The law of tithing is a blessing because it allows us to express gratitude to God, demonstrate trust in His provision, and support the work of His church. By giving back a portion of what we have received, we acknowledge that everything we have comes from God, and we show our appreciation for His generosity. It also affords us an opportunity to test our hearts against the first and great commandment - to love God above all other things. It is a sacrifice to keep this law, but if we are faithful the Lord has promised to bless us so greatly “that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”
LESSON BUNDLE DOWNLOADS:
➤ L E S S O N
Open the lesson with a song and a prayer.
🎶 O P E N I N G S O N G : "Teach Me to Walk in the Light"
➤ P R E P A R A T IO N
You will need a small cup, a bag of rice, and a large bowl.
➤ I N T R O D U C T I O N A C T I V I T Y
Invite one of the children to hold the cup to receive God’s “blessings” in the cup. Invite everyone to take turns naming specific blessings that they have received from Heavenly Father. Each time someone names a blessing, drop a single grain of rice into the cup. After everyone has had a turn to name a few blessings, read the following verse.
“Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” (Emphasis added.)
Now ask the following questions:
1) What do you think it would look like if Heavenly Father gave us blessings so great that we didn’t have enough room to receive it? (Discuss.)
2) Does Heavenly Father ever break a promise? (No.)
3) Ask “Do you know what the law of tithing is?” (Discuss. If needed, explain that tithing is when we offer one tenth of our increase to God.)
Now place the bowl under the cup (to catch the excess) and slowly pour all of the rice into the cup so that the children can watch the cup fill and continuously overflow.
Explain: Today we are going to learn about God’s law of tithing! When we are baptized, the law of tithing is one of the commandments that we promise to keep. And God has promised us great blessings when we keep this law.
🎥 V I D E O : "The Law of Tithing | Animated Scripture Lesson for Kids"
Say: “Now we are going to watch a video about tithing! See if you can remember some of the ways we can show Heavenly Father that we remember Him.”
Discuss the following questions after watching the video:
1) What are some ways that we can show Heavenly Father that we remember Him? (We can pray, study the scriptures, attend church, pay our tithing...)
2) Does Heavenly Father force His way into our hearts? (No. We get to choose if we will make room for Him in our hearts.)
3) How does Heavenly Father feel about us? (He loves us so much that he gave His only Begotten Son to redeem us!)
➤ S C R I P T U R E
Read the following scriptures and discuss the questions that follow.
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
1) Does the Lord break His promises? Or does He keep His promises? (He always keeps His promises.)
2) What did the Lord promise in this verse? (He promised to open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing.)
3) If we pay our tithing, what does that mean? (It means that we can have faith in this promise that the Lord made to us!)
And this shall be the beginning of the tithing of my people. And after that, those who have thus been tithed shall pay one-tenth of all their interest annually; and this shall be a standing law unto them forever, for my holy priesthood, saith the Lord.
1) How much has the Lord commanded us to pay in tithing? (One tenth, or one out of ten.)
2) What does the word “interest” mean? (It means our income or the money we earn.)
Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
1) Who is speaking in this verse? (Jesus is answering someone who asked Him what is the greatest commandment.)
2) What did Jesus say is the first and greatest commandment? (To love God with all of our heart, mind, and soul.)
➤ A C T I V I T Y
Pass out the activity pages, one for each child. Color the heart and cut along the dotted line (on the second page). Color and cut out the items on the first page. Invite children to choose items that they love and place them “inside” the heart. Next, instruct the children to make room in the heart for Jesus Christ to show that they love the Lord the most.
➤ T E S T I M O N Y
Bear testimony of the truths found in the scriptures.
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