Slave or free
Children's sermon
Object:
an American flag
"For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another." (v. 13)
Good morning, boys and girls! Do you know which big holiday is coming up? (allow answers) The Fourth of July! What does that day celebrate? (allow answers) It is when we celebrate the start of America. America used to be a part of Great Britain. In 1776, though, a bunch of Americans got together and decided they wanted America to be separate from Great Britain. They wrote a special letter and they all signed it. Do you know what that special letter was called? (allow answers) It is the Declaration of Independence. They signed it on July 4, 1776. It announced that America was no longer part of Great Britain!
Can anyone tell me what happened after that? (allow answers) Great Britain went to war with America. They didn't want America to separate! America and Great Britain fought for several years in the American Revolutionary War. How many of you have heard of the American Revolutionary War? (allow answers) It is important because if the Americans had not won, we still might be part of Great Britain!
But America did win the war. That wasn't the end, though. With new freedom and independence, Americans had to work together to create a government system for their new country. It was difficult. The first government they created didn't work. So they had to create a new one. Then they came up with the system that we have today.
It was a scary time for Americans. They had just won the war, so they were excited about being free from Great Britain. But they were worried about governing themselves. When they won their freedom, it didn't mean that they could just go do whatever they wanted. It meant they had to be even more responsible. Now they were running their own country. Instead of letting Great Britain run the government, they had to take the responsibility for running their own government. It was a lot more work, but they knew it was worth it.
Sometimes when we think about freedom, we just think about the good things. If we were independent from our parents, we could stay up late, watch all the TV we wanted, and eat junk food -- right? (allow answers) It doesn't quite work that way. When we gain independence, we also gain responsibility. In a way, the more free we are, the more we have to serve other people. Our Bible verse talks about freedom. It says that even when we have freedom, we should not just use it to do whatever we want -- like stay up late and eat candy -- but we should use our freedom to serve one another. With freedom comes responsibility, and the power to serve others more fully. Amen.
Good morning, boys and girls! Do you know which big holiday is coming up? (allow answers) The Fourth of July! What does that day celebrate? (allow answers) It is when we celebrate the start of America. America used to be a part of Great Britain. In 1776, though, a bunch of Americans got together and decided they wanted America to be separate from Great Britain. They wrote a special letter and they all signed it. Do you know what that special letter was called? (allow answers) It is the Declaration of Independence. They signed it on July 4, 1776. It announced that America was no longer part of Great Britain!
Can anyone tell me what happened after that? (allow answers) Great Britain went to war with America. They didn't want America to separate! America and Great Britain fought for several years in the American Revolutionary War. How many of you have heard of the American Revolutionary War? (allow answers) It is important because if the Americans had not won, we still might be part of Great Britain!
But America did win the war. That wasn't the end, though. With new freedom and independence, Americans had to work together to create a government system for their new country. It was difficult. The first government they created didn't work. So they had to create a new one. Then they came up with the system that we have today.
It was a scary time for Americans. They had just won the war, so they were excited about being free from Great Britain. But they were worried about governing themselves. When they won their freedom, it didn't mean that they could just go do whatever they wanted. It meant they had to be even more responsible. Now they were running their own country. Instead of letting Great Britain run the government, they had to take the responsibility for running their own government. It was a lot more work, but they knew it was worth it.
Sometimes when we think about freedom, we just think about the good things. If we were independent from our parents, we could stay up late, watch all the TV we wanted, and eat junk food -- right? (allow answers) It doesn't quite work that way. When we gain independence, we also gain responsibility. In a way, the more free we are, the more we have to serve other people. Our Bible verse talks about freedom. It says that even when we have freedom, we should not just use it to do whatever we want -- like stay up late and eat candy -- but we should use our freedom to serve one another. With freedom comes responsibility, and the power to serve others more fully. Amen.
