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>>Eric Flickinger:
Welcome to "Sabbath School,"
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brought to you by It Is Written.
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We're glad you're with us today
as we continue to take a journey
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and delve into the
themes in the book of John.
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This is lesson number 3.
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We're going to be looking at
"The Backstory: The Prologue."
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So we've moved forward in
John; now we're coming back
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and looking at some
other things, starting in John,
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chapter 1. Again, we're
glad that you're with us.
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Let's begin with prayer.
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Father, we thank
You for blessing us
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with a deeper understanding
of the book of John already.
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And today, as we
delve into it once again,
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we ask for increased
light, increased wisdom,
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increased
understanding as we get to know
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more of the gospel story
through the book of John.
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We thank You, in Jesus' name,
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amen. >>Thomas Shepherd: Amen.
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>>Eric: Well,
we're grateful to have,
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helping guide us through
this study, Dr. Tom Shepherd.
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He's a senior research
professor of New Testament
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at the Theological
Seminary, Andrews University.
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Tom, thanks for
joining us again.
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>>Tom: It's a joy to be here.
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>>Eric: So we are
in lesson number 3,
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"The Backstory: The Prologue."
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We're going back to
chapter 1 of John again,
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which begins with the words,
"In the beginning was the Word."
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Help us understand this
word "logos" or "logos,"
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depending on how one
wants to pronounce it.
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Why does that term--how
does that term refer to Jesus,
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and what does John
link that usage to?
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>>Tom: Okay, so we're going
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to the very
beginning of the book.
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Each of our
gospels, our four gospels,
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begins in a different way.
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The book of Matthew begins
with the genealogy of Jesus
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and then the birth narrative
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about His story and the wise men
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who come to visit Him.
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The Gospel of Mark, as
we studied last quarter,
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begins rather abruptly,
actually with an introduction
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of the Father and
Son discussing things,
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but then the story of
John the Baptist's ministry.
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The book of Luke
starts with an interesting
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intro where he's writing
to a man named Theophilus,
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and then he
gives a long discussion
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of the birth narrative,
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but in a
different way than Matthew.
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There's different people
that are kind of emphasized,
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Elizabeth and
Zechariah and so forth
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and people are singing
in the songs of the Spirit.
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The book of John
begins differently
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than all the other three.
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It begins with this prologue
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that goes back
to before Creation.
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And 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,
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"and without Him was not
any thing made that was made.
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"In Him was life, and the
life was the light of men.
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"The light
shines in the darkness,
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and the darkness
has not overcome it."
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It's so beautiful.
It's actually poetic.
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And there's a special
way that he writes this
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that the phrase, the one
phrase will end with a word,
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and then that word
begins the next phrase.
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"In the beginning was the
Word, and the Word was with God,
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and the Word was God."
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And he does this several
times through this prologue.
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So we wonder why does he use
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this word "logos,"
which means "word."
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Interestingly, the word "logos"
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meant different
things for different people.
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For some of the Greeks,
the word "logos" was the--
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we get the word
"logic" from the word "logos."
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And for some of the Greeks,
it was the organizing principle
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that was behind all the
order that they saw in nature.
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That was the "logos."
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For the Hebrews, for the Jews,
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the word "logos"
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was a translation
back in the Old Testament
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for Hebrew words
referring to the word of God,
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God speaking and things happen.
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You know, "He
spoke, and it stood fast,"
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you know, He created it.
He speaks, and it happens.
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So the word of God
is His creative power
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that shows itself in Creation.
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Now, what John says here
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at the very
beginning of this is,
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"In the
beginning," which, you know,
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rings to us of Genesis
1, verse 1, which says,
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"In the beginning God created
the heavens and the earth."
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"In the beginning was the Word."
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So the Word, this "logos,"
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was there before
Creation began, right?
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"And the Word was with God."
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So the Word, this "logos,"
whatever or whoever this is,
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was present with
God, and then he says,
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"And the Word was God."
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Now, we should maybe pause
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for a moment and
note that our friends,
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the Jehovah's Witnesses,
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translate this "and
the Word was a god."
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That's actually
not a good translation.
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They point to the
fact that the term "God"
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in that last phrase does
not have the Greek article.
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Now, the Greek article is
what we call the word "the,"
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and you'd think
that the word "the"
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was not a very important word.
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It's just a small little
word that we use all the time.
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But when you have
a small little word
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that you use all the time,
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and grammarians
get a hold of it,
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they have to figure
out all the different uses.
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They're like a post office box.
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They want a cubby hole
for every usage, you see.
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The word "the" in
Greek is somewhat complex,
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and so grammars
will have pages and pages
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and pages
explaining to you the usage.
