Jesus Appears to Mary John 20:1-18

Transcription

1 Session 5 Jesus Appears to Mary John 20:1-18 Worship Theme: Jesus has power over death. Weaving Faith Into Life: Children will praise Jesus for his power over death. Session Sequence What Children Will Do Supplies Let s Praise God! (up to 25 minutes) Sing It Is by Grace (Ephesians 2:8-9) (track 21) I Am the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25) (track 16) His Great Love (Romans 5:8) (track 14) That You May Believe (John 20:31) (track 18) Are You Going to Praise the Lord? (track 1) Christ the Lord Is Risen Today (track 15) KidsOwn Worship Kit: Songs From FaithWeaver, Dinosaur Plant CD player, notebook, dead plants from last week, bowl, water, paper, pencils Session Sequence What Children Will Do Supplies Let s Learn the Point! (up to 25 minutes) Resurrection Angels Make angels to tell the Bible story. He s Alive! Hear the Bible story, and learn that Jesus has power over death. From Sadness to Joy! Celebrate Jesus resurrection with a special snack. 1 foam cup and doily per child, markers, tape White sheet, box, towel, white rags, angels from Resurrection Angels, Bible Napkins, doughnuts, juice, paper cups 56 KidsOwn Worship Spring Quarter

2 Session Sequence What Children Will Do Supplies Let s Learn the Point! (up to 25 minutes) * The Busker Watch a DVD about illusion and the reality of the Resurrection, and then listen to the Bible story. *Popping Praises Praise the Lord while popping balloons to find a resurrection surprise. *Celebration Eggs Fill eggs to help others celebrate the Resurrection. KidsOwn Worship Kit: Lesson Videos DVD: The Busker TV, DVD player, Bible, 2 rubber bands per child Balloons, photocopies of Resurrection Messages (at the end of this session), scissors, trash bag Photocopies of Resurrection Messages (at the end of this session), scissors, plastic Easter eggs, bowls, candy, baskets Session Sequence What Children Will Do Supplies Let s Pray! (up to 10 minutes) The Offering Offer their gifts to God. Closing Prayer Hear a closing prayer. KidsOwn Worship Kit: Songs From FaithWeaver: I Am the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25) (track 16) Offering bowls, CD player *Starred activities can be used successfully with preschool and elementary children together. Customize your session to fit your needs. You can separate preschoolers and elementary children for Section 2. Or, if you keep the children all together for the entire worship session, we suggest you choose from the starred activities. Session 5 KidsOwn Worship 57

3 Bible Background for Leaders Jesus Appears to Mary John 20:1-18 John s Gospel records that only Mary Magdalene went to Jesus tomb early on that Resurrection morning. Some scholars feel this contradicts the other Gospels, which state that other women accompanied Mary. However, in John 20:2, Mary uses the word we as she tells Peter of what was seen at the tomb. Apparently John knew of the other women; he just didn t feel it necessary to mention them since Mary was the central figure. It is obvious from Mary s response and from that of the disciples that no one expected Jesus to rise from the dead. Only after his resurrection were they able to remember things he had said and realize that his death was part of the plan all along. The other disciple mentioned in verse 2 was John himself. Even though he arrived at the tomb first, he didn t go in immediately. Bold, impetuous Peter arrived after John and burst into the tomb to see what had happened. The body was gone, but the grave clothes were still there. In fact, the wrap that had been on Jesus head was folded up, not tossed carelessly as a grave robber might have done. We aren t told of Peter s response, but we see that when John followed him in and saw the position of the grave clothes, John believed. Peter and John left the tomb, but Mary couldn t. For her, the disappearance of Jesus body was still a mystery. As she stood outside sobbing, she peered into the tomb and saw two angels sitting there. In her grief, it didn t register who or what they were. Her response to the angel s inquiry indicates that she hadn t grasped what had happened. She was sad because she thought Jesus body had been taken away. She had no comprehension that Jesus had risen. Why did Mary not recognize the Lord she was looking for when she turned around and saw him? Several factors probably contributed to her lack of recognition: She knew he was dead and was not expecting him to be alive, she may not have raised her eyes to really look at him because she didn t want to show her tears, she may not have seen clearly through her tears anyway, and Jesus was now in his glorified body he may have looked very different from when she had last seen him. It is interesting that Jesus repeated the same question the angels had asked Mary. The angels and Jesus were both trying to help Mary understand what had actually happened. But she just couldn t comprehend it until Jesus called her name. She knew the voice of Jesus and recognized him. Why did Jesus not want Mary to hold on to him? Perhaps he wanted her to realize that his physical presence was no longer so important. He would always be spiritually present in the Holy Spirit. Devotion for Leaders Mary recognized the gentle voice speaking her name because she was in a habit of listening to this One she loved. The same voice calls to us, inviting, assuring, welcoming us into a full life with him a timeless relationship with Jesus. Show your joy! Weaving Faith Into Your Life: After witnessing incredible miracles, seeing a dead man brought to life, hearing predictions Christ made about his death, the disciples still weren t expecting a happy ending to the crucifixion of the Lord. It was the resurrection of Jesus that changed everything and gave them the courage they needed to face death unafraid. How is the resurrection of Christ changing the way you live? 58 KidsOwn Worship Spring Quarter

