The Gospel of John

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.

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.

Christ
Christ, meaning "anointed one," is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word Messiah. The Jews were waiting anxiously for the Messiah, the person guaranteed by God to be their leader and ruler. Every Jewish person living at the time of Jesus knew exactly what he or she was waiting for. "Is he the one?" was the question everyone was debating about Jesus. Some said yes; some said no; and some said Jesus was a liar.

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.

Andrew
Andrew was a follower of John the Baptist before he met Jesus. Andrew, a fisherman, was the first to be personally invited by Jesus to be a "fisher of men." His statement, "We have found the Messiah" (John 1:41), led to his brother, Peter, meeting Jesus Christ.

Andrew is considered the"people person" of Jesus' tight-knit group - the one who always knew who was doing what. He is the one who found the boy with the bread and fish that led to one of Jesus' most amazing miracles (see John 6:5-13).

Isaiah
The book of Isaiah contains some of the most beautiful and well-known passages of praise and promise in the Bible. Isaiah prophesied in Judah, the southern kingdom of Israel, for about 40 years, beginning around the time the northern kingdom was overthrown. The messages he received from God warned Judah of the coming destruction, but they also looked ahead to a time of hope and reconciliation between the Israelites and their God. The book of Isaiah also makes it clear that God has authority over not just Israel, but also all the nations of the world. Isaiah's messages of judgment and restoration are often closely intermingled. God's purpose in judgment is not only to punish, but also to turn people to himself.

Philip
Philip had waited for the promised Messiah. As soon as Jesus found Philip and said, "Follow me,"his heart responded-and he immediately recruited someone else to follow Jesus too. He was known as a man who was "full of the Spirit and wisdom" (Acts 6:3).

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 change his name to Peter (see Peter) because of the part he would playing the 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.

Angel
Sorry to squelch your superhero dreams, but you will not morph into "Angel Man" upon your death. As appealing as it might seem to us, humans do not become angels when they die.

God specifically created angels to be his assistants. Their job description includes: worshiping God; relaying messages to people; protecting people; administering encouragement, guidance and punishment to people (on an as-needed basis); and fighting the true forces of evil.

Command
Americans don't like taking orders-they mess with our self-reliance and pursuit of happiness. Christians, however are called to live differently from the "norm." We are called to follow God's commands. And as we do so, God helps us discover the happiness we have longed for.

Condemn
Fyodor Dostoyevsky was a political radical arrested for treason in czarist Russia. Condemned to death, he was in front of the firing squad when a last-minute pardon came from the czar. Rather than death, he received life. The experience lead Dostoyevsky to write about redemption versus condemnation in his novels Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov.

Before we trusted Jesus Christ as Savior, we were condemned. Our sin promised death - eternal separation from God. But then God pardoned us. Almost daily, we have the option of condemning or forgiving people. Jesus Christ urges us to love each other and to let our righteous God do the judging.

Confess
To confess can mean to admit a wrong or to agree that something is right. In our relationship with God, both must happen. We must confess our sin, that we have done wrong. And we must also confess that Jesus Christ is God's Son, that he died for our sin, came back to life and is now in heaven with God. God has promised that if a person unashamedly admits, or confesses , the truth of Jesus Christ, then God will forgive his or her sins.

Darkness
Getting up in the middle of the night for a drink of water can be a frightening experience - especially after watching a scary movie. Darkness causes fear - whether or not we're willing to admit it.

God compares life without Jesus Christ to living in the darkness. It's a world without light, without understanding, without joy. Yet we're told that although Christ came to bring salvation to everyone, some prefer to reject Christ and live in spiritual darkness.

Eternal
We often say that the time between now and and anticipated event is "eternity." Children endure torturous days and weeks before Christmas morning, saying they must wait an "eternity" for the day to arrive.

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.

