Jesus and His Church Semester. Unit 3: The Sufferings of Jesus

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1 YM Central s Jesus and His Church Semester Unit #3: The Sufferings of Jesus By Eric J. Westby Copyright 2006 YM Central Publications. All rights reserved. Unless stated, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without first obtaining written permission of the copyright owner. Further copies can be obtained at YM Central grants parishes permission to duplicate this document for the sole purpose of implementing it in their parish setting. Welcome to the, Unit #3: The Sufferings of Jesus. This product includes: I. A Youth Group Meeting - An evangelistic session for teens of all Faiths. II. A Going-Deeper Meeting A catechetical session for teens who want to draw closer to Christ. God bless you as you help bring young people closer to Christ and His Church. May this meeting be a blessing to you, your staff, and your teens. All references taken from the Catholic Edition of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1965, 1966 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. I. Youth-Group Meeting Outline A. Goal for the Session Always begin by clearly defining what you want to accomplish. The suffering and death Jesus is the most dramatic event in human history. Humanly speaking, Jesus suffered as much as any other human has ever suffered. What makes His death so intriguing is that He is God, and that He willfully offered His life for our salvation. This Youth Group meeting will examine the physical sufferings Jesus experienced during His Passion and death, helping the teens to understand that Jesus entire motivation was love for each one of us. 1

2 B. References 1. Questions in the Mind of A Teen Be sure to know your audience. Brainstorm as many questions they may have about this topic. Some might include: a. Why did Jesus have to suffer and die? If He is really God, couldn t He have saved us another way? b. Why does Jesus death and resurrection save us? c. What (physically) killed Jesus? d. The Gospel accounts of His passion and death seem so minor compared to the Mel Gibson movie. Was the real crucifixion really that bad? 2. From The Catechism of the Catholic Church Know what the Church teaches and why by studying the following references from the Catechism. The Catechism discusses the theological significance of Jesus death in paragraphs # Summary of the Catechism. It is hard to wrap our heads around why Jesus suffered so much, but the Catechism does help us see some of the meaning. The bottom line reason for Jesus death was His total obedience to God. Adam disobeyed, taking the easy way out be submitting to sin. All of us have sinned, directly disobeying God and choosing sin over Him. In this sense we are all responsible for Jesus death. Jesus shows us the demands of love. His love was so deep that it was totally obedient to the Father, even in the midst of brutal torture. Jesus went through this death to show us how to live. Now that He has been totally obedient to the Father, we can have access to God s grace through the ministry of the Church. 3. Important Point to Keep In Mind Many protestants think that Christ s death and Resurrection were the end of His mission of salvation. This is where Catholics and protestants disagree. Now that Christ has shown us how to live, the issue now is how this gift become our own, or is appropriated to us. This is the purpose of the ministry of the Church, to be Christ s sign of salvation to the world. We cannot talk 2

3 about Christ s death without having a glace to the Church. The Church, through the sacraments, her teaching and her governing ministries, seeks to bring each person to the grace of Christ s salvation. Through Baptism, we are joined to Christ s death and Resurrection and are able to live the life of obedience that He perfectly modeled for us. 4. Semester Resource Archbishop Charles J. Chaput. Living the Catholic Faith. Ann Arbor: Servant Publications Important Related Topics Our beliefs are all interconnected, forming One Faith in the One Christ. The Problem of Evil. Because of the intense sufferings of Jesus, the question of the problem of evil is bound to come up. God is not the cause of evil, but He permits it to happen. He allows evil to exist in the world as a result of people s free decision to sin. Philosophically, evil is a privation or a lack of good. Evil does not exist in and of itself (God did not create it), but is the absence of good. Original Sin. Jesus suffering and death is to be seen in contrast to the disobedience of Adam. In Genesis 3, Adam is silent, not standing up to the Serpent, the Devil. As a result of Adam s sin, all of us are separated from God at our conception. This separation is known as Original Sin. Jesus suffers and dies in order to overcome the effects of Original Sin. Baptism. Baptism is our opportunity to enter into Jesus passion, death and Resurrection. It is more than a man-made ritual; it is a guaranteed encounter with Christ. Baptism transforms us into God s children. In Baptism, we take on the grace of justification that Christ won on the Cross. Our salvation, however, is not determined until the moment of our death, for at any time we can chose to mortally sin and lose the grace of Baptism. Sanctifying Grace. Through the Sacraments, we receive God s life in us. God s life is what is referred to as grace. This grace is a free gift given to each of us. There is nothing we can do to obtain that grace. Once we have that grace, however, we have a responsibility to live a life free from sin. God s grace gives us the ability to live that life of freedom from sin. On our own power we cannot avoid sin, but with Christ s help we can remain free from sin. This is the grace that Christ modeled for us in His passion and death. He was totally free from sin, totally abandoning Himself to the will of the Father. 3

