The Gospel Is What Saves Us
Few of us, I hope, would doubt that the gospel alone is what saves us. The Bible is clear that there is no salvation apart from Jesus and it is just as clear that they only way one can be saved is by trusting in Jesus.
No other world religion saves.
No behavior saves.
No perfect church attendance ribbon saves.
Only trusting in Jesus saves. It is, of course, vital that we never forget this. But this is like the plane taking off in the analogy above. What about when we are in the air?
The Gospel Is What Sustains Us
Just as we are not done with those wings once airborne, neither are we done with the gospel once we are saved. No, we don’t need the gospel for the exact same reason—to be saved from our sins—that is done once and for all. But we do need the gospel to grow us in our faith. We are saved by the work of Christ and we grow by His same work. This is what the Galatians missed, and this is what we can miss too.
I grew up like the Galatians. I understood the centrality of the gospel when it came to me trusting in Christ as a 10-year-old, but I thought that living as a Christian was all up to me. I had to be good to keep God happy with me. God had retracted those gospel wings.
As you read Galatians 1–3 in preparation to teach this week, don’t miss how clear Paul is about this: it’s foolishness, another gospel. Living as believers in the power of the gospel is not a nice addition; it is primary.
Becoming a Christian is to recognize your desperate need of Christ alone for salvation.
Living as a Christian is to recognize your perpetual need of Christ alone to live out your salvation.
That is the gospel.
*Devo from Pastor Brian, from The Gospel Project.
#JesusJams for today!
---> And here's this week's story!!
Christ Connection: Faith is a gift from God. By faith, we trust in Jesus. We should not trust in ourselves because no one can be good enough to be accepted by God. When we have faith, the Holy Spirit changes us and gives us power to obey God.
If you have a bible at your house, you'll be turning to end of Galatians 1-3. If you don't have a Bible, that's okay! CLICK HERE!
OPTION 1: Listen for the bell Sit in a circle. Encourage preschoolers to close their eyes. Choose several children to stand outside of the circle. Give one a bell to ring and the others maracas. Direct the children outside the circle to play their instruments. Tell children in the circle to point towards the bell while keeping their eyes closed. Repeat several times, giving different children an opportunity to play the instruments. For a large group, simply seat children and direct those playing instruments to the edges of the room. SAY •You listened! In today’s Bible story, people were listening to many different teachers. Some were teaching the truth and others were not. Paul wanted the people to listen to the truth. Listen to the story.
OPTION 2: Make a Jesus necklace Give each child a length of yarn and alphabet beads to spell JESUS. Show a child how to string his beads on his length of yarn in the correct order. Suggest he string a few pony beads between each letter and at the beginning and end of his necklace. Tie necklaces wide enough for children to be able to slip them off and on over their heads. SAY • Your necklace says Jesus! Paul taught that believers are saved by faith in Jesus alone. Faith is a gift from God. By faith, we trust in Jesus. We should not trust in ourselves because no one can be good enough to be accepted by God. When we have faith, the Holy Spirit changes us and gives us power to obey God.
OPTION 3: Talk about Paul’s letters Print multiple copies of “Paul’s Second Journey Map” based on the size of your group. Write the names of letters to churches attributed to Paul listed in the margin on index cards. Guide children to compare the names of Paul’s letters with the names of some of the cities on the map. Show children Paul’s letters in a Bible when they make connections with the cities on the map. SAY • The letter Paul wrote to the churches in Galatia is called the Book of Galatians in the Bible. Do you hear how the first of those words sound alike? Listen, Galatia, Galatians. [Point to Galatians on the index card and Galatia on the map.] In Galatians, Paul taught that believers are saved by faith. What is the Bible about? The Bible is about God’s plan to save people through Jesus.
UNIT QUESTION:
UNIT VERSE:
THE GOSPEL PRESENTATION: