- Today, we're gonna
tackle the last in our series
00:00:01.33\00:00:02.96
on the four gospels
and we're about to move
00:00:02.96\00:00:05.03
into some really
profound territory.
00:00:05.03\00:00:07.87
So go get a Bible and buckle up
00:00:07.87\00:00:09.87
because it's
time to get started.
00:00:09.87\00:00:12.14
[gentle music]
00:00:12.14\00:00:14.81
We've been looking
at the ancient records
00:00:33.26\00:00:35.30
of the life and
teachings of Jesus,
00:00:35.30\00:00:36.87
which are of course, the four
gospel accounts that you find
00:00:36.87\00:00:39.00
at the beginning
of the New Testament,
00:00:39.00\00:00:40.87
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
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And today, we're gonna
wrap up that brief study
00:00:43.51\00:00:46.34
by looking at the fourth gospel,
00:00:46.34\00:00:48.61
the gospel according to John.
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And it's a record that
is substantially different
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from the other three.
00:00:53.42\00:00:54.95
In fact, scholars refer
to Matthew, Mark, and Luke
00:00:54.95\00:00:57.72
as the synoptic gospels.
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A word that
literally means to see together
00:00:59.72\00:01:02.89
because while each
of those books obviously
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has its own
emphasis, its own flavor,
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they basically
follow the same outline
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and cover a lot
of the same ground.
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But then when you get to John,
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things are suddenly different.
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It's got a
completely different feel,
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a completely
different structure.
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Where the other
three gospels begin
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with some kind of life
event like a birth or a baptism,
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John begins his account by
stretching all the way back
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to the origin of
the universe itself,
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using language
clearly designed to remind you
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of the book of Genesis.
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Now, I'm sure you're
probably familiar with it,
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but let me read just a few
verses to show you what I mean.
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This is talking about Jesus
and it uses the expression,
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the word to describe him.
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It says, "In the
beginning was the Word
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and the Word was with
God, and the word was God.
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He was in the
beginning with God.
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All things were made
through Him and without Him,
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nothing was made that was made.
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In Him was life and the
life was the light of men.
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And the light
shines in the darkness
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and the darkness
did not comprehend it."
00:02:06.19\00:02:09.62
As we looked at
the other gospels,
00:02:09.62\00:02:11.39
we saw that the ancient
Christians compared each of them
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to the four
faces of the Cherubim.
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The lion, the ox,
the man and the eagle
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because of the way the
style and the central themes
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of each of the books fit
so neatly with those symbols,
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Matthew
emphasized Jesus as the lion
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of the tribe of
Judah or the son of David.
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Mark was underlining Jesus
as a patient servant like an ox.
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Luke who was
writing for Gentiles,
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takes us through a study
of Jesus as the Son of man.
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And each of those three
gospels tended to stress
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horizontal relationships.
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Showing us how Jesus related
to us, his fellow human beings.
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But now when we get to John,
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we see a distinctly vertical
relationship that opens up
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a line between heaven and earth.
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Now we're looking at
at Jesus, the son of God,
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and what John does
right out of the gate
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is underline
the deity of Christ.
00:03:03.35\00:03:06.15
This is not just a
great teacher or a kind man
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or a wise philosopher.
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This is the creator
himself in human flesh.
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And it seems that
back in the first century,
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during the time when the
Christian Church was brand new
00:03:18.23\00:03:20.70
and spreading like wildfire,
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there were already
people challenging the notion
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that Jesus was
God in human flesh.
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And that challenge
still persists to this day.
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I sometimes still hear critics
suggesting that the deity
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of Christ was some kind
of fourth century invention
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that made its way into
the church after Constantine
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in the Council of Nicaea
but it's simply not true.
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The critics of
Jesus' deity stretch back
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a couple of
centuries before Nicaea.
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And if the idea was invented
later in the fourth century,
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you've got to wonder
what those early critics
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were arguing
against if the church
00:03:56.23\00:03:58.10
wasn't already
teaching Christ's divinity.
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The biggest
problem emerged in a group
00:04:02.80\00:04:04.44
we now know as the Naztecs.
00:04:04.44\00:04:06.74
These were people
largely influenced
00:04:06.74\00:04:08.64
by the major centers of
learning in North Africa.
00:04:08.64\00:04:11.81
People who managed to
synthesize the teachings
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of pagan mystery schools
with the teachings of the Bible.
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In reality, that was
happening long before the birth
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of the Christian Church
because some Jewish scholars
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living in Alexandria tried to
demonstrate that their beliefs
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were somehow
compatible with the teachings
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of Greek philosophers.
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And this created
a bit of a problem
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because the Hebrew
scriptures emphasized
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a good and material
creation made by a supreme God.
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The Greeks, as
we've studied in the past
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couldn't accept
that because they believe
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that the material physical
world is some kind of mistake.
