Easter is the more commonly recognized name for the season, but the week of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection is also known as Passion Week. That week begins with the Triumphant Entry or Palm Sunday and proceeds to Good Friday, the traditional day of Jesus’ death, and concludes with Resurrection Sunday. The D6 Family Easter Guide is an eight-day journey with your family from Palm Sunday to the Resurrection. Each day includes a devotion from a passage of Scripture that shows how Jesus fulfilled Messianic prophecy or demonstrates His divine nature. Daily family activities are included to reinforce the teaching of Scripture. The passages of Scripture in the D6 Family Easter Guide highlight how Jesus’ death was designed by God as the means of our redemption. The sinless One took our place and suffered for our sin. The ultimate goal is for each member of the family to identify with Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, Lord, and King.
LUKE 22:1-6 Now the Festival of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was approaching, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of the people. Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve [disciples]. And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. They were delighted and agreed to give him money. He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present. (NIV)
Judas’ betrayal did not take Jesus by surprise. He spoke of it to the disciples in John 13:18-21, referencing a prophecy from Psalm 41:9, “Even my close friend, someone I trusted, one who shared my bread, has turned against me” (NIV). Jesus even knew who it would be. We may wonder, why did Jesus choose Judas to be a disciple if He knew Judas would betray Him? But we need to remember Jesus’ purpose for coming to earth—He came to die as our substitute to be the sacrifice for our sins. This was His plan from the beginning. Judas represented all of humanity—all have sinned and rebelled against God. God knew before He created us that we would sin, that we would need to be redeemed, and what that would cost. He created us anyway, knowing all that. That is how much He loved us. How does it make you feel to know God loves us while we are still sinners? How can we share this good news with others?
ACTIVITY: Share God’s great love with others who may not know about it. Reach out to your children’s friends by having an Easter party.
- Make simple invitations, put them inside a plastic Easter egg, and pass them out.
- Serve simple treats (cupcakes and juice, cookies and milk, or fruit and cheese) and play simple games.
- Write each letter of the phrase, God Loves You, on a small slip of paper. Put one letter in each of the plastic egg s and invite children to work together to find the egg s and unscramble the message.
- Hide eggs with candy or small prizes inside.
- Tell or read the Easter story from Matthew 28.
Have fun! You could also plan an Easter meal. Encourage your children to invite their unchurched friends and family to attend a service with you on Easter morning and join you for lunch.
We would love for you and your family to join the journey of Easter using the D6 Family Easter Guide. You can go here to order one in time for Palm Sunday.
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