NOTES:
1] In JN's interpretation of the 'Christmas story' (so different from MT's & LK's!) 6-8 & 15 are insertions, interruptions to the flow of the magnificent poem that begins his Gospel. 2] In MK 1:8 (last v. of last week's Gospel) JB contrasts his baptism by water with Jesus' baptism by Spirit; here (26) he simply implies Jesus will baptize with more than water. 3] JD Crossan thinks JB baptizes beyond Jordan so those who are baptized (not as Christians, mind you!) have to re-enter the Promised Land & reconquer it for God, this time by right living.

WARMING UP: If we were going to paint J the B, what characteristic might we try to bring out?

TREASURES OLD & NEW: Identify God at work in anything this week?

ENTERING INTO THE STORY:

6-8        Do we ever think of anybody today as 'sent by God'? What is there about JB that makes this claim reasonable? Why might Jesus have needed JB or anyone else to point to him before he began his ministry? Or is that part of a divine plan beyond our ken? What can we, as disciples of Jesus, learn from JE's (the Evangelist's) insistence that JB is not the one to come (cf.19+)? How do we tell 'light' from 'darkness' in the sense that JE uses them here?

19-28    Have we yet worked out 'who we are'? Do we just take our 'self' for granted, or do we have a deeper sense of our own identity? How did we come to the degree of  self-understanding we have now? Do we reflect much on 'who we are' in terms of any role God has called us to fulfil (as JB is here)? Do we spend as much time getting to know who we are', as we do getting to know others? Do we ever think of ourself as following in the steps of someone earlier (like JB connects himself back to Isaiah here) or is that sort of thing outside the scope of our faith?

If someone 'fronts us' with a question relating to God / faith / discipleship, do we find we can take a clear stand as JB does here, or is that too hard? Can we define the role we believe we are called to play in the ranks of Jesus' friends today? Or isn't that role clear? Can we say what we believe 'making the Lord's way straight' means for us now? Does what we believe about that differ at all from what the church teaches? What does the church teach about 'making the Lord's way straight'?

Must JB see Jesus as an even stronger character than himself to defer to him as humbly as he does? How readily do we defer to him?