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It couldn't possibly be
the work of a supreme God
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and some lesser
deity must have made it.
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Now Naztecs Christians
followed in their footsteps
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and subscribed to that
kind of Greek cosmology.
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And that led to all
sorts of confusing questions
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about who Jesus
was supposed to be.
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As far as the
Naztecs were concerned,
00:05:09.90\00:05:11.71
he couldn't possibly be God,
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not if he was a
real human being.
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Because a physical existence
would be so far beneath God,
00:05:16.64\00:05:20.68
he would never do it.
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So instead, some of
them insisted that Jesus
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was simply a man who had
special privileges or abilities,
00:05:25.25\00:05:29.26
but he was still just a man.
00:05:29.26\00:05:32.13
Or the other story that
some of them came up with
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was to say that Jesus
only appeared to be human,
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that it was just
an illusion designed
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to help us relate to him.
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Now, if you read the writings
00:05:43.77\00:05:45.11
of an early church
father named Irenaeus,
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a man who was born not too long
after John the Apostle died,
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you discover that much
of the early church believed
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that John wrote his
gospel to counteract
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early photonastic heretics.
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Because their ideas were
starting to worm their way
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into the church by the
end of the first century.
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In particular, there
was a troublesome teacher
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named Cerinthus who insisted,
like the Naztecs did later,
00:06:07.23\00:06:11.40
that a supreme God could have
never made the physical world.
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So Jesus, he said,
was just a human being.
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The literal biological
son of Joseph and Mary.
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What made Jesus
special, Cerinthus taught,
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was the fact that
the Holy Spirit descended
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on him at his baptism.
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But then he said
the Spirit left again
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the moment Jesus was crucified.
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So I guess you
could say that Cerinthus
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was teaching that
during his ministry
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and only during his ministry,
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Jesus was some kind of a
supercharged human being,
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but still just a human being.
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So here's what we
have from Irenaeus
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is he explains why the
gospel of John was written.
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This comes from an
early apologetic work
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known as "Against Heresies"
and this is what he writes.
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He says, "John, the
disciple of the Lord
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preaches this faith."
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So he's talking about the
Orthodox Christian faith here.
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And seeks, by the
proclamation of the gospel,
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to remove that error,
00:07:06.29\00:07:07.76
which by Cerinthus had
been disseminated among men.
00:07:07.76\00:07:10.79
And a long time previously
by those termed Nicolaitans."
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You'll find
those people mentioned
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over in the Book of Revelation.
00:07:16.77\00:07:18.43
"Who are an
offset of that knowledge,
00:07:18.43\00:07:21.30
falsely so called."
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So let me push the
pause button for just a moment
00:07:23.57\00:07:25.77
and explain that.
00:07:25.77\00:07:27.34
The word Naztec is derived
from the Greek word, gnosis
00:07:27.34\00:07:30.01
the word for knowledge.
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And the Naztecs
believed that they were members
00:07:31.85\00:07:33.92
of an intellectual elite
that had special knowledge
00:07:33.92\00:07:36.89
about the
nature of the universe.
00:07:36.89\00:07:39.09
Let's continue.
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"Who are an offset of that
knowledge falsely so called.
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That he might
confound them and persuade them
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that there is but one God
who made all things by His word
00:07:46.36\00:07:49.76
and not as they allege
that the Creator was one
00:07:49.76\00:07:52.80
but the father
of the Lord another
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and that the son of the
creator was forsooth, one,
00:07:54.67\00:07:57.87
but the Christ
from above another."
00:07:57.87\00:08:00.41
You see, the Naztecs
believed that the supreme God
00:08:00.41\00:08:03.18
is so far removed from our
imperfect material universe
00:08:03.18\00:08:06.51
that there must
have been lesser deities,
00:08:06.51\00:08:09.35
emanations from the supreme God
00:08:09.35\00:08:11.22
who did a bad, bad job
of creating this world.
00:08:11.22\00:08:14.89
But what John does with his
gospel is confront that idea
00:08:16.36\00:08:18.73
right out of the gate.
00:08:18.73\00:08:20.13
Jesus the man is
not only the son of God,
00:08:20.13\00:08:22.76
but is the creator.
00:08:22.76\00:08:24.23
"All things were made
through him and without him,
00:08:24.23\00:08:26.80
nothing was made that was made."
00:08:26.80\00:08:29.74
All right, we do have to take
a really quick break right now
00:08:29.74\00:08:32.51
and you'll probably want to
take advantage of the resources
00:08:32.51\00:08:35.21
that the Voice of
Prophecy is about to offer you.
00:08:35.21\00:08:38.38
But then we'll come
right back and unpack
00:08:38.38\00:08:40.78
this somewhat
mind-blowing gospel.
00:08:40.78\00:08:43.52
- [Announcer] Dragons,
beasts, cryptic statues.
00:08:46.76\00:08:51.36
Bible prophecy can be
incredibly vivid and confusing.