4 C. Creative Theme In putting together your meeting with teens, remember that room environment, icebreaker games and using skits/videos can help bring the content to their level. While we believe it is best for you to come up with the creative element yourself, here is a potential idea: A semester on Jesus has superheroes written all over it. There are two different ways you can go about this. Either you can use a pre-existing superhero or make up your own. Just as the superheroes have their special powers, as followers of Christ we can all take on the supernatural powers of Jesus. The teens are in training this semester to work on their new superhero power, with the superhero acting as the coach. They are in an X-Men academy type of setting. Youth Group Meeting #3: In this session, the Superhero School helps us to learn the skill of giving thanks for things we often overlook (such as Jesus death for us). D. Opening/Discussion Starters/Icebreakers: Led by (5 minutes) After gathering all the teens and team members, begin by dividing everyone into small groups. Once they are in small groups, have them discuss the following questions to help them get to know each other: 1. Have you seen the movie the Passion of the Christ? If so, what stood out for you? Why? 2. Why do you think so many people were offended by it when it was released? (Note: With the 'Discussion Starters', don't worry about them giving you difficult or challenging answers. You just want to have some honest discussion so you can evaluate where they are at in their faith.) E. Teaching: Given by (10 minutes) 1. In this session we want to give you a graphic understanding of the sufferings and death that Jesus experienced. Our teaching tonight will be to read for you excerpts from an article published by the Journal for the American Medical Association entitled On the Physical Death of Jesus Christ. This is not written from a Christian perspective, but is simply a medical summary of what Jesus went through in His passion and death. (From here, share with the teens the key excerpts 4

5 from the article. Do not read the entire article with them, for there are many complex medical terms in it. The article can be accessed at This site also contains helpful drawings of the physiology of the crucifixion. It can also be accessed at Please note that YM Central does not endorse these sites in any manner. If for some reason this link is no longer active, do a search for: The Journal for the American Medical Association On the Physical Death of Jesus Christ.) 2. The physical and emotional suffering of Jesus is mind-boggling. Given the above article, let s summarize some of the details: a. The Agony in the Garden. After having finished His Passover meal with His Apostles, Jesus goes to the Mount of Olives. There He is in total agony over the suffering He is about to endure. He experiences mental agony so difficult that it causes many of His small blood vessels to burst. This makes it appear as if He is sweating blood. He is going through intense stress. It is here in the garden that He is arrested. He suffers countless physical punches and intense beatings. After an appearance before the religious leaders of the Jews, He spends most the night in a cistern, an empty hole in the ground used for storing water. He is cold, tired and in physical pain. He is sent before Pilate in the early morning. b. The Scourging at the Pillar. Pilate finds no case against Him, but nevertheless has Jesus scourged as a sign of Rome s might. Jesus scourging is a combination of whipping and flogging. His hands are tied over His head to a large pillar. He goes through a period of whipping, in which the instrument of torture is a leather whip. This is followed up be a flogging, done by whips with pieces of bone attached to the ends. Flogging rips the skin off of Jesus, causing massive bleeding. This would cause death for most people, but because of Jesus great physical shape and mental determination, He survives. c. The Crowning with Thorns. To mock the royal claims against Jesus, the soldiers dress Him in purple and place a crown of thorns on His head. The thorns are one inch in length and pierce His skull upon entry. d. The Carrying of the Cross. After being sentenced to death, Jesus is forced to carry the cross-beam on which He will be nailed. The beam weighs anywhere between one-hundred and one-hundred and twenty pounds. Given His weakened condition, and the length of the terrain He travels, the Roman soldiers call Simon of Cyrene to help carry the crossbeam. e. The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus. At Calvary, Jesus is stripped and is nailed to His cross-beam, more than likely through the wrists. This would have been the best place to nail Him and support His Body on the Cross. The pain of the nail through the wrists would be excruciating. Once His wrists are nailed, the cross-beam would be raised 5

