John 7

And the Jews marveled, saying, “How does this Man know letters, having never studied?” Jesus answered them and said, “My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.  If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority. vv.15-17

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Jesus didn't need to be taught the scripture- He was the One that wrote them!  Jesus didn't need to go to school to become a leader of Israel.  The Creator didn't need to learn wisdom from man.  Yet this is baffling the leaders of the Jews and should have been a clear sign that Jesus wasn't just some other man.   Yet the similar is true on how pastor, teachers and commoners think about others today, that one must go through a school system to know the scriptures.  Now no one today is Jesus, but those who have Jesus in them are given wisdom by Him.  One doesnt have to go to a university to study the scriptures, but can read the Bible for themselves and study it too!  The scriptures are so powerful, they reveal God's will and oh how many people say they desire to do God's will.  Yet they don't search the scriptures to find out His will.  In verse seventeen, What Christ means here is that if anyone truly wants to do the will of the Father, then he will choose to get to know the Lord’s doctrine so that he can figure out if it is really a teaching that comes from God or not.  This was true then, and it is still true today.  Many there are who claim to want to worship God, and yet they never take the time to get to know and to examine the words of Jesus Christ to see if they are from God or not (Nathan Johnson).

What is one way you have discerned God's will through His Word? 

John 6

Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” v.29

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This chapter is packed with so much good stuff!  Yet I think this one verse sums up a lot of what this chapter is portraying.  After 5,000 men were fed miraculously, they desired to be fed continuously.  Jesus goes on to tell them that He is the bread from heaven and that through Him one will never hunger again.  The people believe that Jesus is The Prophet that Moses spoke about that would come, the understand the truth right in front of them, but the are uninterested.  They keep asking to be filled by what cannot fully satisfy.  They seek Jesus only because He provided immediate fulfillment of food and Christ challenges them to labor for food that endures to everlasting life.  So they question what works they should do to do God's work for this (they're finally getting it).  And the best answer ever is, "THE work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent." Bam!  Only one thing they must do for this eternal life: believe.  So many religions and sects of Christianity are works based salvation, but our God only desires ONE work and that of the mind to believe that Jesus was sent by God.  No other work can please God like this one can or be substituted for eternal life.  Have you believed the lie of saved by works?  Why is this so hard for people to think they have to do works to be in God's favor?

John 5

“If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent to John...for the works which the Father has given Me to finish—the very works that I do—bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me. And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me." vv.31-37

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Fourfold witness of Jesus as God!  It's hard enough to find two witnesses to testify to find the truth, but here we have four witnesses that testify to the truth that Jesus is the Messiah.  It's even a biblical principal in the law to have two or three witnesses for any establishment of truth (Deut. 19:15).  First we have the book of John as a written witness to us.  Second is John the Baptist who preached of Jesus before His manifestation that even many of the Pharisees believed for a time.  I love the way Bible Teacher Nathan Johnson explains the use of John's witness: "Christ here assures them that the testimony of John was not what made up His mind that He was the Messiah.  The Lord did not need to figure this out on His Own.  He was not trying to 'find himself' and His mission in life and at last hit upon it when He heard John speak.  The Lord always knew Who He was and what He was to do.  The reason He is appealing to the witness of John is so that those who heard Him could be saved." 
Third is the witness of His works, the miracles that Jesus preformed were not just some magic, no one else could even repeat or attempt them.  And the fourth witness is the Father Himself.  How has the Father witnessed?  In verse 38 the answer is the scriptures abiding in them.  His word was not abiding in the Pharisees and therefore didn't receive the witness of the Father. They trusted in Moses yet they didn't believe Moses' words of the coming Messiah.
Which of these witnesses speaks loudest to you of Christ and which one is harder for you to believe?

