Free Gospel-Centered Sunday School Curriculum
for Elementary Kids

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Dead to Sin and Alive in Christ Jesus Our Lord and Savior
(Romans 6:1-14)

Imagine you have a brand new white shirt. It is perfect, clean, and bright. Now imagine someone hands you a muddy shovel and says, “Go ahead, dig in the dirt with this on.” Would you do it? Of course not! You would say, “This shirt is new and clean. Why would I ruin it by rolling in the mud?”

That is exactly the question the apostle Paul asks the believers in Rome. Paul had just told them that God saves people by grace—a free gift—not because they are good enough. Grace means God gives us love and forgiveness even when we do not deserve it. Some people might think, “If God is so kind and forgiving, maybe we can just keep sinning. Maybe we can do whatever we want, and God will just keep forgiving us. Wouldn't that make God's grace look even bigger?”

Paul says, “By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (Romans 6:2). That is a strong way of saying, “Absolutely not!” Paul wants us to understand that when we believe in Jesus, something huge happens to us. We are not just forgiven; we are changed.

Paul explains it using the picture of baptism. When someone is baptized, they go down into the water. Paul says that going down into the water is like being buried with Jesus. When Jesus died on the cross, He took the punishment for our sins. And when we believe in Him, it is like we died with Him. Our old life—the one that loved to sin and disobey God—is put to death. It is buried. It is gone.

But that is not the end of the story! Jesus did not stay dead. He rose from the grave on the third day, victorious over death. And Paul says that just as Jesus was raised from the dead, we too are raised to walk in a brand new life (Romans 6:4). When we come up out of the water in baptism, it is like we are rising with Jesus. We are alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Paul uses the word “consider” or “count” in verse 11. He says, “So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” That means we are to believe what God says is true about us. God says our old sinful self is dead and gone. We are new creations. We are not the same person we used to be.

Paul gives another picture to help us understand. He talks about being slaves. Before we knew Jesus, sin was our master. We were like slaves who had to obey sin's commands. But now, sin is no longer our master. We have been set free! We are not slaves to sin anymore. Instead, we belong to God. We are alive in Christ, and we get to live for Him.

Does this mean we will never sin again? No. We still live in bodies that want to do wrong things. But the power of sin over us has been broken. Paul says in verse 14, “For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.” Sin no longer has the final say. We are not slaves to it. We have a new master, and His name is Jesus. And He gives us the power to say “no” to sin and “yes” to God.

Paul urges us to present ourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life. He says to present our bodies to God as instruments for righteousness. That means we use our hands to help others, our feet to go where God sends us, our mouths to speak kind and true words, and our eyes to see the good things God is doing. We are no longer tools for sin; we are tools for God's good work.

So, what does this mean for you and me today? It means that when we believe in Jesus, we are not the same. We have died to sin and been made alive to God. We are new creations. We are free! And because we are free, we can live a life that honors God. We don't have to go back to the mud. We have been washed clean, and we get to walk in newness of life.

A Curious Question

Why does Paul say we are “dead to sin” when we can still feel the pull to do wrong things?

Old Testament Connection

This passage is rooted in the Old Testament story of Israel's exodus from Egypt. Just as God rescued His people from slavery in Egypt, Jesus rescues us from slavery to sin. In the Old Testament, the Israelites were slaves to Pharaoh, a cruel master. But God sent Moses to lead them out of Egypt, through the Red Sea, and into a new life of freedom. The Red Sea was like a watery grave for the Egyptian army, but for Israel, it was a path to new life.

In the same way, Jesus leads us out of slavery to sin. Through His death and resurrection, He breaks the chains of sin that hold us captive. Baptism is like our Red Sea moment. We go down into the water, symbolizing the death of our old life, and we come up to walk in newness of life, just as Israel came up on the other side of the sea to begin a new journey with God. Jesus is the greater Moses who sets us free not from an earthly king, but from the power of sin and death itself.

Discussion Questions

  1. Paul says we are “dead to sin.” What do you think that means for how we live every day?
  2. Why is it such good news that sin no longer has power over us?
  3. How can we use our hands, feet, mouths, and eyes as “instruments for righteousness” this week?

So What? What Can I Do?

  • When you are tempted to do something you know is wrong, remember that you are not a slave to sin. You have the power to say no because you belong to Jesus.
  • Think about your baptism or the day you trusted in Jesus. That was the day your old life ended and your new life in Christ began. Live like the new person you are.
  • Use your body for God. Ask yourself each morning: “How can I use my hands, feet, and words to show God's love today?”

Memorize God's Word

“For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.” — Romans 6:14

• For sin hold up one hand with fingers spread to represent sin spreading.

• will have no dominion make a strong “X” with your forearms to show “no” and shake your head no.

• over you point to yourself and then make a sweeping motion over your head.

• since you are not under law hold up your hands like you are carrying a heavy weight, then drop them down to show the weight is gone.

• but under grace open your arms wide with palms up as if receiving a gift from heaven.

Praying with Kids

Dear Father, thank you that through Jesus we are no longer slaves to sin. Thank you that we have been made alive to you. Help us to remember that we are new creations and to live each day for your glory. Give us the power to say no to sin and yes to you. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Craft or Activity

New Life Butterfly Craft

Materials Checklist:

How to Make the New Life Butterfly Craft:

  1. Flatten a coffee filter on a paper plate.
  2. Color the coffee filter with washable markers. Make colorful designs.
  3. Spray the coffee filter with water from the spray bottle. Watch the colors blend and spread!
  4. Let the coffee filter dry completely.
  5. Gather the coffee filter in the middle and pinch it together.
  6. Wrap a pipe cleaner around the pinched middle to form the butterfly's body and antennae.
  7. Talk about how the plain coffee filter was changed into something beautiful, just like we are changed when we die to sin and live for Christ.

Effective Teaching Techniques

For Younger Children: Focus on the idea of “new life.” Use simple object lessons like a seed becoming a plant or a caterpillar becoming a butterfly. Emphasize that God makes us new.

For Older Kids: Dive deeper into the concept of “grace.” Discuss what it means to be under grace and not under law. Challenge them to identify one area where they can “present their bodies” as an instrument for righteousness.

Prep Shortcut: Pre-cut pipe cleaners and have coffee filters ready to go. Set up a drying station for the butterflies so they don't get smeared.

Classroom Management: Keep the spraying activity controlled by having kids come up one at a time or by using a small spray bottle that you control. Have paper towels on hand for any spills.