John (Chapters 1-11)

Understand the Context (John 1:1-18)  

The Gospel according to John was written after the other three Gospels, and as such, John had opportunity to review and supplement what he saw.  First, John saw a need to go beyond Luke’s admitted purpose to report only the witnessed facts. John went from the intent for convincing arguments to the revealing truth from the Father that Jesus was divine from beginning to end. He was with the Father, was the Word, the Word was God and the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us (vss, 1 & 14). John called himself the Apostle Jesus loved indicting a closeness he felt to the Master. With that closeness came an overwhelming awareness that Jesus was more than a great man or astute prophet. While it was Peter who first stated that “Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God,” it was John who was the longest living Apostle and as a life-long prisoner on Patmos, had the most time for meditating on the Christ and His teachings (Matt 16:16 & John 6:69). 

Even secular writers recognize the triune aspect of the human existence as containing physical, emotional and spiritual components. Denial or an excessive concentration on any one of the three results in an unbalance which lacks contentment. John’s awareness of who Jesus was (and is) fulfilled his spiritual needs and drove him to document his findings for the rest of us. Jesus was/is God and lowered Himself from Heaven to live among us as a human. 

Jesus’ purpose in life was documented clearly as “He came to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). Jesus came here because “God so loved the world [all of humanity] that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believed in Him would not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).  Jesus was quoted by John to say from the cross, “It is finished!” (John 19:30). The actual Greek statement uncovers a much more intense meaning than those three English words state. The root word for the Greek is telos. It means the debt is discharged and would be a word written on every bill that was paid off by the debtor. But Jesus’ cry from the cross was the Greek word containing all of the Greek verb tenses available. The word was tetelestai and meant the past, present, future and all-time debt was paid forever. That is how Paul can write, “There is now, therefore, no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:1). It is because Paul, along with John, knew that Jesus said “the sin debt for all mankind has now been paid for all time.” Sin can no longer be used to separate the believer from his Creator, it was truly finished when Jesus declared it so! So, Jesus is God because He is eternal, He is the Creator, He was incarnate, and it was revealed to the baptizer who declared it so. 

Was the Word (John 1:1-5)

The titles for each of these three paragraphs of study are intended to complete the overall subject “In the Beginning.” So, this first section is “In the beginning was the Word.” The Greek word for “Word” is logos. It is the totality of the subject or person; i.e., all that can be known; the full rationality or reason for existence. Saying that the Logos was “in the beginning” means that before anything else was, the Logos was already here. This speaks of the Logos in eternity past. 

The idea John is communicating is that there was no starting place or time for the Logos. He was there before there was “a there,” and He was there before there was time. John tells us that the Word, like God (Greek: Theos), had no beginning. So, in eternity past, the Word was already there. John says, “The Word was there with God, and the Word was God” (vs. 1). John identifies the Word as being everything there is to know about God, in fact he says, He is God, Himself. Those who have problems with the Trinity have big problems with the beginning of John’s Gospel.  

The wording of Genesis 1:1 lends a little more information for this concept. Moses writes, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” The Hebrew word for God there is Elohiym, and it is used throughout the Old Testament. It is a plural, masculine noun which begins as specifically three and can be larger numbers when that number is included with the word, for example, Elohiym-6means the word includes six. But, since there is no number, it is understood to be three. So, in the beginning there were three ways God chose to manifest or show Himself. There were not three Gods; there were (and is) three ways God revealed Himself. Today, we understand the three are the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Logos of John 1:1 was there in the beginning under the Hebrew name of Elohiym. This knowledge will also apply when we interpret John 1:3 which attributes the creation of “all that was made” to the Word and learn in John 1:14 that “the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”  “The only begotten of the Father” refers to Jesus, the Christ. Jesus of Nazareth is the incarnate Christ (Greek) and Messiah (Hebrew) of God. While the man, Jesus of Nazareth had a birth we celebrate on Christmas, the preincarnate Christ had no beginning nor will He have an end. As stated earlier, He is from eternity past and will continue through eternity future, no beginning nor end. Recall how angry the scribes and pharisees became when Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58).  They said He was calling Himself God because He said that He preexisted Abraham, and He used the name God told Moses to use if the Pharaoh asked who sent him. 

In verses 4 and 5, the concept of life existing in the Word is added. Further, the life in the Word was the light for and of all mankind. What John is explaining is the work of the spirit of mankind and the Holy Spirit of God. It is, in fact, the spirit which gives life to the person and the Holy Spirit who gives life to the God Head and provides the light of man and God alike. Imagine a person without his spirit or the Spirit of God within. The spirit of man provides the personality, will, drive, motive and motivation. Yet, the spirit of man can allow him to follow good or evil paths. The light that God provided for man comes from the Holy Spirit as God desires that Spirit to reside in the hearts of all mankind who believe God. Without it, life can only be a shell of what it could have been.  

Verse 5 provides the summary of the dilemma, the light of the Spirit of God shined out from the Savior, but the darkness into which it shined could not understand it, so chose to rejected it. John indeed introduced the crux of why God sent His only Son, whom He loved beyond comprehension, to save mankind by suffering the most severe rejection in history. Yet, in doing so, He provided a path back to full fellowship with Himself for all who would receive it. “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).  

Made Known (John 1:6-8)

Isaiah prophesied that there would be a “voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God” (Isa 40:3). John the Baptist tells the religious leaders from Jerusalem who were sent to find out who he was that he is that voice (John 1:23).  The Apostle John writes in Verse 1:6 that such a man was sent from God and that his name was John. The Apostle continues that the Baptist was sent to announce or bare witness of the Light that God was providing to help all mankind believe in Him. 

The earthly stage was set and every Jewish believer was looking for the Messiah of the prophecies to come and save them from Roman bondage and total corruption of the Jewish leadership and the priesthood. Just as in the Minor Prophets we studied (Amos, Jonah, Hosea and Micah), Israel and Judah had become become sold out to the foreign secular leaders. The taxes laid upon them by the religious leaders and the Romans was taking so much of their wealth that only the richest among them could live comfortably. The brutality of law enforcement was making daily life intolerable. They had studied the Scriptures and understood the Messiah coming to make all things right. They believed that He would shut down the corruption, defeat the Roman occupiers and return their land to them. So, when the Pharisees heard the words from John as he quoted Isaiah’s prophecy, they should have been exceptionally happy. They were seeing Isaiah 40:3 come to life in their sight, but they would not believe.

John the Baptist wanted to be very clear in his response to the Pharisees concerning his identity. Verse 8 records that he told them he was certainly not the promised Light, but that he was sent to deliver the message of the coming Light. The Baptist wanted to make sure there was no ambiguity in his message. The corruption of the religious leaders was predictable. Recall that 30 years earlier, when the wise men came from the east, they inquired of Herod’s government where the King of the Jews might be and that resulted in Herod tasking his Jewish religious advisors to tell him. They studied and found that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2).     They found that the messiah would be declared in 69 weeks of years after the command to rebuild Jerusalem was given (Dan 9:25). They found that command in Nehemiah 2:6 and calculated 173,880 days later to determine His announcement as Messiah in Jerusalem. They subtracted 30 years and told Herod the Messiah was born two years earlier in Bethlehem.  

Herod ordered the murder of all male babies under two years old throughout the area in and around Bethlehem . In History, this is called “The Slaughter of the Innocents.” Herod had already murdered previous wives and children who appeared to threaten his throne. He would certainly not let the Baby who would be King live long enough to take his throne, or so he thought. So, the religious leaders at all levels were bought and paid for by Rome or their appointed local leaders. Survival of their positions were much more important to them than the coming of some Jewish Messiah.

Understand the Context (John 1:19-51)

The contexts of the political and religious environments had a great deal of influence on the activities of John the Baptist and Jesus the Christ. On the political side, Israel was occupied and dominated by the Romans. They extracted a great deal of wealth from the Jewish people through their severe taxation program. So, the people were poor and the punishment for disagreeing with political authorities was harsh and could include severe beatings and even death.

The transition to the religious context is simple considering the practice the Romans had for the countries they occupied. Local or national religious practices were only permitted when religion could be used to control the people. If religious practices caused rebellion or threatened Roman control, those practices would be terminated. Termination of religious practices in the Jewish culture would result in the total loss of income for Scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees, Priests and hundreds of support people for those practices. So, the religious leaders had much to gain by controlling the people and making sure there were harsh consequences for anyone threatening peace and tranquility.  

