Galatians 3:6-9
devotion by Tina Miller sermon by Rich Lanning
October 26, 2025
Gather
Various objects to stand on—some that will hold a person and some that will not (examples: step stool, chair, empty cereal box, balloon, empty milk jug with cap off).
Paper stars and string
Introduction
*Set out the objects you gathered and take a “believe or not believe” vote as to which ones will hold up a child. Let the children try standing on them.
Just like some things will not support the weight of our bodies, some teachings and beliefs will not hold us up before God. But God’s promises of blessing and forgiveness can be trusted .
Background
We’ve been studying Paul’s letter to the Galatians. The Galatians were believing a false teaching on which they would not be able to stand before God. Do you remember what that teaching was?
[That a person could be made right with God by obeying the law.]
Pray
“Holy and gracious God, you have preserved for us your pure and living word. And now, by the same Spirit who opened the eyes of Abraham, and the saints who have preceded us, open our eyes and our hearts this day. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.” (from Pastor Rich’s prayer before the sermon)
Looking into the scripture passage
Today we will read about Paul’s next argument to show the Galatians that no one can be saved from their sin by obeying the law (Galatians 2:16)
Read: Galatians 3:6-9 (try reading from the New Living Translation for a more kid-friendly explanation of Paul’s argument)
Ask: Who does Paul say believed God?
What is one of the promises God made that Abraham believed? [verse 8 says that he believed that all nations would be blessed through him.]
What did God do for Abraham when he believed?
Did God count Abraham as righteous because of any action he performed?
Seeing Jesus in the passage
Let’s look back at the story of Abraham to see what God meant for him, for the Galatians, and for us.
Read: Genesis 12:1-3 and 15:1-7
Ask: What did God promise Abraham?
What do you think God meant that all the families on earth would be blessed through him?
We can find this out by looking in other places in the Bible.
Read: Matthew 1:1
Ask: Who is the son of Abraham?
Read: John 3:16
Ask: How has Jesus blessed all the families in the world?
When Abraham believed God’s promises, he was believing that God would send a Savior into the world through his family, and that is EXACTLY what God did!
And when we believe that Jesus died to save us from our sin, God counts us as righteous too! He gives us Jesus’ righteousness in place of our sin. THIS IS THE GOOD NEWS THAT WE CALL “THE GOSPEL.”
Apply the passage
Talk with your children about what it means for them to put their own faith in Jesus.
Memorize
And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.”
Genesis 15:6
Practice the verse
Write each word of the verse on a paper star (as a connection to God’s promise to make Abraham’s descendants as numerous as the stars). Punch a hole in the top of each star and string them together to create a banner to hang in your house. Every time you see it, you can remember how we can be made righteous before God.
Extra Stuff
Songs to sing
“Father Abraham” (traditional children’s movement song)
Books to read (these can be borrowed from the Kidstuff table in the church foyer)
The Promise: The Amazing Story of Our Long-Awaited Savior (by Jason Helopoulos)
The Story of God Our Savior (Kenneth Padgett and Shay Gregorie)
*This idea was adapted from The Biggest Story Curriculum, Volume 1, Pentateuch (page 55); published by Crossway.