6 and set on top of a permanent, vertical wooded pole. The action raising the cross-beam about the vertical pole and dropping it in would have separated His shoulder. With His knees bent, His feet would have been placed one on top of the other and nailed to the vertical beam. With gravity causing the weight of the Body to go down, breathing would have been very difficult. In order to take a breath, Jesus would have had to push up on the nail driven into His feet. Because of the intense pain this would have caused the feet, breathing and speaking would have been difficult. Most victims suffocated to death during crucifixion. Because of the amount of water in His heart, Jesus may have died because of a heart attack. Given the reality of what happened, Mel Gibson s movie was a little tame. 3. Given this terrible suffering, both emotional and physical, we are left with one question: Why did God chose to do this? Jesus, again and again, clearly stated that He freely offered His life, that no one took it from Him. Jesus says in John 10:17-18: John 10: For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life, that I may take it again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again; this charge I have received from my Father. His entire purpose for taking on human flesh was to offer Himself for our sins. Because He is God, Jesus could have saved us any way He wanted to save us. He could have snapped His fingers and we would have been free from sin. Instead, He chose the most difficult way possible to save us. Perhaps there were behind the scenes discussions He had with the devil that we will never know about (while we are here on earth). Perhaps the devil got in His face and told Him that we were not worth the trouble. Regardless, Jesus wanted to show us what we are worth to Him. Jesus wanted to show us that we are worth dying for, for He said that there is no greater love than to lay down your life for your friends (John 15:13). The ultimate reason why Jesus did this is His love for us, and His hatred for sin. He wanted to show us what it means to live a life totally free from sin. This life is so radical that it could cost us our lives. Jesus showed us that it would be better to die, to get beaten and tortured, than to commit even one venial sin. Jesus dies, not to get us off the hook, but to show us what each one of us needs to become in order to be free from sin. Jesus even gives us His life in the Sacraments to help us live His holiness. F. Testimony: Given by (5 minutes) 6

7 Have an adult team member give a sharing about the impact that the physical dimension of Christ s sufferings had on his/her appreciation for Christ s love. G. Small Groups (15 minutes) 1. Why is it that, for so many people, Jesus death is no big deal? Why, for so many people, is Jesus death offensive to them? 2. From what was read from the article on Jesus torture and crucifixion, what did you hear about Jesus death that was new to you? 3. Have you ever taken Jesus sufferings for granted before? How can understanding the reality of His physical sufferings help you stay more committed to Him? 4. After hearing this account of His suffering, what would they say to Jesus in response, if He were here in their midst? H. Large Group Discussion: Led by (10 minutes) Choose one or two questions from the small groups to use in the large group discussion. I. Recap: Led by Youth Minister (5 minutes) Always end your meeting by summarizing the key point in a concise manner. Let us never take Jesus sufferings for granted. At times we hear about Jesus suffering and death and it sounds so commonplace. We have to fight to stay focused on how ugly and intense Jesus sufferings were. This is an amazing claim we make, that Jesus, the Eternal God and Second Person of the Trinity, died for us. If we commit to anything from this night, let us all be committed to never taking Jesus sufferings for granted. What Jesus experienced is a historical fact. No credible historian would deny that. But that Jesus loves each one of us with the kind of love that would endure this suffering is beyond our comprehension. Let us ask God for the ability to be able to thank Jesus for what He did for us, and may we never lose sight of His sacrifice all the days of our lives. J. Closing Prayer: Led by (10 minutes) Veneration of the Cross 7

8 Invite the teens to enter into a prayerful and quiet attitude. Set the environment in your meeting space by dimming the lights, creating a prayer area with a Bible and Icon/Sacred Image, and either playing a prayerful song or some instrumental prayerful music in the background. Begin by proclaiming 1 Corinthians 1:18: 1 Corinthians 1:18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. Invite the teens to silence. Have at the front of the room a cross, similar to what is used during a Good Friday Liturgy. Like that Liturgy, invite the teens to come forward one-at-a-time to venerate the Cross. Remind them that this is a time for them to give thanks to Jesus for what He did during His passion and death. When they are done venerating the Cross, invite them to quietly be seated. End with time for intentions and the Hail Mary. K. Announcements and Snacks Take this time with your teens to inform them of any upcoming events and to 'hang out' with them. Don't forget to have food and drinks available! Be sure to make an open invitation to all teens to come to this unit s following Going Deeper meeting. Running Time: 60 minutes 8

