15 January 2023

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Bible readings for today

• Isaiah 49:1-7
• Psalms 40:1-11
• 1 Corinthians 1:1-9
• John 1:29-42

Liturgical Colour: WHITE or GREEN

Collect

Almighty God, 
give us such a vision of your purpose 
and such an assurance of your love and power, 
that we may ever hold fast the hope 
which is in Jesus Christ our Lord. 
Amen.

E te Atua kaha rawa, hōmai he tirohanga ki a mātou mō āu whakaritenga ā, me te whakapūmautanga o tōu aroha me tōu mana, kia mau pū ai mātou ki te tūmanako kei roto nei i a Īhu Karaiti tō mātou Ariki. 
Āmine.

The first disciples (John 1:29-42)

In today's gospel reading, we hear about some of the first disciples. 

What's in a name?

"Looking intently at Simon, Jesus said, “Your name is Simon, son of John—but you will be called Cephas” (which means “Peter”)"  John 1:42

When Andrew brought his brother to meet Jesus, Simon never knew that this would be the beginning of his life-changing adventure with Jesus. In some of the first words to Simon, Jesus tells him that you will be called Cephas, meaning Peter - which means rock. We know from later accounts of Peter that Jesus will use Peter to build his church, and he will be an important leader of the early church. 

Lamb of God

In art, the Agnus Dei symbol is often depicted as a lamb bearing a cross or banner.
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Here is a simple craft activity that kids can make:

• Starting with a white piece of paper, cut out the lamb's body in a cloud shape.
• While the kids are busy cutting out a head and legs out of black paper, take a white crayon and wrote "Jesus" on each of the white body pieces. Also add some white swirls to look like wool. 
• Then, using watercolor paint, the kids covered the lamb's body with paint and, the writing will show up!  Our sins are represented by the paint and Jesus, written in white crayon, takes away the sins of the world.
• If there is time, cut out a cross shape out of brown construction paper  to stick behind the lambs.

John the Baptist

"I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God." In the opening lines of this reading, we hear John making meaning of what he has seen at the Baptism of Jesus. 

Lamb of God

The BibleProject have put together a really helpful video that helps explain why Jesus was described as "Lamb of God", a symbol for sacrifice and atonement. 

Visio Lectio

An illustration from Visio Lectio, a project from the Anglican Diocese of Auckland. 
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