Jesus said to Nicodemus God loved the world

Jesus said to Nicodemus: ‘God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost but may have eternal life. For God sent his Son into the world not to condemn the world, but so that through him the world might be saved. No one who believes in him will be condemned; but whoever refuses to believe is condemned already, because he has refused to believe in the name of God’s only Son. ’

me Class discussion: • NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER is a familiar proverb. It reminds us not to judge a person or a situation on first impressions. • When you meet someone for the first time do you judge them on first appearances? • How long does it take you before you form an accurate impression of someone? • On what evidence do you base your impression? • Can you tell whether a person is kind just by looking at them?

Often we do judge people when we first meet them. A good example of how wrong we can be occurred in the first show of the current series of Britain’s Got Talent. We saw an unmarried Scottish lady of 47 years of age called Susan Boyle come onto the stage to talk to Simon Cowell before she sang ‘I Dreamed a Dream’ from Les Miserables. She was not wearing fashionable clothes or sporting a modern hairstyle. As we saw her for the first time I am sure we all began to make assumptions about her. The crowd sniggered as Simon Cowell began asking her why her ambition to be a professional singer had not worked out so far. Susan Boyle reported later, ‘I knew what they were thinking and I knew that they were laughing at me. But I thought, well, they’ll soon shut up when they hear me sing. And they did’. Watch me! Were your first impressions changed after you heard Susan sing? Piers said it was the biggest surprise he had in three years of the show and that he was reeling from shock, and he gave her the biggest yes he had given anybody. Amanda said she was thrilled because everybody had been against her when she had appeared on the stage and she added that it had been a privilege to listen to her. Simon’s face said it all!

Your challenge is to go an entire week without stereo typing someone. Do not judge people on how they look. Get to know them. See what you have in common!

Father, Our world today is torn with strife. We are often overwhelmed by stories of hatred and prejudice. Reveal to us how we have been guilty of prejudice and stereotypes. Help us to see people who are different from us through Your eyes. We need Your help to love our neighbours as ourselves. Help us reach out in love to those around us and break down the barriers of prejudice in our communities. Amen.