9 II. Going Deeper Meeting Outline A. Meeting Goal Always begin by clearly defining what you want to accomplish. In our Youth Group meeting, we discussed the physical reality of Jesus passion and death. Now, we will begin to outline the reasons for His redemption. This will be more theological in nature, why we need to be saved and how Jesus accomplishes that mission. It will also attempt to show the distinctive Catholic about salvation, contrasting it with our non-catholic brothers and sisters in Christ. B. Scriptural References In addition to the references listed in the Youth Group session above, refer also to the following Scripture verses. Galatians 4:4-7; 4 But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" 7 So through God you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son then an heir. Romans 5:12 Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned. Romans 3:23. all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God Romans 7:15. I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 1 John 1:

10 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. Genesis 3:15. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel. Mark 10:45. For the Son of man also came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. 1 Corinthians 15: "O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?" 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Acts 1: In the first book, O The-oph'ilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 To them he presented himself alive after his passion by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days, and speaking of the kingdom of God. 4 And while staying with them he charged them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, "you heard from me, 5 for John baptized with water, but before many days you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit." 6 So when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" 7 He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Sama'ria and to the end of the earth." 9 And when he had said this, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 1 Peter 3:21. 10

11 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 6: Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. Luke 9: And he said to all, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? Romans 10:9. because, if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. C. Gathering/Welcome and Warm-up: (20 minutes) Take the time to help the teens make a mental shift from their daily activities to receiving the Word of God. Using a prayerful setting in your room, use the following sample activities to help them transition to prayerful attentiveness: Sing three-four upbeat praise and worship songs (done live, if possible); Sing two-three prayerful songs; Proclaim the Scripture passage for the evening, Galatians 4:4-7; Galatians 4:4-7 4 But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the 11

12 Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" 7 So through God you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son then an heir. Allow for some time for open intentions, ending with an Our Father, Hail Mary and a Glory Be ; Introduce any first-time people at your meeting; In groups of three, share one way you experienced Christ this week; if time permits, have the teens then share their experiences in the large group. D. For Starters: (10 minutes) Clearly articulate the purpose of the meeting, then examine the common questions surrounding these passages. Tonight s Main Point: Begin by briefly stating the main point of your entire session. Go back to this point time and time again throughout the night: This session is on Christ the Redeemer. Tonight we want to show that the main differences between a Catholic and non-catholic understanding of redemption, or salvation by Jesus. We will see that the Catholic understanding of redemption is about the transformation of our entire being into God s children. This happens when we encounter the grace of the Cross, primarily through the Sacraments. Discussion Questions: Next, begin the discussion with the following questions: 1. What does it mean to redeem something? 2. Have any of you heard of the Four Spiritual Laws? (If any teens respond yes, have them describe their experience.) It is used by many non- Catholic protestant Christians to give a basic understanding of why Jesus died for us. It goes as follows: a. Man has sinned; b. Because of sin, there is a separation between God and man that no man can cross on his own power; c. Christ is the bridge between God and man; d. To get to the other side, man must accept Christ. 12

13 This is a very short and effective way to understand why Christ is important to us. The problem is that it is incomplete. Let s begin to look at how the Scriptures gives us a much more complete picture of what Christ did to save us and how we get this gift of salvation from Jesus. E. From the Scriptures: (35 minutes) Spending time soaking in the Scriptures. Now that you have looked at the common questions, break open for the teens the Scriptural story: Background: While the Four Spiritual Law is affective, it is not accurate. To see the full picture of the Scriptures, we need to see the big picture. We will look at many Scripture verses, but we will start by looking at a passage St. Paul wrote in Galatians. (Have the teens open their Bibles and read the passage with you.) Read Galatians 4:4-7. Galatians 4:4-7 4 But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" 7 So through God you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son then an heir. Ask the group of teens the following questions: o o o What strikes you about this passage? What does St. Paul say is the purpose of being redeemed, v. 5? (Answer to receive adoption as sons.) How does this process happen, v. 6? (Answer God sends the Spirit of His son into our hearts.) Where do you think we experience this? Quiet Time: In quiet, have the teens look up the verses below, writing down what these passages tell us about Christ s redemption. Do not give the passage to the teens written out in full on paper. As they are looking at the passages, have the teens reflect on the following question: How does Christ redeem us? How to we get in on redemption? Galatians 4:4-7; Romans 5:12 13

