The Gospel of John: the Seven Signs of Jesus John Teter Evangelism Team Leader Evangelical Covenant Church Table of Contents

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The Gospel of John: The Seven Signs of Jesus John Teter Evangelism Team Leader Evangelical Covenant Church Table of Contents

Seven Signs Introduction ...... 1

Seven Signs Teaching Notes ...... 7 Sign 1: Water into Wine ...... 7 Sign 2: Royal Official’s Son ...... 8 Sign 3: The Man at the Pool ...... 10 Sign 4: The Bread of Life ...... 12 Sign 5: Crossing the Sea ...... 14 Sign 6: The Blind Man ...... 16 Sign 7: Lazarus ...... 18

Calling for Commitment ...... 20

Appendix: Bible Study Texts 1. John 2 ...... i 2. John 4 ...... ii 3. John 5 ...... iii 4. John 6 ...... iv 5. John 6 ...... vi 6. John 9 ...... vii 7. John 11 ...... ix

Introduction to The Seven Signs John Teter January 2012

God is already at work in the lives of many of your non-Christian family and friends. The good news for today’s evangelist is that most of our friends are open to God. They are eager to experience his love in their lives. They are looking to understand more about that they might believe. As an evangelist, I always remind myself that those who do not know Jesus have are way more “unknowing” than “hostile”.

Even better news is that God the Father is actively seeking people to worship Him (John 4.23). The odds are that God is actively drawing our friends through your relationship. They likely have many experiences that need interpretation or further understanding. They must learn how to seek God so that they will find him for themselves. And that is why they must learn the story of Jesus. Their soul consistently urges for something more, but they do not know what to do with their spiritual hunger and thirst.

I can relate with today’s non-Christian. Before I became a follower of Jesus of Nazareth, I longed for something more. But I honestly did not know where to get it. I had heard some rumors about Jesus. When I began to proactively seek God in a God Search Bible study, the windows to the spiritual world opened up for me. The Living One began to breathe life into my soul. I saw God in his word, acted on what I learned, and before long I found myself falling in love with a God I could not see. It was easily the most thrilling experience of my life.

Our friends need someone that will teach them how to have a relationship with God. The biggest barrier they experience coming to genuine faith is knowledge of God and what he is like. That is how they are to actively seek God out. They need someone to open up the Word to them and teach them to invest in the relationship. They need someone to help them know that the Bible isn’t a book that says “Do Not Have Sex” or “Do Not Get Drunk” on every single page.

They need a friend to help them become friends with God.

Why The Seven Signs in John?

I have taken a deep journey into the world of John’s Gospel. The Jesus in John is someone that our non-Christian friends can understand. And they will really like him. He speaks of hidden food, invisible water that gives life, and a superior quality of life that is given to those who follow his leadership. He calls people to respond to him off of their experience with him. This is really good news for a culture that has such a high value on experiential truth.

He calls people to honestly assess the satisfaction of their soul. He calls them to experience his life and then make a choice about which is better for their soul. If they are around Jesus, they will experience his life.

Jesus draws people into his reality through the use of signs. He gives them signs, many signs. God’s actions in our physical world point to an otherwise unseen and greater reality. Through these signs people are given the opportunities to know God and experience genuine faith.

The Structure of The Seven Signs

John’s Gospel from chapter 1 to 11 is framed around the concept of seven signs. The wedding at Cana is the first sign and the raising of Lazarus from the tomb is the sign that brings the completion of the seventh sign. Here is a chart of each sign and the spiritual reality the sign declares:

1. Jesus turns water into wine John 2.1-11

Jesus’ blood is a foreshadowing of the Holy Spirit. The Wine of God brings forgiveness, healing and new life. The best wine comes last.

2. Jesus heals the Official’s son John 4.46-54

Jesus is the One who carries life in himself. He gives it away to those he wishes, freeing his children from even the point of death.

3. Jesus heals the man at the pool John 5.1-9

Jesus seeks out the one who has lost hope and live in darkness. He offers oceans of living water for healing and wholeness to the people who are willing to be made well.

4. Jesus feeds the multitudes John 6.1-15, 25-27

Jesus is the bread that the Father has sent from heaven to give nourishment and spiritual life to the world. The Father fed Israel with bread in the wilderness. He feeds the world with his Son. Jesus is the Bread of Life that offers the cure to sin.

