Here are my notes from the opening sermon of our new teaching series “SENT.”Much of the content comes from Kossenbergers amazing commentary on the book of John. I encourage community group leaders to invest in this volume. The ESV Study Bible is another helpful resource.
The Central Purpose of John (John 20:30-31)
John’s central purpose is to demonstrated the Christ, the Son of God, is Jesus (Carson 1987: 639-51) by weaving together several narrative strands.
“And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.”
Jesus: Sent By God (John 1-12)
- Jesus: Rooted In Redemptive History
John’s Gospel is rooted in OT theology. The gospel begins with the phrase, “In the beginning” which finds its rooted in the book of Genesis which recounts the creation of the world. So in John’s eyes Jesus, “the Word become flesh” is an event of comparable magnitude. Another OT concept taken up by John is the fact that Moses was the revealer of the revelation of God. John makes the claim that while the “law” indeed came through Moses, “grace and truth” came through Jesus. He further points to the fact that no one not even Moses had seen God, but Jesus, “the one and only Son at the Father right side has explained Him to the world Thus Jesus is the exegete, the explainer, the final and definitive revealer of God. John favorite designation for Jesus is “the Son sent by the Father.” (3:17, 35-36; 5:19-26; 6:40; 8:35-36; 14:13; 17:1). This metaphor was common to Jewish life, where they understood that the sent would be like the sender, a faithful representative of his interest. Images within the book of John’s find their grounding in the OT such as, the bread from heaven which develops the concept of God’s provisions in the wilderness through manna.
John’s desire is for you see how Jesus’ person and work fits into the greater story of God. Thus the better we are able to see how the N.T. fits with the O.T. the more faithful communicators of the gospel we will become because we learn that the whole bible speak of Jesus.
- Jesus: Authenticated By Signs & Witnesses
Central to John’s presentation of Jesus’ work is the concept of signs and a corresponding witness to that sign. This concept of confirmation through signs finds its roots in the OT presentation of Moses as the representative of God during the exodus, with Jesus being the leader of a new and better exodus. In the gospel of John however, the divine character of Jesus is blend with, or suspended by the prophetic signs and OT symbol. John’s gospel is built around 7 such signs. For example the “Feeding Of The Multitude” in John 6 has a lot of similarities to Number 11. The feeding of the 5,000 is set on the back end of John 5:46, where Jesus commends the people to believe in Him because Moses confirmed that He would come. In John 6 we read that the people who followed Jesus because of His sign where hungry (ironically this happens during the time of the passover, the greatest remembrance of the exodus). The people grumble. Like Moses in the wilderness who provided manna by the power of God, Jesus provides food for the hungry people of God. Jesus then in John 6:22- the end of chapter connects the fact that He is the true bread that had come from heaven.
John’s desire is to place before his audience a case for Jesus being the Messiah, the sent one of God. Thus when we believe in the promised One we will have eternal life.
- Jesus: God By Self-identification
In one of the most unique aspect of John are his focus of Jesus self-identification as God through the “I Am” statements. The significants of the “I AM” statements can not be underplayed in relation to our understanding of the person of Jesus. There significance again is rooted in the Exodus, where Moses asked God to confirm His name in order for him to rightly represent God. Thus God’s reply is “I AM” who “I AM”, a statement of eternality and self existence. Thus when Jesus apply this tittle to Himself amazing things happen. There are 5 direct “I AM” (6:20; 8:28, 28, 58; 18:5) statements and 7 metaphorical statements of deity. My favorite example of this is John 8. When an argument ensues with the Jews and Jesus is attacked as a demon, He returns with the fact that If they don’t believe in Him they are from the devil. The Jews insist that they are the children of Abraham. Jesus then insist that if they believe in Him they will never die. The Jews that this as an offense on tradition. They as Jesus if He is greater than Abraham. Without missing a beat, Jesus states, “before Abraham was, I AM.” This is seen as a statement of deity and blasphemy, so they seek to kill Him.
