The Gospel of John
All Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version (NKJV), unless otherwise noted.
Chapter One
By the grace of God, we are going to start the Bible study on the Gospel According to John. The Gospel According to John is the last Gospel, written around 85-90AD. What we need to know is that each book of the Gospel of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John tells a slightly different angle about Jesus' identity. All these Gospels complement each other and that's the beauty of them because we can look at Jesus from different angles. The early Church Fathers symbolically used the four faces of the Cherubim angels that is described in Ezekiel 1:10 and assigned each face to each Gospel. Each angel has a face of lion, an ox, an unfaced human, and an eagle.
Let's take a look at the meaning of each face and the Gospel they represent:
Lion is assigned to the book of Matthew, which emphasizes Jesus as the Messiah King.
Ox is assigned to the book of Mark, which emphasizes Jesus as a lowly servant that came to seek and save, what was lost.
Human is assigned to Luke's Gospel, emphasizing the humanity of Jesus. He's main team was Son of Man.
Eagle is assigned to John's Gospel, emphasizing Jesus as the Son of God. An Eagle that soars to Heaven and comes down on Earth.
John's name meaning is God is gracious. John was the oldest and the last surviving eyewitness of Jesus among the apostles. He was the only apostle who is known to die from natural causes, in old age. John only refers to Eight miracles that Jesus performed. Six out of Eight miracles were only mentioned in John. The emphasis of his writing is on the deity of Jesus Christ. He mentions the purpose of his writing in:
John 20:31
“But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.”
Book of John is one of the most important Books of the Bible as it relates to understanding who Jesus is. They are many false views about who Jesus is, which teach that Jesus was a man and not divine, prophet, angel, or a lesser god. We cannot have multiple views of who Jesus is outside of the Bible. He is who the Bible say He is. Because the whole doctrine of salvation and forgiveness of our sin, is hinged on the true understanding of who Jesus is.
I grew up in Iran, under the Islamic view of Christianity, or Armenian's grow up under the communist regime of Soviet Union. We might have a different view of who Jesus is if we have not carefully examine His identity and we may have a wrong idea about Him. Personally, I had to lean about Jesus and also experience Jesus before I understood that Jesus is God. The one true God.
The identity of Jesus is so important, I ratter hear from the first century eye witness account than anyone else who came later on and wrote about Him. John lived with Jesus, ministered with Him, ate with Him, listened to His teachings, understood Him, he was exiled for believing in Jesus as God, and preached Jesus his whole life.
I ratter believe John, over Mohammad, John Smith, or the Watch Tower.
Each Gospel explain a different angle of who Jesus is:
Matthew goes into the genealogy of Jesus back to Abraham. Matthew is appealing to a largely Jewish audience.
Mark does not even talk about the genealogy of Jesus and he goes strait into the ministry of Jesus and starts from where Jesus was baptized in the Jordan river.
Luke goes into the genealogy of Jesus back to Adam. He is appealing to gentiles.
However, john starts from the beginning.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 He was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.
4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.
5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
7 This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe.
8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
9 That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.
10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.
11 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.
12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:
13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
15John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.' "
16 And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.
17 For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.
Let's look at a few points about Jesus' identity:
1) Jesus is Eternal
John starts this chapter by saying, “In the beginning.” John links his first verse to the first verse of Genesis.
John 1:1
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
This verse is stating the deity of Jesus Christ. He was not created by God. He is an eternal being that always existed. He is not bound by time. Beginning is written for us to know preexistence of Jesus. So, He preexisted with God the Father, being co-equal and co-eternal. Jesus even says this about Himself in:
John 17:5
“And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.”
2) Jesus is the Word of God
In Greek “Word” means logos. One of the meaning of logos in Greek means, divine expression. This is what the Greek people thought about Jesus. Every physical thing has a divine expression. So they thought that Jesus is the expression of God. He is the Word of God. Word is also used for the word of God.
Revelation 19:13
“He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.”
So, the Bible is the Word of God transcribed.
Jesus is the revelation of God, personified.
So, both Jesus and the Bible bear the name, the Word of God.
3) Jesus is God
John is telling us strait, that Jesus is God. He is telling us before anything Jesus existed. This is what we get if we translate the word “was” in Greek, which is “is.”
John 1:1
“In the beginning was (is) the Word, and the Word was (is) with God, and the Word was (is) God.”
This is why Jesus said, “I and the Father are one.” One in essence and nature.
John 10:30
“I and My Father are one."
John 14:9
“Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?”
They are one in essence and nature.
Hebrews 1:3
“Who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”
One of the most difficult things to understand is the Trinity. How God is one and He reveals Himself in three persons. It is interesting that John used the word “light” seven times in verses 4 through 9. So, we are going to use light as our illustration of the Trinity. If you shin a beam of white light and pass it through a Prism, it will refract into the three primary colors: Red, green, and blue. It's the same light, but it displays itself into the three primary colors. God is one God, reviled in three persons or personalities. God is still a mystery for us. It would take us eternity with God to know God. If God was so small and simple for us to understand, He would not worth worshiping. We can know about God. We can experience God in an intangible and tangible ways. But, we won't be able to truly know God as long as we are living on this Earth. That's why we require faith to believe the things that we cannot see with our natural eyes.
