Second Commandment for Kids
Teaching Children that Pictures Can’t Help Them Understand God
Both adults and children often think that the Ten Commandments are a list of dos and don’ts. They are seldom seen as more than specific (and very rigid) rules. However, God also intended them to be used as guidelines that can help Christians make decisions about things that appear to be outside the intention of the explicit command.
The Second Commandment
The second law from God in Exodus 20 is “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth” KJV. This passage of scripture has been interpreted many ways and has been used to promote various religious agendas.
While some think this verse literally means that the creation of all arts, especially representative arts such as painting, photography, or sculpture are sinful, others think it refers only to drawings or paintings of Jesus, God, or stories from the Bible. Therefore, they believe that art depicting biblical themes should be banned.
However, it is more important for Christians to use this commandment to make themselves and their children aware of the potential dangers of art rather than using it as a wet blanket thrown over all forms of creative expression.
Why Representative Art Can Be Dangerous
Consider children and farm animals. Urban children do not get to experience farm animals in person. However, from infancy, they are taught about farm animals and learn to recognize them and the sounds they make. Many children fall in love with the idea of a particular animal such as a horse.
Unfortunately, their idea of a horse is attached to its appearance in a photo or drawing. They do not get a complete idea of what a horse is like from pictures or drawings. They do not realize that horses are very large, smell, and like to learn about their surroundings using their lips, nose, and teeth.
The first time a child goes to a farm or a stable and meets a horse, they are surprised and shocked to find out that they can’t take it to bed, it smells weird, and its teeth are huge. Often, they find horses strange and frightening.
It is the same with God or Jesus. If a person gets their idea of what God is like from an artist’s drawing they miss the scope of a God who is huge beyond comprehension, who isn’t comfortable, and who can be strange and frightening. God is a powerful and loving Father but He is also incomprehensible and unless Christians (children in particular) learn this their faith doesn’t grow because the God they worship is formed in their mind from an image rather than from the Bible.
Revealing the Danger of Images to Children
To help children understand the danger of using drawings to understand God, take them on a field trip.
Before the field trip, pick a suitable subject for the lesson. It should be something that the child has not experienced before but that the child can learn about from a picture. The subject should suit the child’s age. For a young child, a horse or cow might be a suitable subject. For an older child consider a famous person as a subject.
Before the trip, show the child a picture of the subject, for instance a horse. Discuss with them what a horse is liked based on the picture you gave them. Have them describe a horse; if they are old enough, have them make a list of all the words that apply to the subject as seen in the picture. If they are small, have them tell what they think a horse is like and write down the description for them.
Take the children on a trip to meet the subject firsthand. For instance, take them to a farm where they can get up close and personal with a horse. Watch the child’s reaction. Give them plenty of time to examine the horse. Have them pet the horse, touch the horse, feed the horse, if possible see if they can possibly sit on the horse’s back.
When you have returned home, discuss what a real horse is like. Write down a list of words describing a horse after having met a horse. Compare it to the first list. Explain to the child that trying to understand God by looking at a picture is like trying to understand a horse from a photo.
It is also important to explain to children that people can take a photograph of a horse or paint a horse from a real example that stands in front of them. It is impossible to look at God and paint Him. Any painting of God is from the artist’s imagination. A photo of God can only be created when someone dresses up in a costume and puts on make-up and pretends to be God. The image of God comes from an imperfect person’s imagination and not from God.
Rejoice in God’s Hugeness
The experiment and discussion might make God seem scary. As a result, this is a good time to rejoice in God’s hugeness. To have a God who is so big and wonderful that He can’t possibly be understood or controlled is frightening but can also be very comforting. Help children to understand that a huge God won’t make the mistakes that a child, a grownup, or even a parent makes. Help the child rejoice in God’s power and majesty. Perhaps make another list of words describing God using the Bible.
Carrying the Lesson Forward
Once children understand the dangers in artistic representations of God, you can discuss images you find of God or of Bible stories and discuss how they misrepresent God or how we cannot possibly know those details about God.