John’s desires that we see that Jesus is more than just a man but rather the great God and King that will lead his people into the promises if God.
- Jesus: The Fullness of Genuine Spirituality
Another motif of John is Jesus as a fulfillment of the Jewish feast. Remember for the Jew, the feast where a deep point of spiritual connection with there God. John contends that Jesus is actually the fulfillment of these feast this the spiritual point of connection with God. One of the better examples of this is in John 7, during the feast of the Tabernacle. The seen is amazing! According to Jewish history during this day of the feast there would have been a ceremonial which would include the pouring our of hundreds of gallons of waters from golden jug gather by the priest from the pool of Silom. In the midst of this sacred event Jesus stand in yells “If anyone thirst let him come after me and drink!” Echoing the words of Isaiah 55. The point being that true spiritually is not the rote performance of ceremony but rather the by a proper understanding of God through Jesus informed by the inward work of the Spirit.
John’s desire is for us to see that the form of orthodoxy is useless without the in working of the spirit. Just as much important spirituality devoid of an understand of redemptive history.
Church: Sent To Display God (John 13-21)
- Church: Extension Of Israel In Jesus
Like John’s portrait of Jesus, John description of the church is in keeping with OT typology. Believers are described as a “flock” (John 10) and branches of the “vine” (John 15). Yet John does not teach that the church replaces Israel. Rather, he states Jesus is the replacement of Israel: He is God’s vine, taking the place of God’s vineyard, Israel. John acknowledges that salvation comes from the Jesus (Women At The Well: John 4) but portrays Israel as apart of the unbelieving world that rejects Jesus. In there place the 12 are know as “His own.” One of the most revealing verses is seen in John 1 where we read, “ He came to His own, but his own did not receive Him. But all who receive Him, who believe in His name, he gave the right to become the children of God, who were born not of blood, nor of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
John’s desire is for us to understand that the true people of God are those who believe in Jesus. Thus we are to reject exclusivism the limiting of salvation to race, social status, or time in history or universalism which embraces every way as the right way, but rather Jesus as the way open to all who believe in His name
- Church: A New Covenant People
Another point of interest in relation to the church as the people of God is John connection of the disciple and Jesus to Moses and the Israelites in the book of Deuteronomy. The people of God where a “covenant” who was ultimately to “love and obey” the Lord. The core group of believer are the same (13-17). They where meant to be a unique people that love and obey Jesus. This covenant people was meant as the OT people of God to display the beauty and faithfulness of God to the world. Several characteristic of the new people of God worth mentioning are: 1. Servanthood (seen in the washing of the disciples feet) 2. Love (especially for one another) 3. Faith (in the son of God) 4. Obedience (through the Spirt to the word of God) 5. Sustaining (abiding in the person and work of Jesus) 6. Joy (Jesus overcomes the world). 7. Unity (show the world Jesus sent by God.)
John’s desire is that we understand that we are the people of God meant to display for the world the message of salvation to all people.
Most of you know that the concept of New Years resolutions is a fairly pagan concept. The popular tradition of making new years resolutions also has origins in Ancient Babylon and Rome. The Babylonians would typically return farm equipment that they had borrowed during the year, while in Caesar’s time Janus became the symbol for resolutions because he had two faces that could look to the past and into the future. Thus I would like to mention, that the resolution (RESOLUTIONS THAT WILL BY GOD’S GRACE DRIVE THE ADVANCE OF THE GOSPEL THROUGH ALETHEIA CHURCH RICHMOND IN THE NEXT YEAR) that I will post in the coming weeks are more along the lines of the Edwardian tradition. The Johnathan Edward Center of Yale University write this about his 70 resolutions:
23. Resolved, frequently to take some deliberate action, which seems most unlikely to be done, for the glory of God, and trace it back to the original intention, designs and ends of it; and if I find it not to be for God’s glory, to repute it as a breach of the 4th Resolution.