For Starters
- When did you first encounter the idea of the cross – and can you remember what you thought of it?
- Look back at John12:12-19. Jesus is in Jerusalem, having arrived on a donkey as the king promised by the prophet Zechariah. What do you think the crowds expected Jesus to do after entering into Jerusalem?
- How does Jesus describe ‘the hour of his glorification’ in vv.23-24? How might his disciples have reacted to this? How might the crowd have reacted?
- Look at vv.25-26. Jesus links his approaching death with the life his followers can expect. What is daunting about how Jesus describes a life lived for him? What is encouraging about it?
- God the Father spoke directly to or about Jesus his Son in two earlier instances in Jesus’ life – at Jesus’ baptism (see Mark 1:10-11) and Jesus’ transfiguration (Mark 9:7). What do we learn about the relationship between God the Father and God the Son from these two episodes?
- What do we learn about the relationship between God the Father and God the Son in these verses in John 12?
- Jesus describes the cross in these verses as both a time of God judging sin (v.31) and saving a people for himself (v.32). Why do those two truths belong together at the cross?
- What has struck you most about the cross after looking at this passage?
- Are you ready to be mocked and misunderstood as you trust in Jesus’ death for you?
- In your life at the moment, what do you most need to remember about the cross of Jesus and what it achieved?
- Spend some time praying for one another.
