Jesus Arrested Sunday School Lesson
Jesus Arrested Sunday School Lesson For Kids:
BOTTOM LINE:
God sent Jesus to die for us.
OBJECTIVE:
Kids will be able to state why Jesus came to Earth.
KEY PASSAGE:
Matthew 26:36-56, Jesus Arrested
MEMORY VERSE:
"He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation." Mark 16:15 (NIV)
SUMMARY:
Our top story tonight. It seems strange that Jesus would allow himself to be arrested, but that was part of God’s plan. God loves us so much that he sent his son to die for us.
SIMPLE PRAYER:
Dear God,
Thank you sending Jesus to die for us.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
MEMORY VERSE
"He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation." Mark 16:15 (NIV)
“He said to them, ‘Go into all the world. Preach the good news to everyone.’” Mark 16:15 (NIrV)
LARGE GROUP:
Have the kids read the verse together. Read it normally, then in a whisper, then really, really loud!
SMALL GROUP:
K-2nd: Give all the kids a Bible and help them locate the verse. As you read the verse aloud, encourage the kids to follow along with their finger.
3rd-5th: Give all the kids a Bible. Let the kids race to see who can find the verse first. Let that kid read to the group.
SKIT
TOP STORY
ITEMS NEEDED:
A news desk and chair
CHARACTER BREAKDOWN:
2M
CHARACTERS:
Rock Stone - A TV newsman
Mark Storm - A weather guy
Rock sits at the news desk.
ROCK: Good evening, and welcome to Jerusalem Eye Witness News. I’m Rock Stone. Our top story tonight, Jesus of Nazareth has been arrested by the High Council on charges of blasphemy. The arrest came shortly before midnight in the Garden of Gethsemane, where soldiers from the temple found Jesus with his closest friends. A temple spokesman says they believed Jesus might have been plotting with those friends in the garden, but a source close to Jesus says they were only praying. Jesus is standing trial before the High Priest at this hour, and we’ll have more as the story develops. Now here’s a check of the weather with our buddy, Mark Storm. Mark?
MARK: Hey, Rock, we’ve got a pretty nice forecast for this coming weekend, but before I get to that, did you say Jesus of Nazareth was arrested?
ROCK: That’s right.
MARK: For what?
ROCK: We’re still waiting to confirm that, but it seems the High Council is charging him with pretending to be God.
MARK: Pretending? That’s crazy.
ROCK: I know.
MARK: He doesn’t have to pretend. He is God! I’ve seen the miracles myself!
ROCK: You mean you’re a believer?
MARK: Well, sure! Who wouldn’t be?
ROCK: Well, according to sources down at the temple, there’s a large crowd of people turning against him.
MARK: Well that just doesn’t sound right to me. He’s healed the sick, and the blind, and the crippled. Shoot, he even raised the dead! Why in the world would anyone want to arrest Jesus? Unless…
ROCK: Unless what, Mark?
MARK: No, that’s too crazy. Even for me.
ROCK: What is?
MARK: What if getting arrested is the plan? What if Jesus wants to be put on trial?
ROCK: Why would he do that?
MARK: He’s God’s Son, Rock. If he let those men arrest him, I know he has a reason!
ROCK: Mark, can we get a forecast, please?
MARK: The forecast? Sure, it’s gonna be a nice sunny weekend, all the way til Sunday. But if you ask me, something big is coming. It’s not on radar, but I have a feeling we’re in for an earth-shaking event this weekend. Back to you, Rock.
OBJECT LESSON
ITEMS NEEDED:
An acorn
A pot with soil
Have any of you ever gone out and gathered acorns? Acorns are awfully cute, and while they make a nice treat for squirrels, they also make some cute decorations. But what happens when we collect a bunch of acorns to decorate our homes? They stay acorns. They stay nice for a long while, but they never become anything more.
If you plant an acorn, something amazing happens. The acorn is a seed that grows into a giant tree. But if the acorn never falls to the ground and “dies,” it won’t grow into anything big.
It seems crazy that God’s Son would allow himself to be arrested and put to death, but Jesus knew there was only one way to save us from our sin. He loved us so much, he was willing to die for us.
Jesus died so we could have new life. Let’s remember that as Easter approaches, and let’s thank God that he loves us so much!
LARGE GROUP GAME
EGG SHUFFLE
ITEMS NEEDED:
Twelve plastic Easter eggs of various sizes
INSTRUCTIONS:
Take all the eggs and split them in half. Mix up the egg halves and spread them on a table. Choose one player and give him sixty seconds to match up all the eggs.
VARIATION:
Use more eggs for older kids but fewer eggs for younger kids.
WHAT’S THE POINT?
Jesus died so he could be reunited with us, like two halves of an Easter egg.
LARGE GROUP LESSON
BOTTOM LINE:
God sent Jesus to die for us.
OBJECTIVE:
Kids will be able to state why Jesus came to Earth.
