March 10, 2013

I spent the summer of 1970 working as “Charlie Chaplin” at the Movieland Wax Museum in Buena Park, California. Each day I would dress up as Charlie Chaplin, and impersonate him for the guests. It was the most fun job that I’ve ever had.

The museum also employed several security men who were dressed as Keystone Cops. One of these men was a roly-poly man named Walter. One day Walter in his Keystone Cop outfit and I in my Charlie Chaplin outfit were sitting in the break area when he said to me, “Charlie, what do you want to do with your life?”

I responded, “Walter, I’ve given my life to Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord, so I’m going to spend it serving Him in some way.” Walter’s reply jarred me. First, he took the Lord’s name in vain. Then he said, “Am I glad to hear that!”

While I was trying to reconcile his response in my mind, he proceeded to tell me his religious odyssey. He had started off as a young man with a Pentecostal group in Los Angeles. He had a vision of “the Christ” (as he called it) where he woke up in the middle of the night and saw “Jesus,” whose heart came out of His chest and was beating in front of him. After a few days in a trance, Walter began preaching on the streets of Los Angeles.

I’ve forgotten what order or how many other things he had been into since those early days, but they included Science of Mind, Theosophy, Rosicrucianism, some weird group that studied the “silent years of Jesus” (just how, I was afraid to ask!), Mormonism, and at the time I was talking with him, the Self-Realization Fellowship of Yogi Paramanda Yogahanda. He was speaking at their center in Laguna Beach and invited me to come hear him. Thankfully, I was working then and so I had a good excuse not to go!

What was Walter’s problem? How could a man who seemingly began as a Christian end up so fouled up in his beliefs? There were two basic reasons: First, he accepted as his basis of truth and knowledge his own subjective experiences rather than the propositional truth as revealed in the written Word of God. Second, stemming from that wrong foundation, he developed faulty views of the person of Jesus Christ. Without the objective truth of the written Word of God, we cannot develop correct views of who Jesus truly is. At best, we’ll come up with our subjective preferences, but they will not be based on the eyewitness testimony of the apostles.

It’s safe to say that every major cult and heresy has deviated from the biblical revelation of who Jesus Christ really is. They have erred either with regard to His deity or His humanity or the relationship between His two natures. John MacArthur (“Jesus: Glory, Grace, and God,” on gty.org) says, “It is as damning to believe in the wrong Jesus as to believe in no Jesus.” Saving faith is certainly more than believing correct statements about Jesus, but it cannot be less. In our text, John gives us one of the most succinct statements of the unfathomable doctrine of the incarnation:

Jesus, the eternal Word, is God in human flesh, glorious as the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Verse 14 reconnects us with verse 1 and is the last time John uses “the Word” as a title for Jesus in this gospel. The Word who was in the beginning with God, the Word who was God, the Word who created everything that has come into being, “became flesh, and dwelt among us.” Wayne Grudem (Systematic Theology [Zondervan], p. 563) says of the incarnation,

It is by far the most amazing miracle of the entire Bible—far more amazing than the resurrection and more amazing even than the creation of the universe. The fact that the infinite, omnipotent, eternal Son of God could become man and join himself to a human nature forever, so that infinite God became one person with finite man, will remain for eternity the most profound miracle and the most profound mystery in all the universe.

Leon Morris puts it (The Gospel According to John [Eerdmans], p. 102), “In one short, shattering expression John unveils the great idea at the heart of Christianity that the very Word of God took flesh for man’s salvation.” As we tread on such holy ground, I especially identify with Paul’s rhetorical question (2 Cor. 2:16), “And who is adequate for these things?” Let’s proceed reverently and ask the Holy Spirit to teach us.

1. Jesus, the eternal Word, became flesh.

John now definitely identifies the eternal Word of verse 1 with Jesus Christ, whom he will first name in verse 17. He affirms two truths about Jesus Christ that are essential to the Christian faith:

A. As the eternal Word, Jesus is fully God.

We saw this clearly in verse 1. John asserts that Jesus is eternal. He does not say, “In the beginning, God created the Word as the first and greatest created being.” But rather, “In the beginning was the Word.” The sense of the verb is that He was already existing at the beginning of time because He has no beginning. He is one in essence with the Father (John 10:30) and the triune God is the only eternal being.

Of course, Satan hates the truth of the deity of Jesus Christ, because it spells his doom. And so he has always attacked it. One of the most substantial attacks on the deity of Christ came from the heretic Arius in the early fourth century. He taught that the Word was the first and greatest created being. He gained a large following, but was refuted at the Councils of Nicea (325 A.D.), Constantinople (381 A.D.), and Chalcedon (451 A. D.). The latter two councils also clarified the relationship of the two natures of Christ to correct several other heresies that had sprung up. But the attacks on Christ’s deity have continued through the Unitarians, liberal theologians, and the modern cults, such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons.

But the New Testament clearly affirms the deity of Jesus Christ. He Himself claimed to be God. In John 5:23, He said that the Father had given all judgment to the Son “so that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father.” In John 8:58, He asserted His eternal existence when He claimed, “Before Abraham was born, I am.” (The Jews would have recognized “I am” as a reference to God’s name as revealed to Moses in Exodus 3:14.) In John 10:30 He asserted, “I and the Father are one.” In John 14:9 He told Philip, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father.”

Also, Scripture directly states that Jesus is God. There are several such references (John 1:1; 20:28; Rom. 9:5; Titus 2:13; 1 John 5:20), but I think the clearest is Hebrews 1:8, which applies Psalm 45:6 to Jesus: “But of the Son He says, ‘Your throne, O God, is forever and ever….” Also, many titles that apply only to God are applied to Jesus. “Lord” is the same as Yahweh of the Old Testament (Isa. 40:3 with John 1:23; Jer. 23:5, 6; Joel 2:32 with Acts 2:21; 4:12; Rom. 10:9-10, 13). He is “the Lord of glory” (1 Cor. 2:8). In Revelation 1:8 God says, “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.’” Then just a few verses later (Rev. 1:17), Jesus proclaims, “I am the first and the last.” In Revelation 22:13 (in case we missed it) he reaffirms, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” (See Isa. 41:4.)

Also, Jesus displayed many of the incommunicable attributes of God: He is eternal (John 1:1); omnipresent (Matt. 28:20); omnipotent (Phil. 3:21); immutable (Heb. 1:10-12; 13:8); glorious (John 1:14; 1 Cor. 2:8; Rev. 1:13-16); and sovereign (Phil. 2:10). Paul put it (Col. 2:9), “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form.” Plus, Jesus did works that only God can do, such as creating all that is (John 1:3, 10; Heb. 1:2); raising the dead (John 5:25-26); overpowering Satan and all spiritual forces (Eph. 1:21); judging all people (John 5:22-23, 27); forgiving sins (Mark 2:5-7); and receiving worship (John 9:38; 20:28). You cannot believe the New Testament and deny the full deity of Jesus Christ.

B. When the eternal Word took on flesh, He became fully human.

John could have said, “The Word became man,” or, “The Word took on a human body.” But the word “flesh” jars you with its bluntness (Morris, p. 102). Probably John was confronting another early heresy, Docetism, which said that Jesus only appeared or seemed to be human. But John wants us to know that Jesus took upon Himself our full human nature, except for sin. From that miraculous moment when Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the virgin Mary, He will never cease to be human. He is forever both God and man in one person.

“Became” does not mean that Jesus ceased to be what He was before. Rather, to His eternal deity, He added perfect humanity. He temporarily laid aside the use of some of His divine attributes and the full display of His glory (Phil. 2:5-8; John 17:5). It shone forth on occasions, but not always (John 2:11; 18:4-6; Luke 9:28-36). But He did not lay aside His deity or cease to be God. Rather, He added complete humanity to His eternal deity. Jesus’ human nature was subject to hunger, thirst, weakness, tiredness, temptation, and death, but He was without sin.

Again, Satan hates the truth that Jesus, the eternal God, took on human flesh, because it qualifies Jesus to be our Savior. So he has attacked this doctrine, too. The Apollinarians acknowledged Christ to be God and man. But they held that Jesus did not take on the soul of a man. The Logos took the place of the rational soul. The Nestorians believed Christ to be both God and man, but they conceived of Him as two persons, thus dividing His unity. The Eutychians held to one person in Christ, but they mixed His two natures, saying that it produced a third thing. They said that Jesus’ humanity was absorbed into His deity, and thus that He only had one nature. This error persists today in what is called Monophysitism, which is held by the Coptic Church in Egypt and Ethiopia, plus other groups in Syria. Another form of it recently was taught by Witness Lee (“the Local Church”), who used the analogy of a tea bag and water. When you mix them, you have a new substance, “tea-water.” Thus in his view, Jesus is a hybrid “God-man.” (A helpful book that explores the practical damaging results of these and other heresies is, The Cruelty of Heresy [Morehouse Publishing], by C. FitzSimons Allison.)

The Council of Chalcedon (451 A.D.) produced a comprehensive and definitive statement on the person of Christ, which is worth pondering (Philip Schaff, The Creeds of Christendom [Baker], 6th ed., p. 62). But you can sum it up by saying, “Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man united in one person forever, without confusion of His two natures.” While it is an incomprehensible mystery how the two natures of Christ interact, we must accept the truth of Scripture, “The Word became flesh.”

2. Jesus, the eternal Word, dwelt among us.

John could have said, “The Word lived among us,” but instead he used the unusual word, translated dwelt, which means “to pitch a tent” or “to tabernacle.” It is used of the tabernacle in the Old Testament, where God dwelt with His people in the wilderness. John does not mean by this term that Jesus’ humanity was temporary, but rather, His stay on earth was temporary.

By using the word that was used of the tabernacle, coupled with seeing Jesus’ glory, John wants us to make some connections. Just as the tabernacle was the place where God dwelt with His people and manifested His glory, so Jesus is Immanuel, God with us. Just as the tabernacle was at the center of Israel’s camp, so Christ is to be at the center of the church. Just as sacrifices and worship were offered at the tabernacle, so Jesus is our complete and final sacrifice, and we have access to God through Him.

Every aspect of the tabernacle speaks of Christ. The bronze altar for sacrifice and the bronze laver for cleansing point to Christ. The table of showbread in the holy place speaks of Christ, the living bread. The golden lampstand points to Christ, the light, who illumines the things of God. The altar of incense reminds us of Christ’s making intercession for us. In the holy of holies, the ark of the covenant, made of wood covered with gold, points to the two natures of Christ. On top of the ark was the mercy seat, where the blood of atonement was sprinkled. Inside were the tablets of the law, pointing to Christ, the fulfillment of God’s law for us; the jar of manna, pointing to Christ as our sustenance; and Aaron’s rod that budded, pointing to Jesus as “the branch,” who was raised from the dead and gives new life to those who were dead in their sins. Jesus, our tabernacle, “dwelt among us”!

3. The apostles saw the glory of the Word who became flesh.

God’s glory is the sum of all His attributes and perfection. It is sometimes displayed as a bright or overpowering light. When John says, “We saw His glory,” he may have been referring in part to the transfiguration, when he and James and Peter saw Jesus in His glory. John could not have forgotten that event, although he doesn’t tell about it in his gospel!

But he is also referring to Jesus’ glory as revealed in His miracles, but only to those who had eyes to see. After Jesus turned the water into wine, John reports (2:11), “This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.” Before Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, He said (John 11:4), “This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.” And yet, even after that amazing miracle, the Jewish leaders increased their efforts to kill the one who is the resurrection and the life!

But John also shows that Jesus’ glory was supremely revealed in the cross. When Judas went out of the Upper Room to betray the Savior, Jesus said (John 13:31), “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in Him.” The cross displayed God’s perfect justice and amazing love like no other event in history. In our text, John elaborates on Jesus’ glory with two phrases:

A. The glory of the Word was that of the only Son from the Father.

The NASB translates, “glory as of the only begotten from the Father.” The term, “only begotten,” while a part of the historic creeds, can cause some confusion, namely, that Jesus came into being at a point in time. The Nicene Creed clarifies, “begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father ….” Sometimes it is said that Jesus is “eternally begotten,” so that He is the eternal Son of God.

But most modern scholars say that the Greek word does not refer to the “begetting” aspect of Jesus’ sonship, but rather to His uniqueness. It could be translated, “one and only.” It’s used of the widow of Nain’s only son (Luke 7:12), of Jairus’ “only daughter” (Luke 8:42), and of a man’s only son who was afflicted by an evil spirit (Luke 9:38). Hebrews 11:17 uses it to refer to Isaac, who was not Abraham’s only son, but his unique son, the son of the promise. John is the only New Testament author to use the term of Jesus (John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9). He means that Jesus is the only or unique Son of God in a way that no one else is. Jesus has no equal among men. We become sons of God through the new birth, but Jesus is the eternal Son, co-equal with the Father in His essence. If you don’t understand how Jesus could be an eternal Son, remember the comment of Augustine, “Show me and explain to me an eternal Father and I will show to you and explain to you an eternal Son.”

Sadly, many supposedly evangelical missionaries to Muslims are producing and endorsing translations of the New Testament that replace the terms “Father” and “Son” with other terms that are less offensive to Muslims. They argue that Muslims wrongly think that Christians believe that Jesus is the result of God having sexual relations with Mary. To remove that stumbling block, they change the terms. But in so doing, they change the very nature of God as He has revealed Himself to us in Scripture. God is the eternal Father and Jesus is His eternal Son. The Holy Spirit is also eternal God; three persons but one God. While it is humanly impossible to fully understand it, we dare not tamper with it to somehow make the message less offensive.

B. The glory of the Word was full of grace and truth.

John is probably referring back to Exodus 33 & 34, where Moses asks to see God’s glory. God explains that he can’t see His face and live, but He will hide Moses in the cleft of a rock, cover him with His hand, and pass by so that Moses can see “His back.” Then we read (Exod. 34:7), “Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, ‘The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.’” In that profound experience, we hear of God’s grace and truth. He is “abounding in lovingkindness” (“grace”) for many, but true to His holiness, He still punishes the guilty.

