the children respond. “Were any of you tempted to choose the purple color, even though I told you not to do that?
Let the children respond. Say, “Some choices are easy to make. Some choices are difficult. In today’s story, Adam and Eve had to make an important choice.”
teach the lesson
These activities will help children learn and understand the biblical truth in a deeper way.
Adam and Eve
Have two items that represent Adam and Eve at hand. Show them to the children, and talk about these biblical characters. Review how God created them, and what they did within the garden. Let your children picture the life of this couple in the Garden of Eden.
Enriching the story with visual illustrations can help you better capture the pre-schoolers’ attention. If you do not have visual resources on hand, modulate your voice and do an interactive class. Allow the children to participate by giving their opinions to enrich the story.
Good fruit or bad fruit
Bring a variety of local fruit to class. Show the fruit, and let the children name each kind of fruit. Say: “Would you like to eat any of this fruit? Is there anything wrong with eating any of this fruit? Listen to the story and find out why it was wrong for Adam and Eve to eat some fruit.”
Adam and Eve disobeyed
God, the Creator, had made a beautiful world. There were many plants, fruit trees, and animals in the large garden. God gave Adam and Eve the job of taking care of everything in the garden. Adam and Eve were in charge of taking care of everything.
They lived very happily because God was always with them. They could walk in the garden while they talked to him. God allowed them to eat all the fruit of the trees in the garden, except for one tree. He had given them only one rule: they could not eat from one tree in the middle of the garden.
Something happened that changed the story in that garden. Eve was tempted by a serpent to disobey God and eat the forbidden fruit. She chose to eat the fruit, and she gave some of the fruit to Adam. He ate it too. This couple was no longer happy. They had disobeyed their friend, their Creator. They were too ashamed to walk with God. The Lord had to take Adam and Eve out of the garden. They could no longer be in that beautiful place. Now they would have to work hard for their food. However, God continued to love them, and made them clothes so that they were not naked and would not become cold.
Despite their disobedience, God forgave them and continued to take care of them always.
connect the lesson
Obey or disobey?
Ask your children to draw a picture of times when they choose to be obedient or disobedient. For example: putting away play items or not, helping or not with chores, etc.
Give a short time for them to show their drawing to the group. Ask: “What happened to Adam and Eve when they disobeyed? What happens to you when you disobey?”
Encourage them to always be obedient and grateful to God in all they do.
Oh... oh disobey!
Before class, prepare Student Activity Sheet #20-A and #20-B. Also, gather pencils, scissors, and glue. You may need to cut out the images for many of your children. You may want to do that before class. Give the children their activity sheets and a pencil. Let them write their names, and trace the Word of Faith (Creator). Help those who are just starting to write.
Tell them: “You must connect the dots to see the complete drawing of the tree" (in SAS #20-A). Explain that they must find Adam and Eve, and circle them. Then ask them to complete the scenes in the section from 1 to 3 in SAS #19-B (or have them do it with their parents). The children will have to cut and paste the fruit images according to the sequence of events. Use this section to review the Bible story.
Encourage the children to take home their activity sheets to share the lesson with their families and friends.
practice the memory verse
Memory Children
Use the children’s silhouettes, which were used for the last class. If you haven’t already done this, number the silhouettes, so the children can put them in numerical order. Repeat the verse several times. Help the little ones or those who have difficulties with the memory verse.
wrap-up
Pray
Encourage the children to pray in their homes for the people they love. Ask God to help each child make choices to obey parents, teachers, and him.
Encourage
Remind the children that God is always ready to forgive us when we tell him we are sorry for what we have done wrong. God loves each child very much.
Invite
Remind the children to invite friends to come to class with them. As parents pick up their children, give the parents a copy of the memory verse. Ask the parents to help the children work on the verse at home.
* Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™