unit 5 passion week--lesson 1 nt5.1 jesus enters …...1 nt5.1 jesus enters jerusalem ©beverly...

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NT5.1 Jesus Enters Jerusalem ©Beverly Wilson 2018

Unit 5 Passion Week--Lesson 1

NT5.1 Jesus Enters Jerusalem

Scripture: Matthew 21: 1-16; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-38; John 12: 12-18

Lesson Goal: The Passion Week is the last week of Jesus' life. This lesson is about Jesus’ Triumphant

Entry into Jerusalem which happened on the first day of the week--Palm Sunday. We will learn that Jesus is worthy of all honor and praise.

Introduction: The Passion Week was the last week of Jesus' life. This lesson is about Jesus’ triumphant

Entry into Jerusalem which happened on the first day of the week--Palm Sunday. We will learn that Jesus is worthy of all honor and praise. The lesson is found in all four of the gospels. The gospels are the first four books of the New Testament. They tell the story of the Life of Christ while he lived here on earth. Let's say the names of the Gospels together--Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Attention Getter: Have you ever been to a parade? A parade is when people walk down the street in a formal way to celebrate a special day or event. Often a parade will have a band to play and march. You may have gone to a Fourth of July parade to celebrate the beginning of our country. Here is an Independence Day parade with children riding on a float. Often a parade begins with flags carried by policemen, firemen or military people. Some parades even have huge balloons like the Macy Day parade on Thanksgiving. Important people in the government often ride in the parade and wave to the crowd. In this lesson we will find out what some people did when they wanted to welcome Jesus to the city of Jerusalem. They had a parade which is called the Triumphant Entry into Jerusalem.

Opening Prayer: “Lord, Jesus, You deserve our praises. You are an awesome God! You are greater than we can even imagine! You created the whole earth and everything in it. You hold all things together in order. Yet you are full of kindness toward us! You sent your Son Jesus to earth to bring to us the gift of salvation. Your name is glorified when we believe in you as our Savior. Help us to honor you with our lives. In your name we pray. Amen.”

Memory Verse: Psalm 71:23 "My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you."

Lesson Video: https://youtu.be/KmVLARWexdU

The roads to Jerusalem were full of people! Everyone was excited and happy. It was the time for the beginning of the Feast of Passover, the biggest celebration of the year! People were coming to Jerusalem from all over the country. Many of the people had heard about Jesus and how he had healed the sick and made the blind to see.

They were looking for Jesus and as they arrived in the temple. They asked one another, “What do you think? Do you think Jesus will come to the Passover Feast?” They all knew that the chief priest and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone found out where Jesus was, that they should report it so they could arrest him.

During the Passover Feast everyone would have a special dinner with their families and then go to the temple where God's people went to worship Him. The Passover celebration would last for a whole week.

Jesus and His disciples were walking toward Jerusalem, too. They were coming from Bethany to Bethphage which was on the Mount of Olives. They were going to celebrate the Passover as well. As they were walking up the long hill towards Jerusalem, Jesus and his disciples talked together about the promise of a Messiah.

https://youtu.be/KmVLARWexdU

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Jesus knew that now was the time for Him to announce that He was indeed the Messiah to the whole nation of Israel. The Passover was the time when all of Israel would be gathered together. Everyone would see him and His mission of bringing salvation would be evident to all.

At first Jesus’ disciples did not understand that Jesus was going to die. It was only after Jesus’ resurrection from the grave that they realized the meaning of all these things. Many Old Testament prophecies about the coming Messiah would be fulfilled during the Passion Week. Psalm 24:7 foretold that this event would be in Jerusalem “Lift up your heads, you gates, be lifted up you ancient doors; that the king of glory may come in.”

When Jesus and his disciples came to Bethage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus spoke to two of His followers, "Go to the village ahead and just as you enter you will find a colt tied there. The colt is a baby donkey. No one has ever ridden it before." If anyone ask you what you are doing tell them, "The Lord needs it and will return it."

The two disciples set off immediately. Many years before the prophet Zechariah had foretold how the Messiah would come into Jerusalem riding on a donkey! They found the young donkey outside in the street tied to a doorway and they started to untie it. As they did so the colt's owners said, "What are you doing, untying that colt?"

