Jesus is Arrested & Crucified
Matthew 26-27;
Mark 14-15; Luke 22-23; and John 18-19
Judas
went to the leaders. He asked, “How much will you pay me if I help you capture
Jesus?” They said, “Thirty pieces of silver.” So Judas took the money and made
a plan.
Jesus had gone to his favorite garden to pray. The
disciples went along. Jesus prayed, “Father, if it is your will, I am ready to
give my life so that all the people who trust in me will be saved from their
sins.”
Soon, Judas arrived with some soldiers. Peter
wanted to protect Jesus. But Jesus said, “No. I must allow this to happen.” All
the disciples ran away, and the soldiers arrested Jesus.
They took Jesus to the leaders. The leaders said,
“You say that you are the Son of God. We do not believe you.”
The soldiers took charge of Jesus. They made him
carry a big wooden cross. They took him to a place called The Skull (Golgotha).
There they nailed Jesus to the cross.
Jesus died on the cross.
Everyone who loved Jesus was very sad. But they
forgot something important.
Jesus Is Alive!
Matthew 28:1-10;
Mark 16:1-10; Luke 24:1-11; and John 20:1-18
After
Jesus died, some of his friends laid his body in a big tomb. They sealed it
shut with a large round stone. Soldiers guarded the tomb.
Three days later, the earth shook. An angel of the
Lord came down from heaven and pushed the stone away from the tomb. Then the
angel sat on the stone.
When the soldiers saw the angel, they fell to the
ground.
Mary was walking to the tomb with some of her
friends. They saw the angel, who said, “Do not be afraid. Jesus is not here. He
has risen!”
“Go and tell Peter and the other disciples that
Jesus is alive!”
On their way, the women saw Jesus. They fell to
their knees and worshiped him. Jesus smiled and said, “Go tell the others that
I will see them in Galilee.” So Mary ran to tell the disciples.
Discussion Questions
- Why did the soldiers nail Jesus to the cross? Because he said he was the Son of God and the leaders didn’t believe him.
- For how many days was Jesus inside the tomb? Three days.
- What did the soldiers do when they saw the angel of the Lord ? They fell to the ground.
- When did the women see Jesus? When they were on the way to tell the disciples that Jesus was alive.
Prayer
Dear
God,
Thank
you for the story of Jesus dying on the cross and then being resurrected! Thank you for teaching us that we can always
trust in you.
Amen.
Bible Verse for March
“Be
kind and loving to each other.” Ephesians 4:32
Activity: Holy Week Activities
Thursday — Read
aloud Matthew 26:14-16. You'll need 30 dimes. Tell your child that Judas
betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver (which was about 120 days wages). Let
your child count the dimes and hold them in his hand.
Ask:
Was Jesus' life on earth worth more than 30 pieces of silver? Why or why not?
What is the true value of Jesus' life to our family?
Friday — Read aloud Mark 15:42-47. Take
turns wrapping each other in toilet paper so you look as Jesus might have
looked when prepared for burial. Talk about how the disciples might have felt
when all their hopes seemed destroyed when Jesus died.
Ask:
How would you have felt if you had been there when Jesus died? What would you
have done? Talk about how the burial isn't the end of the story, but that it
was a very sad day for Jesus' friends.
Sunday — Read aloud Luke 24:1-9. You'll need cupcakes and a
trick re-lighting candle. Light it and talk about how Jesus came to be the
light of the world.
On
Saturday, it looked like the light had been blown out. Blow out the candle and
wait in silence while the flame is gone. When the flame comes back, celebrate!
Point out that nothing can ever snuff out
Jesus, the light of the world.
Cooking: Empty Tombs
Ingredients:
- A package of crescent roll dough
- One large marshmallow for each roll (for example, if there are 8 crescent rolls in the package, you’ll need 8 large marshmallows)
- Melted butter, cooled
- 1 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon of cinnamon (stir together in one bowl)
Guide Your Child To:
- Wrap a crescent roll triangle around a marshmallow, making sure none of the marshmallow can be seen.
- Dip the roll in melted butter, then the cinnamon and sugar mixture.
- Place it on a cookie sheet.
- Repeat until all the rolls & marshmallows have been used.
- Bake the rolls according to the instructions on the roll package.
- When the rolls have cooled, they are ready to serve. NOTE to parents: The marshmallow “disappears” and leaves an empty, sweet surprise.
Talk About:
- What do you see inside your roll?
- How do you think the women felt when they found the tomb empty?
- Remember that even as these rolls are empty, Jesus’ tomb was empty, too, because he rose from the dead.
