Series 1 – Salvation • Lesson 4The New You
A Fresh Start in Christ
Welcome to Trailhead 4 of the Salvation Trek! Explore the complete interactive Teacher’s Guide, Presentation Slides, Quick Change Artist Game, Memory Verses, and Printable Craftivities for both Beginners and Primary trekkers.
🌱 Beginners Trail: Ages 4–6
🎯 Primary Trail: Ages 7–15
Key Verses: 2 Corinthians 5:17 • John 3:1–21
Session: ~60 Mins
Trek Mission: What Trekkers Will Discover
Along this trail expedition, young trekkers will discover that:
1. Born-Again Through Faith
We are born-again only by believing and receiving Jesus into our lives.
2. What Happens When We Are Born Again
- We are brand-new creation, and all our sins are forgiven!
- The Holy Spirit comes to live inside us helping and teaching us to walk in the right way.
- God gives us a new heart, a new nature and a new future with Him.
CHOOSE YOUR AGE GROUP TRAIL OR PRINTABLE PACK BELOW:🌱 Beginners – Teacher’s Guide (Ages 4–6)
Series 1 – Salvation: Lesson 4 – The New You
Complete step-by-step lesson trail: Worship, Modeling Clay Butterfly Object Lesson, Nicodemus Story, 2 Corinthians 5:17 Memory Verse, Salvation Crown Golden Heart, and Crown Coronation.
Trail Stop 1
🎵 1. Worship Time
Slide 2: “Lets worshipJesus!”
Begin with worship, motions, and singing aloud to Jesus. Help children follow motions, pick a beat, clap their hands, or just follow along.
Trail Stop 2
🦋 2. Story Time — The Butterfly Object Lesson & Nicodemus
Slides 3–7
Object: A butterfly made out of clay. Give each child some modelling clay to work with while you tell them the story.
Story: One night a man named Nicodemus came to talk to Jesus. As Jesus was talking to him, he said something that Nicodemus didn’t understand. He told Nicodemus, "No one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." (John 3:3) Nicodemus was really puzzled by what Jesus said. He just couldn’t understand how someone could be born again. So, Nicodemus asked, “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” Nicodemus was thinking, “Does Jesus want me to crawl back into my Mommy’s tummy? That would be impossible. I wouldn’t fit since I am so big and old now!” To this day, a lot of people still have trouble understanding how that can be possible.
This morning I have brought something that might help us to understand what Jesus meant. I have brought a butterfly. Just look at my butterfly! Isn’t it beautiful? I think the butterfly is one of the most beautiful things that God has ever created, but it wasn’t always so beautiful.
As you probably know, the butterfly started out as a fuzzy little caterpillar. Can you all show me with your clay how a caterpillar looks like? (Give them some time to make the caterpillar) Now some people may think caterpillars are cute, some may think that they are funny, but probably no one would say that they are beautiful. A caterpillar is a worm — and worms are not beautiful! Then, one day the caterpillar spins a cocoon about himself and stays there for several weeks. (Ask them to roll the caterpillar to an elongated ball to make a cocoon) When it comes out, it is no longer a caterpillar, it has been miraculously changed into a beautiful butterfly. (Ask them to turn the cocoon into a beautiful butterfly)
God didn’t just take a caterpillar and stick some wings on him and paint the wings all different colors. When the cocoon opens and the butterfly crawls out, it is a new creation. The caterpillar is gone! It has now become a butterfly.
That is a good picture of what Jesus meant when he said we had to be "born again." The Bible says, "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" When we invite Jesus to come into our heart, we become a new creation. All our sins are forgiven! God doesn’t just clean us up and slap on a little paint, he makes us into a new person. Would you rather be, a worm or a butterfly? Jesus will make you into a new creation if you will invite him into your heart. He gives us a new heart, a new nature and a new future with Him. You become a child of God. Isn’t that amazing?
• Slide 5: Born-again?! No one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.
• Slide 6: “if anyone is in Christ, he is a NEW CREATION.” – 2 Corinthians 5:17
• Slide 7: How are we born-again? By believing and receiving Jesus into our lives • What happens when we are born-again? We become a brand new creation. All our sins are forgiven. We become a child of God. God gives us a new heart, a new nature and a new future with Him.
POINTS TO MAKE:
• How are we born-again?