00:08:51.36\00:08:54.30
If you've ever read Daniel
or Revelation and come away
00:08:54.30\00:08:58.67
scratching your
head, you are not alone.
00:08:58.67\00:09:01.17
Our free focus on prophecy
guides are designed to help you
00:09:01.17\00:09:04.64
unlock the mysteries
of the Bible and deepen
00:09:04.64\00:09:07.01
your understanding of God's
plan for you and our world.
00:09:07.01\00:09:10.41
Study online or
request them by mail
00:09:10.41\00:09:12.85
and start bringing
prophecy into focus today.
00:09:12.85\00:09:16.45
- I think the incarnation
of Christ might be one
00:09:16.45\00:09:18.89
of the hardest concepts
00:09:18.89\00:09:20.29
that human beings
have to grapple with
00:09:20.29\00:09:22.56
when they first approach
the teachings of Christianity.
00:09:22.56\00:09:25.59
How in the world can somebody
be fully God and fully man
00:09:25.59\00:09:30.53
at the very same time?
00:09:30.53\00:09:32.50
How can the creator of heaven
and earth possibly condescend
00:09:32.50\00:09:35.97
to become one of us?
00:09:35.97\00:09:37.87
It's a subject that frankly
stretches the very limits
00:09:37.87\00:09:40.91
of our thinking.
00:09:40.91\00:09:41.88
And because it seems so foreign,
00:09:41.88\00:09:44.31
a lot of people
give up and they adopt
00:09:44.31\00:09:46.48
some kind of alternate theory.
00:09:46.48\00:09:48.35
Perhaps Jesus was just
another ascended master
00:09:48.35\00:09:51.35
or some kind of special
teacher or prophet who belongs
00:09:51.35\00:09:55.29
in a lineup with the
other great religious leaders.
00:09:55.29\00:09:58.76
The list of
alternatives we've come up with
00:09:58.76\00:10:00.60
is nearly endless, and
you might be able to sustain
00:10:00.60\00:10:03.97
some of those theories
in the first three gospels
00:10:03.97\00:10:07.47
if you read them selectively.
00:10:07.47\00:10:10.47
But the gospel of John
00:10:10.47\00:10:11.74
doesn't really give
you any wiggle room.
00:10:11.74\00:10:14.01
It begins with a full on
assault against the people
00:10:14.01\00:10:17.01
who believe that
Jesus was only human.
00:10:17.01\00:10:20.32
And maybe one of the
trickier things we find
00:10:20.32\00:10:22.48
in John's opening salvo
is this concept of Jesus
00:10:22.48\00:10:26.22
as the word.
00:10:26.22\00:10:28.06
It's an English translation
of the Greek word logos,
00:10:28.06\00:10:31.53
which you still find appended
00:10:31.53\00:10:33.06
to a lot of academic English
words like biology or geology.
00:10:33.06\00:10:37.97
That ology at the
end of those words
00:10:39.20\00:10:41.87
is the Greek word logos.
00:10:41.87\00:10:43.61
It's also the root for
the English word logic,
00:10:43.61\00:10:46.91
which is the study
of rational principles.
00:10:46.91\00:10:49.74
And to the Greeks,
00:10:49.74\00:10:51.21
the logos was the underlying
logic of the universe,
00:10:51.21\00:10:55.52
the universal
principle that causes everything
00:10:55.52\00:10:58.92
and holds everything together.
00:10:58.92\00:11:01.49
So for example,
00:11:01.49\00:11:02.99
there was a notable
Greek thinker named Heraclitus
00:11:02.99\00:11:05.59
who lived about 500
years before Christ.
00:11:05.59\00:11:09.13
And he taught that the
universe was made of fire.
00:11:09.13\00:11:12.37
Why?
00:11:12.37\00:11:13.77
Well, because the
universe is always changing
00:11:13.77\00:11:15.37
just like the
flames of a campfire.
00:11:15.37\00:11:17.67
But underneath
that constant change,
00:11:17.67\00:11:19.77
we find never-changing
principles in a universal law
00:11:19.77\00:11:23.18
that holds the
universe together.
00:11:23.18\00:11:25.78
That universal law,
Heraclitus said, is the logos.
00:11:25.78\00:11:29.68
A divine wisdom that
directs the course of nature.
00:11:29.68\00:11:33.39
The stoics who came along a
couple hundred years after that
00:11:33.39\00:11:37.23
thought something similar.
00:11:37.23\00:11:38.59
The universe is
made of fire and someday,
00:11:38.59\00:11:40.70
it's going to end in a
huge apocalyptic disaster.
00:11:40.70\00:11:44.70
Everything's
just going to burn up.
00:11:44.70\00:11:47.27
But in the
meantime, the divine logos,
00:11:47.27\00:11:49.67
the principle
behind the fire organizes
00:11:49.67\00:11:52.81
the physical world around us,
00:11:52.81\00:11:54.11
taking on the forms
of the things you see.
