Curriculum
Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
Memory Verse:
“He answered, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind,’ and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Luke 10:27)
Bible Background
What Kids Will Learn
God wants us to love our neighbors—really, anyone we come in contact with at the store, on our street, in our school, or even when we’re traveling.
Scripture Summary
Jesus was tested many times by religious leaders and experts of the law. They wanted to catch Jesus saying something wrong or contradicting what God’s law stated. The leaders wanted to discredit Jesus. In this case, an expert wanted to know exactly who was his neighbor in order to justify himself.
To answer, Jesus told a parable—a story—of a Samaritan man who extended incredible kindness to a Jewish man. The Jewish man was robbed, beaten, and left on the side of the road. Three men passed by the hurt man: a priest, a Levite, and a Samaritan. The priest and Levite both ignored the man. But the Samaritan cared for the Jewish man, got him to safety, and even paid for his expenses.
The Jews and Samaritans were more than “high school rivals.” The disdain for each other ran deeply and for generations. Jews and Samaritans never got together and were never friends. So Jesus was breaking down some long-standing cultural barriers with this parable.
There were five main responses to the wounded man in this parable:
- Something to discuss. The expert of the law wanted to talk with Jesus about loving neighbors and exactly who he had to love (and who he didn’t need to love).
- Something to abuse. The robbers stole from the Jewish man and abused him physically and financially.
- Something to avoid. The priest simply had better things to do than being interrupted by someone in need.
- Something to spark curiosity. The Levite passed by on the other side of the road possibly thinking the man was dead. And coming in contact with a dead man would make the Levite unclean.
- Someone to love. Only the Samaritan chose God’s response to the Jewish man. Despite cultural differences, the Samaritan displayed great love for the hurt man.
Why Is This Important
God created us to deeply need a relationship with Him and with others. We are to show His love and His care to those around us in order to draw others to Him.
Teacher Devotion
Scripture
“Each of us should please our neighbors for their good, to build them up.” (Romans 15:2)
We are thankful to have incredible neighbors. To the left of our house, there’s a family with daughters and dogs—a lively household. We’ve seen them through graduations, home improvement projects, marriages, and new pets.
And a retired couple lives to the right of us. I remember when our boys kicked a football over the fence and hit Miss Alice in the face. Thankfully, she wasn’t hurt and quickly forgave the boys. These neighbors have given gifts to our boys (a basketball hoop, snowboards, and Rubik’s Cubes) just because. And they didn’t miss the graduation party for our son (and let us use their oven for some of the party refreshments).
While we’re close to our next-door neighbors, I realize I have no idea who lives two doors down from us in either direction. I don’t know their names. I haven’t taken the time to learn about them or meet their pets. I haven’t taken them a few cookies when I have made a fresh batch. The families who live two doors down are our neighbors, too. And Jesus commands me to love them.
How can I love them if I don’t know them?
I know it wouldn’t take much effort at all to get to know them. The next time I bake muffins, I could take a half-dozen over and introduce myself. Or when the family is outside taking care of yard work, I could walk 50 feet up the street and learn their names. And if I’m really feeling intentional, I could go door-to-door asking if those living on my street would be interested in a neighborhood pitch-in dinner to get to know each other.
All it takes is introducing myself and getting to know my neighbors.
Prayer
Dear God, I thank You for my neighbors. I’m sorry that I haven’t taken the time to learn their names or get to know them well. Please help me be a good friend to the neighbors You’ve given me. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Bible Memory Verse
You’ll Need: Bibles
“He answered, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind,’ and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Luke 10:27)
Have kids learn the Bible memory verse using these words and motions:
- Read aloud Luke 10:27.
- SAY: Today we’re learning about loving God and others.
- Have children stand in a circle, and teach them the verse in these parts. (If you have more than 10 kids, form more than one circle.)
- “He answered, ‘Love the Lord your God (Hug self, and then point up.)
- With all your heart (Use fingers to make a heart shape on chest.)
- And with all your soul (Hold palms face up.)
- And with all your strength (Make muscles.)
- And with all your mind,’ (Point to head.)
- And, ‘Love your neighbor (Side hug those to the left and right.)
- As yourself.’” (Hug self.)
- Repeat several times.
- Now have kids turn to those on their right and their left and say the verse with the motions together with each neighbor.
- Have them reach across the circle and join hands with someone, saying the verse with that neighbor.