"The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly," They replied. The owners let them borrow the donkey. Jesus was going to use this animal to prove that He really was the Promised One from God! Riding the colt was a fulfillment of Zechariah 9:9 “Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout Daughter Jerusalem! See your king comes to you righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

The two disciples led the colt back to Jesus. They threw their coats on the young donkey's back to make a place for Jesus to sit. Jesus sat on the donkey and began to ride down the road toward Jerusalem. That young donkey did not buck or jump! He was carrying Jesus the King of all kings! Jesus' disciples walked along beside Him.

Many people spread their cloaks on the ground for Jesus to ride over while others waved palm leaves. This was no ordinary ride! Jesus was headed to Jerusalem which was the place where the kings and the rulers of the land lived.

The news that Jesus was coming was heard throughout the crowd. "Jesus is coming!" someone shouted. Someone else heard it and passed it on: "Jesus is coming! People remembered many wonderful things Jesus had done. They ran ahead of Jesus shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" The word hosanna means "save."

Others shouted, "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!" Many others shouted, "Hosanna in the highest heaven!" People were greeting Jesus as if He were a King! They wanted Jesus to know they thought that He was important so they spread palm branches on the ground.

The people were excited because they believed that Jesus was the Messiah. They thought He had come to overthrow the Roman government and soon all of the people would be free. Soon the people inside the city heard the singing and shouting that was coming from outside the city gate.

They ran out to see what was going on!" Who's this person causing so much excitement?" the people asked. Some of the Pharisee in the crowd said to Jesus, "Teacher, tell your disciples to stop shouting." The Pharisees were angry and jealous that the people were praising Jesus. They didn't want anyone challenging their power or authority!

"I tell you," replied Jesus, "if they keep quiet the stones will cry out." God wanted everyone to know that His Son Jesus was setting up an eternal kingdom and this was reason enough to rejoice! Jesus was the Son of God and He deserved all honor and praise!

The children went with Jesus right into the Temple! They were singing and shouting "Hosanna! Hosanna!" The children's songs and shouts made the temple leaders even more angry.

"Do you hear what these children are saying about You?” the chief priests asked Jesus. "Yes!" Jesus said. "God planned for children and infants to praise Me!"

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Some people in the crowd were those that had been with Jesus when He called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him the dead. They believed that Jesus was the Resurrection and Life just as he had said. Jesus had said, “Those who believe in me will live, even though he dies, and whoever lives and believes in me will never die!”

Now in the crowd were some Greeks who had gone up to worship in the Temple for the Passover. They came to Philip who was from Bethsaida in Galilee with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” Philip went to tell Andrew. Then Andrew and Philip told Jesus.

Jesus said to them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” Jesus was talking about his coming death on the cross. He said, “Unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” This was a picture of how Jesus would die to pay the penalty for sins but he would show his power over death.

His resurrection would be proof that He has eternal life. Because Jesus is God He can give this same eternal life to all who believe in Him. Jesus said again, “Father, glorify your name!” Then a voice came from heaven and said, “I have glorified it and will glorify it again.”

The crowd that was there heard it and said that it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to Him.

Other people in the crowd who were praising God for giving them a king had the wrong idea about Jesus. They were sure that he would restore their nation to its former glory. They were deaf to the words of the prophets and blind to Jesus’ real mission in coming to Jerusalem. In just a few days when it would become apparent that Jesus was not going to fulfill their hopes, many of these same people would turn against him.

Finally the parade ended on the steps of the temple. From the steps of the temple Jesus looked out over the city. Jesus realized that not everyone believed that he was the King of Kings. This made him very sad. Jesus began to cry and weep because there were those who refused to believe that He was the Son of God and would not accept His gift of salvation.

The Jewish leaders had rejected their king. They had refused God’s offer of salvation in Jesus Christ. Jesus said that soon the nation would suffer. The city of Jerusalem would be surrounded by their enemies and it would be destroyed. About 40 years after Jesus said these words, they came true. The Jews revolted against the Roman rule and in AD 70 the Roman soldiers entered the city and destroyed it by burning it down.

Even though the leaders were angry, it was a wonderful day in the city of Jerusalem! People sang and shouted praises to Jesus! It was like a big parade. Jesus was glad to hear the children praise Him.

Jesus is worthy of honor and praise and the people showed their love for Him. Just like the people in this lesson, we celebrate this event on Palm Sunday.