John the Baptist was very clear about his calling into the ministry. He could have allowed others to elevate or reduce his position or his assignment by claiming to be something beyond that calling. The four Gospels make it clear there were many trying to influence him in one way or another, but that was not the way the well-grounded, called minister of God conducted their ministries. John denied he was the Messiah (Hebrew) or the Christ (Greek). He also denied he was the risen prophet, Elijah.  John was crystal clear about who he was and about how he fit into the ministry of Jesus Christ. He knew and understood Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ of God. And he knew that he was “the voice of one crying in the wilderness” prophesied in Isaiah 40:3-5. Nevertheless, John was seen as a threat to religious leaders and Rome  from the beginning. As the numbers of people who heard his preaching and came to him for baptism grew, he became a clear threat to peace and good order.

When Jesus came on the scene, He brought into question the legitimacy of the Jewish religious structure. John was already verbally attacking Herod’s morals in marrying his brother’s wife. With the coming of Jesus, and the common belief that the Messiah would overthrow the Roman government and restore the leadership of the Jews, the threat was clear and the idea of terminating both Jesus and John were quick to become popular.

John called attention to Jesus by recognizing Him as he approached him for baptism. John said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).  Here we have a perfect example of the natural spreading of faith in Jesus Christ through  routine communication . Andrew heard John and went to Jesus to join Him. Andrew told his brother, Simon (later named Peter) and Philip told Nathanael (also known as Bartholomew). They said Jesus seemed to be the promised Messiah, the Christ. This activity doubled the interest in Jesus in the same day. Once this growth turned into thousands of people coming from all around Israel and adjacent countries, John and Jesus were seen as threats to religious and political security. 

Andrew and Peter (John 1:40-42)

 In John 1:40, Andrew and another disciple of John the Baptist (probably John, one of the sons of Zebedee) hears him call Jesus the Lamb of God for the second time in as many days. It was typical for John, the writer of this Gospel, not to mention his name in his writings. The closest he comes is to call himself the disciple Jesus loved in John 13:23, 19:26, 20:2, 21:7 and 21:20.  Andrew asked to see where Jesus lived and spent the day with Him there.  After deciding the follow Jesus, Andrew sought out his brother, Simon, to tell him of his decision. He also told Simon they had found the Messiah which would be the Christ. Simon was Andrew’s brother and they lived in the same home. Notice how natural it was for Andrew to tell Simon who he met and who he thought that man might be.  

Verse 42 says that when Jesus saw Simon, he identified him as Simon but added that he was the son of Jona, and that he would be called Cephas or Peter, meaning a small rock. This name is a form of prophecy because it was Peter who first confessed Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the Living God (Matt 16:16 & John 6:69). Jesus' response was that Peter did not get this revelation from Himself but from the Father, and that He would build His church upon that rock (Matt 16:18). There are entire denominations that build their theology on Peter being the rock upon which the church is built, but the Greek words used here deny that belief. The word for Peter is Petros (male noun) while the word for rock is petra (female noun). Further, Petros is a small rock or stone, while petra is a much larger rock. In short, Jesus was saying that He would build His church upon the rock of Peter’s faith, as demonstrated by his confession of faith in Jesus being the Messiah, the Son of the Living God. Paul says it clearly, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” (Eph 2:8). Further, Dr. Luke tells us, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). There is no salvation in Peter;  only in Jesus Christ alone, by grace alone, through faith alone. 

Philip (John 1:43-46)

Unlike the situation of Andrew where he heard John call Jesus the Lamb of God and went to talk with Him, Jesus went to Galilee to find Philip. John 1:43 says it was the day after Jesus’ encounter with Andrew and Peter. Verse 43 testifies to Jesus’s brevity in simply saying to Nathanael, “Follow me.” (vs. 43). John does not quote a sermon from Jesus on this occasion, it was simply a call of Philip and a documentation of Philip’s response. The only additional information on Philip in Chapter 1 is that he was a resident of the same city where Andrew and Peter lived, Bethsaida. It seems that Philip began his evangelistic work immediately after accepting Jesus’ invitation for himself.  

Verse 45 tells us that Philip went to find Nathanael. Philip explained to him that he believed they (Philip and the others with him when Jesus came for him) had found the person of whom Moses wrote of in the Law and others wrote of in the prophets. The implication was that Philip identified Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah just as the others had. Philip added that Jesus had come from Nazareth and was the son of a man named Joseph. Nathanael’s response has gone down in history. He asked, “Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?” His question may have been a little more well informed than it seemed at first hearing. Recall that the religious leaders assigned the Herod’s court had no difficulty at all telling Herod that the “King of the Jews” had been born in the town of Bethlehem (Matt 2:5-7). It seems that Herod figured the child was born when the star appeared to the wise men, so he asked them when that was. The religious advisors to Herod told him the child was born in Bethlehem and the wise men told Herod they had been traveling for two years following the star. 

Nathanael’s question on whether any good thing could come out of Nazareth probably related to his knowledge that the Messiah had to be born in Bethlehem, the City of David. But he neglected two more prophecies which had to be fulfilled. Jesus would be a Nazarene and He must come out of Egypt. So, the answer is found in Matthew 2:23, “And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene.” And recall that Joseph was visited by an angel and told to leave Bethlehem and go to Egypt until King Herod was dead (Matt 2:19-21). So, it was all true: Jesus was born in Bethlehem, He escaped to Egypt and came back out after Herod was dead, and He lived in Nazareth until He began His ministry when He was about 30. So, He was called a Nazarene! 

Understand the Context (John 2:1-25)

This study in John leaves the introductory remarks of Chapter 1 and moves directly into the ministry of Jesus Christ. The miracle generally recognized as Jesus’ first was the one at the wedding supper at Cana of Galilee (John 2:1-11). Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding and the subsequent wedding reception. Verse 3 comes to the crux of the challenge for Jesus to move into action quickly. It seems that the host of the celebration did not order sufficient wine for the supper guests, and they wanted more than there was in supply. Mary, Jesus’ mother approaches Jesus with the simple statement, “They have no wine.” Verse 4 records Jesus’ response as “Woman, what have I to do with thee? Mine hour is not yet come.” Jesus was reluctant to take action on the problem because He did not believe it was the right time for Him to be revealed as a miracle worker and initiate His ministry as Messiah. Mary, being as mothers tend to be, told the servants of the supper to do whatever Jesus ask of them. Now, Jesus is faced with the dilemma: He can insist on doing nothing and make Mary look foolish or take action and reveal His power before “His time had come.” Jesus chose to honor His mother’s request and take action.

Jesus noticed six stone waterpots usually used for ceremonial purification. Each of them could hold two or three firkins of water (nine imperial gallons or 10.8 US gallons). Jesus asked the servants to fill the pots to the brim. Jesus then told the servants to draw out from the pots for the governor of the feast. When the governor tasted of that which was draw from the pots, he said, “Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now” (John 2:10). Verse 11 states that this was the beginning of Jesus’ miracles.

The rest of the context for this study is set near the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. First, Jesus noticed that the court of the Temple was being used for the buying and selling of animals for sacrifice and for exchanging foreign money for money accepted at the Temple. Jesus’ violent reaction to the merchants indicated that He saw something in the way they conducted business that was inconsistent with the ethics of the nearby Temple. He overturned their tables and chased them off.

Second, when Jesus was pressed by the Jewish religious leaders to show a sign for why He cast the merchants out of the courtyard. Jesus said if they destroyed this temple, He would raise it in three days. The ensuing discussion completes the context of this study.

Glory Shown (John 2:11-12)

John 2:11 verifies that the miracle of changing water to wine at the marriage feast in Cana of Galilee was Jesus first miracle. The verse adds that the miracle brought glory to Jesus just as He was concerned it would. Jesus said to Mary that it was not yet His time. In other words, He did not think it was time to draw attention to himself and allow some to see that He was the Messiah, or Christ of God. He knew the miracle would not be something discretely done and held close to the one location. That kind of an event would be repeated far and wide and the rumor would fly that Jesus might be the Christ. But Verse 11 tells of another outcome of the event: it says. “and His disciples believed on Him.” 

John forces a bit of an ambiguity in his writing here and throughout his Gospel. He uses the Greek word mathetes for His learners or followers whether He means the mass of followers or the specifically chosen 12.  This event is very early in His ministry, so He may have only hundreds of disciples, but we only know of 6 Apostles (Greek: apostolos) at this time (Andrew, Peter, James, John, Philip and Nathanael). At the wedding feast, it is likely it was only the six apostles who came with Him rather than the hundreds of disciples.  Nevertheless, their belief in Him would determine whether the Gospel would be told far and wide or merely reach only a few. At this reading, we know that Christianity spread like wildfire throughout the known world. 

Verse 12 seems to signal a transition from the wedding feast in Cana to another short stay in the town of Capernaum. Note, however, that it specifically mentions Jesus’ travel there including His mother, His brethren and His disciples. The word “brethren” here is the Greek word used for physical brothers or close friends or associates (adelphos). This the same word used when the context makes it clear that the writer means the male children related to Jesus as in Matthew 12:46 where His mother and brother were asking to speak with Him. The point being that we can only see the difference between male family members and male associates by the context of the writing not the Greek words used. At any rate, John 2:12 says that Jesus was now headed for a short stay at Capernaum. We know that Capernaum becomes His home for some period of His ministry later.