Jesus was full of grace and truth. His grace offers love and compassion to guilty sinners (John 4:1-26). His truth means that He warns of God’s judgment if sinners do not repent and believe in Him (John 3:16, 18, 36; 5:27-29; 8:24, 40, 45-47). Grace and truth reach their culmination at the cross, where the truth of God’s holiness and justice was satisfied in the death of the perfect Substitute, so that He now can offer grace to guilty sinners who trust in Jesus. It is only by believing the truth as it is in Jesus that you can experience God’s grace and forgiveness. Since Jesus is full of grace, you can come to Him and know that He will welcome you (John 6:37). Because He is full of truth, you can trust His promises.

Conclusion

J. C. Ryle, in his wonderful Expository Thoughts on the Gospels [Baker], 3:26-27) draws several practical lessons from John 1:14. He points out that the constant undivided union of two perfect natures in Christ’s person gives infinite value to His mediation for sinners, to His imputed righteousness to believers, to His atoning blood, and to His resurrection. Then he adds (pp. 27-28),

Did the Word become flesh? Then He is One who can be touched with the feeling of His people’s infirmities, because He has suffered Himself, being tempted. He is almighty because He is God, and yet He can sympathize with us, because He is man.

Did the Word become flesh? Then He can supply us with a perfect pattern and example for our daily life…. Having dwelt among us as a man, we know that the true standard of holiness is to “walk even as He walked” (1 John 2:6). He is a perfect pattern, because He is God. But He is also a pattern exactly suited to our needs, because He is man.

Finally, did the Word become flesh? Then let us see in our mortal bodies a real, true dignity, and not defile them by sin. Vile and weak as our body may seem, it is a body which the Eternal Son of God was not ashamed to take upon Himself, and to take up to heaven. That simple fact is a pledge that He will raise our bodies at the last day, and glorify them together with His own.

As Charles Wesley put it (“Hark, the Herald Angels Sing”), “Veiled in flesh, the Godhead see; hail the incarnate Deity.”

Application Questions

1. What Scriptures would you use to show a member of a cult that Jesus is God? What Scriptures would he use to try to disprove it? How would you explain these?
2. Why is it important to affirm Jesus’ true humanity? What practical benefits fall if we do not affirm His humanity?
3. Can a person who denies either Jesus’ full deity or humanity be truly saved? Discuss John MacArthur’s comment, “It is as damning to believe in the wrong Jesus as to believe in no Jesus.”
4. Why must God’s grace always be balanced by His truth? What errors emerge if we err on either side?

Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2013, All Rights Reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation

It’s Christmastime—a season when company buffets of roast beef and honey-baked ham end with white elephant exchanges. Elementary schools hold food drives and Salvation Army volunteers patiently wait for their kettles to fill with coins. Icicle lights hang off eaves in neighborhoods where fruitcakes are sometimes still wrapped in red cellophane and received with polite appreciation. At home fires crackle, while at the mall window displays compete to lure in shoppers on search-and-destroy missions for “the perfect gift.” Those preferring to avoid mall traffic browse through stacks of catalogs or surf the Net—because, after all, it’s the season for gift giving.

What’s the most memorable gift anyone has ever given you?

When the great outdoorsman, Teddy Roosevelt, was president, an admirer sent him a coyote. (Unfortunately, when it arrived, it broke free and terrorized the First Family and the White House staff.) In O. Henry’s story, The Gift of the Magi, a husband sells his watch to buy his wife combs, while she sells her hair to buy him a watch chain. When my friend lost her hair to chemotherapy, her husband bought her a silver brush—expressing his hope for the future—and with it a matching mirror inscribed with “My Hero.” The sorts of gifts we give can reveal a lot about us and about our relationship with each recipient.

That was certainly the case in a different First Family—the children of Adam and Eve. In Genesis 4 we read about a murder that happened all because, simply put, one of the brothers gave a half-hearted gift. Unfortunately in this case, the recipient was the Lord.

But before we talk about details of the who-done-it, we need to set the stage. Prior to this story, our first parents had been expelled from Eden, where they had enjoyed a serene existence. But their choice to disobey God had resulted in God’s cursing of the snake and the ground. And it had also involved God’s pronouncement that there was going to be conflict. Adam and Eve probably could not have imagined how deeply they would feel the devastation within their own family, but their oldest child broke their hearts. And it had all seemed to start out so well.

The first verse we read after Adam and Eve leave Eden says, “Now the man had intimate relations with his wife, Eve, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, ‘I have created a man along with the Lord ‘“ (v. 1). The text actually says, “The man ‘knew’ his wife...” To “know” someone in the biblical sense is often used as a euphemism for intimate relations. So Adam ‘‘knew” Eve, and she got pregnant and had a son. Eve called him Cain because “Cain” sounds a lot like what she said when she gave birth to him. She chose a name that—in Hebrew—sounds like the word “create.”

That makes a lot of sense to me. You see, our daughter was eight months old when we adopted her. After a decade of infertility that included seven pregnancy losses and three failed adoptions, we finally had good news. Now obviously because of her age, she already had a name when she came to us. But we decided to change it as part of our bonding process with her. Because I had been unable to carry a child to term, we could not pass on to a daughter any of our genetics. So we chose to name our new arrival “Alexandra”—which is the longer form of my own name, Sandra. If, as her mother, I was unable to give her a part of my physical self, I wanted her to carry with her a different part of me. As she says, “Your tummy was broken, but I grew in your heart.” Like Eve I gave my child a name that sounds like something I wanted to communicate about her.

Hebrew parents did that all the time. For example, “Isaac” sounds a lot like the Hebrew word for “laugh.” And because Sarah laughed when told she was going to have to buy Depends and Pampers in the same aisle, the name seemed appropriate.

Just think about that. Imagine how you would marvel at the miracle of human birth if you’d never seen a tiny human. If for the first time you saw in the face of a son the reflection of your own humanity, unlike the animals you’ve seen reproduced, you’d stand amazed. After the agony of childbirth with no epidural or La Maze preparation, Eve must have stared at this tiny creature who looked back at her through eyes that blended her features with Adam’s. His nose. Her mouth. Her hair coloring. Her husband’s ears. “A little bit of you and a little bit of me.”

It is no wonder that Eve would give her son a name that reflects how this must have made her marvel. Often infertile couples express that some of the key losses not “solved” by adoption are the loss of their own genetic continuity, the loss of creating a miracle in cooperation with God, and the loss of a jointly-conceived child. In sort, they grieve the loss of the moment Eve seems to be describing; her expression wraps them all together: “I have created a man along with the Lord.” In partnership with God she has been a co-creator. Where did her “work” stop and God’s begin? It would be impossible to say.

The Hebrew word for man is “Adam.” So Eve’s reference to her son as a “man” rather than “child” or “infant,” as we might expect, seems to point back to God’s own creation of “Adam.” It emphasizes again the marvel of the creative process at work. Perhaps Eve’s expression is equivalent to what believing women typically say today after giving birth: “It’s a miracle!”

When I wrote books “with” my late co-author, Dr. Bill Cutrer, people would ask who wrote what. They expected me to say I wrote the relational stuff, and he wrote the medical scenes. But that’s not how it worked. He knew a lot about relationships, and I’ve experienced some medical procedures through the years. We dreamed up ideas. We argued. We compromised. We blended and we bent. I did some research; he added some stories from his medical practice. I tweaked it based on input received from ministry through the years. By the time each book was finished, it was such a synergistic blend of our thoughts combined with those of our spouses, edited by both—it was a complete co-creation. It would be impossible to carve out what was the effort of one or the other. We were co-authors. And I think that’s similar to what Eve expresses here about the miracle of birth: “I have created a man along with the Lord!”

So the scene begins beautifully, and I imagine this new mom, like any mother, had great hopes for her little blessing. And soon she has another one. In verse two we read that she names him Abel, and we get a little nervous. Though the text doesn’t say it, Abel means “breath” or “vanity.” If you’ve read in Ecclesiastes, “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity,” that is the word used here. And it makes us stop to wonder, Will the breath of “Breath man” be snuffed out before its time?

Well, time goes by and the boys grow up. Do you wonder if they wrestled? Did they find a pomegranate and play ball? All we’re told is their occupations: “Now Abel was shepherding a flock, but Cain was working the ground.” You’ve got a shepherd and a farmer. And notice that Cain worked the “ground.” Nothing wrong with that. But it is what God cursed. So we wonder if the author is foreshadowing here that there’s bad news ahead.

Now here’s where it starts to get sticky. In verses three and four we read, “And it happened in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the Lord from the fruit of the ground. But Abel brought of the firstlings of his sheep and of their fat.”

If we look first at what Abel brought, we notice it was “of the firstlings.” Those are the firstborn animals. Later in the law God will require the firstborn of everything to be offered to Him. We also see here that Abel brought of their fat portions. In our culture we appreciate non-fat foods, but most other places in the world, even today, have a different view. One time when my husband and I were in Russia, we toured a hospital that invited us to eat hors d’oeuvres. At one point Gary thought he was popping a square of mozzarella cheese into his mouth, but he discovered too late that it was raw fat. So he choked it down, trying to veil his disgust. But to the Russians it was a delicacy of the highest order, and they had offered us their best stuff. That’s exactly how God regarded the fat on animals. When offered to him in sacrifice, it made a most pleasing gift.

Contrast that with the gift Cain brought. The text says simply, “He brought an offering to the Lord from the fruit of the ground.” There’s nothing wrong with bringing grain or produce—the text calls what both brothers brought an “offering,” so it must have fit within the category of “generally allowable gifts.” But there’s a problem here. Where are the firstfruits? We don’t see the emphasis on bringing God the very best. He just brought some of the stuff he grew. Nothing special. It reminds me of a morning when one of the women in our Bible study brought leftover donuts as a joke. Only Cain was serious.

The first ten years of my life, I grew up in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, an incredibly fertile plain with a river running by the house. There was plenty of water and good soil. My dad worked a government job, but to help support his wife and five kids, he had a one-acre garden in addition to a pear orchard and a Christmas tree farm. He was good at it, too. Every year he would set aside the largest, most perfectly formed pears and exhibit them in the state fair. Sometimes his rhubarb was of good enough quality to enter, too. Or an amazingly large squash would sprout up and make it all the way to the judges’ booth. For his display Dad chose only the biggest and the best—the choicest fruit. And afterwards he lined his walls with award ribbons. That’s the quality that God wants from Cain here. You don’t take your leftovers to the Judge. You take the finest. Hebrews 11:4 tells us that “By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain’s. Through this he received approval as righteous, God himself giving approval to his gifts.”

Unfortunately, unlike his brother’s gift, Cain’s offering revealed a lot about his view of God. He didn’t bring anything that cost him anything; he saved the best for himself. And you know what? That’s not good enough for God. So we read in verse four, “And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard.”

Uh-oh. Big brother gets outdone by little brother. Big brother has spent his days working hard in the sin-cursed ground and he expects God to be like a gleaner—to come along after the fields have been harvested and accept what got dropped on the ground. And Cain probably even thinks he’s being generous here. Hey, at least he brought something! But while he has simply put together some veggies, his brother has, like the Hallmark slogan goes, “Cared enough to send the very best.” And God is smart enough to see and reward the difference.

Well, sure enough, when God prefers Abel’s offering, Cain gets upset. We read in verse five, “So Cain was very angry and his face fell.”

But God is also gracious, so he gives Cain a chance to make it right. He initiates a conversation here. We read in verse six, “Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; its desire is for you, but you must rule it.”

It’s like God is saying, “Don’t worry. It’s not too late.” When we read that Cain’s “face fell,” it’s a lot like how we use that phrase today. Only here it has more the idea of anger behind it than sadness or dejection. But no problem—God makes sure Cain knows he can still offer an acceptable sacrifice. The Lord also warns Cain that he’s in a power struggle with sin and he needs to stop and choose wisely.

If you’ve ever seen the musical “Oklahoma!” you’ve heard the song, “Oh, the Farmer and the Cowhand Should Be Friends.” You’ve seen how the ranch hands and the farmers constantly competed. And that’s certainly true here, multiplied by some sibling rivalry. Cain is probably feeling all sorts of competitive instincts and negative emotions. His kid brother has shown him up, and he’s not going to take it lightly. In my junior year of high school my little sister—a sophomore—and I both played on the varsity soccer team. And at the awards banquet she got the award for “Most Valuable Player.” I got nothing. My little sis was a better soccer player than I was, and now everyone knew it. Was I happy for her, recognizing I could excel in other arenas? Are you kidding? Mostly I was jealous! It’s ugly, but that’s how we often think, isn’t it?

God acknowledges Cain’s jealous rage, and he warns him that sin is crouching.

Last Christmas we gave our daughter a kitten. And for the past year, every morning when we’ve opened our bedroom door, Princess Peaches has come in to join us on the bed. Our favorite game is to move our fingers under the covers, convincing her there’s a mouse under there. And she falls for it every time. So she hides behind my husband’s knee and waits for just the right moment. Then fast as a blink she jumps through the air and pounces on her prey with claws extended. She’s so good at it that we had to have her de-clawed, because sometimes when we thought the game was over, we’d take out our hands and a few minutes later, they’d be bleeding.

Now picture what a bigger feline could do...a lion maybe, or a cougar. It could devour a person in minutes. And the writer here paints that sort of image by personifying sin as a lurking animal, waiting for its prey’s most vulnerable moment for the pounce. Sin lurks here, just waiting for the opportunity to devour Cain.

So what does Cain do? Does he say, “Okay, let me go back and get the biggest apples”? No way. Verse eight reads, “Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And it happened when they were in the field that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and he killed him.”

Can you believe it? He lures him out into the field where no one can witness what’s going to happen and no one will hear the yells for help. And Cain kills his brother in cold blood. His own brother! Instead of mastering sin, he has silenced little “Buddy” for good.

So we’re barely four chapters into the book and we’ve already got a murder mystery. Who did it? The Lord knows and He shows up again. And He does the same thing with Cain that he did when Adam sinned. He asks questions first. That’s always a good idea when somebody’s messed up—give them a chance to confess. In verse nine we read that God asks, “Where is Abel, your brother?”