If we love Jesus with all our hearts, then we will want to praise him like the children did. Jesus is glad when He hears our praises too! Our praise and worship of Jesus shows to others how important Jesus is to us.

There are many reasons we can praise Jesus and many ways to praise Him. One way we can praise Jesus is by saying, "thank you!" to Him for all the wonderful things He has done. We can also live lives that honor God and are examples to others of our faith in Christ.

Our memory verse is Psalm 71:23 says "My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you." When we sing, we are praising Jesus! Another way to praise Jesus is by telling others how great Jesus is. Let's say the verse again! Psalm 71:23 "My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you."

We can praise Jesus anywhere--at home, at school, and even in the park! We can praise Jesus anytime--in the morning, at noon, and at bedtime! We praise Him because He loves us and He is God's Son.

Let’s pray. “Lord, Jesus, You deserve our praises. You are an awesome God! You are greater than we can even imagine! You created the whole earth and everything in it. You hold all things together in order. Yet you are full of kindness toward us! You sent your Son Jesus to earth to bring to us the gift of salvation. Your name is glorified when we believe in you as our Savior. Help us to honor you with our lives. In your name we pray. Amen.

Remember Jesus is worthy of all honor and praise!

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Review Questions/ Game: “Heads or Tails” Divide class into groups of no more than four each. Give each group a penny. Groups flip coins at your signal. Groups whose coins are "heads" answer one of the questions below. Continue flipping coins and answering questions as time permits. 1. Where were Jesus and His disciples going the week before His death on the cross? (They were going

to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover.) 2. What is the celebration of Passover about? (When God passed over the Israelite’s homes that had

lamb’s blood painted on the door posts and didn’t kill the first born son.) 3. Just before coming into Jerusalem, what did Jesus send two of His disciples off to do? (To go into the

village, find a donkey and bring it to Jesus.) 4. Why was it important that Jesus ride on a donkey into Jerusalem? (It was a fulfillment of the prophecy

in Zechariah 9:9.) 5. When Jesus rode into the city on a donkey, what did the people do and why? (They thought he was

going to be anointed as King, so they waved palm branches and laid down their clothes for Him to walk over and shouted, “Hosanna in the highest.”)

6. Why did they hope He was going to be their king? (They were under the Roman rule at that time and they wanted to be free of the persecution.)

7. What does “Hosanna” mean? (It means, “Save us now.”) 8. Who was it in the temple that sang out their praise to Jesus and made the chief priests and scribes

indignant? (The children.) 9. Who asked the disciples to see Jesus? (Some Greeks who were probably converts wanted to see

Jesus.) 10. What message did Jesus give the Greeks and the crowd that was gathered around? (Jesus said his

death was like a grain of wheat dying in the soil in order for the wheat to grow and produce many seeds.)

11. What was the meaning of the story of the “wheat dying”? (Jesus’ death on the cross would bring life to all who believed in Him.)

12. Who was very angry about the triumphal entry into Jerusalem? (The Jewish leaders were very angry at Jesus and his disciples.)

13. When the Jewish leaders criticized Jesus’ disciples and the children’s praise, what did Jesus tell them would happen if they did not sing His praises? (The rocks would cry out in praise.)

14. What made Jesus cry on the temple steps? (He realized that the nation of Israel was rejecting Him as the Messiah.)

15. What judgment would come on the city of Jerusalem because they rejected Jesus as Savior? (The Romans would conquer and destroy the city in AD 70.)

16. How was the Son of Man glorified? (He was glorified by His death on the cross in order to provide salvation to all who believe.)

17. Besides the fact that Jesus is good to us, why does He deserve all our praise? (He is God.) 18. What are some characteristics of the Lord Jesus that should cause us to praise Him? (All-knowing, all-

powerful, all-present, all-wise, faithful, holy, merciful, sovereign, unchanging, etc.) 19. What are some creative ways you can praise the Lord? (Write a poem, draw a picture, sing a song,

etc.)

Bible Memory Verse Activity: “Five W’s” Our memory verse is Psalm 71:23 "My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you." Have children locate the verse in the Bible. Read the verse aloud with children several times. Procedure: Print these words on separate index cards: "who" "what", "when," and "why." Place index card face down on the floor or table. Each child takes a turn to choose a card and then answers a question below that corresponds to the chosen card. Repeat the verse together as a group after each child answers a question.