Worship Expected (John 2:13-17)

Now we see the first Passover attended at the Temple in Jerusalem by Jesus. Recall that the celebration of Passover was in remembrance of God’s promise to kill the first-born in all Egypt except in those homes having the blood of an unblemished lamb sprinkled on their doorposts. Those homes God promised to “Passover” without any action at all. The Passover was one of the holy days required for Jews to attend in Jerusalem. As Jesus approached the Temple, He found the courtyard full of merchants buying and selling oxen, sheep and doves, as well as money changers (John 2:14). On the surface, having these venders so close to where sacrifices were given would seem like a great convenience. Various kinds of animals were identified for the difference kinds of offerings. Further, different kinds of animals were offered because of the offeror’s capability to purchase such. Recall that the Law required a pair of turtledoves or pigeons to be offered to the Lord at the dedication of every male child to Him (Lev 14:22 & Luke 2:24). Mary and Joseph complied. It was difficult at best to bring an animal without blemish from all over the realm to the Temple without damage or hurt which would disqualify that sacrifice. Also, the Law required half a shekel tribute for the Temple service (Exo 30:11-16), yet most people were using Roman currency and required a money changer to buy a half shekel coin for the tribute. For these reasons, the sellers and money changers were a convenience and not evil things.

All three synoptic Gospels quoted Jesus as saying of the merchants, “It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves” (Isa 56:7, Jer 7:11, Matt 21:13, Mark 11:17 & Luke 19:46). Clearly Jesus saw a direct application of these words, made a whip out of some chords, overturned their tables and drove them out from the Temple grounds. It is acknowledged that the quoting from the synoptic Gospels was from Jesus’ second cleansing of the Temple while the discussion in John regards Jesus’ first cleansing of the Temple. At this cleansing, only documented in John, the apostles recalled the writings of Psalms 69:9 saying, “The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.” Regardless, the teaching moment is centered more around how they were doing business rather than the services they provided.   Clearly, Jesus expected worship at the Temple and not ruthless profit taking.

Understand the Context (John 3:1-36)

John Chapter 3 contains some of the most familiar passages of Scripture in the entire Canon. Certainly, John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” in full or in part has been quoted in every media available. It seems to be displayed at nearly every sporting event being televised as a John 3:16 placard in the audience, on a wall or in the stands. But the literature and events leading up to 3:16 are repeated thousands of times a day as evangelists attempt to explain spiritual truths to those unfamiliar with the spiritual realm. 

Nicodemus was announced as a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee (John 3:1). He was recognized as a leader within the highest Jewish religious order, the Sanhedrin. The first notable action taken by Nicodemus is that he went to met with Jesus in the dark of the evening (vs. 2). This has two important meanings. First, meeting in the dark of the night means Nicodemus did not intend for the meeting to be either official Sanhedrin business or even noticed by others. Second however, for a leader in the Sanhedrin to meet with Jesus, in secret or otherwise, acknowledged the reality of the Messiah’s message and added recognition and legitimacy to it. Nicodemus’ words “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you” are almost earth-shaking while standing alone (John 3:2, NLT).  But Jesus gets immediately to the personal issue at hand for Nicodemus.  He left the corporate issues of the Sanhedrin behind. Jesus informed Nicodemus, a highly respected scholar and leader that unless he is born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God (vs. 3). 

Nicodemus’ response accomplishes exactly what any evangelist could hope for; he says “how can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again” (vs. 3). This reveals to Jesus (and any other evangelist tuned in) that Nicodemus is only thinking of, or only has knowledge of, the physical side of life. This verse introduces the focal verses of our study (vss, 4-18), so more will be said on these later.

Continuing with the context of the study, Jesus was introducing a radically new way of understanding one’s relationship with God. Jesus, armed with Nicodemus’ revelation of having no spiritual thoughts, explained that one requires a spiritual rebirth to enter God’s domain. Speaking these words to a “holy man of Israel” was the opposite of what any person would believe. But Jesus knew He was the only source of this rebirth and without it, people would remain condemned with no hope. Jesus came specifically to usher everyone who believed in Him into God’s spiritual domain. It would always remain the choice of the worshipper, but only rebirth can move one from condemnation into oneness with God and a new life as a son or daughter of the Most High.

Next, starting at verse 3:22, John documents what the relationship was between Jesus’ teachings and those of John the Baptist. Basically, John came to make straight the path of the Messiah. He came to baptize with water for the repentance from sin. Jesus was sent to baptize with fire and the Holy Spirit which begins the spiritual walk with God in complete forgiveness of sin.

Born Again? (John 3:4-8)

 Nicodemus’ response to Jesus’ statement that a person must be born again was met with a confession from Nicodemus that he was totally unaware of the spiritual rebirth and a person’s need for that rebirth (vss. 3-4). Jesus was now armed with specific information regarding where to begin His discussion with Nicodemus on his spiritual walk with God. Notice again that there was no one more highly educated, full of lifetime preparation, more highly placed in the religious organization, nor practiced in the Hebrew faith than was Nicodemus. This should be an obvious revelation that a relationship with God is not about practicing a religion; rather, it is all about living in an active relationship with God.  

Jesus explains in the next chapter that, “God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). Jewish worship was focused on the physical aspects of faith as represented by the sacrificial system of Jesus’ time. When one sinned, one would bring an appropriate animal to the Temple for sacrificing, and thereby, one was returned to a right relationship with God.  Few worshippers seemed to remember King David’s words when the Prophet Nathan confronted him with the gravity of his sin with Bathsheba.  David said, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise” (Psa 51:17). Getting right with God, in Nicodemus’ eyes to this point in time, was comprised of keeping up with his obedience to the Law. Jesus was implementing what King David already knew; a correct relationship with God (who is spirit) must be done through one’s heart and in the spirit, not just the physical. The physical response to God must be driven by one’s spiritual relationship to Him. This realization and one’s surrender to it, form the crux of being “born again.” Not the physical rebirth Nicodemus’ question suggests, but a spiritual rebirth of the heart – the most inward center of the spiritual being. God is spirit and those who want to worship Him in His domain must be born again; become spiritual beings as well. Jesus would later assure Nicodemus there was only one way to get there and that was through Jesus Christ. Otherwise, every person will remain in a condemned state. 

In verse 5, Jesus explains that a person needs two births, one of the water of the placenta (physical birth) and a second birth of the spirit. Otherwise, that person has no pathway to Heaven. Jesus reemphasizes, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the spirit is spirit” (John 3:6). Jesus summarizes, “So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again’ (vs. 3:7). He compares the spirit to the wind and says, “the wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit” (vs. 3:8). Nevertheless, one must be born again to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  

How? (John 3:9-13)

 Now, we can see the signs of Nicodemus’ opening on this topic. He asks simply, “How are these things possible?” (vs. 3:9). At that question, even Jesus is surprised. He asks how Nicodemus could be a leader of the Sanhedrin (a Master of Israel) and not already know these things? Of course, we ask ourselves the same question when we hear the teachings of church leaders who have no spiritual depth at all. Nicodemus revealed his heart to Jesus and Jesus will now respond. 

 Jesus starts by assuring Nicodemus that He understands that people learn by interpreting what they hear through the lenses of their personal experiences and visions. Nevertheless, Jesus feels that the only way Nicodemus could have missed the idea of spiritual rebirth is that he “heard with ears that could not hear and saw with eyes that could not see.”  Certainly, the testimonies of those sharing their experiences of spiritual rebirth would have triggered some spiritual thoughts in Nicodemus. Jesus summarizes His personal disbelief of Nicodemus’ naiveté on this subject by asking, “If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?” (John 3:12). Jesus continues that it is not like he can ask a person who has already ascended to heaven and returned for help; there are none. Jesus says that Nicodemus could ask the one person who descended from Heaven, and that person is the Son of man (vs. 13). 

The answer to the question of how one is born again begins with responding to what God shows one of Himself. Paul says, “18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; “19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse” (Rom 1:18-20). God’s displeasure with us is revealed to every person in that He has personally revealed it to them. All of us have felt God tugging at us to get our attention. This is the beginning of God’s communication with His creation to cause us to look in His direction and start searching by looking closely at everything He has placed around us. Even secular teachers like Steven Covey in his Seven Habits of Highly Effective People recognize that all people must recognize the existence of a higher authority or Being. As we begin to investigate what He reveals, the curiosity will cause us to reach out to those God has placed around us. This is how the invisible things of life become clearly seen.  God reveals Himself to us through spiritual cravings which drive us to ask for explanations. The more we react to these revelations, the more God will offer. The next step is to believe what God reveals.  Paul's last words in Romans 1:20 are "so that they are without excuse."  God is faithful to reveal Himself to us; our response to Him is expected.

