Read: John 13:35 There is a song by Catholic priest, Peter Scholtes called “They’ll Know We Are Christians” that was inspired this verse. He wrote this song because of a phrase that non-Christians would use to describe Christians. They would say “Behold, how they love one another.” Christian love should turn heads and surprise people.…

Read: Mark 12:30-31 This is known as the Great Commandment. While it may seem straightforward and simple, we cannot forget exactly why this commandment is so important. Are you someone who is constantly pouring yourself out to others by serving them or thinking about them? This can be exhausting! Christ says that you cannot effectively…

Take out your Block Map Do the Block Map – Take out the block map and fill it in right now… just start with the names of your neighbors… Did you have any epiphanies as you did this exercise? What did you learn or feel as a result of doing this exercise? Identify one neighbor…

Matthew Study: Matthew, the author of the gospel, was known as a tax collector before he began following Jesus. The Jews did not hold tax collectors in high regard. They believed that taxes should only go to God and not the state. Most tax collectors were known for being unjust and abusing their powers. Even…

Doubting Thomas Study:  Thomas Didymus was a man who could not believe something until he had seen it with his own eyes. When Jesus appeared to the disciples in the upper room in John 20, Thomas would not believe that it was Christ until he touched the nail holes in Jesus’ hands. Even though he…

Simon the Zealot Study: We do not know much about Simon the Zealot except that he was a Zealot whose name was Simon. Zealots were Jewish Nationalists who held a deep hatred for the Romans. They were known for their reckless actions on behalf of their religious beliefs. We see Simon, the fanatical Nationalist who…

Philip Study: Phillip, like Peter, was most likely a fisherman by trade. In the Gospel of John, we see that Phillip was one of the first people to whom Jesus said, “Follow me”. While Phillip did follow Jesus without question, we see through the scriptures that he was a Pessimist at heart. In John 6…

Simon Peter Study:  Simon Peter is, without a doubt, the most popular of the disciples. Before following Jesus, Simon made his living as a fisherman. Peter was rom Galilean. This is important because of what being a Galilean meant. 1st century Jewish scholar described Galileans like this, “They were ever fond of innovation and by…

Read: 1 Colossians 1:16-20 Study: All that is and all that will be was created for the glory of God. Too often we look at earthly things as being negative. It is true that the love of worldly things is wrong when we place those things above God but we also know that the creator…