By believing and receiving Jesus into our lives.
• What happens when we are born-again?
- We become a brand-new creation. All our sins are forgiven.
- We become a child of God.
- God gives us a new heart, a new nature and a new future with Him.
Trail Stop 3
📖 3. Memory Verse Time (Slide 8)
“ If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! ” — 2 Corinthians 5:17
Trail Stop 4
👑 4. Craftivity – Salvation Crown Final Heart & Coronation (Slide 9)
From the printouts already taken of PDF “S1L1 – BeginnersCrafitivity”. Give each child one heart to stick on the crown base – The heart that says “One day I’ll walk streets of gold”. Explain the lines to them and ask them to color the heart “yellow/gold” like in the picture below. Being BORN AGAIN is the only way to get to Heaven. We must receive Jesus as the KING and Savior of our lives.
🖤 Dark Heart (Lesson 1)
❤️ Red & White (Lesson 2)
🌿 Green Heart (Lesson 3)
✨ One day I’ll walk streets of gold (Lesson 4)
👑 Once done, you may help the kids wear their completed “Salvation Crown”!
Trail Stop 5
🙏 5. Prayer Time
Slide 12: “Lets talk to God”
(You may ask the kids to repeat this prayer after you.)
“Dear Lord, I thank you for sending Jesus to die on the cross so that I, like the butterfly, can become a new creation. I invite you into my heart to change me and to make me new. Thank you for washing my sins away and giving me a new heart that wants to follow you. Thank you for calling me your child. In Jesus’ Name I pray. Amen.”
Trail Stop 6
📝 6. Summary and Takeaway (Slide 11: “Lets Recap!”)
- We are born-again when we believe and receive Jesus. We become a child of God.
- When we are born-again all our sins are forgiven and we become a new creation.
- God gives us a brand-new life with a new heart, a new nature and a new future with Him.
🏠 Take-home Activity (Slides 10 & 13–14: “Activity Sheet” & “Child of God • God Bless!”)
Take-home Activity – Give each child a printout of “S1L 4 Activity Sheet – Beginners .pdf” and ask them to solve it at home.
Activity Sheet – Beginners (Series 1 – Salvation | Lesson 4 – The New You):
• What is true about being born-again? (Tick the right frames):
☐ We become a New Creation
☐ Our sins are forgiven and God gives us a new heart
☐ We become a Child of God
☐ We become a baby
☐ We believe in Jesus and receive Him into our lives
• Connect the dots and then color the picture: “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. the old has gone, the new has come!” – 2 Corinthians 5:17
• What is true about being born-again? (Tick the right frames):
☐ We become a New Creation
☐ Our sins are forgiven and God gives us a new heart
☐ We become a Child of God
☐ We become a baby
☐ We believe in Jesus and receive Him into our lives
• Connect the dots and then color the picture: “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. the old has gone, the new has come!” – 2 Corinthians 5:17
🎯 Primary – Teacher’s Guide (Ages 7–15)
Series 1 – Salvation: Lesson 4 – The New You
Complete lesson trail: Quick Change Artist Game, Jesus & Nicodemus (John 3:1–21), Holy Spirit Balloon Object Lesson, 2 Corinthians 5:17 Memory Verse, and My Identity in Christ ID Card Craftivity.
Trail Stop 1
🎵 1. Worship Time
Slide 2: “Lets worshipJesus!”
Begin with worship, motions, and singing aloud to Jesus. Help children follow motions, pick a beat, clap their hands, or just follow along.
Trail Stop 2
👔 2. Story Time — Quick Change Artist & Jesus and Nicodemus
Slides 3–8
Slide 3 • Interactive Team Game
👔 Introduction Game: Quick Change Artist
MATERIALS REQUIRED: 2 large shirts, 2 pairs of large socks, 2 pairs of large gloves, 2 Sunglasses, 2 hats.
INSTRUCTIONS TO PLAY: Form two teams. Pick a volunteer from each team. Give each team the changing set (1 shirt, 1 pair of socks, 1 pair of gloves, 1 sunglasses, 1 hat). At the count of three, each team should dress up their volunteer with the given items. The team that finishes first will be the winner.