4 Why We Worship for Leaders With his resurrection, Jesus overcame death. He proved himself Lord, ruler over everything, and master of the universe! He showed once and for all that he is God. The Resurrection is good news for kids, who love it when their heroes triumph over evil. They find happiness and security in knowing that Jesus, the true hero, is not a makebelieve character but a real, true, living person who came to earth just for them. Jesus triumphed for all time and all people everywhere. His resurrection means new life and unending resources resources the world can t give, such as love, joy, and peace for believers living with him. That s our reason for worshipping him! Easy Prep for Leaders Let s Praise God! Place the Dinosaur Plant from the KidsOwn Worship Kit in a bowl of water at least four hours ahead of time or overnight. Set it on a table near the entrance to the worship area, and set the dead plants from last week s worship session on the same table. Next to the Dinosaur Plant, place an open notebook or piece of paper and one or two pencils. If you want, include a magnifying glass. The Busker Set up a TV and DVD player, and cue the Lesson Videos DVD to the segment titled The Busker. Watch the segment at least once before the worship session so you ll be familiar with it. Popping Praises Photocopy Resurrection Messages (at the end of this session), and cut out the message slips. You ll need one slip for each member of your adult congregation and one for each child. Prepare a balloon for each child in your children s church by inserting one message slip into it and inflating it. Put the remaining message slips aside to use in the Celebration Eggs activity. (Get someone to help you if you have more than 20 kids!) To carry the balloons, put them in a large trash bag or in a bed sheet with the corners folded up. Celebration Eggs Get a plastic Easter egg and several pieces of candy for each member of your adult congregation. Preschool Activities Refer to the preschool pages for preparations. For additional worship songs each week, check out the Sing & Praise DVD included with your KidsOwn Worship Kit. Let s Praise God! Play Songs From FaithWeaver as children arrive. Ask a few children to stand at the door and greet the other children as they arrive. Have them greet each child by name and say, Jesus is alive! As children enter the room, encourage them to examine the Dinosaur Plant immersed in water and write a comment or observation about how it has changed since they last saw it. Welcome to children s church, everyone! Jesus is risen! That s our reason for worshipping him today! Let s stand and sing It Is by Grace (Ephesians 2:8-9). Sing It Is by Grace (Ephesians 2:8-9). Lyrics are in the back of this book. Track 21 Session 5 KidsOwn Worship 59

