Palm Sunday

Sunday (Palm Sunday)

Teaching Cookie: Palm Leaf

READ Matthew 21:1-11

PRESCHOOL MODIFICATION – READ Matthew 21: 6-11

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The last week of the life of Jesus is often called “Holy Week” and it starts with Palm Sunday. Many of the dramatic events that occurred this week demonstrated who Jesus was and what He believed.

Jerusalem was a city for ALL believers; Jews, Muslims, and Christians. The Temple in Jerusalem was a place of worship in Jesus’ lifetime. He studied with the priests and elders there when he was 12 years old and He celebrated many Feasts of Passover there. Jerusalem typically had a normal population of about 50,000 on any given day, but during Passover, the population had at least tripled in size because people were coming to celebrate the Feast of Passover.

On Palm Sunday, Jesus entered into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. This is important because it showed the unassuming nature and humility of Jesus’ entry. When kings would enter into a city, they would typically ride on the back of fine horses and camels and with great fanfare and celebration. But not Jesus. Great crowds of people lined the streets, waving palm branches and their cloaks in front of his donkey as He traveled through, as this was customary to do for kings and they traveled through city gates. It was a sign of respect. But Jesus wasn’t a normal royal king. He was a spiritual king. The kind of healing that He would bring was that of forgiveness for our sinful nature. But the people didn’t fully understand this yet. Later in the week many of the people in that cheering crowd from Palm Sunday would be the same people demanding Jesus be crucified.

ASK

• What do you think the crowds felt and thought when they saw Jesus enter Jerusalem?

• Do you think people were surprised when they saw Jesus on a donkey rather than a horse?

• What do you think Jesus felt and thought as He entered Jerusalem?

• If (insert a celebrity’s name) walked into our front door right now, what would you do? Who would you want to invite to meet Him?

• If Jesus walked through our front door right now, would you have the same reaction as (insert same celebrity’s name)? Who deserves more?

PRAY

Father, You are so deserving of all our praise. Not just on Palm Sunday or during Easter, but ALWAYS. Your goodness, Your faithfulness, Your mercy and Your love are all things that should be on our hearts and minds daily. God we pray that we would run to you and shout YOUR name in all situations, and that we would greet You with the honor You deserve. Heavenly Father, as we spend time together focusing on Passion Week, we ask that You would open our hearts and minds to be able to understand just how much You love us and how badly You want to have a relationship with us. And God, we pray that as we begin to understand it, that we would have a relationship with You as well. Thank you for loving us Hosanna! Amen.