YOU MAY SAY: You all did a great job at being quick-change artists. However, what you wear outside is not nearly as important as what you are like inside. Jesus is our Spiritual quick-change artist. He can change us on the inside and in no time at all. He changes our old sinful nature and makes us into new beings and we are born again. Now what does it mean to be born again? Is it crawling back into mummy’s tummy and being born again? However silly it may sound, a man in the bible had the exact same question to Jesus.
🌙 Jesus and Nicodemus – John 3:1-21
Today, we are going to learn all about this man named Nicodemus. We find his story in the book of John, chapter 3. Nicodemus was a very important man in Jesus’ time. He was what was known as a Pharisee. The Pharisees were the religious leaders of that time. Pharisees knew a lot about the scriptures – what we would now call The Old Testament. They went to the synagogue, or Church, regularly. They were respected by all the Jewish people.
Nicodemus came to Jesus at night, after it was very dark. This was most likely because he did not want to be seen talking to Jesus. He was afraid of what the other religious leaders, the ones who hated Jesus, would think. So, Nicodemus sneaked very carefully through the town and found Jesus.
Nicodemus met with Jesus and asked him about what it would take to receive Salvation. He had very specific questions. Jesus knew that Nicodemus was a “good” man, a Pharisee. Jesus knew that Nicodemus had served people, done good deeds, and been to church more times than most people could count. But, Jesus spoke very directly to Nicodemus. Jesus said, “Unless you are born again, you can never see the Kingdom of God.” This was very confusing to Nicodemus. He was thinking, “Born again? What in the world does Jesus mean when He says ‘born again?’” So, Nicodemus asked, “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” Nicodemus was thinking, “Does Jesus want me to crawl back into my Mommy’s tummy? That would be impossible. I wouldn’t fit since I am so big and old now!”
But, Jesus explained that God can give NEW life. Even though we are all born in a natural, human way from our mothers – when we receive Salvation from God, we are given a brand new spiritual life. All of our sins are forgiven! We are BORN AGAIN! Jesus said, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” Nicodemus learned that day what you and I are going to learn all about today – being BORN AGAIN is the only way to get to Heaven. We must receive Jesus as the KING and Savior of our lives!
• Slide 6: Born-again?! No one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.
• Slide 7: How to be born-again? 1. By going to Church regularly? 2. By doing good deeds? 3. By believing and receiving Jesus into our lives?
• Slide 8: What happens when we are born-again? 1. The Holy Spirit comes and lives inside of us helping and teaching us to walk in the right way • 2. We become a brand new creation. God gives us a new heart, a new nature and a new future with Him. We become children of God.
What is being born again?
So, what does it mean to be born again? What does it take to become a Christian? Well, by looking at Nicodemus’ life, we can learn something…
1. Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian
There are many people who think all you have to do to become a Christian is go to church. Although going to church is a good thing, going to church is not what makes you a Christian.
2. Doing good deeds doesn’t make you a Christian
Many people in the world think that they will make it to Heaven simply because they are “nice people.” They do good deeds. They help other people. They give to the poor. They love their neighbors. All of these things are good, but by themselves they do not make you a Christian. Nicodemus did good deeds as well. He was commanded by the law of the Pharisees to give to the needy and help the poor. He did this all the time. Yet, Jesus says that there’s something else that must be done in order for him to be saved. What is it?
3. Believing and receiving Jesus’ forgiveness makes you a Christian
Boys and girls, there is only ONE WAY to be saved. It’s not by going to church. It’s not by doing good deeds. There’s only ONE WAY a person can be truly “born again.” You must ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins. We all have sinned. The Bible tells us that. It also tells us that it only takes ONE sin for us to deserve death in Hell forever. But, God did not want that. So, He sent His Son, Jesus, to come to Earth, live a perfect life without sin, and then die on a cross to pay the price for our sins. All we must do is believe in Jesus and ask Him to forgive us of our sins. When we do that, our sins are washed away, and our entire lives become brand new. It’s like we are born all over again. A brand-new start to a brand-new life.
What happens when we are born-again? Read John 3:5,6,7,8
1. When we believe in Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of us.
Object Lesson: You will need a balloon.
Can any of you see God or the Holy Spirit? (No) Then how do you know He’s there? (Give the balloon to a child and ask him/her to blow it.) Look at this balloon. Can you see the air in there? (No.) You can’t see the air. The air is clear. You can only see that the balloon is filled up. That’s the same way it is with God and the Holy Spirit. We can’t see them, but we know they’re there because we see what they do. We can see the world God created. And we know the Holy Spirit is living inside us because we can feel Him telling us what the right things to do are.