Thirst Quenched (John 4:11-15)

Jesus was resting at the well when the woman from the town of Sychar approached to fill her water pot. The setting of the story begins to reveal more information as it proceeds. Most women would not come to the well when the sun was at its hottest (see vs. 6). It was clear she wanted to do this chore when she thought no one would be at the well. Jesus opened the conversation by asking the woman to draw a drink of water for Him (vs. 7). The woman responds that she could not understand why a Jewish man would be speaking to a Samaritan woman for a drink. Jesus answers that God has a gift for her if she knew to whom she was speaking and that, if she would ask, she could have living water. Living water was that water that fed the well deep below the surface and was cooler, fresher and more desirable. 

She knew Jesus would need a longer rope than the one left at the well if He was to get deep enough for that living water, but she could see He had no rope (vs. 11). She asked, “from where then will you get this living water?” She continues by asking if Jesus was greater than the Patriarch Jacob who gave this well to them. He had partaken of this well himself and his children and his livestock. Jesus answered, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. but those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again.  It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” (vss. 13-14).

That was all the woman at the well needed to know. Jesus said two things having great attraction for her. First, she would never be thirsty again. But the second part of His statement held even greater news for her. We already knew she had come to the well in the hottest part of the day, and she knew the shame of her lifestyle was the reason she wanted to draw water when none of the other ladies were there. With only one common well to draw from for Sychar, the gossip would get around quickly and make her quite unwelcome at the well or any other social gathering. 

Sin Exposed (John 4:16-20)

Jesus knew why God delayed Him at this specific place. He knew that God had a reason for having Him talk with this particular woman. Jesus started this conversation by asking her for a drink of water and know she is asking Him for a taste of the living water He was offering. So, Jesus asked her to call her husband, so He can talk with both of them together. The response of the woman is important for the evangelistic discussion because the woman is going to confess a specific sin to Jesus. She says, “I have no husband” (John 4:17). Many people are drawn to repentance simply because the weight of sin is just too heavy to carry. She comes to the well in the hottest part of the day because she is ashamed of what she thinks many of the other women know. Jesus finishes that equation. He says, “Thou hast well said, I have no husband, for thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that sadist thou truly” (vss. 17-18). Jesus has shared with the woman that she has told some truth, but He knows all the rest.

Her response shows that she is not at the point of denying all that Jesus said, but rather, she confesses that all Jesus said was true by saying “Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet” (vs. 19). 

Now something happens in the discussion here that is not unusual in a conversation with a person who needs to find Christ. The woman, while admitting that Jesus knew her whole sin, has changed the topic of discussion. Recall from earlier that the woman asked Jesus why He as a Jew would ask her as a Samaritan to give Him a drink of water. Now she returns to that issue, namely that all men ought to worship together in Jerusalem. As a matter of fact, the ending of the Jewish Seder Meal said at Passover is said with the Rabbi facing the empty chair at the Seder table, that chair where the Messiah is supposed to join the meal, and says, “Next year with You in Jerusalem.”

True Worship (John 4:21-24)

With the novice evangelist, the temptation would be to prevent any diversion and try to force the woman to stay with her confession and possible acceptance of Jesus as Savior, but not so with Jesus. He is not threatened by a brief division because the woman has confessed sin and admitted that she had spiritual needs. She will not stray far from getting help for her spiritual needs. So, Jesus responds to her diversion by saying, ““Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem.” (John 4:21, NLT). He continued that the Samaritans knew very little about the one they worship, but the Jews know who they worship for salvation is of the Jews (vs. 22). 

Nevertheless, the time is coming, and now it is, says the Lord, that when true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth, because that is the kind of worship the Father wants (John 4:23). This is because, Jesus continues, God is a Spirit; and all those who worship him must worship Him in Spirit and in truth (vs. 24). 

So, Jesus modifies all the past objectives of meeting at the Temple or any other place, to worship God because God is Spirit and truth and can be worshiped from any time, place or other happening.

Understand the Context (John 5:1-47)  

John chapter 5 provides that necessary portal to see God’s heart as He deals with and actively loves His people. We see that heart as He stated, “For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16), and “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). Jesus follows with “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatever I command you” (John 15:14). It is that level of communicated love between the Supreme Deity and His subjects that seems so uneven or disparate when He calls us “His friends.” He is infinitely greater than even the greatest among us, yet John reveals God’s obvious intent to meet us at our level. John 1:10-11 says, “He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.  He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” The concept that the Creator of the Universe would offer a Father-son relationship with us stretches the imagination to its limit, but nevertheless, that is the reality of how much He loves us. 

Still, worshippers have questions on why God will heal some and seem to pass over so many others in need. For example, our focal passages take us to the Pool of Bethesda where Jesus healed a man who had been lame for 38 years while leaving dozens unhealed (John 5:1-9a). Those not healed had other diseases, some not as severe, some even more severe. We read later that the Apostles healed so many people that they began to line the streets with the ill and demon possessed in hope that even the shadow of Peter might fall on them and they would be healed (Acts 5:15). Acts 5:16 says they were all healed. Jesus had used the healing at the Pool to declare His deity. He taught that His judgement, power and authority were not of any human source but directly from God. He was empowered through divine sources, not human. As Jesus returns to Jerusalem for one of the holy days, the healing at the Pool of Bethesda reignites the anger and jealousy of the Jewish leaders. They just cannot seem to control this Jesus nor His Apostles.

Compassion Expressed (John 5:5-9a)

John 5:1-4 presents the background of the beliefs of those gathering at the sides of the Pool of Bethesda. The belief was that an angel would pass by the Pool and the first ill person entering the water after the angel caused waves would be healed of whatever disease or possession they had. The man of John 5:5 – 9a was one of those believers. He had been lame for 38 years, yet whenever the waters of the Pool were troubled, many of those less lame could get into the Pool before he could, so he would remain lame to wait for another visit by the angel. But verse 6 tells us that when Jesus saw this man, He knew that he had been there a long time and simply asked him if he would like to be whole or healed.

The lame man began to explain to the Lord why he had been there so long yet could not be made whole (vs. 7). He believed it was because he was unable to make it to the water in his own power, and he had no one to help him get to the water before the more bodily able could get there. Someone else always got there before he could. But, Jesus had no concern about the tradition surrounding the Pool nor any other reason why the lame man might remain in his disease. Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up thy bed, and walk” (John 5:8). The man believed Jesus, gathered up his bedclothes and walked away with them (vs. 9a). He had spent 38 years in grief, trying to make it to the Pool as quickly as he could, but all Jesus did was tell him to rise and He rose. Is that not the common way for the Lord. People always try to do a lot of things they can do on their own before they realize that simply believing who Jesus says He is, will heal them physically, but much more importantly, will heal them spiritually.

Legalism Exposed (John 5:9b-13)

But wait; there is a problem here! Verse 9b informs us that it was the Sabbath when all this took place. Everyone knew that it was unlawful to do labor on the Sabbath day and moving one’s bed from one place to another was certainly work. Is it possible that Jesus led this poor man into sin? Or, is it more likely that Jesus simply forgot that it was the Sabbath? Neither of these answers covers the situation even remotely. The truth is that Jesus was and is the God over the Sabbath and has the authority to do as He wishes with that day or any other. The exchange between Jesus and the lame man took place on the Sabbath, therefore, it would be on the Sabbath that Jesus’ business with that man would be fully concluded. 

However, the religious Jews would not see it that way (vs. 10). It did not matter to them that an event so miraculous had taken place in their midst. It only matters that the man who had been lame for 38 years was carrying his bed on the Sabbath. Notice, there is not even a mention of gratitude to God or congratulations to the healed from the supposed leaders of the religious Jews. It is easy to see when your religion has gone bad, that is, when you need a police force to enforce God’s laws.  But is that not what the scribes, pharisees and sadducees had become? 

With all due respect, it has to be acknowledged that the Jews during this period were subjects of Rome. They were a conquered and occupied people and were only  permitted  to practice their religion as long as it allowed for Roman control of the masses. In Jesus’ life, we will see that even the office of the High Priests and the lofty 71 members of the Sanhedrin were given to legalism. It was the only way they could legally bully those who needed to be reminded of their places in the dominated society.

The lame man reasoned that the person who had the power and authority to heal his lifelong disease must also have the authority to tell him to move his bed on the Sabbath. So, the healed lame man said that the man who healed him told him to carry his bed away (John 5:11). That was the powerless healed man’s way of saying it was not his fault that he was carrying the bed, the Healer told him to carry it. 

