John 1 - What Are You Full Of? Jesus Was Full of Grace and Truth!
John 1 Enduring Word Commentary
Welcome to our fourth gospel in the bible, the gospel of John, written by the apostle John. He was the one called "the beloved disciple". Whereas the first three gospels are called the "synoptic gospels", because they present similar stories about Jesus, a lot of John's material is unique to him.
I am glad John's gospel was included in the bible, because we have several stories and teachings of Jesus we don't get in the other three. I.e. The woman at the well, the women caught in adultery, the raising of Lazarus from the dead, the six "I am" statements, the Upper Room discourse, and in chapter 21, we see Jesus' reinstatement of the apostle Peter after he denied Jesus three times.
John's gospel is called the "theological" gospel, because it focuses on Jesus' divinity. I.e. Jesus is really 100% God. He uses the term "signs" vs. "miracles", as the signs point to the divinity of Christ. This is their primary purpose. In John we see a more personal side of Jesus as he interacts with various types of people like Nicodemus and the two women mentioned above.
If you would like more information of the gospel of John please click on this link. It is written by Chuck Swindoll, a well known pastor and bible teacher.
Introduction to John, Chuck Swindoll, Insight for Living
The Word Became Flesh
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.
These first eight verses are theologically packed. First of all, we see the "Word" was with God in the beginning. I.e. Before Creation even began. The "Word" is the Greek word "Logos" from which we get our word "logic". The Word is everything we can know about God. We see that the Word was with God and separate from God. The Word was part of the Creation process, as all things were made through him. He was also the life of all humankind and a light in the darkness.
Later, Jesus will say that he is the "light of the world". This light overcame the darkness of the world, which could metaphorically be seen as sin, death, and the power of the devil. John uses the themes of light and darkness often in his gospel. John the Baptist was the first prophet who testified to the light in their midst.
9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) 16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and[b] is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.
There are a couple of huge verses here be careful not to miss. They have a huge impact on our understanding of who Jesus was and how we can have a relationship with him. Though not everyone recognized Jesus, "To all who received him, he gave them power to become children of God!"
We often use the words, "You need to receive Jesus as Your personal Savior". Although this isn't the whole gospel, as I preached last week on Palm Sunday, it is definitely part of it. Notice receiving Jesus also means those who believed in his name. I.e. They had faith in Jesus. Through belief in Jesus they were given the right to become children of God. They are not only born from their mother and father, but they are also born of God.
This is where we get the evangelical language of being "born again". Jesus will also describe this in more detail in his encounter with Nicodemus, a Jewish leader. So believing in and receiving Jesus (we learn the light and Word are Jesus in the next verse) makes us part of God's family. It is familial and relational language which John is known for.
Verse 14 is one of the most important for our understanding of the person, nature and work of Jesus. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We know the Word is Jesus, the Son of God. The Son came from the Father, which is the beginning of the teaching of the Trinity. (Some people say the bible doesn't teach the Trinity, and that is simply not true as we will also see in John 3). The word became flesh. The Word (Jesus) became a human being. We call this the "incarnation". God became a man, the most incredible moment in history.
It says Jesus made his dwelling among us. This is the same Greek word for "tabernacle". The tabernacle was the moveable worship tent, where God dwelt by his Spirit when the Israelites were in the wilderness. It was a precursor to the temple. So when it says Jesus came to dwell within us, it literally meant "Jesus came to tabernacle with us". Jesus came to make a home in our hearts.
Finally, it says Jesus came full of grace and truth. Jesus did not tend to our polar opposites of all grace and no truth (cheap grace). Or, all truth and no grace (Iegalism). Jesus was FULL of BOTH?
What you are you full of?
An example is the woman caught in adultery. Jesus knew the truth was she deserved to be stoned according to the Old Testament Law, but told the Pharisees that whoever was without sin could cast the first stone. Jesus gave her grace, but also gave her truth when he said, "Go and sin no more!"
A perfect example of GRACE and TRUTH!
John the Baptist Denies Being the Messiah
19 Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders[c] in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.” 21 They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” He answered, “No.” 22 Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” 23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”[d] 24 Now the Pharisees who had been sent 25 questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” 26 “I baptize with[e] water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” 28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
The Jewish leaders sent the priests and Levites to find out who John the Baptist was. Was he the Messiah, or someone else? John told them he was not the Messiah but also that he was not Elijah nor the prophet either.
It might be easy for the priests and Levites from Jerusalem to associate John with Elijah because of his personality and because of the promise that Elijah would come before the Day of the LORD (Malachi 4:5-6).
