Page 1 of 20 Jesus, the Easter King This is a complete term of playgroup storytime material. It is freely available for download from the following website: http://www.proclaimjesus.net/playgroup If you have received this material via email or from a friend, we would ask you to instead consider registering on the above website (for free) and checking to see whether the material has been updated. We are hoping that our material will be frequently improved and enhanced, as we receive feedback from other users, such as yourself! Thank you, and we hope that this material is useful in furthering Christ's kingdom in our communities.
Page 2 of 20 Jesus, the Easter King This file contains the following: term outline weekly script song suggestion craft ideas sample pictures for wall display Term outline This unit focuses on stories about Jesus, in particular how he is God, and he is our King. The interesting hook we used was to draw the pictures for the story live using special chalks. The kids loved it. Week Story 1 is God's Son and we should listen to him (Transfiguration Matthew 17:1-13 or Luke 9:28-36) 2 3 4 has God s power over creation (Calming storm Matthew 8:23-27 or Luke 8:22-25) has God s power to love and heal (Bleeding woman healed Mk 5 or Luke 8:42-48) is the bread of life (Feeding 5000 John 6) 5 gives life (Raising Lazarus John 11) 6... is the good shepherd (Good shepherd lays down life for sheep John 10) 7 is here (Triumphal entry Matthew 21 or Luke 19:28-40) 8 dies to forgive us (The crucifixion & thief Luke 23)
... is alive again (The resurrection Luke 24) 9 10 Page 3 of 20 is God s Forever King (Ascension Luke 24:50-53 and in Heaven Revelation 1:12-18, 21:1-6) Suggested song 1,2,3,4,5, Jesus Christ is now alive from My God is a very very very big God CD. Sample finished wall display
Page 4 of 20 Week 1: The Easter King we need to listen to Jesus Craft suggestion Find pictures of animals and people. Cut out the ears. Scan sheets of the separate animals/people and the ears. The kids cut out the ears and stick them on the correct person/animal. Storytime Draw pictures such as above, as you narrate the script. In the Bible, one of Jesus' special friends, his disciples, called Matthew, tells us about a time when God spoke out aloud, so that you could hear him just speaking, like I'm speaking to you. This is what Matthew tells us... One day, Jesus took 3 of special friends and they climbed up a high mountain. We'll make it a wide and flat high mountain. So, there was Jesus, and there were 3 of Jesus' special friends: Peter, James and John. James and John were brothers. And I think they probably had beards. And eyes and smiling mouths. So Jesus is up on a high mountain with Peter, James and John, who were brothers. And then some amazing things happened. Firstly, Jesus turned all shiny. It says his face shone like the sun. Who can look at the sun? You can't look at the sun, it's too bright and squinty. And Jesus' clothes became bright white. So Jesus was all bright and shiny and sunny. And then, two other men were suddenly there. They were 2 important men that God's people,
Page 5 of 20 Israel, needed to listen to, from a long time before Jesus came. They were called Moses and Elijah. Before Jesus came, God used to tell people like Moses and Elijah, all the important things that he wanted everyone to hear. He would tell Moses and Elijah the important things and the rules, and they would tell the other people. So, now we have Jesus and Moses and Elijah and Peter, James and John, Jesus' friends, all on top of this high mountain. This all seems a bit special! What's going to happen next? Well, a bright cloud comes down over all of them. A cloud! A bright shiny cloud comes down. And then, they hear God speaking! In a voice from the cloud, God talks to them. What does he say? That's pretty amazing, that God is talking to these people. What do you think God is going to say? Well, he says, This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him. So, God says three important things that we need to know about the Easter King. Jesus is God's son. God loves Jesus. He calls him his beloved Son that means he loves him very much. And God tells us, to listen to Jesus. So, this term we'll keep learning about the Easter King, Jesus, and we'll remember that God tells everyone to listen to Jesus.