The next move by the Jewish leaders was predictable; they wanted the healed man to identify this guilty party (vs. 12). This would not be done to release the healed man from responsibility, but rather, to add to the number of guilty parties the religious bullies could hold accountable and exploit their punishment to instill fear in the hearts of the powerless. The problem surfaces that the healed man has no idea which person in the multitude present was the one who said “Rise, take up your bed and walk” (vs. 13). 

Understand the Context (John 6:1-71)

John 6 is a long chapter with 71 verses. The chapter begins with “And after these things,” referring to the previous chapter and the healing of the lame man at the Pool of Bethesda. Now, we turn to the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus walking on the water, Jesus as the bread of life and the departure of many of His disciples. Recall that John never delineates between disciples and apostles as the synoptic Gospels do. In verse 67, however, John does single out the Apostles without calling them apostles. So, those who were walking away were not of “the twelve” but of the mass of thousands of followers.

The feeding of the 5,000 contained here at verses 1–14 is also present in Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:30-44 and Luke 9:10-17. Everything that is covered in all four Gospels is worthy of special note. Here, John and the other Gospel writers attest to the fact that Jesus does not hold to the law of physics that say “matter cannot be created or destroyed.” Rather, Jesus takes the small boy’s five loaves and two fishes and multiplies them thousands of times to generate enough food to feed 5,000 men (probably close to 20,000 considering each man’s family). It is significant that there were twelve baskets of leftovers of food remaining when they were finished. Twelve is the number for religious or organizational completion. 

After the miraculous feeding, Jesus remained behind to pray.  The Apostles waited for a while, but as darkness fell, they decided to take the boat across the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum.  Jesus finished praying and return to the beach to meet the Apostles for the trip. Seeing they had already departed, He decided to walk across the Sea to join the Apostles as they traveled. Meantime, a storm came up and caused the sea to be very rough (vs. 17). After rowing three or four miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat as He walked on the water. When He entered the boat, they were immediately at their destination (vs. 21).

In verses 22-26, many of the people who saw the miracle traveled to Capernaum in search of Jesus. Jesus told them they were looking for Him because He fed them not because they understood the meaning of the miraculous signs. Verse 26 also transitions to the focal study for today by telling the people they had misguided reasons for wanting to be near Him. In 6:26-40, Jesus transitions the main thrust of the discussion from His feeding the 5,000 to the fact that Jesus is the bread sent from God. The miracles are given so that all those feeling the call of God will believe on the One God has sent to them.

When Jesus uses the idea of eating His flesh and drinking His blood (as the bread and wine of life) the teaching seemed too difficult for many of the disciples to accept (vs. 60). Many turned from Jesus for failure to understand His teaching. Verse 66 says many of His disciples turned away and actually deserted Him. Jesus turned to His Apostles and asked if they would leave, also (vs. 67). Peter gave the summary truth saying, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God” (vss. 68-69). Jesus responded in agreement and said, “I chose the twelve of you, but one of you is a devil” (vs. 70). John explains that Jesus was speaking of Judas Iscariot. 

Wants (John 6:26-40)  

Verse 6:26 establishes the fact of Jesus’ knowledge of the motive for the masses from the feeding of the 5,000 following Him to Capernaum. He said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.”  Jesus wants them to understand that He is not fooled or misled by some idea that they are dedicated to Him, but rather, they are dedicated to self fulfilment. The unlimited food supply He demonstrated had a great deal more attraction for them than His teaching or the fact that He was the Messiah of God. His advice to them was simple, “But don’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you. For God the Father has given me the seal of his approval” (John 6:27, NLT). 

Jesus knew they were completely filled when He fed them the day before, but here they are following Him to get more food. His teaching was easily understood; there is more to life than living day to day for the simple purpose of getting filled with food again; that is fulfilling the lust of the flesh. He was saying to them and us that we should be looking for what He offers that provides food for eternal life that does not pass away nor does it have to be replenished day after day. Jesus was clear in His statement about why He came from Heaven, “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). God did not place His seal on Him to serve lunch, but rather, God sealed Him to deliver the gift of everlasting life to all who would believer. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). 

The question in verse 28 is the same question almost all people who have not been born again ask of Jesus or any of us delivering the message of Christ, “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?” (John 6:28). All mankind automatically associates a need with what work we must do to earn this commodity. The Apostle Paul answered the question this way, “8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph 2:8-9). The gift of everlasting life is given by God through His grace; a free and unmerited gift. The instrument through which we can get that gift is our personal faith (belief) in the Messiah Who delivers the gift to mankind. Paul says, “9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Rom 10:9-10). So, having a heart-felt belief that Jesus Christ died and God raised Him from the dead, and openly expressing that belief publicly will result in receiving the gift of eternal, everlasting life. We will be made right with God and our sins remembered no more (Heb 10:17). Jesus responds to the questioners by saying that the work you must do to get the eternal life I am offering is this: that you believe (have faith) in Him whom God sent for that purpose – the Lord Jesus Christ.

Manna (John 6:30-34)

So, just like any other set of unbelievers, the crowd says, “Okay, if we do not have to do the work to get that everlasting life, what can You show us that we should believe in the work You do to get it for us?” (Author paraphrase of John 6:30). The crowd continues by offering an example, “Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat” (vs. 31). The unbelieving crowd is saying that they read the Scriptures and they say that Moses fed them bread in the desert and that is why the crowd followed him, so what do you (Jesus) give us that will cause us to follow You? 

Jesus starts by correcting their misunderstanding. He says in verse 32 it was not Moses who provided manna from heaven but Jesus’ Father. And now that same Father will give you the real bread from heaven that provides everlasting life for the entire world (Greek: kosmos). Kosmos might better be understood as the entire universe of mankind; i.e., not just a selected few, but all. 

I always use a brief illustration at that statement. At Christmas time, my parents would place many gifts underneath the Christmas tree. Many of them had my name on them. But none of those gifts were truly mine until I selected the gift and opened it up to accept it. Likewise, God provides the unmerited gift of eternal life to all mankind, but only those who receive or accept that gift can have the gift. Like Paul said, one must believe in their hearts, the Lord Jesus, and confess with their moth that God raised Him from the dead in order to personalize that gift.

Jesus finishes His statement by saying that the bread of God He is speaking of is found in the person of Jesus, the Christ. It is He that came down from heaven and provides life for the entire world (vs. 33). As if Jesus did not explain it in sufficient detail with His earlier words, He tries repeating it one more time, and the crowd seems to finally get the picture. They say to Jesus, okay, if You are the bread from heaven we must have that bread. “Please, Lord Jesus, give us that bread forevermore."

Understand the Context (John 7:1-53)  

Verse 1 announces a significant change in Jesus’ ministry because of the aggressive opposition of the Jewish leaders of the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem. Jesus would spend most of His ministry in Galilee instead of openly visiting Judea. He knew that there were already plots forming against His life. Jesus will establish Nazareth as His home base and Capernaum on the northern coast of the Sea of Galilee as His center of operations. Nevertheless, all Jews were required to do at least three of the seven annual Feasts in Jerusalem.  Notice also in verse 3 that Jesus’ brothers are encouraging Him to go to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Tabernacles or Booths. This was an eight-day feast that would put Jesus in plain sight in the Temple where all the members of the Sanhedrin would attend as well. He tells His brothers that now is not the right time for Him to attend, but they can attend any time (vs. 6). So, His brothers left but Jesus stayed in Galilee (vs. 9). Verse 10 reveals that Jesus watched His brothers leave, and then He followed shortly after them. 

Verses 10-13 describe the conflict of many of Jesus’ followers. The leaders were actively seeking Him throughout the Temple and asking others if they had seen Jesus. Several believed He was the Messiah and believed He was a good man. Others said He was a fraud and deceiver (vs, 12). Either way, no one had the courage to speak favorably of Him in the open fearing that the leaders would cause trouble for them. Our focal passage at Verses 14-29, tell more about the conflicts among the people. 

Verse 30 reminds us of the supernatural aspects of the leaders trying to find Jesus to arrest Him, but they could not because “it was not yet His time.” The entire lifetime of Jesus was foreordained of God for millennia prior to that historic visit by Gabriel to tell Mary that she would soon be pregnant with “the great I am.”  Six months earlier Elizabeth became pregnant with a son who was prayed for years before he was conceived and told the boy’s name would be John. Seven hundred years earlier, Isaiah would announce John’s mission, “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.  Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:  And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it” (Isa 40:3-5).  

Verse 31 documents one of the oft asked questions about Jesus, “Would you expect the Messiah to do more miracles than Jesus had already demonstrated?” The Pharisees were irate at these words being spoken. They believed the Messiah would set the people free and terminate their bondage under Rome and the corrupt religious leaders. It was the High Priest who said, “Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not?” (John 11:50). The more people who believed spoke up; the more Jewish leadership believed Jesus must die. 

