Cover
1 Dedicated to
William
who is the motivation for this book because he’s loved so much.
Copyright © 2020 by Faith Publications. All rights reserved.
Permission is granted to copy and distribute this book for non- commercial purposes if the entire content is retained with no changes and this copyright notice is included. The “Guide for Parents” section may be omitted from printed copies intended only for children.
All quotations of the Bible are from the Authorized (King James) Version.
Feedback Comments about this book are welcome. You can submit them to [email protected]. Please understand that it isn’t possible for every message to receive a reply.
2 Please Read This First It isn’t unusual for people to have incorrect ideas about salvation for children and how to teach children about it. The “Guide for Parents” at the back of this book can help in both of those areas.
The “Guide for Parents” starts with tips for dealing with children about salvation and explains why children need the truth. It ends with a summary of the key concepts of salvation, which apply to adults as well as children.
Whether you want a better understanding of salvation for your own benefit or to help you discuss it with your child, you’ll find the “Guide for Parents” a valuable resource. It’s brief and to the point, so you won’t get bogged down or need a lot of time to read it.
Also, if you have questions about anything the book says, please read the Bible verses in the endnotes. Every significant statement in the children’s book and the parent’s guide is supported by verses. You can easily see for yourself whether the statements are true.
3 Children’s Book
4 God Is Real
A long time ago, there was only God. Nothing else. No earth or sky. No sun or moon. No people or anything else. There was only God.1 Nobody made God. He always has been alive and always will be alive. He never was born, and He never will die. His name is Jehovah, and it means He always exists.2 God doesn’t have a body like people. He’s a Spirit, so He’s invisible like the wind.3 God lives in Heaven, far above all the stars. He sits on a throne because He’s Lord. He has authority over everyone in Heaven and on earth.4 God knows everything. He never makes mistakes. He even knows what will happen before it happens!5 God has power to do anything He wants. And no one can stop Him from doing what He wants.6 God is holy. He’s perfectly good. He never does anything bad or wrong. He’s right about everything He says and does.7 Even though we can’t see or touch God, we know He’s real. We know this because of the wonderful things He made.8
5 God Is Creator
God is so powerful He can make things out of nothing! He only needs to say He wants it to happen, and it happens. He doesn’t need help from anyone.9 God wanted to make people, so first He made a place for them to live. He made the earth and sky. In the sky, God made the air we breathe. Higher in the sky, He made the sun, moon, and stars. They give light on the earth in the day and night. They help us know the seasons and the days, months, and years.10 On the earth, God made the water and dry land. He made the rivers, lakes, and oceans to hold the water. He made the dirt, rocks, and sand. He made the hills and mountains, and the fields and beaches.11 God made all the plants on earth. He made the grass, flowers, and trees. He even made plants that are food for us like fruit, grains, and vegetables.12 God made all the animals on earth. He made animals that fly in the air, swim in the water, and walk on the ground. He even made animals that live in the ground like ants, worms, and gophers.13
6 God Made People
After making the earth and sky and all the plants and animals, God made two people. He made a man named Adam and his wife Eve.14 Adam and Eve were the most important part of God’s creation. All the other things that He made were for them. Adam and Eve were the first people on earth. They also were the first father and mother. All people on earth today belong to the big family started by Adam and Eve.15 God made Adam first. He started by making a body for Adam. He made it out of the same things the earth is made of.16 But Adam’s body couldn’t move yet. It couldn’t even breathe because it wasn’t alive. So God breathed life into Adam, and he started breathing.17 God knew Adam needed a wife. God didn’t want Adam to be alone, so He took a rib out of Adam’s side and made a woman. She became Adam’s wife. Adam gave her the name Eve.18
7 People Are Special
God made people different than animals. He breathed life from Himself into Adam. He didn’t do this for animals.19 The life that we have is special. This is true even when babies are inside their mothers. Before they are born, their lives are special to God.20 We’re special because God made us like Him in certain ways. We’re creative and smart. We can paint pictures, write books, and play music. We can solve problems and build things. We can build houses and cars—and fix them when they break! We can talk to each other and write our thoughts for others to read. But more important, we can talk to God and understand when He talks to us. God made us like Him so we can do His work on earth. He gave us authority over the earth and all the animals on it. He wants us to take care of the earth and animals like He takes care of us.21
8 God Loves Us
God loved Adam and Eve, and He loves us because we’re their children. We don’t deserve God’s love. He loves us because He made us. He’s serious about taking care of us. God gives us all the good things we have. He owns the whole earth and everything on it.22 He works in ways we can’t see to give us what we need. Without Him, we would have nothing. God doesn’t give us everything we want. Many times we want things that aren’t good for us. God knows what we really need, and He does what is best for us.23 Sometimes bad things happen to us, but God doesn’t make them happen. We shouldn’t blame Him.24 During those times, He knows how we feel and He cares for us. He makes sure we don’t suffer more than we can stand.25
9 God Gave Us the Bible
