(10 minutes, easy set-up)
Students will participate in a visual representation of the connection between believers and the Holy Spirit.
Provide a dry-erase board and marker.
Learning Goal Learners will examine how the Holy Spirit empowered Jesus to live a sinless life and then raised Him from the dead.
Draw a diagram of a man on the board (use an image similar to that of a gingerbread man so you can write both inside and outside the man). Write “Holy Spirit” inside the drawing. Explain that this title describes WHO the Spirit is––because He is God and He is holy. Write “Spirit of holiness” in an arc around the drawing. Explain that this term indicates that the Spirit has the ability to impart holiness to those believers who surrender to Him.
Enlist a volunteer to draw 6 stick figures below the Holy Spirit. Enlist another volunteer to label 4 figures as believers and 2 as nonbelievers. Explain that the Holy Spirit will not attempt to impart holiness to the unbelievers, so there is no connection between these two stick figures and the Holy Spirit. Discuss: Why do we expect unbelievers to act like Spirit-controlled believers? Will that ever happen? Point out that we can’t expect unbelievers to develop holiness in their lives until we lead them to Christ.
Draw lines between the Holy Spirit and the stick figures labeled as believers. Seek another volunteer to draw an umbrella above one of the stick figures. Explain that, while the Holy Spirit offers to fill the hearts of all believers, some refuse to surrender their own will, and instead they attempt to become holy under their own power, so they shield themselves from the holiness offered by the Holy Spirit. Explain that the umbrella represents the shield created by their efforts. Ask: What are some reasons why some believers might be unwilling to surrender their own desires? (Possible answers include pride, fear, or lack of sensitivity to the Spirit’s presence.) Discuss: Since we cannot become holy by ourselves, why do we often fail to seek the power of the Holy Spirit to develop holiness within us?
Draw a few dashes (like rain) between the Holy Spirit and two stick figures. Ask: What might these few dashes between the Holy Spirit and believers represent? Explain that most believers allow the Holy Spirit to influence them by not resisting Him but only partially surrender their hearts to Him, so they only experience a partial filling of the Holy Spirit. Lastly, draw a large funnel over the head of the final stick figure. Draw many lines from the Holy Spirit into the funnel. Explain that a small number of believers intentionally rely upon the Holy Spirit to develop holiness in their lives. Emphasize that this connection represents a supernatural power that enables believers to live the holy lives all believers are called to.