Jesus and Nicodemus Sunday School Lesson for Kids

This free Jesus and Nicodemus Sunday school lesson teaches kids that God loves the world so much that He gave Jesus, and that Jesus said, "Ye must be born again" (John 3:7). Nicodemus, a Pharisee and a ruler of the Jews, "came to Jesus by night" (John 3:2), and Jesus told him about being "born of water and of the Spirit" (3:5) and said, "For God so loved the world" (3:16). It comes in four age levels, each a separate printable teacher lesson, plus one take-home sheet for families. Pick the one that fits your class. Everything is in the order you teach it.

Choose your age level

• Preschool (ages 3–5), 20–30 minutes, 3 pages: a night-and-day game, a short story with hand motions and repeat-after-me lines, three simple questions, a shortened memory verse ("For God so loved the world") with motions, and a heart-and-world drawing.
• Kindergarten to 2nd grade, 45 minutes, 4 pages: the Blow It Across game, the story in simple words, five recall questions with answers, the Six Strips memory verse game, and a Where the Wind Blows review game.
• 3rd to 5th grade, 45–60 minutes, 4 pages: an ask-a-good-question game, kids look up verses in their own Bibles during a fuller story (born again, the wind, Moses' serpent of brass, God so loved the world, darkness and light), five thinking questions and three recall questions, and a hide-or-come-to-the-light game from John 3:20–21.
• Preteens (ages 11–12), 45–60 minutes, 4 pages: students read John 3:1–21 out loud themselves, then discuss the new birth, the wind and Acts 2, Moses' serpent and the cross, and how Nicodemus changed (John 7:50–51; 19:39). Six discussion questions, a journal page, and two memory verses (John 3:16 and John 3:5).

Lesson at a glance

• Bible passage: John 3:1–21
• Main point: God loves the world so much that He gave Jesus. Jesus told Nicodemus, "Ye must be born again."
• Memory verse: John 3:16 (KJV), with John 3:5 added for preteens
• Ages: preschool to preteen, in four versions

Lesson outline (the same in every version)

1. Opening game: a short game about the wind, night and day, or asking good questions.
2. Bible story: Nicodemus, "a man of the Pharisees" and "a ruler of the Jews" (John 3:1), comes to Jesus by night (3:2); "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (3:3); "born of water and of the Spirit" (3:5); "The wind bloweth where it listeth" (3:8); Moses lifting up the serpent (3:14); "For God so loved the world" (3:16); and the light that is come into the world (3:19). Every fact has its verse reference so you can check it.
3. Questions to ask: with answers, at the right level for each age.
4. Memory verse: a game or motions to help kids learn John 3:16.
5. What this means for us: God's love, the gospel, and what it means to be born of water and of the Spirit (John 3:5; Acts 2:38; Acts 2:4).
6. Activity: the Jesus and Nicodemus word search, crossword, maze, worksheet, the Nicodemus craft, a wind game, a hide-or-come-to-the-light game or a journal page, depending on the age.
7. Prayer.

Tips for teaching Jesus and Nicodemus

• Read John 3:16 straight from your Bible. It is the heart of the story, and many kids already know it.
• Use the King James words: "Ye must be born again" (John 3:7), "The wind bloweth where it listeth" (3:8) and "For God so loved the world" (3:16). Each level explains the old words.
• Teach John 3:5 plainly and kindly. Jesus said we must be born of water and of the Spirit; on the day of Pentecost Peter preached how (Acts 2:38), and the believers were filled with the Holy Ghost and spoke with other tongues (Acts 2:4).
• The Bible does not say why Nicodemus came by night, so the lessons don't guess. Older kids see what happened to him later (John 7:50–51; 19:39).
• Short on time? Do the story, three questions and the memory verse. That is a solid 25-minute lesson.