Clue: Week 4

Devotional

Let’s recap. Over the last 4 weeks we have looked at the death of Jesus from the perspective of several different bystanders. We met Simon and the Roman Centurion. Two people who on a normal day were placed face to face with the death of the Savior and forced to make a decision about who Jesus was. Just like each of us they had to decide how they wanted to respond to what Jesus did on the cross.

Then we looked at the story of Barabbas. A criminal who deserved to be punished for his sins but instead Jesus took his place. Sound familiar? Romans 6:23 says.

According to that verse we all deserved death to pay for our sins. Just like Barabbas death is the price we owed. But God in his great love for us sent Jesus to take our place. He was placed on the cross and took on the payment of all of our sins.

Then we looked at Mary. We imagined the pain she felt as she lost her son. And the disciples as they lost the hope they had in their closest friend and teacher. But then we realized the joy and the peace they must have felt when three days after his death, Jesus came out of his tomb. Proving that He had conquered death and sin for all eternity. Now every single one of us has the promise of freedom from sin and eternal life with God and all we have to do is accept it. We have to acknowledge the sacrifice Jesus made for each of us and live with a desire to follow Him.

Then this weekend we talked about the Roman Soldiers. We listened to the pain Jesus went through on the cross. We discussed the sorrow Jesus must have felt as he took on the weight of our sin. All the heartache that he went through for us. For me and for you.

Over the last 4 weeks I hope you have come to realize how loved you are. So loved that Jesus would go through all of that to pay the cost of your sins. He went through all of that to help restore the relationship between you and God. Not only for you but for the people you love. After Jesus rose from the grave, right before He went up to Heaven this is what He said.

We have spent the last 4 weeks talking about how much Jesus loves us and making decisions about who Jesus is to us and how we want to follow Him. I believe that most of us in this room really love the Lord and have committed our lives to following Him. I think we have a great community of Christians here. But if we are not careful we will stop there. If we are not careful we will hang out with our Christian friends talking about our Christian lives and if we aren’t careful we could miss out on the chance to impact the world around us.

Especially after the last couple weeks we all know a lot about what Jesus did for us. But my question is do your friends? Does your family know how much Jesus loves them? Do they know the hope and grace that Jesus has to offer all of us? If the answer is no my question is Who is going to tell them?

The answer is hopefully you. You were put in the friend group you are in for a reason. You were put in the family you are in for a reason. You are on the team you are on for a reason. God puts us in place to show the people around us the love that we have been shown by Jesus. If you have been impacted by the Gospel now it’s time to let God use you to impact others with the same truth. We are going to break out into small groups in just a second and we are going to brainstorm what it looks like to share the love of Jesus with our friends.

Right now though I want you to think of one person in your life who might not know all that Jesus has for them. I am going to pray and while I do I want you to pray along with me. Pray in your head and heart and ask God to show you opportunities to share your faith with them.

Break the ice

What was your favorite story growing up? Could be a movie, book, story your family told, etc.

Small group questions

*Last week we encouraged our groups to read Matthew 27:11-65. Take some time to discuss it with your group. Ask everyone what stuck out to them and what questions they have from that passage. Make sure to celebrate with all the students who took the time to study that passage of scripture this week*

1. Who is the first person who told you about Jesus?
2. Who wants to share the story of how they became a Christian?
3. Have you ever had the opportunity to share your faith with a friend or invite them to church? What happened?
4. What are some fears you face when it comes to sharing your faith?
5. How can we help each other conquer those fears?
6. What are some things we can do to show people the love of Jesus?
7. What is one method you want to try this week? (Could be telling a friend, serving someone, inviting someone to church, doing something kind, etc. anything to show the love of Jesus to others)

Moving forward

Let’s continue reading the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection. This week let’s read Matthew 28. That is only 20 verses. Make sure to take notes of what surprises you, what questions you have and what encourages you in this chapter. Next week we will discuss it again. Now let’s take some time to pray for our friends who are far from God and look for opportunities to show them the love of Christ.