The Purpose of John's Gospel

Last week we discussed the gospels in a big picture and the portrait of Christ that they paint as a whole. This week we will be focusing in on John and the specific reasons he wrote his gospel. He had three specific emphases that we touched on a bit last week, but here they are again:

1. To prove the deity of Christ.

2. To cause men to believe in Christ and live.

3. To supplement the Synoptic gospels and supply the details that they do not mention.

Now, in writing his gospel, he had two purposes in mind. Check out John 20:30-31. According to these verses, why did he record what he recorded? Now look at John 21:25. Did he record everything that Jesus did? So, why did John include certain facts that the other gospels did not and omit others that the other gospels included?

Exactly, he wanted to choose only the facts that aided his purpose. So, here are some of the big facts that he did include (Please note that we are going to dig deep into these as we progress through John, so this is only a quick "shout out" to them).

Miracles of Christ:

John records SEVEN key miracles (remember, we know that Christ performed at least 40 and John says that there aren't enough books in the world to record all Christ did, so this is a small number)

1. John 2:1-11: Water into Wine

2. John 4:46-54: Jesus heals a nobleman's son

3. John 5:1-27: Jesus heals a lame man

4. John 6:1-14: Jesus feeds the 5,000

5. John 6:15-21: Jesus walks on water

6. John 9: 1-41: Jesus heals a blind man

7. John 11:1-57: Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead

Of course, Christ's resurrection is also a miracle, but we put that one in a whole other ball park)

Each of these miracles shows Christ's power over the universe in a different way.

1. Water into Wine: Power over the Creation

2. Healing the nobleman's son: Power over space/distance

3. Healing a lame man: Power over time

4. Feeding of the 5,000: Power over food

5. Walking on water: Power over natural laws

6. Healing a blind man: Power over physical laws

7. Raising Lazarus from the dead: Power over death

So, looking at these seven miracles, why do you think John chose only these seven? Think about these, and let's move onto the next set of facts that John included in order to prove his point.

Words of Christ:

John records the eleven times that Christ uses the particular phrase "I AM." Why is this phrase so important that John would take the time to include this in his gospel? These eleven uses reveal fourteen different things that Christ claimed to be.

1. John 4:25-26 “I AM the Messiah”
2. John 6:35 “I AM the bread of life”
3. John 8:58 “Before Abraham was I AM”
4. John 9:5 “I AM the light of the world”
5. John 10:7 “I AM the door of the sheep”
6. John 10:11 “I AM the good Shepard”
7. John 11:25 “I AM the resurrection and the life”
8. John 13:13 “Ye call me Master and Lord”
9. John 14:6 “I AM the way, the truth, and the life”
10. John 15:1 “I AM the true vine”
11. John 18:5 “I AM He,” meaning Jesus of Nazareth

Why do you think John chose to focus on these eleven particular phrases? Before we finally get into the purpose of John, here are the last set of facts that John chose to include in his gospel to support his purpose.

Testimonies:

John recorded the seven testimonies of different people who testify to Christ's deity. Here they are:

1. John 1:34—John the Baptist: “This is the Son of God”
2. John 1:49—Nathanael: “Thou art the Son of God, the King of Israel”
3. John 6:69—Peter: “We believe and are sure that thou art the Christ, the Son of God”
4. John 10:36—Jesus: “I am the Son of God”
5. John 11:27—Martha: “Yes Lord, I believe thou art the Christ, the Son of God”
6. John 20:28—Thomas: “My Lord and my God”
7. John 20:31—John the Apostle: “These are written that ye might believe that He is the Christ, the Son of God.”

Remember, I said John used Christ's words more than his own? Take a look at number 4, there is one example of John doing just that.

So, let's talk purposes. John has two. Purpose number one, to cause men to believe that Jesus is the Christ (John 20:31). Purpose number two, to show us how to obtain life through His name (John 20:31).

Purpose #1: To Cause Men To Believe That Jesus Is The Christ.

