DAY 2: BELIEVE in the Lord Jesus Christ
Song-time Excellent
resources for music may be found in the music section of our Bookstore.
Two personal favorites of mine are, "Group's Singable Songs"
and "Kids on the Rock".
Lesson - Review
The
ABC's of Salvation. Hold up three large posters with the letters A,
B and C written on them. Ask the children to shout out
what they represent. Review previous day's lesson. If you are using an overhead projector or
Powerpoint-type program, show pictures from the previous day or display the banners that the children drew.
Today's lesson is on the letter
"B". The "B" represents "BELIEVE".
What does it mean to believe in something? (Allow for discussion. You
might choose volunteers to come forward to tell their opinions.)
Enrichment Idea: Ask, "Do you
believe that George Washington was real? What about Abraham Lincoln or
Martin Luther King?" We believe they existed. But when the Bible
speaks of believing in God, it means more than just believing that he
exists. In fact, the Bible tells us that even the demons believe in God
(James 2:19). But their belief is not trusting God to save them. They
know God is real, yet they don't trust in him.
To illustrate this point I will need a volunteer (choose a volunteer to
come forward). Place a sturdy chair at the front of the assembly. Say,
"If you sit on this chair, do you believe, or trust, that it will
hold you up? (You might also have a broken-down chair and ask,
"Which chair do you believe will hold you up?") Ask, "Why
do you believe it will hold you up? (Listen for answer) Ask the
audience, "Do you believe this chair will hold up our volunteer?
(Listen for answers) Have the volunteer sit in the sturdy chair. Say,
"You trusted, believed, that the chair would hold you up because it
was built sturdy. In other words, you trusted, or relied in this chair
to keep you from falling. This is the kind of believing or trusting that
the Bible is referring to when it says, "BELIEVE in the Lord Jesus
Christ". We are to trust or rely on Jesus to save us. This kind of
believing is more than just knowing something in your mind, it is
trusting and relying your entire life on God. It is turning from your
sin and asking God to save you.
The Bible tells us that God sent his only son
Jesus to earth to save us from our sin. Why must we be saved from sin?
What does this mean? (allow for discussion) God is Holy, he is perfect.
Because of this, sin cannot be in his presence. Which means we have a
problem, because we sin. We sin even when we don't mean to sin. In fact,
the Bible says we are born sinful because we are children, great, greaat,
greaaaat grandchildren of Adam and Eve. The Bible says that our sin must be punished. But God,
rather than punishing us for our sin, came down out of Heaven in the
form of a man, to take the punishment that we deserve. He did this
because he loves us and wants us to trust, BELIEVE, in him to save us
and forgive us. When we believe (trust, rely) in God, then the Bible says we
will be saved.
Enrichment Idea: (this can be acted out
in the
same room or in another place on the church campus)
Set up a courtroom with
a judge's desk and gavel at the front of the assembly. The judge needs
to wear a long black robe. (An adult volunteer needs to act out the judge's
part. He or she must know what to say.) Ask
children to call out different kinds of sins (wrong things people do). Write these sins on
Post-It notes and attach them to the clothing and body of a child volunteer. Have the child stand
in front of the judge.
The judge must say in a deep somber voice something to the effect
of, "I see that you have sinned. In fact, you are covered in
sin! Your sin is very serious and must
be punished. The Bible says the punishment for your sin is DEATH!
Therefore, I sentence you to death! (Judge pounds desk with gavel)
Then the judge stands up, walks from
behind the desk and stands next to the child. Judge removes his or her robe,
places it around the child and says in a gentle voice, "Because I love you, I will
pay the penalty for your sins. I will die in your place. Your sins are now
covered."
Judge turns and addresses the assembly, "This is what God did for us. The Supreme Judge, God, came down out of
heaven in the form of a man, took the punishment that we deserve and
died on the cross. And because our sins are covered by Jesus' blood, God
no longer holds our sins against us! The really great news is that
Jesus didn't stay dead. He rose from the grave and lives in Heaven.
God wants you to live in heaven with him too. You must only BELIEVE in
Jesus!"
Leader: "That is truly a reason to celebrate.
Let's sing one of our fun songs!"
Scripture Memory Verse: (Groups do not need to use the same
portion of the verse from the previous day.) "For God so loved the world
that he
gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him
shall not perish
but have eternal life." John 3:16