00:11:54.11\00:11:57.08
All of us, the stoics thought,
00:11:57.08\00:11:58.58
are just sparks that
leap from the divine fire.
00:11:58.58\00:12:01.28
And eventually one day, we
will leave our physical bodies
00:12:01.28\00:12:04.55
and go back to the fire.
00:12:04.55\00:12:06.86
It was kind of a
version of pantheism,
00:12:06.86\00:12:09.46
which teaches that
God is in everything
00:12:09.46\00:12:11.49
and everything is God.
00:12:11.49\00:12:13.66
But what these Greek thinkers
never ever did was to say
00:12:13.66\00:12:17.97
that the logos became a man,
00:12:17.97\00:12:20.00
that this divine
power behind the universe
00:12:20.00\00:12:22.20
became a specific human being
00:12:22.20\00:12:24.74
at a specific
moment in human history.
00:12:24.74\00:12:27.94
So that is exactly
where John part's company
00:12:27.94\00:12:31.08
with the Greek philosophers.
00:12:31.08\00:12:32.91
Jesus is the logos.
00:12:32.91\00:12:35.25
The divine wisdom that created
the universe and provides
00:12:35.25\00:12:38.52
the gift of life and he
was born as a real human being.
00:12:38.52\00:12:43.53
It's a thought that demands
so much from our intellect
00:12:44.96\00:12:47.50
that's it's hard to
believe that somebody
00:12:47.50\00:12:49.00
was just making that up in
order to write a good story.
00:12:49.00\00:12:52.80
Greek mythology had half-human
deities like Hercules,
00:12:52.80\00:12:56.91
but they would never put the
infinite God in a human body.
00:12:56.91\00:13:00.88
Other religions
had great prophets
00:13:00.88\00:13:02.58
who were guided by
God or by the gods,
00:13:02.58\00:13:05.75
but they didn't dare
suggest that these prophets
00:13:05.75\00:13:08.38
were God himself.
00:13:08.38\00:13:10.09
Pagan kings from Egypt to
Babylon were said to be members
00:13:10.09\00:13:13.79
of the pantheon
with divine attributes,
00:13:13.79\00:13:16.76
but they were never the
supreme creator of the universe.
00:13:16.76\00:13:20.80
So with Jesus, a man who
never occupied a worldly throne,
00:13:20.80\00:13:24.47
we suddenly have this surprising
claim that he is fully God
00:13:24.47\00:13:28.74
and fully man at
the very same time.
00:13:28.74\00:13:31.31
This humble son of a
carpenter is God in human flesh.
00:13:31.31\00:13:35.68
This is precisely where
the people who love to say
00:13:35.68\00:13:38.78
that Jesus is nothing
but a fictitious rehash
00:13:38.78\00:13:41.78
of ancient
mythology run into trouble.
00:13:41.78\00:13:45.15
I've heard people
say that Jesus is nothing
00:13:45.15\00:13:47.46
but a retelling of
the sun God, Apollo.
00:13:47.46\00:13:49.62
And I've seen other people
suggest that the story of Jesus
00:13:49.62\00:13:52.49
as we find it in the
Bible is nothing but a rehash
00:13:52.49\00:13:56.20
of the story of the
Egyptian god, Horus.
00:13:56.20\00:13:59.30
And I suppose at first blush,
00:13:59.30\00:14:01.60
it almost looks like
these people have a point.
00:14:01.60\00:14:04.34
After the rise of Constantine,
00:14:04.34\00:14:06.27
when the Roman states started
to blend with the church,
00:14:06.27\00:14:09.54
all kinds of pagan myths and
ideas started to make their way
00:14:09.54\00:14:12.98
into the Christian Church.
00:14:12.98\00:14:14.78
So yes, it's easy to
find ancient pagan icons
00:14:14.78\00:14:19.19
on display in
churches in Europe.
00:14:19.19\00:14:22.26
Because there was a
deliberate merging of the church
00:14:22.26\00:14:24.89
with the pagan Roman
empire and there was a degree
00:14:24.89\00:14:28.20
of cross-pollination.
00:14:28.20\00:14:30.17
For example, you'll
often see halos over the heads
00:14:30.17\00:14:33.57
of important
Christian characters
00:14:33.57\00:14:35.14
in order to
emphasize their sanctity,
00:14:35.14\00:14:38.07
and that was an idea that
was borrowed from the pagans
00:14:38.07\00:14:42.31
who occasionally put
sunbursts over the heads
00:14:42.31\00:14:45.15
of some of their gods.
00:14:45.15\00:14:46.85
If you go to a
more traditional church,
00:14:46.85\00:14:49.72
one that uses old
liturgies and orders of service,
00:14:49.72\00:14:53.15
you will find elements in
the worship service that date
00:14:53.15\00:14:56.09
all the way back to the
earliest centuries of the faith.