The word "Christ" means "the anointed one." It is also the Greek word for Messiah. It was important to John to prove that Jesus was the Christ/Messiah because the Jews, the ones that God promised a Messiah to, had rejected Christ as the Messiah. They had been looking for him for 2,000 years, studying the prophets for every detail of what the promised Messiah would be like. And yet, when Christ came to earth, they rejected him. I can't help but wonder why? If they new the prophets frontwards, backwards, and upside down, how could they explain Christ away so easily? The answer is that they were spiritually blind. More than that, they (speaking of the leaders) were morally corrupt. No longer did they want a spiritual leader. They were the spiritual leader, so when Christ comes in saying they are "white washed tombs," they lost all credibility and power with the people. Not only that, but they wanted a political leader who would be their pawn and overthrow the Romans and revive Israel as the great country of David's and Solomon's days. They didn't want to bother with spiritual revival. So John had to re-establish for the Jews and the world that Christ was the Messiah, despite the fact that the very men who should have recognized him rejected him. There's purpose one.

Purpose #2: To Show Us How To Obtain Life Through His Name

John wrote his gospel in such a way as to draw a response from the reader. He wants us to not only believe that Jesus Christ was the promised Messiah, but he also wants us to put our faith in Him. Look at John 20:31; he makes it very clear that he wants each person to make a choice. Not only to believe that Jesus was the Christ, but to believe in Him and place our trust in Him.

So, those answer emphases 1 and 2. Now for emphasis 3. John also wrote his gospel to supplement the synoptic gospels, to cover and explain parts that they did not. He wrote his gospel after the other three, so it makes sense that he uses his to wrap up any loose ends. His gospel does parallel the other three, but he also includes details that are not found in Matthew, Mark, or Luke. In fact, the majority of John deals with Christ's Judean and Jerusalem ministry, while the other gospels only mention one visit of Christ to Jerusalem during His ministry, and that was for His death! So, obviously, being a Jewish man, Christ couldn't have only visited Jerusalem once. We, therefore, look to John for the other times that Christ visited Jerusalem.

Jewish Feasts:

John centers his gospel on major Jewish feasts. For Jewish feasts, it was both tradition and a requirement that all able-bodied, Jewish men travel to Jerusalem to celebrate these feasts. So, John uses those feasts and Christ's visits to Jerusalem to anchor his gospel and provide his reader with a timeline. The four feasts that we are going to overview this time are the four Passovers that occurred during Christ's ministry.

Passover #1: "Lord of the Temple"

John 2:13-22

Go ahead and read the passage. This event tells us a few things about Christ. First of all, it demonstrates his courage. Why? Secondly, His strength and power. Again, why? This is one of the first major events John records and he starts off with a BANG! Picture what this event looked like and put yourself in the shoes of Christ's followers and the on-lookers. How would you have felt? What would you have thought about Christ?

Passover #2: "Lord of the Sabbath"

John 5:1-17

I want to discuss this one more, so after reading it, try to think of why the title "Lord of the Sabbath" fits Christ for this passover.

Passover #3: Christ did not attend this one

John 6:1-15

What do you think Christ was proving by not attending this Passover? Why do you think John recorded it anyways?

Passover #4: "Lord of Life"

John 18-19

This one is an obvious one. This is the recording of Christ's Last Supper, arrest, trial, crucifixion, and resurrection. we will spend the last several weeks of this study digging deep into this passage, so hold off on any major study of these chapters for now.

Again, this is a lot of material to take in. This week we will also go over a quick overview of John's timeline, but for now, just meditate on each of these ideas that John presents and think about how each one proves his point. And, like last week, after reading all of this, ask yourself the question that is at the heart of John's message,

"Who is Jesus Christ to you?"

The Background of John

OK, here goes....



Last week I said that John is my favorite gospel and I have to say again, after looking over my notes, it really is my favorite gospel! And I'm not alone. John's gospel is considered the most loved gospel of the four gospels.



When I go to heaven, the two disciples I want to meet the most are Peter (I mean, really, how many of you can identify with his "foot in mouth" approach to life? I know I can!) and John. John's passion and love for Christ are seen throughout his book and I am so excited to share with you what I have learned. Please don't judge me too much in my writing or teaching. I really hope to just share with you everything that I have learned.



As we approach this gospel, please keep in mind that the gospel of John is completely unique. It is truly John's defense for who Christ is, starting with John 1 as his "thesis statement", the rest of John presenting his points/arguments, and ending with John 21 as his "closing statement," with John ending with "This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true." (John 21:24). I LOVE THAT STATEMENT!!!! It's like "Bam! Just prove me wrong!" Or, in the words of a favorite TV show, "Lawyered!"





