Dear Parents,

Thanks for joining us again as we do Children’s Worship from home!  

Note: Please let us know about how your family is enjoying Children’s Worship! Take some pictures of your family participating in Children’s Worship or share a story. You can post to the Gold Avenue Church Facebook page or send by email at goldavechurch@gmail.com

Today is Palm Sunday and marks the beginning of Holy Week. If you would like to delve into this week in a more in depth way with your children the CRC Curriculum,
DWELL, has a great resource to use. It is attached here:

 

https://network.crcna.org/faith-nurture/how-help-families-celebrate-holy-week-home

 

RESURRECTION BUNS

Here is a fun project to do for Easter. It’s also posted in the Easter Lesson but if you’d like to start early on Easter morning it’s here, too. Also, you may need to pick up some ingredients if you don’t already have them.

Ingredients

1 package refrigerated crescent dough

1 bag of large marshmallows

½ cup of butter, melted

¾ cup of white sugar

2 Tablespoons cinnamon

 

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a muffin tin pan and set aside.

Melt butter in a small bowl. Mix together the cinnamon and sugar in a separate small bowl. 

Unroll the crescent dough and separate into the triangles (along the dough perforations). Explain that the dough represents the tomb that they put Jesus into after his crucifixion.

Next, hold up a white marshmallow and explain that it represents Jesus. Roll the marshmallow in butter and then in the cinnamon and sugar mixture. Explain that it represents the oils and spices that were rubbed on Jesus after his death before they placed him in the tomb.

Place the marshmallow onto a dough triangle near the larger end. Wrap each side of the dough up and over the marshmallow and explain that the dough represents the tomb where they buried Jesus. Roll the dough in your hands until all of the marshmallow is covered and sealed.

Dip the rolled dough in butter and then dip in the cinnamon/sugar mixture and place in the greased muffin tin.

Repeat until all of the dough has been used.

Bake for 15 minutes.

Allow to cool then cut the “tomb” (rolls) down the middle. Before cutting, ask if the kids remember what happened on the third day (or why we celebrate Easter). Remind them that when they went to the tomb where Jesus was buried, the tomb was empty because Jesus rose. Cut through the roll and show the kids how the “tomb” is now empty.

Make sure you get the classic crescent dough that can be separated into triangles.

You may want to place the muffin tin on a cookie sheet before baking in case there is any spillover.

 

May you and your children have a blessed and meaningful Easter!  He is Risen!

The Loudest Parade

Based on: Matthew 21:1-16

 

EQUIP:  

(It’s not an activity, but just a little background on the story for you, the parent, to read.) 

 

As we start to think about how the people in Jerusalem responded to Jesus on the first Palm Sunday, let’s take some time to think about our own responses to Jesus. For me, I know that I asked Him to be my Lord and Savior a long time ago. But what about my everyday responses? And what about yours?

 

It can be easy to ignore Jesus, especially when things are going well in my life. Other times, I expect Him to answer my prayers according to MY idea of what should happen! But when Jesus rode into Jerusalem, He wasn’t coming to meet the crowd’s expectations, He was coming to do His Father’s will. He was concerned with God’s best, not His own desires. When I put aside my ideas of what should happen in my life and recognize Jesus as my King, my Savior and my God, I respond to Him with praise for His goodness, His love, His wisdom—because He is the great I AM.

 

When Jesus entered Jerusalem on the Sunday before Passover, He was clearly communicating who He is and why He had come. Riding a donkey showed that He was the King, bringing peace, not war. And He was fulfilling Isaiah’s and Zechariah’s prophecies about the coming of the Messiah, the One God had promised to send to save His people (see Isaiah 62:11; Zechariah 9:9). Jesus has not changed. Jesus is still the King who brings peace and the Savior who forgives our sin.

 

Debbie Barber

Senior Editor

 

Activity One:  Read the intro. Watch the video.

Activity Two: Discuss the story using provided questions as prompts. Prayer.

Worship: Singing 

Activity Three:  Respond to the story by doing the activity. 

Activity Four:  Bless your children 

 

Activity 1:  STORY

Introduction:To read the children:

 

As Jesus and His friends walked down the road toward Jerusalem for the Passover celebration, Jesus told two of His friends to go ahead of them to the next small town and bring back a donkey with her colt, or baby. So they went and found the donkey and the colt to bring back.

 

Listen as I read Matthew 21:4-5 to find out why this was so important!   4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: 5 “Say to Daughter Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”

 

These words were written by the prophet Zechariah about 500 years before Jesus was ever born! This donkey was fulfilling something God had said long, long ago. Anyone who knew Zechariah’s words and saw Jesus riding down the road would have immediately thought, Look! It’s the promised KING!

 

So Jesus’ friends brought the donkey to Jesus. Pulling off their coats, they spread them across the donkey’s back to make a place for Jesus to sit. Jesus got on and began to ride down the dusty road to Jerusalem.  Let’s see what happens!

 

Watch the video:

 

Activity 2:  DISCUSSION

• Why were the people on the road to Jerusalem so excited? (Jesus, the King, was coming to Jerusalem.) 

• What special words of praise did they say to Jesus?  (Hosanna, Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.)

• What did Jesus say when the men told him to tell the people to stop praising Him?  (The rocks would start praising Jesus.)

• • Why was Jesus so sad he began to cry? (The people he came to rescue were missing it. They didn’t want Jesus to save them.)

• Who welcomed Jesus and praised Him? (The ones who were healed and saw the miracles of Jesus.)

• Who was unhappy with Jesus? (The ones who would reject him.)

Jesus rode a donkey into Jerusalem to show that He is the King and Savior God had promised to send. He did exactly what prophets in the Old Testament said the promised Savior would do (see Isaiah 62:11; Zechariah 9:9). Jesus hasn’t changed. He is still the Savior who forgives our sin, and He wants us to follow Him as our King.

 

Some people in our story today were angry with Jesus. They didn’t recognize Jesus as  the true King. And they missed out on knowing and loving Him. But the children and others in Jerusalem who praised Jesus that day recognized that Jesus was the King they had been waiting for. They praised Him and thanked God for sending Him.

 

Read Psalm 47:1-2 aloud.  1 Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy. 2 For the Lord Most High is awesome, the great King over all the earth.

 

 We can all praise and celebrate Jesus because He is the great King over all the earth! When we stop and think about who Jesus really is and how He came to make it possible for us to become part of God’s family, the best response is to follow Him and praise Him.

 

Let’s take some time to praise and thank Jesus for who He really is and how He made it possible for us to become part of God’s family.

 

Encourage children to pray for these things with their own words. Then, transition into a time of prayer for personal requests.

 

Worship Songs:

 

The people who waved palm branches and shouted at Jesus used the word hosanna. What does that word mean? It is a word used to express adoration, praise, or joy. They were happy and excited to see Jesus coming as a King. ““Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.“”

 

 

 

Activity 3: RESPONSE ACTIVITY #1  Make a paper bag donkey

 

https://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/mbagdonkey.htm

     

RESPONSE ACTIVITY #2   Print and Color and or Dot to Dot

Activity 4: CLOSING BLESSING

Remember that Jesus is our King! We can honor Him in the things we do and say every day. That’s a great way to follow Him! 

 

(______________),  May you always honor King Jesus by making Jesus the King of your life everyday.