God gave us a book called the Bible. The Bible is God’s written words. He chose men to write it, and they wrote what He told them to say.26 The Bible is always right. God makes no mistakes, so He would never give us a book that has mistakes.27 Sometimes people say the Bible isn’t true anymore. They say it was written a long time ago, and we’re different now. But they’re wrong. God never changes, so what the Bible says will always be true.28 The Bible tells us everything we need to know about God. The more we know about God, the better we can do what He wants.29 The Bible has stories about great things God has done. It has stories about good people and bad people. The stories help us learn how to live for God. The Bible tells us about God’s law. His law tells us how to live the way He wants. He knows what’s best for us, and His law is for our good. The two most important laws are to love God and love other people. All the other laws come from these two.30
10 We Should Love God
The Bible says the most important law is to love God. We should love God more than anything else. We should love Him more than our parents. More than our brothers and sisters. More than our friends. More than we love ourselves.31 We show love for God by making sure nothing is more important to us than Him.32 We show love for God by singing and praising Him for how great and wonderful He is.33 We show love for God by thanking Him for loving us and all the good things He does for us.34 But the most important way we show love for God is by obeying Him. We show love for Him by trusting Him and doing what He says.35
11 We Should Love People
The Bible says the next important law is to love other people. This means we love them as much as we love ourselves.36 We treat them the same as God treats us. He’s good to us, so we’re good to other people.37 We aren’t selfish. If someone needs something we have, we share it with them. If someone needs our help doing something, we take time to help them.38 We don’t hurt other people. We don’t say things that aren’t true about them. We don’t take things that belong to them.39 We love other people no matter who they are. We love them even if they do wrong to us. This shows them the right way to live for God.40 We love our parents in a special way. We treat them as the most important people in the family. When we’re young, we show love for our parents by obeying them. Parents sometimes make mistakes. They aren’t always right. But God says to obey them and show respect to them.41
12 We All Disobey God
No matter how much we try, we never obey God’s law all the time. We don’t love God how the law says. And we don’t love other people how the law says.42 Most of the time we don’t want to obey. We do what we want instead of what God wants. We think we know what will make us happy better than He does.43 This is called sin. Sin is breaking God’s law. It’s not allowing God to have authority over us as Lord. It makes us enemies of God.44 We sin not only in our actions but also in our thoughts. Just wanting to do something that is wrong is sin. It isn’t love for God.45 Just thinking we deserve to be treated better than someone else is sin. It isn’t love for the other person.46 God always knows when we sin. We never can hide from Him or fool Him. We can hide from people. We can do things they don’t know, but God always sees and knows. He even knows what we think and feel inside us.47
13 God Punishes Sin
Governments have authority over people and make laws. When people break those laws, they must stand before a judge. The judge tells them the punishment for their crimes. Judges aren’t mean or hateful. They only do what the law says. The people deserve their punishment for breaking the law. God has authority over all governments and all people. He also is a judge. He judges everyone who breaks His law. We all are guilty of breaking His law, so we all must be punished.48 No one can escape God’s judgment. Not for any reason. He doesn’t give special treatment to anyone. And He doesn’t allow any excuses.49 God’s law says the punishment for sin is death. Life is a precious gift from God. So taking it away by death is serious punishment.50 When someone dies, the body no longer has life in it. It doesn’t breathe. It doesn’t move, see, hear, or talk. It doesn’t think or feel anything. Some people die when they’re young. Some die when they’re old. But everyone dies someday. We die because we all are guilty of sin.
14 Death Isn’t the End
When our bodies die, that isn’t the end of us. Each of us has a spirit. It’s the real person inside us. Our spirits never die. When our bodies die, our spirits leave our bodies.51 Our spirits are guilty of our sin, so they must be punished. They can’t die, so they must be punished another way.52 God sends our spirits to a place called Hell. It has fire that punishes spirits but never burns them up. They must stay there forever.53 We deserve punishment in Hell because we break God’s law. But God doesn’t want to punish us. He loves us and wants to save us from Hell.54 So why doesn’t God change His mind and not send us to Hell? He can’t do that. His love for us can’t make Him break His own law. His law says we must be punished for our sin. There seems to be no way for God to save us. But nothing is too hard for God! He has an amazing plan. It punishes our sin as His law says and saves us at the same time!
15 God Has a Plan to Save Us
Before God created anything, He knew we would sin. He knew He would have to send us to Hell, so He made a plan to save us.55 He made a plan to forgive our sin. To take our sin away from us like it never happened. He made a plan to change us into His children!56 God’s children don’t go to Hell when they die. They go to Heaven to be with God! Heaven is a wonderful place where everyone is always happy.57 So how can God take away our sin? He can’t pretend we have none. He can’t erase our sin just because He wants to. God’s law says our sin must be punished. So what can He do? How can He punish our sin and forgive us at the same time? God says a man who has no sin can take our place. God can put our sin on a man who has none. And He can punish this man for our sin instead of us!58 A man who would do that for us would love us very much! But all of us have sin. Where can God find a man who has none? God can become a man Himself! He has no sin, so He can become a man who has no sin.
