Jesus Christ Created the Earth Under the Direction of Heavenly Father.
Genesis 1:1–25; Moses 2:1–25; Abraham 4:1–25
Friend November 1996 “For Little Friends: Window Picture” (Print the picture of the earth and the picture of Jesus back to back.) Show the picture of the earth and ask who created it. Have the children hold it up to a light or window to check their answer or find the answer. Explain that the earth was created by Jesus under the direction of Heavenly Father. Question: Why did Heavenly Father want the earth created? (See Abraham 3:24-26 – For us to gain a body and be tried and tested to see if we would learn to exercise control over our bodies and keep the commandments.)
Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 “Genesis 1–2; Moses 2–3; Abraham 4–5”
- Help the children think of times when they made something by following another person’s directions. For example, maybe they have made a recipe with a parent or sibling guiding them. Write Who created the earth? on the board, and invite the children to find the answer in Moses 2:1. Testify that Jesus Christ created the earth under the direction of Heavenly Father.
The Pearl of Great Price Student Manual
- The Prophet Joseph Smith taught that to “create … does not mean to create out of nothing; it means to organize, the same as a man would organize materials and build a ship.”1 The Hebrew word for “create” means to shape, fashion, organize, and form (see Genesis 1:1; Abraham 3:24).
- “The Earth, After It Was Formed, Was Empty and Desolate”The Prophet Joseph Smith indicated that the translation “without form, and void” (see Genesis 1:2 and Moses 2:2) should read “empty and desolate” (see Abraham 4:2;
Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026
- Your children might also look at pictures of things Jesus created (see “The Creation of the Earth” in Old Testament Stories, 8–12). Then you and your children could talk about how you feel about Jesus Christ after reading about the Creation.
Old Testament Stories “The Creation of the Earth” Images and Video
Creation Lesson for Little Ones – Teaching the creation story using flannel figures.
President Russell M. Nelson explained that “the physical Creation itself was staged through ordered periods of time,” not calendar days. Elder Bruce R. McConkie (1915–85) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught that a day in the Creation accounts “is a specified time period; it is an age, an eon, a division of eternity; it is the time between two identifiable events. And each day, of whatever length, has the duration needed for its purposes. …
- How will you make learning about the Creation fun for your children? You could take them on a search outside for the kinds of things that were made during each period of Creation.
Or:
- Each person [could] take a turn acting out a day or part of the Creation. The rest of the family members guess the day or the part of Creation that was chosen. (Liahona January 2022 “God’s Plan Is for You: Come, Follow Me Family Fun” )
- Assign each child verses in Moses 2 related to one of the days of creation, and ask him or her to draw a picture of the things Heavenly Father and Jesus created on that day. Ask the children to hold their pictures and stand in the order of the days of Creation, and then invite each child to teach the rest of the children what happened on the day they were assigned. What do we learn about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ from the story of the Creation? (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 “Genesis 1–2; Moses 2–3; Abraham 4–5” )
- You [could ]show pictures of things created in each period and invite family members to put the pictures in order after reading one of the accounts of the Creation together. What do these creations teach us about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ? (Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: Old Testament 2022 “Genesis 1–2; Moses 2–3; Abraham 4–5”)
Friend March 2002 “For Little Friends” Place the correct picture and label on the chart according to which “day” it took place in the creation (one square will get two pictures). Check your answers in Genesis 1:1-27, and move pieces to their correct position as needed (Visuals: Black and white game board. Note: Color cardstock can be used for the game boards.)
- Consider singing a song together about our beautiful world, such as “My Heavenly Father Loves Me” (Children’s Songbook, 228–29). Maybe your children could add to the song other things God has created that help them feel His love.
Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 “Genesis 1–2; Moses 2–3; Abraham 4–5”
- Share your testimony that Jesus Christ made these things because He and Heavenly Father love us.
For additional teaching resources see Creation
Gratitude for the Earth
One way to approach the Creation story is to invite your family to find how many times in Genesis 1 or Moses 2 God calls the things that he made “good.” What does this suggest about how we should treat God’s creations—including ourselves? What do we learn from the way these events are worded in Abraham 4?
Friend January 2022 “Come, Follow Me Activities” Thankful Memory Game
Activity: Now play a game! The first person says, “I am thankful for …” and then says something Heavenly Father and Jesus created. The next person repeats it and then adds something new. Keep going around in a circle as long as you can.
Liahona January 2022 “God’s Plan Is for You: Come, Follow Me Family Fun”
Stewards over the Earth: Moses 2:28 explains that humankind was given dominion over all living things. President Russell M. Nelson said, “We should care for the earth, be wise stewards over it, and preserve it for future generations” (“The Creation,” Liahona, July 2000, 104).
Discussion: In what ways do Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ take care of us? How can we follow Their examples as we take care of the living things around us? In what ways can our actions show our gratitude for God’s creations? (Submitted by Mitzi Schoneman)
Friend February 2018 “Caring for the Earth”
See more ideas at Taking Care of the Earth
Additional Creation Resources
Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: Old Testament 2022 “Genesis 1–2; Moses 2–3; Abraham 4–5” While there’s a lot we don’t know about exactly how the world was created, ponder what you learn about the Creation from what God has revealed in Genesis 1:1–25; Moses 2:1–25; and Abraham 4:1–25. What do you notice in these accounts that is similar? What do you notice that is different?