Well, unlike his father, Adam’s son shows no shame. He starts out with a lie: “I don’t know.” But then he adds a smart-alecky “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Or the actual word order here is “Keeper of my brother, am I?” The word “keeper” here is the same word that described what Abel did. He “kept” sheep. And it’s like Cain is saying, “Am I the keeper of the keeper?” “Am I the shepherd of the shepherd?” It’s a less-than-subtle dig that suggests God is being unreasonable in even asking.

Do you sometimes get this attitude toward God? Do you blame him for stuff that goes wrong when you’ve made bad choices to begin with? Last year I caught Alexandra, then five years old, sucking her thumb, and I told her to stop. And do you know what she said? “Well, God should not have given me an arm with a hand on it.” In other words it’s God’s fault that I’m sucking my thumb! It starts early. We’re all prone to mistrust God—to think He’s really demanding and unreasonable and out to hunt down and slay our happiness. We want to blame him rather than take responsibility for our own sin. Back in the orchard Adam told God he ate the fruit because of “The woman you gave me,” as though God Himself were responsible for Adam’s choice. Now his son acts the same way, times two. Since the first human and the first sin, we’ve had this tendency to blame God. It’s much more comfortable than owning up to our wrongs.

So Cain smarts off and blames God. And what happens next in the Genesis story amazes me. If it were up to me, I’d do lightning right here on the spot. Capital punishment. Show no mercy to this selfish, smart-mouth.

But God—our gracious God—asks another question. Verse ten reads, “And He said, ‘What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground.’” From the ground God had cursed, the ground that Cain had worked, the ground that received Abel’s blood, we see the evidence of Cain’s evil. And here’s the penalty. God says, “And now you are being cursed from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive the blood of your brother from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer continue giving its strength to you; you will become a homeless roamer in the land.’”

What? He doesn’t kill him? At this point we expect Cain to say, “Wow. Thanks for not doing to me what I did to my brother. Thanks for not giving me what I deserve.” But nooooooo. What does Cain say? Read verse 13: “Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is greater than I can bear!”

Can you believe it? This guy is clueless. He’s getting mercy and he still thinks he’s being mistreated. He continues in verse 14 with, “Look, you have driven me out today away from the ground, and I must hide myself from your presence; and I will be a homeless roamer in the land, and anyone who finds me will kill me.”

“They’ll kill me!” he complains. Can you imagine? They might want to do to Cain what he did to his brother. How unfair!

Now you might wonder who these people are who are going to kill him. If Cain was the firstborn of Adam and Eve, how could the earth be populated? We’re not really told, but it’s possible that by now Adam and Eve have had a lot of other children, and if so, all of them would be outraged at Cain’s actions—for killing their brother. And we have to figure that if the ground will no longer cooperate to yield produce to Cain, he may have to beg his family members for food. Again, we expect God to say, “How does it feel?” Or “Don’t dish it out if you can’t take it.” Or like the Eagles’ hit, “Get Over It!”

But not this God. Instead, he shows mercy yet again. In verse 15 we read, “So the Lord said to him, ‘No, if anyone kills Cain, vengeance will be taken on him sevenfold.’” If you wonder what sevenfold vengeance is, it may help to know that back then they considered seven the perfect number. It was often associated with completeness. So it’s like God is saying, “I will completely avenge anyone who kills Cain.” When Gary and I went camping back in the eighties, if he’d see a mosquito flying nearby, he’d say, “I’ll kill him to the max in a second without mercy.” Then smash. And although “to the max” is an outdated expression, perhaps it helps us understand what’s being expressed here. It’s as though God is saying, “If anyone messes with you, I’ll avenge your murder to the max.”

Then the text goes on to say, “And the Lord put a mark on Cain, lest anyone who came upon him should harm him.” Now in our world full of street signs, billboards, and store signs, we usually think of a sign as a visual image, perhaps something reminiscent of the Grateful Dead’s “Dire Wolf” like a placard saying, “Don’t Murder Me.” But this word could mean something a little different from that. In Joshua 2:12, when Rahab asked for a sign, she received protection for herself and her family. So the sign could simply be God’s protection. Other signs in the Hebrew Bible included a broad range of options like Noah’s rainbow reminding everyone that God would never again destroy the world with water. Or when Moses asked God for a sign that He would deliver his people, God told him the sign would be that His people would someday serve Him on the mountain where Moses confronted the burning bush.

It’s also been suggested that this could have been a special hairstyle, a mark like a tattoo—even a growling dog, though if you’re going to go there, I think a skunk might be more fitting. That would keep anyone from going near the guy. We aren’t told what the sign was, but we do know its function—to protect the murderer from anyone who might want to injure him.

What? Protect him from injury? Yes, one more time we see God’s grace. The word “murder” has been used in this chapter up until now. But when God promises to protect Cain, we see a different word—he says “lest anyone injure Cain.” In other words, he’s not just protecting Cain from those who would murder him, but from anyone who would beat him up!

Extreme grace.

So how does the story end? Verse sixteen tells us, “Then Cain departed from the presence of Yahweh and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden.” East of Eden is the direction Adam and Eve went when driven from the orchard. And “Nod” means wandering. So Cain went to the land of wandering—away from the presence of the Lord.

Eve’s miracle baby has caused nothing but heartbreak. And the couple who departed from God’s presence now see their son departing even further from His face.

And that is where all of us would remain without Jesus Christ. Because of Him we are no longer in the process of departing further and further from God. Through the reconciliation brought by the most pleasing sacrifice of all time, we are invited back into fellowship with the Father no matter what we’ve done.

And knowing that should evoke in us a desire to return to Him what Cain should have given—not our leftovers but our best.

What do we give to the God of grace? Do we give him our sleepiest hours or our most productive energy? Do we give him our spare change or do we give generously and sacrificially? Does our offering cost us or is it simply convenient? Do we treat His children with neglect or respect? How deliberate are you in showing how much God means to you by what you give back to him?

It’s Christmastime—a season when we get so frenzied attending company Christmas buffets and hanging the icicles on the house that we lose sight of the greatest Gift ever given. We get all wrapped up in giving gifts to others in honor of His birthday, but like Cain we offer Him—the Reason for the Season—the leftovers. Our leftover time. Some leftover canned goods we didn’t plan to use anyway. A little leftover energy. A few coins of leftover pocket change in the kettle.

So we need to stop. And in the midst of the hustle and bustle, let’s carve out some time to prepare our best, most memorable gift. If it’ll help, consider using the visual reminder of wrapping a box and putting it under the tree as a “sign” of a decision to give God His due.

What does our God of extreme grace really want from us? If we asked the Spirit to tell us His heart’s desire, what would top His Christmas list? What would really please the One who would “rather die than live without us”? No longer does he want animal fat and first fruits. Romans 12:1 and 2 tells us that he wants us—our lives—as living sacrifices. More than anything, the Father wants the love and devotion of each “miracle” child’s whole and undivided heart.

What can I give him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb.
If I were a wise man, I would do my part.
O what can I give Him?
Give Him my heart.

—Christina Rossetti

This article is the affirmation of the pastor and elders of Flagstaff Christian Fellowship, Flagstaff Arizona as related to women's roles in the church. It concludes with the Danvers statement by the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW, Wheaton, Illinois 1988).

Steven J. Cole and FCF Elders

February, 1996 (Revised)

The issue of women’s roles in the church is complicated and emotionally charged. These comments are only a brief synopsis of some of the issues. As elders, we affirm the rationale, purposes and affirmations of The Danvers Statement (see below, or go to: http://www.cbmw.org/about/danvers.html). Below are some specific questions and our understanding of how Scripture applies to each. Our goal is to honor God and His Word, while avoiding both a legalistic approach and compromise with the worldly influences threatening to undermine God’s unchanging truth.

1. Can women serve as elders or pastors over men?

The clear biblical answer is, No. See 1 Tim. 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9 (qualifications for elders, which clearly are framed with men in view: “husband of one wife,” “manages his household well,” etc.). Also, 1 Cor. 11:3-16 clearly presents the hierarchy: God, Christ, man, woman, which applies both to the church and the home. Since elders/pastors both teach and exercise authority, 1 Tim. 2:11-15 prohibits women from occupying this office (the reasons given in that text are not culturally determined). There are no NT examples of women elders or pastors serving over men.

2. Can women serve as deacons, especially if their area of service puts them over men?

Clearly, deacons serve under elders. If elders are male, then men are ultimately in authority. 1 Tim. 3:11 is ambiguous: Does it refer to elders’ wives, deacons’ wives, or to women deacons? We can’t be dogmatic, but in light of Rom. 16:1 (Phoebe, a “deacon” [servant] of the church), it seems permissible for women to serve as deacons. It would seem best, generally, to have women deacons in ministries where they are leading other women. If they do serve over men, if questions requiring authority arise, they should be deferred to the elder(s) over the deacon.

3. Can women serve as ushers?

There is no NT reference to such a ministry. The question is, Does ushering involve any exercise of authority? We cannot see how it does, unless it comes to the function of being sergeant-at-arms in dealing with a disruptive person. But clearly, male ushers or other men present would take on that role. Passing the offering plate or communion elements is not exercising any authority. It could be argued that it models male passivity if there are not enough men to fill the job. But aside from that, we see no problem with women helping out.

4. Can women lead the communion service or baptize?

In our thinking, this involves a position of corporate leadership that should be reserved for men when men are present (1 Cor. 11).

5. Can women take the lead in corporate worship services?

We believe it is desirable for men to take the lead in public worship. This pictures the divinely instituted order (1 Cor. 11:3). There are not many examples of women leading in worship in Scripture (not all of the following apply, but are listed for study reference): Exod. 15:20, 21; Judges 5; Ps. 68:11; Luke 2:36-38; Acts 21:9; 1 Cor. 11:5; 14:26, 34; Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16. We encourage women to participate in worship services (testimony, praise, music, etc.) as long as they are not usurping authority or behaving in a domineering manner. We also see no violation of Scripture to have a woman (or women) planning the order of worship as long as she is submissive to male leadership and doesn’t plan anything that violates the biblical emphasis.

Since our worship style requires some musical ability, if there is no man with such ability to provide leadership, we recommend finding a man who can at least lead in vocals and give verbal direction to the overall process, even if he can’t play the instruments. This models male leadership, which seems to be clearly the biblical picture.

6. Can women teach men in situations like Precept, adult Sunday School, Agape Families? Could a woman fill the pulpit for a single Sunday morning? What about women teaching boys in Sunday School?

The biblical intent and standard is clearly male leadership in the church. We recognize that there are exceptional cases, both in Scripture (Deborah, Huldah, etc.) and in church history (women missionaries, visionary leaders like Henrietta Mears, etc.). But exceptions are exceptions, not the rule. God’s plan is for male leadership in the church and home. This includes the role of teaching Scripture when men are present.

In the NT, most of the church meetings took place in homes. Thus there wasn’t a distinction between Sunday morning worship (when the whole body gathered) and Sunday School, Sunday evening, mid-week, home fellow­ships, etc. Thus, as we would apply the NT emphasis on women not being permitted to teach men (1 Tim. 2:12), it would seem to apply to these situations as well. Can a woman, in a home fellowship or adult S.S. class, share an insight from Scripture the Lord has given her? We don’t see any problem with this. But formally teaching Scripture or doctrine to a class that includes men would seem to violate this text.

Teaching various methods (such as how to witness, do Bible study, teach, counsel, etc.), seems to be a gray area, since often there are pertinent doctrinal issues related to such methods. Also, we should derive our methods from the Bible, so to teach any method properly it’s necessary to teach the Bible, which women are prohibited from doing with men. We would be comfortable with a couple team-teaching some of these things, with the husband taking the lead in explaining doctrinal issues, and the wife contributing her insights into methods or people-skills.

As far as women teaching boys in Sunday School, the problem seems to grow in proportion to the age of the boys. We would prefer men teaching in the older classes (jr. high and up), since it better models masculine spirituality and leadership for our children. Even in the younger ages, it would be good if a couple could work together. Otherwise we send the non-verbal message to kids that religion is for women. So our goal ought to be to encourage men to be involved in teaching our kids at every level.

The Danvers Statement

The "Danvers Statement" summarizes the need for the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW) and serves as an overview of our core beliefs. This statement was prepared by several evangelical leaders at a CBMW meeting in Danvers, Massachusetts, in December of 1987. It was first published in final form by the CBMW in Wheaton, Illinois in November of 1988.

Rationale:

We have been moved in our purpose by the following contemporary developments which we observe with deep concern:

1. The widespread uncertainty and confusion in our culture regarding the complementary differences between masculinity and femininity;
2. The tragic effects of this confusion in unraveling the fabric of marriage woven by God out of the beautiful and diverse strands of manhood and womanhood;
3. The increasing promotion given to feminist egalitarianism with accompanying distortions or neglect of the glad harmony portrayed in Scripture between the loving, humble leadership of redeemed husbands and the intelligent, willing support of that leadership by redeemed wives;
4. The widespread ambivalence regarding the values of motherhood, vocational homemaking, and the many ministries historically performed by women;
5. The growing claims of legitimacy for sexual relationships which have Biblically and historically been considered illicit or perverse, and the increase in pornographic portrayal of human sexuality;
6. The upsurge of physical and emotional abuse in the family;
7. The emergence of roles for men and women in church leadership that do not conform to Biblical teaching but backfire in the crippling of Biblically faithful witness;
8. The increasing prevalence and acceptance of hermeneutical oddities devised to reinterpret apparently plain meanings of Biblical texts;
9. The consequent threat to Biblical authority as the clarity of Scripture is jeopardized and the accessibility of its meaning to ordinary people is withdrawn into the restricted realm of technical ingenuity;
10. And behind all this the apparent accommodation of some within the church to the spirit of the age at the expense of winsome, radical Biblical authenticity which in the power of the Holy Spirit may reform rather than reflect our ailing culture.