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Now, so, the word
"the" in Greek originally was
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a demonstrative pronoun;
that means "this" or "that."
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So it pointed
towards specificity--
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this book, that iPad,
you know, things like that.
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And so it has that, you know,
kind of concrete connection.
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The absence of the article--
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they didn't have an
indirect article like we do,
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a little "a"--
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the absence of the article
was more qualitative in nature.
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So when it says,
"The Word was God,"
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it doesn't mean He was a god.
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We don't use English grammar
to explain Greek grammar.
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We rather say, okay,
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so what does this
signify for a Greek mind?
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What it would
signify was that the Word,
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this "logos," had
the qualities of God.
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So you actually have
two individuals in verse 1.
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You have the
"logos," and you have God--
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that would be God
the Father, all right?
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And we'll find out
later, of course, in verse 14,
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"The Word became
flesh." It's Jesus Christ.
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So the Word is Jesus and becomes
that this Word of God expressed
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in becoming a human being.
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>>Eric: So we're
getting a better idea
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of who the "logos" is here
and why John uses that term.
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Also in John 1, we
kind of see an idea
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of maybe where John is
comparing and contrasting
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Jesus with John the Baptist.
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What do we see
there in that comparison?
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>>Tom: Yeah, so if you read
those first five verses again
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that we looked at, we see
that it starts off in verse 1,
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"In the beginning was the Word,"
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okay, so that's a concept
of, like, eternal existence.
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"And the Word was with God,"
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this intimate relationship
with God the Father.
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"And the Word was God"--
He has a divine nature, okay?
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So, now you go down
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to verse 6 and
read verse 6 to 8.
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>>Eric: "There was
a man sent from God,
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"whose name was John.
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"This man came for a witness,
to bear witness of the Light,
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"that all through
him might believe.
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"He was not that Light,
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but was sent to bear
witness of that Light."
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>>Tom: Okay, so, "There
was a man sent from God,
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whose name was John."
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So, "In the beginning was
the Word," so the Word has--
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He's before Creation,
He has eternal existence,
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but John is a man;
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he has human existence.
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He is not with
God, like the Word,
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so he doesn't have an
intimate relationship.
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He's sent from God.
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He has--he's a messenger sent
by God, whose name was John.
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He has a human
name-- where the Word,
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Jesus, has the nature of God.
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So there's a comparison
made between them in each case.
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And Jesus, the Word, has life:
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"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
has not overcome it."
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That's verses 4 and 5.
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John, it says,
"He came as a witness,
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"to bear
witness about the light,
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"that all might believe through
him. He was not the light,
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but came to bear
witness about the light."
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So he's pointing to the
light, and Jesus is the light.
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Now, we might wonder,
well, why take such a,
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you know, amount
of time to emphasize
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the difference between
Jesus and John the Baptist?
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Everybody knows that
John the Baptist was,
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you know, the
forerunner and not the Messiah.
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Well, you know,
that's our perspective.
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But back in those days,
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you read between the
lines here in the book of John,
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and you'll see
that there was a--
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there was kind of a rivalry
between the disciples of Jesus
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and the disciples of John.
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And these--
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this rivalry could destroy
the mission of the Messiah
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or greatly hamper it if
John were to be, you know,
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push himself forward.
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So our gospel
writer makes it clear
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that John is not the light,
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John is not divine;
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John is just a messenger,
point towards the Messiah.
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>>Eric: So we
see clear differences
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there between the two of them.
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When we look at the
contrasts here in the prologue,
00:10:12.94\00:10:16.28
in the first
portion of the book of John,
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what are some of the
positive and negative contrasts
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that we see in this prologue?
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>>Tom: You know, we
really get these positive
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and negative contrasts
when we read verses 9 to 12.
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Let's take a look at those.
00:10:29.16\00:10:30.86
>>Eric: "That was the true Light
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"which gives light to
every man coming into the world.
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"He was in the world,
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"and the world
was made through Him,
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"and the world did not know Him.
00:10:38.13\00:10:40.30
"He came to His own, and
His own did not receive Him.
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"But as many as received Him,
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"to them He gave the
right to become children of God,
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to those who
believe in His name."
00:10:48.98\00:10:51.38
>>Tom: And verse 13 as well.
00:10:51.41\00:10:52.75
>>Eric: "Who were
born, not of blood,
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"nor of the will of the
flesh, nor of the will of man,
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but of God."
00:10:57.32\00:10:58.62
>>Tom: Okay, so
here we have a reference
00:10:58.65\00:11:02.12
back to this true Light,
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which lightens every
person coming into the world.
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We had back in verse 5,
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"The Light
shines in the darkness,
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and the darkness
has not overcome it."
00:11:11.97\00:11:14.74
So you have a contrast
between light and darkness.