5. Jesus crosses the sea John 6.16-21

Jesus, during the backdrop of Passover, crossing his people over the sea again. The enemy is no longer Pharoah, but now sin itself. This deepens the truth that Jesus is the bread that gives the world life.

6. Jesus heals the blind man John 9.1-41

Jesus, the Light of world, gives sight to a hopelessly blind world. Those who follow him will not walk in spiritual darkness.

7. Jesus raises Lazarus John 11.1-44

Jesus, the Shepherd who calls his sheep by name, will himself walk out of the grave, having conquered death. Those who choose to follow him now will follow his resurrection from their own grave and experience eternal freedom.

The Format of the Studies

The following teaching notes are for you, the God Search leader. It is not to be passed around to the people participating in the God Search. All of the ink on the paper is entirely optional. If you have a better opening question to grab the attention of those you are with, by all means use it. If you have other questions from the text you want to ask, know that my questions are only meant to be one guide. I have just included what has worked well for me.

The questions are laid out in a general fashion to help people work through the passage. I believe that the more Bible is in someone, the more options the Holy Spirit has to lead that person. If you follow the questions chronologically, you should have a good grasp of the passage. However, the beauty of the God Search is that each one can go in ten different directions. If God leads you down another path, feel free to see where the Spirit leads you.

I lead God Search studies with four basic components. Here are the four sections and some thoughts on the goal and experience of each one.

Attention Getter

The first section is to help the folks in your God Search study feel comfortable with each other and with you. I try and use something from popular culture: a provocative news story, a good movie clip, current song, or some common theme to help us connect to the coming sign. In the following teaching notes, I will offer a question or two and some of the points of connection I have used.

Understanding the Message

This is where folks ask their questions to understand the text. This is one of the most crucial elements of the God Search. Jesus’ reveals his glory through the word. It is entirely worth it to work extremely hard to make this section excellent for the people. The ultimate goal is to help people experience Jesus as his first audience saw him.

Please do not be afraid to lead strongly during this time and answer the questions our friends have. The more Bible knowledge they possess, the better chance they will have of becoming a disciple. Teaching the message well is central to a God Search that transforms. If they do not understand Jesus in his word, they will not come to know him.

“Come See This Man” Personal Testimony

The Woman at the Well is the arguably the most effective evangelist in John’s Gospel. She was used by God to reach the village of Sychar through her personal testimony. With great conviction and passion, she tells her village that Jesus has done something real for her and invites them to experience Jesus for themselves. This is the heart of evangelism.

This section brings to real life the signs and teaching of Jesus. The goal for this section is to help your friends develop the habit of applying Jesus’ word. That is the key to experiencing his life. Our friends are not necessarily asking if it is true in a propositional manner. I believe they are asking if it works and if it helps their lives in the practical dimension. This section needs a story (ideally your own experience), showing that Jesus’ way does work. They need to hear fresh reports of Jesus’ peace, joy, love for your family and provision in the midst of challenge, frustration and pain. Your life is the clearest picture of the gospel your friends will see. People are always the proof.

As a side note, God Search studies call for all of us to become effective storytellers. If we have a great understanding of the passage, yet are unable to communicate how it is true in our own lives, we stop speaking their language and we will lose them.

Therefore, I urge you to become a better storyteller. Develop a game plan to grow as a storyteller. You will be glad you did!

Real Faith

The goal of this section is to persuade, nudge, and even challenge our friends to take an actual spiritual step in their lives. If they do not apply the word, they will not grow. It will be a mental exercise and will likely fall by the wayside. As you help them apply the word, you are helping them become true seekers. In “The Seven Signs” series, I encourage applications towards prayer and other practical applications that they might truly see the signs. As they actively step towards God, He will show up for them.

Again, my application ideas are what has worked for my God Search studies in the past. Please take time before the studies to think ahead of what your friends need to experience. You know your friends and your context better than anyone.

Details and Suggestions

Personal Study

The signs of Jesus point to one greater unseen reality. It will most likely be challenging to crisply identify the sign and nail it down exactly, especially since so much of what John builds on is the Old Testament symbolism. Therefore, I urge you to gain a good, working understanding of the signs for yourself. I intensively studied John’s Gospel before teaching the signs. Become an expert and lead people where you have already gone. God will surely honor you and your evangelism ministry for the time you invest in his word.