But Jesus promised living water for those who would believe (vss. 37-39). This led to severe divisions, even among the disciples of Christ. Divisions ensued and many of Jesus’ followers questioned whether the Messiah could come out of Galilee (knowing He must come from Bethlehem, but not knowing Jesus’ history). As they plotted the death of Jesus, only one member of the Sanhedrin protested saying that it was illegal to judge a man before hearing him first. His name was Nicodemus; the one who visited Jesus by night in John 3. The leaders asked him if he was from Galilee, also (John 7:52).

From the Father (John 7:14-19)

 About half way through the Feast of the Tabernacles, Jesus went up to the Temple and began to teach (John 7:14). I wonder how He thought He might remain low-key and invisible to the Jewish leaders as hundreds of the people in The Temple gathered around to hear His words?  

Verse 15 tells us that even the Jews were astonished at His words. They wondered how a man without formal training could know as much as He did. Jesus answered the question with truth, but in doing so, once again stated whom He was (vs. 16). Jesus said the doctrine He was teaching was not His own but from the One who sent Him. In verse 17, He continues that if any man will do the will of God, he would clearly know if the doctrine Jesus was teaching was from God or of Himself. Jesus provides the metrics by which one could measure whether He was speaking the doctrine of God or of Himself (vs. 18). He says if doctrine He is speaking is geared to bring glory to Himself, He is speaking His own doctrine. If, on the other hand, He is speaking to bring glory to God, then it must be God’s doctrine, and there would be no unrighteousness in Him.  

In verse 19, Jesus seems to turn His teaching audience in the direction of the Jewish leaders. He asks, “Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me?” In other words, Jesus was illustrating His situation. Jesus is presenting the doctrine of His Father who sent Him just as Moses was teaching the Law that came from God for all mankind. Jesus wants to know why the Jewish leaders were trying to Kill Him for the same thing that Moses was doing and not having anyone want to kill him? 

This was a rhetorical question for Jesus because He and each of us know that He was not being targeted for capital punishment because of what He taught, but rather, because thousands of people were following the teachings of Jesus, the Romans feared that He could turn them against Rome and take over the city. That would lead to the termination of employment for thousands of people who were traitors to Israel as they did the work that Rome gave them to do. Jesus had become a threat to these leaders. They would have to terminate that threat, and they were  determined to use religion to make that happen.  

With Righteousness (John 7:20-24)  

When Jesus asked the leaders why they were trying to kill him, the people sitting under His teaching wanted to reject that teaching completely. They responded to Jesus saying that He must be possessed by a demon to think that the religious leaders would do such a thing. The way the people saw it, the Sanhedrin was made up of the top or best of all the religious class of people. At the lower end of this class was the Scribe. These people had the responsibility for maintaining the highest credibility for the written words from God. They maintained the holy scrolls containing those words. When they made copies of them, they were so meticulous that they would count the words of the original and the copy when they finished each page. Any difference between the original and the copy would result in the destruction of the copy. That is how the very slight differences between the current scrolls in use and the 1,000 year older scrolls found among the Dead Seas Scrolls was possible. All scholars of the Word owe a great debt to the Scribes of Israel.

Then, only the best of the Scribes could be promoted to be either Pharisees or Sadducees.  The difference between these two honorable positions was primarily whether one believed in resurrection or not. The Pharisees believed in the resurrection while the Sadducees did not. The Priests were that group of men who took holy vows and dedicated their lives to the leading of worship services or being a part of the Hebrew sacrificial system. These men were also held in the highest esteem. Their total and complete righteousness was beyond question. Only 70 of the best of the best could be seated in the Sanhedrin and the best of the seventy could take the Chair of the Leader of the Sanhedrin. So, for anyone to suggest that the Sanhedrin would condemn Jesus to death would be absurd.  

Jesus recounted what it was that so angered the Sanhedrin. He said He only did one healing on the Sabbath and told the healed man to carry his bed to his home. For this the religious leaders wanted Jesus dead. Jesus offered an example of why he believed the charge was in error. He said that Moses gave Israel the Law and part of that Law was the required act of male circumcision. It was required that all male children would be circumcised eight days after birth. The Bible documents the circumcision of Jesus when His mother and father brought Him to the Temple (Luke 2:21). Now, when a child turns eight days old on a Sabbath day, that child is still circumcised that day. Therefore, the Law condones working of the Sabbath. So, Jesus continues in verse 23, if a man receive circumcision on the Sabbath that the Law of Moses not be broken, are you angry with me because I made a man whole on the same day?  In verse 24, Jesus says they should not judge Him according to the appearance of the healing but judge righteously according to the whole Law.  

Understand the Context (John 8:1-59)  

The difference in mood between the end of Chapter 7 and beginning of Chapter 8 speaks volumes to the plan of Israel’s religious leaders. As Chapter 7 ended, we found Jesus teaching on the Temple grounds, guards refusing to arrest Him because “they never heard a man teaching like that,” the Sanhedrin directly questioning His credentials because of where they said He was born, and His disciples leaving because of His comments about Him being the Living Water from God. As Chapter 8 begins, we see Jesus returning to the Temple to teach after resting (vss, 1-2). Then we see the Scribes and Pharisees presenting a woman to Him who was taken in the act of adultery and asking Him how He would judge her (vss. 3-5). As the people watched on, it must have been confusing for them to see those who agreed that He should die now asking for His judgement on a clear-cut matter under the Law of Moses. 

Jesus probably noticed, as we would have, that adultery is not an act one can do alone. If she was standing trial, where was he or them who committed the act with her? Some interpreters say that the words “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her” could be interpreted “He that is without the same sin cast the first stone.” And that was why the men who were gathered to stone her began walking away. We cannot know for certain this side of heaven. Whatever the cause, everyone who was prepared to stone the woman to death walked away, leaving their stones on the ground behind them (vs. 9). Without accusers, the woman was released with Jesus’ words, “Go and sin no more.” More on this below as the focal verses for this study.

As Jesus began proclaiming Himself “the to be Light unto the World,” the Scribes and Pharisees questioned His statements in accordance with the Law of Moses (John 8:13 & Duet 19:15). Of course, the reference in Deuteronomy applies to witnesses against a person charged with a crime, and how that testimony cannot be accepted unless there are two or three, but the concept against self-proclamation is what the lawyers are suggesting here. Jesus countered by saying that He had two witnesses: Himself and His Father (vs. 18). The lawyers rejected His words but verse 8:30 says that many who heard Him believed.

The closing discussion of Chapter 8 is found in verses 31-59. Jesus is still locked in discussion with the lawyers (i.e., Scribes and Pharisees) regarding His credentials for making some of His claims. One was in verse 51 where He says, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death.” The Jews responded that even their patriarch Abraham has died, and asked Him if He was greater than Abraham. Jesus said that Abraham rejoiced at His coming and has seen it (vs. 56). They questioned Him saying that He was not even 50 years old, yet He is saying Abraham saw His coming? Jesus responded with one of His greatest proclamations of His identity anywhere in the Scriptures, He said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58). This verse not only responds to the question of how He could have seen Abraham; but by invoking the identity of “I am” He claims to be God, Himself. The lawyers’ responses was to try to stone Jesus for blasphemy, but it was not yet Jesus’ time (John 8:59).

Trapped (John 8:3-6)

The Scribes and Pharisees (called the lawyers in other places) were in the process of trying to discredit Jesus. The Sanhedrin had already decided that Jesus must die, but the lawyers wanted Him to be discredited so the people would believe their acts were justified by Jesus’ unworthiness. Exodus 20:14 clearly states that “Thou must not commit adultery” (NLT), It does not delineate between a man or a woman being directed not to commit adultery. However, here the Scribes and the Pharisees bring a woman before Jesus who was “taken in adultery, in the very act” (vs. 5). The Law of Moses states, “If a man is discovered committing adultery, both he and the woman must die. In this way, you will purge Israel of such evil” (Lev 20:10 & Deut 22:22, NLT). The first question for you and me should be, if taken in the very act, where is the man?

Nevertheless, verse 4 has the lawyers presenting the woman to Jesus, advising Him of the charge against her, advising Him on what the Law states as her punishment and asking Him, “what sayest thou?” (vss. 3-5). In verse 6, John explains to us that this was done to tempt Jesus that they might have something with which to accuse Him. If Jesus disagreed with the Law of Moses, that would show He was not the Messiah nor even a man of good character. The remainder of verse 6 says that Jesus simply stooped down and began writing in the sand on the ground as if He did not hear them. Jesus must have noticed the flaw in these charges because the Jews said “she was taken in the very act of adultery,” yet the lawyers did not comply with the quoted Law from Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy saying that the man and the woman would be put to death. John says Jesus stooped to write in the sand as if He did not hear them.