Page 6 of 20 Week 2: The Easter King... has God s power over creation Craft suggestion: Each craft consists of 2 paper plates, one cut in half in a way that looks like a wave. The kids colour in the wave and stick on a picture of Jesus in a boat, holding his arms up, onto the large plate. The two plates can be stuck together with a split pin so the wave can "move" forwards and then retreat. Storytime Recap Week 1: We heard about a time in the Bible when God spoke. It's so special and amazing when God speaks that whenever God speaks in the Bible, lots of special and amazing things happen. What happened last week? Jesus became all shiny and was bright like the sun. Some other important people turned up that people used to listen to before Jesus came. And a bright cloud came down. And God spoke, and told us through the Bible, that Jesus was his beloved Son, and that we should listen to him. So, let's do that! Let's find out some of the things that Jesus says. This week, our story is from Mark. It's a story about a time after Jesus had spent a long time teaching people. Lots of people had come to listen to Jesus. It got to be nighttime, and they were on the edge of a lake. Jesus was tired from talking all day, and he said to his friends, Come on, let's go to the other side of the lake. So, they left the whole crowd of people, and took Jesus in a boat, heading off to the other side of the lake. And Jesus was so tired that he fell straight asleep, and Mark, who wrote down
Page 7 of 20 the story for us, said he fell asleep on a cushion in the boat. But, then, a big storm started there must have been dark clouds, and maybe some lightning, and it says there were big waves, splashing into the boat. And Jesus' friends in the boat thought that they were going to fall into the lake and drown! So, they woke Jesus up and said, they called him their teacher, they said Teacher, don't you care what's happening? Don't you care that we're going to drown? And Jesus woke up and said to the storm, to the wind and the waves to Stop, and to be still! And the storm stopped! Jesus stopped the wind and crazy waves and made everything calm and peaceful again. Isn't that amazing!! Can you stop it raining? Can you stop thunder? What noise does thunder make? Can you stop it going Ka-boom? No. But Jesus did. And his friends said, Who is this man, that the wind and the sea and the waves even obey? So, we've learnt another very important thing about the Easter King he has power of wind and waves and rain. That means he can stop them, or start them! Jesus has God's power, and that's why I like having him as my friend.
Page 8 of 20 Week 3: The Easter King... has God's power to love and heal. Craft suggestion Cut out large hearts from red construction paper. Get the kids to each decorate one with bandaids, and then stick on Mark 5:34. Storytime Recap Week 1: We heard about a time in the Bible when God spoke. It's so special and amazing when God speaks that whenever God speaks in the Bible, lots of special and amazing things happen. What happened last week? Jesus became all shiny and was bright like the sun. Some other important people turned up that people used to listen to before Jesus came. And a bright cloud came down. And God spoke, and told us through the Bible, that Jesus was his beloved Son, and that we should listen to him. So, let's do that! Let's find out some of the things that Jesus says. Recap Week 2: We learned about when Jesus and his friends were in a boat, and there was a big storm. Jesus was sleeping in the boat! So his disciples woke him up and Jesus stopped the storm! He has God's power over creation. So we can trust him. Week 3: This week's story is from Mark again, just like last week. And this is how it goes...jesus was walking along with his friends, and there were a lot of people around him lots of people used to hang around Jesus the Bible tells us there was a great multitude and that they were all pressing around him. And there was a woman in the crowd, and she was sick. She had been bleeding for 12 years! She had visited lots of doctors and
Page 9 of 20 the Bible says that she had spent all her money and that not only was she not better, but they had even made her worse! So, she had been bleeding for 12 years and she was over it. What do you do when you're bleeding? Can you stop it? She wanted to be better. And she had heard about Jesus. But, she didn't want to talk to Jesus. Maybe she was a bit shy and didn't think he would be interested in her. She just thought to herself, If I just touch his clothes, I will get better. She thought that Jesus was so powerful, she could just touch his clothes. He wouldn't have to do anything! So she did! She came up behind Jesus and touched his coat. Immediately she stopped bleeding! And then, that could have been the end! But it wasn't! Jesus stopped and turned around, in all those people. He could tell that something had happened. He said, Who touched my clothes? And his friends said, Look at all these people pressing around you, and you're asking who touched me? But Jesus knew that something special had happened to someone. Now the woman was very frightened. She was trembling and fell down before Jesus and said, I have been bleeding for so long and I touched your coat so that I would get better. Do you think Jesus was angry with her? No! He loved her and spoke very kindly to her. He called her his daughter, that's how compassionate and kind and loving he felt to her. He said, Daughter, you knew that I could make you better. Don't be worried. It's good that you are better. And she could go and be happy that she was better and feel peaceful about meeting Jesus. So, that's another fantabulous thing we've learned about our Easter King. He loves people and he loves making them better, from outside things, like bleeding and from inside things because we've got lots of things on our insides that we need help to get better from, too. So, let's remember that our Easter King loves us, he's happy when people touch him and he can make people better, inside and out. I love having such a great Easter King!
