What's the best way to share the Gospel with children? Whether you're a children's ministry volunteer or leader, it's important to have a multitude of methods for sharing God's free gift of salvation with children. In her book Energizing Your Children's Ministry, author Cynthia Brown shares how to communicate the Gospel to kids in understandable and engaging ways. Use these three easy tips for sharing the Good News of Jesus' love and forgiveness with your kids at your next VBS or children's ministry event.
Idea 1: Personalize John 3:16 by inserting a person’s name into the verse.
“For God so loved [Cynthia], that He gave His only Son, that [if Cynthia] believes in Him [Cynthia] should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). What does this mean to you?
Idea 2: Use three s words—sin, separation, Savior—as a framework.
All people sin, and that wrongdoing separates us from God. We can’t make our sin go away on our own. Because God loves us, He sacrificed His Son, Jesus, to be our Savior. When Jesus died on the cross, He took all our sins with Him and they died too. We receive God’s gifts of forgiveness and life forever with Him. Does this Good News make sense to you?
Idea 3: Summarize the Gospel with colors.
A small card with this explanation can be given to children along with colored beads on a safety pin, bracelet, or necklace.
The best friend that you can have is Jesus. He always loves you, and He is always with you.
- Black bead: You do and think things that don’t match God’s goodness. This is called sin, and it stands in the way of your friendship with God (Romans 3:23).
- White bead: But God still loves you so much, and nothing you can do will make Him love you more (Jeremiah 31:3).
- Red bead: Jesus came to die on the cross and take the punishment for your sins (Romans 5:8).
- Blue bead: Faith is knowing that your friendship with Jesus is because of what He did for you. This gift of faith is given by the Holy Spirit when you hear God’s Word and are baptized as His child (Romans 6:4).
- Green bead: God wants your friendship with Him to be alive and grow. You can get to know Him better when you read His Word, pray to Him, worship Him, and talk about Him with other people (2 Peter 3:18).
- Yellow bead: You can spend the rest of your life with your best friend Jesus now and when you live with Him in heaven (Revelation 2:10).
This blog post is an excerpt from Energizing Your Children's Ministry, pages 26–27. © 2016 Cynthia Brown. Published by Concordia Publishing House. All rights reserved.
