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Bonus Lesson

Jesus Is Alive!

Matthew 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-11 Bible Words: “God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son” (John 3:16).

Children will • know that Jesus is the Son of God. • feel a sense of awe because of who Jesus is.

• worship Jesus and tell others about Him.

Children will accomplish the goals when they • explore ways to worship Jesus.

• tell about the time Jesus came back to life.

• work on memorizing John 3:16.

• tell what is special about Jesus.

• worship Jesus, God’s Son.

WHAT IS THIS STORY ABOUT? Worship Center Supplies Bible, artificial flowers, 2 small tree limbs, twine (optional: large plastic vase) Gather the children around the items you’ve collected. Guide the children in making a cross from the tree limbs and twine. If desired, they can stand up the cross in a vase.

We’re celebrating today because Jesus came back to life after He died on the cross!

We have some items here that will help us think about and worship Jesus. What can these items remind us of? (The Bible tells us about Jesus. The flowers remind us of new life. The cross reminds us how Jesus died.)

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• How do you and your families celebrate Jesus coming back to life after dying on the cross for us? Accept children’s answers.

There are lots of ways to celebrate and worship Jesus and tell Him how much we love Him. That’s what we want to do today.

Songs of Praise Supplies CD of praise music, CD player (optional: bells) We can worship Jesus in many ways. What are some ways we can worship Jesus? (sing, pray, praise, give) Let’s learn a song that tells about the most special thing Jesus ever did. Teach the new song, “Jesus Is Alive!” and sing other songs about Jesus’ resurrection and love. If possible, provide some type of bells for the children to ring while singing “Jesus Is Alive!”

Jesus Is Alive!

(Tune: “Here We Go ’Round the Mulberry Bush”) Listen, listen, to the bells, to the bells, to the bells.

Listen, listen, to the bells, Jesus is alive!

Sing, O sing, a happy song, happy song, happy song.

Sing, O sing, a happy song, Jesus is alive!

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY? Bible Story: Jesus Is Alive!

Supplies Bible, plastic refillable eggs (1 per child), brown construction paper, red construction paper, scissors, small stones, individually wrapped candies Before class, cut small crosses from brown construction paper and small hearts from red construction paper. Cut one of each for each child. These need to be small enough to fit inside the eggs.

Today is a special day. We’re celebrating Jesus coming alive after He had died on the cross for us. That’s a great reason to celebrate! But let’s stop and remember exactly what we’re celebrating.

Bonus Lesson: Jesus Is Alive!

Permission is granted to reproduce this lesson for ministry purposes only—not for resale.

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Have your Bible open to Matthew 28. The Bible tells us that God sent His only Son, Jesus, to live on the earth. Jesus came as a tiny baby and grew up to be a man. He was a good teacher. He taught people how to live so they would please God. He made sick people well. He helped bad people change and start doing good. He told people about God’s love. Jesus loves everyone. Give each child a plastic egg and a paper heart. Tell the children to put the hearts inside the eggs.

The Bible tells us that Jesus never did anything wrong. Yet some men didn’t love Jesus and put Him on a cross to die. They didn’t believe He was God’s Son. They wanted Him to die. But this was part of God’s plan to save all people from their sins.

Jesus willingly died on the cross to save us from our sins. Give children a paper cross to put in their eggs.

When Jesus died, one of His followers placed His body in a tomb that was like a small cave. A large stone covered the door to the tomb. Give children a stone to put in their eggs. Some soldiers stood in front of the stone. No one was allowed to move the stone. Jesus’ body was in the tomb for three days. On Sunday, some women went to Jesus’ tomb. They loved Jesus very much.

Suddenly, the earth shook and the big stone rolled away from the tomb. The women were very frightened. An angel sat on the big stone. He said, “Don’t be afraid. Jesus isn’t here. He has come back to life just as He said He would.” Jesus did not stay dead. He came back to life. What a happy day!

The women ran to tell their friends the good news. Jesus is alive! The good news about Jesus is worth sharing with others. Don’t keep it to yourself—you can tell about Jesus too! Give children two pieces of candy—one to eat and one to put in their eggs. Encourage children to share their candy with someone and tell about Jesus.

Story Review: Hear the Bell!

Supplies bell Ask the children to stand in a straight line about 10–15 feet away from you. You can stand facing a wall with your back to the children. Tell the children that when you say “Listen, listen, to the bells!” they should sneak toward the wall. When you ring the bell, you will quickly turn around and the children must freeze. Keep repeating this until all the children have touched the wall. As each child touches the wall, ask one of the following questions to review the Bible story.

• What did Jesus teach people? (how to live so they would please God) • What does the heart help us remember? (Jesus loves everyone.)

Bonus Lesson: Jesus Is Alive!

Permission is granted to reproduce this lesson for ministry purposes only—not for resale.

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• Why did Jesus die on a cross? (to save us from our sins) • What does the stone help us remember? (where Jesus was buried, what covered the entrance to the tomb, what was rolled away) • Who told the women where Jesus was? (an angel) • What good news did the women tell? (Jesus is alive.)