The life you now share with the Lord is eternal; it will continue when your physical life ends. Your decision to follow Jesus Christ guarantees it. Again, the fact that God is eternal plays a key role in this. When God determined that eternal life would only be given through believe in his Son, Jesus, he meant it. there's nothing else, including doing good things, that we can do or need to do to establish a relationship with God (see Ephesians 2:8-9). And that's final!

Finish
There is nothing quite like the exhilaration of finishing a task. Whether the job is small or large, changing a light bulb or painting a watercolor, we enjoy the sense of completion. For example, most marathon runners keep the finish line in mind throughout the grueling endeavor.

Galilee
Described as hilly country, Galilee was located in the northern part of ancient Israel. Jesus was from Galilee, as were his disciples; much of his ministry took place in Galilee. During the time of Christ, Galilee made up about one-third of the present-day holy land. In more modern times, Galilee was revived through Zionist colonizations. The land became part of modern-day Israel after the Arab-Israeli war in 1948-1949.

Hate
Biblically speaking, hatred seems a bit confusing. We are commanded not to hate, yet sometimes we are commanded to hate. If we hate what is good, that is bad. If we hate what is bad, that is good. In other words, love what God loves, and hate what God hates. Hatred can be both a positive and negative action. The phrase "Love the sinner but hate the sin" expresses this concept well. Just as God loves humanity but detests sin, we are to love fellow sinners but hate sinful deeds.

Healing
Jesus Christ walked this earth healing all sorts of diseases and bringing words of life to repair broken hearts and misled spirits. He healed out of compassion and, often, in response to an individual's faith.

Heart
The heart is a muscle at the center of the body that, through contraction and relaxation, sustains life. When it stops working, we cease to be alive. Yet a heart is more than an organ that pumps blood. In our culture, as well as in the Bible, the heart is a metaphor for the most sensitive areas of our lives, the place from which our passions are aroused and our worst plans are conceived.

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)

Hidden
When looking at an optical illusion, our eyes have to adjust and be at the right distance before we can distinguish the shape behind the various colorful patterned blotches. The picture is always there; it's just unseen until the correct moment of focus. When anything is hidden or out of our direct range of perception, it still exists; it just hasn't been revealed to us. There is no such thing as an unsolved mystery with God. He is all knowing. The Lord will lead us to what he wants us to learn, and he will one day make known what he may presently be hiding (see Deuteronomy 29:29).

Judge
In the Bible, the book of Job tells of a man who's loyalties to God were tested when God allowed him to be stripped of his wealth, children and health. Job's friends thought they had the answer: Job must have done something wrong. Why else would God do this to him? They were judging Job's heart, and they were wrong. In fact, God had allowed bad things to happen to Job to prove how righteous Job was. Judging someone is easy; love takes a whole new kind of heart, the kind Jesus has and gives to his followers.

Keep
Keep watch. Keep control. Keep the faith. Will these things be lost if we don't maintain them? Basically, yes. For instance, God keeps watch over us no matter where we are or what we are doing. He cares for us and faithfully protects us so that we are not lost to danger or to evil.

Leadership
The game "Follow the Leader" teaches children to watch and comprehend directions through imitation. It's a game of faith, for the children trust that the "leader" won't make them do anything dangerous.

God's children follow leaders too-spiritual leaders. And poor Christian leadership can result in others going astray. It is because of this responsibility that Christian leaders will be subject to a harsher judgment from God than will Christians who are not leaders.

Light
"Let there be light!" was one of the first things God said in relation to the creation of our universe. Light's significance is obvious; we need light to live. Light is a symbol of all that is good, while darkness symbolizes evil. It's not too surprising, therefore, that Jesus Christ referred to himself as the "light of the world" (John 8:12).

Our purpose and significance would be impossible to understand without the light of the Bible. God's Word is a "lamp to my feet and a light for my path" (Psalm 119:105). The Bible contains everything necessary for shedding light on our lives.