Purposes:

Recognizing our own abiding sinfulness and fallibility, and acknowledging the genuine evangelical standing of many who do not agree with all of our convictions, nevertheless, moved by the preceding observations and by the hope that the noble Biblical vision of sexual complementarity may yet win the mind and heart of Christ's church, we engage to pursue the following purposes:

1. To study and set forth the Biblical view of the relationship between men and women, especially in the home and in the church.
2. To promote the publication of scholarly and popular materials representing this view.
3. To encourage the confidence of lay people to study and understand for themselves the teaching of Scripture, especially on the issue of relationships between men and women.
4. To encourage the considered and sensitive application of this Biblical view in the appropriate spheres of life.
5. And thereby

• to bring healing to persons and relationships injured by an inadequate grasp of God's will concerning manhood and womanhood,
• to help both men and women realize their full ministry potential through a true understanding and practice of their God-given roles,
• and to promote the spread of the gospel among all peoples by fostering a Biblical wholeness in relationships that will attract a fractured world.

Affirmations:

Based on our understanding of Biblical teachings, we affirm the following:

1. Both Adam and Eve were created in God's image, equal before God as persons and distinct in their manhood and womanhood (Gen 1:26-27, 2:18).

2. Distinctions in masculine and feminine roles are ordained by God as part of the created order, and should find an echo in every human heart heart (Gen 2:18, 21-24; 1 Cor 11:7-9; 1 Tim 2:12-14).

3. Adam's headship in marriage was established by God before the Fall, and was not a result of sin (Gen 2:16-18, 21-24, 3:1-13; 1 Cor 11:7-9).

4. The Fall introduced distortions into the relationships between men and women (Gen 3:1-7, 12, 16).

• In the home, the husband's loving, humble headship tends to be replaced by domination or passivity; the wife's intelligent, willing submission tends to be replaced by usurpation or servility.
• In the church, sin inclines men toward a worldly love of power or an abdication of spiritual responsibility, and inclines women to resist limitations on their roles or to neglect the use of their gifts in appropriate ministries.

5. The Old Testament, as well as the New Testament, manifests the equally high value and dignity which God attached to the roles of both men and women (Gen 1:26-27, 2:18; Gal 3:28). Both Old and New Testaments also affirm the principle of male headship in the family and in the covenant community (Gen 2:18; Eph 5:21-33; Col 3:18-19; 1 Tim 2:11-15).

6. Redemption in Christ aims at removing the distortions introduced by the curse.

• In the family, husbands should forsake harsh or selfish leadership and grow in love and care for their wives; wives should forsake resistance to their husbands' authority and grow in willing, joyful submission to their husbands' leadership (Eph 5:21-33; Col 3:18-19; Tit 2:3-5; 1 Pet 3:1-7).
• In the church, redemption in Christ gives men and women an equal share in the blessings of salvation; nevertheless, some governing and teaching roles within the church are restricted to men (Gal 3:28; 1 Cor 11:2-16; 1 Tim 2:11-15).

7. In all of life Christ is the supreme authority and guide for men and women, so that no earthly submission-domestic, religious, or civil-ever implies a mandate to follow a human authority into sin (Dan 3:10-18; Acts 4:19-20, 5:27-29; 1 Pet 3:1-2).

8. In both men and women a heartfelt sense of call to ministry should never be used to set aside Biblical criteria for particular ministries (1 Tim 2:11-15, 3:1-13; Tit 1:5-9). Rather, Biblical teaching should remain the authority for testing our subjective discernment of God's will.

9. With half the world's population outside the reach of indigenous evangelism; with countless other lost people in those societies that have heard the gospel; with the stresses and miseries of sickness, malnutrition, homelessness, illiteracy, ignorance, aging, addiction, crime, incarceration, neuroses, and loneliness, no man or woman who feels a passion from God to make His grace known in word and deed need ever live without a fulfilling ministry for the glory of Christ and the good of this fallen world (1 Cor 12:7-21).

10. We are convinced that a denial or neglect of these principles will lead to increasingly destructive consequences in our families, our churches, and the culture at large.

We grant permission and encourage interested persons to use, reproduce, and distribute the Danvers Statement.

Message Statement:

Jesus Is Demonstrated To Be “The Christ” In Order That Men Might Believe In Him And Thereby Obtain The Blessings Of Eternal Life

I. THE PROLOGUE: (Jesus is the God-Man among men for men): The Word, which is eternal, related to and is God the Creator Himself, graciously overcame the darkness of sin in men by giving life to those who trust in Him when He became the God-Man, Jesus, the Messiah 1:1-18

A. The Word, which is eternal in relationship with God, and is God Himself in essence, is the Creator of all things which exist 1:1-3

1. The Word which is eternal and in relationship with God is described as being God in essence itself 1:1

2. Already being in existence with God, the Word is the creator of all things which exist 1:2-3

B. While it may appear that the Word which gives life by shinning upon men in their darkness is overcome, there is proof to the opposite through life given to believers 1:4-13

1. The Word, being life which gives light to men while shining in darkness is not overcome by darkness 1:4-5

2. While it appears that the darkness of men overcame the enlightening of the Word, it did not because life was given to those who trusted in Him 1:6-13

a. The light of life through the Word was witnessed to by a man sent from God named John that all might believe 1:6-8

b. The true light, which coming into the world was available for every man, was rejected by-in-large by the world which He made and His people, Israel, who were to be followers of Him 1:9-11

c. Whoever did receive the Word, by trusting in who He was, given the right to become children of God being given life, not through themselves but through God 1:12-13

C. The gracious giving of life came through Jesus the Messiah who being God became man to give grace as is witnessed by John and many others 1:14-18

1. The Word became human and dwelt among men demonstrating its greatness as being from the Father in its immense grace and truth 1:14

2. John gave witness to the God-Man by proclaiming his exalted position and pre-existence as God 1:15

3. Many received the fullness of Grace in abundance not through Moses who gave the Law but through Jesus--the Christ who alone completely explains God 1:16-18

II. MANIFESTATION TO THE NATION AND REJECTION THROUGH CONFLICTS: Jesus manifests Himself as Messiah to the nation whereupon many respond in belief, but the nation’s leaders respond by rejecting Him (1:19--12:50)

A. Jesus reveals Himself to be Messiah through a series of events (John the Baptist and the calling of disciples, the wedding in Cana, the cleansing of the temple, the discussion with Nicodemus, the discussion of John the Baptist, the discussion with the Samaritan woman, and the official of Capernaum) whereupon many respond in belief 1:19--4:54

1. John the Baptist testifies that Jesus is the Christ and Jesus’ disciples believe as there is a movement away from John the Baptist toward Jesus--Messiah 1:19--51

a. When John the Baptist is questioned by the representatives of the Pharisees, He identifies himself as one preparing the way for one greater than himself 1:19-28

1) When priests and Levities from Jerusalem asked John the Baptizer who he was, he said that he was not the Christ, Elijah, or The Prophet spoken of by Moses, but one preparing the nation for God as spoken of in Isaiah 40:3. 1:19-23

Elijah was predicted to return before the coming of Messiah in order to get Israel back in a proper relationship with their God (e.g. the faith of the fathers) Mal.4:5-7

Jesus asserts that John the Baptist was “Elijah that is to come” (Matt. 17:10-13)

Anyone (and especially John) who comes preaching repentance, comes in the spirit of Elijah (Lk. 1:17)

John the Baptist was not the person of Elijah but he exercised the function (office) of Elijah by preaching repentance and preparing Messiah’s way (cf. Matt. 11:14)

2) When asked by the representatives of the Pharisees why John was baptizing if he was not the Christ, Elijah or the Prophet, he described his ministry as one of preparation for the greater One to follow him 1:24-27

3) John’s ministry was in Bethany beyond the Jordan 1:28

b. On the next day John saw Jesus coming and identified Him as the One whom he was proclaiming would come: the Lamb of God who is the Son of God 1:29-34

1) On the next day John saw Jesus coming to him and identified Him as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world 1:29

2) John identifies Jesus as the greater One whose coming he spoke of who was identified as the Son of God by the coming of the Spirit of God upon Him 1:30-34

a) John identifies Jesus as the greater one in rank and in existence over him of whom he previously spoke 1:30

b) John proclaims that he baptized in water in order to manifest this coming One whom he did not recognize to Israel 1:31

c) John knew who Jesus was when he saw the Spirit descend and remain upon Him as the Lord described 1:32-33

d) John bares witness that He has seen the Spirit come upon Jesus and thus, that He is the Son of God 1:34

c. Because of the words of John and Jesus, many begin to follow Him--two of John’s disciples (including Andrew), Simon Peter, Philip, and Nathaniel 1:35-51

1) On the next day two of John’s disciples began to follow Jesus 1:35-39

a) On the next day when Jesus passed by John and two of his disciples, John identified Him again as the Lamb of God and his two disciples followed Jesus 1:35-37

b) John’s disciples were seeking Jesus and stayed with Him for that day 1:38-39

2) Andrew, one of John’s two disciples, told his brother, Simon, that they had found the Messiah and brought him to Jesus whereupon Jesus renamed him in view of his future character 1:40-42

a) One of John’s two disciples, Andrew, went to his brother, Simon Peter, and announced to him that they had found the Messiah 1:40-41

b) When Andrew brought Peter to Jesus, He identified Him in terms of his past (heritage) and proclaimed what his future name (character) would be 1:42

3) On the next day Philip and Nathaniel become followers of Jesus as Messiah because of His wonderful words 1:43-51

a) Setting: On the next day Jesus purposed to go into Galilee 1:43a

b) Jesus found Philip from the same town as Andrew and Peter (Bethsaida) and called him to follow 1:43b-44

c) Nathaniel became a follower of Jesus as Messiah after first questioning His value and then believing in Him due to His miraculous understanding 1:45-51

(1) Philip found Nathaniel and told him that they had found the Messiah written of in the Scriptures who is Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph 1:45

(2) Nathaniel questioned Philip's claims in view of Jesus being from Nazareth, but Philip urged him to come and see 1:46

(3) When Nathaniel approached Jesus, He identified him as not being deceitful 1:47

(4) Nathaniel questioned as to how Jesus knew him, and learned that He had seen him while under a fig tree 1:48

(5) Nathaniel immediately identifies Jesus as Messiah 1:49

(6) Jesus proclaims that Nathaniel will see Jesus do even greater works than he has seen; He will be the new Bethel--house of God 1:50-51

2. Wedding in Cana: On the third day after Nathaniel was chosen, Jesus performed His first miracle by turning the water into wine at the wedding in Cana in order to demonstrate that He was the One bringing in the Kingdom through a transforming ministry (cf. 2 Cor. 5:17), and His disciples believed in Him 2:1-11

a. Setting: On the third day (either of Christ’s ministry, or more probably after Nathaniel is chosen) Jesus and His disciples attended a wedding in Cana of Galilee where His mother was in attendance 2:1-2

b. When the wine ran low at the end of the wedding feast, Jesus refused to inaugurate the kingdom at his mother’s request, but did demonstrate that He was the King to come by turning the water into wine 2:3-10

1) At the end of the wedding celebration the wine was running out so Mary made the issue known to Jesus 2:3

2) Jesus objected that Mary was asserting an authority over Him which was not her’s to ask since His time (to fully reveal Himself as the Millennial King who will bring with Him the banquet of the Kingdom with eating and drinking) had not yet come 2:4

3) Mary urges the servants to do whatever Jesus told them to do 2:5

4) Jesus turned the water in the pots of purification into the best wine of the wedding 2:6-10

c. This was the first sign which Jesus did in Cana of Galilee demonstrating His greatness, and resulting in His disciples believing in Him 2:11

3. The Cleansing of the Temple in Jerusalem: After the wedding in Cana, Jesus went up from Capernaum to Jerusalem at the Passover, cleansed the temple as the zealous Davidite for pure worship, was challenged by the Jews, offered His future death and resurrection as proof of His authority, and was believed upon by many, but did not entrust Himself to them 2:12-25

a. Setting: After the wedding in Cana, Jesus, His mother, brothers, and disciples, went down to Capernaum for a few days, and then went up to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover 2:12-13

b. Jesus, as the Davidite, is zealous for pure worship, rejected, and gives as an authenticating sign His future death and resurrection, which is misunderstood by the Jews, but later understood and believed by His disciples 2:14-22

1) When Jesus saw the extortion which was occurring in the temple by the money changers, He drove them out of His father’s house with the consequences of rejection as David’s (Messiah’s) zeal brought to him in Psalm 69:9 cf. Also Malachi 3:1-3 2:14-17

2) The Jews question Jesus’ right to expel them from the temple with the requirement that He show to them an authenticating sign 2:18

3) Jesus challenges them to “destroy this temple” and he will raise it up again in three days 2:19

4) The Jews question Jesus’ words since it took forty-six years to build the temple which Jesus just cleansed 2:20

5) John explains that Jesus was referring to the Temple of His body which the disciples realized after His resurrection and led to their belief in the Scriptures and His word 2:21-22

c. While Jesus was in Jerusalem at the Passover, many believed in Him but He did not entrust Himself to them not needing their testimony, and knowing their inner sinfulness 2:23-25

1) When Jesus was in Jerusalem at the Passover, many believed in His name as they saw the signs which he was doing 2:23

2) Jesus was not entrusting Himself to them because He did not need their witness, and because He knew their nature 2:24-25

4. Nicodemus: When Nicodemus came to Jesus to learn from Him as a teacher from God, Jesus explained that one must have a Spirit cleansing through belief in Him who will be lifted up in order to enter into the Kingdom of God, where upon John explained that Jesus was God’s son sent out of love to save those in the world who will believe in Him, while those who will not will be judged for hiding their evil in the darkness 3:1-21

a. Setting: A man named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, came to Jesus by night in order to speak to him 3:1-2a

b. Recognizing that Jesus was a teacher from God, Nicodemus was taught that one must have a Spirit-cleansing through belief in Jesus who will be lifted up in order to enter the Kingdom of God 3:2b-15

1) Nicodemus (along with others “we”) recognized that Jesus was a teacher from God because of the signs which He did 3:2a

2) Jesus taught Nicodemus that one cannot see the kingdom of God unless he is born again 3:3

3) Nicodemus questioned the logic of Jesus’ statement since a man cannot physically be reborn through his mother 3:4

4) Responding to Nicodemus’ logic, Jesus affirms that there must be a Spirit-cleansing in order to enter the Kingdom of God, which is different than physical birth, and gives evidence of its presence, even though its source is not physically identifiable 3:5-8

a) Jesus explained that one must be born by an eschatological, Spirit-cleansing in order to enter the kingdom of God¹ 3:5

b) Jesus distinguishes between physical (mortal) and spiritual (eternal) birth 3:6

c) Jesus compares the work of the Spirit to wind which gives evidence of its presence, but can not be determined as to its origin; so is it when the Spirit brings about a new birth 3:7-8

