Gospel of John

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New Testament

The Gospel of John is the fourth Gospel in the New Testament. It contains a variety of statements and information about Jesus not contained in the Synoptic Gospels. While John's content may be unique, he presents a different side of Jesus that is complimentary to the other three Gospels and helps provide its readers with a clearer understanding of his divinity and pre-existence.

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Contents


[edit] Chapters

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21

[edit] Author

The author is traditionally understood to be the apostle John, "the disciple whom Jesus loved" (John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:27, 20, 24). Early church fathers such as Irenaeus and Tertullian attribute this Gospel to John.

[edit] Date

There are two views concerning the date of John's Gospel:

1) The traditional view places the writing of John around A.D. 85 or later. This view is supported by a statement from Clement of Alexandria that John wrote to supplement the other Gospel accounts. This would place his writings later in the first-century, considering the traditional view that the other Gospel writers wrote before A.D. 70. It is also argued that John's theology appears more developed, giving suspicion for a later date.

2) Recently, interpreters have suggested an earlier date, somewhere around A.D. 50 but no later than A.D. 70. It is argued that this view does not contradict Clement's statement. Furthermore, a more developed theology does not imply a later date. For example, the theology of Romans is very developed, nevertheless it is dated around A.D. 57. Lastly, attention is given to John 5:2 where John uses "is" rather than "was" concerning the pool near the Sheep Gate. This may suggest a time before 70 when Jerusalem was destroyed.

[edit] Purpose

"And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name." (20:30-31)

John clearly means to ground His portrayal of Jesus in His eternal pre-existence, as is indicated in the first chapter. According to Eusebius, John wrote his gospel after having read Matthew, Mark and Luke. If this is reliable, then John's selection of a starting point can be seen as intentionally different and more transcendent than the other three gospels.

[edit] Distinctives

The Gospel of John is different from the Synoptic Gospels in a number of ways. The birth, baptism, and temptations of Jesus are no present. Furthermore, John's Gospel says nothing of the Last Supper, Gethsemane, or Jesus' Ascension. It also does not contain any healings of those who are possessed by evil spirits. Perhaps most striking of all is that it has no parables. Jesus' speeches, or sermons, are much longer and involve more logical pronouncements that are unlike the sayings of the Synoptics. Lastly, John's Gospel brings to light that Jesus' ministry was three years long (cf. John 2:13, 6:4, and 19:14 which speak of three separate Passovers).

[edit] Themes

[edit] Dualism

[edit] Light and darkness, day and night

"I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness." (12:46) Jesus is the light of the world. Those who enjoy the presence of the light are to, as Jesus exhorts, make the most of his presence and follow him. Only then will they have the "light of life". The presence of the light of Christ allows for a special work. "We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work." (9:4; cf. 1:4-9, 3:19, 9:5, 11:9-10, 12:46) It is of note that Nicodemus comes in the night, and Judas betrays Jesus in the night.

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[edit] I AM statements

Jesus is found frequently in John's Gospel with "I AM" statements (cf. Exodus 3:14).

  • "I am the bread of life" (John 6:35)
  • "I am the light of the world" ( John 8:12; 9:5)
  • "I am the gate for the sheep" (John 10:7, 9)
  • "I am the good shepherd" (John 10:14)
  • "I am the resurrection and the life" (John 11:25)
  • "I am the way and the truth and the life" (John 14:6)
  • "I am the true vine" (15:1, 5)

[edit] Belief

From the very outset one is called to believe (1:7) and John ends his gospel stating that his purpose in writing it is that his readers would believe (20:31). No other gospel accentuates belief like John's. The Greek verb used for belief, pisteuĊ ([Strong's #4100]) is found 98 times in his gospel. It is no coincidence that he uses the verb form so often. This points to the fact that faith is an action (just as a verb is), and John uses it to reiterate to his readers that belief does not remain stagnant. It is alive and dynamic, bearing fruit and abiding in Christ (15:1-11).

[edit] The "hour"

[edit] Sabbath

[edit] Eternal life

See main page: Eternal life

[edit] Signs

Miracles in the Gospel of John are referred to as "signs", pointers to the identity of Christ as the one sent by the Father. Some scholars identify John 2-11 as the "book of signs".

  • Turned water into wine (2:1-11)
  • Heal's an official's son (4:46-54)
  • Healed a lame man (5:1-18)
  • Fed 5,000 (6:1-14)
  • Gave sight to a blind man (9:1-41)
  • Raised Lazarus from the dead (11:1-57)

[edit] Christology

This is a section stub. Please edit it to add information.

[edit] Son of Man

"Son of Man" is used thirteen times in John's gospel. As Son of man, Jesus represents Israel as the "true vine" (John 15:1; Psalm 80:8-19; Isaiah 5:1-7), however he also is true Man in that he represents humanity as it should be. This is because Jesus is one with both God and humankind, which is in line with Johannine christology. The Son of man ascends to heaven, having descended from it (John 1:51, 3:13, 6:62, 13:31), as such, Jesus links both heaven and earth. Only Jesus, the Son of man, can bring heaven down to earth and earth up to heaven. This is the heart of John's Son of man christology. "...as Son of man, Jesus comes into the world, dies, is exalted, and is given the authority to execute judgment" (Stephen Smalley, John:Evangelist & Interpreter,p. 243)

The phrase Son of Man appears to be an allusion to Daniel 7:13-14, in which Daniel says:

"I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed."

The term used in the original text of Daniel 7:13 and translated as "Son of Man" is bar enash, as opposed to the more usual phrase bar 'adam. Bar enash carries the connotation of a foremost heir to a throne.[1] Therefore, it can be seen as a strong claim to divinity.

[edit] Logos

[edit] Son of God

[edit] Christ (Messiah)

[edit] Eschatology

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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