Easter Sunday
“The Resurrection of Our Lord”
True joy is mine with Jesus as my Savior.
Key Verse: Psalm 118:24 (NIV)
This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.
Bible Passage: John 20:1, 11–18 (NIV)
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. … Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”
“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
“Woman,” he said, “Why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”
Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary.”
She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).
Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.
Lesson Thought
On Easter Sunday, when I was six years old, my Sunday School teacher in a little town in West Virginia told us the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection. She told us about the joy of knowing that our sins could be forgiven. This was not the first time I had heard the Gospel, but I had disobeyed my mother the night before, and that sin weighed heavy on my little heart. That Easter morning, I asked Jesus to forgive my sin and to come into my life to stay. And He did! My parents rejoiced when I told them that I had asked Jesus to be my Savior. No matter the date, Easter Sunday is my spiritual birthday. I celebrate Easter every year with special joy and praise in my heart to Jesus. Do you know the risen Jesus as your Savior?
Application: What does this lesson say to us today?
1) The Bible tells us that everyone is a sinner in need of a Savior. Jesus died for my sins and for your sins. He rose from that grave, Conqueror of sin and death, the Giver of true joy. Confess your sins to Him today. Ask Him to forgive you and to come into your life. His joy can be yours!
2) As a believer in Jesus as my Savior, I am still learning through His Word how I can rejoice because of my salvation, even in the challenging times of life. If you know Jesus as Savior, does His joy show in your life? Pray: “LORD, help me to be joyful in the knowledge that You are my Savior this day. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Amen.”
Family Activities: putting the lesson into action
1) A spiritual birthday is the time when a person turns away from their sin and chooses to follow Jesus. Sometimes a person can pinpoint a particular time when they did this; for others, it is difficult to specify just when they did it. As close as possible, for those members of your family who have chosen to follow Jesus, mark their spiritual birthday on a calendar. Share with each other how each one came to know Jesus as their Savior. Celebrate these spiritual birthdays each year.
2) If someone in your family does not know Jesus as their Savior, gently encourage that individual in their journey towards Christ. Pray that he or she will make a decision to follow Jesus.
Suggestions for further study
I Thessalonians 5:16-18
Hebrews 12:2
Bonnie Russell
