NOTES: 1] Read MK 1:1-11, MT 3, LK 3: 1-22 to get an overall view of the events surrounding Jesus' baptism. 2] Maybe you could look up in a concordance / biblical dictionary, 'Lamb' as it applies to Jesus. 3] Andrew is the only disciple of Jesus specifically mentioned as having been a disciple of JB.

WARMING UP: Have we ever deliberately set out to 'sit at the feet of' a teacher / leader of any kind?

TREASURES OLD & NEW: Identify God at work in anything that's happened this week?

EXPLORING GOSPEL:

29-34    Of the various metaphors we apply to Jesus, is 'lamb' a word we use much except in liturgy & hymns? What 'side' of Jesus does the term 'lamb' emphasize? What lies at the heart of all the 'lamb' terminology about Jesus? Despite the strong figure he cuts, how humble must JB have been to put himself down compared with Jesus? Is the kind of humility JB & Jesus himself display a bit lacking in church circles today? Does JB's not knowing who Jesus was add a dimension to the tale?

             Have we ever experienced God telling us that 'when you see such & such happen, you'll know this & that....' as JB does here? Is there some pattern of events we need to look for that will reveal God's truth in any & every situation? Or does  God not work like that any more? In what sense have we 'seen' that Jesus is the Son of God? Do we testify to that in any particular way(s)? Can others see that we're so like Jesus that we must, in a sense, be a son or daughter of God, too?

35-39    Do we find it easy to 'let people go' so they can 'detach' themself from us in some sense, & 'attach' themselves  to another person instead? How big a vote of confidence in Jesus is it that JB encourages his own disciples to leave him & follow Jesus instead? Do we ourselves have such confidence in Jesus that we walk away from other attachments, human or otherwise, to follow him instead?
             If Jesus were to ask us, "What are you looking for?" could we give him a clear answer? Is there anything about Jesus we still need to 'come & see', in the sense of coming closer & opening our eyes wider? What might that entail in our case?

40-42    Seeing Andrew is often regarded as the first Christian missionary because he brings his brother to Jesus, is being a missionary a description anyone would apply to us? If the missionary side of discipleship seems weak today, could it be because we: a) aren't aware 'we've found the Messiah'; b) don't know what to do about it when we've found him; c) think being a missionary is someone else's job? Given that Andrew might seem more of a rock here than his brother, Simon, how do we feel when God appears to single out or bless someone else more than us? If the Messiah = Christ = Anointed One was as hard to identify as Jesus clearly was, is there any way people today can tell, unmistakably, that we've been 'anointed' as Jesus' friends, whether as a 'missionary', a 'rock' or something else?
 
 

NOTES: 1] The story of Ananias & Sapphira (following the story of Barnabas) is both an admission of imperfection in the young church, & a warning to others who might 'lie to God'.While we might almost expect it, there's no suggestion that God kills either person.

WARMING UP: Are we ever tempted to act dishonestly if there's little chance of being found out?

TREASURES OLD & NEW: Identify God at work in anything that's happened during the week?

EXPLORING ACTS:

1-6        Have we ever had to face a case of cheating in our church? Have we ever cheated / been tempted to cheat our brothers & sisters in Christ in any way, monetarily or otherwise? Is lying to the church any more or less serious than lying to God? Are our own motives always scrupulously open & honest in dealing with a) our church; b) the wider community; c) the government? Can we lie to anyone at all without it being a lie to God? Are we still inclined to blame Satan for wrongs we think or do, or are we spiritually mature enough to accept that the buck stops with us, i.e. that the "satan' within is every bit as dangerous as any Satan outside?
              Have we ever experienced that wrong-doing brings about our undoing? Do we ever die in any sense because we lie in some sense, cheat on another person? How do we feel when faced with the fact that someone physically dies in some way they've brought on themself? Are we ever in denial about this kind of happening? Is it sometimes easier to deny reality than face the truth, especially when it's close to home? What relationship, if any, is there between 'You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour' (EX 20:16) & bearing false witness to our neighbour? Are they, or are they not both a case of lying to God as much as Ananias does here?
           What role does fear play in our 'morality'? Do we ever 'do the right thing' because we're afraid not to? If that's the case (we're talking about ourself, remember, not someone else) where does love come into the picture? Or doesn't it? When does fear become 'great fear'?

7-11     Do we ever / are we ever tempted to join forces with someone else to 'put the Spirit of the Lord to the test'? Has the ground changed a bit here, from 'lying to God' to 'putting the Spirit of the Lord to the test', or is the former just one example of the latter? Is one more serious than the other? Can we think of ways other than lying & cheating like A & S do here in which we ourselves 'put the Spirit of the Lord to the test', in church or daily life? Is any aspect of daily life really outside our life as part of the church? What kind of church do we see shaping up here in ACTS? Have we come across anything so far that's ahead of, or lagging behind, our experience of being part of the church today? Is the fact that we don't 'drop dead' like both A & S do simply due to the mercy of God, or are we shielded from such harm by the upright quality of the life we lead?

12-16   Would we be too happy if the kind of 'signs & wonders' that happened to A & S then became an expectation of our church membership now? Are there those today who 'dare not join us' for any reason? What might some of those reasons be? Are any of them likely to be related to what's happening in this story? How is it that for the most part, we're not 'held in high esteem' any more by the community at large? Does the disappearance, for the most part, of the kinds of 'signs & wonders' that happen here have anything to do with that? Do we detect a note of what we'd call superstition creeping in in v.15? Can we be more effective in moving people in general away from superstition & towards reason based faith?