Mary Shows Her Love for Jesus

John 12:1-8

Our true story is found in a part of the Bible called the Gospel of John. John was one of the friends and helpers of Jesus. And the word "Gospel" means "good news!"

One day, Jesus went to visit His friends in a town called Bethany. His friends were Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. 


They loved Jesus very much, and they wanted to have a special dinner for Him.


While Jesus was sitting at the table, Mary did something very special.


She had a beautiful jar of sweet-smelling perfume. It was very precious and smelled so nice!


Mary poured the perfume on Jesus’ feet and then wiped His feet with her hair. The whole house smelled wonderful because of the perfume!


But one of Jesus’ disciples, Judas, was not happy. He said, “Why did Mary waste that perfume? She should have sold it and given the money to the poor!”


But Jesus knew Mary’s heart. He told Judas, “Leave her alone. She did something very good.


She is showing love for Me, and what she did will be remembered forever.”


Jesus was happy because Mary gave Him a special gift from her heart. She wanted to show Jesus how much she loved Him!


Mary loved Jesus very much, and she gave Him a special gift to show her love. Jesus was happy with Mary’s gift because it came from her heart. Just like Mary, we can show Jesus that we love Him too! We don’t need expensive gifts—we can show our love by praying, singing, and being kind to others. Jesus loves it when we give Him our best!


Dear God,

Thank You for Jesus and for His great love. Thank You for Mary, who showed her love for Jesus by giving Him a special gift. Help us to love Jesus with all our hearts and to show our love by being kind, sharing, and praying. We want to give Jesus our best every day. We love You, God.    

In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.





Bible Verse: “He is not here; He has risen, just as He said.” — Matthew 28:6, BSB

Paraphrase: Jesus is alive, just like He said!



Activities

These activities will help preschoolers connect with the story of Mary Showing Love for Jesus, reinforcing the theme that we can show Jesus we love Him.

1. "Smell and Tell" – Exploring Fragrances

Objective: Help children experience the sense of smell and relate it to Mary’s perfume.

Materials: Small containers with cotton balls scented with different fragrances (e.g., vanilla, lavender, lemon, cinnamon).

Activity:
• Before the lesson, check for allergies among the children. Make an “Allergy Alert” sign to inform families that scented items will be used.

• Let each child take turns smelling the different scents.

• Ask: “Which one do you like best? Imagine how wonderful Mary’s perfume smelled when she poured it on Jesus’ feet!”

• Talk about how Mary’s perfume was special and filled the whole house with a sweet smell, just like our love for Jesus fills our hearts.


2. "Giving Our Best" – Sharing Special Gifts

Objective: Teach children that we can show love by giving.

Materials: A small box or bag with various simple items (stickers, small toys, paper hearts, etc.).

Activity:
• Let the children pick an item from the box and give it to a friend in class.

• Ask: “How does it feel to give something special to someone else?”

• Explain that Mary gave Jesus her best gift because she loved Him. We can show love by sharing, too!


3. "Singing to Jesus" – A Worship Time (Music Activity)

Objective: Encourage children to express their love for Jesus through song.

Materials: A simple song about loving Jesus (e.g., "Jesus Loves Me" or "Oh, How I Love Jesus").

Activity:
• Gather children in a circle and sing together.

• Ask: “Why do we sing to Jesus?” (Because we love Him!)

• Let them clap, dance, or use small instruments while singing.

• Explain: “Just like Mary showed her love for Jesus, we can show our love by singing to Him!”


4. "Perfume Painting" – A Sweet-Scented Craft

Objective: Reinforce the idea of giving Jesus our best through a sensory craft.

Materials: White paper, watercolor paint, a few drops of vanilla or essential oils (to mix with the water), paintbrushes.

Activity:
• Before the lesson, check for allergies among the children. Make an “Allergy Alert” sign to notify families that scented materials will be used.

• Let children paint freely using the scented watercolors.

• Encourage them to say: “Jesus, I love You!” as they paint.

• Explain that just like Mary’s gift smelled sweet, our love for Jesus is like a sweet gift to Him!


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Story illustrations are the copyright of Sweet Publishing and licensed by FreeBibleimages for free download under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike 3.0 unported license. www.freebibleimages.org
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