Who do we sing praises to? (Jesus) What can we do to praise Jesus? (sing, pray, tell others how great Jesus is.) Where is a place we can praise Jesus? (home, school, park) When can we praise Jesus? (anytime) Why can we praise Jesus? (He loves us. He is God's Son.)

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Group Learning Activity: “Connect Four” (Grades K-5) Purpose: To be able to recall the basic concepts in the lesson of “Jesus Enters Jerusalem.” Preparation: You will need printed copies of the Connect Four (1 card per child). Cut sheets of cards apart. Place game cards on the table. You will need game markers. You can use small pieces of paper, buttons, or chips as markers. Procedure: Instruct each child to select a card. Say: “I will call out one of the following words to you one word at a time. Locate and cover the word on your card. When you get four in a row, shout, “Connect Four!” To check the accuracy of the covered words you must use each word in a sentence that tells about the event or character in the lesson. Play as time permits. Concept Words: money changers, Jesus, chief religious leaders, Isaiah, temple, colt, house of prayer, Jerusalem, disciples, robes, healing, Hosanna, Bethany, donkey, Bethany, children, fig tree.

Group Learning Activity: “Road to Jerusalem” (Grades K-3) Purpose: To work together to make a craft project that stimulates the review of the basic concepts in the lesson Preparation: You will need Bible, 4 foot length of butcher paper, pencil, markers, green construction paper, scissors, glue, and fabric scraps. Draw an outline with a pencil a curving road on the paper. Make a sample palm leaf branch. Procedure: Have the children tear or cut green paper to represent palm branches. Have children color the road, glue fabric scraps, and torn or cut green paper to road for coats and palm branches. Demonstrate how to fringe the edges of the paper branches. Children can fringe the branch shapes before gluing them to the mural. Optional: Ask the children to think of some of the sounds they may have heard when Jesus was traveling to Jerusalem. (cheers from the crowd; donkey noises, rustling of the palm branches, etc.) Tape record the sounds as children make them. Play sounds as children draw or finish the road project. Say: “In our Bible story today Jesus came to Jerusalem. The people there cut branches from trees and put their branches and their coats on the road. They wanted to show how important Jesus was and to praise Him. Why did the people in Jerusalem praise Jesus? (They were glad to see him. He was famous because of His miracles. They wanted Him to be their king.) How had Jesus shown love to you? What good things has Jesus given you? There are many good reasons to praise Jesus!” (Hold your Bible open.) “Our Bible says, “Sing praise to the Lord.” When we praise Jesus, we can sing and talk about how much we love Him. I love Jesus and I’m glad that we can praise and thank Jesus for His love. (Pray briefly). Thank you, Jesus, for loving us. We love you.”

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Group Learning Activity: Bible Study “Gospel Puzzles” (Grades 2-5) Purpose: To provide a motivation for students to learn the references for scripture references in the gospels Preparation: You will need Bibles, index cards (four different colored cards work well for this activity), blue, red, purple, and green markers, and scissors. Print in colors indicated or on the same color of index card the following scripture. Be sure to leave enough space between the Book of the Bible and the chapter to cut apart into puzzle pieces. Cut cards into pieces. Scriptures to write on cards include:

Blue—Matthew 21:1-3; Mark 11:1-3, Luke 19:28-31 Red—Mark 11:4-6; Luke 19:32-34 Purple—Matthew 21:9; Mark 11:9.10; Luke 19:38; John 12:13 Green—Matthew 21:15,16; Mark 11:18; Luke 19:39,40

Procedure: Count the number of students present. Ask students to close eyes while you hide puzzle pieces, making sure to hide one piece for each student. (Use all the cards of one color before using another color.) Participate in this activity yourself if needed to create an even number of players. Each student finds a hidden puzzle piece and then finds the student holding the matching puzzle piece. Students read the Bible passage in their Bibles. Have students read the passage aloud to the class. Say: “In what section of the Bible are these verses found? (The Gospels) What is similar about all the (blue) passages? (They tell what Jesus told His disciples to do.) How are the (blue) passages different from each other? Each of the Gospels tells the story of Jesus’ life in a slightly different way. The people who wrote these books included different information about the same events. When we read the different accounts of each event, we get a better idea of everything that happened._ Repeat activity as time permits, hiding different puzzle pieces or hiding the same pieces again.

