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which otherwise would have perished.
(New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine 293)
The Lord knew that the only way He could give people the freedom to choose the path to heaven was to take on the hells and subdue them. This became necessary through the steady decline of faith and charity in people’s lives. Because the hells could not attack the Divine within Him, the Lord took on a human form from Mary. He won every battle with the hells, and each victory helped put them back in their place and restore a proper balance to the forces of good and evil.
READ: A Return to Love: The Lord’s Intercession by the Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss
The Lord’s truth is the mediator between a person and the Divine love. When people sin, and bring misery and the threat of judgment upon themselves, the Divine truth acts as a mediator. It shows the pathway that we can follow to return to our God.
SING: “O Lord Save Your People” ACTIVITY: Fighting the Evil of Hell (ages 12-15) Although the Lord experienced temptations through His life on earth, the first one described in the gospels took place after He was baptized. This project invites us to compare the Lord’s combat against the hells with fighting fierce animals.
SING: “Jesus, Savior, Mighty Lord”
(New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine 201).
The Lord fought the hells from His love of saving the human race, so the devils and satans of hell tried to make Him believe that there was no hope of salvation for the world. When the hells were attacking Him, the Lord had to fight the appearance that the extent of evil in the world made it impossible to save anyone. But the Lord was never tempted to do what is wrong, for there was no evil within Him.
READ: “His Own Arm Brought Salvation" by the Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss (for adults)
Because the Lord came on earth and overcame the hells two thousand years ago, our battles are easier today. He fought the hells one by one, and each time He fought, He used a truth to combat them. Through these combats, the Lord gained a complete understanding of the hells that were trying to oppose each truth. The Lord wants to give us that understanding and to uplift us with His power. For this He suffered through all His combats, and this was the zeal which sustained Him.
nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”
(Matthew 26:39)
The Garden of Gethsemane was on the Mount of Olives which symbolizes the Lord’s Divine love. The Lord came here often when He was in Jerusalem, and so we read in Luke that “He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed” (22:39). On this evening, the Lord went through a temptation so severe that “His sweat became like great drops of blood” (Luke 22:44). Three times He prayed for strength in what lay before Him (Matthew 26:39-44). As before, the Lord continued to be victorious over the hells in temptation. Through this preparation, He was now ready to face Judas and those who wanted to crucify Him.
READ: “Prophecies of Easter" by the Rev. Andrew M. T. Dibb (for adults)
Considers prophecies in the Old Testament that tell of the Lord’s life, temptations, and victories.
READ: “Remembering Good Friday" by the Rt. Rev. Louis B. King (for teens and adults)
We call this day Good Friday because of the good work that the Lord accomplished. He broke the power of the hells by overcoming the love of self and the world with His Divine love and mercy. Let us celebrate Good Friday by not allowing the hells to influence us, remembering that when we receive the Lord’s love and truth, evil spirits must leave us alone.
FAMILY WORSHIP: In Garden of Gethsemane
Read aloud Matthew 26:36-57 or Luke 22:39-53 to learn the story of the Lord’s temptation in the garden of Gethsemane and the way Judas betrayed Him. (Note: If you have young children, retell much of the story but select a few key passages to read aloud directly from the Word.)
Discussion Ideas:
- Where was the Garden of Gethsemane? (on the Mount of Olives)
- Who went with Him? (His disciples. He brought Peter, James, and John further with Him.)
- What did the Lord do while He was in Gethsemane? (He prayed; in Matthew it says that He prayed three times.)
- How do we know that the Lord knew what was going to happen next? (During the Last Supper, He indicated that Judas would betray Him. After praying at Gethsemane, the Lord said that He was about to be betrayed.)
- In Luke, we read that “His sweat became like great drops of blood falling to the ground” (22:44). What does this show us? (The Lord suffered greatly as He fought the hells to save people. The hells tried to convince the Lord that it was impossible to save the human race.)
- Why didn’t the Lord let His disciples defend Him when Judas came to betray Him? (He knew that these events needed to take place for Him to win the real battles that were happening in the spiritual world.)
- As He began to pray, the Lord was sorrowful and deeply distressed (Matt. 26:37). How does this contrast with how He was when Judas came with a multitude of people to betray Him? (He was calm and ready to face His accusers.)