00:14:56.09\00:14:59.79
Some of those were
borrowed from Jewish synagogues,
00:14:59.79\00:15:03.06
but others were borrowed from
ancient Greek mystery schools
00:15:03.06\00:15:06.47
who loved good
purification rituals.
00:15:06.47\00:15:10.21
But for the most part,
00:15:10.21\00:15:11.54
most of the pagan artifacts
00:15:11.54\00:15:13.68
we find in Christian
imagery are harmless.
00:15:13.68\00:15:16.21
They don't really matter.
00:15:16.21\00:15:18.65
Now, personally,
00:15:18.65\00:15:20.12
I do think there are a few
things we might wanna run past
00:15:20.12\00:15:22.78
the Bible to see if
we're doing things literally
00:15:22.78\00:15:25.12
by the book, but that
would be another topic
00:15:25.12\00:15:27.69
for another day.
00:15:27.69\00:15:29.29
There's just little
doubt that particularly
00:15:29.29\00:15:31.83
after the fourth century,
00:15:31.83\00:15:33.60
there was a bit of tradition
blending that did take place.
00:15:33.60\00:15:37.37
And that makes rich fodder
for people who want to say
00:15:37.37\00:15:40.47
that Jesus was nothing but
an extension of pagan mythology.
00:15:40.47\00:15:45.27
Yet, when you read the
opening verses of John's gospel,
00:15:45.27\00:15:49.14
it becomes immediately obvious
00:15:49.14\00:15:52.35
that this can't
possibly be true.
00:15:52.35\00:15:54.82
The Jesus in these
opening verses is not presented
00:15:54.82\00:15:57.45
as being somehow
parallel with Greek mythology.
00:15:57.45\00:16:00.99
Instead, John places
him in stark contrast
00:16:00.99\00:16:03.86
to the gods of Mount Olympus.
00:16:03.86\00:16:05.69
This man that John describes
as a physical incarnation
00:16:05.69\00:16:10.27
of the creator of the universe.
00:16:10.27\00:16:12.53
And from that point forward,
00:16:12.53\00:16:14.27
John sets out to prove this
by tracking the life of Jesus
00:16:14.27\00:16:17.57
in a way that produces
this big sense of urgency.
00:16:17.57\00:16:21.51
There's this never
ending clock that ticks away
00:16:21.51\00:16:24.58
in the background
of the story in John.
00:16:24.58\00:16:27.12
At least seven times,
00:16:27.12\00:16:29.12
John directly mentions
the approaching hour of Jesus'
00:16:29.12\00:16:33.12
death. We get a glimpse of
what God looks like by following
00:16:33.12\00:16:37.79
Jesus, but it happens
under the pressing shadow
00:16:37.79\00:16:40.13
of something horrible.
00:16:40.13\00:16:41.86
Our selfish natures
and our hatred for God
00:16:41.86\00:16:44.90
are shortly gonna
put Jesus to death
00:16:44.90\00:16:46.87
in the most
shameful way imaginable.
00:16:46.87\00:16:50.37
This story is God expressing
his profound love for us,
00:16:50.37\00:16:54.04
but at the same time, it
reveals our profound wickedness
00:16:54.04\00:16:58.71
because we want it
to murder the creator.
00:16:58.71\00:17:01.88
I often hear people
talk about the Bible
00:17:03.08\00:17:04.75
as if it's a simple
fairytale that doesn't have much
00:17:04.75\00:17:07.86
to offer 21st century thinkers.
00:17:07.86\00:17:10.63
But I know for sure that
people who suggest such things
00:17:10.63\00:17:13.53
have never honestly
wrestled with the gospel of John
00:17:13.53\00:17:16.46
because I'll tell you,
there's nothing simple about it.
00:17:16.46\00:17:20.10
It explores the deepest
and most important questions
00:17:20.10\00:17:23.37
ever asked from human
origins and consciousness
00:17:23.37\00:17:26.91
and the meaning of life
and the problem of evil.
00:17:26.91\00:17:30.05
It's not the kind of book
you can read in a single setting
00:17:30.05\00:17:32.68
and hope to
understand completely.
00:17:32.68\00:17:34.98
In fact, the
concepts are so lofty
00:17:34.98\00:17:38.32
that the ancient
description of John's gospel
00:17:38.32\00:17:40.52
as an eagle makes
really good sense.
00:17:40.52\00:17:43.83
His is a book that will
carry you far above the surface
00:17:43.83\00:17:47.40
of the earth and give
you a glimpse of this world
00:17:47.40\00:17:50.00
as you've never seen it before.
00:17:50.00\00:17:52.20
And at the same time, it gives
you a peek behind the curtain
00:17:52.20\00:17:55.54
of the universe so you can
catch a glimpse of God himself.