Group Learning Activity: Bible Study: “Characteristics of God” (Grades 3-5) Purpose: To help children discover the qualities of Jesus that should cause us to praise Him.

Preparation: You will need Bibles, pencils, and spiritual journals.

Say: “In this lesson we learned that Jesus was honored and praised as He entered into Jerusalem on the first day of the Passion Week. This was the announcement that He was the King of Kings and the Messiah. The nation of Israel was given an opportunity to recognize Him as the Promised One but they rejected Him. During his entrance into Jerusalem riding on a donkey the young children ran ahead singing and shouting praises to Him. The praise of these children was natural and right because Jesus is God the son. The Lord Jesus deserves all our praise. We should freely praise Him as we see His glory in the world around us and His power in our lives but we should praise Him not just for what He does but also for who He is—the Lord of all. We are going to look up some scriptures and find out the inner qualities of God for which we should praise Him. Procedure: Locate and read aloud the following scriptures and highlight the main principle being taught about God. Have students record these qualities of God in their spiritual notebooks.

God is All-knowing. (Job 37:16; Psalms 139:1-4) God controls all the earth and its various functions because He not only made it but He knows how it works. We should praise Him because He knows all things. God already knows everything about us and he accepts and loves us. God is with us in every situation, in every trial, protecting, loving, and guiding. He knows and loves us completely.

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God is All-powerful. (Job 42:2; Revelation 19:6) The great choir of heaven praises God. God can do anything He wants. His power is greater than anything we can imagine. He always use it for our good.

God is All-present (Psalm 139:7-12; Proverbs 5:21; Acts 17:28) God is always present everywhere. He is with you all the time. He sees everything you do and hears everything you say.

God is All-wise: (Ps 104:24; Is 40:28; Rom 11:33). He made and understands all things. His plans for us are perfect

God is Faithful: (Lamentations 3:22, 23; 1 Corinthians 10:13; 1 Thessalonians 5:24) God always does what He says He will do. You can trust His Word completely

God is Holy: (1 Samuel 2:2; Psalm 99:5; Isaiah 43:15) He is completely pure and perfect. He never sins and He cannot tolerate sin. All that He does is right and good

God is Merciful: (Numbers 14:18; Psalm 130:3; Ephesians 2:4). God cares about us more deeply than we could understand. He sent His Son to die so that He can justly choose not to give us the punishment our sin deserves.

God is Sovereign: He rules over all things in heaven and earth, including our lives. There is no power or authority greater than His (Psalm 22:28; 47:2; Isaiah 44:6; 66:1,2; Daniel 4:34; 35).

God is Unchanging: He is always the same — pure and good, faithful in His love and care — and nothing can change who or what He is (Malachi 3:6; James 1:17).

Say: “God wants very much for us to know what He is really like. Each day as you spend time with the Lord, begin with a few moments of praise to Him. You can say “thank-You” prayers to Jesus for who He is or maybe sing a song to Him. The Bible says our mouths should be filled with His praise. Speak your praise not just privately to Jesus, but to others as well. That is what happened in the temple in Jerusalem. The children shouted out their praise to the Lord Jesus, giving Him the glory He deserves.”

Craft Learning Activity: “Praisezoid” (Grades 2-5) Purpose: To made a visual reminder to praise God by using scripture as a guide Preparation: You will need the “Praisezoid” template below printed on heavyweight paper or cardstock. You will need scissors, glue, pencils, and transparent adhesive tape. You may need to precut the circle for younger children. Say: “Imagine for a few minutes if you were present when Jesus made His way to Jerusalem. How do you think you would feel? Would you be excited? Would you place your coat on the ground? What words of praise would you give to Jesus? Today we are going to make a praisezoid. On the praisezoid are scriptures from the Book of Psalms. These scriptures will help us know how to praise Jesus.” Procedure: (Review the Bible story.) Read the memory verse aloud. Psalm 71:23 "My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you." Distribute the “Praisezoid” sheets, scissors, pencils, and tape. Have children cut out the circles. Fold inward on the dotted lines. Tape or glue the folded edges together. Say: “Let’s research some words we can use in our praise. The Book of Psalms contains many words and phrases that describe God.” (Lead the children to locate and read aloud the verses listed on their circles.) Say: “Write one or two praise words on each circle.” Demonstrate how to fold and assemble the praisezoid. Encourage the children to use their praisezoid as reminders to praise Jesus throughout the week. Say: “Jesus is the only Son of god, and He was sent to be our Savior. We can know that Jesus is worthy of our praise.” Invite the children to pray sentence prayers, praising Jesus.

