FREE Easter Devotional for Kids [Family Devotional]

Easter is a special time of year when we can learn more about Jesus and what He did for us. It's a great chance for families to spend time together reading the Bible and talking about its important lessons. Even though Easter is fun with all the Easter eggs, chocolate bunnies, and other traditions, we need to remember the real reason we celebrate.

Easter is about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Resurrection means that Jesus came back to life after He died on the cross. His resurrection gives us hope and new life. Before Jesus was resurrected, He was crucified on a cross. Crucifixion was a painful way to die back in those times. Jesus died on the cross to pay for our sins. Sin is anything we do that is wrong or disobeys God. Because Jesus never sinned, He was the perfect sacrifice to take the punishment for our sins.

Three days after Jesus died, He rose from the dead! His resurrection showed that He had power over death. When we believe in Jesus and what He did for us, we can have new life too - life forever with God. The resurrection is the best reason to celebrate at Easter time!

Palm Sunday

The Easter story starts with an event called the Triumphal Entry on Palm Sunday. Jesus was going into Jerusalem, which was a big city. As He entered on a donkey, lots of people came out to greet Him. They waved palm branches in the air and laid them on the ground to honor Jesus. The palm branches were like a special welcome mat!

The crowds shouted "Hosanna!" which means "please save us." They were excited because they believed Jesus was the Savior, the Messiah, that God had promised to send. Jesus was coming to Jerusalem to save people, but in a different way than they expected.

This Triumphal Entry marked the beginning of a very important week leading up to the events, that we celebrate as Easter. It's called Holy Week or Easter Week. During this week, some of the most meaningful events in Jesus' life took place. The people welcomed Him joyfully not knowing the sacrifice He would make for them in just a few days.

After the Triumphal Entry on Palm Sunday, the Easter story continued with the Last Supper, Jesus' prayer in the garden, His arrest, trial, crucifixion on Good Friday, and then His resurrection on Easter Sunday!

Good Friday

Good Friday is the day we remember Jesus' death on the cross. It's called "Good" Friday, even though it was very sad, because Jesus did something so amazing and good for all of us. The Bible calls Jesus the "Lamb of God." A lamb is a young sheep, and it was a sacrifice that was offered in the Old Testament times to pay for people's sins.

Jesus was the ultimate, perfect sacrifice. He chose to give up His life willingly so that our sins could be forgiven. The terrible way He suffered and died shows just how much He loves us.

In the Bible, we read about how Jesus was betrayed by one of His disciples named Judas. Then Jesus was put on trial, even though He was innocent and didn't do anything wrong. After being beaten and mocked, Jesus was nailed to a cross to be crucified, which was a punishment back then. As Jesus died, He took all our sins upon Himself as the sacrifice to make us right with God.

The stories of Jesus' betrayal, unfair trial, beating, and crucifixion are very sad. But they remind us of the huge price Jesus paid and how much He gave up because He loves us so much. His death on the cross made a way for us to be forgiven and saved.

Easter Sunday

The amazing Easter story doesn't end with Jesus' death on Good Friday. Three days later, on Easter Sunday, something incredible happened! Jesus came back to life. We call this the Jesus’ resurrection.

After Jesus died on the cross, His friends buried His body in a tomb. A tomb is like a small room carved out of rock, with a huge stone rolled across the entrance. When some women went to the tomb on the third day, they were shocked to find the massive stone rolled away and the tomb empty! An angel was there and he told them, "He is not here; he has risen, just as he said."

By rising from the dead, Jesus conquered sin and death once and for all. Sin is the bad things we do that separates us from God. And death is what happens when our physical body stops working. But because Jesus defeated sin and death through His resurrection, we can have victory over them too when we believe in Him. This does not mean that we will not die one day. But it does mean that when we die, we will get to spend forever in heaven with God!

The resurrection is the most important part of the Christian faith. It gives us the promise that we can live forever, even after our bodies die on earth. Jesus' rising from the dead gives us a future hope of eternal life with Him in heaven. His resurrection is a message of hope that nothing is too powerful for God!

Jesus opened the way for us to be forgiven and have a fresh start - a new life with Him forever. That's the best reason of all to celebrate at Easter!

During your family devotional time this Easter season, take the opportunity to dive into the Bible stories, discuss the questions, and allow the wonder of the resurrection to fill your child's heart. May the real meaning of Easter bring your whole family closer to the risen Savior, Jesus Christ.

You can get this devotional as a digital download! Print it out and have a copy each. There are some colourings for younger children to do to keep their hands busy as you talk about each of the questions.