00:17:55.54\00:17:59.57
In fact, there's a dramatic
scene you find in John's gospel
00:18:01.04\00:18:03.45
over in chapter
eight, that underlines this.
00:18:03.45\00:18:06.48
And it's a scene
00:18:06.48\00:18:07.68
that isn't found in
the other three gospels.
00:18:07.68\00:18:09.88
Jesus is discussing his mission
00:18:09.88\00:18:11.62
with the religious authorities
00:18:11.62\00:18:13.05
who were having trouble
accepting that he had any kind
00:18:13.05\00:18:15.99
of spiritual validity.
00:18:15.99\00:18:17.79
And at one point, he tells them,
00:18:17.79\00:18:20.16
much to the chagrin,
that they cannot claim
00:18:20.16\00:18:22.96
to be descendants of Abraham
unless they relate to God
00:18:22.96\00:18:26.17
the way that Abraham did.
00:18:26.17\00:18:28.00
And that's through faith.
00:18:28.00\00:18:29.90
And then Jesus tells them
that instead of having God
00:18:29.90\00:18:32.81
for a father, they
have the devil for a father.
00:18:32.81\00:18:36.14
Let me read just a bit of this.
00:18:36.14\00:18:37.28
This is John 8:42.
00:18:37.28\00:18:39.58
It says, "Jesus said to
them, 'If God were your father,
00:18:39.58\00:18:43.08
you would love me for I
proceeded forth and came from
00:18:43.08\00:18:46.72
God. Nor have I come
of myself, but he sent me,
00:18:46.72\00:18:49.46
why do you not
understand my speech?
00:18:49.46\00:18:51.66
Because you are not
able to listen to my word.
00:18:51.66\00:18:54.66
You are of your
father, the devil
00:18:54.66\00:18:56.40
and the desires of
your father you want to do.
00:18:56.40\00:18:59.77
He was a murderer from the
beginning and does not stand
00:18:59.77\00:19:02.70
in the truth because
there is no truth in him.
00:19:02.70\00:19:05.24
When he speaks a lie,
00:19:05.24\00:19:06.71
he speaks from his own
resources for he is a liar
00:19:06.71\00:19:09.08
and the father of it.
00:19:09.08\00:19:10.58
But because I tell the
truth, you do not believe me."
00:19:10.58\00:19:15.02
Pretty heavy stuff.
00:19:15.88\00:19:17.32
And now it's time
to take another break.
00:19:17.32\00:19:19.69
So don't you go away.
00:19:19.69\00:19:21.09
I'll be right back
with the rest of the story.
00:19:21.09\00:19:23.69
- [Announcer] Here at
the Voice of Prophecy,
00:19:26.93\00:19:28.36
we're committed to
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00:19:28.36\00:19:30.80
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00:19:32.27\00:19:35.44
Discovery Mountain
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00:19:35.44\00:19:37.91
for kids of all
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- Okay, just before the break,
00:19:56.99\00:19:58.33
we were in John
chapter eight where Jesus tells
00:19:58.33\00:20:00.76
the religious authorities that
the devil is the real father.
00:20:00.76\00:20:05.07
And of course, his critics
return the favor by suggesting
00:20:05.07\00:20:08.64
that Jesus is an unclean
Samaritan possessed by a demon.
00:20:08.64\00:20:12.77
Let's pick it
up now in verse 49.
00:20:12.77\00:20:15.18
"Jesus answered, 'I
do not have a demon.
00:20:15.18\00:20:18.21
But I honor my
father and you dishonor me.
00:20:18.21\00:20:20.75
And I do not seek my own glory.
00:20:20.75\00:20:22.82
There is one who
seeks and judges.
00:20:22.82\00:20:25.19
Most assuredly I say to you,
00:20:25.19\00:20:27.22
if anyone keeps my word,
he shall never see death.'"
00:20:27.22\00:20:31.43
Now, don't forget
the gospel of John opens
00:20:31.43\00:20:33.66
with Jesus as creator
and the source of all life.
00:20:33.66\00:20:36.80
So this is really a
declaration of his deity.
00:20:36.80\00:20:39.77
He's telling these
people that he possesses
00:20:39.77\00:20:41.90
the very gift of life.
00:20:41.90\00:20:43.97
Now, listen to their response.
00:20:43.97\00:20:46.57
"Then the Jews said to him,
00:20:46.57\00:20:47.91
'Now we know
that you have a demon.
00:20:47.91\00:20:50.65
Abraham is dead
and the prophets.
00:20:50.65\00:20:53.11
And you say, if
anyone keeps my word,
00:20:53.11\00:20:54.85
he shall never taste death.
00:20:54.85\00:20:56.38
Are you greater than our
father Abraham who is dead
00:20:56.38\00:20:59.72
and the prophets are dead?
00:20:59.72\00:21:00.99
Who do you make
yourself out to be?'"
00:21:00.99\00:21:03.99
And that right there is the
whole point of John's gospel.