Miracle
Unexplainable healing, the dead raised to life, the sun standing still, strange encounters with supernatural beings, wonders in the sky and other unsolved mysteries - are events like these miracles, coincidences or merely hoaxes? Miracles are occurrences in the physical world that have no natural explanation. Their cause is either still unknown to science or ascribed to the powers of the supernatural. The Bible is filled with stories of miracles performed by God through human beings. God used people to accomplish his purposes (such as parting the Red Sea to bring the Israelites out of Egypt), demonstrate his character (such as sending Jonah to the Ninevites by way of a great fish) and help people believe in him (such as the disciples' ability to heal the sick).

But the greatest miracle worker was Jesus. He said to his disciples, " Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves" (John 14:11).

Reject
Whether we're bruised or crushed, rejection always hurts. Jesus Christ experienced rejection, and he told us that we, too, would be rejected if we identified with him. Some people experience taunting or humiliation. Others, like Jesus, experience the ultimate rejection: death.

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.

Revelation
If we wish to know something, like a piece of rock, then we must investigate it. We must crack it open and probe its contents or run tests on it. If we wish to know someone like ourselves (i.e., other humans) then they must share their thoughts with us, and we must observe them to determine if what they say is true.

But what if we want to know about something greater than ourselves, like God, then he must reveal himself to us. If God does not reveal himself to humans, then we can only guess what he is like. revelation is God stooping down to humanity and showing and telling us who he truly is and what he is really like.

Sound
When Mary's voice reached Elizabeth's ears, she and her unborn baby rejoiced because the mother of their Lord had arrived. In Biblical times, sounding a trumpet blast could signify war or a great celebration. When the last trumpet sounds, the fulfillment of prophecies concerning the return of Christ and the end of the world are imminent.

The word sound is also used in the Bible to refer to something healthy or without flaw. For example, just as having a healthy, or sound, frame of mind is key to writing a valid will, likewise, having a sound understanding of what the Bible truly teaches helps us identify when someone is not teaching the truth (see Truth). A correct knowledge of the truth guides our hearts and minds in discerning the subtle, but critical, differences between truth and falsehood.

Walk
Whether we strut, stroll or hobble, the way we carry ourselves identifies us to others. Likewise, how we journey through life indicates our commitment to God. To walk with God is to live as he commands. Those who claim to love God walk as Jesus Christ did-in holiness, obedience, integrity and love, ever pursuing companionship with the Father.

Whole
God is not half-hearted, and he doesn't do things halfway. What he promises, gives or makes, he does completely. Through the death of Christ, every last sin-past, present and future-has been paid for, and those who receive Christ as Savior are free from sin's power. Through the resurrection of Christ, all of humanity has been given the opportunity to accept the freely given gift of grace and eternal life. From a high mountaintop, Satan offered all of the kingdoms of the world to Jesus if only Jesus would bow down before him. The offering of the whole earth was not enough to distract the Lord from his mission.

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.

Words can bring either healing or destruction. God has entrusted his people to carry his Word to all peoples, instructing them and guiding them in the ways of God. Because of this great responsibility, a Christian's words should exemplify Christ's words. God desires for his people to build each other up and encourage each other with words modeled after Christ's words.

Worship
Human beings are designed to worship. The soul craves someone or something to adore: the sports hero, the film celebrity, the musical entertainer, a philosophy or political party. Worship celebrates the worth of that which is worshiped. People are intrinsically motivated to worship what they value, honor and love.

Fulfill
Does it surprise you that the Bible almost never uses the word "fulfillment" in reference to a human's satisfaction in life? The Bible doesn't promise a fulfilling life. In the Bible, the word "fulfill" refers overwhelmingly to God's following through on his promises and intentions. God will always keep his promises. The plans he makes will come about. Our faithful God in control of all that happens in the universe, and his plans will overcome any obstacle.

Message
One of the bigger communication revolutions of the late twentieth century was the advent of e-mail, instant messages allowing us to contact people without gargantuan phone bills. But even more revolutionary than the technological revolution is the fact that God communicates with us.

Power
God has power-not the make-believe superhero kind of power, but the ultimate power over all things. God's power is greater than all the power of Satan (see Satan). When we become children of God, he give us power over Satan too. That means Satan no longer has control over our lives.

