Introduction to John (some more stuff)
In hte book of Genesis we see God speaking the World - all of creation seen and unseen- into existence.
This is paralelled in the Gospel of John who presents God as speaking salvation into existence - the Word takes on a Human form as Christ Jesus.
God speaks salvation into Jesus and Jesus speaks the Word of God, and IS the Word of God.
Therefore we see how life and death are in the power of the tongue - Words should not casually spoken, we should be mindful of what we speak.
Jesus does not impose salvation unto us; He narrates salvation into being through leisurely conversation, intimate personal relationships, compassionate responses, passionate prayer and puts it altogether in a sacrificial death.
Interesting to know - John is the only male follower that was at the crucifixion of Christ. He also called himself the beloved disciple of Jesus - hinting at us to share as intimate a relationship with Christ. He was a Palestinian Jew (familiar with the geography of the land and the Jewish customs) and pays meticulous attention to the number and names, indicating further that he is an eyewitness. John is part of the inner circle of the 12 disciples - one of the 3 closest to Christ. The other 2 are James and Peter.
Iremaeus (AD 185) was a disciple of Polycarp who was a disciple of John. In his book "Against Heresies", he bore witness to the Johanine authority of this gospel and noted that John lived until the time of the Emperor Trajan (AD 98-117).
Clement of Alexendria, Theophilus of Antioch, Origen and others also ascribed this book to the Apostle John.
John's book focuses on the Judean ministry instead of the Galilean ministry described in the other 3 gospels.
The Gospel of John is also translated in Hebrew as - According to "Yahweh has been gracious" )
John was written to non-Jews to tell them why or what the Jewish Messiah had to do with them. It was written especially also to combat the Gnostics and their false testimony and writings about Jesus. John was the last surviving eye-witness to the ministry of Christ's time on Earth.
Gospel of John is a gospel apart from the other 3 because despite individual emphasis, the 3 described many similar events in the life of Christ.
John draws mainly on events and discourses not found in the other 3 to prove to readers that Jesus is God in the flesh, eternal word come to Earth, born to die as God's sacrifice for human sin.
The Gospel of John is split into 2 sections - That you may believe, That you may have life.
In the first segment we read about 7 miraculous signs to prove the divinity of Christ through 5 witnesses. These occur from - John 1:1-18 (intro), 1:19-4:54 (revelation) , 5:1-12:50 (rejection).
In the second segment we read about 7 "I AM" statements and this segment is further split into the Upper Room Discourse (revelation from Christ, John 13:1-17:26) and the Supreme Miracle (rejection of Christ, John 18:1-21:25).
The 7 "I AM" Statements are as follows -
I am the bread of life (Jn 6:35, 48)
I am the light of the world (Jn 8:12, 9:5)
I am the door (Jn 10:7, 9)
I am the good shepherd (Jn 10:11,14)
I am the resurrection and the life (Jn 11:25)
I am the way, the truth and thhe life (Jn 14:6)
I am the true vine (Jn 15:1-5)
Jesus equates Himself with the Old Testament I AM or Yahweh in the following passages -
Jn 4:25-26; 8:24,28,58; 13:19; 18:5,6, 8
Crucial affirmation of Christ's deity is seen here in Jn 1:1, 8:58, 10:30, 14:9, 20:28
(More to come...)
This is paralelled in the Gospel of John who presents God as speaking salvation into existence - the Word takes on a Human form as Christ Jesus.
God speaks salvation into Jesus and Jesus speaks the Word of God, and IS the Word of God.
Therefore we see how life and death are in the power of the tongue - Words should not casually spoken, we should be mindful of what we speak.
Jesus does not impose salvation unto us; He narrates salvation into being through leisurely conversation, intimate personal relationships, compassionate responses, passionate prayer and puts it altogether in a sacrificial death.
Interesting to know - John is the only male follower that was at the crucifixion of Christ. He also called himself the beloved disciple of Jesus - hinting at us to share as intimate a relationship with Christ. He was a Palestinian Jew (familiar with the geography of the land and the Jewish customs) and pays meticulous attention to the number and names, indicating further that he is an eyewitness. John is part of the inner circle of the 12 disciples - one of the 3 closest to Christ. The other 2 are James and Peter.
Iremaeus (AD 185) was a disciple of Polycarp who was a disciple of John. In his book "Against Heresies", he bore witness to the Johanine authority of this gospel and noted that John lived until the time of the Emperor Trajan (AD 98-117).
Clement of Alexendria, Theophilus of Antioch, Origen and others also ascribed this book to the Apostle John.
John's book focuses on the Judean ministry instead of the Galilean ministry described in the other 3 gospels.
The Gospel of John is also translated in Hebrew as - According to "Yahweh has been gracious" )
John was written to non-Jews to tell them why or what the Jewish Messiah had to do with them. It was written especially also to combat the Gnostics and their false testimony and writings about Jesus. John was the last surviving eye-witness to the ministry of Christ's time on Earth.
Gospel of John is a gospel apart from the other 3 because despite individual emphasis, the 3 described many similar events in the life of Christ.
John draws mainly on events and discourses not found in the other 3 to prove to readers that Jesus is God in the flesh, eternal word come to Earth, born to die as God's sacrifice for human sin.
The Gospel of John is split into 2 sections - That you may believe, That you may have life.
In the first segment we read about 7 miraculous signs to prove the divinity of Christ through 5 witnesses. These occur from - John 1:1-18 (intro), 1:19-4:54 (revelation) , 5:1-12:50 (rejection).
In the second segment we read about 7 "I AM" statements and this segment is further split into the Upper Room Discourse (revelation from Christ, John 13:1-17:26) and the Supreme Miracle (rejection of Christ, John 18:1-21:25).
The 7 "I AM" Statements are as follows -
I am the bread of life (Jn 6:35, 48)
I am the light of the world (Jn 8:12, 9:5)
I am the door (Jn 10:7, 9)
I am the good shepherd (Jn 10:11,14)
I am the resurrection and the life (Jn 11:25)
I am the way, the truth and thhe life (Jn 14:6)
I am the true vine (Jn 15:1-5)
Jesus equates Himself with the Old Testament I AM or Yahweh in the following passages -
Jn 4:25-26; 8:24,28,58; 13:19; 18:5,6, 8
Crucial affirmation of Christ's deity is seen here in Jn 1:1, 8:58, 10:30, 14:9, 20:28
(More to come...)
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