16 Jesus Is God with Us
To become a man, God made a special baby named Jesus. God chose a young woman named Mary to be the mother. He created the baby inside her.59 The father of Jesus wasn’t a man. His father was God. Jesus had a body like a man, but God was inside the body. He was a man and God at the same time! Jesus is called the Christ. This means God chose Him to be our Lord who rules over us. It means He’s the Son of God who came to be our Savior. To save us from our sins and being punished in Hell.60 Jesus had no sin. He was God, so He always did what was right. He did many miracles to show people He was God. Miracles are things only God can do.61 He healed sick people. He made blind people to see. Lame people to walk. And dead people to live. He did all these things only by speaking or touching the people.62 And He did much more. He fed more than 5,000 people with only five loaves of bread and two fish. He stopped a raging storm only by speaking. And He even walked on water!63 Most important, Jesus taught people the right way to live for God. He told them to turn from their sin and believe He’s the Christ, the Son of God.64
17 Jesus Paid for Our Sin
Many of the rulers where Jesus lived didn’t believe He’s the Christ. They didn’t want to obey Him. And they didn’t want the other people to obey Him. The rulers wanted to kill Jesus, so they took Him. They spit on Him and made fun of Him. They beat Him with a whip until He bled. Then they put Him on a cross to kill Him.65 Jesus could have stopped them from doing those things any time He wanted. But He didn’t want to. He was doing what we needed to save us from Hell. The cross was painful to Jesus. The beatings and the cross made Him bleed, but He didn’t care. He wasn’t thinking of Himself. He was thinking of us. While Jesus was on the cross, He took the guilt of all our sin on His own body. He could do this because He had no sin of His own.66 Then He died. He died to pay for our sin. No one could take His life from Him. He gave it up Himself.67 Jesus gave His life as payment for our sin. The blood He shed and His death are the only way God can forgive our sin.68
18 Jesus Rose From the Dead
After Jesus died, His friends were very sad. They buried His body in a grave. It was like a small cave in the side of a hill. They rolled a big stone over the opening to close the grave.69 They thought His body would stay there like normal dead people, but they were wrong. Jesus was God. He had no sin of His own, so He couldn’t stay dead. Three days after Jesus was buried, He came alive again! God raised Him from the dead in a new body, and He came out of the grave. His friends were very surprised and happy!70 This is His resurrection. It showed that Jesus really is the Christ, the Son of God. He really is our Lord. No one but God could die and come alive again three days later.71 Because Jesus is God, His payment for our sin really worked. He won the battle over sin and death. He has power to forgive our sin and make us children of God. He can give us new life so we can live forever with Him.72 Jesus showed His friends for 40 days that He really was alive. Then He went up to Heaven in His new body while His friends watched!73
19 Jesus Will Return Jesus Is the Only Way
Going to Heaven when we die is wonderful. But God has even To be a child of God means God is your heavenly Father. It more good things planned for His children! means you’re born of God on the inside where your spirit is.80 Someday Jesus will come back to earth! He’ll take God’s This is your heart. But it isn’t the same heart you can feel children who are still alive out of this world. This is called the beating in your chest. It’s your spiritual heart. 74 rapture. Jesus makes you a child of God by sending the Holy Spirit into Jesus will give them new bodies like His. The spirits of God’s your heart. This is the Spirit of God. The Spirit of Christ. He children in Heaven will come back with Him. They’ll get new stays in your heart forever.81 75 bodies, too. With the Holy Spirit in you, you belong to Jesus. Everything The new bodies are important. They’ll never be sad or have He did for you becomes yours. pain. They’ll never be sick or get hurt or die. And best of all, His payment for sin belongs to you. This is how God forgives 76 they’ll always love and obey God! you. His resurrection from the dead belongs to you. This is how God’s children will need a place to live in their new bodies. you live forever as a child of God.82 This earth is ruined by sin, so God will destroy it. He’ll destroy The Holy Spirit does even more for you. He gives you a new 77 everything He created. heart that doesn’t want to sin. He helps you pray and understand Then God will make a new earth that is much better. He’ll the Bible. He gives you strength to live for God.83 send a city called New Jerusalem down to the new earth out of Jesus did everything you need to make you a child of God. Heaven. God’s children will live forever in this city, and God will And He’s the only one who can do it.84 be there with them!78 You can do nothing to deserve it or earn it. God gives it to you God’s children should be looking for Jesus to return. They as a gift if you believe in Jesus and turn away from your sin.85 should wait for Him with joy. They should live the way He wants so He’ll be happy with them when He comes.79
