The life of Jesus is the most exceptional and interesting life ever lived. We are able to view the life of Jesus through the Gospel accounts written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. While God ultimately authors all four Gospel accounts, there are different things in each account (2 Timothy 3:16–17). While the first three (the Synoptics) have a great deal of similarity among them, Bible students have correctly noticed that John approaches the life of Christ from a different angle. John’s Gospel record was probably the last one to be written of the four. He neither includes information about the miraculous birth of Jesus, nor does he record the Sermon on the Mount. Likewise, he does not mention the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. Yet, John’s Gospel account is not inferior in any way to the others. His audience and emphasis differs from the Synoptics, but he gives a glorious picture of the life of Christ, nonetheless.
The Occasion of Writing
Near the end of the first century when John wrote his Gospel record, there was false doctrine concerning Jesus entering the church (2 Peter 2:1). Elsewhere John had warned Christians to test the things they were taught so they did not deviate from the truth (1 John 4:1). Some, who were never genuine converts, snuck into the church and were teaching false doctrine about the identity of Jesus (1 John 2:18–19). This group of false teachers was known as the Gnostics (or the knowing ones). They claimed to have special knowledge about Jesus. The Gnostics believed that man’s flesh was sinful, but the spirit was not. This caused them to teach that God could not take on human flesh. Therefore, they believed that Jesus did not actually dwell in the flesh as God like the Bible teaches that He did.
As you read the opening statements in John’s Gospel, he wanted his readers to be sure that they know Jesus was God and He came in the flesh (John 1:1–3, 14). Near the end of the Gospel, he recorded the occasion when Thomas reached his finger into the literal side of Jesus (John 20:27). John was refuting many of the false doctrines of Gnosticism in his record of Jesus’ life. As the last living apostle, it would be important for him to answer this error by inspiration and leave the church with the necessary ammunition to answer those false teachers (1 Thessalonians 5:21). Now, let us notice some of the other major themes that appear throughout the book that we should pick up on as we read.
Jesus Is God
The first verse in John’s Gospel reads like the first verse in the Book of Genesis. I believe John did this on purpose. He wanted his readers to have in mind Jesus’ eternality with God as they read about His life (Genesis 1:1). John explicitly called Jesus God (John 1:1). Jesus was in the beginning with God, which means He could not have been created (John 1:2). He went on to describe Jesus as the One who created everything that we see (John 1:3). As God created light in Genesis, Jesus is described as the one who has light in Himself (Genesis 1:3; John 1:4). Read the first five verses from Genesis 1, and then, read John 1:1–5, and notice the similarities for yourself. John wanted his readers to see that the God of the beginning is Jesus, the Christ. Later, Jesus further drove this point home as He taught on several occasions. Jesus is shown to be God based on His ability to judge (John 5:22). Jesus is also able to do anything the Father does (John 5:17, 19). When Jesus was before the Jews, he quoted Exodus 3:14 to show them that He was existing before Abraham and that He is the great I AM (John 8:58). Jesus is one with the Father (John 10:30). While the other Gospel accounts also depict Jesus as God in the flesh, none do so as John’s Gospel by telling readers that the purpose of his writing was to convince people of Jesus’ identity (John 20:30–31).
The Signs Performed
John did not record all of the signs that Jesus did; there were too many to write down (John 21:25). He gave a sufficient sampling for those who read his work to come away knowing that Jesus is who He claimed to be. John carefully chose miracles (or signs) done by Jesus to include in his Gospel. Many of the signs John detailed were not mentioned in the other Gospels. For example, John is the only writer who tells us that Jesus turned water into wine (John 2:1–12). No other writer mentioned the raising of Lazarus from the grave (John 11:1–46). Jesus opened the eyes of several blind people but the mentioning of the “man born blind” is unique to John (John 9:1–7, 32). John showed through powerful signs that Jesus is God in the flesh, and He did the signs that only God could do.
The Power of Belief
Faith is the victory that overcomes the world (1 John 5:4). John emphasized that belief in Jesus is the only way to eternal life. The golden text of the Bible, John 3:16, is a well-known verse that underscores this truth. As we read John (or any New Testament book), we should be mindful that faith means more than mere mental acknowledgment. Faith, as it is used in the John’s Gospel, means to trust. By trusting in Jesus’ identity and finished work on the cross, one could be saved (John 19:30). A failure to trust (i.e., have faith) in Jesus would lead to one remaining lost. A failure to believe that Jesus is the Son of God would cause one to die in his or her sins (John 8:21, 24). If the Jews had believed Moses’ writings, they would have believed Jesus (John 5:46–47). Jesus asked His disciples if they believed that He was one with the Father (John 14:10). In the Gospel of John, Jesus was the Son of God who called for people to not only observe His signs but to believe based on the signs and be born again (John 3:3–5).
The Work of the Holy Spirit
John also gave special information about the Holy Spirit that would go on after Jesus’ ascension into Heaven. The Holy Spirit (also called the Comforter) would be with the disciples forever (John 14:16). One who is worldly cannot receive the Spirit unless he submits to Christ (John 14:17-18). The Holy Spirit would testify concerning the work of Jesus (John 15:26). The Holy Spirit would also convict the world of sin (through His words) as the apostles preached and wrote what was revealed to them (John 16:7–11). Furthermore, the Holy Spirit would guide the apostles into all of the truth Jesus was unable to share with them during His earthly ministry (John 16:12–13). Jesus later breathed the Holy Spirit onto these men, and on Pentecost, they were baptized with the Spirit (John 20:22–23; Acts 2:1–4). John gave us unique insight into the work that the Holy Spirit would be doing through the apostles.
Jesus lived the best life ever. All four Gospels show us how wonderful He was in the flesh. God intended for us to have four accounts of the one Gospel that tell us about the one Savior. Read the Gospel of John. See the signs of Jesus. See Jesus as divine. Trust the Spirit’s testimony. Believe, and be saved!