COLORING PAGE: The Lord Praying at Gethsemane by Marguerite L. Acton (PDF)
PROJECT: Collage of the Lord Praying (ages 3-12)
Draw a picture of the Lord, praying for the strength to face the cruelty of those who hated Him and wanted to destroy Him. Cut out this picture and glue it onto a collage made with pieces of construction paper torn to suggest olive trees and rocks in the garden of Gethsemane where the Lord prayed. Because this happened at night, use a black or dark blue paper for the background.
PROJECT: Wax Resist Painting of Judas Betraying the Lord (ages 7-10)
Use oil pastels to draw a picture of Judas approaching the Lord, then brush blue or black watercolor over it to show that this event happened at night.
ACTIVITY: Easter Crossword Puzzle (ages 9-14)
Clues relate to many aspects of the Easter story starting with Palm Sunday.
The passion of the cross was the final combat,
whereby He fully conquered the hells and fully glorified His Human.
(Doctrine of the Lord 12)
The passion of the cross involved physical and spiritual challenges for the Lord, and yet He was victorious in this final temptation as He had been in all others. The hells wanted the Lord to be angry with those who hated Him or wavered in their faith, but the Lord forgave them, saying, “Forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34).
READ: The Sorrow and the Joy of Easter" by the Rev. Geoffrey Howard(for children and families)
At Easter time we turn to the Lord once again with thankful hearts for having spoken all the truths contained in His Word. We can learn from it all of those things that the Lord said to His disciples when He was with them on earth.
READ: “The Lord’s Words of Love on the Cross" by the Rev. Donald Rose (for teens and adults)
Listen to the words that the Lord spoke while on the cross and remember His love!
ACTIVITY: Match Prophecies with Fulfillment (ages 10 and up)
Match 5 prophecies in the Old Testament with their fulfillment in the New Testament.
READ: “What the Lord Showed Through His Crucifixion" by the Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss (children)
ACTIVITY: Food for Thought—The Passion of the Cross (for older teens and adults)
Read quotes on this topic from the Lord’s Word and then discuss the questions.
FOR REFLECTION: Points of View on the Lord’s Crucifixion (teens and up)
Think about the different ways that people may have felt as they watched the Lord being crucified. What kinds of thoughts and feelings do you think the chief priests, elders, and scribes had? What feelings might the disciples of the Lord have experienced? And how do you think Mary His mother felt? What about other bystanders who may have welcomed the Lord on Palm Sunday? Or people who may have seen the Lord heal the sick or listened to His parables? Do these reflections deepen your appreciation for what the Lord experienced during His final temptation, when the hells challenged Him as to whether the human race could be saved?
“Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.
He is not here; for He is risen as He said.
(Matthew 28:5,6)
Imagine the surprise of those who went to the tomb and found that the Lord had risen! They had seen the Lord die on the cross and yet He appeared before them, saying, “Rejoice!” and “Peace be to you!” How were they to understand the miracle of His resurrection?
READ: “Worms and Butterflies" by the Rev. David R. Simons
Did you know that the Psalms of David foretell the events of the Lord’s life, His thoughts, and His feelings? This article looks at how Psalm 22 allows us to glimpse what went on in the days before the Lord was put to death.
COLORING PAGE: Mary Magdalene and Jesus in the Garden (for ages 8-12)
A picture of Mary Magdalene meeting the risen Lord, with native spring plants of the Holy Land
SING: When Very Early in the Dawn
PROJECT: Miracles of Easter Window Wheel (for ages 6-12)
Color the pictures of Easter miracles and then assemble the wheel to view them one by one.
PROJECT: Last Days on Earth—An Accordion Book (for ages 7-12)
Illustrate several events which happened between Palm Sunday and Easter morning. Assemble these into an accordion book or use these illustrations for a bulletin board display.
SING: “Morn of Joy and Morn of Praise”
ACTIVITY: Easter Story Line (ages 8-14)
Is the Easter story happy or sad? Make a story line reflecting your perspective on whether the events surrounding the Lord’s resurrection are happy, sad, or “neutral”.