20 You Can Be a Child of God
Do you believe you sin by disobeying God? Do you believe God must punish you for that in Hell? Are you sorry for your sins and do you want to obey God? Do you believe Jesus is the Son of God who died to pay for your sins? Do you believe God raised Jesus from the dead to prove He’s your Lord? So Jesus can give you new life and you can live forever with Him? If you really believe the things you answered above, you’ll repent. You’ll tell God you don’t want to sin anymore. You’ll tell Him you put your sinful life behind you. And you give Him control of your life so you can live the way He wants.86 If you repent because you believe in Jesus, God forgives you for all your sins! He takes them away like you never did them. He does this because Jesus paid for them.87 When you believe in Jesus and repent, you must be baptized in water. This is a picture of Jesus baptizing you with the Holy Spirit. It’s a picture of the Holy Spirit “washing away” your sins. The Holy Spirit gives you a clean heart and makes you a child of God.88
21 28 Psalm 33:11; 119:160; Matthew 5:18; Hebrews 13:8; 1 Peter 1:24-25 Bible Verses for the Children’s Book 29 Psalm 119:11; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Romans 15:4 30 Matthew 22:37-40
God Is Real We Should Love God 31 1 Genesis 1:1; Job 38:4 Matthew 10:37-39 32 2 Genesis 21:33; Exodus 3:14; Deuteronomy 33:27; Psalm 90:2; Proverbs 8:22-23; Matthew 6:33 33 Hebrews 7:3; Revelation 1:8 Judges 5:3; 1 Chronicles 23:5; 29:13; Psalm 7:17; 9:1-2; 21:13; Isaiah 12:4-5; 3 John 4:24 Romans 15:10-11 34 4 Psalm 11:4; 103:19; Jeremiah 10:10; Matthew 23:22; John 4:24; 1 Timothy 6:15-16 1 Chronicles 16:8-12; 2 Chronicles 5:13; Psalm 30:12; 105:1-2; 107:15; 118:29; Ephesians 5:20; Colossians 3:17 5 Psalm 139:1-6; 147:5; Isaiah 40:28; 46:9-10; Romans 11:33-35; 1 John 3:20 35 Deuteronomy 11:13; 30:20; John 14:15, 21; 1 John 5:3, 2 John 1:6 6 Job 42:2; Psalm 135:6; Matthew 19:26; Revelation 19:6 7 Numbers 23:19; 1 Peter 1:15-16; 2:22; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Revelation 4:8 We Should Love People 8 Psalm 19:1; Romans 1:20 36 Luke 6:31 37 God Is Creator 1 John 3:16 38 1 John 3:17 9 Genesis 1:6-24 (“God said”…“and it was so”); 2 Peter 3:5 39 Exodus 20:13, 15, 16 10 Genesis 1:6-8, 14-18 40 Matthew 5:44-48 11 Genesis 1:9-10 41 Exodus 20:12; Proverbs 6:20; Ephesians 6:1-2 12 Genesis 1:11-12, 29 13 Genesis 1:20-25 We All Disobey God 42 God Made People Psalm 10:4; Romans 3:10-12, 23; 7:18; Galatians 3:22; Titus 1:15-16 43 John 3:19-20 14 Genesis 1:26-27 44 Romans 3:19-20; 5:10; Philippians 3:18; 1 John 3:4; James 2:10; 4:4 15 Deuteronomy 32:8; 1 Corinthians 15:22 45 Matthew 5:27-28 16 Genesis 2:7 46 Proverbs 21:4; Romans 12:3; Philippians 2:3 17 Genesis 2:7 47 1 Chronicles 28:9; Luke 8:17; Romans 2:16; 1 Corinthians 4:5; Hebrews 4:12-13 18 Genesis 2:18, 3:20 People Are Special God Punishes Sin 48 Psalm 50:6; Acts 10:40-42; Romans 2:16; Hebrews 12:23; Revelation 11:18; 20:12- 19 Genesis 2:7 13 20 Psalm 139:13; Jeremiah 1:5; Hosea 12:3; Luke 1:44 49 Romans 1:20; 1 Peter 1:17 21 Genesis 1:26-27; Psalm 8:4-6 50 Genesis 2:17; Ezekiel 18:20; Romans 5:12; 6:23; 7:9-11; Revelation 20:14-15 God Loves Us Death Isn’t the End 22 Psalm 50:10-12; 1 Timothy 6:17 51 Ecclesiastes 3:21; 12:7; 1 Corinthians 2:11; 2 Corinthians 5:6-8; Hebrews 4:12; 23 Psalm 23:1-6 James 2:26 24 James 1:13 52 Ephesians 5:6; Colossians 3:6; Hebrews 9:27 25 1 Corinthians 10:13; 2 Corinthians 12:8-9 53 Matthew 5:22, 29-30; 10:28; Mark 9:43-44; Luke 12:5; Revelation 20:14-15 God Gave Us the Bible 54 Ezekiel 18:23; Romans 5:8; 1 Timothy 2:3-4; 2 Peter 3:9 26 2 Peter 1:20-21 God Has a Plan to Save Us 27 Numbers 23;19; 1 Corinthians 2:4-7, 12-13; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 1:1-2; 55 Matthew 25:34; Ephesians 1:4; 1 Peter 1:20; Revelation 13:8; 17:8 2 Peter 1:19-21
22 56 Galatians 3:26; 1 John 3:1-2, 9; Revelation 21:7 Jesus Really Means” on page 30 57 2 Corinthians 5:6-8; Philippians 1:23 87 Luke 24:47; Acts 2:38; 5:31; Romans 5:9-10; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 2:13 58 Isaiah 53:4-5; John 3:16; Romans 5:8-10 88 Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 2:38; Romans 6:3-4; Colossians 2:11-12; 1 Peter 3:21 Jesus Is God With Us 59 Luke 1:30-35 60 Matthew 14:33; 16:16; Luke 1:32-35 61 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 9:14; 1 Peter 1:19; 2:21-23 62 Matthew 11:5; John 10:25 63 Matthew 14:17-21; 8:23-27; 14:22-27 64 Matthew 4:17; 5:1-48; John 3:16-18; 4:25-26; 9:35-38 Jesus Paid for Our Sin 65 Matthew 26:3-4; 27:18, 26-30 66 Isaiah 53:5-6; 1 Peter 2:21-24; 3:18; 2 Corinthians 5:21 67 John 10:17-18 68 Leviticus 17:11; Ephesians 2:13; Hebrews 9:14; 1 Peter 1:18-19; 1 John 1:7 Jesus Rose From the Dead 69 Matthew 27:57-60 70 Matthew 28:5-6; Acts 2:32; Ephesians 1:19-20 71 Romans 1:4 72 Romans 5:10; 6:4; 1 Corinthians 15:16-18; Colossians 2:13; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Peter 1:3 73 John 20:17; Acts 1:3, 9-11 Jesus Will Return 74 John 14:2-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 75 1 Corinthians 15:47-53; Philippians 3:20-21 76 Revelation 21:4; 22:3-5 77 2 Peter 3:10-13; Revelation 20:11 78 Isaiah 65:17; 66:22; 2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:1-3, 10-27 79 Philippians 3:20; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Peter 1:13-16; 2 Peter 3:11 Jesus Is the Only Way 80 John 1:12-13; 3:5-8 81 Acts 2:32-33; Romans 8:9-11; 1 Corinthians 6:19; Galatians 4:6 82 Romans 6:3-9; 8:9-11, 15-17; Galatians 3:13-14; 4:4-7 83 Romans 8:26-27; 1 Corinthians 2:13-16 84 John 1:12-13; Acts 4:10-12; 1 John 5:9-12 85 John 1:12; Romans 5:17; 6:23; Galatians 2:16; Ephesians 2:8-9 You Can Be a Child of God 86 Matthew 9:13; Luke 13:3, 5; Acts 3:19; 20:21; 2 Peter 3:9; see also “What Faith in