It should be understood that the absence of the man who committed the crime with her does not change her guilt in committing the crime, but it does show that there is some level of inconsistency in applying the law. The problem for Jesus to solve is how to show this inconsistency without appearing to diminish the nationally accept Law of Moses as the standard of living in Israel? What was it that Jesus was writing in the sand as He stooped down?

Freed (John 8:7-11) 

The religious lawyers continued asking Jesus what He thought they should do with this woman caught in the very act of sin. Verse 7 tells us that Jesus lifted Himself up and said to the woman’s accusers, “He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone at her.” The Scripture continues that Jesus again stooped down and returned to writing in the sand (vs. 8). So, there stands the invitation for all those gathered to accuse the woman, to carry out the punishment prescribed by the Law on the woman who was caught in the very act of sin. That was simple; they could just continue with the stoning of this sinner as they planned. Jesus did not appear to have said or done anything to stop the punishment. He gave the lawyers no cause to condemn Him for disobedience against that Law. He simply said do it this way. 

But verse 8 reveals that they heard what Jesus had said about how to get the punishment started, “He who is without sin, cast the first stone.” So, the men gathered to kill this woman for her obvious sin began to examine their own consciences to see if they could testify to their own sinlessness by throwing the first stone at this woman. No doubt, they looked into the eyes of each of the other men gathered there. Could they be asking silently, “If I throw the first stone would you tell what you know of me? If I cast the first stone, would the whole crowd begin to laugh and jeer because they know what I did or have been doing?” Verse 9 says they were convicted of their own consciences and went out one by one, beginning with the eldest, even unto the last one. Could they have read, “They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one?” (Ps 14:3). How many of the men holding the stones ready to throw at that woman might have shared the sin of the anonymous man who alluded arrest with her? Is it possible some of those gathered there to execute the adulterous woman might have heard Jesus’ words “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart” (Matt 5:27-28, KJV).  

Verse 10 says when He stood up He saw no one there but the woman. Could that mean that even the Scribes and the Pharisees had conviction in their hearts? Whatever the case, Jesus asked the woman, “Where are thine accusers? Hath no man accused thee.” Verse 11 documents that she answered, “No man, Lord.” So, Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.” She was not only released from the guilt of the sin she had committed but asked to change her life so there would be no more cause for this scene again. This is repentance. 

Understand the Context (John 9:1-41)

It seems that whenever Jesus leaves Galilee to complete His Jewish meeting requirements, He confronts the religious leaders from Jerusalem.  As we studied Chapter 8 last week, we saw Jesus confronted by the religious lawyers (Scribes and Pharisees) three times. The first was their challenge for Him to judge the woman taken in adultery. They reminded Him that the Law said she should be stoned to death, they wanted to know what He thought should be done with her. Second, the third point of our study showed Jesus announcing that He was the light of the world. And third was His announcement that “Before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58).  Each of these made a statement about Jesus’ deity and was labeled blasphemy by the religious leaders. Recall also, back in Chapter 7, that the Sanhedrin met and, over Nicodemus’ objections, decided that Jesus must die. 

The people gathered in the Temple courtyard to hear Jesus teach and were not disappointed. He taught despite the informal death sentence issued by the Sanhedrin. And this was what led to the confusion of the people hearing Him teach. If He was under such a death warrant, why are they openly allowing Him to preach. Some even asked if it was because the Sanhedrin secretly knew this man was the Messiah of God (John 7:25-27) 

Chapter 9 centers around two forms of blindness. In the first verse, we meet a man blind from birth. The Apostles asked a question that revealed the belief at the time that if a person had an illness or birth defect, it was a result of his/her sin or the sin of his/her parents. They asked Jesus and He said it was not due to the sin of either. That was unique to the teaching of the times. But Jesus added that some illness or defects are for the demonstration of the glory of God. Jesus healed the man, but this time, He used a mud He made from the dirt where He met the blind man. All this was a tremendous blessing of the Lord and all rejoiced, but the lawyers added, there should be no glory for God because it was done on the Sabbath, therefore, it was illegal and the healer must be condemned. Nothing new for our Lord! 

The remainder of the chapter shows the great lengths the Scribes and Pharisees would go to in order to blame the blind man, his parents or Christ for the totally unacceptable sin of working on the Sabbath. Their labors culminated in Jesus calling it what it was: He says simply, that He entered this world to give sight to the blind, and to show those who think they can see, they are blind. The lawyers (with their flair for the obvious) asked if He was saying they were blind. “If you were blind, you wouldn’t be guilty,” Jesus replied. “But you remain guilty because you claim you can see” (John 9:41). There is a physical blindness like that of the man born blind, but more severe, there is a spiritual blindness which will result in eternal condemnation. Can we see?

I Can See (John 9:24-25)

Jesus had taken the dirt of the ground and some saliva to made some mud or clay. Then He applied the mud to the blind man’s eyes and told him to go wash it off. The man complied with Jesus’ instruction and was healed of the blindness. The lawyers interrogated the healed blind man concerning how sight was given him and whom the person was who did the work. They did not believe that the man could have been born blind and healed, so they interrogated the man’s parents They testified that the man was, in fact, blind from birth. But, instead of rejoicing at the obvious miracle of a man born blind being made to see, the lawyers wanted to again charge Jesus for making the clay and healing the man on the Sabbath Day. 

The lawyers have now called the healed blind man back to see them again. This time, they want to correct the man for praising Jesus for doing this thing to praising God because Jesus could not have been from God because He sinned in curing the man on the Sabbath. Such a gross sinner should never be given praise, they said.

The healed blind man’s response was absolutely appropriate for the occasion. He said look, I have no way of judging whether the man is a sinner or not. The one thing I am certain of is that I was once blind and now I can see. The healed man was not interested in the politics of the situation at all. He had been born blind and had never seen anything for all the years of his life. But now, thanks to this man, I can see is one thing I can certainly see. It seems that the healed blind man is ready to celebrate the facts of the miracle and leave all the legal stuff to the lawyers who make their living that way.    All he knows is that he is much better off now than before he met Jesus.   

You Can’t See Him (John 9:25-34)

The Scribes and Pharisees begin the interrogation again. Verse 26 documents that they started by asking the man what Jesus did to him and how He opened his eyes. The man answered and said he had already told them the facts of what happened and the methodology Jesus used to make it happen. He wanted to know if they really wanted him to repeat the facts again. Without waiting for an answer, the man asked the lawyers if they were asking again because they wanted to become disciples of Jesus. The lawyers were obviously set back by the question and accused the man of being His disciple, but they, on the other hand were disciples of Moses (vs. 28). The lawyers continued that they knew that God had spoken to Moses, but as for this Man, they said they did not even know where He came from (vs. 29).

The healed blind man said he thought it strange that lawyers did not know where this Man came from after He had given sight to a man born blind. It seemed to him that a person with that much power would be one the lawyers would know well. He continued that everyone knows that God would never regard the words of a known sinner, but that God would hear the voices of those who faithfully worshipped Him (vs. 31). Actually, the job of the lawyers was to discredit Jesus for fear that He might develop such a following that would threaten the Romans, and that would result in the loss of their livelihoods. Recall that practicing religion by captives was only granted by the Romans as long as it was a successful tool for controlling the population. Jesus was becoming a liability to them.

The healed blind man continued that there had never been a case of anyone since the beginning of the world causing a person born blind to receive his sight (vs. 32). So, only God could do something like this and if this man was not of God, He could do nothing. The lawyers looked at the healed man and said, “You were born a total sinner! Are you trying to teach us?” (vs. 34). Then the lawyers threw him out of the synagogue. Note again that the man was judged to have been born in sin by the lawyers because he had a birth defect.

Understand the Context (John 10:1-42)

John Chapter 10 stands high as one of most often quoted chapters in the Bible. Everyone who wants to make a case for the security of the believer must go through this chapter. The words like “27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. 30 I and my Father are one” would close the discussion for most scholars (vss. 27-30). Powerful words of Jesus as quoted by the Apostle John. 

But describing Jesus as the Gate, the Good Shepherd and Securer of our Faith rank very high. As the Gate, there is no access to the pasture of the sheep without Jesus. As the Good Shepherd, it is Jesus who gives His life for us, protects us in the pasture and leads and guides us through every minute of life. The Shepherd gives His life for His sheep. Jesus was clear in His condemnation of the false prophets and false teachers as they came to steal, kill and destroy (vs. 10). Jesus, however, came to give life and give it more abundantly (vs. 10). 

