CHAPTER 1
THE GOOD NEWS — FULLNESS OF HIS GRACE
John 1:1–2:11
DIMENSION ONE: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?
Answer these questions by reading John 1
1. What words of Genesis do the first three words of John's Gospel recall? (1:1; Genesis 1:1)
2. What words of John suggest Jesus' divine nature? (1:2-4)
3. What does John tell us about the relationship between life and light, light and darkness? (1:4-5)
4. Who is introduced into the Prologue of the Gospel in 1:6?
5. What is John's purpose? (1:7-8)
6. To whom did the true light come? (1:11)
7. What was given to those who believed and did receive him? (1:12-13)
8. What did the people ("we all") receive in the coming of the Son? (1:16-17)
9. How does John's Gospel describe John the Baptist? (1:23)
10. Where is John baptizing? (1:28)
11. How does John say that he recognized Jesus? (1:32)
12. Who are Jesus' first disciples, as listed by our writer? (1:40-51)
Answer these questions by reading John 2:1-11
13. Who attended the marriage feast at Cana in Galilee? (2:1-2)
14. What did Jesus say to the servants? (2:7-8)
15. What did the master of the banquet say about the wine? (2:10)
16. What did Jesus achieve by the first of his "signs"? (2:11)
DIMENSION TWO: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE MEAN?
* John's Gospel Confronts Us Today. Whatever our situation in life, whatever our perplexities and doubts, our anxieties and sufferings, our triumphs and joys, God confronts us today in the Fourth Gospel. John's Gospel is the story of the divine-human Redeemer. Consider some words from John's Gospel that are fixed in our memories, memories on which we may often dwell:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ... In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. ... The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. ... No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known (1:1, 4, 14, 18).
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (3:16).
A new command I give you: Love one another (13:34).
Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; trust also in me (14:1).
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you (14:27).
But take heart! I have overcome the world (16:33c).
I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die (11:25).
These verses and many others in the Gospel express what has happened and what is happening now. Jesus' words and John's words about him describe real events in human experience. When John writes, "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you" (14:18), the Fourth Gospel writer is recording a promise that has already been realized.
Who wrote the Gospel? Traditionally the church has attributed the writing to John the son of Zebedee, but no one can be sure that the beloved disciple wrote the book. For generations scholars have researched this question and have developed many theories. The answer still eludes them. Most scholars would say the Gospel was written around AD 85–95. While speculations on authorship and place of writing are interesting and important, most of us are more concerned with asking: What is the meaning of the Fourth Gospel for us?
We are more certain about the people for whom the Gospel was written. These people included members of the church, persons who had come out of Judaism and were immersed in Jewish faith and practice. The Gospel was also written for Greek-speaking Christians of the Mediterranean world, people immersed in Greek thought and culture, and for other people whose cultural traditions were not very binding.
The author focused on the needs of these people of varying cultural backgrounds. He did this so profoundly that he spoke a universal message of God to all times, including our own. He leaves us with the challenge to believe — to receive the fullness of the Gospel in our lives and conduct. He tells us that God's unmerited favor (grace) is available to the human race.
* John 1:1-18. We may call this opening section of the Gospel a prologue, a poem, a preface, or an introduction. The section, written in theological language, unites the whole book. It is a poem with inserted prose comments. Scholars think these verses were a hymn sung by the early church, an adaptation of a Jewish hymn in praise of Wisdom.
More appropriately perhaps, we may see John 1:1-18 as corresponding to the overture or introduction to a great opera or symphony. This overture features themes of life and light and of glory and truth that pervade the Gospel. These themes recur repeatedly, celebrating the grand theme of the Word that exists through all eternity. The Word is preexistent and incarnate, the revelation of God and the giver of meaning and salvation to God's human children. The Word (Jesus) is offered and rejected but stands at last as triumphant over evil and death.
The words in the beginning take us to the opening words of Genesis and equate the Word with God. The Word is the eternal, creative, ordering principle that controls all things. "'The Word was with God, and the Word was God" (1:1).
John also introduces two other images that pervade the Gospel. These are light and life: "In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind" (1:4). To be sure, darkness is present, but darkness has never been able to overcome the light. To be sure, also, there have been many witnesses to the light. Evil (darkness) has never been able to overthrow the good (light). What about the light that persists in the Creation? John the Baptist came to bear witness to that light, but he was not himself the light.