14 Romans 3:23. Romans 7:15. 1 John 1:8-10. Genesis 3:15. Mark 10:45. 1 Corinthians 15: Acts 1: Peter 3:21. 1 Corinthians 6: Luke 9: Romans 10:9. John 3: Small Groups: In groups of four to five, have the teens discuss what they got from the above Scriptures verses, sharing with their small group. Connecting the Dots: Have the group leader summarize the Scripture passages as follows. 1. All Christians agree that Jesus came to save us from sin, but how He redeems us varies between Christian denominations. The Catholic understanding of salvation helps us to understand why Christ died and why He established the Church to be While the Church s teaching on redemption is perhaps more complicated than the non-catholic view, it is full, complete and truthful. Let s start by simply defining the word redemption. We know that when we redeem something, such as an aluminum can, we get the true value of that object. We are taking something we would otherwise get rid of and getting the value out of it. To say that Jesus redeems us means that He gets the true value out of us. In its Glossary, the Catechism defines redemption as: Redeemer/Redemption: Jesus Christ, redeemer of mankind. Christ paid the price of his own sacrificial death on the cross to ransom us, to set us free from the slavery of sin, thus achieving our redemption. (571, 601; cf. 517, 1372). Through Original Sin, we are all separated from God. This separation does not reflect our true value, for God created us to be His loving children. God s goal in redeeming us is not only to declare us His children but to transform us into His children. He didn t just want us to be fans at the game: He wants us to be players in it. 2. So how do we go from being separated from God to not only following Jesus but becoming God s children? (How do we go from being outside the stadium, to fans, to players in this game?) Unlike the Four Spiritual Laws, the Church s look at redemption can be seen in ten stages: 14

15 a. God creates mankind in a condition of original justice and holiness. Adam and Eve have God s life within them (sanctifying grace), and they have clear communication with God. They are not subject to death and suffering, and are co-workers with God in the care of the earth. Sin is not a part of the world at this time, and Adam and Eve do not have the attraction to sin known as concupiscence (Genesis 1 and 2). b. Adam and Eve rebel against God and, following the prompting of the Serpent, fall from grace. Sin now enters the world. They no longer have God s life within them. Adam and Eve realize their shame and (along with the Serpent) are punished by God. They no longer have clear fellowship with Him. They can physically suffer now, they need to be protected from the weather, they have an attraction to sin (they immediately start blaming each other for the sin), and now are subject to physical death (Genesis 3). c. The separation caused by Adam and Eve s sin is passed on to every human being at the moment of their conception. This condition is called Original Sin. At its core, Original Sin shows us that God s family is separated from Him, and is in need of His supernatural help to overcome this condition. No person on their own power can overcome this division. St. Paul includes this condition in his explanation of sin in Romans 5:12, stating that Adam s sin has affected all humanity. Romans 5:12 Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned. Original Sin has affected everyone: Romans 3:23. all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God Included in this condition is that fact that every person has an attraction to sin called concupiscence. St. Paul describes this as follows: Romans 7:15. I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 15

16 Committing more sinful actions has become easier to do once sin enters the world. Each one of us is now subject to suffering and death. According to God, our sin problem is the worst problem we have. 1 John 1: If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. d. Immediately after the Fall, God begins His plan of salvation to regather all people into His family. We see this in Genesis 3:15, the first promise of the redeemer. To Satan, God says: Genesis 3:15. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel. Throughout the Old Testament, God slowly grows the size of His covenant family, as seen in the covenants with Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David. Each of these paves the way for Jesus. e. In an event that changes history, God enters time in the form of a human. This is known as the Incarnation, in which God takes on human flesh. God chose to redeem us in the midst of us, not just by snapping His fingers in heaven and making us holy. Galatians 4: But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" 7 So through God you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son then an heir. f. Jesus mission in the world is to save us from sin, to redeem us so that we would have eternal life. Jesus shows us what it means to have a right relationship with God in His passion, death and Resurrection. In these events Jesus models for us total obedience to the Father. Jesus shows that it is better to love, 16

