1 John 3:11-18For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous.  Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you.  We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the ...  Read More

Scripture:John 21:17 Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”Observation:Jesus’ repeated question to Peter about whether he loved Jesus was painful for Peter; but it wasn’t intended to hurt Peter, but rather to give him the opportunity to in a sense cancel out his three denials of Jesus and to clear his...  Read More

Scripture:John 20:21-22a Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”Observation:In the same way that God the Father had sent Jesus on a mission to earth to show people what God is like and help people connect with God, Jesus commissioned His followers to go into the world. He doesn’t want...  Read More

Scripture:John 19:14 “It was the Day of Preparation of Passover Week, about the sixth hour.”Observation:Jesus’ death occurred during the Passover at the time when all Jewish families would have been killing a lamb in preparation for that celebration. The Passover lamb was to remind them of how the blood of innocent lambs killed in Egypt saved their ancestors from the plague of death and enabled th...  Read More

Scripture:John 18:28b “To avoid ceremonial uncleanness the Jews did not enter the palace; they wanted to be able to eat the Passover.”Observation:The Jews were knowingly trying to kill an innocent man through bribery and deceit; yet they were concerned about keeping religious rules about ceremonial cleanliness. They didn’t want to miss out on celebrating the Passover, the holiday marking God savin...  Read More

Scripture:John 17:24b “You loved me before the creation of the world.”Observation:Long before our universe existed, God existed. But He wasn’t just a loner with no companionship. God existed eternally as three persons who consistently loved each other and lived in perfect harmony with one another. The three members of the Trinity glorify each other, submit to each other, obey each other, lift each...  Read More

1 John 2:29-3:10If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone also who practices righteousness is born of Him.  See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.  Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know ...  Read More

Scripture:John 16:32b “You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me.”Observation:Jesus knew that His friends would all abandon Him in His time of greatest need. They would fall asleep, when He asked them to stay awake and pray with Him in the garden. They would run in fear, when the soldiers came to arrest Him. Peter would even deny he knew Jesus as Jesus was on trial....  Read More

Scripture:John 15:5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”Observation:In these last hours of Jesus’ life before His crucifixion, He speaks about some of His greatest concerns for His followers. And at the top of His priority list is that each of us stays connected to Him, keeping the relationship with H...  Read More

1 John 2:18-28Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour.  They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.  But you have an anointing f...  Read More

Scripture:John 14:27 ”Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”Observation:Hearing Jesus speak of His death and of going away without them was frightening for His disciples. They knew there were people in power who wanted to kill Jesus and it seemed like Jesus was not planning to fight them. This was...  Read More

Scripture:John 13:3 “Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power, and that He had come from God and was returning to God; so He got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist.”Observation:It is amazing to see that Jesus’ willingness to do such a lowly and menial act of service was not in spite of Him being the greatest person in the world ...  Read More