PASSION STORY TOLD WITH JELLY BEANS

 

One way to help children remember the story of Holy Week is to link the details with a familiar Easter season treat.  

 
Green—On Palm Sunday, the people crowded the streets to worship Jesus and waved green palms as a way to honor him.  
 
Yellow—Yellow is often viewed as a color for friendship, but it also can represent betrayal. While Judas was a dear friend who followed Jesus, he also betrayed him.  
 
Orange—Peter, one of Jesus’ best friends, denied him three times as he warmed himself around the orange flames of a fire.  
 
Purple—After Jesus was arrested, the soldiers put a purple robe on him and mocked him for calling himself a king.  
 
Red—Jesus shed his blood and died on the cross. 
 
Pink—In the first hues of the sunrise three days after his death, Jesus rose from the dead having conquered death and the devil.  
 
Blue—Just like the blue of a bright sky, our faith in Jesus makes us righteous in the Father’s eyes. 

Source:  By Bethany Pitman

A free devotion for children’s ministry

Use the colors of jelly beans as a fun way to share the Gospel message this Easter. Before you begin, bookmark Genesis 1:31; Genesis 3:1–7; Romans 3:23; John 3:16; Acts 16:31; Galatians 2:16; and John 14:2–3 in your Bible or a children’s Bible.

Introduction

Jesus died on the cross on the day Christians call “Good Friday.” Then, on Resurrection Sunday, Jesus rose from the dead. He will never die again! That’s why, for Christians, Resurrection Day is one of the happiest days of the year. The colors of jelly beans give us a fun way to share the Gospel message!

Getting to the Heart

<Green Jelly Bean> Our story starts out in a garden. It starts on a day just after God finished making the world and creating the first people. Their names were . . . (let children who know finish your sentence - Adam and Eve.) The world God had made was wonderful! There were bright blue skies. There were dancing dragon flies. There were humpback whales playing in the oceans. The green jelly bean reminds us of God’s wonderful creation.

Many things in our world today amaze us. They are so interesting and wonderful. But back at the beginning, our world was even more wonderful! The Bible says . . . (Read Genesis 1:31.)

Everything God made was very good. There was no sickness. There were no tornadoes or hurricanes. There was no pollution. There was no sadness or hurting or death. Our world today has all these things! What happened?

That’s the next part of our story, and it is a very sad part. Evil, sorrow, sickness, shame, and death entered God’s wonderful creation. Here’s how. (Read Genesis 3:1–7, perhaps from a children’s Bible.)

Later that very same day, God found Adam and Eve hiding in the beautiful garden he had given them. He told them about the consequences of their sin. What are consequences? (Let volunteers explain.) Sometimes consequences are good, like when we finish our homework early and Mom takes us to get ice cream. Sometimes consequences are bad, like when we yell at our friends and they decide not to play with us anymore. Do you think the consequences of sin were good or bad? (Ask one or two volunteers to explain.)

You are right. The consequences Adam and Eve earned were horrible! With sin came all the trouble in the world. With sin, came death. (Read Romans 3:23.)
Adam and Eve were not the only people to disobey God. I do it, and so do you. All of us have sinned. We deserve to be punished. This is getting to be a very sad story, isn’t it!?

<Red Jelly Bean> God could have left us alone in the mess we have made. But our next color reminds us that he did not. It’s an amazing, surprising twist in the story. The red jelly bean reminds us of God’s great love. We could not escape from our sin. We could not make up for it. So, in love, God came to set us free! Listen! (Read John 3:16. Invite any children who know the verse to say it along with you.)

God didn’t pay money to free us. All the money in the world would never, ever have been enough. What did God do instead? (Invite one or two volunteers to answer.) Yes, the Bible says that Jesus made peace by his blood shed on the cross (Colossians 1:20). Jesus came on the very first Christmas. He lived a perfect life. He made sad people happy and sick people well. He gave hungry people food. And he taught everyone about their sin and about God’s love.

Then, enemies killed Jesus by nailing him to a cross. There he died. That is the very saddest part of this story! But here’s the great part! Jesus did not stay dead! He came alive on the very first Easter, just as God had promised he would.

Because Jesus lived, and rose again for us, God can make this promise: (Read Acts 16:31.)

<Blue Jelly Bean> What does it mean to believe? (Let volunteers comment.) When we believe in Jesus, we know what he did. We ask him to take away our sins. We trust that he loves us and that he will always, always keep doing that. The blue jelly bean reminds us of the gift of our faith.

We can’t make ourselves believe. Faith is another one of God’s good gifts. He gives it to us - freely! And he makes our faith stronger every time we hear about his love and about the forgiveness Jesus earned for us. When we believe in Jesus, eternal life is ours! Here’s what the Bible says. (Read Galatians 2:16, from a children’s Bible, if possible.)

Is that the end of the story? It is not! In fact, our story doesn’t end at all!

<Yellow Jelly Bean> The yellow jelly bean helps us remember the promise of eternal life. Eternal means “never ending.” The life we receive from God by faith never, ever ends. You see, life on this earth is not all there is. Just before he died, Jesus made this promise. (Read John 14:2–3.) What do you think the heavenly home Jesus is making for us will be like? (Let volunteers comment.)

We have heard many promises from God today, but this promise may just be the best promise of all!

Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank you for loving me. Thank you for dying for me and rising from the dead that first Easter morning. Thank you for giving me faith. Thank you for eternal life. I love you, Jesus! Amen.