Reading John's Gospel...Our Journey So Far

The Gospel of John
January 27 - February 2
www.spu.edu/lectio

Celebrating Jesus: Life out of Death Over and Over and Over Again
by Dr. Laura Sweat

 

Looking ahead... This week's reading is John 5:1-7:52

That's a hefty chunk of the gospel.  Here’s a suggested schedule for breaking up the reading into daily portions:

Monday.............John 5:1-30

Tuesday............John 5:31-47
Wednesday........John 6:1-21
Thursday...........John 6:22-59
Friday...............John 6:60-71
Saturday...........John 7:1-24
Sunday.............John 7:32-52

 

Our Journey So Far…

We’ve met

• God (as “God” and “the Father”)
• John (the Baptist)
• Priests & Levites, Pharisees, and a group called “the Jews”
• Nicodemus (introduced as a Pharisee and a leader of this group called “the Jews”)
• The Spirit
• Disciples – Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip, Nathaniel
• Jesus’ Mother
• A Samaritan Woman
• A Royal Official and his son

Who’s your favorite character, perhaps the one whose conversation with Jesus is most memorable to you?  With whom do you identify personally?  Who do you have a hard time identifying with?

For me, the top 3 are Philip, Nicodemus, and the Samaritan Woman…with the Samaritan Woman ascending to the top of the podium.  There is just something magnetic and powerful about that encounter!

And of course, we didn’t list the main character in the gospel so far: Jesus! The Word, The Son, The Lamb of God who Takes Away the Sin of the World, Rabbi, Messiah, King of Israel (yes…all in the first 4 chapters!).

 

Going Deeper, Making Connections to Life

 

Take a look at this recent presentation of the gospel message posted by Dare2Share evangelistic ministry for youth.  Much of the presentation expands on concepts introduced in John’s gospel.  Powerful stuff, well-presented!  Watch this video, and in a journal note the connections with what you’ve read so far in John.

 

 

Consider this challenging question: Given Jesus’ central place in the gospel of John, what do you think about him not being referred to directly in the acronym G.O.S.P.E.L.?

God.

Our.
Sins.
Paying.
Everyone.
Life.

Obviously, “Sin” is an important part of the full message.  But in the letters of the word “gospel,” do you think sin is the best “S” word, especially when “Son” or “Savior” are also possibilities?  Why or why not?

Another question: “Payment” is the word that introduces Jesus into the picture.  Can this word hold the weight of representing the main character of John’s gospel?  Why or why not?


A word of encouragement:
Draw near to Jesus. Drink deeply of the living water.  Place your face in the warm rays of the light of life.

The Gospel of John

This week we begin reading chapter 1 of John's gospel.

www.spu.edu/lectio