6th July 2025
The Gospel of John
Proverbs 30:4
John 21:19b-25

The mysterious book of John, contains some of the greatest words ever written; ‘In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God’, ‘No one comes to the Father except through me’, and, of course, the great ‘I am’ sayings.

The book is the favourite book of many. For many it is the first Bible book they read. John tells the story of Jesus Christ, carefully recording many events of his life. And John states plainly why he does so, ‘That you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of man, and that by believing you may have life in his name (20:31).

John wants to tell us who Jesus really is, ‘In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God… and the word became flesh and dwelt among us…’ (1:1,14). Jesus, during His life on earth, was God in human form and just in case John's introduction isn't clear enough, a few sentences later he quotes John Baptist, who says, ‘I have seen and have borne witness that this is the son of God’ (1:34). Throughout the book John gives evidence of Jesus’ deity; that Jesus performed many miracles (2:1-11, 4:46-54, 5:1-17, 6:1-13,16-21, 9:1-7, 11:38-44), And that he fulfilled prophecies written centuries before (2:13-22, 3:14, 5:46, 12:14-16).

But why would Jesus, who is God, leave heaven to live on earth as a human? Jesus himself tells us why, ‘for God so loved the world, that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him’ (3:16-17).

But why do we need to be saved? Jesus said, ‘everyone who practises sin is a slave to sin’ (8:34). If we're honest with ourselves, we cannot deny that from the moment of our birth we have done wrong things; things that make us guilty before God and deserving of His judgement. The Bible calls these wrong things sin, unseen separates us from God. And because we are separated from God, we face the awful prospect of his eternal wrath (3:36).

Can anyone save us from God's wrath and assure us of heaven? Some people believe that they can get to heaven by doing good works, or by following the teachings of a religion, or even by giving money to churches and charities. But Jesus clearly said that none of these things would save us, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me’ (14:6). No human effort can give us eternal life.

In fact, the only ‘work’ that can save us is the ‘work’ of believing in what Jesus has done to accomplish our salvation, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent’ (6:29). Until those whoso believe, the promise of God stands firm, ‘to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God (1:12).

John the Baptist calls Jesus the ‘Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world’ (1:29). Jesus explains that our salvation comes through his death on the cross as the perfect and sufficient sacrifice for our sin (3:14-15). Chapters 18 and 19 describe Jesus is death, and then chapter 20 describes his glorious triumph over death as he rose from the dead. Jesus, His resurrection means that He can give eternal life to all who believe in Him, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die…’ (11:25-26). How comforting when we think of Brian.

That last verse actually ends with Jesus asking, ‘do you believe this?’ It is a question, but every person must answer. Do we believe that He rose from the grave, breaking the power of death and making a way for us to have eternal life in heaven? If we do, may we express our faith in Him. Let us pause here for a prayer of statement…

Heavenly Father,

We believe that Jesus Christ is Your Son, and that He died on the cross to save us from our sin, We believe that He rose again to life, and that He invites us to live forever with Him in heaven as part of Your family. Because of what Jesus has done, we ask you to forgive us of our sin and give us eternal life. Help us to live in a way that pleases and honours You.

Amen.

So, turning people to Jesus is the aim of John. And what better way than to use the words of Jesus Himself? The phrase "I am" in the Bible has significance in both Hebrew and Greek. In Hebrew, it relates to the name of God, particularly in Exodus 3:14, where God reveals himself as "Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh" (אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה), often translated as "I am that I am." In Greek, specifically in the New Testament, the phrase "ego eimi" (ἐγώ εἰμι) is used, and while it can simply mean "I am," it's also used in ways that echo the Old Testament concept of God's name. I am the… the Bread of Life, the Light of the World, the Gate, the Good Shepherd, the Resurrection and the Life, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, the Vine. We should need no more. But still sometimes we doubt that our Christ is the fulfilment of all. The disciples still doubted! Let us return to the passage we heard Jason read earlier. Peter has been with Christ throughout His ministry. He, like the other disciples, witnessed miracles, listened intently to instruction, was there during Holy week, saw the resurrected Christ, and still is swayed by his earthly desires. ‘What about me?’ So let us not be too hard on ourselves. For we, like Peter, have heard God’s word. We, like Peter, understand what we are needed to do in principle. So why don’t we? Quite simply, we are tempted by wealth and kudos and selfish gain. We constantly make excuses for straying. Whose fault is this? It is ours. John could hardly have done more. For John wrote his gospel, to repeat the words with which we began, That you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of man, and that by believing you may have life in his name (20:31).

Let us be forever thankful.

Amen.