5 Great singing, everyone! Jesus has power over death. That s why we celebrate Easter. When Adam and Eve sinned, death entered the world. Since then, only one person has been able to conquer sin and death, and that s Jesus. Jesus resurrection proved he is God. It proved he s much more than just a good man. Let s celebrate that Jesus is alive! Sing I Am the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25). Lyrics are in the back of this book. Track 16 Because Jesus conquered death, those who believe in Jesus can live with him in heaven forever. Jesus is getting a place ready for us right now. It s a place where there will be no more pain or sadness, no suffering or sickness, no sin or death. Take a moment to think of something sad or painful in your life or in the life of someone you know. (Pause.) As we sing our next song, rejoice because whatever sad or painful thing you were thinking of won t be in heaven when we get there! Turn to your neighbor, give your neighbor a high five, and say, His love is great! Sing His Great Love (Romans 5:8.) Track 14 Lyrics are in the back of this book. Thanks to Jesus, we all have a place in heaven if we believe in him. Try to stay in a spirit of worship and spread out around the room. Find a place to stand by yourself. Pretend that it s the place God has for you in heaven. Pause as children spread out. Now, let s continue to worship by singing. Sing That You May Believe (John 20:31). Lyrics are in the back of this book. Track 18 What does it mean to say that Jesus has power over death? (He died, but he didn t stay dead; Jesus rose from the dead.) Jesus has power over death because he rose from the dead! That proved he is God! When we love him, we don t ever need to be afraid of dying. Jesus is the most powerful, the wisest, and most generous one in the universe. When you feel weak, God is most powerful. When you re confused, he s the wisest. When you need something, he s the most generous. Let s praise him for that! Sing Are You Going to Praise the Lord? Track 1 Lyrics are in the back of this book. When you came to children s church today, you made some comments and observations about the plant that we put in water during our last session. Here are some of your comments. Read some of the children s comments. 60 KidsOwn Worship Spring Quarter

6 How is the plant different than when we first put it in water? (It s alive now; it s green.) How is this plant different from the other plants? (The other plants are still dead; the other plants are brown and dried up.) How is this plant like Jesus? (Jesus came back to life; Jesus didn t stay dead, just like this plant didn t stay dead.) All of these other plants stayed brown, dry, and dead. But this plant came back to life. Jesus came back to life, too. Jesus is the only one with the power to come back to life again. And he gives us new life, too. Let s thank Jesus for what happened on the cross and for what happened three days later when he rose from the dead. Sing Christ the Lord Is Risen Today. Lyrics are in the back of this book. Track 15 Jesus, thank you for having power over death. Because you loved and obeyed God by dying on the cross and coming back to life, you give us life, too. When we look at this little green plant, help us remember the life you give us when we live in you. We love you and want to please you and praise you. In Jesus name, amen. Let s Learn the Point! Preschool Activities, pages At this time, have the preschool leader invite the preschoolers to go to their own room for this section of activities. Tear out the Preschool Activities page, and give it to the preschool leader. Have the preschool leader bring the preschoolers back to participate in Let s Pray! with the older children. If you prefer to keep all the children together, do the starred (*) activities. They work well with both elementary and preschool children. Elementary Activities * The Busker Show the Lesson Videos DVD segment titled The Busker. It explains that the Resurrection really happened. Be prepared to stop the DVD and hand each child two rubber bands to use to practice the trick that s shown on the DVD. What did you learn from this video? (How to do a new trick; that a busker is a street performer.) Why do some people have a hard time believing in the Resurrection? (Because it seems impossible; because they don t believe in God.) Session 5 KidsOwn Worship 61

