A Kids’ Sermon for Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Picture taken by Unseen Histories on Unsplash
On Monday we had a day off of school to celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr.
He was an important leader in America
Who wanted everyone to know that they are loved by God
And should be treated that way
At one point, Martin Luther King, Jr. was a kid just like you
People called him Martin
He had a mom, dad, little brother, and big sister
He loved to sing in the choir
And he had dreams about who he would be when he grew up
Just like you do!
But even from a young age, Martin had to face a big problem
He wasn’t allowed to go to school or have play dates with some of the other kids
Just because his skin was a darker color
In fact, all the kids with darker skin were being left out and bullied
It made Martin really sad, and sometimes it made him angry because it wasn’t fair
But Martin grew up going to church, and his dad was a minister
And the Bible told him that God made everyone
Including him!
And even more than that, he was “fearfully and wonderfully made”
And God knew and loved him even before he was born
So, Martin dreamed about what the world would look like
If everyone knew they were loved by God
And everyone was treated as God’s beloved child
And when he grew up, he spent his whole life making this dream a reality
Martin is part of the reason that today you can have playdates and go to school with all kinds of people
Including those who look differently than you
But Martin’s dream still isn’t over
Now you have a very important job to do...and I know you can do it!
Do you want to know what your job is?
To treat everyone around you like God’s most loved child
Because that’s what they are
And so are you...
God loves your skin color, and hair, and the way you talk
God loves your eyes, and your mouth, and your nose
In fact, God wouldn’t change anything about you!
You are perfect just the way you are
And so is the person sitting next to you
So don’t forget your very important job
To let everyone know that they are loved by God
Even the ones that don’t look like you
Thanks be to God,
Amen.