The Gospel of John

Jesus
Jesus was born approximately 5 B.C. in the town of Bethlehem, Israel, to a virgin named Mary, who was descended from King David. Raised in Nazareth by Mary and her husband, Joseph, Jesus lived the ordinary life of a carpenter's son. Those who knew him didn't yet know that he was also God's Son. At age 30, Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and tempted by the devil into the desert. He then began healing, teaching and performing miracles throughout Judea. He called people to believe in him as the only way to God.

Father
God the Father perfectly cares fur us, giving us all we need -- though we may not agree with him regarding what those needs are. He promises us that we don't have to worry about having enough food or clothes because he knows what we need before we ask. God has also given us every spiritual blessing - something of much more value to our lives than any kind of physical possession.

As children of God, we can expect to be disciplined if we err. And we shouldn't be discouraged when this happens because discipline shows that God loves us. Just as good parents teach their children not to do things that will hurt them, so our Father in heaven teaches us what is best for us.

Look
Looking something over is a way of understanding it to a fuller extent. No one knows us more completely than God, who thoroughly examines our actions. Since he is perfect, only he can judge what things are truly done for him and what things are misdirected attentions.

Believe
Beliefs dictate who we are and how we live our lives. To believe in something is to have faith in it. Though it may seem feeble to accept something on faith rather than fact, we all believe many things on different levels without being experts through experience or knowledge. A Christian's life is a demonstration of grounded belief in action.

Merely "believing" in God does not make someone a Christian any more than believing in exercise keeps one in shape; a person must actually exercise to stay in shape. Demons "believe" in God (James 2:19). They know he exists, but they don't choose to follow him. Believing that Jesus Christ is your Savior means believing that Jesus' death pays the penalty for your sin. As a result of this belief you repent-you turn away from your sin-and obey Jesus Christ.

Son
"If you really want to understand someone," said President George W. Bush, " you look at his family and where he was raised." Using this reasoning, what can we learn about Jesus Christ, the Son of God? The Bible says that Jesus is "the image of the invisible God" (Colossians 1:15). This means that the Son is fully God; all of God the Father's qualities are manifested in him: love, justice, righteousness, holiness. God the Son was also fully human; while he was on the earth, he shared our experiences: temptation, hunger, fatigues, pain and death.

Eternal
Eternity is much more profound than our common perception of it. God describes himself and his ways as eternal - he and his ways have always been and always will be. His commands, promises and truths are the same forever; they are unchanging. Therefore, we don't need to worry about constantly redefining God's standards for us. He doesn't change. What he says in the Bible will always be true.

Life
Do you want to live forever? Jesus Christ says he's the only true way. He says he's the door to a life of abundant blessing. God is the giver of life, and his role as such started with the creation of our ancestors, Adam and Eve. When sin entered the world, we were blocked, not only from having eternal life with God, but also from a meaningful life on this planet. Both can be obtained through God himself.

Jews
A yellow star stitched on a jacket declares a person's Jewish identity in Germany during World War II. It was not the fist time that being a Jew carried a death sentence, nor was it the first time that the Jews emerged victorious from a plot for their worldwide extermination.

Jews are the physical descendants of Abraham through his grandson Jacob, the father of the Israelites. The label "Jew" came into use after the Babylonian captivity. The stories of Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther highlight God's protection of the people in the midst of great danger and opposition.

Bread
In many cultures, bread is the essential element of the diet. In the Old Testament, God provided special bread (called manna) for the people of Israel as they were wandering in the desert. The manna rained down on them as "bread from heaven" (Exodus 16:4). Yet God also told his people that "man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord" (Deuteronomy 8:3).

Jesus Christ used bread as a symbol of his body being broken in death. Christians remember Christ's death by "breaking bread" (eating bread) together during church services, just as Jesus commanded his disciples to do the night before he was crucified. This part of a church service is usually called "Communion" or "the Lords Supper." Taking part in Communion helps us remember the significance of Christ's death until he comes again.

Heaven
Do you ever wonder what heaven is like? Heaven is separate from the earth, and some speculate that it's in another dimension. Because of sin, "heaven-on-earth" just isn't possible. But the true heaven is something much better then we can ever guess. God is in heaven, and although, to us, the distance sometimes seems too great a gulf to cross, we're told that the Lord actively watches over us, listens to our prayers and takes action in our lives.
For those of us who have trusted Jesus Christ as Savior, heaven will be our home when we die. In fact, Jesus Christ said he was returning to heaven to prepare a home for us. (John 14:2-3)

Joseph
Three brave and noble men bearing the same name made a difference in the world for all time. These men were all named Joseph. The first Joseph appears in the Old Testament. He was the youngest and favorite son among twelve brothers. Through the betrayal of his brothers, his own perseverance and God's perfect planning, Joseph became the second in command in Egypt. He provided for the Israelites by supplying food during a long famine.