- Lesson 3: The Creation,” Primary 6: Old Testament Pg 9–12
- Primary 1 Manual This manual breaks up each day of the creation into lessons for little ones.
- Seminary Old Testament Student Manual “Lesson 10: Moses 2 (Genesis 1; Abraham 4)”
- Behold Your Little Ones: Nursery Manual “Jesus Christ Created the World for Me”
Come Follow Me with Living Scriptures “The Creation” Lesson ideas
Latter Day Kids “The Creation” Lesson ideas
I Was Created in God’s Image.
Genesis 1:26–27; Moses 2:26–27; Abraham 4:26–27
Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026
- Your children can develop a sense of reverence and respect for their own and others’ bodies as they learn that we were all created in God’s image. To help them understand what this means, you could let your children look at their image in a mirror or picture while you read Moses 2:26–27 to them.
- You could also show them how baby animals are often in the “likeness” of their parents (see the picture in this outline, for example). This could lead to a conversation about why it’s important to you to know that you are created in your Heavenly Father’s image.
- You and your children might enjoy drawing a human body and cutting the drawings into puzzles. As your children put their puzzles together, they could talk about ways they can show Heavenly Father that they are thankful for their bodies. (or invite the children to choose a part of the body and write next to it why they are thankful for it.) Express your gratitude for your body, and testify that we were created in God’s image.
Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 “Genesis 1–2; Moses 2–3; braham 4–5”
- Help the children repeat “I, God, created man in mine own image” several times (Moses 2:27).
Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Doctrine and Covenants 2021 “Doctrine and Covenants 129-132”
- [Using the picture below, invite the children] to point to His eyes, mouth, and other parts of His body. Then invite them to stand and point to those same parts of their own bodies. Read from Doctrine and Covenants 130:22: “The Father has a body of flesh and bones … ; the Son also.” Testify that our bodies are like Heavenly Father’s and Jesus’s bodies.
Friend November 2020 “Like Him”
LessonPix “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes” Song idea. Print the pictures, cut them apart into cards, and then use them to sing the song. To make the song more interesting, have the children mix up the pictures on the top two rows and/or the bottom two rows and then have them do the actions and sing the words in their mixed up order.
Visual support to sing Head Shoulders Knees & Toes.
Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 “Genesis 1–2; Moses 2–3; Abraham 4–5” The world will give children many false messages about their bodies. The doctrine in Moses 2:26–27 is powerful motivation to respect and care for our bodies.
- Read together Moses 2:26–27. What do these verses teach us about our bodies? Show the video “God’s Greatest Creation” (ChurchofJesusChrist.org), or play the game “Your Body Is a Temple” (Friend, Aug. 2019, 24–25). You could also read together related quotations from President Russell M. Nelson’s message “Your Body: A Magnificent Gift to Cherish” (New Era, Aug. 2019, 2–7) that will help the children feel gratitude to Heavenly Father for their bodies.
Friend August 2019 “Your Body is a Temple” Activity comparing how the body is like a temple.
For the Strength of Youth “Your Body: A Priceless Gift”
Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: Old Testament 2022 “Genesis 1–2; Moses 2–3; Abraham 4–5” Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are Creators. They can transform us into the beautiful creations we were meant to be. That’s part of what it means to be created in God’s image, after His likeness (see Genesis 1:26). We have the potential to become like Him: exalted, glorified, celestial beings.
For additional teaching ideas see Teaching Children the Gospel “Body” and Resources for Teaching Children “Body”
The Sabbath Day is Holy.
Genesis 2:2–3; Moses 3:2–3; Abraham 5:2–3
Come, Follow Me—For Home and Church: Old Testament 2026
- As you read Moses 3:2–3, ask your children to listen for what God did on the seventh day.
- Help your children find or draw pictures of things they can do on Sunday to make it a holy day and different from other days. Share with each other why it is important to you to keep the Sabbath day holy.
Or,
- Give the children a few minutes to write a list of as many things as they can think of that they can do to make the Sabbath a holy day. Invite the children to share their lists, and encourage them to add to their lists as others share suggestions they didn’t think of. Suggest that the children take the lists home with them and refer to them when they need ideas of good things to do on the Sabbath.
- Or do the below sorting activity:
Teaching Children the Gospel “Sabbath Day: Lesson Item 4” Sort the activity ideas onto days of the week or Sunday
- Children may have to explain to their friends why they treat Sunday different from other days. Help your children role-play explaining to a friend why they choose to do things on Sunday that honor Heavenly Father and Jesus. Suggest that they use Genesis 2:2–3 in their explanations. How does keeping the Sabbath day holy show our love and respect for Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ?
Friend October 2015 “The Sabbath is a Delight”
Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 “Genesis 1–2; Moses 2–3; Abraham 4–5” Children who develop a habit of keeping the Sabbath day holy when they are young are more likely to keep this commandment when life becomes busier and more demanding.
- A few days before class, invite one of the children and his or her parents to come prepared to share things they do in their family to keep the Sabbath day holy. Invite the other children to share what their families do.
For additional teaching ideas see Teaching Children the Gospel “Sabbath Day” and Resources for Teaching Children “Sabbath Day”
Additional Resources
- How long did the Creation take?
- What is the Church’s position on evolution?
- Was Eve really created from Adam’s rib?
Come Follow Me Kid Lesson ideas
The Red Crystal Lesson ideas
