LESSON OVERVIEW FOR ADULTS
In Matthew 21, Mark 11, Luke 19, and John 12, we find Jesus approaching Jerusalem during the busy Passover season, a time when thousands of Jewish people filled the city to remember how God had delivered their ancestors from slavery in Egypt. As Jesus drew near to the city, He sent two disciples ahead to retrieve a young donkey that had never been ridden. This was no accident. Hundreds of years earlier, the prophet Zechariah had written that Israel’s King would come riding humbly on a donkey. Jesus fulfilled that ancient promise. When the disciples brought the donkey, Jesus rode it into Jerusalem, and the crowds responded with overwhelming joy, throwing their cloaks onto the road, cutting palm branches from nearby trees, and spreading them along the path as a royal welcome for their King.
The shouts of the crowd, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!”, were words of royal praise and a cry for salvation. The word hosanna literally means “Save now!” While many in the crowd expected Jesus to establish an earthly, political kingdom and overthrow Roman rule, Jesus had come for something far greater. He entered Jerusalem not to take a throne by force, but to go to a cross by love. He came to heal the sick, receive the praise of children, and ultimately give His life as the rescue plan God had promised since the beginning. Palm Sunday is the joyful opening chapter of the most important week in human history, the week that would end with the cross and the empty tomb.
OPENING ACTIVITY 10:15–10:30 | Make Palm Leaves & Hosanna Shakers
Items Needed (Palm Leaves):
- Pre-cut paper palm leaf shapes (one per child)
- Popsicle sticks (or regular sticks)
- Green Crayons
- Box Tape
Give each child a palm leaf cutout and a popsicle stick. Let them color and decorate their leaf. Help them tape or the popsicle stick to the back as the stem. Write each child’s name on the back. Tell them: “We are making palm branches just like the people in our Bible story today, and we are going to use them in our very own parade!”
Items Needed (Hosanna Shakers):
- Small plastic Easter eggs
- Dried rice or small beads
- Box tape to seal
- Stickers to decorate
Give each child an egg. Let them pour a small scoop of rice inside, then seal it with tape. Decorate with stickers. Talk about how the crowd made big, loud joyful sounds to praise Jesus. Practice shaking them and shouting “Hosanna!” together. These shakers can be used during songs and the parade!
BIBLE VERSE GAME 10:30–10:40 | Hosanna Hop
Memory Verse: “By his wounds you have been healed.” — 1 Peter 2:24 (ESV)
Items Needed
- Masking Tape
Spread the masking tape road on the floor. Say the memory verse together as a class. Then, one at a time, let a child hop down the road while everyone else holds their palm leaves and shakes their Hosanna shakers. When the child reaches the end, everyone shouts the verse together. Rotate until every child has a turn hopping down the road.
SONG 10:40–10:50
BIBLE STORY 10:50–11:00 a.m.
Question 1: Where is this story found in the Bible? (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John)
Question 2: Is that in the Old Testament or the New Testament? (New Testament)
Today we have a REALLY exciting story. It has a parade in it. And guess what? YOU are going to be IN our parade today!
A long, long time ago, Jesus and His friends were walking toward a big city called Jerusalem. Can you say “Jerusalem?”
[Wait for response.]
Jerusalem! Good job! It was a very busy time because lots and lots of people were coming to the city for a special celebration called Passover. The streets were full of people!
Jesus stopped near a little village. He told two of His friends, “Go into that village right there. You will find a young donkey tied up. Bring it to Me!”
Can you make a donkey sound?
[Let kids “hee-haw!” together. Make it silly and fun.]
The friends went and found the donkey, just like Jesus said! They brought it to Jesus. Jesus sat right up on that donkey and began to ride toward Jerusalem!
[Pat your knees in a slow clip-clop rhythm.]
Clip-clop, clip-clop, clip-clop!
[Have kids pat their knees with you.]
When people saw Jesus coming, they got SO excited! The people started running to the road. Some of them took off their coats and laid them right on the ground for Jesus to ride over! Other people grabbed branches from the palm trees! BIG leafy branches, just like the ones you made today!
They waved them HIGH and laid them on the road! Everybody was celebrating because the King was coming!
