NOTES: 1] People commonly believed disabilities & misfortune were the result of sin. 2] Jesus turns the whole incident into an illustration of light versus darkness, a major theme in JN. 3] Though Jesus is motivated by compassion, he uses the man's (let's call him 'Reuben') disability as a teaching opportunity. 4] JN normally uses 'sign' where other writers use 'miracle'.

WARMING UP: Is the old proverb, 'There's none so blind as those who won't see' still applicable today?

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

EXPLORING GOSPEL:
1-5        Does society still make judgments about people like Reuben with disabilities, whether congenital or acquired, with regard to guilt of one kind or another? Would it ever occur to us to use someone's disability to 'score a point' for God? If Jesus is 'the Light of the world' why is there still so much darkness of all kinds around?

6-12      How do we account for 'miraculous' healings that happen, or are claimed to happen today? What qualifies as a 'miracle' in our eyes today? Seeing JN normally uses the word 'sign', is 'sign of what?' the real question?

13-17    Are there any rules we insist on applying to how / when / if we take the opportunity to act as God's healing channels today? Are we as clear-cut about any healing we've experienced as Reuben is here? If accepting Jesus as a prophet is as far as someone can get at this stage, where does that leave: a) them? b) us?

18-23    Does fear of some consequence from a third party ever colour the way we relate to, discuss, regard a person? How important is it to us to deal at first hand with people whenever possible? Are we better on the phone, internet, or in person?

24-34    On matters of religious orthodoxy, congregational values, moral dilemmas, etc, how good are we at standing our ground? How sure are we of our ground? Are there times when we're too polite, too much 'under the thumb' to stand up to authority figures over important issues? Does our church / congregation have a mechanism for 'throwing someone out'?

35-41   How good is our congregation (& group) at welcoming & including today's Reubens; those who are disabled in some way? Not as potential 'bums on seats' but as new brothers & sisters? How much is our inclusiveness dependent upon what people believe about Jesus, church, us? Are there blind spots in our way of looking at others who aren't part of our circle? Where does sin come into all this?
 
 

NOTES: 1] Saul's conversion is a major turning point in church history.

WARMING UP: How readily do we change our mind about matters of importance?

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

EXPLORING ACTS:
1-9        Do we have any experience of 'threats & murder' type faith? Is there any place for it in a Jesus-centred church? Does such an approach say more about those who hold it, the 'God' they believe in, or how they came to believe that way? Have we ever experienced anything that brought us up as short as Saul is brought up here? Are there more ways than one of 'seeing the light'?
             Is it reasonable to expect 'personal appearances' by Jesus these days, or was what Saul experienced a way of God revealing Godself special to 'those days'? Are there ways in which, like Saul, we need to be 'flattened' before we can become the person God is calling us to be? Are we concerned about what others see, hear, or think about what's happening to us?
             If losing our sight was scary for Saul, & presumably would be for us, how aware are we of those who have never seen, physically, or who have lost their sight totally or in part? Would it stop us eating & drinking too?

10-19a  Does God's choosing of both Saul & Ananias confirm that God often chooses very unlikely, or unwilling candidates (e.g. Abram, Moses, Elijah, Mary, Joseph, etc.) for the really hard jobs? Have we ever protested (& baulked at?) some hard job the church called us to undertake in God's name? Do we sometimes have a problem seeing that something the church wants us to do really is God's call? Can we ever find out without taking up the challenge?
             Are we conscious, in any sense, that we are a 'chosen instrument' of God's purpose, or is that kind of call only for others? Is our concern sometimes that we may have to undergo some kind of suffering 'for the sake of God's name'? Isn't that par for the course for serious disciples? Is there such a person as a non-serious disciple; or is that a contradiction in terms?
What lessons can we learn from Ananias' eventual obedience? Is it time we rediscovered the value of the laying on of hands for all kinds of needs in today's (i.e. our) church? What kind of scales might still need to fall from our eyes?

19b-22  Is 'proclaiming Jesus' (anywhere) something we are quite 'immediate' about, or something we keep on putting off till we're ready for it....one day? Is there any more direct way of 'proclaiming Jesus' than Saul's 'He is the Son of God'? Is that the stance we ourselves take?
            Has anyone ever been 'amazed' at some turn around in our attitude / behaviour / outlook because we've turned to Christ? Could we 'prove Jesus is the Messiah' to save our life?! How would we go about it? If we aren't confident about that, is there some homework we could & should do?