Light on the Lessons s8

Light on the Lessons

Acts 8:26-40; 1 John 4:7-21; John 15:1-8

Fifth Sunday of Easter; Cycle B; April 29, 2018

Participant Resources

I Getting Started

1. Who are the people who “guide” your faith?

2. “Love is entirely too sentimental a notion to be taken seriously as a way of life in a complex, hard-nosed world.” How would you evaluate that statement?

3. What do you think is the most important “fruit” for today’s Christians to manifest?

II Check the Texts

1. Acts 8:26-40

In Luke's day, Ethiopia referred to land south of Egypt. “The Candace” was the title for the queen of the Nubian realm of Meroe along the upper Nile in modern Sudan.

A. Read Deuteronomy 23:1 along with Acts 8:27b-28. What problem would the Ethiopian face as he sought to embrace the Jewish faith?

B. What book was the eunuch reading? What comfort do you think he would have found in Isaiah 56:3-5? He was reading Isaiah 53:7b-8a. What differences do you find between the Acts version (quoted from the Greek Septuagint) and Isaiah (from the original Hebrew)? What connection does Luke 24:27 have with what Philip does here?

C. Early Christians found much in Isaiah’s Servant Songs (like chapter 53) to help them understand the meaning of Jesus’ life and death. From the passage the eunuch was reading, what might Philip have picked up on to talk about Jesus? (Clue: Look for four incidents from Jesus’ life; also, let Isaiah 53:8a give the meaning for “generation.”)

D. What does verse 30a reveal about ancient reading habits? What verse suggests that Philip does his explaining while traveling with the eunuch?

E. What point do you think Luke wants to make by his reference to Spirit in verse 29? Verse 37 is footnoted in modern translations because it only occurs in some late manuscripts; assuming it is not original, why do you think it was inserted?

2. 1 John 4:7-21

A. Read the preceding paragraph, 4:1-6. Which verse: (a) Suggests the writer combats false teachers? (b) That the writer has his finger on the real truth? (c) That the false teachers denied Jesus came in the flesh? With that understanding of 4:1-6 in mind, why is “love” important?

B. In verses 7-12, which verses answer each of these questions: What is our proper response to God’s love? How is God defined? What is the real core meaning of love?

C. In verses 13-16a, which of the following do NOT help us know that we abide in God: Doing good, testifying that God sent his Son, loving our neighbor, having the Spirit, confessing Jesus as Son of God?

D. What do you think “perfected” and “perfect,” in verses 17-18, means?

E. In verses 16b-21: What could we fear? How is fear defeated? Whose love casts out fear? What is the source of our love for each other? What is the test of our love of God? How does love for neighbor and for God relate?

3. John 15:1-8

A. Read John 14:30-31. Which of the following seems to be the most logical follow-up to those verses: 15:1, 16:11, 18:1, or 19:1? What does that research suggest to you?

B. Check how the image of the vine is used elsewhere. In Psalm 80:8-11, who is the vine? In Isaiah 5:1-7, how is the image of the vineyard used? Who is the vineyard, why is God angry, and what will God do about it? Does Jeremiah 2:21 agree more with Psalm 80 or Isaiah 5? Read Mark 12:1-12, where Jesus uses the same imagery. Does he agree more with Psalm 80 or Isaiah 5? What point does Jesus make?

C. What does Jesus assert about himself when he says he is the “true vine,” verse 1?

D. What would verse 2 mean to the first readers of this Gospel? (Clue: Think persecution)

E. What do you think the frequently used word “abide” means here? What is the promise to those who “abide”? Who are the “branches”?

F. What verse expresses Jesus goal for the disciples?

III What Does It All Mean?

1. How have you experienced God’s activity in your life this week?

2. How would you “guide” someone to a relationship with Jesus? (You may have done this within your family, or with someone else. Share your story.)

3. What are some of the major fears that trouble you and the people you know? In your group, try to list the four chief fears. Then talk about how “perfect love” might, or might not, cast out these particular fears.

4. How do you deal with your fears and anxieties? To what degree does your faith play a role in dealing with anxieties?

5. How do you think God works to “prune” the “branches” so that they bear “more fruit”? In what way have you experienced this?

6. What do you think: Can people who have never known love from others give love themselves?

7. A popular hymn by Peter Scholtes includes the line, “And they’ll know we are Christians by our love.” To what extent do you think that thought resonates with 1 John and the Gospel? What critique would you make of that image?

8. Consider the thoughts expressed in two biblical passages: James 2:14-17, 26 and Romans 10:9-13. Talk about your understanding of the relationship of faith and works. If we don’t give ourselves totally and completely in love to our neighbors, how much guilt should we feel?

IV Into the Week

1. You go home and someone asks, “What did you learn today?” What do you reply?

2. Pray for the people of Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, for our troops and others in harm’s way, and for wisdom among the leaders of the world.

3. Do two or three “random acts of kindness” this week.