5. Nicodemus questioned how these things can be 3:9

6. After questioning Nicodemus’ ignorance in light of his position as teacher, and noting his unwillingness to believe, Jesus answers his question by affirming that spiritual life will come by looking upon Jesus when he is lifted up as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness 3:10-15

a) Jesus questioned Nicodemus’ ignorance in view of his position as teacher in Israel 3:10

b) Jesus exposes Nicodemus’ unwillingness to accept the truth in view of his rejection of the things which Jesus says which may be verified, much less if He were to speak of things which could not be verified--heavenly things which only Jesus knows having descended from heaven 3:11-13

c) Jesus answers Nicodemus’ question by affirming that these things can be by believing in Jesus who will be lifted up to look upon in faith for eternal life as Moses lifted up the servant in the wilderness for temporal life (cf. Num. 21:19) 3:14-15

c. John, as narrator, enters to theologically, expound upon Jesus’ words by explaining that Jesus is God’s son who was sent to save all of those in the world who will believe in Him, and that judgment will come upon all of those who will not believe in Him because they desire to hid their evil in the darkness rather than be exposed in His light (cf. 12:46-48 at the close of Jesus’ public ministry with 3:19-18) 3:16-21

1) The narrator (John) explains the “lifting up” of Jesus and “belief” in view of God’s design to send His Son, out of love, for the world to save, rather than judge, all of those who believe in Him 3:16-17

2) Concerning judgment, John explains, that the one who believes in Jesus is not judged, while the one who does not believe in Jesus is in a state of being under judgment for his unbelief which evidences a desire to keep his evil covered in darkness rather than being exposed before the light of Jesus 3:18-20

3) Concerning uprightness, John explains that, he who does what is true comes to the light to manifest his works as being brought into being by God 3:21

5. John the Baptizer: When Jesus went into the Jordan region with His disciples to baptize, John proclaimed to his disciples that Jesus’ ministry was to increase over his because He is greater then John having been sent from God with the truth about God so that those who believe in Him will have eternal life, while those who do not believe in Him will remain in their state of judgment 3:22-36

a. Setting: After his discussion with Nicodemus, Jesus and His disciples came into to Judea where he was spending time with them and baptizing while John the Baptizer, having not yet been thrown in prison, was also baptizing near in Aenon near Salim (near Samaria?) 3:22-24

b. When concerning arose from John’s disciples about the place of their ministry in view of Jesus’ baptisms, John proclaimed the superior role of Jesus as the One from God who brings the truth about God resulting in eternal life for all of those who believe in Him and judgment for those who do not 3:25-36

1) In view of Jesus’ baptism, the washings of the Essenes, and the Pharisees in Jerusalem, the people began to question the value of John’s baptism 3:25

2) John’s disciples expressed their concern their ministry from the above confrontation since Jesus was now baptizing and many were going to Him 3:26

3) John proclaimed God’s blessing upon Jesus’ ministry with the perspective that he was sent before Messiah as a friend at a wedding who must decrease, while Jesus must increase as the One sent from God with a testimony of the truth about God resulting in eternal life for those who will believe in Him, and judgment for those who will not obey Him 3:27-36

a) John affirmed that one’s ministry is enlarged from heaven, not men 3:27

b) John affirms again that he is not the Messiah but the one sent before Him, therefore as a friend of the bridegroom, he rejoices to hear of His presence 3:28-29

c) John affirms that Jesus must increase and he must decrease because he is but a man while Jesus is from God and testifies of the truth concerning God, giving the Spirit without measure and eternal life to those who believe in Him, while death remains on those who do not obey Him 3:30-36

6. The Samaritan Woman: When Jesus left Judea because of the concern of the Pharisees, He met a woman in Samaria, led her to an understanding that he was the Prophet of Moses--Messiah, taught His disciples that now is the time to reap people in God’s harvest, and, thus, brought many Samaritans into a believing relationship with Him because of the testimony of the woman, and Himself to them 4:1-42

a. Setting: When Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard about the many disciples which He was making, He left Judea for Galilee, and passed, by necessity, through Samaria where he rested in Sychar by Jacob’s well at noon 4:1-6

1) Jesus left Judea for Galilee when the Pharisees heard that Jesus was making and baptizing (through His disciples) more disciples than John 4:1-3

2) On His way to Galilee, it was necessary for Jesus to pass through Samaria 4:4

3) Jesus came to the city of Sychar in Samaria near Jacob’s well where He sat at about noon (or six P.M) wearied from His journey 4:5-6

b. Through a dialogue with the Samaritan woman, Jesus leads her to an understanding that He is not only a prophet, but the Prophet to come which Moses spoke of--Messiah 4:7-26

1) Jesus takes the initiative with the Samaritan woman to move her toward an understanding of Him as a prophet 4:7-19

a) When a Samaritan woman came to the well to draw water Jesus asked her for a drink since his disciples had gone to buy food 4:7-8

b) The Samaritan woman questioned why Jesus as a Jew would ask for a drink from her since she was a “Samaritan” 4:9

c) Jesus plays off of her discussion of identity and affirms that if she knew who He truly was, she would ask for living water from Him 4:10

d) The woman questions the plausibility of Jesus’ offer since he has nothing from which to draw the water from the well, and since He does not appear to be greater than Jacob 4:11-12

e) Jesus works from her words and proclaims Himself as greater than Jacob because unlike Jacob’s water which results in thirst again, that which Jesus has to offer will lead to complete satisfaction as it leads to eternal life 4:13-14

f) The woman, still thinking about physical water, asks Jesus for the water so that she will not become thirsty or have to daily return to the well 4:15

g) Jesus responds to her request by urging the woman to call her husband (who represents her spiritual thirst) and return 4:16

h) The woman said that she did not have a husband 4:17a

Jesus affirmed her words and then proclaimed that she had had five husbands and that the one whom she was now with was not her husband 4:17b-18

i) The woman became aware that Jesus was a prophet through His words about her love life 4:19

2) Through the initiative of the woman, Jesus leads her to an understanding that He is not only a prophet, but the Prophet spoken of by Moses--Messiah 4:20-26

a) The woman asked Jesus as prophet where the proper place was to worship God: at Mt. Gerizim or in Jerusalem 4:20

b) Jesus does not deny that worship was to center from Jerusalem, but He emphasized that the emphasis was to be upon spiritual worship of the God who is spirit in truth (Jesus, cf. 1:18) from now on rather than upon a place 4:21-24

c) The woman understood Jesus’ emphasis upon a coming change and emphasized the Samaritan concept that Messiah was coming in the likeness of a Moses figure who will declare truth to them 4:25

d) Jesus acknowledged her perception and affirmed that He was that coming Messiah 4:26

c. Setting--interlude: As Jesus’ disciples return, they are concerned that He would be speaking to a woman, and she returns in haste to tell the men of the city about Jesus 4:27-28a

1) Jesus’ disciples returned and noticed that he was speaking to the Samaritan Woman, but they did not ask Him questions 4:27

2) The woman left her water pot and went into the city to tell the men 4:28a

d. As the Samaritans are coming from the testimony of the woman, Jesus explains to His disciples that they are to be involved now in the harvesting work of God, as He is, whereupon the Samaritans arrive and believe in Jesus, not only because of the words of the woman, but also because of Jesus words themselves 4:28b-42

1) As the Samaritan woman told the men of the city about Jesus’ prophetic abilities concerning her life, they left to see Him 4:29-30

a) The Samaritan woman invited the men in the city to come and see Jesus who must be the Christ because He told her, prophetically, all about her private life 4:29

b) The men left the city and were coming to Jesus 4:30

2) Jesus explains to His disciples, as the Samaritans are coming that they are to harvest lives for God at this time 4:31-38

a) The disciples were urging Jesus to eat the food which they had just gotten for Him 4:31

b) In view of the disciples concern about His speaking to the Samaritan woman, Jesus explains through the image of food that He was doing the work of the Father, and that they are to harvest people for God now 4:32-38

(1) Jesus begins to explain His actions to His disciples in a transitional way by insisting that He has food to eat that they do not know about, and they question where it could have come from 4:32-33

(2) Jesus explains that his "food" is to do the will of the Father, to accomplish His work 4:34

(3) Jesus explains, perhaps looking at the Samaritan men approaching, that now is the time to enter into the harvest of lives for God 4:35-38

3) When the Samaritans came to Jesus, many believed in Him because of the words of the woman, and because of the very words of Jesus which they heard 4:39-42

a) From the Samaritan woman’s city many believed in Jesus because of the testimony of the woman 4:39

b) The Samaritans demonstrated belief in Jesus by asking Him to stay with them, and affirming to the woman that they believe also because of that which He has spoken to them 4:40-42

(1) When the Samaritans came to Jesus they asked Him to stay with them; He agreed for two days and many more believed in Him because of His word 4:40-41

(2) The people professed that they believed in Jesus, not only because of the woman's testimony, but also because of what they have heard for themselves that He is the Savior of the world 4:42

7. The Official at Capernaum: As Jesus returned to Galilee after leaving Samaria and unbelieving Jerusalem, He was received by the people for His signs, and gave life from far off to the royal official’s son because he believed in His word, yielding even more belief 4:43-54

a. Setting: After Jesus spent two days in Samaria, He returned to Galilee because of their rejection of Him in Jerusalem, whereupon, the people received Him in view of His miracles, and a royal official from Capernaum besought Him to heal his terminally ill son 4:43-47

1) After two days Jesus went forth from Samaria unto Galilee because he was not received in Jerusalem (his home town), and those in Galilee received Him because of the miracles which He did at the feast in Jerusalem 4:43-45

2) Jesus came to Cana where He made the water wine, and a certain royal official whose son was sick at Capernaum requested that He come and heal his near to death son 4:46-47

b. Through the healing of the royal official’s son, Jesus demonstrated a sign to unbelieving Israel that if one would believe in His word, He could give life from far off 4:48-53

1) Jesus affirmed that Israel (and this man) will not believe unless they see signs 4:48

2) The royal official besought Him again to come down to Capernaum before his son dies 4:49

3) Jesus exhorted the man to go on home because his son would remain alive (note the faith required before the sign) 4:50a

4) The man believed and started off for home 4:50b

5) The man’s faith was confirmed in that he was met by his slaves who announced that his son was living, and that he began to get better at the very hour in which told him that his son would live yielding continued belief by him and his whole household 4:51-53

c. Conclusion: This was the second sign that Jesus performed, when He had come out of Judea into Galilee 4:54

B. Rejection through Conflicts: Jesus’ later ministry unveils (through six conflicts) His rejection as Messiah by the nation even though many do believe in Him 5:1--12:50

1. Conflict one: In response to Jesus’ healing of a man at the Bethesda pool on the Sabbath where He equated Himself with God, the Jews tried to kill Jesus 5:1-47

a. The Miracle: When Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a feast, He healed a lame man, warned him of greater consequences if he continued to sin, and proclaimed to the Jews that He was doing the work of God on the Sabbath 5:1-18

1) Setting: When Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a feast, He came upon a man lying in his sickness at the pool of Bethesda 5:1-6a

a) Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a feast of the Jews 5:1

b) Jesus came to the pool at the sheep gate which is called Bethesda and to a man, among many who were sick, lying in his sickness 5:2-6a

2) Through a series of dialogues and narrations, Jesus heals a lame man who aligns himself with the Jews against Him, and thus warns the man of a worse judgment which will come upon him, and proclaims to the Jews that He is doing the work of God on the Sabbath 5:6b-18

a) Dialogue: Jesus healed the lame man at the pool by His word even though the man thought he had to enter the water to be made whole 5:6b-8

(1) Jesus, knowing that the man had been lying there ill for a long time, asked him if he wanted to get well 5:6b

(2) The man proclaimed his dilemma of not being able to get to the pool in time after the waters had been stirred 5:7

(3) Jesus told the man to arise, take up his pallet, and walk 5:8

(4) The man was immediately healed, took up his pallet, and began to walk 5:9a

b) Narration: It was the Sabbath that day, and the Jews began to question the man 5:9b-10a

c) Dialogue: After the Jews accused the man of breaking the Sabbath, the man accused his healer of telling him to do so, but said that he did not know his identity when questioned further by the Jews 5:10b-13

(1) The Jews accused the man of breaking the Sabbath 5:10b

(2) The man accused his healer, Jesus, of telling him to do this sabbath breaking work 5:11

(3) The Jews asked for the identity of his healer, but the man did not know it 5:12-13

d) Narration: Afterward Jesus found the man in the temple and spoke to him 5:14a

e) Dialogue: Reminding the man that He had healed him, Jesus warned him to not sin any more lest something worse happen to him 5:14b-c

(1) Jesus reminded the man that he had been healed 5:14b

(2) Jesus warned the man not sin any more lest something worse happen to him 5:14c

f) Narration: The man goes from Jesus and reported to the Jews the identity of Jesus Whom they persecuted because he was doing these things on the Sabbath 5:16

g) Dialogue: In response to the objection of the Jews that Jesus is working on the Sabbath, He affirms that He is doing the work of the Father in healing the man. (He takes the Jews beyond the Sabbath law to the work of God (just as he took the man [physically] beyond the healing pool to the very power of God) 5:17

3) Discourse: Jesus proclaims that judgment rather than life remains upon the Jews because of their rejection of Jesus concerning Whom the Father and Moses bear witness 5:19-44

a) Since Jesus only does, with respect to life and judgment, that which the Father has given Him to do, He exhorts the Jews to hear and believe in order to pass from Judgment to life 5:19-30

(1) Jesus only does, and will do, what the Father does and has given Him to do 5:19-23

(2) Jesus exhorts the Jews to pass out of His realm of judgment into his realm of life by hearing what He says and believing that the Father sent Him 5:24

(3) Jesus supports His offer of "life from judgment" by explaining God's provisions in view of His roles as Messiah and Judge, affirming His future role with the dead and repeating that His judgment is from the Father 5:25-30

b) Even though Jesus’ identity is witnessed to by the Father who works through Him, the Jews continue in their unbelieving rejection because they have no relationship with the Father 5:31-44

