SALVATION

talking to your kids about salvation

Have you ever wondered how to talk to your child about his or her Salvation?

Maybe you’ve even secretly dreaded the moment when they asked because you were afraid you wouldn’t know what to say. Well, don’t worry! Even, if you’ve never trusted Jesus as YOUR Savior or you’re just not sure what to say, you can still have this convo with your child. You may even settle the question for yourself AND your child! Here are a few things to help you! John 3:16 is a great place to begin so START HERE!!

“God so loved the world

that He gave His One and Only Son. 

Anyone who believes in Him

will not die but will have eternal life.”

 John 3:16

Keep in Mind...

1.      It never has been or will ever be about being good enough!

2.      There’s no magical words that can save us!

3.      We are saved when we let go of ourselves and acknowledge that Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sins.

4.      Prayer is how we can express our trust in Jesus.

5.      Baptism is how we show the world the decision we have made to trust Jesus as our Savior!


  • God LOVED...
  • Why do we need to have this conversation?
  • Because of sin.
  • Sin separated us from God.
  • Sin is doing the wrong thing. Sin is also not doing the right thing. Sin is disobeying God. We have all sinned.
  • For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23
  • Because of sin, God made a way for us to come back to Him! He made a way for all of us to live with Him forever.
  • God GAVE us Jesus
  • Jesus came to earth, lived, died, and rose again to pay for all the wrong things we’ve done, our sin. This is THE MOST WONDERFUL GIFT EVER!! Ever better than all the XBoxes and Playstations in the world!
  • You see, God knew that our sin would keep us away from Him, but He wanted to fix that relationship with Him. Jesus came to earth to make a way for us to be a part of God’s Story. Jesus gave up His Life on the cross to pay for our sin. Three days later He rose from the dead! His resurrection, coming back to life, defeated death and makes it possible for us to have a relationship with God!
  • Anyone who BELIEVES in Jesus...
  • Remember that time someone gave you a gift? Well, what did you do with it? You opened it, right! Well, Jesus is God’s gift to us so while we can’t open that gift, we accept it by believing. We believe, or trust, in Jesus with our whole heart. Like sitting in a chair requires our trust that the chair will not fall down when we sit in it, we put our trust in Jesus and in the knowledge that He died and rose again for us so we can live forever with Him!
  • When we believe in Him, there are so many wonderful gifts wrapped up in that gift! We get to know that our sins are forgiven! And, we get eternal life!
  • ETERNAL LIFE?!
  • Yes! Just like we learn in John 3:16, when we put our trust in Jesus that gift also comes with eternal life! When you believe in Jesus and trust Him to save you, you begin a new relationship with God that starts right away and never goes away! While our bodies will die, we get to spend all of eternity with God, forever, in a special place God made for us – Heaven!


We’ve talked. Now what?


Those are the pieces that you need to lead this conversation with your child. If you want to be sure he or she understands, you could ask these questions and see if they’re able to answer. Answers (or answer hints) are provided!


  • Q. What is sin?
  • A.     Sin is the wrong things I’ve done. They keep me away from God.
  • Q. Have you ever sinned? When?
  • A.     The obvious answer is yes, we’ve all sinned, but be sure your child can tell WHEN he or she sinned!
  • Q. What is the problem with sin?
  • A.     It keeps us away from God. We can not be all God created us to be if we choose sin over Jesus.
  • Q. What did God give us?
  • A.     He gave us a way to have our sin removed! He gave us Jesus!
  • Q. Why did God give us this gift?
  • A.     Because He loves us and wants us to be with Him forever!
  • Q. What did Jesus do for us?
  • A.      He died on the cross and rose again three days later! This defeated death and makes our relationship with God possible!
  • Q. What does it mean to trust in something?
  • A.     We believe it will happen – that it’s real. It’s like sitting in a chair. We believe the chair will hold us when we sit in it.
  • Q. How do you know God loves you?
  • A.     Because He sent His One and Only Son into the world. Jesus lived here and then died on the cross to pay for our sins so that we can live forever with Him.


How do you know if your child is ready?

If your child can answer these questions and he or she WANTS to trust Jesus as His or Her Savior, then it’s time to lead them in a prayer of Salvation!! The words below are simply an EXAMPLE! This does not have to be exactly what your child says! 


  • Dear God, I know I am a sinner and my sin keeps me away from you. I believe Your Son, Jesus, died for my sins. I accept your forgiveness for my sin. Thank you for loving me and for giving the gift of Jesus so I could live with You in Heaven. Come into my life and be my Savior and Friend. In Jesus’ Name, Amen


How do you know if your child is NOT ready?

  • If you explain what to pray and invite him or her to say their own prayer and then they pray about their friend’s sick puppy, then they may not be quite ready. Also, if your child does not wish to be baptized, I would be sure to help them understand that this is not something to be scared of, but something we do to follow Jesus’ example and show all those around us that we have accepted God’s gift to us.


Congratulations! Way to go Mom, Dad, Brother, Sister, Grandma, Grandpa, Neighbor! You’ve done a great thing! This is THE BEST conversation you can ever have with another human being – especially your own or one you’re close to! Be sure to celebrate this fabulous decision with your child!


No matter how this conversation went, please do be sure to talk to me about it! Remember, we’re in this together! I want to be sure to follow up with your child and be sensitive to your child’s spiritual growth! And, if your child received Christ and is ready to follow Jesus in baptism, then I want to make that happen as soon as possible! This is something to rejoice about!!


We are her to help you in any way! If you get stuck, need help, or have a question of your own, give us a call or email! 

church office- 770.921.1452/receptionist@mpfbc.net