00:11:14.77\00:11:18.61
You also have this contrast:
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He was in the world, the
world was made through Him,
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yet the world did not know Him.
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And then you have, "He
came to His own [people],
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and His own [people]
did not receive Him."
00:11:29.38\00:11:31.92
But those who did receive
Him, He gave them the authority
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"to become children of God...
who were born, not of blood,
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nor the will of the flesh, nor
the will of man, but of God."
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So there's this
contrast between,
00:11:42.63\00:11:44.83
like, good and evil,
between light and darkness,
00:11:44.87\00:11:47.50
between the world and Jesus.
00:11:47.54\00:11:49.74
Here's the Creator who
comes to His own world,
00:11:49.77\00:11:52.51
and His own world
doesn't receive Him.
00:11:52.54\00:11:54.68
He comes to His own
people, the chosen people.
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See, this is something that
the Christians had to explain.
00:11:57.05\00:12:00.65
Why was it the Messiah came, and
God's people didn't accept Him?
00:12:00.68\00:12:08.06
Well, we'll see
in the Gospel of John
00:12:08.09\00:12:10.69
the reason they don't accept Him
00:12:10.73\00:12:12.53
is He's a threat to their power,
and He's not the kind of Messiah
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that they're expecting. And so,
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they are not going to, you know,
go down that path with Him.
00:12:19.70\00:12:24.67
>>Eric: So this
prologue is setting the stage
00:12:24.71\00:12:26.68
for where we're going
through the book of John.
00:12:26.71\00:12:30.61
We have a companion
book to this quarter's lesson
00:12:30.65\00:12:34.38
on the book of John, the
themes in the book of John.
00:12:34.42\00:12:36.42
Share with us a
little bit about that book.
00:12:36.45\00:12:38.09
>>Tom: So each quarter
we have someone write a book
00:12:38.12\00:12:41.36
on the lesson quarterly.
00:12:41.39\00:12:44.06
It's a companion book
that goes beyond the lesson,
00:12:44.09\00:12:46.70
beyond the teacher's quarterly.
00:12:46.73\00:12:48.30
It gives you
additional information,
00:12:48.33\00:12:50.17
maybe some
background information,
00:12:50.20\00:12:51.93
maybe some
interesting story information
00:12:51.97\00:12:54.37
or interesting details,
00:12:54.40\00:12:55.90
exegetical details,
that go deeper into it,
00:12:55.94\00:12:58.91
and it can be very
helpful for both class members
00:12:58.94\00:13:02.34
and particularly for
teachers who want to, you know,
00:13:02.38\00:13:05.71
have good answers
when people ask questions--
00:13:05.75\00:13:08.25
"What does this mean?" or
"How do I understand this?"
00:13:08.28\00:13:10.52
So we recommend
that people get a copy.
00:13:10.55\00:13:13.29
>>Eric: You can pick that
copy up at itiswritten.shop.
00:13:13.32\00:13:16.49
Again, itiswritten.shop.
00:13:16.52\00:13:18.76
Just look for the companion book
00:13:18.79\00:13:20.26
to this quarter's
"Sabbath School" lesson
00:13:20.30\00:13:21.93
on the themes in John.
00:13:21.96\00:13:23.77
We're going to come
right back in just a moment
00:13:23.80\00:13:25.43
as we continue taking
a look at this prologue,
00:13:25.47\00:13:27.44
the backstory,
of the book of John.
00:13:27.47\00:13:29.60
We'll be back
in just one moment.
00:13:29.64\00:13:30.94
¤¤¤
00:13:30.97\00:13:33.98
>>John Bradshaw: Of the more
than 31,000 verses in the Bible,
00:13:35.64\00:13:38.81
it's said that this
one is the most loved:
00:13:38.85\00:13:41.78
"For God so loved the world,
00:13:41.82\00:13:43.45
"that He gave His
only begotten Son,
00:13:43.49\00:13:45.79
"that whosoever believeth
in Him should not perish,
00:13:45.82\00:13:49.29
but have everlasting life."
00:13:49.32\00:13:51.33
But who said those words?
00:13:53.50\00:13:55.46
And to whom did he say them?
00:13:55.50\00:13:57.27
Don't miss "Great Chapters
of the Bible: John [Chapter] 3,"
00:13:57.30\00:14:02.24
where we investigate
that nighttime interview
00:14:02.27\00:14:05.21
between Jesus and
an important visitor.
00:14:05.24\00:14:09.04
Jesus in John, chapter 3 said
that we must be "born again"
00:14:09.08\00:14:13.01
if we want to enter
into the kingdom of heaven.
00:14:13.05\00:14:15.02
And later in John, chapter 3,
00:14:15.05\00:14:17.09
the final words recorded in
Scripture of John the Baptist.