Can any of you see God or the Holy Spirit? (No) Then how do you know He’s there? (Give the balloon to a child and ask him/her to blow it.) Look at this balloon. Can you see the air in there? (No.) You can’t see the air. The air is clear. You can only see that the balloon is filled up. That’s the same way it is with God and the Holy Spirit. We can’t see them, but we know they’re there because we see what they do. We can see the world God created. And we know the Holy Spirit is living inside us because we can feel Him telling us what the right things to do are.
2. We become a brand-new creation. All our sins our forgiven! God gives us a new heart, new nature and new future with Him.
Trail Stop 3
📖 3. Memory Verse Time (Slide 9)
“ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; The old has passed away; behold, the new has come! ” – 2 Corinthians 5:17
Trail Stop 4
🪪 4. Craftivity — My Identity in Christ ID Card (Slide 10)
While all this is nice to hear, we all need a nice fun way to drive it into our minds so that we get habituated to living life the Jesus way rather than the old and boring way. So, here’s what we’re going to do.
Instructions: Take copies of “MyIdentityInChrist.pdf” and give each child one card and a ribbon to tie the id card around their neck. From the references given in the id, help them identify words that talk about the new creation we are in Christ and write them in the blanks like in the picture below. Punch holes on the top and ask them to tie a ribbon through it.
Identity Words Identified on the ID Card:
• (Your name) • (The day you received Jesus)
• Saved, Loved, Chosen, Royal, Child of God, Special Possession, Friend, Accepted, Redeemed, Forgiven, More than a Conqueror, Righteous, Kingdom of Jesus, Eternal
• (Your name) • (The day you received Jesus)
• Saved, Loved, Chosen, Royal, Child of God, Special Possession, Friend, Accepted, Redeemed, Forgiven, More than a Conqueror, Righteous, Kingdom of Jesus, Eternal
Trail Stop 5
🙏 5. Prayer Time
Slide 13: “Lets talk to God”
Allow the children who are present that have not received Jesus as their Savior to do so. Pray with them to receive forgiveness of their sins. Celebrate their brand new life in Christ! Remind them that this is the FIRST step in building a solid foundation of faith. But, there are many more “basic” things that will help them build on this first “brick” in the foundation. They will learn about those in the coming weeks.
Trail Stop 6
📝 6. Summary and Takeaway
- We are born-again only by believing and receiving Jesus into our lives.
- When we are born again:
- We are given a brand-new spiritual life. All our sins are forgiven!
- The Holy Spirit comes to live inside of us helping and teaching us to walk in the right way
- God gives us a new heart, a new nature and a new future with Him
🏠 Take-home Activity
Take-home Activity – As homework, ask the kids to complete the id-card by sticking their photo on it.
🧠 Class Review Questions (Slides 11–12 & Slide 14: “Child of God • God Bless!”)
1. Who was Nicodemus and when did he come to Jesus?
Nicodemus was a Pharisee, who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night.
2. What statement that Jesus made confused Nicodemus?
You must be born again if you want to enter God’s Kingdom(John 3:3) : This totally confused Nicodemus. Before this talk with Jesus, the thought of someone being born twice was just crazy talk. But Jesus was giving Nicodemus an incredible truth here: there is physical birth and there is spiritual birth.
3. Why should we be born-again?
We all have sinned. The Bible tells us that. It also tells us that it only takes ONE sin for us to deserve death in Hell forever. But, God did not want that. So, He sent His Son, Jesus, to come to Earth, live a perfect life without sin, and then die on a cross to pay the price for our sins. All we must do is believe in Jesus and ask Him to forgive us of our sins. When we do that, our sins are washed away, and our entire lives become brand new. It’s like we are born all over again. A brand-new start to a brand-new life.
4. What happens when we are born-again?
We become a brand new creation. God gives us a new heart, a new nature and a new future with Him. We become His Children. The Holy Spirit comes and lives inside of us helping and teaching us to walk in the right way.
📦 Complete Workshop Printable & Presentation Hub
Download every PDF, ID card craftivity, activity sheet, and presentation slide deck for Series 1 (Salvation) – Lesson 4: The New You.
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