Page 10 of 20 Week 4: The Easter King... is the bread of life Craft suggestion Make some plain coloured salt dough (lots of recipes on Google) and have the kids make "bread" with it and knead it etc. Someone then takes the loaves home and bakes them so they last. Storytime Sorry have lost the full script for this one! Here are the main points: Using chalk, tell the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 (John 6). Make it a simple narrative, including the details that the Bible gives, about the green grass, and the conversation. Skip vs 16-24 Conclude with something like this (summary of vs 30-35): The people wanted Jesus to give them some more bread. Jesus told them not to worry about bread anymore. Worry more about bread that will last forever. The people wanted to know about that kind of bread. Jesus told them that God can give true bread. Bread that gives you life! Jesus said something amazing. Jesus said, I am the bread of life. Jesus said that being friends with him is like having something to eat after you've been really hungry for a long time. Jesus said that whoever comes to him will never feel hungry or thirsty again. Sometimes, even when you're full, you can still feel hungry for something or thirsty for something. Jesus says that whoever comes to him and follows him will never be hungry or thirsty again. And Jesus will give his friends life that lasts forever. Isn't that fantastic!
Page 11 of 20 Week 5: The Easter King gives life Craft suggestion Prepare a sheet that has a tomb (no door) on it, a picture of Lazarus, and a tomb door. The children colour in the tomb, Lazarus and the tomb door. They then cut out the tomb door and attach it to the tomb with a sticky-tape flap on the side. Lazarus can then be cut out, and the children can move him around with a little bit of Blu-tac first he's in the tomb, then comes out again. It could also have a picture of Jesus near the tomb, calling out Lazarus, come out! and his happy sisters nearby. Storytime What do you do when things stop working? Eg torch, shoe, texta. Today's story is about a person that was sick for a long time and stopped working. Usually when a person stops working there's nothing you can do. There's a lot we can do and we have control over a lot of things in our world, but not people. But, do you know someone who might be? Someone who can fix sores? Who can stop storms? Mmm hmmm. Let's see what happens. Today's story starts with Mary. Their brother was called Lazarus. He had been sick for a long time and he had stopped working. There wasn't anything anyone could do. Doctors can make you better a lot of the time, but not all the time. And Lazarus had stopped working. Mary couldn't do anything about it. They were very upset. Then their friend Jesus arrived. And you would think they would feel better having their friend come, because the Bible says that Jesus loved Lazarus and Mary and Martha. But, Mary wasn't happy. She said to Jesus, If you had been here, my brother wouldn't
Page 12 of 20 have died. And she cried some more. And Jesus asked where they had put Lazarus. And she showed Jesus the cave where they had put Lazarus body and it says a stone lay against it. And everyone else was saying, This is Jesus. Couldn't he have stopped Lazarus dying? And we know that he could have stopped him dying, but he didn't this time. And Jesus said something amazing. He's already said I am the bread of life. Now he says I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, even if they stop working, can start working again and live. And he said to them Take the stone away. Martha said but he's been in their four days. By this time there will be a bad smell. Jesus asked her if she believed what he'd said about being life and being able to make people alive again. So they took away the stone. And Jesus talked to God and and then he cried out with a loud voice. You'll have to help me, everybody. Jesus said, Lazarus come out. And he came out and was alive again. Isn't that amazing. All these things that sometimes we can't even fix, because we're not really in control of things, but God is in charge of everything, and Jesus is the resurrection and the life and can bring people alive again. Jesus' friends know that because of Jesus, even if they stop working here they will come alive again.
Page 13 of 20 Week 6: The Easter King is the good shepherd Craft suggestion Download a colouring in page of a simple sheep picture. The children glue cotton wool on and draw a face on the sheep. Storytime The story this week was written by a man called John and it's about sheep. What noise does a sheep make? What do sheep like to eat? What do sheep do all day? Who looks after sheep? A shepherd, that's right. Here's a photo of a shepherd in Tibet with his sheep. What kinds of things does a good shepherd do? A good shepherd helps his sheep to find food show sole shepherd. Green grass photo. Let's look back at this photo. Look how many sheep there are! Would you get confused by them all? Do you think a good shepherd would get confused? A good shepherd would know how many sheep he has, and who they are. He would check that none were missing and if they were he would go and look and find the missing sheep. What else does a good shepherd do? What's in this photo? What do they like to eat? Would a good shepherd run away? No, a good shepherd would stay and protect his sheep.