(1) For the benefit of the Jews' salvation, Jesus explains that His identity, as "being from the Father" is not based upon a false solitary witness or even the true and condemning witness of John, but upon the witness of the Father who works through Jesus 5:31-37

(2) Jesus accuses and then demonstrates to the Jews that they have no relationship with the Father by their unbelieving rejection of Him 5:37b-44

c) Moses, and not Jesus, will judge the Jews in their unbelief toward Jesus because he wrote of Jesus and they are not believing His writings and thus Jesus’ words 5:44-47

2. Conflict two: While in Galilee, Jesus teaches the miraculously-fed multitude that He is the “Bread of Life” of whom they must partake, whereupon many withdraw while the twelve remain because Christ has the words of eternal life 6:1-71

a. The Miracle for All: Through feeding the multitude, Jesus raises an awareness in the people’s mind that He is the Prophet spoken of by Moses--He is the new Moses who once also fed the nation 6:1-14

b. When Jesus perceived that they wanted to come by force and make Him to be King, He withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone 6:15

c. Miracle to Disciple: Jesus demonstrated to His disciples that even though He refused to be made King over the people, He is still the New Moses who triumphs over the water 6:16-21

d. The Discourse: Jesus instructs the multitudes who came after Him from the other side of the Sea of Galilee to not seek the physical, but the Spiritual aspects of life 6:22-40

1) The setting: (6:22-25)

2) Physical bread parishes while spiritual bread endures 6:26-27

3) Man’s moral work--God’s work of belief in Jesus 6:28-29

4) Physical bread, manna, to Israel--Spiritual bread is the true bread, Jesus, which gives life to the world 6:30-33

5) Physical response for bread evermore--Spiritual response for them to believe so as to have life’s longings satisfied and to have eternal life 6:34-40

e. The Reactions:

1) The Jews grumbled rejecting Jesus as from God 6:41-42

2) Jesus again affirms that He is the bread out of heaven who gives eternal life if appropriated 6:43-51

3) The Jews began to argue because He said that His flesh must be eaten 6:52

4) Jesus affirms that He, the Bread, is appropriated by trusting in Him as the atoning sacrifice for our sin 6:53-59 (cf. Lev. 17:10-14)

5) Many of the disciples found this statement difficult and therefore did not believe or follow Him any longer 6:60-66

6) Simon spoke for the Twelve as believing because Jesus had the words of eternal life, but Jesus identified that one, Judas, who would depart--betray Him 6:67-71

3. Conflict three: When Jesus returns to Jerusalem there is a resumption of hostility towards Him 7:1--10:21

a. At the Feast of Tabernacles Jesus teaches in the temple whereupon the people respond by challenging His authority, rejecting Him and wanting to kill Him 7:1-36

1) Setting: 7:1-2

2) Jesus refused to publicly present Himself publicly (in the caravan) going up to Jerusalem as His brothers argued, but privately entered the city later during the feast seeking the best opportunity in view of the hostility of the Jews 7:3-13

3) When Jesus went up into the temple to teach and was questioned by the Jews about where He received His learning, He turned the question around insisting that He teaches from God and if they were seeking God they would recognize this 7:14-18

4) Jesus exhorts the Jews to repent concerning their rejection of Him because He does not break Moses’ law any more than they when they circumcise on the Sabbath 7:19-24

5) In the confusion of the people who wonder why Jesus is being allowed to teach if the rulers are seeking to kill Him and questioning Jesus’ Messiahship because they know of His origin (cf. Mal. 3:1, and Matt. 4:5ff), Jesus explains that He is Messiah and can demonstrate that authority because He was sent from God rather than Nazareth 7:25-29

6) While some believed in Jesus many did not and even tried to seize Him 7:30-36

b. When at the feast of Booths Jesus teaches on the eschatological work of the Holy Spirit (cf. Zech. 14:8, 16-19; cf. also Joel 2; Jeremiah 31, etc.) there is a varied response of belief and unbelief: seeing Him as a prophet or Christ, not as Messiah, as one who should be punished, and as one to be rejected 7:37-53

1) The discourse 7:37-39

2) The varied response 7:40-53

c. Jesus proclaims Himself to be the light of the world and as existing before Abraham, whereupon the Jews seek to stone Him² (8:1-59)

1) The Sign: Jesus exposes the sin of the leaders and forgives the sin of the woman (cf. 1:4-5, 9) 8:1-11

2) Dialogue: Through a dialogue, Jesus demonstrates himself to be the “Light of the World” as he wrangles with the religious leaders who reject Him exposing their sin 8:12-59

a) Jesus proclaims that He is the Light of the World who exposes and forgives sin (cf. Isa. 9:2) 8:12

b) When Jesus is accused by the Pharisees of bearing false witness of Himself, He argues logically against them exposing their error 8:13-19

(1) Jesus is accused by the Pharisees of bearing false witness of Himself 8:13

(2) Jesus proclaims that His self-witness is true because He knows his origin and destiny with the Father (unlike the Pharisees), and thus only He could speak of these things 6:14

(3) Jesus proclaims that they judge according to themselves (alone), but He judges with the Father (two witnesses) 6:15-16

(4) Jesus proclaims that His testimony is in agreement with the requirements of the Law (Dt. 17:6; 19:15) as both He and The Father testify to His identity (being the only ones who could) 8:17-18

(5) Jesus proclaims that they demonstrate that they do not know Him, the revelation of the Father 8:19

c) Jesus proclaimed to the Jews that he was from the Father and was going back to the Father, but that they would not be able to follow Him, but would recognize who He was when they crucified Him causing many to believe in Him 8:21-30

d) Jesus told those Jews who had believed in Him that there was a freedom (sanctification) which will come to those who remain in the truth of His word 8:31-32

e) When the Jews objected to Jesus words about being set free since they have “always been free,” Jesus responded by affirming that they are slaves now to sin (even if they do not recognize it) and by trusting in Him as the Son of the Father they will be made free people in the sense of being free from the lord of sin--the devil who is their father 8:33-58

3) The Jews picked up stones to throw at Jesus but he hid Himself and went out of the temple 8:59

d. Jesus heals a blind man and the response is varied: some are uncertain; there is a division among the Pharisees, some reject Him but the healed man believes in Him³ 9:1-41

1) The Sign: Jesus heals a man blind from birth in a manner which demonstrates Him to be the God of the OT as the light of the World 9:1-12

2) The Sermon/Dialogue: Through an examination of the man the Jews demonstrate their rejection of the light offered by Jesus, while the man comes to an awareness of who Jesus is as a believer (cf. notes, #19 for the progression of the man)

a) The Jews interview the man who confesses Jesus as a prophet 9:13-17

b) The Jews interview the parents of the man who refuse to identify Jesus because of their fear of the Jews 9:18-22

c) The Jews interview the man again demonstrating that they do not understand God, and the man proclaims that Jesus is from God 9:23-34

d) Jesus interviews the man leading him to the knowledge that He is the Son of Man, and to worship of Him 9:35-38

e) In a discussion with the Pharisees Jesus proclaimed that he has come to give spiritual sight to those who believe in Him but spiritual blindness to those who physically see but do not believe in Him 9:39-40

e. Jesus teaches that He is the Shepherd of Israel (unlike the Jewish leaders) whereupon He is rejected by some and accepted by others⁴ (10:1-21)

1) JESUS IS A SHEPHERD, NOT A THIEF: The sheep follow His familiar voice rather than run as from a thief 10:1-6

2) JESUS IS THE DOOR TO THE SHEEP NOT A THIEF: He protects and gives life to the sheep unlike the thief who kills and destroys the sheep 10:7-10

3) JESUS IS THE GOOD SHEPHERD, NOT THE HIRELING: He lays down His life for the sheep unlike the hireling who flees in danger 10:11-18

f. There was a mixed response to Jesus words (10:19-21)

4. Conflict four: At the feast of Dedication Jesus claims to be One with God in nature and the Jews attempt to stone Him even though others believed 10:22-42

a. Jesus claims absolute unity with the Father 10:22-33

b. Jesus justifies His claim to be one with the Father by claiming to be the individual who has realized the perfect union of man with God as judge--the Son of God 10:34-39

1) Jesus claims to be the Son of God like those in Psalm 82:6 10:34-36

2) Jesus supports His claim by the works of God which He does 10:37-39

c. There are mixed responses to Jesus 10:40-42

5. Conflict five: At the conflict in Bethany Jesus revealed Himself to be God by raising Lazarus from the dead, whereupon many Jews believed while the leaders rejected Christ and wanted to kill both Him and Lazarus 11:1--12:11

a. The Raising of Lazarus: Jesus as the purposeful, good lover of his people instills hope of the resurrection by raising Lazarus from the dead, but some in their rebellion refuse to believe, and seek to seize Jesus 11:1-57

1) Setting: Jesus learns though a message from Mary and Martha that Lazarus, whom he loves, he sick 11:1-3

a) Moving from general to specific the narrator identifies Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha whom Jesus loved to be ill 11:1-2

b) The sisters sent word to Jesus that the one whom he loved was sick 11:3

2) Jesus’ response: Jesus responds to the report about Lazarus by proclaiming the purpose of his death, by allowing time for Lazarus to die before he came, and by encouraging the disciples to go with him since he was going to raise him to increase their faith 11:4-16

a) Jesus proclaims the purpose of the sickness: to end in the glory of God 11:4

b) Out of true love for Mary, Martha and Lazarus Jesus remained two more days where he was 11:5-6

c) When Jesus suggested that they go to Judea the disciples questioned the wisdom of the choice in view of the hostility there, but Jesus explained that an accident would not occur, and that He was going to raise Lazarus from the dead, then the disciples went expecting to die with him 11:7-16

3) The people’s response: When Jesus came to where Lazarus was he learned that he had been buried for four days, and then comforted Martha and Mary in their expressions of grief, but the people watching misunderstood Jesus’ actions as impotence 11:17-37

a) Setting: When Jesus came he learned that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days, and many people had come to console Martha and Mary 11:17-19

b) Martha came to Jesus wishing that he had been there, and became convinced through discussion that Jesus as Messiah could raise Lazarus if he chose to, so she went to get Mary for Jesus 11:20-28

c) Mary came in great sorrow to Jesus also wishing that he had been there before Lazarus’ death, and Jesus wept over the effects of evil 11:29-35

d) The Jews who were watching Jesus with Mary misunderstood Jesus’ weeping to mean that he was impotent to help 11:36-37

4) Christ Responds: Even though Jesus faces the hesitancy of Martha, He explains that she is about to see the glory of God if she believes, and He, as God’s vindicated servant, raises Lazarus from the dead 11:38-44

a) Jesus came to the grave of Lazarus and asked that they remove the stone 11:38-39a

b) Martha objected to Jesus’ request (thinking that he wanted to see the body), and Jesus reminded her of their previous words (11:22-26) urging her that by believing she would see the glory of God 11:39b-40

c) When they removed the stone, Jesus visibly prayed to the Father so that all might understand that the Father was vindicating him, then Jesus ordered Lazarus to come out of the tomb, and when he came forth bound, he ordered them to unbind him and let him go 11:41-44

5) The response of the people to the raising of Lazarus: Although many believed, some did not, but identified themselves with the religious leaders who sought to kill Jesus for the “sake of the nation” 11:45-57

a) Many of the Jews present, beheld what Jesus had done and believed in Him 11:45

b) There were some Jews who saw what Jesus had done, but did not believe and thus identified themselves with the religious leaders in their rebellion 11:46-57

(1) Some people who were present went to the Pharisees to report what had happened 11:46

(2) The chief priests and the Pharisees under the leadership of Caiaphas become threatened by Jesus and resolve to destroy him in order that the nation might live (irony) 11:47-53

c) Jesus retreated from his public ministry to be with his disciples, and at the Passover the people wondered about him, and the leaders gave orders to turn him in so that they might seize him 11:54-57

b. Jesus determines to come to the Passover as the Lamb of God to be slaughtered by and for those who were pursuing Him as He comes to Bethany where Lazarus was 12:1

c. Mary anoints the feet of Jesus (foreshadowing His burial and announcing his Messiahship as King) at the dinner in Bethany where many respond in mixed ways 12:2-11

1) At a supper with Martha and Lazarus, Mary anointed Jesus feet with costly perfume 12:2-3

2) Judas objected to Mary’s “waste” of money, not because he was concerned for the poor, but because he pilfered the money box 12:4-6

3) Jesus responded to Judas’ rebuke, by defending Mary’s actions toward his honor 12:7-8

4) There are many different responses to Jesus presence for the feast 12:9-11

a) The multitude came to see Jesus and Lazarus 11:9

b) The chief priests plotted to murder Lazarus 12:10

c) Many were believing in Jesus on account of Lazarus 12:11

6. Conflict six: In Jerusalem Jesus exhorts the people to believe in Him but they will not, thus the nation enters into unbelief as the Gentiles come to believe in Him 12:20-50

a. The triumphal entry proclaims Jesus as Messiah publicly 12:12-19

b. When the Greeks came to see Jesus (the church in seed form) Jesus knew that His hour had come when He would be humiliated in death, like a seed, but this would lead to glory, so he exhorts those present to follow his example⁵ 12:20-26

c. Jesus submits to the will of the father who confirms that He has been working in Jesus up to now and that He will in what lies ahead, and the people are exhorted to believe whereupon many do not, but some do 12:27-43

1) Jesus expressed his willingness to obey the Father in suffering, and the Father affirmed Jesus by expressing his intention to glorify His name 12:27-28

2) Jesus explained the voice, which the multitude heard, to have been for their benefit, and that judgment was now upon the world and the ruler of the world, as many (Greeks?) are drawn to Jesus as the crucified one 12:29-33

3) When the people ask Jesus who the Son of Man is, he exhorts them to believe in the light before them to become sons of light, then he departed from them 12:34-36

4) Many did not believe in Jesus thus fulfilling the national pattern of hardness spoken by Isaiah (53:1; 6:10) 12:37-41

