John: Intro
FIRST THOUGHTS ON JOHN'S GOSPEL
Our MacArthur study book provides a full introduction on the overall place and time of John's gospel and I suggest you read pages 1-4 to prepare for this gospel study.
When the Lord desired to feed the physical hunger of those chosen to be His, he did not provide them with ready made loaves of fresh baked bread. Scripture teaches us in Deuteronomy 16:14-15 & 35 that His people were given manna from above, described as “a small round thing” which had to be gathered for the day's supply. It then had to be ground into flour and baked for eating to nourish.
When the Lord wishes to feed the spiritual hunger of those chosen to be His sons and daughters, His actions are the same. He provides but expects us to gather and grind and bake His Word to nourish our hunger to feed us as we travel through the spiritual wilderness seeking the promised land.
The four gospels deal with the earthly life of the Savior, but each one presents Him in an entirely different character. Matthew presents the Lord Jesus as the Son of David, the heir of Israel's throne, the King of the Jews. In Mark, Christ is seen as the servant of Jehovah, the perfect Workman of God, emphasizing His service and the manner of that service. Luke teaches of the humanity of the Savior, presenting Him as the perfect man, in contrast to the sinful sons of men. John views Him as the Heavenly One come down to earth, the eternal Son of the Father made flesh and living among men to demonstrate the final revelation to mankind from above.
The viewpoint of this fourth gospel is more elevated than the first three. It's content brings into our view spiritual ties rather than human ties. The one born of a spiritual father, laid in a manger, and grown to become our perfect sacrifice for our sin has humbled himself as a servant on our account. The theme taught is of the deity of Jesus. Here we have the full unveiling of His divine glories and we behold him dwelling with God AS GOD before time began on the earth.
John differs in several ways with the Synoptic gospels (Matthew/Mark/Luke):
A ministry of several years.
Frequent trips to Jerusalem.
Long term clashes with Jerusalem temple authorities.
A role of Annas in the interrogation of Jesus.
Passover Eve, not Passover Day, as the death day.
At the start of John's gospel, his account is based upon OT theology with the opening phrase “In the beginning...” recalling the start of the OT in Genesis.
There are also a number of areas in which we are given valuable information which is not found at all in the other gospels. These include:
CH 4 / John's writing on the Samaritans, their theology, their practice of worship on Mount Gerizim (which continues today), & the location of Jacob's well.
CH 5 / John's information on the pool at Bethesda is proven accurate in our time as to location.
CH 6 / The theological themes of the Passover & the Feast of the Tabernacles and surrounding ceremonies are explained.
CH 7 / Details on the pool of Siloam, Solomon's Portico as a winter shelter and the description of Pilate's office are all found to be accurate in later years.
These details enhance the knowledge of Palestine in the time of Jesus.
John explores and advances the dual points of the teachings of Jesus on light and darkness and truth and falsehood.
In John's gospel, Jesus speaks exactly like Yahweh spoke in Deuteronomy and Isaiah. As an example, in 8:28 Jesus promises that when the Son of Man is lifted up (in return to the Father), “... then you will know that I AM (ego eimi).
In Isaiah 43:10 Yahweh says that the Father has chosen Israel “... that you may know and believe me and understand that I AM he...” (ego eimi)
In other less celebrated passages Jesus uses the same language to make His teaching points:
8:24 Unless you come to believe that I AM, you will surely die in your sins.
8:58 Before Abraham was, I AM.
The figure of Jesus who walks in the pages of John differs from the Jesus in the Synoptic gospels. There is a different way of speaking and His majestic divinity seems more clear to us. The Jesus in John presents himself with the seven “I AM” statements that define himself in a more divine light:
6:35 & 51 I am the bread of life.
8:12 I am the light of the world.
10:7 & 9 I am the gate.
10:11 & 14 I am the shepherd.
11:25 I am the resurrection and the life.
14:6 I am the way, the truth, and the life.
15:1 & 5 I am the true vine.
The noted seven signs (first division / Book of Signs) point clearly to the divine side of the dual nature of Jesus Christ (fully God & fully man). These are:
2:1-11 Water into wine at Cana.
4:4-54 Curing the official's son at Cana.
5:1-15 Curing the paralyzed man of Bethesda.
6:1-5 Multiplication of the loaves in Galilee.
6:16-21 Walking on the sea.
9 Curing the blind man in Jerusalem.
11 Raising of Lazarus from the dead.
Through these episodes, John strongly teaches that Jesus is the Messiah, the very claim rejected by the Jews. John uses the Greek form of this title, Christos, more than any other gospel and is the only gospel to use the Messiah term (1:41 & 4:25).
John also identifies Jesus with OT figures of speech:
1:29 & 34 Servant of God.
1:29 The apocalyptic lamb.
1:49 King of Israel
6-69 Son of the Living God.
Further, unlike the Synoptics, John has no birth narrative, no Sermon on the Mount, no Lord's Prayer, no transfiguration, no Lord's Supper, no parables, no demon exorcisms, and no end times discourse.
While without direct connection, the teaching in Matthew, Mark, and Luke do correspond to John's theme of eternal life. Their parables are replaced by extended discussions (discourses) on the symbolism of the signs of Jesus.
In John we see the family relationship of the spirit in view. Through faith, the Son of God comes together with the sons of God. Within the first chapter we are told that “He came unto his own, and his own received him not”. The Jews claim upon Jesus Christ was only a “fleshly” one, from the fact that he was the Son of David. Believers are related to the Son of God by SPIRITUAL union, not through the flesh.
It is by the new birth that we enter the family which reaches out far beyond the Jews. It is this family that has come to be the true church of Christians.
Even though there are noted and clear differences, all four gospels present Jesus as the Son of Man AND as Savior fulfilling all OT prophecy and types.
LET'S STUDY THIS UNIQUE GOSPEL TOGETHER