23 Guide for Parents
24 Tips for Helping Children
● Keep God’s love for children in proper balance in the context ● If children have doubts about their salvation, take those of their sin and God’s judgment of sin. His love expressed as doubts seriously. It might be God reminding them that they salvation can be understood only in that context. If they never still need to be saved. get the right concept of their sin and need for repentance, ● Remember that God is in control of salvation. He moves when God’s love by itself won’t keep them from going to Hell. and in what manner He chooses for each person. When ● Don’t think children must have high self-esteem before they dealing with children, teach them the truth and pray for can be saved. Salvation doesn’t come out of a sense of self- them. Throughout this process, be patient and allow God to worth. It comes out of a sense of guilt for sin and inadequacy work in their lives as He chooses. to merit God’s favor. ● Avoid pushing children to make professions of faith too soon. Children can easily be led to make professions of faith out of a desire to conform to a peer group or to please an influential parent or teacher. Or they can be afraid of going to Hell and willing to say whatever they’re told is necessary to escape it. ● Don’t simplify salvation into a mechanical process that only requires repeating a “sinner’s prayer.” No prayer is a magical incantation that produces salvation if the Holy Spirit isn’t working in the child’s heart at the time. ● Don’t use “ask Jesus into your heart” as a substitute for “believe and repent.” Without faith and repentance, simply asking Jesus into their hearts won’t save children. The Holy Spirit comes into their hearts when they believe and repent, not any other way. ● Be aware that qualifying children to determine if God is really working in their hearts can be difficult. They probably already know the right answers to questions. In addition, their perceptions of what certain terms and concepts mean may not be accurate, so their responses can be convincing even though they don’t really understand what they’re saying or doing.
25 What the Bible Says About Teaching Children Need the Full Truth Children It’s easy to assume children know things they may not really know. If you simplify salvation too much, they may not really The Bible says even the youngest children should be taught understand all that they should. the essential truths. The Apostle Paul says to Timothy “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able For example, if you talk about God, your children may not to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ know who He really is. Their idea of God may be quite different Jesus.”1 than yours or what the Bible teaches. The Holy Scriptures in this case are the Old Testament, and God’s essence and His role as creator are vital to they’re full of God’s commands, His judgment against sin, and the understanding why He has authority over us. His authority over need for a blood sacrifice to atone for sins. us explains why we should obey Him and why He has a right to punish us for disobedience. Today, false teachers want people to believe those concepts are too deep or too scary for children, but that isn’t what the Bible There are other important facts that children may not says. For example: understand, such as what sin really is. If they don’t understand sin, they may not believe they’re sinners in need of punishment. Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest They may not understand how bad sin is in God’s eyes. thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them If they don’t know what the punishment for sin is, they won’t thy sons, and thy sons' sons.2 know what they’re being saved from and why it’s important to be saved. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in If they don’t know how impossible it is for them to please God thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy by doing good, they can’t understand the importance of Jesus children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine Christ taking their place on the cross. house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.3 Clearly, it’s important to be sure children receive a complete, accurate picture of essential biblical truths. Their eternal Children should be taught the truth while they’re young so destinies depend on it. their minds don’t become cluttered by misconceptions as they grow older. God says “Train up a child in the way he should go: God doesn’t have different plans for saving children than for and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”4 adults. If a particular child can’t understand what’s presented in this book, he or she may not be ready for salvation.
