Week 1 – John Chapter 1
Prayer: Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus, Holy Spirit – come to us as we study Your Word. We are thankful for Your Word, this fellowship of believers, and Your presence among us as we read and meditate on Your Word, for this gathering has the power to save us and transform us more and more into your image.
What we do not know, teach us. What we do not have, give us. And what we are not now, make us. We seek You and ask You for this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The Word Became Flesh
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Verses 1-5 John reaches back to Genesis and introduce Jesus as eternal, an agent of creation, God but distinct from the Father. (Genesis 1:1-5) John’s purpose is to announce who Jesus is.
6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.
Verses 6-8 introduce John the Baptist as a witness to give testimony to the authenticity of Jesus. His purpose was to give his testimony so that all might believe.
9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
Verses 9-13 introduces the response of humanity when confronted with the truth of who Jesus is.
In case you missed any of these points, they are repeated – repetition brings familiarity!
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Verse 14 reaches back to Exodus with the concept of the tabernacle and the glory of God. The place where God meets with His people – God among us – the place where Heaven and Earth meet.
15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) 16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.
Verses 14 – 18 is a reiteration of the testimony of John the Baptist, with more details. His testimony builds on the concepts of Jesus’ eternal nature, His divine nature, His distinct nature and Jesus’ purpose – to make the Father known. He connects Old Testament knowledge with fulfillment in Jesus.
John the Baptist Denies Being the Messiah
19 Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”
21 They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”
He said, “I am not.”
“Are you the Prophet?”
He answered, “No.”
22 Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”
23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”
24 Now the Pharisees who had been sent 25 questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”
26 “I baptize with[e] water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”
28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
In these verses, John the Baptist testifies directly to the religious leaders using Isaiah 40:3, the prophecy that promises Israel comfort. (Read Isaiah 40 through 43) My favorites – 41:10, 42:1, 43:1-1, 43:19
John Testifies About Jesus
29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.”
32 Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”
In these verses, John the Baptist continues his testimony about who Jesus is using images we see from the prophet Isaiah. It is on the ‘next day’, we don’t know who the crowd is, but we can infer that other Jewish people are present, i.e., not just a message to religious leaders. And in the next section we see that John has reached people so that he now has disciples. This speaks to John’s faithfulness in continuing the work that God had given him to do.
John’s Disciples Follow Jesus
35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”
37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?”
They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”
So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.
40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).
In these verses we begin to meet two of John’s disciples and we begin to hear the titles applied to Jesus. We also see the responses and choices of some key people.
Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael
43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.”
44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked.
“Come and see,” said Philip.
47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”
48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked.
Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”
49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”
50 Jesus said, “You believe[h] because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” 51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”
In these verses we see the baton being passed from John to Jesus as His ministry begins. We can again infer from the previous chapter that Philip was a disciple of John the Baptist and like Andrew, when Jesus calls Phillip to follow Him, Philip reaches out to Nathanael. At Nathanael’s skepticism, Philip responds with the words that Jesus had used. ‘Come and See’. ‘The next day’ is a great phrase to use when you are telling a story and suggesting continuity. (Peek ahead to how Chapter 2 begins!)
Lord, thank You for opening our hearts and minds, our eyes, and our ears, to invite us into Your Kingdom through Your Word. Your Word is the compelling story of Your faithful love for us and we are grateful to be called Your children. Be with us to guide us and strengthen us as we move forward in Your love.