SCRIPTURE: JOHN 1
INTRODUCTION:
John was the disciple whom Jesus loved. He wrote the Gospel of John, 1 John, 2 John and 3 John. The Gospel of John was written between 90-100 AD giving a general outline of the life and work of Jesus. He wrote the Gospel of John to prove that Jesus is the Son of God and to invite people to come to Him and be saved. His evidence for the deity of Jesus is being manifested in the miracles he performed, the words He spoke and the testimony of witnesses who knew Him. Luke wrote this book for the Greeks and with the whole world in mind. The miracles he wrote proved that Jesus is the Son of God both human and divine and that all who believe in Him will have eternal life.
THE WORD BECAME FLESH (vs. 1-18)
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
A man named John came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God – children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
The Words became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John testifies saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.”; From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses ; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. no one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side has made him know.
JOHN THE BAPTIST DENIES BEING THE CHRIST (vs. 19-17)
The Jews of Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask who John was. He confessed freely that he was not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet. He said” I am the voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.” (v. 23). Then some Pharisees questioned why John was baptizing people since he was not Christ nor Elijah nor the Prophet. John replied: “I baptize with water but among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.
JESUS THE LAMB OF GOD (vs. 29-34)
When John saw Jesus was coming toward him, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!. This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me. I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel”. Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the holy Spirit.’ I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.”
JESUS’ FIRST DISCIPLES (vs. 35-42)
The next day, John was there with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” (v. 36) When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” (v. 38) They asked him where Jesus was staying. Jesus told them to come with him. So they went with him and spent that day with him.
Andrew the brother of Simon Peter was one of the two disciples who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. He immediately went to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah (Christ)” And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon, son of John. You will be called Cephas” (translated as Peter)
JESUS CALLS PHILIP AND NATHANAEL (vs. 43-51)
The next day, Jesus left for Galilee, He found Philip and told him to follow him. Then 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.” (v. 45). Nathanael asked: “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” (v. 46) Philip told him to come and see. When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false.” Nathanael asked. “How do you know me?” (v. 48). Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”. then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” (v. 49). Jesus said, “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You shall see greater things than that. I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending on the So[n of Man.” (vs 30-31)
THOUGHTS:
WHO IS JESUS?
- He is the Creator – Through him all things were; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men (v. 3-4)
- He is the Savior – He is the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world (v. 29)
- He is the Master – He called people to follow Him and become his disciples. (vs. 39-42)
- He is the Messiah – Andrew introduced Jesus as the Messiah to his brother Simon Peter. (v.41)
Jesus is the creator of life and his life brings true light to mankind. In his light, we see ourselves as sinners in need of a Savior. When we follow Jesus, the true Light, we can avoid walking blindly and falling into sin. His light shows us how to live a victorious life. Let Christ guide your life and shine for Him.
Through faith in Christ, we will be receiving new life from God. This new birth will change our attitudes, desires and motives and keep us spiritually alive in God’s family. Are you willing to let Christ make you a new person? This is available to all who believe in Christ.
Moses emphasized on God’s law and justice while Jesus Christ highlighted God’s mercy, love, faithfulness and forgiveness. Moses was the giver of the law while Christ came to fulfill the law.
John was humble to say the “The one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie” (v. 27) Such a great person felt inadequate even to be Christ’s slave, how much more should we lay aside our pride to serve Christ. When we truly understand who Christ is, our pride and self-importance will melt away.
In Old testament times, a lamb was sacrificed in the Temple for the sins of the people. To pay the penalty for sin, Jesus chose to provide the perfect sacrifice himself. Jesus paid the price of your sin by his death. You can receive forgiveness by confessing your sin to him and asking for his forgiveness.
John the Baptist’s baptism with water was for repentance and symbolized the washing away of sins. Jesus’ baptism involves the sending of the Holy Spirit upon all believers empowering them to live and to teach the message of salvation. John the Baptist’s job was to point people to Jesus. Today, our job is to point people to Christ and show them the Savior.
Andrew accepted John the Baptist’s testimony about Jesus and immediately went to tell his brother Simon. We should follow his example to share the Gospel to our neighbors.
Jesus gave Simon a new name – Cephas in Aramaic. Peter in Greek means ” a rock” Peter became a solid rock in the days of the early church.
Nazareth was despised by the Jews because a Roman army garrison was located there. Some have speculated that an aloof attitude or a poor reputation in morals and religion on the part of the people of Nazareth led to Nathanael’s harsh comment. Nathanael’s hometown was Cana, about four miles from Nazareth
When Nathanael heard that the Messiah was from Nazareth, he was surprised. But he heeded the invitation of Philip and went to meet Jesus and became a disciple. If he had sruck to his prejudice without investigating further, he would have missed the Messiah. Don’t let your prejudice hinder you from experiencing God’s power and love.