LET JESUS ROLL AWAY THE STONE OF DEATH
We’ve arrived! It’s Easter! The day Jesus rose from death to life!
Keys for this lesson:
- Easter Sunday is the day we remember the stone being rolled away from the tomb where Jesus was buried!
- There are many obstacles that stand in the way for us to receive eternal life but Jesus overcame them all through his death and resurrection.
- The stone of DEATH was rolled away so we could have ETERNAL LIFE!
Preparing in Prayer & Thought:
Please read through the lesson first so you are comfortable with it and can tailor it to your children. With the ongoing uncertainty of the pandemic and the lives that have been lost many are afraid of becoming sick and dying. Whole families are separated because of the need to protect loved ones. It’s in times like this people begin to open their hearts and lives to the Good News of Jesus. Pray for your kids to open their hearts and grow in their knowledge of what Jesus did through his death and resurrection.
Reflection & Discussion: The last and final stone is DEATH and the grave.
Read Mark 16:1-7
That morning there was an obstacle before the women who came to the tomb – a large stone that weighed up to a ton had been placed over the door of the tomb. They wouldn’t be able to move it on their own so imagine their shock to find an angel of the Lord had rolled the stone away!
- Ask the kids to imagine it was them that came to the tomb: what would it have been like to arrive at the tomb and find it empty? (shock, joy, fear)
Read Luke 24:9-12; There were other obstacles too. The disciples didn’t expect Jesus to be raised from the dead and didn’t believe when the women ran to tell them what they found.
- Have you ever told someone something that you saw or happened to you but they didn’t believe you? How did that make you feel?
Read Matthew 27:57-66; The religious leaders didn’t want the stone to be rolled away so they sealed the tomb and posted a military guard.
- Why didn’t the leaders want anyone to roll away the stone?
Read John 20:19-20: Jesus, in His resurrected body, could pass through material barriers so why do you think the stone need to be rolled away? (So others could see and know Jesus Christ had risen from the grave and is alive!)
- How does it make you feel to know that Jesus is alive?
Who will roll away the stone of DEATH?
Jesus said… “I am the resurrection and the life.
Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.
Do you believe this?”
Pray with your Children:
This is the last Sunday of the Countdown to Easter. We have learned about the stones that block the way of receiving eternal life and a relationship with God. Pray for your kids to open their hearts and grow in their knowledge of what Jesus did through his death and resurrection. Pray the stones of sin, doubt, self, stuff, silence and death would be rolled away!
Activities:
Easter Bingo: Pick up on Saturday at Church when checking in for Easter Hunt or make your own:
As cards are drawn and kids place their item (rock/bean/etc.) make sure to talk about what they mean.
Sock Fun together with Parents and Kids
You need 15-25 pairs of matching socks, a timer, and a laundry basket.
Have two family members battle it out to see who can find the most sock matches, roll them into a ball or an Easter egg and toss them into a laundry basket or box in one minute.
- To get started you dump all of the socks to one side of the room.
- And don’t worry, those socks will make their way back to the basket real soon.
- Then place the basket on the other side.
- When the host says ”Go!” players will grab a sock, go through the pile to find the matching one.
- Roll the socks together in the shape of a ball, or an Easter Egg and then toss them across the room into the laundry Easter basket/box
The player with the most sock-eggs in the basket at the end of the timer wins. Please keep in mind little ones should be able to throw to the basket many times. You need to decide those rules for younger and older.
Now for a game of sock Wars… You should now have your socks matched up and rolled up and this is a chance to play sock wars. Divide into two teams then divide up the socks equally. The socks on the floor are up for grabs and at the end of the game the team with the most socks in their possession is the winner. This is more about fun, quick moves and trying not to get hit.