Personal Experience

I cannot stress how important the Personal Testimony section of the GIG truly is. If done well, the story can become a short sermon that opens up the heart of the non-Christian on the spot. I exhort you to apply the material yourself before teaching The Seven Signs. You need your own fresh story about Jesus filling you with new wine, telling you to get up, crossing you over the sea and calling you out of the grave. D.L. Moody once said he would walk twenty miles for a good teaching illustration. Will you apply Jesus’ scripture and have a fresh testimony of how it is true in your life? Will you first own the word for yourself and speak from your own experience? Will you walk that road?

Leadership

Your friends see you as a spiritual hero. They might not say it to you, but if they are com-ing to your God Search study, they see you like that. I encourage you to take spiritual leadership in their lives. Help them see that what their soul really longs for is their own story to tell of how God has been personally good to them. Challenge them to take the next step. They will respect your thoughtful (and not pushy) directness.

Community

I encourage that you help your friends who are searching get around your larger community of faith. Pick the friends in your church that they would feel most comfortable around. Identify people who have been through similar struggles and prevailed. Help them feel at home with the people of God. Their souls will open up in a profound way as they experience the joy and integrity of Christian community. Be sure to invite them to conferences where rapid growth can happen in a weekend setting.

Index Cards

I end each study by passing out index cards and having each person write their name and information, one bible question they have, and one current issue they are grappling

with. This helps develop vulnerability and gives the God Search leader great follow-up opportunities outside of the actual study.

The Rules

As the leader of the God Search, it will be important for you to set the expectations for the study. Remember, most of your friends will never have been to Bible study, so how you act will be the norm for them. I encourage you to be upbeat, use humor, and set these rules to help you establish a good teaching environment. I always briefly touch on 4 rules for each God Search study:

1. Be open to spiritual growth and applying what you learn

2. Choose curiosity and ask your questions

3. Answer our questions from the text

4. Be cool and respectful with each other (if this is a God Search group study)

Closing Exhortation

I hope that you enjoy entering deeper into the world of John’s Gospel and personal evangelism. Jesus is very excited the Father is using you to draw your friends. He is sending you to them that they might also believe. May you have great joy as you help your friends see the seven signs and invest in relationship with God! Jesus is with you and he is so glad you are leading the God Search study.

As you give away the seven signs, may they become a great joy in your own relationship with God.

Sign I: Water into Wine John 2.1-11

I. Attention Getter:

• Have you ever been to a wedding that went bad? (Movie: The Wedding Singer-Ch 6) • What would Jesus be like at a party?

II. Understanding the Message Read John 2.1-11

1. What do you think of Jesus being invited to the wedding celebration?

2. How would it feel for the bride and groom to run out of wine at their wedding?

3. How would you feel if you were a servant and took the dirty water to the best man?

4. What do the servants get because they acted on Jesus’ words?

5. What is the quality and quantity of this wine and what happens to the party?

6. What is the most glorious thing you have ever experienced? How did it affect you?

7. Who in the text knows that a miracle took place and why does Jesus hide it?

8. What are lessons we can learn from the Sign? (Focus on one or two for time’s sake)

a. When invited into our every day lives Jesus makes great things happen

b. Jesus changes physical reality to win the trust of his followers

c. Those who obey Jesus see the glory and those who do not leave ignorant

d. Jesus’ blood points to God’s overflowing mercy and passion for sinners

III. “Come See a Man” – Personal Testimony

1. Testify where you have run out wine and how Jesus filled that void with his good wine

IV. Real Steps of Faith

1. What area of your life are you out of wine in?

Index Cards

a. What is a question about God or the bible you are thinking about?

b. What is an area of your life you are struggling with I can be praying for?

Sign 2: Royal Official’s Son John 4.46-54

I. Attention Getter:

• Have you ever seen a sign from God that made you think God was getting involved? • Movie Idea: Pulp Fiction final scene where Jackson and Travolta debate a miracle

II. Understanding the Message

Read John 4.46-54

1. Describe this royal official’s experience of having his son at the point of death

2. Why is it important to know that the official is a great man of this society?

3. Why is it true that unless the man sees signs and wonders he will not believe?

4. How are signs meant to be a part of our faith experience?

5. Why does he tell the royal official this before he heals the boy?

6. What do we learn about Jesus and the authority of his word?

7. What is the unseen spiritual reality the healing of the official’s son points to?

a. Jesus has life in him and life itself is at the command of his word

b. The official’s want his son to live; God kills his son that all might live

c. God is the Father and Jesus is the Son who will be raised at the seventh hour

8. What are lessons we can learn from the Sign?

a. Jesus wants us all to believe and therefore gives signs so that we might believe

b. Jesus is compassionate and loves to heal today

c. Jesus has total authority in this world and can change any reality with his word

d. It is a natural next step to tell others about the great deeds of God – encourage it!

