Leading Others - Follow Jesus

Leading Others to Jesus

Scripture: Matthew 5:29-30

YOU WILL NEED: No items needed.

Leading Others to Jesus

NOTE: This lesson is primarily for older students.

Read Acts 1:8

SAY: While we play the following games, be thinking about what this verse has to do with you.

Activity: One-on-One Competitions.

Have everyone find a partner for each of the following competitions. Then let them switch and challenge several others before moving to the next competition. If there is an odd number some of them can act as referees.

Competition #1—Blink: See who can stare into the other person’s eyes the longest without blinking.

Competition #2—Breath: See who can hold their breath the longest.

Competition #3—Smile: See who can stare into the other person’s face the longest without smiling.

Competition #4—Hand Slap: One partner holds out his or her hands palms up while the other partner places his or her hands palms down on top of them. Partners should maintain palm-to-palm contact until the “bottom” partner moves either of his or her hands. The object of the game is for the partner whose hands are on the bottom to slap the tops of his or her partner’s hands before that partner can withdraw them. Partners switch roles after each attempt.* (NOTE: Tell your students that they are not trying to hit as hard as they can. This game shouldn’t turn anyone’s hand red.)

Competition #5—Push and Pull: Two partners place their right feet, both pointing in opposite directions, side by side and touching each other. Then they shake right hands, grasping each other’s thumbs. On your signal, partners try to pull or push each other off balance using only their right arms. Whoever moves his or her feet to maintain balance loses the round. *

SAY: The competitions we just did were one-on-one and one of the greatest things you can ever do is one-on-one too. In fact, it’s the greatest miracle that anyone can ever be a part of and many times this incredible thing happens one-on-one. It’s not a competition but it’s a great privilege to share in it.

Ask the students— Who can guess what it is? (Leading someone to Christ.)

SAY: You don’t need to wait until you get older to begin telling others about Jesus. If you have given your life to Jesus and remember what you did, then already know everything you need to know to be ready to lead someone else to Christ. The question isn’t, “Can I do this?” It’s, “Am I willing.” That’s the key: You’ve got to be willing.

Ask the students— Besides willingness what else do you think a person needs to do before telling someone about Christ? (Of course, you’ve got to be saved yourself, but besides that…Before you go out telling people about Jesus, you must first be living for Jesus. Otherwise, what’s different about you? Nothing. So why would they want your Jesus?)

SAY: If you are willing to share Jesus, you don’t have to wait to know more although learning a method of how to share Jesus is a great help to make you feel more confident and comfortable. And, if you would like, we can show you a great way to lead others to Christ. (NOTE: If you don’t already have a great method to teach them, see The Plan of Salvation booklet on the three-thirty ministry website—www.threethirtyministries.org.)

SAY: The advantage of having specific training is that you can learn from other people’s experiences. For example, if you wanted to create a conversation where you could tell a friend about Jesus, how would you do it? (Let the students answer.)

SAY: The easiest way to start a conversation where you can tell someone about Jesus is to ask a simple question—what do you think it is? (Let the students answer.)

SAY: You could ask, “Do you know for sure you’re going to heaven?” but sometimes that’s kind of abrupt. An easier way is to simply ask, “Can I tell you about the greatest thing that ever happened to me?” Most people will say “yes” and if they say “no,” it’s probably a bad time to have a conversation anyway. Then, when they say “yes,” simply tell them the story about how you gave your life to Jesus (your salvation testimony). End your story by saying, “Because I gave my life to Jesus, I know for sure I am going to heaven—How about you?” This will open the door for you to talk with them about where they stand with Jesus.

SAY: So, in other words, you don’t have to wait for specific training to be able to tell others about Jesus, but training does help you to feel more confident and if you want more training about how to share Jesus, then simply let us know.

Prayer Time

Take prayer requests and pray. Pray specifically that God will use the students in the room who are living for Christ and willing to be trained to impact many lives. Pray that they will lead many others to Jesus both by their actions and their words.

If you have extra time, re-play some of the games and reinforce the spiritual applications for them.

*Dan McGill, No Supplies Required: Crowdbreakers and Games, (Loveland, CO: Group Publishing, 1995), 42.