Ready for another cool object lesson? With Passover and Easter so close it is a great time to teach kids about the weight of sin and how it affects the soul. Kids hear us say, “Jesus saves us,” but do they know from what? This balloon object lesson is ideal for demonstrating how sin weighs down the soul and how only Jesus can remove sin. This object lesson would make a good intro to a teaching on the meaning of the cross.
Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
What You’ll Need
- A helium-filled balloon
- Balloon anchor
- Balloon string
- Medium sized rocks
- Scissors
Before You Teach
Place the helium filled balloon at your teaching table. Use the balloon anchor to keep the balloon in place. Keep in mind that helium-filled balloons will lose some helium over time, so don’t fill it more than a day in advance. Cut some strings from the roll and tie a rock on the end of each string. Place the rock strings and the scissors on the table. (Do keep the scissors out of sight of children though.)
Time to Teach
Hey everyone! Look what I have! That’s right! A cool balloon–see how it floats? I love this kind of balloon because it’s like a feather, just floating on the breeze. (Release the balloon from the anchor and hold it loosely so kids can see how it hovers free.) You see, if I removed the balloon from this string it would float up, up and up! How many of you have had a balloon float away? I have–I don’t like that.
Well, did you know that the soul is kind of like this balloon? It is! At least a soul that loves Jesus is like this. That soul is free from everything that would weigh it down. However, when we sin, it weighs us down. Look at this. Let’s pretend that this is my soul and I let some sins weigh me down. (Tie the rock strings to the balloon. After attaching each one, let kids see how it brings the balloon down.) That’s kind of sad, isn’t it?
What should we do when we sin? (Let kids offer answers.) That’s right–we should ask Jesus to forgive us. When we do that–(take out the scissors and cut away the rock strings) we are free from sin! It won’t weigh us down anymore. Stay tied to Jesus and he will keep you free!
Read more from Mimi by following her blog at Tools for Kids Church.