LESSON 14: LENT

An act of selfless giving is an act of

love. We call it SACRIFICE. Sacrifice is when you let go or give up something that is really important for you for the sake of others. We give up something we value so much.

THE CRUCIFIXION VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhGE5CPLFlo

Why do you think Jesus obeyed God and allowed Himself to suffer and die?

The great sacrifice of Jesus on the cross is a sign of His great love for God and for us. He loves God so much that He obeyed Him even it will cause His very own life. Jesus died so that all people could live in Gods love.

Jesus death does not mean taking of His life. It means a FREE OFFERING OF HIS LIFE for our redemption. His suffering and death made us free from sin. His death makes us see the ugliness of SIN.

His death is the fulfillment of all His teachings and of all the things that He did.

This time of remembering Jesus great love for God and for us is called

LENT.

LENT is the time when we recall the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross. This season lasts for 40 days.

During this time, we think about Jesus great love for us.
During this time, we are called to turn away from sin and be sorry. We try to make up for our lack of love by doing acts of love (sacrifices). We try our best to be SELFLESS just like what Jesus did.

The Cross is a very special symbol. It reminds us of Christs greatest love for us.

It reminds us of His suffering, death and resurrection.

CROSS symbolizes too the sacrifices that we are willing to do for Jesus, and the challenges that we are willing to face and overcome for the love of God.

Jesus said: If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
Video link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32XhShqFi88

Why should we do all of these sacrifices? Why should we do our best to make our hearts clean?

We are looking forward to the feast of new life that Jesus will bring us because of His death.

LENT therefore is a time for us to prepare for the great feast of Easter.

When do we begin Lent?

We begin this season on Ash Wednesday.

On this day, we receive ashes on our forehead.

The priest put ashes on our forehead in the form of a cross to remind us to believe and follow Jesus in our everyday life. The priest says the words Turn away from sins and believe in the Gospel.

Our response would be: AMEN

Responding AMEN, means we humble ourselves and we accept our mistakes and we tell God that we are sorry for our sins. We show HUMILITY.

Questions to think about:

1. What is sacrifice? 2. Why did Jesus sacrifice His life for us? 3. What is Lent? 4. Why is it important to celebrate the season of Lent? 5. What is Ash Wednesday? 6. What does Carry your cross mean?