Click Here and print the FREE resource pages: ‘Memorizing The Map’ and ‘Souvenir Scrapbook’ (print a set for each child in your home). We will be using these pages throughout our study of the books of the Bible.
Memorizing the Map: Before you take off on the road trip of a lifetime, take a good look at the map! Use the table of contents in your Bible. These are the stops we’ll be making on our journey. Memorizing them in order will help you find verses and stories in the Bible in the same way that memorizing the alphabet helps you find things in a dictionary or an encyclopedia.
Souvenir Scrapbook: We will be referencing the scrapbook all along our journey through the Bible. Keeping a scrapbook is a wonderful way for children to respond to the road trip in a personal way. They can include activities and projects, as well as their own thoughts and ideas, artwork, and poetry. I can’t wait to see everyone’s scrapbooks when we are done with our journey!!
Leviticus – Old Testament: The Law
- Author: Moses
- Time Line: 1445 B.C. – 1400 B.C.
- Purpose: Leviticus provides a guidebook of holy living for the Hebrews and provides the priests and Levites a handbook of their duties in worship.
- Key People: Moses and the Children of Israel
- Key Verses: Leviticus 20: 7-8
- Trip Tip: Holiness is mentioned 152 times in Leviticus – more than in any other book in the Bible. Leviticus gets its name from the tribe of Levi, the tribe set aside by God to serve as priests.
Travel Guide: Just like road travel today has laws and regulations to protect travelers, Leviticus provides laws and regulations for God’s people to protect them and to help them to live holy lives. When rules are broken, there are penalties to pay. The need for a penalty leads to the main theme of Leviticus – sacrifice, atonement, and redemption. Blood sacrifices were active symbols of repentance and atonement. Leviticus 17:11 says, “It is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life.” The book of Leviticus clearly points down the road when a blood sacrifice would be made once and for all – the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.
Getting Ready: Use these warm-up questions to see what your children already know and to prepare them for their trip.
- Where did God give Moses the Ten Commandments? (Mt. Sinai)
- True or False: God gave the Israelites instructions not to eat any meat. (False: God made restrictions only on certain types of meats.)
Road Map:
- Leviticus 8-10 – Ministry of Priests
- Leviticus 16 – Day of Atonement
- Leviticus 26 – Reward for Obedience
Trip Begins:
- Distribute the Souvenir Scrapbooks, pencils or markers, and glue sticks. Direct your children to find Leviticus on their Route 66 maps and write the number ‘3’ in the space provided.
- Use the Travel Guide (above) to introduce the book of Leviticus to your children.
- Write the Key Verse (Leviticus 20: 7-8) in their Souvenir Scrapbooks.
Fuel Up: It’s time to “fuel up.” Use your Bible to answer these questions about the book of Leviticus – Stop 3 on our road trip!
- How many chapters are in the book of Leviticus?
- To whom did God give all of the laws and regulations written in the book of Leviticus? (Leviticus 1:1)
- The priests were in charge of leading God’s people in worship, teaching them His commandments, and taking care of the Tabernacle or Tent of Meeting. What tribe of Israel did the priests come from? (Numbers 1:47-53)
- Name five kinds of offerings God told the Israelites they must give. (Leviticus 6-7)
- Who became Israel’s first High Priest? (Leviticus 8: 5-9)
- Why did Aaron’s two sons die? (Leviticus 10: 1-3)
- What kind of rules did God give His people in Chapter 11? (Leviticus 11: 46-57)
- What was the name of the one day a year when the High Priest entered the Most Holy Place (Holy of Holies) to offer sacrifices for the sins of all the Israelites? (Leviticus 16: 1-34)
- List the seven feasts or holidays God told His people to celebrate. (Leviticus 23: 1-44)
Mile Marker: In your Souvenir Scrapbook, list all of the holidays you can think of that we celebrate today. Which are your favorites? Choose one holiday and write about how it helps you remember something important.
The Feast of Passover: In Leviticus, God gave instructions for different feasts, holidays, and celebrations to help His people remember what He had done for them. One of these feasts is the Feast of Passover. When the angel of death struck down all of the firstborn in Egypt, the angel “passed over” the houses of the Hebrews (Exodus 12:1-42, Leviticus 23: 4-8). Jewish families still celebrate Passover with a meal called a “Passover Seder” (SAY-der). Here is a simple way you can celebrate Passover while studying this lesson:
- Close the curtains and turn out the lights for a nighttime feel. (The first Passover took place in the middle of the night.) Light the room with an electric candle if you have one.
- Share the story from Exodus 12: 1-42. Help children understand the significance of the story to us today. Explain: When the angel saw the blood of the lamb on the doorposts of the Hebrew houses, he passed over them. Ask: Who does the Bible say is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world? Who is our Passover Lamb? (Read John 1:29 and 1 Corinthians 5:7). When God sees the blood Jesus shed on the cross, He passes oer (forgives) our sins!
- Serve a meal like the one described in the Bible. (You can substitute chicken drumsticks for roasted lamb). Or, simply share a snack of matzo crackers and grape juice. The symbolism of the traditional foods in a Passover Seder is noted below.
- Close by singing a few simple songs of praise to God.
- Matzo: The unleavened bread that the Israelites ate in a hurry; they didn’t have time to wait for the bread to rise; they had to be ready the moment Pharaoh released them
- Shank Bone: Symbolic of the sacrificial lamb whose blood covered the doorposts
- Bitter Herbs: Horseradish can be used as a dip for the meat or the matzo; it symbolizes the bitterness of the Israelites’ slavery
- Charoset: A thick mixture of chopped walnuts, apples, wine, and cinnamon symbolizing the bricks the Hebrews were forced to make
- Parsley: A symbol of springtime, dipped in salt water as a reminder of the tears the Israelites shed during slavery
- Wine (or Grape Juice): Offered in four separate servings, it represents the four stages of the Exodus: freedom, deliverance, redemption, and release
Note: To plan a more elaborate Passover Seder, look online for step-by-step instructions on the rituals and readings that accompany a traditional celebration. If you search for a “Messianic Seder” or “Christian Passover” service, you’ll find information on celebrations that highlight both the traditions of the original Jewish Passover and traditions that commemorate the death and resurrection of Jesus, our Passover Lamb.
Looking for more? Check out these YouTube videos:
Closing Prayer: Lord, your word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Thank you that we can live in Your light and walk in Your truth. May the things that you have revealed and thoughts that we have shared dwell in our hearts and stir us to action. We ask all this in the precious name of Jesus. Amen.
Thank you for sharing this great Sunday School resource! Leviticus is not an easy subject to tackle, but this Biblically based lesson plan does a great job. I think this is an excellent resource I could use for my future Sunday School lessons.