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Week 4 - Day 5

Finding Real Life | Read

Mark wants us to understand that Jesus’ death is the most important part of His ministry. We tend to think that our greatest need is for healing or deliverance or financial provision or better mental health or restored friendships. But the cross of Jesus gives us a glimpse into the most important need we have. Our deepest problem is isolation or alienation from God. Living life separated from God is like trying to grow a garden without watering it.

You and I are made to know God and to be loved by Him - without a relationship with God we end up with dry and thirsty souls: we chase meaning and fulfillment in all kinds of things. But Jesus walked this planet and died to make a way for us to "tap back in" to a relationship with God. As you get to know God, He will refresh your soul. Jesus encourages us to accept the invitation each day - to have daily conversations with our Heavenly Father, to be around other Jesus followers, to experience the significance of what Jesus’ death has given us.

Questions | Reflect & Respond

What do you see when you read about Jesus on a cross?

How is his death the most important part of his ministry?

Jesus' Last Act | Pray

The last thing Jesus does before He dies is, to talk with His Father. It’s a beautiful reminder. With His last breath, Jesus chooses to pray. His prayer sounds desperate and almost despairing, but He’s actually quoting a well-known Jewish song (Psalm 22). If you read it you’ll see that Mark has highlighted some things about Jesus’ death that echo this song. Jesus’ final words are actually a prayer of faith. Even as He faces His death He trusts that His death will achieve its life-giving purpose.

As you pray today, thank God for the death of Jesus on the cross. Thank Him for the gift it gives us of an open invitation into a relationship with our Heavenly Father. At times, it can be hard to be confident that God is working. In desperate situations, the cross of Jesus is the ultimate reminder that God is at work-- even in the most difficult things we go through.