Category Archives: Salvation of Children

Resolution #3 – Have More Children Saved

Posted on January 9, 2012 | Leave a comment

Share

The Holy Spirit is the only one who can convict and convince somebody of any age to be saved. But there are things you can do to create an atmosphere to allow God to move on the hearts of your students. Here are a few.

Teach about salvation. Children need a Biblical Foundation about the importance of salvation in their lives. There are many children’s pastor who teach children the practical points of the Bible. They believe if they teach children how to be good, they’re teaching them how to be godly. But that’s not what the Bible says. None of us are good in ourselves. We can’t live out the practical aspects of the Bible unless we are transformed by the saving grace of Jesus Christ. That goes for children as well as adults. Here’s a post  about why it’s important to have heart knowledge about salvation.

Teach children that we are all sinners. In this day of self-esteem and tolerance, the message that we are all sinners and that we all need to be saved is sometimes lost. It isn’t wrong to teach children that they have a sin problem that needs to be addressed. All children know they do wrong things sometimes no matter how hard they try to be good. They aren’t good children who just get saved because it’s a good thing to do. They are sinners who need to be saved from their sins. Here’s a great object lesson about sin and salvation.

Give children opportunities often to be saved. It doesn’t matter how you do it, whether an altar call, a prayer at the end of children’s church, or individual one-on-one discussion, you will find that children will respond to the Gospel more readily if you give them an opportunity to make a decision for Christ.

Have special salvation services. You could have a fun Sunday or friend Sunday once a month where children invite their unsaved friends. Have games or contests about who can bring the most friends. Do something special or different that day. This is a good opportunity to give a salvation message.

Do follow-up. When a child is saved, make sure he or she understands the commitment they’ve made. Give them materials to help them on their walk with God, and talk to their parents about it. Call them during the week to ask how their doing and if they notice any differences since they decided to be saved. You might even have a class for new converts.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Leadership, Salvation of Children

Biblical Foundations For Children Salvation

Posted on October 25, 2011 | Leave a comment

 Share

Salvation is the most important Biblical concept you can teach children. Whatever else you teach them, if you don’t teach your students how to have a relationship with Jesus Christ (how to be saved), then close down your children’s ministry because there’s no point to having one.

I’ll take it a little further. A church children’s ministry does more harm then good when it doesn’t emphasis salvation as the first and essential step in having a relationship with Jesus Christ. Kids will grow up believing they’re okay because they go to church and are good when they’re really headed toward an eternity in Hell. It would be better for them not to go to church then to be involved in a children’s ministry that doesn’t emphasis salvation as essential. That may be harsh, but it’s the truth.

Ephesians 2:8-9(NKJV)
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.

One thing every children’s leader should do when teaching children about salvation is to explain what salvation is not. It’s not being good. It’s not just believing in something. (All religions are not the same.) You don’t become a Christian because you go to church or because your parents are saved. There is only one way to be saved and that’s through Jesus Christ.

John 14:6(NKJV)
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through Me.

Another thing children’s leaders need to emphasis is that we’re all sinners. Every single child in your ministry has done something wrong. Every one of them has lied, or stolen, or has been disobedient to their parents, or has been unkind or selfish. Every One needs to be forgiven of their sins.

Romans 3:23(NKJV)
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Children also need to know that Jesus, the Son of God, gave His life, and shed His blood, and rose again so we could be saved. Some children’s ministries no longer emphasis what Christ did on the cross because they don’t want to upset children. But the truth is if your students don’t understand what happened at the cross, they will never accept that sacrifice and be saved.

Romans 5:8-11(NKJV)
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

Lastly children need to know that what Christ did is not enough. They have to make a response to Christ’s sacrifice. That response is to admit that we’ve sinned, ask Jesus to forgive us, accept Christ’s sacrifice, and believe upon Jesus Christ as our savior. We also need to help them understand that believing upon Jesus is more than just agreeing mentally that this happened. It’s surrender our life to Christ and acting upon our belief because Jesus has changed our hearts.

John 3:16-21(NKJV)
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.

I know most children’s pastors and leaders already emphasis this, but unfortunately not all do. That’s why this needs to be addressed.

Here’s some blog posts from the past to help you to present the Gospel to children:

He Paid The Price

The Resurrection And The Life Lesson Part 2

Salvation Gospel Illusion: Dissolving Sin

Heart Knowledge

Kids Entering God’s Presence: Part 5 – The Brazen Altar

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Encouragement For Children's Ministers, Leadership, Salvation of Children

Kids Entering God’s Presence Part 5 – The Brazen Altar

Posted on July 15, 2011 | Leave a comment

 Share

But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.   Hebrews 10:12 

The brazen altar is the first piece of furniture is the tabernacle of Moses. It’s located in the outer courts. This was where the sacrifices took place. The fires on this altar burned day and night, consuming sacrifices for the sins of the people.

We no longer have to sacrifice on the brazen altar. Jesus paid the price for our sin. He is our ultimate sacrifice.

Children cannot enter the presence of God until they have accepted this sacrifice, until they have been saved.

Leading children into salvation is the greatest thing you can do as a children’s pastor. Unfortunately, there are many who believe children shouldn’t accept Christ as their savior until their older, until they understand what their doing. This is faulty thinking. They may not understand everything about salvation. I don’t either. But they can respond to what they do understand.

According to Barna studies, 43% of all Christians today were saved before the age of 13, and 64% were saved before the age of 18. These statistics show how important it is to lead children to Christ at an early age.

In churches where salvation altar calls are given, it is joked about that some children will “get saved” every week. This should not be discouraged. Although you can teach children that the commitment they make to Christ will last, every time a child wants to respond to God, it’s a good thing.

