One dog is scary

Jesus, help me show people when I'm telling the truth! Amen.

"Are you the king of the Jews?" Governor Pontius Pilate asked Jesus. "You're the one who says I'm a king," Jesus told him, "but I'm not a king of this world. I've come to tell the truth, and anyone who wants to hear the truth will listen to me."

Just because one idea is true doesn't make all similar ideas true. Maybe you're afraid of your neighbor's dog, for example, but that doesn't mean you're afraid of all dogs! It's just that your neighbor's dog is big and mean.

If you've ever had to argue with someone about a situation like that, you'll understand Jesus' problem in this week's Gospel (John 18:33-37).

Jesus was on trial because people said He was claiming to be king, when the country already had a leader, Pontius Pilate. Jesus tried to make the governor understand that He was a king -- but the king of all of heaven, not of one country on Earth!

Every time you get scared of the neighbor's dog, you might have to explain that you do like other dogs -- little, friendly dogs.

Like you, Jesus had to explain He wasn't trying to take over the country as king, just to teach people about His kingdom -- heaven.

Usually, the only way to convince people you're telling the truth is to show them. If they think you don't like dogs, you can give examples of other dogs you're not scared of, or pet another dog.

As for Jesus, He couldn't really prove to Pilate that He was king of heaven, so He just said that people who wanted to hear the truth would listen and believe Him.

Jesus knew people would see His miracles, hear His teachings and follow Him to His kingdom.