PROJECT: Picture the Lord’s Ascension (ages 5-10)
Picture the Lord being carried up into heaven as described in the gospel of Luke: “Now it came to pass, while He blessed them [His disciples], that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven” (24:51). Remember that after His resurrection, the Lord looks like He did when transfigured—His face shines as the sun and His clothing is white as the light (see Matthew 17:2).
SING: The Lord Is Risen Again!
THE GLORIFICATION—MAKING HIS HUMAN DIVINE
The Lord glorified His Human, and thereby became the Savior,
Redeemer, Reformer, and Regenerator to eternity.
(Doctrine of the Lord 33:4)
The teachings about the Lord’s glorification are essential for having a true understanding of the nature of God and the Trinity.
READ: "Father and Son Perfectly United" by the Rt. Rev. George de Charms
The gospels speak of Jesus Christ as if He were separate from the Father because this was true in a very special sense as long as He lived on earth. It was God Himself who came into the world. But the human that He put on by birth had to be purified, and at last glorified, that is, perfectly united with the Divine above in the heavens. The glorification of the Lord’s human was a gradual process, effected by continual combats and victories in temptation. When the Lord rose from the empty tomb on Easter morning, the Son was fully united with the Father, becoming visible as the Lord God Jesus Christ.
SING: All Glory, Praise, and Honor
PROJECT: Contrasting States of the Lord (ages 12-up)
While the Lord lived on earth, He sometimes felt separate from the Father. At these times, He prayed to the Father and said that He did the Father’s will. When He felt united with the Father, He did miracles and said that He and the father are one. Find quotes in the New Testament that illustrate these two different states. Or make pictures to show what the Lord did in each state.
The Redeemer and Savior of the world is no other than the Lord
in respect to the Divine Human, and this is what is called the Son.
(Doctrine of the Lord 34:3)
Through coming on earth and fighting the hells, the Lord made it possible for everyone to follow the pathway to heaven. But He saves and redeems individuals according to their reception of His love and wisdom. If we want to be saved, we should look to the Lord as our Savior and Redeemer, fight against our evil tendencies, and try to love what is true and do what is good.
SPIRITUAL TASK: God Fights for Us
The Lord fights directly for us in all our battles. Our sins are removed as we do the work of personal repentance and try to live by the His Word.
SING: “Lift Up Your Heads Rejoice!”
PROJECT: This Is Our God (ages 8 and up)
Make a picture of the Lord within this beautiful border which inspired by this quote: “This is our God, at once Creator, Redeemer and Regenerator, and so Savior” (True Christian Religion 296:4).
FOR REFLECTION: Thinking of the Lord Our Savior and Redeemer
The last time that the Lord appeared to His disciples was when He ascended into heaven. After this, people whose spiritual eyes were opened would see the Lord surrounded with a brilliant light and wearing shining garments. And this is how we are to think of the Lord. We are not to hold onto a picture of the Lord as He was on earth, for when the Lord said, “Do not cling to Me,” He was telling us not to hold onto this worldly view of Him. Instead, we should think of the Lord God Jesus Christ as our Savior and King of heaven and earth. The descriptions of how the Lord appeared when He was transfigured give us a good idea of how He appears in His Divine Human.
We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.
(Isaiah 25:9)
Easter is a time for celebrating the Lord’s resurrection and all that He accomplished while on earth.
ACTIVITY: Decorate Easter Eggs (for all ages)
Because eggs symbolize the renewal of life, decorating eggs is a wonderful tradition at Easter time, when we celebrate the Lord’s triumphant resurrection and salvation of the human race. Here are a few ideas for adding a spiritual element to your Easter egg designs:
• Dye the eggs with cheerful colors because Easter morning is a happy time.
• Children might want to use a wax crayon to draw a picture of the sun, a butterfly, or a dove on an egg before coloring it. Or draw the picture with a marker after dying the egg.
• You may also want to picture the cross as a symbol of the Lord’s victory over the hells in His last temptation.
• Another way to decorate the eggs is to use a wax crayon (white or clear works best) to write words on the eggs before putting them in the colored dye. These words might include:
Savior Rejoice! Victory! Redeemer Peace to you! Love Wisdom Joy Easter