Jesus, "the true light that gives light to everyone," was coming into the world. Though he was among us and made the world, the world did not know him. He came to his own people — the people chosen by God to achieve God's mission for humankind — and his own people rejected him. John uses the present tense (shines), a usage that is in harmony with 1 John 2:8: "The darkness is passing and the true light is already shining." For the Gospel writer the coming of God in the flesh was an event of the past and a gracious promise daily being fulfilled. The darkness represents an attitude in which humankind will not see the light — in other words, a spiritual blindness that rules out the light. In the Prologue and in the rest of the Gospel we find the theme of the portrayal of the struggle between light and darkness. In both the light prevails.
Verses 6-8 are concerned with John the Baptist. We shall discuss these verses later in the context of the relationship between Jesus and John the Baptist.
The hymn in John 1:1-18 celebrates the idea of John 12:46: "I have come into the world as a light." The hymn thus reveals God as the true light that enlightens everyone. Just as the sun's light falls on the just and the unjust, we may assume God's light falls on all whether they admit it or not. The most irresponsible, depraved person in the world is kept alive and sustained daily by God's light.
"The world was made through him" (1:10) represents a return to the theme of the preexistent Word. This theme counters the false outlook and attitude that rejects the incarnate Son. To believe in Jesus' name means to be identified with him. It means one is divinely recognized when one acknowledges Jesus' claim that he is the Messiah and the Son of God.
Verse 13 emphasizes the need for rebirth. Note the words "children born not of natural descent [in Greek thought the seed of the father was mixed with the blood of the mother], nor of human decision [sexual desire] or a husband's will [human paternity], but born of God." The human being is reborn, born from above. The person is transformed by God's love.
Verses 14 to 18 summarize the theology of the Prologue. They emphasize, as does a great prelude, the meaning of a world symphony. They proclaim the message of the Gospel. "The Word became flesh" — these words stress that God was in God's rightful place when God, in Jesus, lived in our human nature. These words deny the claims of gnostic sects in the Greek world that belittled our human nature and renounced the flesh as in itself evil. These words proclaim the full humanity of Jesus' earthly life. He came and made his dwelling among us — that is, the eternal God "pitched his tent" with the human race.
"No one has ever seen God" (1:18). But God has been revealed. We have seen God in Jesus Christ, who is the everlasting demonstration of who God is and what God is like.
* John 1:19-34. The Prologue to the Gospel of John bears witness to the two natures of Jesus the Christ: He is divine, the eternal Son; he is human, Jesus Christ the Messiah. At the same time in the Prologue, we find that the name of John the Baptist is inserted. The Baptist will testify to the divinity of Jesus. John is presented as "a man sent from God," and his testimonies dominate verses 19-34.
The Baptist is the herald who goes before the Messiah proclaiming that the Savior has come. The Baptist sees himself as one involved in the prelude of the great drama of God's salvation. He quickly begins testifying to the One who is greater than he. John reports the Spirit descending like a dove on Jesus, who is proclaimed as the Messiah (1:29-34). John recognizes Jesus as the Son of God, who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.
John asserts that his own ministry is the overture to the great event of God's disclosure. The desert prophet confirms in his words and actions the appearances of the Messiah as they are told in Mark 1:1-11. Mark's tremendous message is, "The time has come. ... The kingdom of God has come near" (1:15). This startling news is conveyed by John the Baptist who affirms: "He must become greater; I must become less" (John 3:30).
* John 1:35-51. In John's Gospel, Jesus uses the term Son of Man (1:51) to affirm his adherence to his ancient religious tradition and to indicate his dignity, mission, and destiny. That is why John placed the title in the "chapter of testimonies," as some scholars refer to this part of the first chapter of John's Gospel.
The "chapter of testimonies" tells of the encounters of Jesus with his future disciples. Here Jesus gathers disciples for his cause. The scenes in which Jesus chooses disciples are prefaced with the great confession of John the Baptist: "Look, the Lamb of God!" (1:36). The lamb is a sacrificial animal, and Jesus comes to be the sacrifice. He gives himself as the sacrifice for us all.
Jesus chooses two disciples from the ranks of John's disciples: Andrew and Andrew's brother Simon (Peter). Then Jesus chooses Philip and Nathanael. The latter is noted for his confession, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel" (1:49).
Jesus chose disciples amid the give-and-take of daily life. The Gospel author describes Jesus as one who led a full human life. John proclaims that God can be known by faith in Jesus Christ, a man who came sharing fully our human life — teaching and serving — one whose love has constituted the movement that we know as the church.
* John 2:1-11. Jesus is at Cana in Galilee, a community that is friendly to him. He, his mother, and his disciples are attending a wedding party. A joyful occasion, the party has reached "the third day." In those times a marriage feast lasted seven days, and new guests came each succeeding day. During the lengthy festival of celebration, the host runs out of wine.