4) Jesus is the Creator
John 1:3
“All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.”
God the Father was the architect and Jesus the Son was the actual creator.
Colossians 1:15-17
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.”
5) Jesus became human to dwell among us and die for us
John 1:14
“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
John 1:17
“For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ."
In Greek, becoming flesh means tabernacle. God gave Moses a tent to worship God temporarily until the First Temple was built. In that tent was the tabernacle of God. The presence of God was in the tent. The idea of tabernacle where God would dwell among people, is the same concept that John is using about Jesus. Jesus came and dwell among us to give His life for us. Why? Because, we all fall short of the glory of God. God loved us and wanted to redeem us. Therefore, Jesus Christ had to come in human flesh and died for us, so we can be saved and be restored to God.
This is the great exchange:
He became sin for us, so we can walk in His righteousness.
He died, so we might live.
He was condemned, so we can be forgiven.
God did it all to save us, to rescue us.
John 20:31
“But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.”
19 Now this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"
20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, "I am not the Christ."
21 And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not." "Are you the Prophet?" And he answered, "No."
22 Then they said to him, "Who are you, that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?"
23 He said: "I am 'The voice of one crying in the wilderness: "Make straight the way of the Lord," 'as the prophet Isaiah said."
One thing to notice here is that when priests and levites came to John and ask him, “who are you? He did not talk about who he is. He told them, who he is not. I'm not the Christ. Because, there was this expectation among people of the time that a ruler will emerge from Judea.
This is what John said about himself:
John 1:23
“He said: "I am 'The voice of one crying in the wilderness: "Make straight the way of the Lord," 'as the prophet Isaiah said."”
Why would they think, he is the Elijah?
1) The way he looked would remind them of Elijah.
2) Also, the Old Testament refers to Elijah's return.
3) Without going into so much detail. He came in the spirit and the power of Elijah to turn the hearts of people to the Lord.
24 Now those who were sent were from the Pharisees.
25 And they asked him, saying, "Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?"
26 John answered them, saying, "I baptize with water, but there stands One among you whom you do not know.
27 It is He who, coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose."
28 These things were done in Bethabara beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
Now the Pharisees came to interrogate John.
John 1:25
“And they asked him, saying, 'Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?'”
The Prophet refers to the statement that Moses spoke in the Old Testament, he said, God will send a Prophet in the likeness of him (Moses) to the nation of Israel.
Then John explains that the one who is coming after me, I'm not even worthy to be His servant. He is referring to Jesus.
I would like to mention that baptism was originally been performed by Jews before Christians. Baptism was performed by Jews to convert gentiles to Judaism. And, in some cases, people would be baptized when they defiled themselves. So now Pharisees are puzzled why John is baptizing the Jews and calling them to repentance.
29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
30 This is He of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.'
31 I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water."
32 And John bore witness, saying, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him.
33 I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.'
34 And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God."
So John saw Jesus and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” He identifies Jesus as the Lamb that God sent to be sacrificed.
And, John said, “I saw the Spirit of God descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him.” He is the one that will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. He is referring to the day that the Holy Spirit came upon people on the day of Pentecost. Then John testifies that Jesus is the Son of God.
John knew Jesus as his second cousin, but on this day, God reveled to him, who Jesus truly is. The Son of God. The Messiah. The savior of the world. The Lord.
35 Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples.
36 And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God!"
37 The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.
38 Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, "What do you seek?" They said to Him, "Rabbi" (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), "where are You staying?"
39 He said to them, "Come and see." They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour).
40 One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.
41 He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated, the Christ).
42 And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, "You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas" (which is translated, A Stone).
Next day, John is with his disciples and he said, “Behold the Lamb of God!” Two of John's disciples left him to follow Jesus. Jesus saw them and asked them, “What do you seek?” What do you want? They said, Where do you stay? Jesus said, “Come and see.” These are the first spoken words in John's Gospel. Jesus did not give them information, but He gave them an invitation. Come and explore for yourself. So, they went and stayed with Jesus. One of the John's disciple who followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. So Andrew found Simon and told him that he found the Messiah, the Christ. As soon as Jesus saw Simon, He changed his name to Cephas, A stone. Not because his character is like a stone. Because, He is going to make him like a stone. Strong and firm like a stone.
43 The following day Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, "Follow Me."
44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.
45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote--Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."
46 And Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see."
Now Philip found Nathanael and told him that He found the Christ. Nathanael does not believe him because He does not think that anything good can come out of Nazareth. Philip said to Nathanael, “Come and see.”
47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!"
Philip thought that he is introducing Nathanael to Jesus. But, Jesus already knew him. He told him that he is an honest person. He does not hide his feelings.
48 Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know me?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."
Probably, Jesus is referring to a secret place that only he and God would know.
49 Nathanael answered and said to Him, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!"
50 Jesus answered and said to him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' do you believe? You will see greater things than these."
What turned Nathanael to Jesus? When Jesus reviled the secret part of his life. Jesus said, do you think, what I said about the fig tree was amazing, stick around and you'll see much more amazing things than that. I'm the ladder that connects Heaven to Earth. I'm the bridge that connects man to God. Amen.
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