26 How God Controls Salvation
Salvation is being born of the Holy Spirit.5 It’s becoming a When you pray, ask God to give you assurance that you’re child of God. As heavenly Father, God is in control of giving birth really saved or to save you if you aren’t. Do this as long as it takes to His children.6 He draws us to Jesus through the work of the to get an answer. Even if it’s a year or two or more. Don’t give up Holy Spirit.7 or be discouraged. We can’t be saved by our own decisions or efforts. In our When reading the Bible, a good place to start is the book of natural condition, we love having authority over our lives so John (near the beginning of the New Testament). Then go to much we never would be willing to give it up so we can live for Acts, which follows John. After that, you may want to read the God.8 book of 1 John (near the end of the New Testament). To overcome this natural resistance against God, the Holy During that time, attend church services regularly. Be sure Spirit prepares our hearts and convicts us of our sins. He opens the church teaches biblical truth, which you see in this book. our understanding so we can believe in Jesus in a way we never Salvation comes from knowing the Word of God, so you want to could otherwise. get as much of it as you can.13 If we yield to the leading of the Holy Spirit while He’s convicting us, He makes sure the right things happen to save us. If the Holy Spirit isn’t convicting us, nothing we say or do can save us. Just as we don’t become saved by our own efforts, we don’t stay saved by our own efforts. We’re kept by the power of God.9 Anyone who falls away from faith wasn’t really saved to begin with.10 They may have been religious, but they weren’t born of God. The Bible says all who think they’re saved should look for evidence of salvation in their lives.11 If they’re born of the Spirit, they’ll be faithful to God through difficult times. They’ll show sincere love for other Christians and a humble desire to live a holy life.12 If you’re concerned about your salvation, the most important things you can do are pray and read the Bible. Do this every day. If this seems like too much effort, ask yourself how much your eternal salvation is worth to you.
27 How Faith in Jesus Saves Us
In the Garden of Eden, faith in God as the supreme authority We need a total makeover inside and out. First, we need to be made it natural for Adam to obey God. God’s will was all Adam forgiven of all our sins. Then we need new hearts and new bodies knew, and He obeyed God without question. that are sinless and always submissive and obedient to God. When tested by Satan, Adam gave up his faith in God. He still This is why we need Jesus. He did for us what we can’t do for believed in God, but he no longer put his complete trust in Him. ourselves.22 By His death, He paid for our sins so we can be He wanted to be as wise as God so He could be his own authority. forgiven and righteous in God’s eyes.23 By His resurrection, He He rejected God’s will in favor of his own will.14 offers us eternal life as new creations who are free from bondage 24 Adam’s disobedience permanently changed him. He became to sin. under control of his own desires. He began looking for satisfaction We obtain the benefit of what Jesus did by faith in Him. It’s a and happiness in his own will instead of God’s will. This is sin, free gift.25 There’s nothing we can do to deserve it or earn it. Jesus and it became part of Adam’s nature. gives it to us when He baptizes us with the Holy Spirit.26 This is 27 As descendants of Adam, we inherit his sinful nature.15 Our the new birth, which makes us children of God. natural desire is to live for ourselves instead of for God. We want The Holy Spirit comes into our hearts, making them new and to make our own rules about what’s right for us. We reject God’s sinless.28 He puts the laws of God in our minds and hearts, so we will in favor of our own wills.16 want to live in obedience to God.29 But He doesn’t give us new We’re slaves to our sinful natures.17 We can never be good bodies yet. We still have the old bodies that are full of sinful enough or do enough good to make ourselves acceptable to God. desires. God says the very best of our good deeds are nothing more than The Holy Spirit lives in our hearts as a guarantee that God filthy rags in His sight.18 will give us new, sinless bodies someday when Jesus returns for 30 We can hide nothing from God.19 He knows every thought us. When this happens, it’ll complete our transformation into we’ve ever had and every sin we’ve ever committed, and He hates children of God. sin. There’s no sin so small or “innocent” that He’s willing to In the end, God will create new heavens and a new earth.31 overlook it.20 Just one sin makes us guilty of violating all of God’s The only people on the new earth will be His children. They’ll law.21 have eternal life with no more sin or suffering. They’ll live in joy 32 To correct our sinful condition, we must correct what Adam beyond anything we can imagine now. Everyone else will be in 33 did wrong. We must put our complete trust in God. We must turn the lake of fire called Hell. from our sins and surrender our wills to God. We must make Him the supreme authority in our lives as He originally was for Adam. The problem is that we can’t do this by ourselves. Our sinful natures won’t allow us. No matter how much we try to surrender our wills to God and live in obedience to Him, we always fail.
