Materials Included
• 4 Sessions of Learner’s Materials
• 4 Sessions of Teaching Materials
• 4 Handouts

Scriptures
1. Matthew 23:1-3, 29-39
2. Matthew 26:14-25; 27:3-10
3. Matthew 26:36-46
4. Matthew 26:57-58, 69-75

Brief Description
We need not feel guilty that faith is not always easy for us. Have you ever been traveling in unfamiliar territory? There is no shame in having a difficult time finding your way. Stopping to ask for directions is part of the journey. Heading down the wrong road from time to time is all but inevitable. The question is not whether we will go down the wrong roads in our faith journey. All of us will. The question is whether we will find the resources to acknowledge our failure, turn from it, and learn from it.

Session One: How easy it is for us to "talk" a better game than we "play." It is much easier to speak of faithful living than it is to live faithfully. Our text for today, though, does not permit us to separate our practice from our beliefs. What we say we believe and how we live need to be consistent and harmonious.

Session Two: This is a story of the betrayal of trust and its consequences. Judas was trusted. He was the treasurer for Jesus and his disciples. He was one of the few whom Jesus chose to teach and with whom Jesus shared his life. Yet he allowed all of Jesus' teachings and actions to fall on an unreceptive heart. Being "close" to Jesus does not guarantee good and holy living.

Session Three: In our text, Jesus has a final opportunity to turn away from the cross and take an easier route. Instead, in the midst of great pain and grief, Jesus uses this opportunity to gather the necessary resources to face his death.

Session Four: Being a faithful disciple of Jesus is a daily challenge. In the midst of unanticipated events and inattentive moments, temptations from within us and around us can lead us toward faithlessness. Our strengths can sometimes be great weaknesses, often because we think we consider ourselves not susceptible to failure. Pride in spiritual accomplishments can leave us vulnerable to big failures, as Peter's denial so poignantly reminds us.

by Layne Smith

User License
The purchaser of this file has permission to print twenty copies of this Learners Study Guide. Neither the file nor the printed contents may be sold copied or transferred to another person or church. The purchaser may make a backup copy of the file.

The purchaser of this file has permission to print one copy of this Teaching Guide. Neither the file nor the printed contents may be sold, copied or transferred to another person or church. The purchaser may make a backup copy of the file.

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