1. The Gospel of JOHN “The Gospel of Boldness” Chapter One: “Bold Claims” Pages 5-14 1

2. Prologue to John’s Gospel – John 1:1-18  It is a brief “overview” of the entire mission of Jesus in the world.  We learn:  who Jesus was,  what He did for men,  how He was received and, in retrospect,  what was the significance of His time here.  There are some BOLD CLAIMS made in opening statements of the book  Let’s read John 1:1-18 2 Page 5John 1:1-18

3. Prologue to John’s Gospel – John 1:1-18  We will be referring to two Johns in our study  John, the writer of this book, never mentions his own name [possibly due to his humility]  The workbook and presentations will use his name and it should be obvious when used  Another John is prominent in the first half of John’s gospel  He is John, the baptizer or, “John the Baptist”  His name is mentioned 20 times in the book 3 Page 5John 1:1-18

4. Prologue to John’s Gospel – John 1:1-18  John’s Gospel is to be much more than a record of one man’s life on earth  John’s purpose will be:  to generate faith in Jesus’ divine nature, and by that faith  to bring eternal salvation to lost sinners [John 20:30,31] “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.” 4 Page 5John 1:1-18

5. Who was this Man? 1. He was “in the beginning.” 2. He was “the Word.” 3. He was “with God.” 4. He was the “Maker of all things.” 5. He was the “Lifegiver” of all life. 6. He was the single source of light for a darkened world. 5 Page 5 John 1:1-5

6. Who was this Man? 1. He was “in the beginning.”  Both John and Moses began their writings with “In the beginning”  This Being of whom John is to write has, in essence, always been, because He is God!  But, in form, He has not always been [the same], because, for a time, He became a man among men! 6 Page 5 John 1:1-5

7. Who was this Man? 2. He was “the Word.”  “…He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.” (Rev.19:13)  Jesus is “the Word” (v.14)  The “Word” had an existence before the world was created  The physical world was created by the word of God  The spiritual environment was created by the action of God’s “other Word”  Jesus is God’s message to man  Jesus was the Father’s expression of Himself to mankind 7 Page 5 John 1:1-5

8. Who was this Man? 3. He was “with God.”  John’s Gospel will focus on the relationship that existed between the Father and the Son  “For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.” (1Jn. 5:7)  It was important that this “separate but equal” status of Father and Son be estab­lished 8 Page 5 John 1:1-5

9. Who was this Man? 4. He was the “Maker of all things.”  No greater reason could be offered to skeptical people to embrace the power of Jesus to save men than the fact that He had originally created men and knew completely men’s nature and needs (John 2:25)  Paul said of Christ, “For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him” (Col. 1:16) 9 Page 5 John 1:1-5

10. Who was this Man? 5. He was the “Lifegiver” of all life.  Originally, God had breathed the breath of life into man, and man had become a “living” being (Gen. 2:7)  Now, by the same divine power, this God could breathe spiritual life into men and empower them to live eternally (John 6:51)  The Word is as responsible for the gift of spiritual life as the Word was originally responsible for the gift of physical life. 10 Page 5 John 1:1-5

11. Who was this Man? 6. He was the single source of light for a darkened world.  Darkness is indicative of sin and ignorance  “Light” is essential to human life, physical and spiritual  Jesus’ “light” [truth] could shine to light man’s way as no other light ever could  This Light cannot be darkened or destroyed 11 Page 5 John 1:1-5

12. What did He do? 1. He “became flesh.” 2. He “dwelt among us.” 3. He allowed us to “behold His glory...of grace and truth.” 4. He brought light to “every man.” 5. He allowed us to “see God” as never before. 12 Page 7John 1:6-9, 14-18

13. How was He received? 1. Since creation, sin had entered the world and had corrupted God’s creation 2. The change in the world resulted in the creature reject­ing its own Creator 3. The Lord’s “own” refused to “receive” the world’s Savior 13 Page 9 John 1:10-13

14. How was He received? 4. Some were ready to “receive” the Son 5. Jews were children of God in the flesh, but not children of God in the spirit 6. A “new birth” would be the only access offered to all believers for entrance into salvation and the kingdom of God 14 Page 9 John 1:10-13

15. The Baptist’s Testimony  John was a man sent from God (v.6)  He was sent to bear witness of the Light (v.7)  John’s work as Jesus’ forerunner was very BOLD  Preached about the kingdom’s coming  Baptized the penitent  He had captured the attention of the Jewish leadership  They wanted to know “Who are you?” 15 Page 9 John 1:19-28

16. The Baptist’s Testimony  “He confessed...I am not the Christ” (v.20)  They asked him even more questions  He said: "I am 'THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS: "MAKE STRAIGHT THE WAY OF THE LORD," ' as the prophet Isaiah said." (Isaiah 40:3)  “I am [only] the voice of one crying in the wilderness;”  “My message to you is about the way [coming] of the Lord;”  “Make straight [“direct, right, with reference to moral transformation”--Vine] the way of the Lord.” 16 Page 10 John 1:19-28

17. The Baptist’s Testimony  Then, they asked, “Why do you baptize?”  John answered them, saying, "I baptize with water, but there stands One among you whom you do not know. It is He who, coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.“ (v.26- 27)  The Christ had already come.  He actually was “standing among them” and they “did not know” [recognize] Him. 17 Page 10 John 1:26-27

18. Jesus, the Lamb of God  The next day (after the delegation from Jerusalem) John saw Jesus coming toward him  John said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (v.29)  “And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.” (v.34)  John’s witness is bold and unequivocal 18 Page 10John 1:29-34

19. The First Three Disciples  The Baptist, and two of his disciples, saw Jesus and said, “ Behold, the Lamb of God”  One disciple was Andrew (v.40)  The other was John, the writer of this Gospel  They followed Jesus to his abode and stayed with Him that day  Andrew was excited and wanted to tell his brother  Andrew told his brother Simon Peter, “We have found the Messiah” (v.41)  Jesus changed Simon’s name to Cephas, the Stone or the Rock 19 Page 11 John 1:35-42

20. Philip and Nathaniel  On the next day, Jesus found Philip and said to him, “Follow Me”  His message was simple  Philip was excited and went to tell someone  Philip found Nathaniel who was somewhat skeptical of Jesus at first because of his hometown  Jesus then displayed some familiarity with Nathaniel  Nathaniel then said, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” (v.49) 20 Page 12John 1:43-51

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