00:14:17.12\00:14:22.29
Don't miss "Great Chapters
of the Bible: John [Chapter] 3"
00:14:22.32\00:14:27.10
on It Is Written TV.
00:14:27.13\00:14:29.53
>>John: You know
that at It Is Written
00:14:35.97\00:14:37.47
we are serious about
studying the Word of God,
00:14:37.51\00:14:40.01
and we encourage you
to be serious as well.
00:14:40.04\00:14:42.68
Well, here's what you do
00:14:42.71\00:14:43.95
if you want to dig
deeper into God's Word.
00:14:43.98\00:14:45.95
Go to itiswritten.study
00:14:45.98\00:14:48.12
for the It Is Written
Bible Study Guides online,
00:14:48.15\00:14:50.95
25 in-depth Bible
studies that will take you
00:14:50.99\00:14:53.42
through the major
teachings of the Bible.
00:14:53.46\00:14:55.89
You'll be
blessed, and it's something
00:14:55.92\00:14:57.53
you'll want to tell
others about as well:
00:14:57.56\00:14:59.56
itiswritten.study.
00:14:59.59\00:15:01.20
Go further: itiswritten.study.
00:15:01.23\00:15:03.57
¤¤¤
00:15:06.30\00:15:09.94
>>Eric: Welcome
back to "Sabbath School,"
00:15:09.97\00:15:11.71
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:15:11.74\00:15:13.54
We are taking a journey
through the book of John
00:15:13.58\00:15:15.61
and looking at "The Backstory:
The Prologue" right now.
00:15:15.64\00:15:18.98
Tom, I want to jump to, well,
00:15:20.15\00:15:22.72
several different
areas with the next question.
00:15:22.75\00:15:26.32
The theme of
belief and unbelief,
00:15:26.35\00:15:28.66
or the themes of
belief and unbelief,
00:15:28.69\00:15:30.36
appear many times
in the book of John.
00:15:30.39\00:15:33.73
What are the lessons
that he wants us to learn
00:15:33.76\00:15:36.06
from this idea of
belief and unbelief?
00:15:36.10\00:15:39.53
>>Tom: Okay, so
the Gospel of John
00:15:39.57\00:15:42.10
focuses a lot-- it
never uses the word "faith,"
00:15:42.14\00:15:47.08
but it uses the
verb "believe" a lot.
00:15:47.11\00:15:49.44
And so, you have a
big emphasis on believing.
00:15:49.48\00:15:53.21
Remember we
said at the beginning
00:15:53.25\00:15:54.58
that this book is
"written that you may believe
00:15:54.62\00:15:57.65
"that Jesus is the
[Messiah]..., and that believing
00:15:57.69\00:16:01.32
you...have life
[through] His name."
00:16:01.36\00:16:03.12
So the sad fact is that He came,
00:16:03.16\00:16:06.96
and His own people had
trouble believing in Him.
00:16:07.00\00:16:11.27
Now, some did, of course,
00:16:11.30\00:16:13.13
and it's the same, true
today that still people do.
00:16:13.17\00:16:17.31
Some do and some don't believe.
00:16:17.34\00:16:18.91
We see in the very
prologue, the very beginning,
00:16:18.94\00:16:21.01
as we've just
read in the first part
00:16:21.04\00:16:22.68
of our time
together here in this lesson,
00:16:22.71\00:16:25.48
that the true Light was shining,
and He came into the world.
00:16:25.51\00:16:29.82
The world did not know
Him. He came to His own people,
00:16:29.85\00:16:32.49
and His own people
did not receive Him.
00:16:32.52\00:16:34.12
And then John
contrasts that with people
00:16:34.16\00:16:36.22
who do receive Him
and do believe in Him.
00:16:36.26\00:16:38.56
Now, when we turn
over to chapter 3,
00:16:38.59\00:16:42.53
we get this same kind of
picture coming back again.
00:16:42.56\00:16:46.90
Jesus is talking with Nicodemus,
00:16:46.94\00:16:51.21
John 3, verses 16 through 21.
00:16:51.24\00:16:55.34
>>Eric: "For God so
loved the world that He gave
00:16:55.38\00:16:57.21
"His only begotten Son,
00:16:57.25\00:16:59.25
"that whoever believes
in Him should not perish
00:16:59.28\00:17:01.65
"but have everlasting life.
For God did not send His Son
00:17:01.68\00:17:05.39
"into the world
to condemn the world,
00:17:05.42\00:17:07.42
"but that the world
through Him might be saved.