5) Many rulers believed in Jesus, but did not express their faith because of the pressure of Pharisees 12:42-43

d. An Inclusio with the prologue: Jesus explains His ministry to Israel as the One who reveals the Father to them and offers eternal life if they will believe, but there will be a continuance in judgment under the Law of Moses if they do not 12:44-50

1) Jesus proclaims that belief in him is belief in the one who sent him 12:44-45

2) Jesus proclaims that he is light so that whoever believes in him will not stay in darkness 12:46

3) Jesus proclaims that those who reject his sayings are not judged by him but are judged by the Law of Moses which Jesus affirms, and whose words the Father affirms; Jesus has come to save 12:47-50

III. PREPARATION OF DISCIPLES: Jesus prepares His disciples for their continuation of ministry in His absence 13:1--17:26

A. While Jesus teaches the disciples to follow His example of spiritually cleansing one another, Judas decides not to follow Jesus, and enters the darkness without Him 13:1-30

1. In a context of commitment to His disciples, Jesus taught them to be involved in limited spiritual cleansing with one another encouraging them of their future effectiveness for Him while identifying one of them as a betrayer still in sin 13:1-20

a. In a setting of upcoming pain and hostility, Jesus chose to completely love His disciples 13:1-2

1) This event occurred before the feast of the Passover 13:1a

2) Jesus, knowing all that stands before Him, chose to love His disciples completely 13:1b

3) The Devil was tempting Judas to betray Christ 13:2

b. Taking the form of a servant, Jesus began a necessary, limited, spiritual cleansing of all His disciples, save one who actually needed a full spiritual cleansing 13:3-11

1) Having complete confidence in who He was, Jesus took the posture of a servant and began washing the disciples feet 13:3-5

2) Encountering resistance from Simon Peter, Jesus explained the necessity and essence of this cleansing as limited spiritual cleansing which all needed, except for Judas who was still completely in sin 13:6-11

a) Simon Peter resisted having Jesus wash His feet 13:6-8a

b) Jesus declared the necessity of Peter allowing Him to wash his feet 13:8b

c) Peter over responded by asking for a bath 13:9

d) Jesus explained that for all but one of them (Judas) a bath was not necessary because, unlike Judas who was going to betray him (sin), they were all clean 13:10-11

c. Having completed His humble service, and returned to His position as leader, Jesus instructed the disciples to cleanse one another of limited sin just as He had done 13:12-17

d. In order to identify His audience and encourage them, Jesus clearly stated that one of them would betray Him, but the others would be effective for Him 13:18-20

1) Jesus’ words were not for all of His disciples because one among them, in fulfillment of Scripture, would betray Him 13:18

2) Jesus foretold about His betrayer so that the disciples would be confirmed in their perception of Him as Messiah when the event occurred 13:19

3) Jesus’ disciples would be bearers of God to those who would receive them as proclaimers of Christ 13:20

2. When Jesus identified Judas as the disciple who would betray Him, he chose to betray Christ, and was empowered by Satan, and walked out of the light into the darkness 13:21-30

a. Generally, and then specifically to John, Jesus identified the one who would betray Him as one of them -- Judas 13:21-26

1) After teaching and encouraging those disciples who were committed to Him, Jesus focused on the sinful one by proclaiming that one of them would betray Him 13:21

2) Not being able to discern among themselves whom Jesus was talking about, Simon Peter asked John to ask the Lord whom He was speaking of 13:22-25

3) Jesus identified the betrayer to John as Judas Iscariot 13:26

b. Upon choosing to reject the offer of Christ, Judas was empowered by Satan, allowed to go by Christ, and left the Light for the darkness 13:27-30

1) After receiving the morsel, Judas made a decision to betray Jesus and Satan entered him 13:27a

2) Jesus exhorted Judas to do what he was going to do quickly 13:27b

3) The other eleven disciples did not understand what Christ was telling Judas to do 13:28-29

4) Judas chose to leave Christ and entered into darkness 13:30

B. Jesus teaches about His coming departure from the disciples to the Father who is heaven 13:31--14:31

1. When Judas had gone out, Jesus began to teach His disciples about His future glorification by the Father through which He would depart from them, and insisted that they could not follow Him, but needed to demonstrate to all men that they were His disciples through their love for one another, and that even Peter, in his zeal to follow Him, would deny Him three times before the cock crowed 13:31-38

a. Setting: Jesus began to teach when Judas had gone out 13:31a

b. Jesus proclaimed to the eleven that now the Father was going to be glorified in Jesus, and thus going to glorify Jesus 13:31b-32

c. Jesus told His disciples that they were not able to follow Him where He was going, but that in His absence they should demonstrate to all men that they are His disciples by loving one another 13:33-35

1) Jesus proclaimed to His disciples that He is going somewhere where they cannot follow Him 13:33

2) Jesus commands that His disciples love one another and thus demonstrate to all men that they are His disciples 13:34-35

d. In a dialogue with Peter, Jesus insisted against his objections that Peter could not follow Him now, and would indeed betray Him three times before the cock crows 13:36-38

1) Peter asked the Lord where He was going 13:36a

2) Jesus told Peter that he cannot follow Him now, but He will follow Him later 13:36

3) Peter questioned why he could not follow Jesus now since he was ready to lay down his life for Him 13:37

4) Jesus questioned Peter’s affirmation and prophesied that he would betray Him three times before the cock crowed three times. 13:38

2. Jesus encouraged His disciples to faithfulness in light of His upcoming departure from them and their fears 14:1-31

a. Jesus encouraged His disciples by giving them knowledge about what was going to occur 14:1-14

1) Jesus spoke of leaving and preparing a place for His disciples where He will take them 14:1-6

a) Jesus encouraged His disciples presently by urging them to not get stirred up, but to trust Him as they do God 14:1

b) Jesus informed His disciples about their future through His intention to go and prepare a place for them to dwell in the presence of God and that He plans to certainly return for them 14:2-3

c) Jesus informed His disciples presently that they know the way to be where He is going 14:4-6

(1) Jesus stated that they know the way where He is going 14:4

(2) Thomas questioned their knowing the way since they did not even know where He was going 14:5

(3) Jesus identified Himself as the way, truth, and life as well as His place of going as "to the Father" 14:6

2) Jesus strengthened His disciples’ confidence in Him by reinforcing for them His close relationship with the Father as God, and by affirming that the result their belief will yield great works through them 14:7-14

a) Jesus reinforced for His disciples His close relationship with the Father as God 14:7-11

(1) Jesus explained their confusion by their not perceiving who He was, and He assured them that they would understand later 14:7

(2) Philip demonstrated their misunderstanding by asking Jesus to show them the Father 14:8

(3) Upon chiding Philip for not being more perceptive, Jesus identified Himself with the Father and urged the disciples to trust Him, if not for His words at least for His works 14:9-11

b) Jesus taught His disciples that by trusting upon Him, being obedient to Him, and by acting and asking in accordance with His character, He would work through them 14:12-15

b. Jesus encouraged His disciples to express their commitment to Him by obedience because it will yield a reaction of commitment by God to them and thus a greater revelation of Himself to them 14:15-24

1) Jesus affirms that if the disciples love Him, they will keep His commandments 14:15

2) Jesus promises to give the Holy Spirit of truth to those in fellowship with Him which the world does not have because it does not even see Him, let alone know Him 14:16-17

3) Jesus promises to return for His own as for children, unlike the world, and that their close relationship will then be discerned 14:18-20

4) Jesus explains that obedience to Him will lead to a fuller disclosure of God to them 14:21-24

c. Jesus encourages His disciples while with them so they will not be stirred up or become cowardly, but will have confidence in their peace with God 14:25-27

1) Jesus assures His disciples of a Helper whom He will send for them, Who will teach and help them to remember 14:25-26

2) Jesus explains that the help which He has given them is a peace which is not like the world’s but should settle them since it is a peace with God 14:27

d. Jesus gives His disciples an illustration of love in how they should have responded to Him and how He would respond to the Father 14:28-31

1) Jesus explains to His disciples that commitment, or love, was not a part of their reaction to Jesus leaving; their reaction should have been rejoicing for Him 14:28

2) Jesus explains to His disciples that commitment, or love, is seen in what He does for them 14:29-31

a) Jesus prepared the disciples in order to enable them to believe in Him when events come to pass 14:29

b) Jesus obeyed the Father against the onslaught of the ruler of this world 14:30-31a

c) Jesus walked on to the place of His betrayal⁶ 14:31b

C. Jesus teaches about the necessity for His followers to remain in fellowship with Him by loving others in order to bear fruit for Him 15:1-17

1. Jesus proclaims himself to be the true obedient son of God (cf. “vine” in Isa. 5:1ff) whose followers are disciplined at the hand of the Father in order to also produce fruit 15:1-2

2. Jesus identifies his audience to be those who are already cleansed by the word which he had spoken to them 15:3 (cf. 13:10)

3. Jesus exhorts his believing disciples to remain in fellowship (abide) with him in order to be able to bare fruit 15:4-5

4. Jesus explains the negative and positive consequences their relationship with Him 15:6-8

a. Negatively, if anyone does not remain in fellowship with him, that one will experience severe discipline 15:6

b. Positively, God the Father will work through anyone who is in fellowship with Jesus, so as to glorify Himself, and thus show to others that they are disciples of Jesus 15:7-8

5. Jesus explains that abiding in him means to obey his commandment to love just as the Father has loved him and He has loved them 15:9-17

D. Jesus teaches his disciples about how the world will hate them because it already hates Him in order to prepare them for this in His absence 15:18--16:4

1. Jesus explains to His disciples that the world will respond by rejecting them, even in their love, because they are of Christ and the world has rejected Him--Christ is our example 15:18-21

2. The world is guilty because of its rejection of Jesus, who demonstrated Himself to it 15:22-25

3. The disciples, through the Spirit, will also be a testimony to Christ 15:26-27

4. Jesus has a preparatory design in telling His disciples of their upcoming persecutions 16:1-4

E. Jesus teaches his disciples about the coming work of the Spirit in their lives 16:5-15

1. Even though the disciples are only focusing upon the absence of Christ in his upcoming departure, He explains the reason for His departure: it will be to their advantage--to send the Helper to them 16:5-7

2. Jesus amplifies His reason for going by discussing the work of the Holy Spirit with the World and with the Disciples 16:8-15

a. Jesus describes the Spirit’s work when He comes as convicting the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment 16:8-11

b. Jesus describes the Spirit’s work when He comes as being the revealer of further revelation of Christ to the disciples 16:12-15

F. Jesus teaches his disciples about what will occur in their lives when he leaves them 16:16-33

1. In view of Christ’s departure and coming, He tells His disciples of their future relationship with God the Father and Him 16:16-28

a. Christ causes the disciples to be puzzled by prophesying that they will not seen Him and then they will see Him 16:16-18

b. Jesus explains the coming emotions of the disciples to His departure and return in the context of the world (they will weep and the world will rejoice with His departure) and with an illustration of a pregnant mother in that their joy will be great when they see Him again 16:19-22

c. Jesus explains that in the future the disciples will pray in His name and receive joy and a clear understanding of the Father 16:23-28

2. The disciples respond to Jesus by pretending to understand all that He is saying now 16:27-30

3. Jesus questions their assurances to Him in view of their future defection, but tells them of this so that later they may have confidence in Him amidst the tribulation 16:31-33

a. Jesus questions their assurances once again by prophesying of their future departure from Him 16:31-32

b. Jesus explains His purpose in telling of the future, namely, so that they will have confidence in Him when the tribulation of the world begins 16:33

G. Jesus intercedes in prayer for Himself, His disciples and the world 17:1-26

1. Jesus prays for Himself that God would restore to Him the glory which He had with the Father, and thus that He might glorify the Father 17:1-5

a. Jesus prays that the Father might glorify Him so that He might glorify the Father 17:1

b. Jesus illustrates how this reciprocal giving was done through authority on earth 17:2-4

c. Jesus asks for glory as He had before with the Father 17:5

2. Jesus prays for the disciples and other believers 17:6-24

a. Jesus prays for the disciples and not for the world because they have received His revelation 17:6-10

b. Jesus prays that in His absence the Father might keep the disciples unified 17:11-12

c. Jesus prays that the disciples might have Christ’s joy 17:13

d. Jesus prays for the authority of the disciples in that they might have unity with the truth and that all might have protection to share the truth 17:14-23

e. Jesus prays that believers (and especially the disciples) might see His glory in the future 17:24

3. Christ proclaims that his obedience is the basis for His prayer: He has made the Father known and will do so that they might know and make known God’s love 17:25-26

IV. PASSION AND RESURRECTION: Through the Passion and Resurrection of Jesus, He is demonstrated to be God’s satisfaction for the sin of mankind as the Passover lamb who is the Davidite, who has been vindicated by the Lord and is to be believed upon 18--20

A. Jesus, knowing what was coming, presented Himself to the soldiers, protected His disciples and stopped any rebellion by His disciples as the soldiers came to arrest Him 18:1-11

1. Setting: Jesus led His disciples across the Kidron valley to the garden, and Judas also led the Roman cohort, and temple officers to the garden to capture Jesus 18:1-3

a. After Jesus had spoken to His disciples, they all crossed over the ravine of the Kidron to the garden 18:1

b. Judas, knowing where Jesus would be, came with Roman cohort and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees for Him 18:2-3

2. The Arrest: When the soldiers came to capture Jesus, He, with full understanding of the will of the Father as the obedient Son, took the initiative to identify himself, protect His disciples, and stop any counter rebellion through His disciples 18:4-11

a. Having full knowledge of all things that were coming, Jesus went forth to Judas and the solders and asked them whom they were seeking 18:4

b. The solders replied that they were seeking Jesus the Nazarene, and He answered saying, “I am He,” whereupon they drew back and fell to the ground 18:5-6

c. Again Jesus asked the solders concerning whom they were seeking; they said, “Jesus the Nazarene”, and He affirmed that He was that One, and insisted that His disciples be released thus fulfilling His word that He did not lose any of those given to Him by the Father 18:7-9

d. Simon Peter drew a sword and cut off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest’s slave, but Jesus told Peter to stop fighting since he must do that which the Father has given him to do 18:10-11

