Preschool Talk - The Easter Surprise

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The Easter Surprise

The Rev. Kurt Horigan Asplundh

Do you like surprises? There were surprises at Easter for the Lord's disciples and the women who loved Him.

The people who had followed the Lord were sad when His enemies crucified Him. It was the saddest day of their lives because now they believed the Lord was gone forever. Some of them took His body down from the cross and wrapped it in soft linen cloths with spices. They carefully put the Lord's body in a tomb and rolled a big stone over the opening. Would they ever see the Lord again? Maybe you know the answer to that question. But first, let's think about something.

Did you know the Lord's tomb was in a garden? Surprising things happen in a garden.

Do you or maybe someone you know have a garden? Does it always look alive? When you look at a garden in the winter does it look like anything is growing? Do you see any bees or butterflies in it? It can look dead. And did you ever see the seeds that gardeners plant? They are little grains or kernels - dry and hard and often brown. They look dead, too, don't they? Does it look like they could ever grow?

Try planting seeds in the garden in the spring and surprise, surprise! They aren't dead, after all. The earth grows warm, rain wets the seeds and they begin to sprout and grow. Some turn into beautiful flowers. Which would you rather be, a seed or a flower?

Have you seen butterflies in a garden? Where did they come from? Most of them come right from the garden. They start out as little worms or caterpillars. Then they seem to die. They wrap themselves in cocoons or cases like little tombs. But surprise, surprise! One day they wake up and break open the case. Out they come! Do they look the same as before? No. They have turned into butterflies with colorful wings. They can float in the wind and find sweet nectar in the flowers. Would you rather be a caterpillar or a butterfly?

What was the big surprise in the garden where the Lord was buried? Remember that the Lord's followers had taken His body down from the cross, and put it in the tomb. The tomb was like a small room that had been carved out of the rocks in that place. It had a small opening between the rocks for a door. After His followers had laid the Lord's body inside, they rolled up a large stone to cover the opening.

Then, the third day after He was buried, the Lord sent an angel to roll back that stone to show that He was no longer in the tomb! This was the Easter surprise. The Lord was alive! How do we know this happened?

It was a tradition in those days for family members or close friends to put fragrant spices in the tomb with the body of a person who had died, just as people now often put flowers on a grave. So two women who dearly loved the Lord, came early in the morning to add more spices to those that had already been used for His burial. As the women came near, they wondered how they would be able to roll back the heavy stone to get into the tomb.

That was when, to their great surprise, they found the stone already rolled away. When the women looked into the tomb they saw that the Lord wasn't there. Instead, they saw a young man sitting beside where the Lord's body had been lying. They were frightened, not knowing that he was an angel. He said gently, "Don't be afraid. You seek Jesus of Nazareth who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him" (Mark 16:6). Only the linen clothes were still there, not the Lord's body.

Then one of the women, named Mary Magdalene, ran to tell the disciples what she had found at the tomb. She said, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and I do not know where they have laid Him."

Mary looked inside the tomb. Now she saw two angels in white, one sitting at the head and the other at the feet where the body of Jesus had been. They asked her, "Why are you weeping?" (John 20:13)

She said to them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him" (John 20:13). She was looking for the Lord's body. When she had said this, she turned around and saw a Man standing behind her. It was the Lord, but because she was weeping she did not recognize Him. She thought He was the gardener.

He asked her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" (John 20:15). But He already knew why she was crying, because the Lord knows everything in our minds and hearts.

She said, "If You have carried Him away, tell me...and I will take Him away" (John 20:15).

Then the Lord said her name: "Mary!" Hearing that, she recognized Him. She called Him "Rabboni!" which means Teacher (John 20:16). It was a name that showed her love and respect for her Master, the Lord.

Surprise, surprise! The Lord was alive and standing in front of her. Then He spoke to her again. He told her that she should go and tell the disciples that He was alive in heaven.

This was the Easter surprise. By His resurrection from the tomb, the Lord has shown that He will never truly die but will always be with us. The good news is that He is always near, always ready to come to our side to give us comfort, courage and strength.

This talk is taken from the Early Childhood Religion Program which is a series of monthly religion lessons with illustrated stories and projects available from the General Church Office of Education. Call 267.502.4949 or email oed@newchurch.org for more information.  

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