Jesus, a different king
key words
biblical reference
John 12:12-19, Zechariah 9:9
lesson objective
To help children understand that the Jews did not understand what kind of king Jesus was and the reason for his coming
memory verse
“At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth” (Philippians 2:10, NIV*).
prepare yourself to teach
The idea of the kingdom is an important part of the Christian and Jewish faith. And Christ is the fulfillment of the covenant that God made with David.
The crowd that received Jesus in his “triumphal entry” to Jerusalem did not understand the kind of king that Jesus would be, nor did they understand his mission to save the world from sin.
In this context, the news about the ministry of Jesus increased the hatred and resentment of the Jewish Pharisees and leaders. The crowd followed him from Bethany to meet him. There was no way for Jesus to speak to them, because each time the crowd was bigger. However, he gave a signal about the kind of kings he had come to be. He entered Jerusalem on a colt, a young donkey.
In the time of Jesus, the donkey was an animal used by the nobility. A king, who entered a city riding on a donkey, did so as a sign that he was coming in peace. The people cried without ceasing: “Hosanna! Hosanna!” Which means “Save us now!” With this cry of joy, the crowd recognized Jesus as the expected Messiah. But they had a misconception of the promise and prophecy. Instead of wanting Christ to save them from sin, they wanted to be liberated from the dominion and power of the Roman Empire, which had dominated them for years.
While the people rejoiced in acclaiming their conquering Messiah, some Jews were not so happy. The Jewish leaders owed their power and prosperity to the tolerance of Rome. They knew that the Romans would not stand for a rebellion, and Jesus, who emerged as the hope of freedom, could ruin everything. Thus, the Sanhedrin ordered his arrest and plotted to kill him.
Even today, God has promised us freedom from the slavery of sin. He is the King of the heavens and is preparing his kingdom where we will live if we are faithful to him. Jesus, the Son of God, wants to be king of our life. Perhaps people do not understand the message of salvation or the gift of eternal life because of the sinful condition in which they find themselves, and they cry out, like the Jewish people, “Hosanna! Hosanna!” But they do not want to accept Christ because they fear they will lose the privileges and comforts they have. We must accept him as the king and liberator of our lives. He is a mighty king who will reign for all eternity, and invites us to be part of his kingdom.
introduce the lesson
Begin the lesson by talking with your children in a fun and enjoyable way. Ask the children if they have ever received the news that someone very important would be coming to their town. What do people do when someone famous or important is coming to town? (They fix the streets, clean, decorate, plan a fancy reception and publicly recognize the important person.) Have your children try to imagine how they would behave or what they would do if this were happening to them. (Let each child give their ideas.)
On this lesson’s resources, you will find a dialogue between a child and a Pharisee. Invite two children to read it before reading the Bible story.
teach the lesson
The king is coming
“Is he coming?” asked a man.
“Yes!” said another. “He’s not far from the city.”
There were a lot of people in Jerusalem. Large crowds who had come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover Feast. Upon hearing that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, they took palm branches and went out to meet him.
“Look! Jesus is riding on a donkey. It is exactly how the prophet Zechariah said that it would happen: ‘Fear not, daughter of Zion; your King comes, seated on a donkey’s colt.’ Jesus is the Messiah! Hosanna!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel!” cried the crowd.
People cut palm branches and waved them. Some put them on the ground and made a path for Jesus.
“Is this the man who raised Lazarus?” a woman asked her friend.
“Yes!” her friend answered. “I was visiting Martha, Lazarus’ sister, and I saw it! Jesus commanded Lazarus to come out of the tomb, and he had been dead for days.”
“Anyone who resurrects someone is greater than the Romans and their armies,” said another woman. “Surely Jesus will become king. He will defeat the Romans.”
“I heard that his father, Joseph, is from the house of David. Perhaps this is how God will fulfill his promise to David. If Jesus becomes King, one of the descendants of David will have the throne! Is this not exactly what God promised David so many years ago?”
“Jesus must be the king that God promised us.”
The crowd shouted repeatedly: “Hosanna! Hosanna!”
The Pharisees and other religious leaders were angry. They thought:
“This is all out of control. If Herod or the Romans find out, they will punish us all.” So the Pharisees plotted to kill Jesus.
connect the lesson
Review
Distribute Student Activity Sheet #273-A and #273-B. Help the group review the lesson.
Description of the work of the messiah
• Lead the armies of Israel
• Deliver the Jews from the Roman Empire
• Take care of the poor
• Save God’s people from their sin
• Restore the glory of King David
• Be forever King of the people of God
• Ensure that justice is carried out
• Punish the bad guys
• Become the High Priest in order to bring his people back to God
• Heal the sick
When your children have finished their worksheets, encourage them to answer the following questions, which will help them understand why the Jewish people did not understand the message of the Son of God, and the kind of king that Jesus came to earth to be.
• What kind of king did the crowd expect Jesus to be? (Explain to your children that the Jews, instead of wanting Christ to save them from sin, wanted a king to free them from the power and rule of Rome.)
• Why did the crowd want a warrior king? (They wanted someone to defeat the Romans and make Israel a free and independent nation.)
• Why did the religious leaders fear Jesus? (Because they were afraid that Jesus would try to be a military leader, and that a war would destroy everything, and they did not believe that Jesus could win the war.)
• Why did the crowd want a king who was a descendant of David? (Because the Jews believed that God would fulfill the promise, he made to David: that his descendants would reign.)
The Jewish people wanted the Romans to leave their country, and so they were frustrated when they discovered that Jesus was not what they expected.
At this point, draw your children’ attention to think about our biblical truth: Christ came to become King of our lives, and the lesson objective to help children understand that the Jews did not understand what kind of king Jesus was and the reason for his coming.
Say: “Many years ago, the prophet Zechariah made a prophecy (Zechariah 9: 9), and Jesus knew the prophecy and that he was the one to fulfill the prophecy. When he entered Jerusalem on a donkey, it was a way to show the people that he is the promised Messiah. But they did not recognize him as the Messiah. When they realized that they were wrong and Jesus was not going to be the earthly king they had hoped for, they felt frustrated. They despised the King of kings and Lord of lords.
King of kings
Distribute Student Activity Sheet #273-C and guide the group through this activity. When Jesus made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the Jews thought that he would be their king. But the cross showed them that they had the wrong idea about Jesus and his ministry. On a piece of paper, draw a symbol that represents what Jesus really suffered. If you need clues, you can read John 19:2.
Activity: What should a king do?
Give your group Student Activity Sheet #273-D entitled “What Should a King Do?” Have your students read the phrases that appear on the leaves of the palm branch. Then have them draw a heart next to the things Jesus did and an X next to the things Jesus did not come to do.
practice the memory verse
To review the memory verse, you can write it on the board and read it out loud a couple of times. Then erase a word and continue to read it, even though the word is not there: continue to erase more words (one by one) and say it as if the words were there. Continue until the whole verse is erased and your children can say it without seeing any of the words. If you do not have a blackboard, you can write each word on a piece of paper and stick it on the wall, so that the children can read it. Take off one word at a time until all of the words have been removed.
wrap-up
Pray
To finish the session, have them share their prayer needs. Then pray for your children aloud.
Encourage
Encourage the group to find ways to praise God this week.
Invite
Thank your children for their attendance and announce something about the next lesson to increase their interest. Remind them to welcome visitors.
* Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™