John was careful to never say of himself that he was Elijah. Yet Jesus noted that in a sense, John was Elijah, ministering in his office and spirit (Matthew 11:13-14 and Mark 9:11-13).
Are you the Prophet? In Deuteronomy 18:15-19 God promised that another prophet would come in due time. Based on this passage, they expected another Prophet to come, and wondered if John was not he. - Guzik
Most importantly John made it absolutely clear he was not the Messiah. He did not have a Messiah Complex like some religious leaders and pastors have today!
John Testifies About Jesus
29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”
John then tells the story of John the Baptist's first encounter with Jesus as the Jordan River. John the Baptist uttered prophetically when he first saw Jesus, "Look the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." This would be a highly unusual thing to say about a human being. The only lamb the Israelites knew about who took away sin was the innocent Passover lamb, who was sacrificed for the sins of the people. The people were covered by the blood of the Lamb which atoned for their sins.
John saw and heard two other incredibly important things. First, he saw the Spirit of God descend on Jesus bodily like a dove. Though Jesus always had the Spirit, this was significant change because this is when His public ministry began.
Conservative scholars interpret the Holy Spirit descending on Jesus like this,
God gave John the Baptist the sure sign to know the Messiah. He would be the one on Whom the Holy Spirit descended upon from heaven. John was a reliable witness regarding Jesus, because he had confirming evidence from God. - Guzik
“Jesus received nothing at His Baptism that He had not before: the Baptist merely saw that day in a visible symbol that which had actually and invisibly taken place [at the conception of Jesus].” (Trench)
Importantly though John baptized with water for repentance, Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit. The Old Testament had prophesied about a time when the Holy Spirit would be given to all people. Ezekiel 36:24-27 and Joel 2:28. Not only would Jesus bring in the kingdom of God but the Spirit of God.
John’s Disciples Follow Jesus
35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” 37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?” 39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon. 40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter[g]).
This story is not found in the other gospels. It shows how Jesus called Andrew, Peter's brother, who then in turn called Peter to go meet Jesus. Andrew and his friend were disciples of John, and then went to where Jesus was staying and spent a whole day with him. Wow! Wouldn't that be cool! Note Andrew believed right away that Jesus was the Messiah. I think he might have been the first one to believe Jesus was the Christ. John would get that a lot later in Matthew 16:16
Andrew brought his brother, Simon, and we learn their father's name was John. When Simon looked at Jesus he renamed him "Cephas" which was the Aramaic name, and Peter which was the Greek name. They both meant "rock".
Who was the other disciple? Some suggest John, which is why he knew the details of this story and the others didn't.
This was such a memorable occasion for the writer that he remembered the exact hour that he met Jesus. This is a subtle clue that one of the two disciples who came to Jesus from John was the apostle John himself. - Guzik
Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael
43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip. 47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.” 48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.” 49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”50 Jesus said, “You believe[h] because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” 51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you,[i] you[j] will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’[k] the Son of Man.”
Jesus went to Galilee, which along with Capernaum was his home base. He found Philip and called him to follow him. Philip like Andrew and John were from Bethsaida.
“Bethsaida means ‘house of the fisherman’ or ‘Fishertown’. It lay a short distance east of the point where the Jordan enters the Lake of Galilee.” (Bruce)
Philip went right to find Nathanael. Philip, like Andrew, also connected Jesus with whom the Law and Prophets spoke about. When Jesus saw Nathanael, he called him "a man with no guile". Nathanael was curious how Jesus knew him, and Jesus told him he saw him under the fig tree. Though Jesus was human, this was divinely inspired. A mental miracle.
Nathanael instantly declared that Jesus was the "Son of God and the king of the Israel". I.e. Messiah I think it is noteworthy that two disciples in John's gospel, Andrew and Nathanael, announce Jesus as the Messiah. This doesn't even seem to get mentioned in the other gospels until much later.
This section of John shows four ways of coming to Jesus:
· Andrew came to Jesus because of the preaching of John.
· Peter came to Jesus because of the witness of his brother.
· Phillip came to Jesus as a result of the direct call of Jesus.
· Nathaniel came to Jesus as he overcame personal prejudices by a personal encounter with Jesus.
We all have different ways we have come to believe Jesus as the Messiah and our Savior and Lord. It doesn't seem as if Jesus reveals himself to any two people in the same way but uniquely calls each us individually. Like he saw Nathanael under the fig tree, He saw you.
Jesus knows your name and he knows what you need to believe. He has called you to follow him. Will you?
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