John by Jeff Gordon (2012)

The Bible describes the Word as: ancient, a person, the creator, God, and human. All of these descriptions also explain the nature of Jesus. Jesus, the creator of the universe himself, chose to descend to earth and became human in order to gather people together for the purpose of knowing God personally.

Jesus begins his work on earth and starts performing miracles. His first miracle is to turn water to wine at a wedding in Cana. Jesus used the Jewish ceremonial washing jars as vessels for this miracle as a symbol of the importance of not just external washing but an internal cleansing. Jesus then displays his character and passion for God's house by clearing the temple courts. During this event, he also publicly predicts his death and resurrection.

Jesus refers back to an event in the Old Testament when Moses lifted up a snake in the wilderness to be looked upon for personal salvation. Jesus likens himself to the snake, in such a way that he too will be lifted up and looked upon for personal salvation. We need spiritual rebirth which can only come through humble faith in Jesus Christ.

Jesus encounters a Samaritan woman at a well. He offers her living water that will forever quench her thirst and reveals to her that he is the Messiah. His compassion, knowledge and patience for this woman leads her to believe in him, as well as many other Samaritans.

The religious leaders of Jesus' day confront him for working on the Sabbath by healing a disabled man at the Pool of Bethesda. By breaking the sabbath, Jesus claimed equality with God the Father. These leaders rejected Jesus, refused to believe his claims, and warned Jesus that Moses would accuse him. They did not accept his offer to make them well too.

Jesus claims he is the bread of life and whoever believes in him will never hunger or thirst again. He miraculously feeds a crowd of more than five thousand by using his disciples' availability rather than their ability. Though they were tired and challenged by the task, the disciples had twelve baskets of food left over for themselves after distributing food to the crowd. Jesus meets their needs as they follow him. After being challenged to seek eternal life through Jesus rather than seek temporal food for a meal, some people desert him and others follow. What response will you have?

Jesus teaches at the Festival of Tabernacles where people have different responses to who he claims to be. He claims to be the Son of God and the source of living water. Anyone can have their thirst quenched by believing in him and receiving the Holy Spirit. Those who do this can respond with courage rather than fear because they are motivated out of love and concern for those who have not yet believed.

Jesus claims he is the light of the world. He offers direction and protection in this life, the forgiveness of sins, friendship with God and evidence that he is who he says he is through his death and resurrection. According to the Bible, people have two options: 1) choose Jesus' death to pay for our sins or 2) die in our sins and be separated from God. Jesus demonstrated through the Pharisees accusation against the adulterous woman that no one is without sin.

Jesus teaches that the sin nature enslaves people while following his truth sets people free. To have freedom in this life means to become Jesus' disciple and follow his teachings. The religious leaders were not able to understand Jesus' message because of their pride. As a result, they believed Satan's lies. The only way to counter lies is with the truth. Freedom is a result of following the truth.

Jesus claims he is the light of the world, i.e., the giver of spiritual life. The blind man and the Pharisee have two different responses to Jesus' claim. The response to the light that has been given determines the effect of the light on our life. The Pharisees response resulted in increased spiritual blindness while the blind man's response resulted in increased spiritual light. The blind man knew he needed Jesus and received his gift of grace.

God gave us Jesus as a shepherd to protect and provide for us. We have all strayed away like sheep but Jesus knows each of us personally. Jesus also calls us to serve his sheep with our lives. Since Jesus provides for our security perfectly, we can give out to others as well.

Jesus reveals the Jews' unbelief. They ask him to tell them plainly if he is the Messiah and then threaten to stone him for claiming to be God. The Messiah the Jews were (and still are) looking for is not the suffering servant that Jesus was during his first coming. Instead, they expected a conquering king messiah. Jesus offers salvation for all who believe in him as a sacrifice for their sins.

Jesus responds to the death of his good friend Lazarus. He comforts Martha in a time of deep distress by reminding her of who he is and the eternal life he offers. He is deeply upset and weeps with the people around him. Then he demonstrates his divine power by raising Lazarus from the dead.

Jesus' whole life was a fulfillment of several different prophecies. He intentionally entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey to fulfill a prophecy in Zechariah 9:9. This was one of the only prophecies about his life that he could have controlled. His choice to enter Jerusalem this way declared to the world that he was the Messiah as predicted.

Love, as described by the Bible, is not just a a feeling. Instead it is a commitment to give someone what they need. To prepare for the last meal he would ever eat, Jesus demonstrated this definition of love by washing his disciples' feet-- the task of a slave. This demonstrated the lengths he was about to go to in order to wash their sins away. Some were uncomfortable allowing him to serve them this way, just as we are in our hearts when it comes to letting God address our sin. Once Jesus has cleansed us of our sin, he asks us to selflessly love others with the love we've been shown.