17 be free from sin, and even be killed than to disobey God in sin. The Cross is the next, but not the last, step in bringing back God s family. Mark 10:45. For the Son of man also came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. g. Jesus guarantees everything He said and did in His Resurrection. Death was a result of Original Sin, and in the Resurrection Jesus shows His power over death. In his first letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul says that Jesus has the victory over death: 1 Corinthians 15: "O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?" 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. h. Jesus, not wanting to stay on earth to be a celebrity, ascends into heaven to be at the Father s right hand. Although He could have stayed on earth for ever and just been a big media star, He wants to accomplish something even greater in our lives. We see this talked about in the beginning of the book of the Acts of the Apostles, in which Jesus promises the Holy Spirit after He ascends into heaven. Acts 1: In the first book, O The-oph'ilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 To them he presented himself alive after his passion by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days, and speaking of the kingdom of God. 4 And while staying with them he charged them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, "you heard from me, 5 for John baptized with water, but before many days you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit." 6 So when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" 7 He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Sama'ria and to the end of the earth." 9 And when he had said this, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 17

18 i. Through the ministry of the Church, begun at Pentecost, Jesus sends His Spirit into the world to give each one of us the grace Jesus won on the Cross and to transform each of us into God s children. We receive this grace in Baptism, and this grace is strengthened through each and every Sacrament. Baptism gives us sanctifying grace, God s life in us, but it does not take away suffering and death. 1 Peter 3:21. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus doesn t just want to hang out and be a religious celebrity: He wants to live inside of us. Baptism makes us His dwelling place. 1 Corinthians 6: Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. j. God calls us to total union with Him, growing in holiness and becoming more and more detached from sin. Because of God s free gift, we have in us the ability to stay free from sin and live as God wants us to live as His children. God invites each one of us to grow in His love, to the point where His love is what guides all our decisions. Luke 9: And he said to all, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? If we put our total faith in Him, using the grace He gives us in the sacraments, then we will be saved. Romans 10:9. 18

19 because, if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. At any moment in our lives, even after we are Baptized, we can chose to reject Jesus offer of salvation. We can chose to sin mortally, and lose our salvation. If we decide to remain faithful to Him and love Him more than anything else, He will bless us, and bring us into the fullness of His heavenly home. F. Real-Life Application: (10 minutes) Discussion Questions. 1. How have you seen sin (both Original and sins of actions) in the world, in your families, in your personal life? Where do the effects of sin touch you the most? 2. Why do we need a redeemer in the first place? 3. Do you see yourself as a child of God, loved by the Father and worth dying for? Why/why not? 4. If someone asked you why Jesus had to die, given what we have discussed tonight, how would you respond to that person? 5. If someone came up to you and told you that the Four Spiritual Laws were the way to get to heaven, how would you respond to that person? What deficiencies do you see in the Four Spiritual Laws? Recap, led by Youth Minister Jesus died for us out of love. That is the most important thing to ever remember. St. John says: John 3: John 3: For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. 18 He who believes in him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. Jesus wants us to follow His example. He calls us to die to ourselves and rise to new life with Him. He says: 19

20 Luke 9: And he said to all, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? Let us not let fear or other people s opinions hold us back from following Jesus. He wants us to be saved, to be with Him in Heaven, and He even gives us the grace to carry our daily crosses. A great Catholic theologian and writer, Hans Urs Von Balthasar, said: The believer knows that, on the cross, Jesus took away the sins of the world. Guilt cannot simply be blown away; it must be expiated (made up for); it must be dissolved in the pain of sorrow for sin and the confession of guilt (Catholics Speak Today, September 2). This is another way of saying that Jesus could have snapped His fingers and gotten rid of our sin, but that method would not have been affective for us. Jesus had to show us that He loves us, and by dying for us He put that love into action. Let us have the conviction to act as Jesus did, with our eyes focused on doing the will of the Father. G. Closing Prayer: (15 minutes) Invite the teens to enter into a prayerful and quiet attitude. Set the environment in your meeting space by dimming the lights, creating a prayer area with a Bible and Icon/Sacred Image, and either playing a prayerful song or some instrumental prayerful music in the background. If possible, conclude your evening in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. Have some time of silent prayer. As we did in the last Going Deeper meeting, end this meeting by praying the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary. (If you are short on time, then pray only the decade on the Crucifixion.) Begin by allowing the teens to offer intentions. You can print out a handout on the rosary at H. Announcements and Snacks 20

21 Take this time with your teens to inform them of any upcoming events and to 'hang out' with them. Don't forget to have food and drinks available! Running Time: 90 minutes 21