Christianity teaches something no other religion does: you cannot earn your salvation. No matter how good you are, you can never be good enough to erase your own sin. Titus 3:5 says it clearly: “not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit.” (NKJV)

This Bible memory verse game will help your kids hide Titus 3:5 in their hearts, and for this one you will need the following:

• A Bible

• A verse chart displaying Titus 3:5, word by word (a pocket chart works great)

Before playing, turn one word card over. You’ll flip a new word after every round.

How to play:

Have the class sit in a circle, with one child in the center. A child in the circle holds the Bible. When the center child says “Go!” the Bible is passed around the circle to the right. Let it go around at least once before the center child calls “Stop!” Whoever is holding the Bible becomes the “guesser” — they hand the Bible to the person on their right, who keeps passing it around the circle while the guesser looks at the verse chart and tries to name the missing word before the Bible comes back around to them.

Suggestions for Success:

1. With a small class, require the Bible to pass around 2–3 times before “Stop!”
2. To raise the difficulty, flip more than one word for the guesser to name.

Introduce the lesson this way:

Ask your class: “True or false — I can get rid of my sins just by doing really good things?” (Wait for “false.”) The Bible is clear: the only way our sins are washed away is by believing in the Lord Jesus. We can never be good enough to erase our own sin on our own. Who can read Titus 3:5 for us? Never forget — it’s because of God’s mercy, His unearned favor, that we are saved. Let’s play a game to help us remember that truth. It’s called “Pass the Bible.”

Review Titus 3:5 together a few times before you begin. Have fun!