- Repeat until kids have recited the verse together with each of the other children in their circle.
SAY: Jesus tells us how to love. He says to love God first and then love all people and show kindness to them, just as we care for and love ourselves.
Interactive Bible Experience
You’ll Need: Bible, Chairs
SAY: Today we’re learning what Jesus said about loving our neighbors. Let’s look into that some more.
Follow these steps to explore the Bible passage:
- Have the children sit in chairs in a circle.
- Read aloud Luke 10:25-29, and have kids repeat verse 27 after you as you read it.
ASK:
- How would you answer Jesus’ question?
- Explain whether what you do each day matches how you answer the question.
SAY: Let’s do something to think more about that.
- Choose one child to sit in the center of the group and be “It.” That child will ask someone, “How do you like your neighbors?” The child will respond in one of two ways:
- “I need new neighbors” means the child in the center names two people to exchange seats with the child’s present neighbors. The child in the center will race to steal one of the vacated seats. Whoever’s left without a seat becomes It.
- “I love my neighbors” means everyone in the circle must run to change seats while It tries to steal one of the vacated seats.
- After a few rounds, say: Let’s look more into what Jesus said about loving our neighbors.
- Read aloud Luke 10:30-37.
ASK:
- Explain whether you think we loved our neighbors in this game.
- What are some ways you can love others in real life, knowing what Jesus said about loving others?
SAY: Jesus says to love everyone, whether friend or enemy. That means when we see someone in need, we do what we can to help. It means we’re kind and generous. It means we think about how well we love and care for ourselves, and we treat others like that, too.
Snack
Family-Style Snack
You’ll Need: Plates, Various snacks
Follow these steps for the snack:
- Have kids clean their hands.
- Invite kids to talk about how their family eats at home—whether someone fixes a plate, if they pass around food, and where they like to eat in their home.
- Explain that family-style eating is when all the dishes are on the table, and everyone shares, passing dishes around the table to serve them- selves and others.
- Invite kids to share their snack in this way by passing around the food to others and serving others as they do.
- Invite kids to talk about how treating others like family is a way to love their neighbors.
SAY: The good Samaritan loved the Jewish man like he was a family member. He cared for him, took him to a safe place, and even paid for others to care for him. We can love people like that, too.
Game
Pass the Bullfrog
Follow these steps to play the game:
- Have kids form a circle.
- Have the children hold their palms out to their sides, facing upward.
- Have kids then overlap their palms so their right hands are on top of their neighbors’ hands to the right and below their neighbors’ hands to their left.
- Teach them the “Down by the Banks” song: Down by the banks of the Hanky Panky,
- Where the bullfrogs jump from bank to banky, With an eep, ipe, ope, op,
- Three alligators and a big ker-PLOP!
- As kids sing, they’ll “pass” a clap. One child will clap his or her right hand with the left. As soon as that clap happens, the clap passes to the next child whose hand is clapped, who then repeats the action. The goal is to not be the one in mid-pass when the final word, “plop,” is said.
- Play several rounds.
SAY: We passed on a clap in our game. In life, Jesus wants us to pass on love to others.
Craft
Heart Neighbors
You’ll Need: “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” how-to video, “Heart” handouts, Crayons or markers, Scissors, Glue or tape, Construction paper, Other craft supplies
Get Ready: Before class, make copies of the handout, three for each child.
To make the craft, have kids follow these steps:
- Remind kids that Jesus said to love our neighbors.
- Give each child three handouts.
- Have kids cut out the hearts.
- Have kids glue two hearts together at their points. Have them glue or tape the third heart with the point overlapping the top of one of the hearts. The single heart facing one direction is the head and the other two hearts are the body.
- Have kids add a face to the head heart.
- Have kids decorate the body heart with the craft supplies. They can use construction paper to create arms and legs.
- Have them write “Love your neighbor” on the body of the heart neighbor.
SAY: Jesus says to love our neighbors as ourselves. Take home your craft as a reminder to practice that this week.
Prayer
Loving Prayers
You’ll Need: Heart Neighbors craft
Lead kids to pray in this way:
- Have each child hold his or her own craft.
- Have kids identify a “neighbor” they could love.
- Allow time for them to pray for that person.
- Close in prayer.
PRAY: Dear God, we want to love others as Jesus tells us to. Help us to do that. In Jesus’ name, amen