Mother
Not everyone has a mother who lives up to the sentiments on Mother's Day cards. But whatever complaints or kudos we may have for our mothers, God honors mothers for the crucial role they play. Just becoming a mother is a blessing from God. Many of the famous mothers of the Bible did not conceive easily, but their legacy continued through the lives of their children. Eve was called the "mother of all the living" (Genesis 3:20). Women like Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Leah, Hannah, Ruth and Mary are examples of honored mothers. Deborah's was called "a mother in Israel" (Judges 5:7) because she nurtured and guided an entire nation.

Write
Books, stories, literature and letters all allow us the joy of communication, even when the writer is far removed from us in time or space. Humanity and civilization are captured in written language. Both written and spoken languages are intimate aspects of an individual person and people group. Writing is a permanent way to preserve history and provide the means for people to share, relate and understand one another.

The Bible's is God's love letter to us. He wrote it for everyone. God himself wrote the Ten Commandments on two stone tablets. More importantly, God's plan and desire was to write his law with permanent marker in the minds and hearts of his people. And that is what he does when he gives the Holy Spirit to those who believe in Jesus.

Teach
"Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day," the old saying goes, but "teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime." Teaching and learning are also crucial to our Christian faith. Learning is the first step, in fact, to telling others about Jesus Christ. Jesus taught the people about God. He explained what the Scriptures meant, and he taught with an incredible authority that the people had never seen before. In fact, the people called him Rabbi, which means "teacher." Jesus told us to carry on his work. We are to instruct people not only in the facts about salvation, but also in how to obey God and apply what they hear.

Teaching is a God-given ability, or spiritual gift; however, it doesn't guarantee that a person with this ability is always right. The Bible warns against Listening to and teaching faulty information about God's truth (see Truth).

God
When you look at your watch, you know that an intelligent person designed it. It didn't just come into existence by itself. What about your wrist - isn't it more complicated than your watch? Didn't an intelligent person design your wrist too? We call the One who designed these things God, our Creator, the One who spoke the word and created the universe.

God has spoken to us in terms we can understand. The Bible is the record of his revelation - what he wants us to know about himself. God also became flesh and blood in the person of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is 100 percent human and 100 percent God. Want to know what God is like? Study the life of Jesus Christ in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Truth
What is truth? God is truth. Everything he says we can believe. There is no deception, no hypocrisy, no half-truth in God. Our finite minds can't fully comprehend God or understand all his mysteries, but he is everything he says he is: the all-powerful, just, loving Creator of everything that exists. How do we know right from wrong? God alone, because he is truth, provides an accurate standard for ethics and morality. Whatever he does and commands us to do is right. Anything God hates and forbids us to do is wrong.

Desert
Have you ever been really hot and thirsty? Then you will understand why the desert was such a vivid metaphor to the Israelites and appears so frequently in the Bible. The Holy Land, the location where most of the action in the Bible takes place, is surrounded by deserts. Moses fled into the desert after killing an Egyptian. The Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years after God led them out of Egypt. David stayed in the desert when he was hiding from King Saul. Jesus was tempted in the desert for 40 days.

World
World does not refer to the landmass represented by the globe of the earth; it refers to people, perspectives and practices. When we pray that God loves the whole world, we mean that God loves all people. However, God hates the perspectives and practices that belong to the "prince of this world" (John 12:31), who is Satan (see Satan). That's why Christians are told not to love (see Love) this world. The important thing to remember is that the people God loves and the perspectives and practices he hates are under his control.

Remain
We've all seen the small child wiggling to get down from his or her mother's lap or pull away from her protective hand. Just as a mother knows her child needs to remain with her for safety, God knows we are lost unless we stay close beside him.

When Andrew (see Andrew) and a friend first met Jesus Christ, they stayed with him for a day. Later Jesus chose Andrew and eleven others as his disciples, and they spent three years together. Before Jesus went to the cross, he commanded his disciples to remain in him always. Just as they were constantly with him as he traveled throughout Judea, they were to live their lives centered in Christ. Jesus explained this using the picture of a vine and its branches. Like branches, we must be completely connected to the vine, Jesus, for our source of life. When we don't remain in him, we wither, and our lives cannot produce any fruit.

