By this time it was about noon, and darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. The light from the sun was gone. And suddenly, the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn down the middle. Then Jesus shouted,“Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!”And with those words he breathed his last. When the Roman officer overseeing the execution saw what had happened, he worshiped God and said, “Surely this man was innocent. —Luke 23:44-47 (NLT)

Three Truths

Jesus was willing.

No one takes my life away from me. I give it up of my own free will. I have the right to give it up, and I have the right to take it back. This is what my Father has commanded me to do.” —John 10:18 (GNT)

Jesus was confident.

Jesus was committed.

Into your hands I commit my spirit; deliver me, Lord, my faithful God. —Psalm 31:5 (NIV)

Remember…

God loves me.

As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who honor him… —Psalm 103:13 (NIV)

God is consistent.

For the word of thetrue, and we can trust everything he does. —Psalm 33:4 (NLT)

God can handle anything.

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. —Ephesians 3:20 (NLT)

God has been at work in the North and the South, but still I have not seen him. Yet God knows every step I take;he tests me, he will find me pure. —Job 23:9-10 (GNT)

Discussion Questions

1. How is God like an earthly father and how is God different from an earthly father?

2. What do you think God loves most about you?

3. What area in life do you worry the most about and what keeps you from trusting God completely with it?

4. Remember a situation in your own life where you really needed someone you could trust but you thought you had no one to turn to. Now imagine how it would have felt if you had had someone that you could trust completely. Discuss in your group how different the situation could have been.

5. Often it is hard to see that God is always working for our benefit because we are distracted by things in the world around us. What are ways we could shut out the “distractions” to better focus on God at work in and around us?