Jesus' mother, knowing of Jesus' willingness and resourcefulness in such situations, senses that Jesus will respond to the human need here. She tells the servants to do whatever Jesus asks. In the interchange with his mother, however, Jesus responds rather sharply. His words to her may be taken as a suggestion not to worry but to wait for the manifestation of God's power. Jesus' hour has not yet come. His words to his mother may also be taken as a reminder that God is at work at the wedding; Jesus knows that a "sign" will be given of God's glory. Finally, Jesus' words may be taken as a rebuke to human arrogance and impatience. We do not determine how God will act. No amount of our calculation, manipulation, or effort can decide the way God's grace will operate.
Jesus rescues the situation at the feast. He directs the servants and brings about the first of the mighty signs that are recorded in the Fourth Gospel. Jesus does not do what others expect of him. He does what he chooses — the divine will. When the wine is brought to the table, the master of the banquet (headwaiter) protests to the bridegroom: "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now" (2:10).
The sign is a mighty work that points to the glory and power of God. Its purpose is to strengthen faith.
DIMENSION THREE: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE MEAN TO ME?
John's Gospel and Us
How have you been confronted by John's Gospel? Quote some of your favorite verses from the Gospel. Recall what prompted them in your mind if you can. What was God saying to you in these verses? How has the Gospel confronted you in particular times of stress and loss? in times of great joy?
What difference do you think the words of the Prologue should make in your search for meaning and value? What does the Prologue tell you about the nature of God? about the nature of God's creation? about the purpose of God for your life? Do you see the universe as ultimately dependable? Why or why not?
What difference does it make to you that John the Baptist is introduced into the Prologue and later discussed in the Gospel? What difference does it make to you whether Jesus is both human and divine? What are John's testimonies concerning the person and work of Jesus? Can you make these same testimonies? Why or why not?
How do you understand the meaning of the "sign" presented in John 2? Does God give us signs today? How can we know they are true? What is John's Gospel saying to you in the story of the wedding feast? What do you think it means for you to "believe in Jesus Christ"?
CHAPTER 2
JESUS THE SAVIOR OF THE WORLD
John 2:12–4:54
DIMENSION ONE: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?
Answer these questions by reading John 2:12-25
1. During what great religious festival does Jesus go up to Jerusalem? (2:13)
2. Who was in the temple, and what were they doing? (2:14)
3. What does Jesus do and say in the temple? (2:15-16)
4. What is the response of the Jews, and what is Jesus' answer to them? (2:1820)
5. What did the disciples finally conclude about the conversation between Jesus and the Jews? (2:21-22)
6. Why does Jesus not trust himself to persons who believe in him because they see the signs that he does? (2:23-25)
Answer these questions by reading John 3
7. What does Nicodemus say first to Jesus? (3:1-2)
8. What does Nicodemus find hard to believe about Jesus' answer? (3:3-4)
9. What is the heart of Jesus' message to Nicodemus? (3:16-21)
10. What is John the Baptist's testimony? (3:25-30)
Answer these questions by reading John 4
11. Whom does Jesus meet at Jacob's well? (4:7)
12. What does the Samaritan woman say when Jesus asks her for a drink? (4:9)
13. What does Jesus tell the woman about the water of life? (4:13-14)
14. What does Jesus say about true worship? (4:21-24)
15. What is said about the Messiah in the conversation? (4:25-26)
16. What is the reaction of the disciples to Jesus' conversation with the woman? (4:27)
17. Who believe in Jesus after the Samaritan woman's testimony? (4:39)
18. What is Jesus' second sign? (4:46-54)
DIMENSION TWO: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE MEAN?
Each story in this lesson in its own way enhances the main theme of "signs of the kingdom of God." Each points to the universality of the Christian faith.
* John 2:12-15. During the Passover, Jesus comes to the temple in Jerusalem. He finds there the money changers at their business and traders who are selling cattle, sheep, and doves for temple worship.
Making a whip of cords, Jesus drives out the money changers and the traders with their animals. They were defiling the temple and using religion for their profit. Jesus attacked their system of trade. It was without meaning, a burden on the poor.
Jesus proclaims a new day in religion. The old system of animal sacrifices must give way to an order in which the temple of wood and stone is replaced by Jesus himself. Jesus will be the living sacrifice. Jesus tells the people involved in the old system, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days." Human hands had taken forty-six years to build the temple, and the Jewish authorities could not see Jesus' meaning. Jesus was speaking of the temple of his body — a new temple to be raised at his resurrection.