HOSANNA!
And do you know what they shouted? They shouted a very special word. The word is, HOSANNA! Can you say Hosanna?
[Wait for response.]
HOSANNA! [Clap once.]
HOSANNA! [Clap twice.]
Hosanna means, “SAVE US NOW!” The people knew that Jesus had come to save them. Jesus IS the King, the greatest King who ever lived!
[Lead kids in waving their palm branches and shouting Hosanna together three times.]
Jesus came as a King. But He’s a very special kind of King. Most kings have big swords and big armies. But Jesus came on a little donkey, gently and humbly, because He came to HEAL us. He went to the cross to fix the biggest hurt of all, our sin, the bad things we do.
Our memory verse says, “By His wounds you have been healed.” Jesus got hurt on the cross so that WE could be healed and saved!
Jesus is our King AND our Healer!
You know what’s amazing? After Jesus rode into Jerusalem, He went to the temple, God’s house, and do you know who was there praising Him? CHILDREN! Kids just like YOU were shouting, “Hosanna! The King is here!”
The grownup leaders didn’t like it. They said, “Tell those kids to be QUIET!”
And Jesus said… “No way! Even children will praise Me!”
That means YOUR praise matters to Jesus! When YOU shout Hosanna, Jesus LOVES it!
[Lead kids in one big final “HOSANNA!” wave with their palm branches.]
THE CLASSROOM PARADE!
[Before the closing questions, lead the children on a classroom parade. March around the room waving palm branches and shakers, shouting “Hosanna!” and singing.]
Theological Questions:
- Who is Jesus? (Jesus is God’s Son and our King!)
- Why did Jesus come to Jerusalem? (To be our King and to save us!)
Life Application Questions:
- How can YOU praise Jesus today like the people with the palm branches did?
- If Jesus is our King, what does that mean for how we treat other people?
Prayer:
Dear Jesus, You are our King and we praise You! Thank You that by Your wounds we have been healed. Help us to always shout Hosanna to You with our whole hearts. Amen!
BIBLE CRAFT 11:00–11:15 a.m. | Jesus Rides a Donkey
Items Needed
- Jesus & Palm Scene Cutouts
- Popsicle Sticks
- Crayons
- Cloth Cutouts
- Glue
Precut tiny pieces of fabric. Give each child a palm scene cutout and a Jesus cutout. Have them color the cutouts. Attach a popsicle stick to the back of the donkey. Put a slit along the path. Let the kids glue cloth along the path and then move Jesus down the path.
BIBLE MOVIE AND SNACK
If time allows, serve a snack and the Bible movie.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE
“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” — 1 Peter 2:24 (ESV)
“And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!'” — Matthew 21:9 (ESV)
PARENT TAKE HOME SHEET
TODAY’S KEY TAKEAWAY: Jesus Is King!
What I Learned Today: Today I learned Jesus rode into a city called Jerusalem on a donkey, and people waved big palm branches and shouted “Hosanna!”, which means “Save us!” I learned that Jesus came not just as a King, but as the One who heals us and saves us from our sin. I also learned that even kids praised Jesus, and that my praise matters to Him!
Questions to Ask Me:
Theological Questions:
- Who is Jesus? (Jesus is God’s Son and our King)
- What does the word “Hosanna” mean? (Save us now)
- Why did Jesus ride on a donkey into Jerusalem? (To come as our King and to save us)
- What does our memory verse say? (“By his wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:24)
- Why did Jesus become human? (Jesus became human to rescue sinners!)
Life Application Questions:
- What are some ways you can praise Jesus like the people with the palm branches? (Singing, clapping, praying, saying “Thank You Jesus!”)
- If Jesus is your King, what does that mean? (He is the most important One in my life — I can love and obey Him!)
- The people waved palm branches to welcome Jesus. How can you welcome Jesus into your heart? (By believing in Him, loving Him, and asking Him to be our Savior!)
- How did it make you feel to hear that even children praised Jesus and He loved it? (He loves MY praise too!)
- Jesus is called a gentle King. What does it mean to be gentle? (Kind, not rough, caring about others)
Memory Verse: “By his wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:24 (ESV)