last night in my 7th grade (12-13 year-old) guys small group, we were talking about how god is our friend. and i wanted them to think about how our relationship with god might be different if god had chosen some other relationship with us.

so we read john 15:15, where jesus says, “i no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. instead, i have called you friends, for everything that i learned from the father i have made known to you.”

then, i broke them into four pairs and had them rewrite the verse, as if the relationship with god were one of these four:

if we were just acquantances.
that group wrote: “i think i’ve seen you around before. didn’t you come to my mom, mary’s, birthday party?”

if we were enemies.
that group wrote: “i no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. instead, i have called you enemies, for everything that we have fought over i have held against you.”

if we were robots.
that group wrote: “i tell you what to do, how to do it, and you don’t ask why.”

and, if were were friends, but not close friends.
that group wrote: “i don’t call you a person that i know, but a friend, becuase you have met me and my family.”