Seed
Seedless oranges, seedless grapes-we would prefer not to pick specks out of our teeth when we're eating our favorite fruit. But we would all go hungry without those seeds. When the farmer pushes them deep into the dark dirt, they miraculously come apart and sprouts of new life push into the sunshine. Like these seedlings, we have to first die to ourselves before we can be productive as Christians. This means that our wants, dreams and desires are set aside for what God wants to do with our lives.

Trust
The person who say, "Trust me!" is the very person we suspect we shouldn't trust, right? No wonder it's hard to trust God when we've been burned so many times by people. Yet, God alone is completely trustworthy. Anything else in which we trust will fall: people, position, money, ourselves. The Israelites repeatedly turned to other nations for support, even though God had told them to trust in him rather than military might. He wanted his people to know that he-nothing or no one else-had delivered them from their enemies.

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.

Glory
Millionaires, Olympic athletes and superstars excel in shrewdness, strength, talent, beauty, discipline and sometimes just plain good luck. Thus they enjoy the kind of adoration many people crave. But the Bible reminds us that even the greatest human honor and splendor will fade away. Alexander the Great's conquests are legendary, but only crumbling artifacts remain of his empire. God alone is perfectly and eternally glorious by his very nature. Scripture calls him the "King of glory" (Psalm 24:7-10). He is, and always has been, magnificent, powerful and holy. Everything he does demonstrates his glory, and nothing can detract from it.

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.

Death
Death has many faces in our culture, most of them ugly. There's a reason for that: Death was not part of God's plan. When God created us, he intended for us to live forever in perfect harmony with him. But when Adam and Eve sinned, death became a fact of life because the consequence of sin is death. Sin and death separate us from God because God's holiness cannot permit even the smallest imperfection to enter his presence. Those who don't know God are alienated from his love, guidance and spiritual protection all their lives. Physical death seals the sentence of permanent separation from him.

But Christians never have to experience death as the world does. Christ came to take upon himself the penalty for our sins and to remove the barrier between God and us by dying in our place. If we believe and trust our lives to him, we can experience a relationship with God here on earth. The Bible says that when Christ comes into our lives, our sinful self dies., and we immediately receive a new life. We receive a new identity as a child of God. And because Christ overcame death by coming back to life, we too can live with him after death. For followers of Christ, death is no longer a defeating end, but the victorious beginning of life in the physical presence of God.

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.

This is where Jesus enters the picture. He came to give us abundant life. He tells us to give him our cares and stop worrying because worrying doesn't add a single hour to our lives. Jesus also tells us to stop selfishly hoarding our lives; instead, we are to freely give them away by serving him. In a strange paradox, it's only when we lose our lives to him that we gain them back. Jesus reminds us that if we get everything the world has to offer, yet lose our souls, we haven't really lived.

World
World does not refer to the landmass represented by the globe of earth; it refers to people, perspectives and practices. When we say 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. That's why Christians are told not to 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.

Servants
"Serve people? You've got to be kidding!" We tend to associate servitude with oppressed people slaving for a cruel master. In the Bible, servants had a different job description, one more akin to our current-day employer-employee relationship. The servant's job was to loyally carry out his or her master's orders and act in the master's interest at all times. In return, the master was responsible for feeding and clothing the servants and looking after their needs.

Honor
We set apart those whom we honor: red carpets are rolled out, flashy medals are given and achievements are celebrated. Honor is reserved for the worthiest individuals and organizations, and by honoring them, we openly demonstrate our respect and esteem for them.

As Christians, the most important person we can honor is God himself. He tells us that showing kindness to others and living a morally upright life are ways to honor him. We also honor God by humbly acknowledging his power and our dependence on him.

We also honor the Lord through honoring others - including our parents, a command that made God's "top ten list," the Ten Commandments.

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.

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.