Capernaum
This town became Jesus' second home during his ministry. Located on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, Capernaum was the place from which Jesus called the following fishermen to be his disciples: Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John. He also called Matthew, the tax collector, to follow him while he was in Capernaum. Jesus preached and performed many miracles here. However, the people did not follow him, and thus Jesus predicted that the town would be destroyed (see Matthew 11:23-24; Luke 10:15). Jesus' prophecy was so completely fulfilled that today the exact location of the ruins of Capernaum is unknown.

Disciples
Does disciple sound uncomfortably like "discipline"? It is. A disciple is a person who adheres to the teaching of another - not just believing a certain philosophy, but also applying it to his or her life.

In the Bible, the word "disciple" can apply to followers of John the Baptist, students of the Pharisees or the broader circle of people who believed Jesus' teachings. But it most often refers to the twelve disciples whom Jesus asked to follow him. They lived with him night and day and learned from his teaching and lifestyle. The Bible makes it clear that Jesus' followers were not perfect, but they knew enough to recognize that leaving everything they had in order to follow Jesus was worth the price.

Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is distinct from the Father and the Son - yet is completely God.

Before Jesus came to the earth, the Holy Spirit guided and directed select people at specific times for specific purposes. To prophets, he revealed future events and warnings of judgment. To kings, he gave wisdom to rule. But when Jesus was near the end of his life on earth, preparing his disciples for his impending death and resurrection, he promised that the Holy Spirit would, form that time on, be with his followers all the time.

Time
Time governs our lives. Our day planners help us manage it. We eat by it. We sleep by it. We're upset if people don't respect it. God, however is not constrained by time. He created time, and - though it's hard for us to grasp - he exists outside of time. Because he contains time, he knows the future and is able to reveal it in prophecy.

God has a clear understanding of time. In the Bible, he warned that all people should live for him because the time is coming when he will return to the earth. While some believe they can delay serving God, we are commanded to serve God now. We are to take advantage of the moments God gives us to share the gospel.

Simon
Five significant men in Jesus' life shared the name Simon, but they were as different from each other as they could be. (1) Simon the fisherman was a disciple of Jesus. God changed his name to Peter (see Peter) because of the part he would play in the church. (2) Jesus' other disciple named Simon was called Simon the Zealot. He was a man of intense political and religious convictions. (3) One of Jesus' half brothers, a son of Mary and Joseph, was also named Simon. (4) A leper named Simon opened his home to Jesus, perhaps after being cured by him. He was shocked at the woman who came to anoint Jesus with her tears, and he received a lesson on the connection between forgiveness and love. (5) Another Simon, originally from Cyrene, was in Jerusalem one day. Soldiers ordered him to carry the cross for the exhausted and bleeding Jesus. All these men knew Jesus––each in a profound way. Their names may not have all been changed, but after meeting Jesus, their hearts were never the same again.

Peter
When Jesus gave a fisherman named Simon Peter the opportunity to become a "fisher of men," this man left everything to follow Jesus. It was the beginning of a lifelong mission.

Simon Peter was an amazing man of God. One minute we admire him, and the next minute we cringe because he's stuck his foot in his mouth again. One minute our hearts cry out to be like him, and the next minute we're relieved that we're not like him. Peter seemed to operate in extremes, yet God wa preparing him for something very special.

Word
God's Words are powerful! God spoke, and everything that exists in our universe was created. His written Word, the Bible (see Scripture), flawlessly teaches people about God and the way to follow him. God's message through his prophets to his people, the nation of Israel, was often called, "the word of the Lord." God's Word is also displayed in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Word of God in human form. He is complete communication of who God is, and he is the revealer of how to follow God.

Choose
God demonstrates that he values choice because he created human beings with the capacity to choose. We are not robots, programmed to mindlessly follow his directions. We may choose to accept or reject his gifts, commands and promises. He gave Adam (see Adam) and Eve (see Eve) the opportunity to obey or disobey. When they chose to go their own way and eat the forbidden fruit, God honored their choice. He also allowed them to experience the consequences. Scripture is filled with admonitions to choose wisely, to choose to obey, to choose to serve God. We are responsible for how we choose to life- and accountable for the consequences.

Grumble
When was the last time you complained? Most of us don't have to think long to recall an incident. Complaining comes naturally to the human heart. No matter how good we have it, we think that things could always be better.

Ultimately, our complaints are directed at God, who orders all the events in our lives. Grumbling stems from lack of contentment with what God has given us and failure to believe God is working for our good, especially when circumstances bring us hardship.