7 Let s take a look at the Bible account of the Resurrection to see what we can learn. The Easter story is one most of you have heard many, many times. But as you hear it today, use your imagination to put yourself in the place of each person in the story. Imagine how you d feel if you d been there. To get ready for the story, spread out around the room and find a place where you won t be distracted by those around you. Get into a comfortable position, and close your eyes. (Pause.) Ready? Here we go. First, let s imagine that we are all Jesus good friends. On Friday, we watched Jesus die a cruel death. Take a moment to imagine how you d feel if your best friend died. (Pause.) Now listen to what the Bible says. Worship Leader Tip If you re looking for an easyto-read version of the Bible, try Group s Hands-On Bible. The Hands-On Bible uses the same experience-based learning to communicate God s Word in an active, understandable way. Read John 20:1-2 from an easy-to-understand version of the Bible. Explain that the disciple whom Jesus loved is John. Ask the following questions, but have the children just think about their answers. What was Mary probably thinking and feeling as she went to the tomb? (How sad she was; how much she missed Jesus.) What was she feeling when she ran to Peter and John? (Excited that Jesus was alive; excited to tell them the good news.) Read John 20:3-7. Then ask the following questions, but have the children think about their answers. What do you think John felt when he got to the tomb? (That he d believe it when he saw it; that he was going to see Jesus.) Why do you think he didn t go inside the tomb? (Maybe he didn t want to be disappointed; afraid of what he d find.) Why do you think Peter went in right away? What was he feeling? (He was excited, so he ran in; he could hardly wait to see Jesus again.) Read verses 8-9. What happened to John when he went inside the tomb? (He believed that Jesus was alive; he saw the evidence for himself.) Read verses 10-11a. Why do you suppose the disciples left? (They wanted to tell everyone; they were too excited to stay there.) Why did Mary cry? (Because she was happy; because she was scared; she thought someone had stolen Jesus body.) Read verses 11b-16. What made Mary recognize Jesus? (When he said her name, she recognized his voice; he spoke to her.) How do you think she felt when she realized she was talking to Jesus? (Really excited; very happy.) (continued on page 65) 62 KidsOwn Worship Spring Quarter

8 Preschool Activities Jesus Appears to Mary Session 5 Worship Theme: John 20:1-18 Using Theo Jesus has power over death. Easy Prep for Leaders Resurrection Angels You ll need a white paper or foam cup and a small white doily for each child. Provide markers and tape. He s Alive! You ll need an old, white bedsheet, a large cardboard box or floor pillow, a folded towel or cloth, and white rags or strips of white toilet paper. Drape the sheet over a table near the story area to make a tomb, and place the empty box or pillow in front of it to represent the stone. Set a folded towel and some white rags inside the cave. Have within reach the two extra angels you made in the previous activity. Consider using Theophilus the FaithRetriever puppet today in these ways: Have Theo lead the preschoolers from the main worship area to the preschool room. Have Theo tell the Bible story in He s Alive! Pinch a large white circle of tissue paper to make angel wings, and tape it to Theo s back. See the KidsOwn Worship Kit for a puppet skit written for today s worship session. Resurrection Angels Today is Easter! This is the day we celebrate the fact that Jesus rose from the dead. How did Jesus die? What happened after he died? After Jesus died, his friends buried him inside a tomb, which was like a cave. They rolled a huge stone in front of it to keep his body safe. In a little while, we ll hear a Bible story that tells us that Jesus has power over death. But first let s make some special angels to help us tell the story. Have children turn their cups upside down and draw smiley faces on them. Help them pinch doilies in the middle to make angel wings and tape the wings to their cups. Be sure each child has an angel to use in the next two activities, and make two angels to use as you re telling the Bible story. He s Alive! Have children take their angels to the story area and sit down. Open your Bible to John 20. After Jesus died, he was buried in a tomb. The tomb was like a cave. Point to the sheetdraped table. A large stone was put at the entrance. Indicate the box or pillow. Cup your hands together to make a small cave. Use your thumbs for the stone in front of the cave. Now lift your thumbs up and look inside your cave. See how dark it is in there? After Jesus was buried, all his friends were very sad. They thought they would never see Jesus again. Mary Magdalene went to the tomb where Jesus was buried. She was surprised when she got there because the giant stone had been rolled away from it! She ran to tell Peter and John, who were two of Jesus special friends. Ask a volunteer to push the stone away from your cave. Lift up the sheet so children can see inside. Peter and John ran back to the tomb. They saw the cloth that Jesus had been wrapped in lying inside the cave. But Jesus wasn t there. After a while, Peter and John went home. But Mary stayed outside the tomb and cried. She was sad. Place the two extra angels inside the tomb. Session 5 KidsOwn Worship 63