00:21:03.99\00:21:08.23
Who do you think you are?
00:21:09.63\00:21:11.30
Who is this great moral teacher
00:21:11.30\00:21:13.20
who heals the sick
and raises the dead?
00:21:13.20\00:21:16.00
Who is this man who claims
that he has seen God the Father,
00:21:16.00\00:21:19.47
that he is one
with God the Father,
00:21:19.47\00:21:22.01
and he can show us the
character of God perfectly?
00:21:22.01\00:21:26.08
Let's continue. In verse
54, it says, "Jesus answered,
00:21:26.08\00:21:29.55
'If I honor myself,
my honor is nothing.
00:21:29.55\00:21:32.22
It is my father who
honors me of whom you say
00:21:32.22\00:21:34.96
that he is your father.
00:21:34.96\00:21:36.73
Yet you have not
known him, but I know him.
00:21:36.73\00:21:39.76
And if I say I do not know
him, I shall be a liar like you,
00:21:39.76\00:21:42.90
but I do know him
and keep his word.
00:21:42.90\00:21:45.53
Your father Abraham,
rejoice to see my day.
00:21:45.53\00:21:48.70
And he saw it and was glad.'"
00:21:48.70\00:21:52.24
Now don't miss
what Jesus just said.
00:21:52.24\00:21:54.34
The nation of Israel
claimed Abraham as their father,
00:21:54.34\00:21:56.88
as the one who
established a covenant with God.
00:21:56.88\00:21:59.55
And now Jesus suddenly
says that Abraham knew him.
00:21:59.55\00:22:03.95
And that's absolutely true.
00:22:03.95\00:22:05.79
In fact, in the
18th chapter of Genesis,
00:22:05.79\00:22:07.96
we see God himself
paying Abraham a personal visit.
00:22:07.96\00:22:12.16
And when you sort
through all the evidence
00:22:12.16\00:22:13.76
in both the Old
and New Testaments,
00:22:13.76\00:22:15.46
it becomes pretty much obvious
that it was Christ himself
00:22:15.46\00:22:19.57
who paid Abraham that visit.
00:22:19.57\00:22:21.84
And of course, these
religious leaders knew that God
00:22:21.84\00:22:25.01
had spoken to Abraham,
00:22:25.01\00:22:26.78
and so this was really
another claim to divinity.
00:22:26.78\00:22:30.55
Let's wrap it up now
starting in verse 57.
00:22:30.55\00:22:33.55
"Then the Jew said to him,
'You are not yet 50 years old.
00:22:33.55\00:22:36.82
And have you seen Abraham?"
00:22:37.69\00:22:39.02
Jesus said to them,
00:22:39.02\00:22:40.52
'Most assuredly I say to
you before Abraham was, I am.'
00:22:40.52\00:22:45.16
Then they took up
stones to throw at him,
00:22:45.16\00:22:47.13
but Jesus hid himself
and went out of the temple
00:22:47.13\00:22:49.50
going through the midst
of them and so passed by."
00:22:49.50\00:22:52.63
So why did they
suddenly try to stone Jesus?
00:22:53.80\00:22:56.54
It's because they thought
he was guilty of blasphemy.
00:22:56.54\00:23:00.18
Blasphemy was the
act of claiming to be God
00:23:00.18\00:23:03.08
or having attributes
that belonged to God alone,
00:23:03.08\00:23:05.98
which is why Jesus also ran
into trouble when he claimed
00:23:05.98\00:23:09.12
to have the
power to forgive sin.
00:23:09.12\00:23:11.39
That was only the
prerogative of God.
00:23:11.39\00:23:15.19
And just in case somebody
might have missed what Jesus
00:23:15.19\00:23:17.59
was saying, he said,
"Before Abraham was, I am."
00:23:17.59\00:23:22.30
That's the literal meaning
of the Tetragrammaton, YHWH,
00:23:23.73\00:23:28.10
the four letter name of God.
00:23:28.10\00:23:30.34
And it's the name that God
gave Moses when Moses asked,
00:23:30.34\00:23:33.68
who was speaking to him
from the burning bush, the I am.
00:23:33.68\00:23:38.08
The I am is the
self existent God,
00:23:38.08\00:23:41.08
the one who goes back to the
far, far reaches of eternity,
00:23:41.08\00:23:44.82
the one who has
no beginning or end.
00:23:44.82\00:23:48.12
Jesus just declared
00:23:48.12\00:23:50.39
that he was not
only friends with Abraham
00:23:50.39\00:23:52.73
but he was the God who
led the children of Israel
00:23:52.73\00:23:55.83
out of Egypt.
00:23:55.83\00:23:57.80
Part of me thinks that
this might be the reason
00:23:57.80\00:24:00.60
that John doesn't
provide us with a genealogy.
00:24:00.60\00:24:03.54
Matthew was
demonstrating Jesus' legal right
00:24:03.54\00:24:06.04
to the throne of David.