Forever
God is eternal. The Lord and his Word will stand forever. God promises to continue his work in us as well (see Philippians 1:6). He promises to never stop loving us. An evidence of this love is the salvation he gives us - it doesn't end! God proved this through Jesus' death, forever guaranteeing our forgiveness, and by giving us the Holy Spirit as our guide to living a godly life.

Unlike the boss who retires or the president whose term is complete, nothing will force God out of power. In fact, the Bible tells us that God will always rule, and whatever he establishes cannot be altered by anyone. When everything else seems to change so quickly, God will always be the same.

Blood
Life is in the blood. If you lose too much blood, you'll die: but a blood transfusion can bring you back to health. Our spiritual life also depends on a blood transfusion of sorts - a blood transfusion from the Lord Jesus Christ. He gave his life's blood on the a torturous Roman cross (see Crucify) to pay the penalty for our sin and to give us new life through a relationship with him.

Lord
In Great Britain, "lord" is considered a generic, less formal way to address those with titles such as prince, earl or baron. "Lord" was also used in Biblical times to refer to a slave's master, a supreme ruler or a husband. However when "Lord" is used to refer to our God, it takes on a different meaning. The Hebrew word Yahweh, which denotes the majesty and authority of the one true God, is translated "Lord."

We read in the Ten Commandments not to misuse God's name. Traditionally Christians have obeyed this command by not using any of God's names as curse words. Yet, there is a deeper meaning: As the Lord has commanded us to follow him, we live our lives representing his good name. When we sin, even if it is insisting upon our will over God's, we discredit the Lord's name.

Holy
Holy simply means "separate" or "set apart." Because God is holy, he also wants us to be holy - to be set apart from the world, chosen to serve him and to be blessed by him.

Judas
Judas may be best known for a kiss––the kiss by which he betrayed Jesus, the Son of God, to his enemies. Jesus chose Judas Iscariot as one of his 12 disciples even though he knew Judas would betray him. The Old Testament prophesied that there would be a man who would "sell" Jesus' life for 30 pieces of silver. Judas was that man. He agreed to hand Jesus over to the chief priests, who were looking for an opportunity to arrest Jesus and kill him.

Judas betrayed Jesus out of his own greed for money. As the disciples' treasurer, he also stole from Jesus' moneybags. Judas chose to follow his own desires instead of following the Savior of the world. Satan (see Satan) finally filled his heart, and Judas left the last Passover meal with Jesus (see Passover) to meet the chief priest and soldiers in order to lead them to the garden where he knew Jesus would be. Judas later realized his horrible mistake, but instead of turning to God in repentance (see Repentance), he threw the money back at the priests in regret and went out and hanged himself.

40. For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”

41. At this the Jews began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42. They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”

43. “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered. 44. “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. 45. It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me. 46. No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. 47. I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life. 48. I am the bread of life. 49. Your forefathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. 50. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die. 51. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If a man eat of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

52. Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

53. Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his life, you have no life in you. 54. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day,. 55. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. 56. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my life remains in me, and I in him.

57. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Our forefathers ate (manna) and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59. He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

Many disciples desert Jesus

60. On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”

61. Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? 62. What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before!
63. The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.
64. Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. 65. He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him.”

66. From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.

67. “Do you want to leave too?” Jesus asked the Twelve.

68. Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”

70. Then Jesus replied, “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” 71. (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot who, though one of the Twelve, was later to betray him.)

Topic: Knowing God's Will
John 7:6-9

God's schedule, not ours

Gail was leading her drama students through rehearsals for their big play, now only a week away. Then the call came: "Can you fly home, Gail? Dad's had a serious heart attack." Mom needed her, but so did her students. What should I do, Lord? The word "go" flashed through her mind, and she knew it was the right thing to do. Only later did she discover God's purpose. Gail's father, who had scorned her faith in Jesus for so long, asked her to pray for him. "Dad, Jesus wants to give you a new heart." As tears flowed, Gail's father asked Jesus to forgive him and to give him a heart of love like Gail's.

Our challenge is to stay in tune with God so that we work according to his schedule. Inevitable God's purposes will sometimes conflict with our preferences. Jesus didn't let others pressure him into a timetable that would take him outside of God's will - and neither should we. We benefit by making a point to seek God's timing. He wants only the best for us.

Have you faced a situation where your schedule conflicted with God's timing? What did you learn from it?

FURTHER STUDY:
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8; John 2:3-8, 11:6-15

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THE STARTING POINT STUDY BIBILE New International Version
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