We talked about what it looks like when we judge each other based solely on personal likes and dislikes. It doesn't look like love at all. We talked about how, though each of us appears different on the outside and in our interests and personal choices, as believers in Christ, we all look the same on the inside because of the Holy Spirit dwelling there.
We talked to the kids about a few of the Old Testament laws in the Bible.
Leviticus 7:26-27 - 26 Moreover, you shall eat no blood whatever, whether of fowl or of animal, in any of your dwelling places. Whoever eats any blood, that person shall be cut off from his people.”
Leviticus 19.27 forbids shaving and cutting your hair short. “Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard.”
Deuteronomy 22:5 - A woman shall not wear a man's garment, nor shall a man put on a woman's cloak, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD your God.
We asked them then if it meant that the men they knew who didn't have beards were sinning or if it made someone a law breaker to eat a steak that was still pink inside. And are girls who wear pants an abomination to the Lord? Naturally, they found these laws to be outdated and silly now.
We talked about the differences between each of them based on their answers to our questions and what God's word has to say about what we wear, what we eat, what we watch/listen to/play. Does it give God glory? If it doesn't, is it "bad"? Is country music bad music to listen to just because it isn't "Contemporary Christian"? Are shorts and a t-shirt less glorifying to God to wear than pants or a skirt and a blouse? Is it a sin to watch a television show that isn't considered "Christian", even if it is rated G and has no cursing, sex, or other offensive things in it? Is it okay to play a particular game or wear make-up and jewelry and paint your nails black?
There is so much gray area here, but our main goal was to show the kids that to the degree we rely on Christ, that's to the degree we are blessed. When we start relying on "rules" and "laws" that are man-centered and not Christ-centered, we are cursed and can wrongfully judge others based on outward appearances rather than the heart. We don't have to all agree on specific genres of music, styles of clothes, or favorite games. You cannot judge a book by its cover and a measure of grace needs to be extended to everyone, especially our brothers and sisters in Christ. After all, God extended more than a measure of grace to each of us when He sent His only Son to die for our sins. We also explained to the kids that grace does not equate to tolerance and that, certainly if we see a brother or sister stumbling in their walk with the Lord and blatantly sinning we need to confront them in love.
Our differences are okay to have so long as we don't flaunt them in front of others so as to make them stumble or feel bad. For example, if you go out to eat with someone you know is a vegetarian and does not eat meat, you would be a good friend and sensitive not to order a 16 ounce steak...rare! Romans 14:1-23 (We gave the kids some real-life examples we've faced as well.)
To give the kids a visual example of this lesson, we took 3/4 cup of milk colored with food coloring and mixed it with 3 tablespoons of cooking oil. No matter how hard we stirred, the milk and oil always ended up separating. We explained that the milk and oil represent two people who are having a hard time accepting each other's differences. Then we added a cup of flour to the milk and oil and watched as it bonded the two ingredients and no longer allowed them to separate. The flour, we explained, is like the Holy Spirit living inside each of us...regardless of our external differences. And how, God can use each of us together as His body, to glorify Him and make something magnificent. (We brought them a loaf of homemade raisin bread using some of the same ingredients in our experiment.)
We ended reminding the kids of the two most important laws in the Bible. Matthew 22:37-39 says, And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself." In essence, if we love God with all of our heart, soul, and mind, we will we glorify Him with what we wear, watch, eat, listen to, play, etc... And if we love our neighbor as ourselves, we will not judge them and always be ready to extend that measure of grace when differences arise. Following these two commandments, we can never go wrong!