KEY PASSAGE:
Matthew 26:36-56, Jesus Arrested
INTRO:
Every day, kids head home from school. They do their homework, they play for a bit, they enjoy dinner, and then they get ready for the best part of the day. You put on your favorite pajamas. You grab a teddy bear or a blanket. You cuddle up on the couch with your Mom or Dad, and you settle in to watch the nightly news. How many of you think that’s the very best part of the day?
Not many kids would say that the news is the best part of the day. There may be a few who enjoy it, particularly older kids who are concerned about their world, but the news is mostly for adults.
The news tells us all the top stories of the day. Some of them can be fun, like the entertainment news or the sports news. And some is actually useful for kids. Don’t you want to know the forecast before you get dressed for school in the morning?
But most of the news is kind of a downer. Every day you hear mostly bad things on the news. A company did something bad and released a bad product. Someone was robbed or killed, and police are baffled. Politicians are fighting with each other. Countries are going to war with one another. Terrorists. Earthquakes. Tornadoes. Hurricanes. Black Friday shopping riots. Why would anyone want to watch the news?
The news reminds us every day that we live in a broken, fallen world. It reminds us that there’s sin, and with sin comes death and suffering. But remembering how broken and fallen our world is can also remind us that God did something to save us from sin. It’s not news, what Jesus did for us at Easter, but it’s a story that’s just as important today as it was when it first broke.
When the news begins, they always start with the top story of the day. Even though the Easter story is nearly 2000 years old, it’s still the top story any of us will ever hear.
READ MATTHEW 26:36-56
MAIN POINT:
Wait a minute! Did I just say this was good news? Wasn’t I just saying that God did something good to save us from the pain of this world of sin?
Yes, I did, but before we can get to the best part of the story, we have to start with the saddest. The Bible tells us that the punishment for sin is death, and the only way Jesus could save us from our sins was to die for us.
The Easter story doesn’t start out happy. It’s sad, and it’s troubling. Why would God’s Son allow anyone to harm him? Jesus knew it had to happen. It was all part of the plan. Jesus died so that he could save us from our sins.
DRIVE IT HOME:
It’s fitting that we celebrate Easter in the springtime. Several months ago, in the fall, we saw nature “die” when the leaves fell from the trees and the flowers withered into the ground. It’s sad to see the green turn to brown, but if it didn’t die back in the fall, it would not be raised to new life in the spring.
Jesus died so that he could give us new life. That’s the greatest news ever spoken, and the greatest news any of us will ever hear. That’s why every year at this time, we break in to our regular routine to remember what Jesus as done for us.
Whether you’re hearing the Easter story for the first time, or whether you’ve heard it many times before, I hope you’ll take some time to think about what it means. Jesus, the Son of God, left Heaven behind so he could save us. He did what we could never do for ourselves because he loves us so much.
After you reflect on the story, I want you to do one more thing. I want you to share the news with a friend. Tell others that Easter is coming, and tell them what Easter means to you. Invite them to church, or share the story with them yourself. This is the most important story you can ever share with your friends. Don’t keep it to yourself.
The nightly news isn’t going to spread the Easter story for us, so let’s break the news to the entire world that Jesus died for our sins.
CLOSE WITH A SIMPLE PRAYER:
Dear God,
Thank you sending Jesus to die for us.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION (K-2ND)
ICEBREAKER:
How often do you watch the news with your parents?
MEMORY VERSE ACTIVITY:
Mark 16:15
Give all the kids a Bible and help them locate the verse. As you read the verse aloud, encourage the kids to follow along with their finger.
SMALL GROUP GAME/ACTIVITY:
Have the kids act out their own newscast announcing the story of Jesus’ arrest.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
Read Matthew 26:36-56
Where did Jesus go to pray?
What was Jesus praying about?
What did the disciples do while Jesus prayed?
How was Jesus arrested?
Why did Jesus come to earth?
SIMPLE PRAYER:
Dear God,
Help us to spread the good news that Jesus died for us.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION (3RD-5TH)
ICEBREAKER:
How often do you watch the news with your parents?
MEMORY VERSE ACTIVITY:
Mark 16:15
Give all the kids a Bible. Let the kids race to see who can find the verse first. Let that kid read to the group.
SMALL GROUP GAME/ACTIVITY:
Have the kids act out their own newscast announcing the story of Jesus’ arrest.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
Read Matthew 26:36-56
What was Jesus praying about?
Do you think Jesus wanted to die if he didn’t have to?
Why did Jesus come to earth?
What is the good news of Easter?
How can we help to share that good news with others?
SIMPLE PRAYER:
Dear God,
Help us to spread the good news that Jesus died for us.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
For your convenience, you can also download the entire PDF version of this Jesus Arrested Children's Ministry Lesson (just click the link).
Here's a video from Holy Tales: Bible that you might find helpful to go along with your Sunday School Lesson on Jesus' Arrest.
Take a look at the links below for other ideas for teaching a Jesus Arrested Sunday School Lesson:
Judas Iscariot Betrays Jesus: Children's Bible Lesson
Jesus on Trial Bible Lesson for Young Children
The Garden of Gethsemane: Free Sunday School Lesson