Jesus leads his followers from anxiety and angst, to peace of mind and heart if we trust and believe in him through the Holy Spirit. This is the promised living water to which Jesus had been referring. The Holy Spirit would enter his disciples after he ascended to heaven and be their advocate and comforter. The Holy Spirit provides believers with: 1) assurance of our relationship with God, 2) confidence that our eternity is secure in heaven, 3) revelation about God's Word, 4) personal insight into God's Will, and 5) the empowering to do what God leads us to do.

In this account that John gives of Jesus' life, he slows everything down on the night before Jesus' death. As Jesus and his disciples are walking to Gethsemane, he begins to explain this parable to them. Jesus uses the imagery of vines and branches to explain what it really means to abide in him. When Jesus' followers truly learn what it means to abide in him, several things will happen: believers will be able bear much fruit, cooperate with God's pruning, and desire glory that will be given to God.

The last thing Jesus prays for his followers before he was crucified was to be in the world, but not of the world. How do followers of Jesus do this? By displaying Jesus' love to the watching work, Christians are able to stand out as distinct from Satan's world system. Followers of Jesus are distinct in the areas the Bible emphasizes and in pursuing the eternal things rather than temporary things of this world.

At the last supper that Jesus had with his disciples, he prepares them with this warning that they are going to be hated by some. Jesus is warning them about this because he does not want his followers to abandon their faith because of the hostility they will endure. The reason they will be hated is because they hated the message that Jesus preached and who he was. In the midst of persecution he reminds his disciples that they are not alone and to continue testifying the God's truth to a lost world.

When Jesus was speaking with his disciples, he told them that it was to their benefit that he leave to go with the Father in Heaven. Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to be their helper. The Holy Spirit has come into the world not only to be the helper to Jesus' followers, but to convict the world. The Holy Spirit comes to help in assuring our relationship with God, revealing God's Word, personally leading people with empowerment, and revealing the love of God to others. \r\n

On the last night Jesus had with his disciples, he told them that what he wanted was unity among them. In order to have unity and for people to come together, it has to be done on the basis of what God has done for us: sending Jesus to die on the cross and giving the Holy Spirit to live inside of us. By having a relationship with God and abiding in Him, this is what allows authentic unity that is different than what our culture offers. The purpose of unity within God's family is ultimately to fulfill the mission of Jesus; to save those who are lost. \r\n

Many modern people believe that Jesus was a victim of unfortunate circumstances and that his death was a mistake. John, however, writes that Jesus knew full well that he was about to die and willingly gave himself over to be killed by the authorities of his time. Jesus acted in faith in spite of his fears because he knew who he was and where he was going, and we as Christians can make the same decision when God brings suffering into our lives. Furthermore, Christians can respond positively to God's revelation just like some of the authorities in Jesus's day by not distracting themselves from the truth.

As Jesus was handed over to be put on trial, he knew all that was going to happen to him. Because of this, Jesus was able to step out and not hide, yet respect their positions. Even though this was God's will for Jesus to be crucified, John portrays the hypocrisy within the religious system and their knowledge of Jesus' innocence. Living in a fallen world, we are called to live in a redemptive way with the knowledge that our true kingdom is not of this world. \r\n

When Jesus was sentenced to death by crucifixion, he bore the punishment for being "the king of the Jews." What does it actually mean that Jesus was a king? The Jews, based on prophetic prediction, expected Jesus to come in power, might, and authority. Jesus was not the king that they were expecting. There are three things that we can learn from Jesus as king: 1) the king has come and died for the sins of humanity; 2) the king has remained through the Holy Spirit; and 3) the king is coming back to fulfill His promises.

Jesus came the first time to die for the sins of humanity, but this was not the end. Jesus is going to come back, and if this is true, it has consequential implications and is worth considering. God not only sent His son Jesus to die on the cross, but He also predicted this in many ways throughout all of Scripture. Jesus' death paid the ultimate price for the ultimate gift that God wanted to give: a relationship with Him. This plan that He put in place provides substantial evidence for the validity of the gift of salvation.

The claims that Jesus made before dying on the cross were pretty outlandish. These claims that he made were not just unusual, but verifiable. Jesus needed to validate his claims because the implications of his death and resurrection are significant: Jesus came to save humanity. It was not only during the time of Jesus' death that God wanted to provide evidence for faith in God, but He wants to provide that now for all people. Since God is a loving father who wants good things for us, it is reasonable and verifiable to believe the claims that He makes.

Peter had an epic and public failure when he proclaimed that he would never betray Jesus, only to do so three times. In Jesus' lessons on failure, he teaches to admit the failure after it's happened, and to not trust yourself but to trust that God is at work within you.