Gospel Lesson Plans
The Lord is full of compassion and mercy: Come, let us adore him. (Antiphon for Lent, Book of Common Prayer, page 81.) And what if, during this season of Lent, we sought a deeper understanding of this amazing gospel of grace? Will that image of grace energize us to do the spiritual housekeeping we need to be ready for the “new thing” God is doing in Easter?
Old Testament Lesson Plans
Lent is a reflective season – an opportunity to go deep within ourselves and focus on our relationship with God and with others. The forty days of Lent remind us of the forty days that Jesus spent in the desert following his baptism, pondering who he was and what he was to do. They also remind us of the forty years that the people of God wandered in the desert following the Exodus from Egypt, learning how to be the community of the people of God. The Hebrew Scripture lessons in year C focus on the covenants or promises that God made with the people of God. Like Jesus, we choose to enter this time of “desert,” in order to remember the promises of God, hear the stories of ways in which they were fulfilled (hint: They didn’t always look the way the people expected!), and the ways in which we are called to participate in those promises in our own time – to discover who we are in God and what we are to do.
| Day | Gospel | Gospel Lesson Plan | Old Testament/Acts Lesson |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Sunday in Lent | Deuteronomy 26:1-11 Luke 4:1-13 | Facing Temptations | Remembering and Anticipation |
| Second Sunday in Lent | Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18 Luke 13:31-35 | As a Hen Gathers Her Chicks | God Promises Abram and Sarai |
| Third Sunday in Lent | Exodus 3:1-15 Luke 13:1-9 | To Turn, To Repent | God Promises to be with Moses |
| Fourth Sunday in Lent | Joshua 5:9-12 Luke 15:1-3,11b-32 | Amazing Grace | Remembering |
| Fifth Sunday in Lent | Isaiah 43:16-21 John 12:1-8 | When to Store Up and When to Pour Out | God is Doing a New Think! |
| Palm Sunday | Isaiah 50:4-9a Luke 22:14—23:56 or Luke 23:1-49 | Palm Sunday | The Suffering Servant |