John 4

The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?”  Then they went out of the city and came to Him. vv.28-30

Read chapter 4
The story of the woman at the well.  If you don't know it make sure you read the whole chapter and not just the verses above.  It's a powerful story of a Samaritan woman (a half Jew) outcast by her own people for her sin who bumps in to Jesus at a well and her life changes from there.  Can you imagine just "bumping" in to Jesus on just any ordinary day not even thinking your life was about to change forever?  Even more amazing about this woman is that she is the first person Jesus reveals Himself to that He is God.  He first reveals Himself to a woman, to an outcast.  One can not say God is chauvinistic or doesn't care for the outsiders.  Now after their long conversation together and her realizing she's talking to the Messiah she runs to tell everyone in the city about Christ and brings them out to Him.  How hard would that be to share Christ with those who shun you or don't care about you?  Yet the amazing encounter with Jesus can't keep her quiet or keep it to herself but she desires to share with everyone she knows whether good or bad relation.  I even appreciate that they listened to her and at least went to go check Him out- you never really know how someone will respond.
Have you bumped in to Jesus and if so how did that change your life?  How has that encounter made you share Him with others you'd least expect?  What holds you back from sharing it with those that are hard for you in your life?

John 3

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. v.16

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The most well known verse in all of scripture: John 3:16.  And there's a reason that is.  The book of John was written to produce believers in Jesus Christ and this is how simple it is: believe in Him, believe in who He is --> God.  
If you could give one gift to the world that everyone would benefit and enjoy what would it be?  Food wouldn't work for everyone, yes for those starving but not for those that already have it.  Money wouldn't work either as it would eventually be gone and spent on evil things that could make things worse- the value of the dollar would go way down as well with everyone having so much that prices would go up.  Salvation unto everlasting life is the only suitable gift and the best gift that could be given to every single person in the world and only bring benefit.
God gave His Son to the world, why? because God loves the world.  He doesn't love the sin or the fallen state that it's in, but loves the way it was always meant to be and love the people who are in it.  So much so that He gave His Son, His representative.
Do you believe Jesus is God?  Do you believe that God loves the world?  What would be the most valuable person or thing that you could give to someone and how does that even compare to understanding the gift of God giving of His Son?

John 2

And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”  This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him. vv.10-11

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Oh how it's the way of the Lord to save the best for last!  The way of man is the opposite often as we see here.  The good wine was thought to be served first by the host so that the cheaper wine be unnoticeable later when the guest have well drunk already.  Jesus' made just the right amount of wine (v.7), not so much that they'd get drunk, as some people like to justify drinking heavily because of this miracle of Jesus, unless it was something the guest would abuse.  Jesus filled the water pots because they were empty and needed replenishing.  In what areas are you feeling empty and needing replenishing by Jesus right now?  Wine is drunk because it changes the way one feels, but has negative side effects.  Being filled with the Holy Spirit changes the way one feels, but only positive side effects.

"And His disciples believed in Him,"  this wasn't the first time they believed in Him but the meaning is more that they grew in faith.  How has your faith grown as you've seen a miracle of God that astonishes you as they saw here?  How often in the beginning in our walk with the Lord are our eyes and ears more astounded at God's working and why does that sometimes die?

John 1

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.  In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. vv.1-5

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The epistle of John varies drastically from the other three gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke.  It starts off just as the whole Bible starts of in Genesis 1:1, "In the beginning."  Yet notice the difference if you compare the two.  In Genesis it starts off as God created the heavens and the earth where as in John there's not mention of creation but was the Word.  The Word was not created.  

Now what exactly is this “Word”?  In Greek, “Word” is logos.  The idea is that one’s words are an expression of oneself...My words have told you what I am like, and my body language and my actions have likewise told you what I am like.  Thus, these expressions of myself have given you an idea of what I am like.  Never have you had a chance to scan my heart and soul directly.  Rather, you have only gotten to know me by the expressions of myself that you have seen and heard.  The word logos carries with it this idea of expression.  It is said that the ancient Greeks realized that there must be a God, but they also believed that He was far and away beyond human comprehension.  They could not reach Him, could not reason Him out, could not get to know Him by any means that they had.  Thus they yearned for some sort of “expression,” some logos of God, some person or thing that could express God to them and show them what He is like.  They called this theoretical expression of God the Logos.  And John starts out his book with the startling fact that he is going to set forth this very Logos to us! (Bible Teacher Nathan Johnson)

The Word is God and with God.  This can be a bit confusing as it may sound like two different beings.  The word with in Greek is pros and means toward or in relation.  Kind of like in Genesis 1 when God says "let us" referring to all of who He is- Father, Son, Holy Spirit.

What questions do you have about God always being?  Do you believe that the Word became flesh and dwelt among men (v.14)?  What other god has done that?