28 Who Jesus Really Is
To have saving faith in Jesus, we must understand who He What Son of God Means really is. The best way to understand Him is to look at how He Son of God is the God side of Jesus. Before He became a man, described Himself. He called Himself the “Son of Man”34 and the He existed in eternity as God.42 He created the universe and “Son of God.”35 sustains it by His power.43 What Son of Man Means Jesus became the Son of God when He was conceived by the Holy Spirit in the virgin Mary.44 He was confirmed to be the Son Son of Man is the human side of Jesus. It’s the body the Holy of God by His resurrection from the dead.45 Spirit gave Him in the womb of a virgin named Mary.36 As Son of God, Jesus is God.46 He’s the perfect image of God As Son of Man, Jesus was completely human, but He didn’t the Father. He’s everything God is but in the body of a man. This have a human father. God was His Father, so He didn’t inherit a is what Christ means. sinful nature from Adam as we do. Christ means Jesus is the anointed one. It means He’s the 37 As Son of Man, Jesus was a new “Adam.” Unlike the first man God chose to be Lord and Ruler over all He created because Adam, Jesus never failed no matter how much Satan tested Him. He’s the Son of God.47 He was tested and tempted in every way as we are, yet without Just as Jesus had to be Son of Man to sacrifice Himself for our sin. He remained faithful even through the suffering of the sins, He also had to be Son of God to do that. Only God could be cross.38 sinless and shed His own blood for our sins.48 Jesus was able to sacrifice Himself for our sins because He was As God, Jesus also is Lord.49 God the Father is often called the Son of Man. He had to be human or He couldn’t take the sins Lord God. This means He’s the one true God who is Lord, the of humanity on His body and die for them.39 supreme authority over all creation.50 Animal sacrifices that were offered in the Old Testament Likewise, Jesus is called the Lord Jesus Christ. This means couldn’t cleanse our consciences of guilt.40 We needed the blood of He’s the man named Jesus who is Lord (the supreme authority a sinless man to cleanse us. over all creation).51 He’s Lord because He’s the Christ, the Son of As Son of Man, Jesus also is our Judge. God the Father gave God: Jesus authority to judge us and determine our eternal destinies.41 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God He died for our sins, so He’s uniquely qualified to judge us and hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both send us to Hell if we reject Him as our Lord and Savior. Lord and Christ.52 Jesus is Lord as much as God the Father is Lord. They both are one God. Believing in Jesus is believing in the Father who raised Him from the dead.53
29 What Faith in Jesus Really Means
Saving faith isn’t only believing in what Jesus did to be our How Faith Is Connected to Repentance Savior. It’s believing in all that He is as a person. Believing in When we truly believe in Jesus as Lord and Christ, we Jesus for all that He is means believing in Him as Lord and understand how sinful we are and how we deserve eternity in Christ.54 Hell. We see no choice but to turn from our sins and surrender to 55 As Savior, Jesus is both Lord and Christ. The gospel is about Him as Lord, which is our only hope for forgiveness of our sins. Jesus as Lord and Christ.56 He died and rose from the dead so He This is repentance. Saving faith always causes us to repent. can be our Savior, but He also did it so He can be our Lord.57 Jesus said “except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”63 If we trust Jesus as Savior, we must trust Him as Lord The necessity of repentance is taught throughout the New because that’s who He is. We can’t trust part of what He is while Testament. John the Baptist preached repentance.64 Jesus rejecting the other part. The Bible frequently says Jesus is Lord preached repentance.65 The apostles when sent two by two of those who believe in Him.58 preached repentance.66 The Apostle Paul preached repentance.67 Think of it this way. If Jesus isn’t your Lord, somebody else is! The Apostle Peter preached repentance.68 It’s either you or Satan. Repentance is turning from our sins69 and our desire to sin: If we trust Jesus as Lord, we must surrender to Him as Lord. “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one That’s what being Lord means. It means people submit to you according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn and obey you. As Lord, Jesus has supreme authority and yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be deserves our submission and obedience.59 your ruin. Cast away from you all your transgressions, Refusing to submit would be insubordinate and rebellious, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and which is the essence of sin. The Holy Spirit won’t come into people a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel? For I have who reject God’s authority over them. He won’t force people to no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord submit against their wills. GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.”70 If we say Jesus is our Lord without submitting to Him and The Apostle Paul also says repentance is turning from sins: obeying Him, we’re only pretending. Our faith isn’t real. Jesus said those who call Him Lord but don’t obey Him aren’t in the Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us kingdom of God.60 go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God.71 Faith in Jesus as Lord is faith in Him as our Judge. He died and rose so He can be Lord of the living and dead,61 and He’s This verse says faith and repentance are the foundation of Judge of the living and dead.62 He has authority to condemn us or salvation (“the principles of the doctrine of Christ”). It says pardon us. If we believe in Him and repent, He pardons us. If we repentance is from “dead works,” which are sins (works that lead don’t, He condemns us to Hell. to death).