So, take a big breath, because there is a lot to pack into "the background" of John, so this blog will be a long one. Before I try to dig into that, here are some fun facts about John.

*Although the deity of Christ (we will get into this more later) is the theme of John, the name Jesus is used more often than the name of Christ.

*The word "believe" is used more than 100 times in the book of John, while the other three gospels combined use it only forty times.

*The word "faith" does not occur once in the book of John.

*The idea of eternal life appears 35 times in John, but only 12 other times in the other three gospels.

*The other gospels are considered "historical" gospels, while John is considered to be a "spiritual" gospel.

DATE:



The date of writing for John has been much disputed over the years. We know that it was the last gospel to be written. There have been some who have suggested as late as 150 AD, some 90-94 AD, and others 85-90 AD. Most recent discoveries now suggest that John as probably written around 80-90 AD. In fact, the oldest surviving copy of any portion of Scripture comes from John's gospel!



AUTHOR:



Of course everyone assumes that John is the gospel writer, but here is how we definitely know that he was the writer. If you read John 21:20-24, it says that the author of the gospel is "the one whom Jesus loves." Luke 6:14-16 tells us the names of all of the disciples, and these names also appear in John, with the exception of John's name, so we deduce that this "is the one whom Jesus loved." We also know that John was Jesus' cousin, the son of Salome, Mary's sister. John was most likely very young when he followed Christ, probably in his teens.



ROLE:



Let's talk about John's gospel's place with the other three gospels. The word gospel means "good news". The concept of a gospel is defined in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 (go ahead and look that one up). A gospel, to be considered the good news of God, must contain three elements. What do you think they are? We will talk about this one this week.



Matthew, Mark, and Luke are all considered to be "synoptic gospels." The word synoptic comes from the Greek words "syn" (together or alike) and "optic" (to see). Basically, it means that they "see alike." Their goal in writing was to present the straight, historic facts. John, however, is an evangelistic gospel. His goal, rather than just presenting historic facts, was to cause men to trust Christ for salvation (remember the thesis paper idea?).



THE FOUR GOSPELS IN A NUTSHELL: Again, to get a good grip on John, we need to understand his purpose and it helps to see the purpose of each gospel writer. I love how they all fit together like a puzzle.

A Portrait of Christ:

Each Gospel writer had an "agenda" of sorts. He wanted to display Christ in a certain light, focusing on certain aspects of Christ's walk on earth.

Matthew: Christ as King

Mark: Christ as Servant

Luke: Christ as Man

John: Christ God

I love how each of these covers the opposite of the other, covering the full portrait of Christ when viewed all together.

Prominent Words:

These are the words that are found most often in each gospel. Do you see how each of these words line up with the portrait each gospel writer sought to display?

Matthew: Fulfilled

Mark: Straightway, or Right away

Luke: Son of Man

John: Believe

Audience:

Each gospel writer had a certain audience in mind when writing, which also explains why they sought to portray Christ in a certain role. After seeing who they wrote to, why do you think they sought to portray Christ in that specific role?

Matthew: The Jews

Mark: The Romans

Luke: The Greeks

John: All people

(we will look at in more detail this week why he wrote to all people)

Emphasis:

Each gospel writer focused on a certain action of Christ during his time on earth. Again, notice how each of these lines up with the portrait of Christ the gospel writer was presenting.

Matthew: Christ's Words

Mark: Christ's Works

Luke: Christ's Humanity

John: Christ's Deity

Outstanding Sections:

These are the specific actions that each gospel writer focused on, following from what was mentioned above. Why would these impact each people group?

Matthew: Christ's Sermons

Mark: Christ's Miracles

Luke: The Details of Christ's birth and crucifixion

John: Christ's claims to deity (both words and miracles)

UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS:

OK, as we wrap up the background of John, here are some characteristics that set John apart from the other gospels:

~John emphasized evangelism, not history.

~John only recorded seven miracles.

~John focused on Judea rather than on Galilee

~John used Christ's words about himself more than he used his own words.

I know, this is a lot to read and take in. So here are some questions to consider this week:


1. 1 Corinthians 15:1-4: What are the three elements of a gospel?
2. Why do you think John is the most loved gospel?
3. Why do you think each gospel writer focused on the above categories? What parallels can you see?
4. John presented through his gospel who Jesus Christ is to him. After presenting his thesis and argument, his question to us becomes "Who is Jesus Christ to you?"