Preschool/ Kinder date
Bonus
Jesus Is Alive!
EASTER CELEBRATION The Message of Easter
Matthew 28; Mark 16; Luke 24; John 20—21
Jesus died for my sins and was raised from the dead. That is the message of Easter. It seems like every Easter we go through a timeline of all the “events” of Easter but rarely have time to talk about the meaning. Jesus died for my sins. What does that mean? Why did He have to die? How does Jesus dying on a cross two thousand years ago help me?
said the punishment for sin is separation from Him. We call that separation death … but it really is separation. When someone in our life dies, we’re separated from them for a time. But when they choose to follow Jesus, we’ll see them again in heaven.
These are all questions that are in the minds of many of our children, but either there’s not time to explain or else we as parents may feel inadequate to explain such challenging ideas to younger minds. So here is a simple way to explain the meaning behind the Easter story to your children. In the beginning, when God created people, He told them it was important to obey Him. If they didn’t obey, then there would be punishment. Their relationship with God would be broken. You probably have heard that from Mommy and Daddy too. There is always a consequence for disobeying. When you disobey, your relationship with us is broken for a while. You don’t feel close to us. You feel like hiding from us. There is something in the way of that relationship. That’s the same thing that happens with God. When we don’t do what God wants us to, it’s called “sin.” God
with Him now and also live with Him in heaven after we die. Isn’t that amazing! That’s what Easter is all about. It’s about celebrating and saying thank You to Jesus for what He did for us.
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by Jeff Carter
(for parents & kids) This week, just for fun, while setting the table for a meal, put an empty plastic Easter egg on each family member’s plate. Before placing the egg, write “He Is Risen” on each one. Share with your family that the eggs are empty to represent the empty tomb. Then read Matthew 27:45—28:10 using a children’s or easy-to-read version of the Bible. After reading, discuss together why Jesus had to die. Ask your family what they would have thought if they were the ones who went to the tomb and found it was empty. Remind
them that when the women saw Jesus, they rushed to Him and worshipped at His feet. Ask your children, “What would you do if you saw Jesus?” Share with them that because of what Jesus did on the cross, if they invite Him into their life they’ll get to see Him one day. Explain to your children that what they just heard is part of The Big God Story, and they’ll hear more in church this week about Jesus’ death and resurrection. Pray together. Thank Jesus for what He did for us.
Blessing (for parents & kids) (Child’s name), may you always remember that you’re deeply loved by the God who was, and is, and is to come. He was alive a long time ago (children repeat), He is alive now (children repeat), and He will be alive forever! (Children repeat.)
God said that sin requires punishment. And somebody has to pay that punishment. When you or I sin, we deserve a consequence. But the amazing thing is that God said He would take that consequence for us. Can you imagine your brother or sister taking your punishment for you for something you did wrong? That’s what Jesus did. But His punishment was huge. The punishment for sin is death, so Jesus died on the cross for us. God sent His Son, Jesus, and He took the punishment we all deserved. Jesus didn’t have to die, because He had never sinned. But He took that punishment for us, so we wouldn’t have to be separated from God. We can live This resource is designed to allow your family to have time in God’s Word before your children attend church. Because God’s plan is for parents to be the primary spiritual nurturers of their children’s faith, we know that as you grow spiritually, your children will grow spiritually as well.
© 2015 David C Cook. TruResources are developed in partnership with ROCKHARBOR Church and a national network of family and children’s ministry leaders. All rights reserved.