30 Faith and repentance are closely connected. Saving faith isn’t His leading, we’ll surrender regardless of the words we use to simply believing in our heads. It’s believing in our hearts,72 which describe it. If the Spirit isn’t working in us, we can surrender but is where the Holy Spirit works to make us children of God.73 it does nothing for us because it doesn’t convert us into children If we really believe in our hearts that we’re sinners, that of God. Jesus is God, and that He’ll judge us for our sins, we’ll turn from our sins and surrender to Him as the Lord who is the supreme How Faith Is Connected to Baptism authority in our lives. When we believe and repent, we must be baptized in water.75 If we want God to forgive us and save us, but we don’t want to Water baptism is closely related to faith and repentance. It shows turn from our sins or make any commitment to God, we don’t our commitment to Jesus Christ as our Lord and our reliance have saving faith. solely on Him for our salvation. The immersion in water symbolizes the internal cleansing What Surrender Really Means and new life we receive by baptism with the Holy Spirit. Baptism 76 Surrendering to God involves our hearts and wills. It’s giving with the Spirit does this by uniting us with Jesus Christ, 77 up our self-will and agreeing that God has total authority over making us children of God. us. It expresses our desire to obey Him in all things and allow Water baptism doesn’t save us. But properly understood, it’s Him to teach us and form us into what He wants us to be. an important part of the salvation experience. If we truly believe Surrendering to God isn’t a promise that we’ll never sin again. and repent, we’ll be willing to obey Jesus by submitting to The Holy Spirit may immediately remove the tendency for baptism. certain sins, even very difficult ones so people are amazed at our sudden transformations. But overcoming all sins can’t happen until we get new, sinless bodies. When the Holy Spirit gives us new hearts, He sets us free from bondage to sin.74 Our new hearts are sinless, and they give us the power to overcome the sinful desires of our bodies. We’ll have times when our bodies assert themselves and we fail, but in our hearts we want to be submissive and obedient to God. We’ll confess our sins to God and strengthen our desire to do better. We’ll do our best with God’s help to gradually become more like Jesus. We may surrender to God without thinking of it in those exact words. For example, we may think in words such as “Give your heart to Jesus” or other similar words, but the result is the same. It all depends on whether the Holy Spirit is working in our hearts at the time. If the Holy Spirit convicts us, and we yield to
31 Bible Verses for the Parent’s Guide Who Jesus Really Is 34 Luke 22:69; John 3:14 35 Luke 22:70; John 3:16-18 36 Luke 1:27, 35 What the Bible Says About Teaching Children 37 1 Corinthians 15:45-46 1 2 Timothy 3:15 38 Philippians 2:8; John 8:29; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 2:22 2 Deuteronomy 4:9 39 Philippians 2:5-8; Hebrews 2:14-15; 1 Peter 2:24 3 Deuteronomy 6:6-7 40 Hebrews 9:13-14; 10:4 4 Proverbs 22:6 41 John 5:22, 26-29; Acts 10:42; 17:31; Romans 2:16; 2 Timothy 4:1; 2 Peter 2:9 42 How God Controls Salvation John 1:1-18; 17:5; Philippians 2:5-7 43 Colossians 1:15-17 5 John 3:5-8 44 Luke 1:35 6 John 1:12-13; James 1:18 45 Acts 13:33; 17:31; Romans 1:4 7 John 6:44; Acts 16:14 46 Isaiah 9:6; John 5:18; Romans 9:5 8 Psalm 10:4; Romans 8:7-8; 10:20 47 Matthew 16:16; 26:63; John 11:27 9 John 10:28-29; 1 Peter 1:3-5; Romans 8:38-39 48 Acts 20:28 10 Hebrews 10:39; 1 John 2:19 49 John 20:28 11 2 Corinthians 13:5; 2 Peter 1:10 50 Acts 17:24 12 Hebrews 3:14; 2 Peter 1:5-9, 1 John 3:10-19 51 Matthew 28:18 13 Romans 10:17 52 Acts 2:36 How Faith in Jesus Saves Us 53 John 12:44-45; Acts 16:31, 34; Romans 4:24; 1 Peter 1:20-21 14 Genesis 3:1-6 What Faith in Jesus Really Means 15 Romans 5:18-19; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 54 Acts 11:17; 16:31; 20:21; Romans 5:11, 21; 6:11, 23; 8:39; 13:14; 1 Corinthians 1:9; 16 Psalm 10:4; Romans 8:7-8 8:6; 16:22; 2 Corinthians 4:5; Philippians 2:11; Colossians 2:6; 1 Thessalonians 5:9- 17 John 8:34; Romans 6:6; 7:18-19 10 18 Isaiah 64:6 55 Philippians 3:20; 2 Peter 1:11; 2:20 19 Proverbs 15:3; Romans 2:16; Hebrews 4:13 56 Acts 18:5; 2 Thessalonians 1:8 20 Ecclesiastes 12:14 57 Romans 14:9 21 James 2:10 58 Ephesians 1:15; 2:21; 3:11; 4:5; 5:8, 19; Philippians 3:20; 4:4; Colossians 1:10; 2:6; 22 Romans 5:19 3:16-17, 23-24; and many more 23 Roman 5:9 59 Matthew 28:18 24 Romans 6:3-6 60 Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 6:46 25 Romans 6:23 61 Romans 14:9 26 Titus 3:5-6; Matthew 3:11; Acts 1:5, 2:38 62 Acts 10:42-43 27 Romans 8:16 63 Luke 13:3, 5 28 Romans 8:1 64 Matthew 3:1-2 29 Ezekiel 36:25-27; Hebrews 8:10; 10:16-17 65 Matthew 4:17; 9:13; Luke 13:3, 5 30 John 14:2-3; 1 Corinthians 6:14; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Ephesians 1:13-14; 66 Mark 6:12 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 John 3:2 67 Acts 17:30; 20:21; 26:20 31 Isaiah 65:17; 2 Peter 3:10 68 Acts 2:38; 3:19; 5:31; 17:30; 2 Peter 3:9 32 Revelation 21:1-4 69 Revelation 9:20-21 33 Revelation 20:11-15 70 Ezekiel 18:30-32
32 71 Hebrews 6:1 72 Romans 10:9-10 73 2 Corinthians 1:22; Galatians 4:6 74 Romans 6:1-14 75 Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:38-41; 8:12, 38; 10:47; 19:4-5 76 Romans 6:5 77 Galatians 3:26-27
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