Signs
When we see geese flying south in a V formation, it's a sign that winter is on the way. Almost every street corner and road we travel is marked with a sign telling us where we are and the direction we're headed. God gives signs-miracles or fulfilled prophecies-to show that his promises will come true. The rainbow in the sky after a storm is God's aerial billboard-his reminder to himself and us that he will never flood the earth again.

The Bible also gives us signs to help us understand what is happening in the world around us. The first believers saw many signs to confirm the truth of the message about Christ. Most of all, signs help explain how we can come into a relation with the true and living God. God expects us to pay attention to, and follow, his signs.

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.

Eye
If someone says, "I'm keeping an eye on you," it might imply suspicion or displeasure. But when God says his eye is on us, he's promising to watch over us with tenderness and care. He sees our every need and provides for us in ways we may not even be aware of. The Lord also gives spiritual insight, opening our eyes to see things we previously couldn't imagine or didn't know were there. On the other hand, Satan and sin blind us to spiritual truth.

Pharisees
If you lived in the time of the Pharisees, you were in big trouble if you had a house fire on the Sabbath. Carrying your clothes out of the burning building was strictly against the law. But putting your clothes on before escaping was legal!

The Pharisees were the most influential Jewish leaders while Jesus was on earth. They tried to perfectly uphold the law, and they imposed that expectation on others. Yet as carefully as they defined the law, they went one step too far and made it the epicenter of their faith. Jesus was not impressed with their law - abiding ways; in fact he harshly criticized them for burdening people with unnecessary rules and forgetting how to love others.

Faith
Faith is essential to eternal life; it is the way we have a relationship with God. First, when we receive Jesus Christ as Savior, we are exercising faith that he is the way to heaven, the one who makes us God's child. Second, because we cannot see God now, we live our lives by faith. We make our decisions and follow desires based on God's character and his promises.

Praise
"Thank you for all your hard work today," the employer regularly said at the end of the day. True, the work was expected, yet the praise acknowledged the effort, making the employees feel important and valued. Recognition is integral to praise, and in our relationship to God, praise is one thing we can actually give him. He desires that we praise him through acknowledging his works, benefits and perfect character.

True praise is not flattery or empty adoration. It starts as genuine thanks in the heart, which is expressed in songs, prayers or meditation. No matter how it's done, praise lifts up sincere admiration to God, who rightfully deserves to be lauded.

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.

Passover
The night before the Israelites left Egypt, God instructed them to choose perfect lambs, slaughter them and use their blood to mark the doorframe of every hebrew dwelling. When the angel of Lord came to strike down all the firstborn males, he "passed over" the bloodstained doorframes, sparing the Israelite households.

Today, the Jewish people still celebrate Passover. Their delivery out of Egypt is a major focus of their faith and history. It is a reminder of God's concern for and intervention in, their lives.

Jesus celebrated Passover with his disciples the night before crucifixion. He said that from that time on breaking bread and drinking wine was to be done in memory of his broken body and shed blood.

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.

Jesus Predicts His Death

20. Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the Feast. 21. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.”
22. Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.

23. Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25. The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

27. “Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. 28. Father, glorify your name!”

Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” 29. The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.

30. Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine. 31. Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. 32. But I, when I am lifted from the earth, will draw all men to myself.” 33. He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.

34. The crowd spoke up, “We had heard from the Law that the Christ will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up'?’ Who is this ‘Son of Man’?”

35. Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. The man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going. 36. Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become sons of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.

The Jews Continue in Their Unbelief

37. Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him. 38. This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet:
“Lord, who has believed our message, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

39. For this reason they could not believe, because as Isaiah says elsewhere:

40. “He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn – and I would heal them.”

41. Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory, and spoke about him

42. Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; 43. For they loved praise from men more than praise from God.

44. Then Jesus cried out, “When a man believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. 45. When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me. 46. I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.

47. “As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. 48. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day. 49. For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. 50. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Jesus Washes His Disciples’ Feet

1. It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.

2. The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus. 3. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God.

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THE STARTING POINT STUDY BIBILE New International Version
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