00:24:06.04\00:24:07.68
Luke was
demonstrating his ancestry
00:24:07.68\00:24:10.08
all the way back to Adam,
00:24:10.08\00:24:11.91
but John is
focused on showing us God
00:24:11.91\00:24:15.68
who doesn't have the beginning.
00:24:15.68\00:24:17.72
Seven times, Jesus says
"I am" in the gospel of John,
00:24:17.72\00:24:21.46
which is not a
coincidence because seven
00:24:21.46\00:24:24.53
is the biblical number of
completeness and perfection.
00:24:24.53\00:24:28.16
It's the number the
Bible uses to point us to God.
00:24:28.16\00:24:31.60
And on one
occasion in chapter 18,
00:24:31.60\00:24:34.14
when Jesus otters
the words, "I am,"
00:24:34.14\00:24:37.14
the crowd that
came to arrest him
00:24:37.14\00:24:39.04
suddenly fell to the ground.
00:24:39.04\00:24:41.08
Now here's the story
the way John tells it.
00:24:41.08\00:24:43.51
"Jesus therefore,
knowing all things
00:24:43.51\00:24:45.85
that would come upon him
00:24:45.85\00:24:47.28
went forward and said to
them, 'Whom are you seeking?'
00:24:47.28\00:24:50.32
They answered him,
'Jesus of Nazareth.'
00:24:50.32\00:24:52.55
Jesus said to them, 'I am he.'"
00:24:52.55\00:24:55.86
Now, the word he is applied.
00:24:55.86\00:24:57.59
It's not actually
there in the original Greek.
00:24:57.59\00:24:59.83
The original just says "I am."
00:24:59.83\00:25:02.30
It continues.
00:25:02.30\00:25:03.80
"And Judas who betrayed
him also stood with them.
00:25:03.80\00:25:07.17
Now, when he said
to them, 'I am he,'
00:25:07.17\00:25:09.57
they drew back and
fell to the ground."
00:25:09.57\00:25:12.64
Okay, time for one last
break before we wrap things up.
00:25:12.64\00:25:15.81
So sit tight because I'm
coming back right after this.
00:25:15.81\00:25:19.35
- [Announcer] Life
can throw a lot at us.
00:25:22.68\00:25:25.09
Sometimes, we don't
have all the answers,
00:25:25.09\00:25:28.46
but that's where
the Bible comes in.
00:25:28.46\00:25:30.89
It's our guide to a
more fulfilling life.
00:25:30.89\00:25:33.96
Here at The Voice of Prophecy,
00:25:33.96\00:25:35.50
we've created the Discover
Bible guides to be your guide
00:25:35.50\00:25:38.33
to the Bible.
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- To be honest, we could
probably spend an entire year
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in the gospel of John,
exploring the various ways
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that this favored disciple
underlines the deity of Christ.
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Jesus tells Nathaniel
that he saw him sitting
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under a fig tree
without actually being there,
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and then shortly after that,
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he identifies himself as
the ladder in Jacob's dream.
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Then in chapter two,
Jesus turns water into wine,
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and then he cleanses the temple,
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which he calls
my father's house.
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He tells Nicodemus that he
has the power to recreate them,
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which is where Christians
get that expression born again,
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and then Jesus heals a
lame man by just speaking to him
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the way the creator spoke
the universe into existence.
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John shows us a
Jesus who can forgive sins.
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He claims to be
one with the Father,
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and he raises his good
friend Lazarus from the dead.
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"Most assuredly
Jesus said, 'I say to you,
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the hour is coming and
now is when the dead will hear
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the voice of the Son of God
and those who here will live.
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For as the Father
has life in himself.
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So he has granted the
Son to have life in himself
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and has given him authority
to execute judgment also
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because he is the son of man.'"
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In chapter five, Jesus
says, "You've all read Moses.
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Well, you should know that
Moses was writing about me."
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There's just no escaping this.
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John believed Jesus is God.
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Of course, there are
critics who think the deity
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of Christ was some
kind of later invention,
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something the church dreamed
up at the Council of Nicaea.
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But the only way
you can believe that
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is to ignore the gospel of John.
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Because there's
just no mistaking in it.
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This is not describing a
good man or a wise teacher.
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It's describing
God in human flesh,
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which means that you and I
don't have to seek a path to God
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because he already
found a path to us.
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It was impossible for
human beings to restore
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their broken connection
to God because our hearts
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were so damaged when
we stepped away from him.
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We just didn't
have the tools we needed
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to make our way back.
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So instead, God
became one of us.
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A real flesh and blood human
being who is also fully God,
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and he bridged the gap
between God and humanity
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so successfully that
it changes everything.
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That's why you should be reading
John's account for yourself
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and you better get
comfy because I promise you,
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if you're honest with the text,
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you're gonna find an
awful lot to think about.
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[gentle music]
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