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Group Learning Activity: “Praise March” (Grades K-5) Purpose: To encourage children to praise God Say: “In our lesson we learned that people in Jerusalem praised Jesus as He entered the city. We are going to show Jesus our praise by creating a praise march.” Procedure: Teach the following march lyrics. In a military like voice say one line and let students repeat it after you.

I sure know and I’ve been told His story won’t get old I sure know and It’s been said, For my sins, Jesus bled. Sound off Jesus Louder Praise Him Bring it on down Praise Him, Praise Him.

Ask kids to stand up and form a line and instruct them to march in military style around the room repeating the lines after you say them.

Craft Learning Activity: “Praise Posters” (Grades K-5) Purpose: To make praise posters to remind students to praise Jesus daily. Preparation: You will need large sheets of poster board in white and various colors. Cut poster board sheets into various shapes (rectangles, squares, triangles, squiggles, trapezoids, hexagons, etc.) Make at least one shape for each child. You will need to videos or CDs of praise songs to play as children work. Say: “In this lesson the people praised Jesus as He rode on a donkey into Jerusalem. I am going to play some praise song on the DVD or CD. Listen to the songs to hear the different ways the people praised Him. (Play “Easter Means” or other praise song.) What did the people do to praise Jesus? (They spread their coats and palm branches on the ground, sang songs and shouted words of praise.) What kind of praises do you think they shouted?” (Hosanna!, “You are Great!” “You are Lord!” “Thank You!” “We love you.”) Procedure: Give each student a different shaped poster board sign. Have students make banners. Print the praise with large letters on the shapes. The teacher can print the praises that the class responds with if desired and then give the shape to different children to decorate.) Read the memory verse Psalm 71:23 "My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you." Who is this verse talking about? (Everyone needs to praise God.) Why did the people in this lesson praise Jesus? (He had helped many people. They were glad to see Him. They wanted him to be their King.) What are some reasons we can praise Jesus today? (He loves us. He helps us. He forgives us.) Play the CD or DVD praise song again. Lead the children to sing and march to the music carrying their banners. Have children hold up their banners and shout the praise written on their banners.

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Craft Learning Activity: “Sponges of Praise” (Grades K-5) Purpose: To make a visual reminder that we should praise God daily. Preparation: You will need craft glue, large googly eyes (2 per child), small pom-poms (1 per child), variety of sizes and colors of small sponges (1 per child), chenille stems, suction cups (w per child) yarn or ribbon, craft foam, fabric scraps, scissors, permanent markers, green construction paper, and table. Remove metal hooks from suction cups. Say: “When you have really exciting news it is difficult to keep it to yourself. Imagine how excited the people were as Jesus rode by on the colt. How did they express their excitement? (They sang and shouted “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!”) Their excitement was too much to contain! Jesus said that if the people did not praise him, then the rocks would cry out! For this lesson we are going to make “Sponges of Praise.” (Review the Bible lesson.) Procedure: Glue the eyes and nose (pom-pom) onto the sponge. Draw a mouth. Fold 2 chenille stems in half. Wrap around each around a suction cup to form the legs. Insert the chenille stems into the bottom of the sponge. Glue in place. Cut 1 chenille stem in half. Insert in the sponge. To form the arms cut palm leaves from construction paper and glue to the end of the arms. (See photo). Say: Let’s arrange our sponges in a group and pretend Jesus is riding by on His way to Jerusalem. What would the “sponges” shout! (Have student read the memory verse Psalm 71:23 "My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you.") Take this sponge of Praise home and place it in your room. Each day this week, remember to praise Jesus.” Invite children to pray sentence prayers praising Jesus.

