King Solomon Builds the Temple

King Solomon Builds the Temple by Jennifer Tolbert

This is the story of how King Solomon built the Temple of God. This replaced the Tabernacle that had been used since the time of Moses. The Israelites used the talents and gifts to build a beautiful building for God. The Lord reminded Solomon that if the people ever turned away from Him, then this temple would mean nothing. 

Key Concepts:
1. Since the beginning, God has always wanted to dwell with his people. 
2. Solomon wanted to build a magnificent building worthy of God. 
3. The Lord showed his presence in the temple. Today, the Lord dwells in the temple of our hearts. 

Memory Verse

Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.
​Ecclesiastes 12:13b

Songs

Old Testament Book 
Hear O Israel
Lord My Desire
Building Up the Temple
Read Your Bible, Pray Every Day
​Castle of My Heart

Story

Begin Class with Songs, Games, Table Activity, or Sharing Time
 
Open Class in Prayer

Introducing the Story Ideas
1. Make It Fit: Collect as many different sizes of containers as you can. Let the kids guess if objects can fit into a container before they try. Have some silly ones like a pillow in a small box. You could even try to fit a child in a box. Remind the kids that God is so much bigger than we can imagine. He can't be put into a box. (Source: TruewayKids.com) 

Story: When King Solomon inherited the throne from his father King David, he also inherited a big job. David wanted to build a big, beautiful temple for God. But the Lord did not want David to build the temple. Instead, he wanted his son Solomon to build it.  
 
READ 1 Kings 6 in your Bible or tell the story of how Solomon built a temple for the Lord. 
EMPHASIZE that:

• The temple replaced the tabernacle now that the Israelites were settled in the Promised Land. 
• It took lots of workers, all using their skills and working together to construct the temple. The church today needs your skills and gift to build the church. 
• God doesn't live in a temple built by human hands. Now he lives in our hearts. 

Visual Aid Resources
​Printable Story from Trueway Kids
​Printable Story

king_solomon_builds_the_temple.pdf
File Size:	8716 kb
File Type:	pdf

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Review

1. Who was the first king who wanted to build a temple? King David
2. How many rooms were in the main part of the temple? Two – Holy Place and Most Holy Place
3. What was the special box that was placed in the Most Holy Place? The Ark of the Covenant
4. (Trick Question) Which part of the temple was the most important? God!

God is...

Challenge the kids to come up with a God is statement based on this lesson. For example, God is my best friend, God is loyal, God will protect me...

Activity Ideas

Solomon's Temple from TruewayKids
Supplies: Template on White Card, Cardboard Tube, Coloring pencils, paint, markers, OR crayons, and glue

Building a Temple
Provide various recycled materials or building materials: legos, blocks, etc. 
Challenge the kids to build and design their own temple. 

1 Corinthians 3:16 Self Portraits
​Supplies: Template, Crayons or Markers
Have the students draw self-portraits. If you want to, you can provide yarn, google eyes, and more to make their picture 3D. 

god_dwells_in_my_heart.pdf
File Size:	326 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

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Resources and References

Trueway Kids
Mission Bible Class