Jesus Rises Again

JESUS RISES AGAIN

Characters:

Guards 1
Guard 2
Mary Magdalene
Jesus






Props:

tomb-drape sheets over chairs or a coat rack
stone door- cardboard or a plastic tableto)
white sheet for shroud
decorative container of “ointment”
swords or spears for guards
Bible robes for Mary & Jesus
lanterns or flashlights


(Mary Magdalene greets the kids outside the door. She hands out the shroud and ointment.)


Mary:
(crying)
I’m so glad you could come so early. It broke my heart to bury our Lord so quickly on Friday. There wasn’t even time to wash him before the Sabbath started. I still can’t believe Our Lord is dead. (cries some more)
Let’s go find His tomb.

(Guards come bursting out of the door, looking scared.)


Guard 1:
We didn’t do it! Don’t blame us! We were at our post all night!

Mary:
What are you talking about?

Guard 1:
We’ll be put to death when they find out the body is gone.

Guard 2:
Not if we tell the captain his followers came in the night and stole it.

Guard 1:
Good idea! That’s more believable than dead men rising! Come on! (they run away)


Mary (to the kids):
I don’t know what’s going on. Come on- let’s go to the tomb. Here’s some lanterns.

(Mary leads the way into the dark room, and sets her lantern by the open tomb.)


Mary:
Who’s going to go in and look? (if no one volunteers, she goes)
Take this lantern & look around, then come back and tell us what you see.

Mary:
(have the shroud brought out when it is found. Give as many kids a chance as want to look in the tomb.)
This is the cloth we wrapped Him in. But where is Jesus? What do you think happened? (give them a chance to respond)

(Jesus slips in at the edge of the crowd. Mary goes over to Him.)


Mary:
You- gardener! Where have you taken Our Lord? (starts crying again)


Jesus:
Mary!

Mary:
(falling to her knees before Him, hugging his legs)
Jesus!

Jesus:
(lifting her up)
Go tell everyone that you have seen Me!

Mary:
(turning to the crowd & shouting)
Jesus is alive! Jesus is alive! Go tell everyone! Join me in the cheer: JESUS IS ALIVE! (keeps shouting the chant as she leads the chanting kids out of the room.)