Luke 23

Small Group Discussion

  1. Father, Forgive Them Luke 23:34
    1. What term do you usually use to address God? Why? How might your faith be affected if you started addressing God in your prayers as “Father”? How would it help you better understand the relationship between you and God?
    2. In what sense can your sin be seen as a debt owed to God? How do you pay off a debt like that? On what just basis can God forgive this debt of sin?
    3. Who was most responsible for killing Jesus? What responsibility do we bear for Jesus’ death on the cross?
  2. This Day You Will Be with Me in Paradise Luke 23:43
    1. Did the thief confess his sins? Was he repentant?
    2. What are the elements of Jesus’ promise to the thief in Luke 23:43?
    3. What are we disciples supposed to learn from this strange exchange on the crosses?
  3. Woman, Behold Your Son John 19:26-27
    1. Why didn’t Jesus make his brothers responsible for Mary? Why John?
    2. What does this third saying teach us about Jesus?
  4. My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me? Mark 15:34
    1. Why do you think the sun stopped shining? What did it signify? Mark 15:33
    2. What does the loudness of Jesus’ voice tell us about his mental and emotional states? Mark 15:34
  5. I Thirst John 19:28
    1. What are the reasons that Jesus would have been thirsty? Physiologically what would have been going on in a person suffering as Jesus did?
    2. What Scriptures are fulfilled by John 19:28‐30 or may refer to this aspect of the crucifixion? Why was fulfilling Scripture important to Jesus?
    3. What is the significance of the sponge being offered to Jesus on a branch of hyssop?
  6. It Is Finished John 19:30
    1. What did Jesus come to accomplish? What was his “prime directive”?
    2. Why did Jesus shout out this sixth phrase rather than say it quietly? John 19:30
  7. Father, Into Your Hands I Commit My Spirit Luke 23:46
    1. What is the meaning of the curtain of the temple being torn in two? Luke 23:45b
    2. What does Jesus mean when he says, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit”? Luke 23:46 Why does this saying comfort us so much?
    3. Why is faith so important during the dark chapters of our lives? What does it take to shake off the numbness and depression and take hold of that faith once more.