• What can the candy help us remember to do? (tell others about Jesus)

Bible Memory: Is There an Echo Here?

Supplies Bible Bible Words: “God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son” (John 3:16).

Show children John 3:16 in your Bible and read the Bible words to them. Just think how much God loves us. He loves us so much that He sent Jesus. Our Bible words remind us how much God loves us and how special Jesus is.

Ask the children whether they have ever heard an echo. If not, explain what an echo is (a repetition of a sound or word). Also explain that an echo is like the original sound.

Remind the children to be good listeners and repeat what you say and how you say it. Say short phrases of the Bible words and encourage children to echo. You can say the verse several times, saying it in different ways: soft, loud, fast, and slow.

You were good listeners. Now it’s your turn to start an echo. Ask for volunteers to say phrases of the Bible words for the rest of the children to echo. Give help as needed.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO ME? Ring the Bells Supplies two 6 or 8 oz. plastic cups per child, 2 jingle bells per child, 2 chenille wires per child, nail, hammer, stickers Before class, drill two holes in the bottom of each cup or use a nail and hammer to punch the holes. If you have mostly younger children, you may need to do some of the rest of the craft before class. But try to let the children do as much as safely possible.

Bonus Lesson: Jesus Is Alive!

Permission is granted to reproduce this lesson for ministry purposes only—not for resale.

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Help each children slide a jingle bell onto a chenille wire. Place the bell in the middle of the wire and fold the wire in half.

Twist the two chenille wire halves together about 2" from the jingle bell. Reaching inside the cup, insert the chenille wire ends through the holes. Pull through the holes until the chenille wires stop. Twist the two wires on the outside to lock the clapper into place.

Make two bells for each child. Join the top wires from both to make a handle so the bells can be rung. Let the children decorate the cups with stickers. As the children work, ask, • What is the good news about Jesus? (He died on the cross for our sins. He came back to life. He loves everyone.)

• What are some things you know about Jesus that you can tell someone? (Jesus is God’s Son. Jesus came to save us from our sins. Jesus died and came back to life. Jesus loves everyone. Jesus wants us to live with Him in Heaven someday.)

Let’s ring our bells while we sing a song about Jesus. Lead the children in singing “Jesus Is Alive!”

Jesus Is Alive!

(Tune: “Here We Go ’Round the Mulberry Bush”) Listen, listen to the bells, to the bells, to the bells.

Listen, listen to the bells, Jesus is alive!

Sing, O sing a happy song, happy song, happy song.

Sing, O sing a happy song, Jesus is alive!

WHAT CAN I DO TO PLEASE GOD? Come and Worship!

Supplies items from the Worship Center activity earlier, CD of praise music, CD player Have children gather at the worship area. This is a happy day because Jesus is alive!

Why do we have a cross in our worship area? (It reminds us that Jesus died.) Did Jesus stay dead? (No, He came back to life.)

Why do we have flowers in our worship center? (They remind us of new life.) In spring, the new flowers remind us that because Jesus came back to life, we are promised a new life in Heaven too.

Bonus Lesson: Jesus Is Alive!

Permission is granted to reproduce this lesson for ministry purposes only—not for resale.

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There’s one more thing in our worship center. It’s a Bible. Why is the Bible such a special book? (It’s God’s Word.) It tells us about God’s love. It tells us about Jesus too. It also tells us about Heaven. When we read the Bible, we learn many things that help us to love and please God. The cross, the Bible, and the spring flowers remind us how great it is that Jesus is alive! Let’s worship Jesus! Lead the children in singing songs of praise and worship to Jesus. Have a time of prayer, thanking God for sending His Son, Jesus, for us.

Remembering Stone Supplies clean, smooth stones (1 per child); stickers of Jesus After the children have helped clean and straighten the room, have them gather in the worship center. In today’s Bible story, we learned that a big stone was put in front of Jesus’ tomb. When the earth shook and the stone rolled away, who was inside the tomb? No one! Jesus came back to life. He didn’t stay dead. Jesus’ followers were very happy.

Jesus’ followers told everyone the good news that Jesus is alive. Here’s a stone for each of you. Give each child a stone. This stone will remind you that Jesus’ tomb was empty. Give children a few stickers of Jesus to put on their stones. Close with prayer.

Thank God for Jesus.

BONUS ACTIVITY Snack Attack! Cross Cake Supplies 15" x 20" heavy cardboard or tray, foil, knife, 9" x 13" cake, frosting, sprinkles, paper plates, plastic forks, napkins, drinks Cover the cardboard with foil. Cut the cooled cake in half lengthwise. Place one half on the foil-covered cardboard. Cut the other half into three equal pieces. Add the three pieces to the cardboard (one to the top and one on each side) to make a cross. Frost the cake before class time. Hint: To make frosting easier, freeze the cake first. Let the children help decorate the cake with sprinkles. Pray with the children and then cut and serve the cake. Talk with the children about the joy we all can have because Jesus lives.

Bonus Lesson: Jesus Is Alive!

Permission is granted to reproduce this lesson for ministry purposes only—not for resale.

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