Page 14 of 20 Jesus tells us that he is a good shepherd of his sheep. And if we're Jesus' friends, we are his sheep. It's a bit funny to be called sheep, but it helps us to understand what Jesus, our Easter King, is like. Jesus is our good shepherd. What does that mean? That means that he knows us stick sheep on and list names. He knows us and he know our names and he knows if we're lost or hurting. What else did we say about a good shepherd? That he looks after us. It's like he finds us the best grass (stick grass on) and gives us what we need. And our good shepherd protects us. What's this thing called? He can use it to protect us. And Jesus also says that he even gives his life. If a good shepherd gives his life for his sheep, it's like he gets in the way of the wolf instead of the sheep. So, Jesus is our good shepherd. So, next week we'll keep listening to the Easter King, who is our good shepherd and we'll find out something else. Recap Week 2: We learned about what Jesus is like, because he told us that he is a good shepherd, and Jesus' friends are his sheep. We learnt that a good shepherd finds food for his sheep, and knows their names, and protects his sheep, even by giving up his own life for his sheep.
Page 15 of 20 Week 7: The Easter King is here Craft suggestion Download a free colouring in page of Jesus on the donkey. The children can colour it in, and then cut out palm fronds from green construction paper and glue them on. Storytime Now after all these things had happened, it was almost time for the first Easter. Today's story is the start of what happened at the first Easter. Today's story is from Matthew chapter 21. Jesus and his disciples have been travelling around. Jesus has done all these amazing things, showing that he is exciting and loving and powerful and gentle and gives food and protects people and even brings people alive again after they've died. And today we hear another special thing about Jesus. So they've been travelling around and our story starts by Matthew telling us that they all, that's Jesus and his friends, came near to Jerusalem, which was the big city. They came near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, near the mount of Olives. And Jesus said something funny to his disciples. He said, Go into the next village, and straight away you'll see a donkey tied up. Bring it here. If anyone says anything to you, say that Jesus needs it. So the disciples went and did was Jesus asked them to do. That's a strange thing for Jesus to ask them to do, but Jesus knew that he was the Easter King, and he knew that the first bit of the Bible, written a long time before he came, talked about what the Easter King would be like. Talk about a king what would they ride on? How big is a big man-horse (a stallion?) a lady horse?. What about a donkey? That's not a very king-y thing to ride on! But Jesus is the best kind of king. Not the kind
Page 16 of 20 of king who stands up big and says I'm so great, you should do everything for me. No, Jesus is the kind of king who rides on a donkey, and is humble. He says you are great. I would rather do something for you. I am humble and I am the Easter King. So he rides a donkey. This is what a donkey looks like. They weren't even really for riding. They were for carrying things when you weren't strong enough to carry it yourself. And Jesus carries a lot of things for us I only just thought of that last night I'm not sure if it matches up like that. So, anyway. Here is our little humble donkey. And the disciples put their cloaks on it and Jesus sat on it. And by now we know that there was a big crowd of people there no TV then, so noone was going to catch anything on the news you really had to be there. The crowd were there, and they spread their cloaks on the road, and also put branches. Because even though Jesus was riding on a donkey, they knew he was special. They realised what he'd been doing and that he was the Easter King. And so as Jesus rode into Jerusalem for the start of the first Easter, they cheered and cheered. Can you help me cheer? They cheered with a special hooray word that is Hosanna. Hosanna! Hooray for the Easter King! But, even though a lot of people were cheering there were some people who were starting to get very angry about Jesus. They didn't like that Jesus was showing that he could do things that God could, and that some people were following the Easter King. They were very angry, and they're part of the reason why we have the first Easter. And I'll tell you all about it next week!