9 Preschool Activities He s Alive! (continued) Then Mary peeked inside the tomb again. This time she saw two angels where Jesus body had been! Set your angel in your lap, and use your hands to make a tomb over the angel. (Pause.) Good job! Now hold your angel up because it s going to talk to Mary. (Pause.) The angels asked Mary why she was crying. Let s make our angels ask Mary that question. (Pause.) Just then Jesus came up behind her and called her name. When he said her name, Mary knew it was Jesus! She was so happy because he had risen from the dead! She went and told her friends all about Jesus. What happened to Jesus? Why did this make Mary and her friends so happy? What does this tell us about Jesus? Because Jesus didn t stay dead but came back to life, we know that he is God! We know that Jesus has power over death! We don t have to be afraid of anything, because Jesus power is able to take care of us and help us. That s why we celebrate Easter. Let s take our angels with us to the table to celebrate with a special snack. From Sadness to Joy! Have a helper give a napkin and paper cup to each child. Lay your cup on its side next to your napkin, and let s pretend it s the tomb that Jesus was buried in. Show me how sad you feel when you think about Jesus dying on the cross even though he didn t do anything wrong. (Pause.) Oh, you all look so sad! While you re still looking sad, let s put stones in front of our tombs to seal them up tight. Pass out doughnuts, and have children set them in front of the cup on the napkin. Now who can tell us the rest of the story so we can get to the happy, joyful part? Ask a few children to retell the story of Mary going to the tomb and discovering that Jesus had risen from the dead. Encourage children to roll their doughnuts away from the tomb when that part is mentioned. Mary was sad at first because Jesus died. Then she was overjoyed when she found out that he rose from the dead! Show me your happiest face. (Pause.) I feel happy just looking at you! Let s turn our tombs over and fill them up with juice to show that Jesus fills us with life and ALLERGY ALERT Be aware that some children have food allergies that can be dangerous. Know your children, and consult with parents about allergies their children may have. Also be sure to read food labels carefully as hidden ingredients can cause allergy-related problems. joy. Then we can eat and drink to celebrate that Jesus has power over death! 64 KidsOwn Worship Spring Quarter

10 (continued from page 62) Though Mary saw Jesus standing next to her, she didn t recognize him at first. But when he called her name, she knew he was really Jesus and that he d risen from the dead. Jesus told Mary to go tell the others that he was alive. Mary joyfully went and told the news to the others. Have the children open their eyes and gather near you. When Mary, Peter, and John saw that the tomb was empty, they must have been a little bit confused. Then Jesus came and talked to Mary. He was dead but then he was alive. The Resurrection is real! Jesus is alive and real today. It s amazing and miraculous, but it s true. And it proves that Jesus was God and that he has complete power over death. Let s celebrate! * Popping Praises Clear an area of the room so that kids can move. Gather everyone in the cleared area, and set the bag of prepared balloons in the center. We ve been learning that Jesus has power over death because he rose from the dead. Warning To avoid potential choking hazards, pick up pieces of broken balloons promptly. Why is it so important to us today that he rose from the dead? (It means he told the truth about himself; it proves he has power over death.) How can the fact that Jesus has power over death help you in your life? (It gives me hope for eternity; it helps me trust Jesus.) The Bible says that when Mary and the disciples got to the tomb, they discovered that Jesus was gone. There was evidence in the tomb that he had been there they found the strips of linen and the burial cloth inside the tomb, but his body was gone. Let s pretend these balloons are tombs. Inside each tomb is something that reminds us of Jesus, though Jesus isn t there. Take a balloon now, then spread out around the room. Give kids a few moments to spread out. Worship Leader Tip On rare occasions, you may have a student who is allergic to latex products. If you do, use nonlatex balloons for the activity. They can be found at most party stores. When I say Go! try to pop your balloon. You can sit on it, step on it, squeeze it whatever you want. But each time you try to pop the balloon, shout out a praise or thank you to God. For example, you might shout, Praise you for dying on the cross! or Thank you for rising from the dead! or You have power over death! As soon as you pop your praises, pick up what s inside the balloon, and wait until others are finished. Are you ready? Go! Have kids pick up the messages that fall from the balloons as they pop. When everyone has a message, get the children s attention. That was a fun way to praise Jesus for having power over death! We re going to use these messages in a minute, but first let s pick up the balloon scraps and throw them away! Session 5 KidsOwn Worship 65

