To Keep our Lamps Burning: The Cross
Texts: Luke 12:35; Hebrews 12:2; John 19:30.
AIM:
To help believers (Christians) understand that the sacrifice of Christ is the fire that keeps the believer watchful, holy, faithfully burning, and full of hope.
Introduction
Passion Week commemorates the climactic events of redemptive history, the final days of Jesus’ earthly ministry, His suffering, crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. The cross helps us see Christ more clearly, hate sin more deeply, love holiness more sincerely, embrace repentance more honestly, serve one another more humbly, forgive more freely, pray more fervently, receive answers to our prayers, witness more boldly, and await Christ—the Man of the cross—more watchfully.
In today’s lesson, we will see what the cross has done for humanity.
Key Ideas
1. The significance of Passion Week
a. It reveals the holiness of God:
The cross shows that sin is so serious that it required the death of the Son of God.
b. It reveals the love of God:
God did not spare His Son but gave Him up for us all. At Calvary, divine justice and divine mercy meet.
c. It reveals the meaning of discipleship:
Jesus not only died for us; He also calls us to follow Him in surrender, obedience, and sacrificial love.
d. It reveals the hope of the church:
The resurrection means the grave does not have the final word. Christ is alive, and therefore His church must not live in fear, despair, compromise, or spiritual sleep.
2. Passion Week invites you to reflect on the sacrifice of Jesus for your redemption.
3. Passion Week invites you to know (and pursue) the sacrifices expected of you in gratitude for His own sacrifice.
4. On the Cross, sinners were declared saints.
Luke 23:41–43; Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21.
Discussion Questions
- What is the significance of Passion Week and your understanding of the Cross?
- How can the cross be of help to us as we keep our lamps burning?
John 19:30; Hebrews 12:2–3. - What is the mystery behind sinners becoming saints?
Luke 23:41–43; Romans 5:21; 2 Corinthians 5:21. - Carefully consider the similarities and inward preparation of the ten virgins.
Can today’s Church be likened to the ten virgins?
Matthew 25:1–13. - What did Jesus experience, and what assurance can you find in the following Scriptures?
Isaiah 53:3–5; John 19:16–30; Romans 5:8.
Application
Have you given your life to Christ?
Conclusion
The worth of the cross cannot be overemphasised. Without the cross, keeping our lamps faithfully burning would be an impossible task. If our lamps must burn and continue burning, our relationship with the Cross is not optional.
Memory Verse:
John 19:30.
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