Page 17 of 20 Week 8: The Easter King dies to forgive us Craft suggestion Kids cut out bookmarks made from woodgrain paper in the shape of a cross (or print out crosses that they colour in), with a verse stuck on (Luke 23:43). Storytime The crucifixion and resurrection I scanned pictures from the Big Picture Story Bible and used them to tell the following story: Last week we learnt that lots of people believed in Jesus and said Hosanna to the Easter King. They believed, Here is the Easter King he will rescue God's people and He rules over death. He can bring God's blessing to everyone on earth! These people were ready to make Jesus their king! But, we saw some people with angry faces. They were the leaders. They were jealous of Jesus and they hated him and did not want him as their king. They decided that it was time. They were going to kill Jesus as soon as they could. Jesus knew that it was time as well. He knew that he would soon be king. He was very sad. He knew that he had to die and he didn't want to. Here Jesus is praying in a garden, He says to God, if there is any other way that I can rescue everyone and become King, please let it happen another way. But, He knew that He needed to follow what God wanted him to do, so he said OK God, I'll do it. I'll become king your way. He wanted his friends near him so that they could pray as well, and comfort Jesus, but what are they doing? They're sleeping! Jesus woke them up when he had finished and he said it is time. Some of the people who hated Jesus marched up to them, with some soldiers. These
Page 18 of 20 men didn't believe in Jesus and they didn't think he was God's forever king, the Easter King. They tied up his hands and arrested him. And who's this? Jesus' friends ran away. They were scared. The soldiers and some leaders took Jesus to a place where they hit him in the face and spat on him. And then they took him to this man, called Pilate. He was in charge and he could decide who should die because they had done the wrong thing. They told Pilate Jesus is trying to take over as king! He should die. He should not be king. We would rather have Rome in charge than this pretend king. Pilate, you should let us put him on a cross. So Pilate talked to Jesus. He said to Jesus are the King? Jesus said, I am not the usual type of king. I am God's forever king and rescuer. Pilate didn't really think Jesus should be put on a cross, but he was scared too of the angry people and soldiers and leaders. But he thought, if I am mean to Jesus then maybe they won't worry about the whole cross thing. So, Pilate told them to do lots of mean things to Jesus. They whipped him a lot of times. They laughed at him being king. See here they've put a purple robe on him and are laughing at him. They made him a crown, because kings have crowns, so they made one, but it was out of thorns, and it hurt his head. They punched him and said You're the Easter King. Hooray for you! So, after all these mean things, Pilate tried to let him go, but everyone shouted louder and they wanted him to let them put Jesus on the cross. So, Pilate gave in to them and then, they put Jesus on a cross. They went out to a small hill outside Jerusalem and they nailed Jesus to a cross and he died. (Draw with chalk at this point). Everything went dark. They put Jesus into a tomb, they put a big stone in front of it, and some soldiers, so no-one could steal the body and pretend he'd come back. Evreyone was very sad. All the people who had run away came back and cried together. They had thought Jesus was the king. But now they were scared and afraid and sad. They were asking all sorts of questions why did Jesus have to die? Wasn't Jesus God's forever king? Look how sad they are. They thought Jesus was going to rescue them.
Page 19 of 20 Week 9: The Easter King is alive again Craft suggestion Decorate baskets and have an Easter egg hunt. Talk to the children about the idea of eggs bringing new life. This can be referred to in the Storytime. Storytime But, on the third day after he died, before the sun came up, some of Jesus' friends went to the tomb to be sad there. But when they got there, the big stone was gone and the tomb was empty! The body was gone!! They couldn't work out what had happened. That night, lots of Jesus' friends were waiting in the same room, They were afraid of everything, so they had locked the doors. Suddenly Jesus was standing there with them! They were frightened at first, but then they realised that Jesus was real and alive and they could touch him, and he could eat, so there was nothing to be afraid of! They were so happy!! And here is Jesus, alive with all of his friends. Because Jesus died and came alive again, they could be friends with God! Jesus was alive and was risen from the dead! And that is very very good. Jesus is the resurrection and the life. Jesus says if you believe in me, you will never die. That's why it is so good to celebrate at Easter time!
Page 20 of 20 Week 10: The Easter King is God's forever king Craft suggestion Prepare gold crowns out of yellow paper or gold card, with cut-out shapes. Kids stick cellophane behind the cut-out shapes as "jewels" or glue on some fake gemstones. Storytime Simply read out pages pages 438 (Starting Do you see the man writing?...) - 453 (Ending Amen. Come Lord Jesus! ). Read page 442 but I suggest that you do not read out page 443 (it discusses hell and has a scary picture). Comment on the beauty and hope of the new heaven and earth, and that Jesus is the King forever in heaven. Repeat all the things that you yourself are looking forward to about heaven. Recap all of what we have learnt about Jesus being the Easter King and the hope it gives us. The End!