Crucified, Dead, and Buried
Jesus was crucified, dead, and buried – but His cross has opened the way for people of all nations to become part of God’s people and come into the very Presence of God.
Mark 15:20-47
The Scourge, the Scorn, and the Scripture
Jesus faithfully endured scourging and scorn, strengthened by His understanding that these sufferings fulfilled the prophetic Scriptures and were according to God’s will.
Mark 15:15-32
Understanding the Cross – The Suffering Servant
Jesus, the Servant of the Lord, suffered and died in payment for our sins, but through that very suffering and the resurrection He was victorious to bring us salvation.
Mark 15:15; Isaiah 52:13-53:12
Jesus On Trial – Pilate
Pilate, the religious leaders, and the crowd worked together to wrongfully crucify Jesus in the place of a wicked man. This act mirrors the Gospel – we are freed from the punishment we deserve because Christ willingly takes our place.
Mark 15:1-15
Peter On Trial
While Jesus stands resolute and fearless in His trial, Peter crumbles under fear, denying Jesus just as Jesus had prophesied would happen. Yet, he was later restored by Jesus to a life of faithfulness.
Luke 1:39-45
Jesus On Trial – The Sanhedrin
Facing a hostile mockery of a trial, Jesus stands resolute and fearless, declaring His Divine identity as the Messiah, Son of God, Suffering Servant, and Son of Man
Mark 14:53-65
Spring Training
Spiritual health and growth require practicing spiritual rhythms – periodic seasons of stripping away some things to give greater focus to seeking God through prayer.
Luke 4:1-2, 14
The Garden of Temptation and Testing – Part 2
In the garden of Gethsemane, the disciples did not remain alert and pray, thus sealing their failure in the hour of temptation and testing.
Mark 14:27-52
The Garden of Temptation and Testing – Part 1
In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was tempted to turn away from drinking the cup of wrath of God, but in His deep anguish He drew close to His Father and victoriously embraced His will.
Mark 14:27-42
From the Last Supper to the Lord’s Supper
Jesus commanded His followers to remember Him by celebrating the Lord’s Supper, and the church has done this regularly since its earliest days because God vitally works through the Supper to teach, nourish, and strengthen His people.
Mark 14:22-26; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
The Last Supper
On the night He was betrayed, Jesus announced the beginning of the New Covenant as He celebrated the Last Supper with His disciples.
Mark 14:17-31
The Last Passover
On the night He was betrayed, Jesus celebrated the last Passover with His disciples, for in His sacrificial death He fulfilled Passover by delivering and redeeming His people.
Mark 14:12-26
True Devotion, Deep Betrayal
In the midst of deep betrayal by the priests and Judas, a woman displays true devotion and worship, sacrificing a costly gift to anoint Jesus in spite of the indignant reaction of others.
Mark 14:1-11
Be Alert
Jesus calls believers to be alert as we await His final return, not by looking for supposed signs but rather by maintaining a vibrant relationship with Him and His people.
Mark 13:32-37
Simeon’s Song of Freedom (Nunc Dimittis)
The song of the angelic choir announced that Christ had come to bring glory to God and peace to the people of Earth.
Luke 2:8-14
The Angels – Song of Glory and Peace (Gloria et Pax)
The song of the angelic choir announced that Christ had come to bring glory to God and peace to the people of Earth.
Luke 2:8-14
Zechariah’s Song of Prophetic Praise (Benedictus)
After a season of silence and deep meditation, Zechariah erupted is a song of praise for God’s saving work, which had been prophetically promised, and was now coming to fulfillment with the birth of John who would prepare the way for Jesus the Messiah Who would save God’s people.
Luke 1:67-79
Mary’s Song of Exaltation (Magnificat)
Worship is focused on God and His Gospel, is formed and filled by the Word of God, and arises from personally experiencing God’s faithfulness to His people through the ages.
Luke 1:46-55
Elizabeth’s Song of Joyful Blessing (Beatitude)
Those who delight in the supremacy of Jesus will believe the Word of God and receive the joy of God’s deepest, richest blessing.
Luke 1:39-45
Thanksgiving Rest
God created us with a need for rest, which the curse and our culture have magnified, and we should use Thanksgiving as a chance to receive God’s gift of rest.
Genesis 1:31-2:3
What is Justification?
Question 38: What is justification? Justification is the gracious act of God in which He declares that we are totally righteous, as if we had never sinned and as if we had positively obeyed all of God’s law perfectly.
2 Corinthians 5:21; Romans 8:33
Living as Dual Citizens
Christians are citizens their country, but their primary citizenship is in heaven and this primary citizenship determines how they live as citizens of the country of their earthly life.
1 Peter 2:9-12
The New Covenant People of God
Jesus prophesied that with the destruction of the Temple and the end of the Old Covenant era the Gospel would go to all nations, gathering people from every nation into God’s people.
Mark 13:1-4, 26-27, 30-31
The New Covenant Temple
Jesus prophesied that the Temple would be destroyed and the Old Covenant would end, for in the New Covenant the people of God are God’s Temple.
Mark 13
Countdown to Destruction
In the Olivet Discourse, Jesus prophesied that the temple and Jerusalem would be destroyed during the lifetime of the generation then alive, and this was fulfilled in 70 AD, proving the authority and truth of Jesus’ Word.
Mark 13