00:17:07.46\00:17:10.23
"He who believes in
Him is not condemned;
00:17:10.26\00:17:13.03
"but he who does not
believe is condemned already,
00:17:13.06\00:17:15.86
"because he has not believed
00:17:15.90\00:17:17.27
"in the name of the
only begotten Son of God.
00:17:17.30\00:17:20.00
"And this is
[that] condemnation,
00:17:20.04\00:17:21.67
"that the light has
come into the world,
00:17:21.70\00:17:24.11
"and men loved
darkness rather than light,
00:17:24.14\00:17:26.68
"because their deeds were evil.
00:17:26.71\00:17:28.68
"For everyone practicing evil
00:17:28.71\00:17:30.41
"hates the light and
does not come to the light,
00:17:30.45\00:17:32.75
"lest his deeds
should be exposed.
00:17:32.78\00:17:35.05
"But he who does the
truth comes to the light,
00:17:35.08\00:17:37.92
"that his deeds
may be clearly seen,
00:17:37.95\00:17:39.99
that they have
been done in God."
00:17:40.02\00:17:42.22
>>Tom: Right, so here we see
this emphasis again on belief.
00:17:42.26\00:17:46.13
"God so loved" the most
famous verse in the Bible--
00:17:46.16\00:17:48.60
"God so loved the world
that He gave His only Son,
00:17:48.63\00:17:51.37
"that whoever believes in Him
00:17:51.40\00:17:52.83
should not perish
but have eternal life."
00:17:52.87\00:17:54.67
It's a
beautiful, beautiful text.
00:17:54.70\00:17:58.34
And verse 17 goes
right along with it:
00:17:58.37\00:18:00.28
"For God did not send His Son
00:18:00.31\00:18:01.61
"into the world
to condemn the world,
00:18:01.64\00:18:03.28
but in order that the world
might be saved through Him."
00:18:03.31\00:18:06.25
I mean, that's the
message to each one of us.
00:18:06.28\00:18:08.55
God loves you. God
sent His Son to save you.
00:18:08.58\00:18:11.79
He sent Him to save me.
And if you'll believe in Him,
00:18:11.82\00:18:14.96
you'll find eternal
life and have eternal life.
00:18:14.99\00:18:17.53
It's a great message.
00:18:17.56\00:18:18.93
So when you get to verse 18,
00:18:18.96\00:18:20.86
"Whoever believes in Him
is not condemned"--you know,
00:18:20.90\00:18:23.73
you've passed from
judgment into life--
00:18:23.77\00:18:25.67
"but whoever does not
believe is condemned already,
00:18:25.70\00:18:28.97
"because he has not believed
00:18:29.00\00:18:30.41
in the name of
the only Son of God."
00:18:30.44\00:18:32.04
Look at this emphasis
on believe, not believe,
00:18:32.07\00:18:35.71
condemn, not condemn.
00:18:35.74\00:18:37.25
All these contrasts back
and forth, back and forth
00:18:37.28\00:18:40.28
show us this kind of picture
that runs through the book.
00:18:40.32\00:18:45.09
So why is it? Why
don't people believe?
00:18:45.12\00:18:48.96
And He explains right here.
00:18:48.99\00:18:50.96
Jesus says, "The light
has come into the world."
00:18:50.99\00:18:54.93
He says, "This is the judgment:
00:18:54.93\00:18:56.43
"the light has
come into the world,
00:18:56.46\00:18:57.87
"and people loved the darkness
00:18:57.90\00:19:01.04
rather than the light
because their works were evil."
00:19:01.07\00:19:05.54
So that's the real basis
00:19:05.57\00:19:07.41
of the hatred of
that which is good,
00:19:07.44\00:19:09.94
is the loving of
that which is evil.
00:19:09.98\00:19:12.95
"For everyone who does
wicked things hates the light...
00:19:12.98\00:19:16.28
"does not come to the light,
00:19:16.32\00:19:17.62
lest his works
should be exposed."
00:19:17.65\00:19:18.95
There's a reason
why thieves go about
00:19:18.99\00:19:21.22
in the night, [chuckles[
00:19:21.26\00:19:23.16
because they don't
want to be exposed.
00:19:23.19\00:19:24.56
You know, it's interesting,
you'll see sometimes people
00:19:24.59\00:19:26.66
brought to justice, and
sometimes as they go into
00:19:26.70\00:19:29.76
the courtroom, they shield their
eyes; they shield their face.
00:19:29.80\00:19:34.34
They don't want
their face to be seen.
00:19:34.37\00:19:37.21
It's very interesting,
this concept of shame.
00:19:37.24\00:19:40.61
Now, this shows
up a little bit again
00:19:40.64\00:19:42.91
in the words of John the Baptist
00:19:42.94\00:19:46.61
at the end of the same chapter,
00:19:46.65\00:19:48.52
verses 31 to 36.