B. Jesus is tried by the religious leaders and is demonstrated to be innocent of insurrection; He is also tried by the civil leaders and is demonstrated to be innocent, but handed over to be crucified out of the disloyalty of the Jews to Rome 18:12--19:16

1. The Religious trial:In an inquisition before Annas, Jesus is demonstrated to not be guilty of insurrection by his words, the abusive nature of the Jews toward Him, and the denial of Peter of even knowing Him in the court of Annas 18:12-27

a. The Roman cohort and the Jewish officers arrested Jesus, bound Him and led Him to Annas first, who was the father-in-law of Caiphas--the high priest that year and had advised the Jews that it was expedient for one man to die on behalf of the people 18:12-14

1) Simon Peter, who was enabled to enter the court of Annas by another disciple, denied that He was one of Jesus’ disciples as they warmed themselves at a fire in the court 18:15-18

2) Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus, and the other disciple, knowing the high priest, managed to bring Peter into the court of Annas 18:15-16

3) Peter denied being one of Jesus’ disciples to a slave girl as he warmed himself with those in the court at a fire 18:17-18

b. Jesus is questioned concerning insurrection by Annas, answers that He has not taught anything to His disciples than that which has been publicly proclaimed, is struck for His manner of speech to the high priest, and questions the validity of this since there is no witness that He has said anything wrong; Annas sent Jesus to Caiaphas 18:19-23

1) The high priest questioned Jesus about His disciples and His teaching with the question of insurrection in view 18:19

2) Jesus affirms that He has spoken all of His teachings openly to His disciples, and that they should ask them since they know what He said 18:20-21

3) Jesus was struck for the way which He spoke to the high priest, but He asked them as to why He was struck if they cannot bear witness of that which is wrong 18:22-23

4) Annas sent Jesus bound to Caiaphas 18:24

c. As Simon Peter was warming himself by the fire, he is twice identified as a disciple of Jesus, and twice denies it, whereupon the cock crowed 18:25-27

1) As Simon Peter was warming himself by the fire, they asked him if he was not one of Jesus’ disciples and he denied being one 18:25

2) One of the slaves of the high priest who was a relative of the one whose ear Peter cut off asked Peter if he had not seen him in the garden with Jesus and he denied it again 18:26-27a

3) Immediately after Peter’s last denial, a cock crowed 18:27b

2. The Civil Trial: Pilate, though convinced of Jesus’ innocence, is forced by the Jews in their rejection of Jesus and their loyalty to Rome to hand Jesus over to them for crucifixion 18:28--19:16

a. Setting: The soldiers led Jesus from Caiaphas into the Praetorium early in the morning but did not enter so that they might “not be defiled” to eat the “Passover” 18:28

b. Pilot spoke with the Jews seeking their accusation against Jesus, and urged them to judge Him themselves, but they insisted that He was an evildoer, and that they did not have the right to put a man to death fulfilling Jesus’ words concerning the kind of death He was about to die 18:29-32

c. Pilot questioned Jesus about His kingship on behalf of the Jews whereupon Jesus proclaimed Himself to be a King proclaiming the truth but not one from this earth 18:33-38a

1) Pilot re-entered the Praetorium, summoned Jesus, and asked Him if He was the King of the Jews 18:33

2) Jesus asked Pilot if He was asking on behalf of Rome or the Jews 18:34

3) Pilot tells Jesus that He is asking on behalf of the Jews 18:35

4) Jesus answers Pilot’s question on behalf of the Jews by affirming that His Kingdom is not sourced in this world even though He is indeed a King bearing witness to the truth to which Pilot responded in irritation not understanding Jesus 18:36-38a

d. Pilot, not finding any guilt in Jesus, attempted to appease the Jews’ religious zeal by offering to release this “King of the Jews” as a Passover gift, but Israel demonstrated their evil by insisting upon the release of Barabbas who was a robber (guilty) 18:38b-40

1) Pilot went out again to the Jews 18:38b

2) Pilot proclaimed that he found no guilt in Jesus 18:38c

3) In an attempt to appease the Jews’ religious zeal Pilot offered to release the King of the Jews to them for the Passover, but they insisted that He release Barabbas, a robber 18:39-40

e. In an attempt to placate the Jews, Pilot had Jesus beaten and presented in a humble state so that they might not seek his death, but they insisted upon it because He made himself out to be the Son of God 19:1-7

1) Pilot took Jesus and scourged Him allowing some to mock Him and beat Him in the face in an attempt to placate the Jews 19:1-3

2) Pilot brought out a humiliated Jesus in whom he found no guilt, dressed as a mock king so that they might not insist upon Jesus’ death 19:4-5

3) When the Chief priests and the officers insisted that Pilate crucify Jesus, he again proclaimed Him as having no guilt and exhorted them to crucify Him, to which they cried that He ought to die because He made Himself out to be the Son of God 19:6-7

f. Pilate fearfully re-entered the Praetorium to question Jesus’ origin, received no response, threatened Him with his authority, and learned that his authority was not his but given to him by God and that the Jews (in Caiaphas) have even a greater sin 19:8-11

1) When Pilate heard that Jesus was the Son of God, He re-entered in fear the Praetorium again to question Jesus 19:8-9a

2) Pilot asked Jesus where He was from (considering the possibility of His being a demi-god), but Jesus gave him no answer 19:9b

3) Pilate proclaimed that He had authority over Jesus life and death to which Jesus explains that his authority was given to Him from above and that the Jews (in Caiaphas) have a greater sin under God’s authority 19:10-11

g. Even though Pilate continued to make efforts to release Jesus, He was forced by the Jews’ rejection of Jesus, and allegiance to Rome to deliver Him over to be crucified 19:12-16

1) Again Pilate made efforts to release Jesus but was threatened by the Jews that to do so would be an act of disloyalty to Rome 19:12

2) Pilot came out to the Pavement on the day of the preparation for the Passover and sat down on the judgment seat and sarcastically presented Jesus as their King 19:13-14

3) The people cried that Jesus should be taken away and crucified 19:15a

4) Pilate asked them if he should crucify their king 19:15b

5) The chief priest answered that they had “no king but Caesar” 19:15

6) Pilate delivered Jesus to them to be Crucified 19:16

C. The Crucifixion: As Jesus is crucified, He is demonstrated to be the true Passover Lamb who is the Davidite who provides for the sin of the world as their substitute 19:17-42

1. Jesus bore His own cross to Golgotha, was crucified with two other men and with the inscription “Jesus The Nazarene, the King of the Jews” on the cross in Hebrew, Latin and Greek 19:17-20

2. The Jews asked that Pilate change the inscription, but He would not 19:21-22

3. The acts in the crucifixion of Jesus demonstrated the function and work which He was performing on the Cross 19:23-37

a. As Jesus’ garments were divided by the soldiers He was the Davidite whose garments were divided (cf. Psalm 22:19) 19:23-25

b. People entered the family of God at the foot of the cross 19:26-27

c. Jesus suffered as out substitute on the cross as our sin (His thirst) was placed upon Him 19:28-29

d. Jesus paid for all of the sin of the world on the cross when He said “It is finished” (Τετέλεσται) and gave up His spirit 19:30

e. When Jesus is taken from the cross, does not have His legs broken, He is seen to be the true Passover Lamb who was the Davidite by a later repentant generation 19:31-37

1) Pilate agrees to allow the men to be taken down from the crosses; therefore, Jesus is not left hanging upon a cross as a criminal accursed of God according to Deuteronomy 21:23 19:31

2) Jesus does not have his legs broken by the soldiers when the examine Him thus fulfilling Scripture that He is the true Passover lamb (Ex. 12:10-46; Numbers 9:12), and the Davidite (Psalm 34:20) 19:32-36

3) Jesus is the One who will bring a repentant gaze by those of the nation in the tribulation (Zech. 12:10) 19:37

D. The Burial: In the burial of Jesus, two men of Israel demonstrate faith in Him by preparing His body for burial and placing him in a new tomb (probably Joseph’s) 19:28-42

1. Joseph of Arimathea, being a secret disciple of Jesus because of the Jews, received Jesus’ body from Pilate and took it away 19:38

2. Nicodemus, who earlier came to Jesus by night, brought the spices for Jesus’ burial and together with Joseph prepared His body for burial 19:39-40

3. Jesus was buried in a new tomb in which no one had been laid in a garden near the place where He was crucified because the Jewish day of preparation 19:41-42

E. Jesus is resurrected and appears to many bringing about belief in His followers 19:31--20:29

1. Mary, John and Peter come to realize that the tomb is empty 20:1-9

a. Mary Magdalene came to the tomb 20:1-2

1) Mary came early while it was still dark 20:1a

2) Mary saw that the stone was taken from the tomb 20:1b

b. Mary reported to Peter and John that Jesus had been stolen 20:2

c. Peter and John came to the tomb 20:3-10

1) Peter and John both ran to the tomb 20:3-8

a) They were running together 20:3-4a

b) John ran on ahead of Peter 20:4b-5a

c) John did not believe Mary 20:5b

(1) He saw the linen wrapping -- to him it would have appeared that Jesus was still there

(2) He did not go in to check it out any further

d) Peter came and went into the tomb and saw two things 20:6-7

(1) Peter saw the linen wrappings 20:6

(2) Peter saw the face cloth rolled up by itself 20:7

e) John came into the tomb with Peter and saw what Peter saw 20:8a

f) John now believed Mary that Christ was not there 20:8b

2) The disciples went away again to their own homes 20:10

2. Jesus appears to many 20:11-29

a. Jesus appears to Mary 20:11-18

1) Mary (seems to have followed the Apostles and) is now outside of the tomb weeping⁷ 20:11

2) Mary beheld two angels and expressed her concern that Jesus had been taken away 20:12-13

a) The angels were at both ends of where Jesus’ body should have been 20:12

b) The angels asked why Mary was weeping 20:13a

c) Mary answers that she is upset that Jesus has been taken away 20:13b

3) Mary beheld Jesus 20:14-18

a) After speaking to the angels, Jesus came up from behind her outside of the grave 20:14a

b) Mary did not know that He was Jesus 20:14b

c) Jesus questioned Mary about why she was crying and whom she was seeking 20:15a

d) Mary, supposing Jesus to be the gardener, offers to move Jesus herself if there has been a problem 20:15b

e) Jesus spoke to Mary, calling her by name and she instantly knew who He was and clung to Him so as not to lose Him again 20:16-17a

f) Jesus told Mary that she did not need to worry since He was going to be around for awhile and told her to tell the others, which she did 20:17b-18

b. Jesus appears to His nine disciples 20:19-23

1) This occurs on a Sunday evening (the first day of the week) 20:19a

2) The doors are barred out of fear of the Jews 20:19b

3) Jesus appeared to His disciples

a) He appeared in the midst of them 20:19c

b) Jesus offered His disciples peace from their fears and the guilt of their recent conduct 20:19d

4) Jesus demonstrated Himself as a real person to calm their fears and to turn their sorrows into joy (cf. 16:20-22) 20:20

5) Jesus commissioned these disciples in the power of the Holy Spirit to proclaim forgiveness to men with the authority of heaven 20:21-23

c. Jesus appears to Thomas 20:24-29

1) Thomas doubted the resurrection of Jesus 20:24-25

a) He was not with the disciples when Jesus came to them 20:24

b) He had the testimony of the others 20:25a

c) He demanded empirical evidence of the resurrected Jesus 20:25b

2) Jesus appeared again to the disciples with Thomas eight days later and invited Thomas to investigate Him 20:26-27

3) Thomas acknowledges the Lordship and deity of Jesus 20:28

4) Jesus pronounces a blessing upon those who believe without seeing 20:29

F. John expresses belief as the effective design of this book 20:30-31

V. THE EPILOGUE: Jesus restores His followers to active service for Him in Galilee 21:1-25

A. Jesus appears by the Lake to love the disciples 21:1-14

B. Jesus reinstates Peter into the ministry 21:15-23

C. John provides information about the Gospel’s composition 21:24-25

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¹ Cf. Ezekiel 36:24-28; see also 1 Corinthians 6:11; Titus 3:5.

Jesus gives the Spirit in 20:22 and this is how one becomes a child of God.  This is descriptive of the coming New Covenant (cf. Isa. 32:15; Joel 2:28-29; Ezk. 36:25-26).  There is a connection between the gift of the Spirit and becoming children of God (being born of God cf. 1 John 3:9). He is describing the eschatological outpouring of the Spirit (cf. R. Brown, p. 139-141).

² Background: (1) Textually this is a difficult passage: it is probably an authentic account even if it was not originally part of this Gospel.  However, internally, it fits well with 8:12, 15, and 46.

(2) This may be a sign/sermon technique: Jesus demonstrates that He is the Light of the world by exposing and then forgiving sin (Sign), and then proclaims that truth in 8:12)

(3) This also fits with the Exodus motifs of Jesus as: Bread (6), Water (7), and now Light (8).  Jesus is the new Moses

(4) The setting for 8:12 may also lie in the great Manorah lit in the court of the Women during the Feast of Tabernacles and extinguished at the end.  It was to picture YHWH who led the nation as a pillar of light in the wilderness.  Through it the nation acknowledged that they were in darkness and needed light.  When the feast was over they went away with an unsatisfied thirst and in darkness.

³ Background: (1) Note in chapter 8 Jesus exposed sin as the “Light of the World,” now in chapter nine he demonstrates that He is the “Light of the World” by giving sight to the blind.  If chapter 8 related to the exposing nature of light, chapter 9 relates to the directional nature of light.

(2) This is another sign/sermon:  (1) He heals the blind man  (9:1-12), (2) He deals with the reactions of the people to the miracle  (9:13-41).

⁴ Background: (1) There is no break between chapters 9 and 10, (2) Jesus evaluates the leaders with Himself as the standard after they reject the miracle of giving sight to the blind, (3) In chapter nine the rulers claim to be the shepherds of Israel, and in chapter ten Jesus lists the tests of a shepherd.

⁵ His death must occur before He is free to reach out to the Greeks since the Jews will not receive Him.

⁶ Now as Jesus is being obedient to the Father, He focuses more on obedience for good to come.

⁷ Perhaps after John and Peter left, Mary decided herself to look into the tomb.