The Cross

Matthew 27; Mark 15; Luke 23; John 19

 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
       he was crushed for our iniquities;
       the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
       and by his wounds we are healed.

We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
       each of us has turned to his own way;
       and the LORD has laid on him
       the iniquity of us all.

For he bore the sin of many,
       and made intercession for the transgressors.

Isaiah 53:5, 6, 12b (NIV)

 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. 1 Peter 2:24 (NIV)

 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV)

 Throughout the lesson, a cross will be positioned in the front of the room.  For each lesson segment, small pieces of paper—labeled with specific sins, sicknesses and problems—will be nailed to the cross, representing Jesus taking those things upon himself for us. 

 Salvation

            Jesus was born without sin.  He lived His whole life and never sinned—not even once.  But like the verses we just read tell us, God’s plan was to put our sin on Him and have Him take the punishment that you and I deserve. 

            No one (except Jesus) has ever been completely honest 100% of the time.  That means all of us have lied.  (Hold up “dishonesty” paper and nail it to the cross).  But when Jesus died on the cross, He took the punishment for our dishonesty.  If we ask God, He will forgive us for being dishonest because Jesus already took the punishment. 

            How many of you have ever been disobedient?  (Allow for response).  Jesus always obeyed His parents and those in authority over Him.  But He took the punishment for your disobedience. (Nail the “disobedience” paper to the cross).  That is why you can be forgiven when you disobey.       

            Continue along the same lines with 3 or 4 more specific sins, such as jealousy, unforgiveness and pride. 

            When Jesus was crucified, the soldiers drove nails into His hands and feet, and blood flowed out.  They drove a spear into His side, and blood and water flowed out.  It is by Jesus’ blood—the life that He gave—that we receive forgiveness. 

            Jesus already paid the price for your forgiveness.  If you know that you have sin in your life and have not been forgiven, you only need to ask God.  He is ready and willing to forgive you. 

 Healing

Jesus paid a huge price for our salvation, for the forgiveness of our sins.  But before He was crucified, He took a beating on His back.  The soldiers took a whip with pieces of leather and chips of bone in it, and used it to beat Jesus’ back.  They beat His back with the whip 39 times.  Each time, pieces of flesh were torn off of Him. 

Isaiah 53:5 says, “…by his wounds we are healed.”  Jesus suffered in His body so that we wouldn’t have to. 

Everyone knows what it feels like to be sick.  (Hold up papers with the names of sicknesses and nail them to the cross as you speak).  Jesus took a beating on His body so that you wouldn’t have to suffer with colds, allergies, headaches, cancer, heart disease or pain of any kind.  I don’t understand everything about healing—some people are healed right away and others aren’t—but I do know that Jesus paid the price for our healing.

If you are sick in your body, ask God to heal you, because Jesus already paid the price. 

That’s part of His work on the cross. 

 Wholeness

            Jesus purchased our salvation on the cross, He paid for the healing of our bodies, but He also made it possible for us to be made whole. 

            Everyone goes through problems in life.  Sometimes you may feel like the problems you have break your heart. (Hold up papers that name various problems, such as hurt feelings, feeling stupid or broken family.  Nail them to the cross as you speak).   Maybe someone called you a bad name and it hurt your feelings.  Or it could be that you aren’t doing well in school and you feel stupid.  Some of you know what it’s like to have your family break up.  The Bible says that Jesus took “the punishment that brought us peace” (Isaiah 53:5).  That means that when He was beaten and bruised, when His body was broken, He paid the price for us to have peace in our heart.  Even when everything else and everyone else around you is a mess, you can have perfect peace.  If you feel like life is falling apart, it won’t matter, because Jesus will hold you together.  He paid the price on the cross. 

            If you need peace in your heart, come to God today.  He will fill your life with His peace—Jesus paid the price.