Maybe you could read those.
00:19:48.55\00:19:51.95
>>Eric: "He who comes
from above is above all;
00:19:51.99\00:19:54.29
"he who is of the earth is
earthly and speaks of the earth.
00:19:54.32\00:19:57.63
"He who comes from
heaven is above all.
00:19:57.66\00:20:00.10
"And what He has seen
and heard, that He testifies;
00:20:00.13\00:20:03.43
"and no one
receives His testimony.
00:20:03.47\00:20:05.53
"He who has
received His testimony
00:20:05.57\00:20:07.47
"has certified that God is true.
00:20:07.50\00:20:09.70
"For He whom God has
sent speaks the words of God,
00:20:09.74\00:20:13.07
"for God does not
give the Spirit by measure.
00:20:13.11\00:20:15.94
"The Father loves the Son,
00:20:15.98\00:20:17.61
"and has given all
things into His hand.
00:20:17.65\00:20:19.91
"He who believes in the
Son has everlasting life;
00:20:19.95\00:20:23.22
"and he who does not believe
the Son shall not see life,
00:20:23.25\00:20:26.52
but the wrath of
God abides on him."
00:20:26.55\00:20:28.86
>>Tom: So, I mean, we
could lay out back and forth,
00:20:28.89\00:20:31.36
back and forth these contrasts
that show up in this passage.
00:20:31.39\00:20:34.56
These are the
words of John the Baptist
00:20:34.56\00:20:36.83
echoing the words of
Jesus: And He comes from heaven,
00:20:36.87\00:20:41.64
He bears witness
of what He's heard,
00:20:41.67\00:20:43.61
no one receives that testimony,
00:20:43.64\00:20:46.31
but the one who
receives His testimony,
00:20:46.34\00:20:48.04
sets his seal that God is true.
00:20:48.08\00:20:49.48
So there's the
unbeliever and the believer.
00:20:49.51\00:20:52.11
"He whom God has sent utters
the words of God," and then,
00:20:52.15\00:20:55.45
"The Father loves the Son
00:20:55.48\00:20:56.95
"and has given all
things into His hand.
00:20:56.99\00:20:58.89
"Whoever believes in
the Son has eternal life;
00:20:58.92\00:21:01.72
whoever does not obey the Son"--
00:21:01.76\00:21:03.63
notice the difference, the
link between belief and obey--
00:21:03.66\00:21:06.96
"shall not see life, but the
wrath of God remains on him."
00:21:07.00\00:21:10.27
So it's not eternal
life for those people,
00:21:10.30\00:21:12.03
but the wrath of God.
00:21:12.07\00:21:14.14
For Jesus said back
in the earlier verses
00:21:14.17\00:21:17.44
in this passage
about condemnation.
00:21:17.47\00:21:19.91
So we have this contrast,
belief and unbelief, showing up.
00:21:19.94\00:21:23.14
Now, the culmination
of this picture of belief
00:21:23.18\00:21:27.28
and unbelief
shows up in chapter 12
00:21:27.32\00:21:30.85
in a most striking conclusion
to "the book of signs."
00:21:30.89\00:21:36.62
It's John, chapter 12,
00:21:36.66\00:21:40.03
starting in verse 36
and going through verse 43.
00:21:40.06\00:21:48.50
>>Eric: "'While you have
the light, believe in the light,
00:21:48.54\00:21:50.94
"that you may
become sons of light.'
00:21:50.97\00:21:53.07
"These things Jesus
spoke, and departed,
00:21:53.11\00:21:55.28
"and was hidden from them.
00:21:55.31\00:21:56.95
"But although He had done
so many signs before them,
00:21:56.98\00:22:00.22
"they did not believe in Him,
00:22:00.25\00:22:01.92
"that the word of Isaiah
the prophet might be fulfilled,
00:22:01.95\00:22:04.45
"which he spoke: 'Lord,
who has believed our report?
00:22:04.49\00:22:08.06
"And to whom has the arm
of the Lord been revealed?'
00:22:08.09\00:22:10.86
"Therefore they
could not believe,
00:22:10.89\00:22:12.89
"because Isaiah said again:
00:22:12.93\00:22:14.56
"'He has blinded their
eyes and hardened their hearts,
00:22:14.60\00:22:17.27
"'lest they should
see with their eyes,
00:22:17.30\00:22:19.30
"'lest they should understand
with their hearts and turn,
00:22:19.33\00:22:22.17
"so that I should heal them.'
00:22:22.20\00:22:23.77
"These things Isaiah said
00:22:23.81\00:22:25.57
"when he saw His
glory and spoke of Him.