11 Worship Leader Tip If making eggs for everyone in the adult worship service is too ambitious for your group, have the children make celebration eggs for the children in another class or for the members of their family. ALLERGY ALERT See Session 2. Monitor this cleanup activity closely. Make sure the kids throw away every scrap of balloon and that no one keeps any scraps to play with. If young children use the room you meet in, vacuum the room thoroughly as soon as the worship session is over. Even tiny scraps of balloons can be choking hazards to young children. * Celebration Eggs Set out the message strips cut from Resurrection Messages on several tables. Put bowls of candy, plastic Easter eggs, and baskets on the tables. We re going to make celebration eggs to spread the news of Jesus resurrection to everyone in our church. I ve set out enough supplies for us to make celebration eggs for everyone who s here today. Let s make these eggs quickly so we can hand them out to the adults as they leave worship. Have the children meet around the tables and put a message strip and a few pieces of candy into each plastic Easter egg. Have the children put the finished eggs in the baskets. Continue until all the eggs have been filled. While the children are working, wander around the tables offering help to children who need it. Ask questions such as How does your family celebrate Jesus resurrection? and Why is it a good idea to spread the news of Jesus resurrection? You may want to play the Easter music from the Songs From FaithWeaver CD while the children are working. When the baskets of eggs are complete, have the children put the baskets near the door. Continue with Let s Pray! but keep an eye on the clock. Allow plenty of time for children to get in position to hand out celebration eggs to the adult congregation as people leave the worship area. Let s Pray! The Offering Put the offering bowls at the front of the room. Jesus has power over death. That s an amazing thing! It proves he is God. It means he deserves our worship. Before we give our offerings today, think of the number one reason you re grateful that Jesus has power over death. When you have that reason in mind, thank God silently while you walk to the front and place your offering in the bowl. Then sit down quietly, and wait until everyone is finished. Play I Am the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25) while children bring their offerings. Track KidsOwn Worship Spring Quarter

12 Closing Prayer God, you are so good to us! Here we are, Lord, thanking you for sending Jesus for us. Jesus, thank you for dying for our sins. Thank you for rising from the dead to prove that you are God and that you have power over death. We give our hearts and lives to you. We love you, Lord. In Jesus name, amen. Session 5 KidsOwn Worship 67

13 Resurrection Messages He is risen, indeed! He is risen, indeed! Jesus is alive! Jesus is alive! Jesus died for your sins! Jesus died for your sins! Christ the Lord is risen today! Christ the Lord is risen today! Praise God! The tomb is empty! Praise God! The tomb is empty! I can go to heaven because Jesus is alive! I can go to heaven because Jesus is alive! He is risen, just as he said! He is risen, just as he said! Believe in the power of the Resurrection! Believe in the power of the Resurrection! Up from the grave he arose! Up from the grave he arose! Christ is risen! Shout, Hosanna! Christ is risen! Shout, Hosanna! Permission to photocopy this handout from KidsOwn Worship Leader Guide, Spring, granted for local church use. Copyright Group Publishing, Inc. group.com 68 KidsOwn Worship Spring Quarter OK to copy

14 Encouragement for Leaders Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else (2 Corinthians 9:13). Though you may not often hear words of thanks from the children in your class, these children will grow up knowing the love of God as a result of your obedience.