Also as children grow and mature, they will respond to God on deeper levels and may feel the need to renew their commitment to God from time to time.

There were different types of offering given at the brazen altar. These types of sacrifices can help you teach children the ways they need to respond to Christ’s sacrifice for them.

  • Sin and Trespass Offerings:  Jesus was our sin offering.  If we ask Him to He will save us from everything we’ve ever done wrong.
  • Burnt Offering:  We are to offer our lives & our own self-interests to God.  Romans 12:1.
  • Meal Offering:  We offer our time & talents to God.
  • Peace Offering:  If we have anything against someone, we need to get it right before we worship.

The best method I know for teaching children about salvation is the Wordless Book. This link  will show you how to use the book. These are the basic colors of the book:

  • Gold represents God. God is in Heaven where there are streets of gold. God wants us to live in Heaven with Him.
  • Black represents sin. We can’t live with God in Heaven because we have sinned.
  • Red represents Christ. Jesus died on the cross for our sins.
  • White represents salvation. If we accept Jesus as our savior, He washes away our sins making us as white as snow.
  • Green represents growth. It doesn’t end there. God wants us to grow closer to Him.

I can’t emphasize enough the importance of preaching salvation and the sacrifice Christ made to children. Unless children have accepted Christ as their savior, it doesn’t matter how good they are or how much they obey their parents and teachers. It doesn’t matter how many Bible stories they know and how many verse they memorize. They are still sinners in need of a savior.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Kids Entering the Presence of God Series, Kids In Revival, Revival/Praise and Worship, Salvation of Children

Tagged , , ,

Heart Knowledge

Posted on November 9, 2010 | Leave a comment


Share

Teaching the Bible systematically to children is important. I go so far to say it’s essential to have children grow up knowing the Word of God. But it’s not enough. Children need a heart knowledge of God even more than they need head knowledge. Children need to internalize the truths they learn and make them they’re own. To do this, they need to have their own relationship with God. Here’s some things to consider to determine if the children in your ministry have a heart knowledge.

Salvation: Too many ministries focus on helping children know how to be good according to the Bible. It’s important for children to know what God expects from them, but they can never be good enough to please God. Children need to know that they are sinners and that Christ died for them so they could be set free from the curse of sin. He took their punishment. Until they give their sin to Him, they will never be saved no matter how good they are or how often they attend church.

Changed Lives: Children need to know that when they are saved, their lives should change. They should want to please God and stay away from sin, and when they do sin, they should go to God to make it right.

A Living Sacrifice: Children also need to understand that when they are saved, they’re giving their lives to God. God now has control and has a direction for their lives they need to follow.

Relationship: We need to teach children that when we are saved, we have a right relationship with the God who created the universe. We can talk to Him through prayer. We can get guidance from Him through the Bible. We can ask Him anything, and He will answer. We can fellowship with Him and come into His presence through praise and worship. When children have a relationship like this with God, they won’t fall away as teenagers or adults. They will stand firm through all the trials of life.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Discipling Children, Leadership, Salvation of Children

Tagged

A Children’s Pastor Is An Evangelist

Posted on April 21, 2010 | 2 Comments

Every children’s pastor should be an evangelist. It’s great to minister to the children in your church, but what have you done to develop a children’s ministry that reaches out to unsaved children? Here’s a few ideas to make sure you are acting, not only as a pastor, but as an evangelist.

Altar Calls:

Altar calls in children’s church are an important way to give children an opportunity to respond to the message. Unfortunately some children’s pastors have decided end having altar calls. Here’s a link to an article by Jerry Moyer called Why I Still Have Altar Calls? It’s worth reading.

Salvation Sundays:

No matter how you decide to do it, you should have Sundays periodically that emphasis salvation. Advertise these Sunday’s to the children in your ministry as a day to invite their friends. Create excitement and have a special theme and special activities that only happen on these Sundays. Give a salvation message. Then do follow-up for the visitors who attended.

Outreach Events:

Some children’s pastors are also ending outreach events because they are costly and time-consuming. They’ve decided to focus on the children in the church. But Jesus didn’t focus on the people inside the church. He carried His message to everyone who would listen.

There are some children who will never come to your church on a Sunday morning. Some of them have circumstances, like unsaved parents who don’t think it’s important, that keep them from coming. But they will come to your special outreach events every time you have them. If your goal is only to get more children to come to your church, outreach events are not that effective. But if your goal is to share the Gospel to children who would otherwise never hear it, outreach events are worth the time and money spent.

Here’s some outreach events you could have:

Park Ministry

Sidewalk Sunday School

Kid’s Crusades

Vacation Bible School

Block Parties

Halleluiah Costume Carnival (Halloween)

Easter Egg Hunt or Party

Sport’s Ministries

School Bible Clubs

Missions:

Having a good missions program in your children’s ministry is vital for evangelism in the church. Outreach and evangelism aren’t only for our neighborhood. We should be reaching the world for Christ.

Here’s some links to help you with your missions program:

Missions In Children’s Minsitry

Developing a Children’s Ministry Missions Program

Fundraisers

Here’s a couple of ministries your children’s ministry could support:

Missionary Family In Thailand

Operation Kid Passion (Works with Operation Compassion)

Teach Children How To Share The Gospel

This will be the most effective thing you ever do as an evangelist. The children under you can reach children you will never be able to minister to. Give them the tools to share the Gospel. Teach them how. Practice with them. Then release them into ministry.

→ 2 Comments

Posted in Encouragement For Children's Ministers, Leadership, Missions, Outreach, Salvation of Children

Tagged ,