00:22:25.61\00:22:28.74
"Nevertheless
even among the rulers
00:22:28.78\00:22:30.81
"many believed in Him,
00:22:30.85\00:22:32.41
"but because of the Pharisees
they did not confess Him,
00:22:32.45\00:22:35.65
"lest they should be
put out of the synagogue;
00:22:35.68\00:22:38.22
for they loved the praise of men
more than the praise of God."
00:22:38.25\00:22:42.46
>>Tom: Yeah, so it's not
that God has predestined people
00:22:42.49\00:22:44.96
to be lost, but it's a question
00:22:44.99\00:22:48.30
of what will you do with
the light that God gives you?
00:22:48.33\00:22:51.77
God gives you light--
00:22:51.80\00:22:52.93
now what are you
going to do with the light?
00:22:52.97\00:22:55.34
We're going to see this again
as we look at different stories
00:22:55.37\00:22:57.81
in John about what
people do with the light.
00:22:57.84\00:23:01.14
Do you turn towards the light,
00:23:01.18\00:23:02.88
or do you turn
away from the light?
00:23:02.91\00:23:04.95
And this conclusion
to "the book of signs"
00:23:04.98\00:23:08.45
really
illustrates how the question
00:23:08.48\00:23:11.35
is not what the light is
and the bringing of the light,
00:23:11.39\00:23:17.46
but rather with what people do
00:23:17.49\00:23:19.56
with the light
that God gives them.
00:23:19.59\00:23:20.96
We remember back in chapter 1,
00:23:20.96\00:23:22.26
it said that the true
light lightens every person
00:23:22.30\00:23:25.43
coming into the world.
00:23:25.47\00:23:27.07
And so,
everybody gets some light.
00:23:27.10\00:23:30.14
Now, what will you do with
that light that God gives you?
00:23:30.17\00:23:33.61
It's a question that
comes to each one of us today.
00:23:33.64\00:23:36.48
What will you do
with the light gives you?
00:23:36.51\00:23:38.31
If you follow the
light, you'll get more light.
00:23:38.35\00:23:42.32
If you turn from the light,
00:23:42.35\00:23:43.82
well, it's not like
God is going to say,
00:23:43.85\00:23:45.85
"Well, we gave
them the light once;
00:23:45.89\00:23:48.09
that's all they get, just
once." No, God's not like that.
00:23:48.12\00:23:51.73
He's going to come to
you again and again and again
00:23:51.76\00:23:54.60
giving you light,
but it's very important
00:23:54.63\00:23:57.17
that you take
seriously the light that comes
00:23:57.20\00:24:01.50
and not turn away from it.
00:24:01.54\00:24:04.81
All right, so that
shows us some of the themes
00:24:04.84\00:24:08.48
of the idea of light
00:24:08.51\00:24:13.08
and how it relates to
the questions of belief.
00:24:13.11\00:24:18.62
>>Eric: So we've looked
at light. What about glory?
00:24:18.65\00:24:21.12
John talks about glory.
Help us understand that concept.
00:24:21.16\00:24:24.29
>>Tom: Yeah, we've already
seen some of this before.
00:24:24.33\00:24:26.63
"Glory" is a word that shows--
00:24:26.66\00:24:29.70
we typically see
this when God appears.
00:24:29.73\00:24:33.34
We've talked about
this idea of a theophany
00:24:33.37\00:24:35.50
or an epiphany where
God or an angel appears,
00:24:35.54\00:24:39.37
and there's glory,
and there's human fear,
00:24:39.41\00:24:42.04
and then there's
some kind of revelation.
00:24:42.08\00:24:44.11
So we've already seen that this
type of thing has taken place.
00:24:44.15\00:24:49.12
If we go back to John, chapter 1
00:24:49.15\00:24:51.52
and we read the beautiful words,
John 1, verses 14 through 18,
00:24:51.55\00:24:56.62
we'll see some of
this reference to glory.
00:24:56.66\00:25:00.96
>>Eric: "And the Word
became flesh and dwelt among us,
00:25:00.96\00:25:03.73
"and we beheld His glory,
00:25:03.77\00:25:05.63
"the glory as of
the only begotten
00:25:05.67\00:25:07.67
"of the Father,
full of grace and truth.
00:25:07.70\00:25:10.27
"John bore witness of
Him and cried out, saying,
00:25:10.31\00:25:13.71
"'This was He of whom I said,
00:25:13.74\00:25:15.88
"'"He who comes after
me is preferred before me,
00:25:15.91\00:25:18.71
"for He was before me."'
00:25:18.75\00:25:20.55
"And of His fullness
we have all received,
00:25:20.58\00:25:22.72
"and grace for grace.
00:25:22.75\00:25:24.35
"For the law was
given through Moses,
00:25:24.39\00:25:26.42
"but grace and truth
came through Jesus Christ.
