Family Worship (March 29)

Have you ever built a tower out of blocks and then watched it fall down? Maybe somebody bumped the table. Maybe the dog ran by. Maybe you stacked it too high and it started to wobble. It can be funny, but it can also be frustrating when something you worked on falls apart. Life can feel like that sometimes too. We can have hard days. We can feel scared, sad, or upset when things do not go the way we want. In Hebrews 12, God teaches us something very important. When life feels shaky, God is still strong. He is not falling apart. He is not confused. He is not leaving his children alone. In fact, he loves his children so much that he trains them, helps them grow, and leads them to trust him more. God is giving his people a kingdom that cannot be shaken. That means his love, his promises, and his reign over us are steady forever.

Hebrews 12:18–29
You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.” The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.” But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.”

Discussion Questions

1. What are some things in life that can make us feel scared or shaken?
2. How does this passage teach us that God is still loving and in control when life is hard?
3. What does it mean to worship God with thankfulness, reverence, and awe?

Activity
Build two small towers as a family using blocks, books, cups, or anything safe around the house. Make one tower weak and wobbly. Make the other tower stronger and more stable. Gently shake the table or floor and watch what happens. Then talk about the difference between things that fall and things that stand firm. Explain that many things in life can feel shaky, but God’s kingdom cannot be shaken. After that, have each family member say one thing in life that sometimes feels shaky and one thing that is always true about God.

Prayer
Father, thank you that when life feels shaky, you are still strong and good. Thank you for loving us and helping us grow. Teach us to trust you when life is hard and to worship you with thankful hearts. Help our family remember that your kingdom cannot be shaken. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Memory Work:

New City Catechism
12. What does God require in the ninth and tenth commandments?
Ninth, that we do not lie or deceive, but speak the truth in love. Tenth, that we are content, not envying anyone or resenting what God has given them or us.

13. Can anyone keep the law of God perfectly?
Since the fall, no mere human has been able to keep the law of God perfectly, but consistently breaks it in thought, word, and deed.

Memory Verse
Hosea 13:4 (CSB)
"I have been the Lord your God
ever since[a] the land of Egypt;
you know no God but me,
and no Savior exists besides me."