Craft Learning Activity: “Praise Palm Leaf” (Grades K-6) Purpose: To brainstorm ways to praise and thank Jesus and to provide a reminder of the Triumphal Entry. Preparation: You will need one sheet of green construction paper for each student. Print the template of the palm leaf below to use as a pattern for cutting the palm leaf out of the green construction paper. You will need scissors, a permanent marker or pencil, green pipe cleaner, and clear adhesive tape. Procedure: Fold a sheet of green construction paper in half vertically. Clip the template so the dotted line is along the fold. Cut through the template and both layers of the construction paper along the black line. Have students write something on their palm leaf for which they can praise Jesus. Examples: Jesus forgives me; Jesus loves me; Jesus takes care of me; Jesus is the Son of God. Tape a green pipe cleaner to the center of the leaf as a stem or roll a second piece of green construction paper tightly as a tube and tape it to the center of the palm leaf to provide stability. Children should be encouraged to wave their palm leaves while singing or saying words of praise.

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Craft Learning Activity: “Shake it Up!” Praise Instruments (Grades K-5) Purpose: Make an instrument to praise God Preparation: You will need balloons, popcorn kernels, beans, or rice for a balloon shaker. You will need two paper bowls, beans, rice or popcorn plus a stapler and yarn for the bowl tambourines. Procedure: Balloon Shakers: Drop popcorn kernels, beans, or rice into a balloon. Slightly blow up the balloon and tie it closed. Using permanent markers write on the balloon a way to follow Jesus during the week. Tie ribbons to the neck of the balloon for streamers. Bowl Tambourines: Decorate two paper bowls using markers. Place a handful of beans, rice or popcorm in one bowl. Place a second bowl upside down on top of the first bowl and staple the edges together. At regular intervals around the edge of the bowls, punch holes through both bowls. Attach yarn or ribbon through holes for streamers. As students are constructing instruments, talk with them about reasons you love God and have chosen to follow Him. Ask students to think of praise songs that they enjoy and would like to share with their family.

Craft Learning Activity: “Rock Concert” (Grades K-5) Preparation: Each student will need 3-4 smooth rocks and permanent markers. Say: “Have any of you ever been to a concert? What was the crowd doing?” (Guide the children to understand that the crowd at a concert cheers and is excited about the star of the concert.) “Don’t you think that Jesus should be the star of our lives? We are going to make him a rock concert of praises. Just like the crowd in our lesson, we have many things to praise Jesus for. Jesus is worthy of our praise and honor. I want you to think of something that you can praise Jesus for.” (Discuss these ideas as a group.) Procedure: Distribute a few rocks to each child and instruct them to write one praise on a rock with a permanent marking pen. Continue with the rest of their rocks. Gather all the rocks together. Explain that Jesus can be the star of our lives when we praise Him. Allow the children to take their rock home and instruct them to use them as a reminder to praise Jesus every day.

Craft Learning Activity: Donkey Paper Bag Puppet (Grades K-3) Preparation: You will need a printed copy of the donkey bag template for each student and a brown paper lunch sack. You will also need scissors, glue, and colored marking pens, colored pencils, or crayons.

Procedure: Give each student a brown paper lunch sack and one printed copy of the donkey sack puppet template. Have student color the template as desired. Cut out the template pieces. Attach with glue the large nose, and mouth to the folded edge of the sack bottom to form the mouth. Add the ears and the mane to the top of the sack using glue. Add eyes. If desired, draw arms or legs and tail. Add to the back of the sack extending the ends beyond the edge of the bag. Say: “In our lesson Jesus sent his disciples ahead to a village to get a colt or baby donkey for him to ride into Jerusalem on the Day of His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. The owner gladly allowed the disciples to take the donkey when they told him that the Lord had need of him. Riding into Jerusalem on a donkey fulfilled the Old Testament prophecy of Zechariah 9:9 that Jesus would enter the city gates riding on a colt. Jesus demonstrated that He was truly the Son of God by completing all the prophecy about His coming. We can trust Him to keep His promise to us of giving us eternal life if we only believe in Him as our Savior.”

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Life Application Challenge: “Live It Out” Say: “We know that in our heads that Jesus is worthy of praise, but we must do more than know this. We need to put praise into practice. Challenge children to do one or more of the following:

(1) sing a song of praise to Jesus everyday this week (2) pray and give thanks to Jesus for giving us salvation through Jesus, our home in heaven, our

parents, our homes, food, and clothing (3) write a poem of praise (4) tell others about the love of Jesus for us and how special He is to you

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Psalm 71:23 "My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you."

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