Jesus knows His own, and His own know His voice. He puts His own into the Father’s hand and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand. He seals that statement with the statement that the abundant life He gives to His own is not one that starts when we arrive in Heave, but rather, began when we first accepted Jesus for whom He is. That is, abundant life today and forever. The quality of life Jesus offers is in stark contrast the what the enemy offers. The enemy came to steal, kill and destroy while Jesus came to love, protect and care for His own. When He calls, His own will recognize His voice and come. They acknowledge that the Good Shepherd comes as the One who gave His life to save the lives of all His own. 

Only the lawyers (Scribes, Pharisees and Sadducees) continually demand Christ to clear say whether He is the Christ. The born again know exactly who He is and we worship Him.

The Gate (John 10:7-10)

The visual Jesus offers by calling Himself the gate is very strong and descriptive. The gate is the entry or access point to the best pastures for the sheep. He leads us to Himself through the creation all around us so that there is no excuse for missing Him (Romans 1:18-20). Jesus tells the lawyers that He is the door of the sheep, but all those who came before Him were thieves and robbers (vs. 8). The good news is that the invitations offered by the thieves and robbers fall on deaf ears of the believers. That is a strong encouragement to all believers that we will have no trouble detecting who are the thieves and who are the real disciples of Christ. The Holy Spirit within us provides all the discernment we need for that judgement. We can feel Him in action when we hear radio or television programming and the speaker is exploiting the Word for personal gain or preaching some deviant doctrine. Jesus says, He is the door and those who enter in by Him shall be saved. I spend a lot of time in evangelism trying to make people understand what it means to be saved. Knowing that “Jesus is the door” solves much of that problem in that being saved from the penalty of our sins and entering into the presence of God through Him gives mew meaning to safety and security. He is the door and the provider of free access to enter by the door or leave by the door, tells us that we are safe in Him. Not just spiritually but physically as well. He is the author and finisher of our faith (Heb 12:2). He is our foundation. Paul writes, “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor 3:11). The last phrase of verse 9 talk about Jesus being the access door for finding the best pastures. In the context of the sheep, He is the access to the food of survival. Without pastures, the sheep will die. We are talking about survival in our faith assured by Jesus.

Verse 10 offers a measurement of quality beyond the assurance of survival. The contrast is that the thief, the one that tries to lead us away from faith and fruitfulness in Jesus Christ, comes only to steal, kill and destroy, but Jesus comes to offer not just the survival level but a life that is full, abundant and never-ending. That is the quality of life we are offered in Him.   

The True Shepherd (John 10:11-14)

In verse 11, Jesus identifies Himself as the Good Shepherd twice. This is clearly a purposeful repetition for the sake of identity establishment. Jesus wants us to know with certainty that He is not only our Shepherd provided by God, but as God,  He is the answer the needs of human life, existence and survival. There is a clear association with Psalms 23 where King David points out that, “1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. 3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me” (Psa 23:1-4). Jesus freely identifies Himself as being that Good Shepherd. 

In verse 12, He reveals the difference between the Good Shepherd and the “hired hand” who has been brought on to do the shepherd’s work. The hired hand does not own the sheep, and therefore, whenever a new requirement or danger faces the hired hand, he is free to decide whether the money he is receiving is sufficient to face that challenge or is it time to walk away and let the wolf have his way with the sheep (vss. 12-13). Jesus is the owner of the sheep. The sheep of the owner know and recognize the owner just as the owner of the sheep know and recognize His sheep. The bond between them is not one of familiarity, but rather, one of family. John tells us in John 1:12, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” Paul emphasizes this relationship in his letter to the Church at Rome saying, “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together” (Rom 8:17). Jesus is the Good Shepherd. He owns the sheep and knows the sheep personally.  The sheep know Him and have love for Him and trust in Him. Paul says, “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father” (Rom 8:15). Abba is the sweetest word for Father in the Greek language, more like our word Daddy.  

Understand the Context (John 11:1-57)

John Chapter 11 has the major theme of the raising of Jesus’ friend Lazarus from the dead. Verses 1-44 is the actual report of the resurrection of Lazarus while 45-53 show the terrible split in reactions to his raising, and 54-57 shows Jesus’ return to Jerusalem for the Passover Feast.

The story of the resurrection begins with the notice of the family involved. It was Mary, Martha and Lazarus of Bethany about two miles from Jerusalem. Mary was the Mary who anointed Jesus’ feet with the expensive anointment and dried them with her hair (John 12:3). Mary and Martha (her sister) saw the illness of their brother worsen and send to tell Jesus who retreated to Ephraim in the wilderness after being threatened with death by stoning in Judea.  Ephraim was about 13 miles northeast of Jerusalem in the wilderness.  Jesus’ disciples were concerned that He wanted to go back to Judea after the previous treatment (11:7-12). Jesus said that Lazarus’ sickness was not unto death, so He delayed leaving for two days (11:4). Just as they were leaving, Jesus mentioned that Lazarus had fallen asleep. It is strange that Jesus would have said Lazarus’ sickness was not unto death and then reported his death.

Note also that Thomas was the Apostle who said they should go to Judea to die with Jesus. It was the same man who later said he would not believe Jesus was raised from the dead unless he could see His hands and the wound in His side. 

When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to Him while Mary stayed in the house. Both said they believed that Lazarus would not have died if Jesus was there earlier (21 & 32). The actual resurrection is in the focal verses (32-46) and will be covered in the slides below.

Two opposing reactions took place resulting from the resurrection. The expected one was the celebration and converting beliefs of many who witnessed this miracle (45). The opposing reaction was those who reported the resurrection to the religious authorities (46). The Priests and Pharisees actively sought His death from that time forward. Jesus and His disciples came out of hiding to travel to Jerusalem for the Passover Feast (55). The Priests and Pharisees publicly ordered that anyone seeing Jesus must immediately report it so they could arrest Him (57).

Wept (John 11:32-37)

Two pieces of background information need to be remembered for this beginning.  First, this is the Mary that used the very expensive perfume on Jesus’ feet and wiped them with her hair. In other words, she worshipped Jesus. Martha had already met with Jesus earlier and expressed her disappointment in His being so late in responding to the emergency that her brother died (vs. 21). Now, Mary is also saying that had Jesus been there, Lazarus would not have died. Jesus. on the other hand, knows that His Father is planning to work a glorious miracle that could not have been done if Jesus would have rescued Lazarus earlier. This points out that often, we have to accept that God knows more and sees more than we can know or see. We have to trust His comment (through Paul) that all thing work together for good for those who love the Lord and are called according to His purposes (Rom 8:28, author’s paraphrase).

Jesus knows that God has a plan, and He knows what that plan is. Nevertheless, the 100 percent part of Jesus that is human has all the emotions of a human. Verse 33 says that Jesus saw the pain in the hearts of Mary and the Jews who had come to support that family. The feeling of it is too much for Him and the Scripture tells us “He groaned in the spirit, and was troubled.” (vs. 33). Make note of the fact that the Man who was groaning and sorely troubled is the Man who knows exactly what great work God is about to do but STILL feels these raw emotions at the sight of the others experiencing sorrow. This is the kind of Savior we serve. 

Jesus than asks where they laid Lazarus, they took Him to the tomb and Jesus wept (vss. 34-35). The Jews witnessed these events and stated, “Behold how he loved him!” (vs. 36). These are the same hard-hearted jews who came to accuse Jesus and try to arrest Him. Remember, the Jews have put out a blanket warrant to report where Jesus is and have Him arrested. But, for now, their question is “Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?” (vs. 37).    If they could muster enough blame on Jesus for causing this grief, they might have been able to have that little community turn on Jesus as well.   As if there is not enough pain and hurt going around as they stand in front of Lazarus' tomb, the Scribes and Pharisees want to focus some blame on Jesus.

Believe (John 11:38-40)

Now Jesus, still groaning in His spirit comes to the grave. It is like many of the sepultures of the time. It was in the shape of a cave that was likely dug out as a part of a hill or mountain (vs. 38). A stone was fashioned to fit in front of it so, it could be rolled off to the side for laying the body inside but fit closely back in place to maintain security after everyone left the grave area. Jesus tells Martha to take the stone away (vs39). The verse says this was Martha, the sister of him that was dead (Lazarus). But she says to the Lord, “Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days” (vs. 39). 

Consider for a moment the doubt Martha is introducing here. If she wants her brother back, Jesus must have the tomb opened. If she wants to see the miracle Jesus is about to work, Jesus has to roll back the stone. Is it possible that Martha was not anticipating that she would return home with her brother alongside?

So, Jesus quizzes her a little. He asks “Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory see the glory of God?” (vs. 40). Mary, Martha and Lazarus had shared many long days or nights with Jesus. They were not talking with a stranger here. The question comes down to the basics; will they believe or will they give up a t this late date and time?