Fully Devoted - Follow Jesus

Fully Devoted

Scripture: Matthew 5:29-30

YOU WILL NEED: A blindfold for each student; foam balls that won’t hurt when a student is hit by them; a piece of paper and pen or pencil for each student

Fully Devoted

(NOTE: This lesson is for older students only.)

Activity: Dodge Ball

Divide the students into two teams. Divide the class into two halves and play dodge ball using soft, foam balls. One hit and you’re out. If you catch a ball in the air, no one is out.

Activity: Blind Dodge Ball

Using the same teams, switch sides, then give each of them a blindfold and tell them they have to play blind. They can’t peek—not to get balls, not to see where their opponents are—They are totally blind.

Discussion:

Ask the students—Did you like being blind?

Ask the students—Would like to be blind every day of your life?

SAY: Listen to a verse that many people find to be very confusing:

Read what Jesus said in Matthew 5:29-30

Ask the students—In these verses what do you think Jesus means?

Ask the students—Did He really mean that He wants you to pluck out your eye or cut off your hand? (Of course not.)

SAY: Jesus was talking about things that hold a person back from giving their life to Him and following Him. Yes, it’s better for a person to lose whatever would hold him back from giving his life to Christ—whether it be an eye or a hand or his life—than it would be to lose his soul. But even those who have been saved can hold onto things that keep them from following Jesus.

Ask the students—What are some things that might hold back someone your age from being a fully devoted follower of Christ? (i.e., peer pressure, fear, bad habits, hanging around the wrong group of friends, etc.)

Ask the students—What do you think a fully devoted follower of Christ would be like?

Ask the students—[Have student answer only in their own hearts]—On a scale of 1 to 10, how fully devoted are you to following Jesus everyday?

Have the students close their eyes.

Ask the students—Right now do you feel like you are 100% following Jesus? Is there anything in your life that you’re doing that you know is wrong? Whatever it is, you need to let go of it.

Give each student a small piece of paper.

Ask them to write on it one or more things they would like to do in the next year to grow closer to Jesus.

Tell them to put these in their pockets to keep as a reminder to begin fully following Jesus today.

Prayer Time

Take prayer requests and pray. Pray specifically that the students in the room will be fully devoted followers of Christ.