Kids' Corner 3-6 Grade Children's Church / Sunday School Lesson

Title: Palm Sunday: I am God’s Temple!

Verses: 1 Corinthians 3:16, “Don't you know that you people are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?”

Mark 11:15-17, “On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”

Objective: Kids will learn that they are God's temple, and the Holy Spirit lives in them because of what Jesus did for them!

Spark: Sequence the Pictures: Holy Week

• Place pictures of Holy Week (Palm Sunday, Last Supper, Good Friday, Resurrection) under the kids' seats or on the table.

Directions: Children work with a partner to try and put the pictures in the order they think the story happened.

Transition: Today is Palm Sunday! Did you know that people have been celebrating this very day for over 2,000 years? That is longer than your parents, your grandparents, or even your great-grandparents have been alive! I wonder... What happened on this day that was so big and so special that we are still cheering about it today? Let’s find out where Jesus was going and why it changes everything for us!

Scripture:

Palm Sunday Background:

• What happened on Palm Sunday? Show Pictures (Palm Sunday, Temple)
• Where was Jesus going? (Jesus was going to the temple.)
• Has Jesus ever been to the Temple before this? (Yes! Do you remember when he was a boy? And his parents couldn’t find him for 3 days! Where did they finally find him? In the temple! God’s house! He was sitting among the teachers, listening to them, and asking them questions. He always had a teachable spirit! All who heard Jesus were astounded at His understanding and His answers.)
• Something always happens when Jesus enters the temple!
• Go over the events that happened when Jesus arrived:
  • Praises to God (Hosanna!) - Matthew 21
  • Healing the blind and lame - Matthew 21
  • Cleansing the temple– Why? (Mark 11:15-17 –  It’s not a place to buy and sell things, it’s a holy place for prayer to the Father!)
  • God’s Temple is a holy place and the people were not treating it as holy and special.

Open your Bible to Mark 11:15-17

Read: “On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”

1 Corinthians 3:16

Read: “Don't you know that you people are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?”

Explain:

• We are His temple – His house. What does it mean to be God’s temple or house? (Today, Jesus sends his Spirit to enter and live in us!)
• What does the Holy Spirit do when He enters the temple (us)? Think of what happened when Jesus entered the temple in Jerusalem (allow kids to share)
  • Takes out what is bad (selfish, hard, stubborn, complaining, etc), and brings in what the Father calls good:
    • Teachable spirit to learn the ways of the Kingdom!
    • Praise for Him at all times!
    • Healing for us and others
    • Cleansing of our sins, becoming a house of prayer!
  • Help the kids make connections between the temple and us

Activity

Craft: Construction Paper Palm Branch

To see an example of this craft please go to Kids Corner Pinterest

• Explain: Kids will create a palm branch as a reminder that Jesus is King and they will honor and praise Him!
• Kids will write “Hosanna!” down the center. On each palm frond, they will write a way that they will honor and praise Jesus. (Take time to pray, read their Bible, thank God for something that He did for them or their families this week, etc.)

Games:

4 Corners of the Temple: * Label the four corners of the room as North, South, East, and West.

• One child is "It" in the center with eyes closed.
• As kids move to a corner, remind them: "We are God's temple! We ask Him to fill us with Himself".
• "It" calls out a direction; those in that corner are out until one "winner" remains.

Crowd Charades:

• One child is the guesser and leaves the room (or covers his eyes and ears).
• The rest of the "crowd" acts out a scene from Holy Week (like waving palm branches or Jesus healing someone).
• The guesser has 30 seconds to figure out what part of the story they are acting out.

Live

Ask: What is one "good thing" the Holy Spirit can bring into their "temple" this week (like kindness or a teachable spirit).

Say: Have the kids repeat the phrase: “I am God’s temple, and the Holy Spirit lives in me!”

Prayer Focus: Thank the Lord for Jesus, for cleansing our sins – how He takes out what is bad and brings in what the Father calls good. Praise Him for making a way for us – we will be His temple.

Materials / Supplies Needed:

• Holy Week Sequence Pictures (Palm Sunday, Last Supper, Garden of Gethsemane, Good Friday, Resurrection Sunday)
• 4 signs for corners (North, South, East, West)
• Picture of the Temple in Jerusalem

For more Holy Week Kids’ Crafts, Puzzles, and Activities ideas go to Kids Corner at United Faith Church