Easter is coming! What a perfect time for parents and teachers to focus on the meaning of Jesus’ resurrection! But too often, especially with children, the full “back story” to that glorious event is minimized, leaving children excited by all the pageantry of the Easter celebration, but seemingly less moved by the spiritual significance. How can we inspire and encourage them to be more impacted by the spiritual significance of Easter? By being intentional in providing them the “back story” of Easter! That is why Truth78 is delighted to offer a new resource written by Sally Michael:
The World Created, Fallen, Redeemed, and Restored
As the title suggests, this book properly places Jesus’ glorious resurrection within the larger context of the entire biblical narrative—God’s eternal plan and purpose for His world—which can be explored by looking at the four major plot movements of the Bible. The World Created, Fallen, Redeemed, and Restoredguides children to discover these four plot movements through a child-friendly presentation of the biblical narrative and the use of key Scriptures. This provides children with a simple, easy-to-remember framework to know and respond to the essential truths of the Gospel.
Creation:
God created all things, and it was good. God created man to love, honor, obey, and give thanks to Him—and to show that He is most special of all by enjoying Him (Psalm 33:8-9).
Fall:
Adam and Eve foolishly turned away from God and disobeyed God, bringing sin, death, and all kinds of evil into God’s good world. Through Adam, sin spread to all men, causing a separation between God and man (Romans 1:21; Romans 3:23).
Redemption:
God sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross to receive the punishment sinners deserve. Jesus rose from the dead and is now in heaven. Through trusting in Jesus, sinners can be forgiven of sin and receive His perfect righteousness and the promise of eternal life (1 Peter 2:24).
Restoration:
Jesus will return as the victorious King of kings to put an end to sin forever and make all things new. Jesus will also judge every person. Those who have not trusted in Him will be condemned forever. But those who have trusted in Him will live joyfully forever with God (John 14:2-3).
…We have to give [children] the background—the antecedents—to the cross for them to treasure redemption. The form of Scripture’s canonical presentation of unfolding truths should impact how we present Scripture’s teaching to children. Scriptural teaching to children should be systematic, and build chronologically and conceptually upon itself, precept upon precept. Knowing this, it makes sense that we need to build a solid theology for children that reflects the whole Gospel message.
—Sally Michael
I believe this is a wonderful resource for families and churches, especially as you prepare for Easter. The interesting narrative, beautiful full-color illustrations, and brevity (only 40 pages) make it especially engaging for children 5 to 10 years old. Here are a few ideas for this resource:
- Use as family devotional material as you prepare for Easter.
- Give as a gift to your grandchildren.
- Read it to your Sunday school class during the month of April.
- As a church, give away copies to neighboring families as an outreach ministry.
Easter is coming! Consider using The World Created, Fallen, Redeemed, and Restored to help children explore the marvelous good news of the Gospel.
