Seen: The Gospel of John
Week 9 – John 11:1-44
Passage Intro The Gospel of John documents seven signs, or miracles, that Jesus did during his ministry that were meant to help people see that he was the Messiah (John also mentions that Jesus did a number of other signs he didn’t document;...
Deep Dive: Notes About John 9:39-41
Note about v.39-41After healing the blind man, Jesus gives insight into part of his purpose on earth; Jesus came both to pronounce God’s favor on the far off (Matt.5:1-11; Luk.4:18-19) and to pronounce judgement on those whose lips honored God but whose hearts were...
Week 8 – John 9:1-41
Passage Intro Every time Jesus healed someone he was communicating some deeper truth about himself; Jesus’ miracles were always a sign pointing to something greater. At bare minimum it was that God was at work through him, so people should listen to his words, but...
Deep Dive: Textual Concerns in John 8:1-11
Textual Concerns To start, you should know that tons of research has been done about this specific passage, and plenty of faithful Christians see this story as either the authoritative Word of God (such as RC Sproul) or, at the very least, as an account of an actual...
Week 7 – John 8:1-11
Passage Intro Many of your Bibles will put a heading over this passage saying something like “The earliest manuscripts do not include 7:53-8:11.” At first glance this may seem concerning, either for you or for folks in your group. You’ll see my thoughts about the...
Week 6 – John 5:1-17
Passage Intro In some ways this passage is about the disabled man, and in some ways it isn’t. Certainly Jesus had compassion on this man, whose four decades of disability had surely beaten him down. For some reason Jesus singled him out from the...
Week 5 – John 4:46-54
Passage Intro There are two linguistic notes that'll help us get started with this passage. First off, the “official" introduced in v.46 isn’t described in much detail, but the Greek title basilikós, here translated as “official” is rendered in...
Week 4 – John 4:1-30
Passage Intro You've probably already heard about the deep-seated racial tension that existed between Samaritans and Jews during the New Testament era. Grasping Jewish disdain for Samaritans in the first century is crucial to understanding...
Week 3 – John 3:1-21
Passage Intro The Gospels are a lot funnier than they get credit for. Here in John 3 we have a Pharisee named Nicodemus sneaking over to Jesus under cover of night to ask him some questions. He tries to small-talk for a minute but Jesus...
Week 2 – John 1:35-51
Passage Intro Recalling last week, John introduced his Gospel by painting a grand image of Jesus, God Almighty, through whom all of heaven and earth was created, coming into the world and bringing light to mankind. In verses 19-34 John the...
Week 1 – John 1:1-18
Passage Intro This week we’re studying the Prologue of John’s Gospel, John 1:1-18. Famously mysterious, John's introduction is layered with metaphorical language and historical overtones, introducing many of the themes that will dominate his...