Let Us Love One Another
Read 1 John 4:7-21
Today is the Fifth Sunday of Easter. Jesus died on the cross and then because of the power of God’s love Jesus rose from death to life. Jesus is alive! That’s such an amazing thing that we celebrate it on Easter Sunday, but we also celebrate it for 7 Sundays!
In the second lesson for today, from First John, we hear these words, “Beloved, let us love one another. Love is from God. Everyone who loves is born from God and knows God. God is love.”
Let’s watch the video and learn more about what these words mean.
It isn’t Valentine’s Day, but Easter is the season of love, too. Because it is during the season of Easter that remember that God showed us what God’s love for us looks like: God sent Jesus into the world. Jesus was born as a baby in Bethlehem. Jesus lived and grew just like you and me. Jesus experienced the things that we do. But then Jesus died on the cross. His body was put in the tomb and a big rock was rolled in front of it. Because of the power of God’s love, Jesus was raised from death to new life. The rock was rolled away forever and we are given new life with Jesus here and now and forever in heaven.
In today’s Bible reading, it tells us that God is love. When we love, we live in God and God lives in us. We can’t say we love God and then not love our brothers and sisters, the other people that God has created and placed in our world with us.
The reason we are able to love others is because God first loves us. God loves us and God helps us put God’s love into action for others!
Discuss
- Who does Jesus love?
- How can we put God’s love into action for others?
- What is the church about? Hint: it’s a four-letter word that starts with “L”?
Song
The Joy, Joy, Joy, Joy Down in My Heart. Listener Kids.
Activity
Have ice cream sundaes for dessert one day this week. Have ice cream and some toppings available. Instead of each person making their own, make them for one another. Ask the person whose sundae you are making what they’d like in it, how much, etc. The goal is to make a sundae that your partner likes and enjoys. As you eat, discuss what it was like to have someone else make your sundae. What was it like to make someone else’s sundae? How can this remind us of God’s love and care for us? How can this remind us that we can love God by serving others?
Activity
One of the ways we can show love for others is by being kind to them. Nancy Ellis Wallace wrote a book called The Kindness Quilt where she tells the story of a girl named Minna who was supposed do something kind for someone and then draw a picture of it and take it to school. Minna had a hard time deciding which kind thing she wanted to pick to draw. So we drew several of them and pieced them together like a quilt. Then others in her class added theirs to hers and expanded the “kindness quilt.” You can download these squares from Doing Good Together (doinggoodtogether.org) and draw or write when you’ve done something kind. Some of the squares have suggestions already on them. Have members of your family do this together and create your own kindness quilt. Download below.
The link below takes you to a reading of the book The Kindness Quilt which is written by Nancy Ellis Wallace.
Prayer
God, as we continue to celebrate Easter, we thank you for Jesus, who died on the cross and then by the power of your love rose to new life. Jesus is alive! We thank you that because you love us we can love others. Help us . Amen.
Pastor Dan Fugate, Assistant to the Bishop for Discipleship in the Indiana-Kentucky Synod, ELCA, put this lesson together for Sunday School @ Home. There will be a new one for each Sunday while we are unable to gather together physically in our congregational buildings. Contact him at dfugate@iksynod.org.