00:25:26.45\00:25:29.49
"No one has
seen God at any time.
00:25:29.52\00:25:32.16
"The only begotten Son,
00:25:32.19\00:25:33.93
"who is in the
bosom of the Father,
00:25:33.96\00:25:35.43
He has declared Him."
00:25:35.46\00:25:36.93
>>Tom: Okay, so
here's a reference that says,
00:25:36.97\00:25:40.44
"The Word became
flesh and dwelt among us."
00:25:40.47\00:25:42.60
Now, the Word "dwelt among us"--
00:25:42.64\00:25:44.87
the word "dwelt" is,
means "to pitch a tent."
00:25:44.91\00:25:49.48
And it's typical of the Old
Testament sanctuary, actually.
00:25:49.51\00:25:53.95
The Israelites lived in
tents. God was invisible.
00:25:53.98\00:25:56.62
"No man has ever seen
God at any time," says John.
00:25:56.65\00:26:00.16
And God wanted them to know
of His presence being with them.
00:26:00.19\00:26:05.39
And so He said, "Let
them make me a sanctuary
00:26:05.43\00:26:07.66
that I may dwell among them."
00:26:07.66\00:26:09.10
I'll pitch my tent in
the middle of the camp.
00:26:09.13\00:26:11.33
I'll be with my people.
00:26:11.37\00:26:12.97
His glory
appeared there in the tent.
00:26:13.00\00:26:16.07
And above the tent
there was the cloud
00:26:16.10\00:26:17.97
that was a pillar of
cloud by day and fire by night.
00:26:18.01\00:26:21.21
So God's presence,
His glory, was there.
00:26:21.24\00:26:23.04
This glory came to
dwell in Jesus Himself.
00:26:23.08\00:26:27.08
He became the
embodiment of the glory of God.
00:26:27.12\00:26:30.09
And John says,
"We saw His glory,"
00:26:30.12\00:26:33.32
glory "as of the only begotten,"
of "the only Son of the Father,
00:26:33.36\00:26:36.86
full of grace and truth."
00:26:36.89\00:26:39.49
So where does this glory appear?
00:26:39.53\00:26:41.53
Well, it appears in the
life of Jesus and the way
00:26:41.56\00:26:44.00
that He relates to other people,
the way He cares for them,
00:26:44.03\00:26:47.34
and the way He
reaches out to them.
00:26:47.37\00:26:50.71
We don't have much
time, but maybe we can just
00:26:50.74\00:26:53.24
flip over to the book
of John, chapter 17:1-5.
00:26:53.27\00:26:58.95
"When Jesus had
spoken these words,
00:26:58.98\00:27:00.68
"He lifted up His
eyes to heaven, and said,
00:27:00.72\00:27:02.55
"'Father, the hour has come;
00:27:02.58\00:27:04.39
"'glorify Your Son that
the Son may glorify You,
00:27:04.42\00:27:07.36
"'since You have given
Him authority over all flesh,
00:27:07.39\00:27:09.66
"'to give eternal life to
all whom You have given Him.
00:27:09.69\00:27:12.96
"'And this is eternal
life, that they [may] know You,
00:27:12.99\00:27:15.76
"'the only true God, and
Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
00:27:15.80\00:27:18.67
"'I glorified You on earth,
having accomplished the work
00:27:18.70\00:27:21.77
"'that You gave me to do.
00:27:21.80\00:27:23.10
"'And now, Father,
glorify me in Your own presence
00:27:23.14\00:27:25.71
"'with the glory
that I had with You
00:27:25.74\00:27:27.68
before the world existed.'"
00:27:27.71\00:27:29.78
What this is really
going to point toward is
00:27:29.81\00:27:31.28
that His hour of
glory is the cross.
00:27:31.31\00:27:34.98
That's His high
point of His glory
00:27:35.02\00:27:36.89
as He becomes our Savior.
00:27:36.92\00:27:39.29
>>Eric: So a
beautiful picture that we have
00:27:39.32\00:27:40.96
of some of the things
going on at the very beginning
00:27:40.99\00:27:42.82
of the book of John
that are foreshadowing
00:27:42.86\00:27:45.16
what is to come.
00:27:45.19\00:27:46.66
And you don't want
to miss what is to come.
00:27:46.70\00:27:49.10
We're going to
continue our study of the themes
00:27:49.13\00:27:51.67
in the book of John next week,
00:27:51.70\00:27:53.87
and we hope that you
will be able to join us
00:27:53.90\00:27:55.97
and share what
you learn with others.
00:27:56.00\00:27:57.64
This has been "Sabbath School,"
00:27:57.67\00:27:59.44
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:27:59.47\00:28:01.44
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