III. “Come See a Man” – Personal Testimony

1. Tell a story about a sign that God gave to you to help you believe in him.

Make sure to explain the process of your coming to faith.

IV. Real Steps of Faith

6. What are the crises in your life that you need Jesus to heal?

7. Would you consider asking Jesus for a sign that you might believe?

Index Cards – Question or issue and prayer request

Sign 3: The Man at the Pool John 5.1-9

I. Attention Getter:

• How did God show you signs and wonders that you might believe last week? (Share) • Was there ever a time that you faced an enormous challenge and felt like giving up?

Movie Clip Suggestion: Shawshank Redemption

Go to Brook’s re-entry into society. Brooks is a character who has been in prison for over 50 years. He is paroled and doesn’t fit in. He feels like giving up in life.

II. Understanding the Message

Read John 5.1-9

1. Vividly describe the setting. What do you see? Smell? Hear? Feel?

2. Describe the water and how the pool would provide healing from the angel’s touch

3. Describe the experience of the man having laid there for 38 years? Why stay there?

4. Why does Jesus ask him if he wants to be well? What blocks this man?

5. What are the reasons that this man gives for why he is not well?

Teaching Note - Irony: John is using the literary device of irony in the man’s response. The two reasons he gives are exposed as foolishness when compared to Jesus’ person. There is “no man” because Jesus is the Son of God, not a mere man. He can’t make it into the pool. Yet, before him stands the very source of the Living Water. The man thinks of God as offering a Dixie cup of healing. God is offering an ocean of healing in Jesus.

6. What might it have felt like for the man to begin walking again?

7. What is the unseen spiritual reality the healing of the lame man points to?

a. God offers wholeness and healing in oceans, not small pools

b. Jesus can come into any dark, despondent situation and offer life

8. What are lessons we can learn from the Sign?

a. Jesus will not take our excuses for why we are not well.

b. Jesus gives us the power to get up and be well – if we are not it is our block.

c. Change is scary – we often choose to stay in our brokenness rather than change.

III. “Come See a Man” – Personal Testimony

1. Tell a story about Jesus helped you to “Get Up” and brought healing to your life!

2. Highlight the struggle to believe that life could be different and paint a picture of the new life Jesus’ healing power has brought to you

IV. Real Steps of Faith

1. Do you see patterns of becoming more comfortable with brokenness in your life?

2. What is one area of your life Jesus calling you to “Get Up and Be Well” in?

Index Card – Question or current issue and prayer request

Sign 4: The Bread of Life John 6.1-15, 25-27

I. Attention Getter:

• What is your favorite food? Describe your most satisfying meal of all time

II. Understanding the Message

Read John 6.1-15

1. What would Jesus’ popularity look like today in America?

2. How does it make you feel to know that God tests people to help grow their faith?

3. Has God ever tested you? (Briefly share the test and how you did).

4. Describe this miraculous feeding from the point of view of the crowd.

5. Describe this miraculous feeding from the disciple’s point of view.

6. What is the significance of the 12 baskets being left over at the end?

7. What is the perishing bread and why does Jesus tell them to eat the real bread?

8. What is the unseen spiritual reality with the sign of the bread?

a. God offers his heavenly bread, in the person of Jesus

b. We are surrounded by perishing bread that appears to be just what we need

9. What are lessons we can learn from the Sign?

a. Jesus provides abundantly the food that nourishes us spiritually

b. We must learn to discern whether we labor for living or perishing bread

c. Jesus tests his followers to make sure that we are in faith and growing

III. “Come See a Man” – Personal Testimony

1. Give testimony about Jesus giving you the bread of life.

Give testimony about the joy of eating the bread of life. Be sure and explain, on a vulnerable level, your own experience of laboring for bread that perishes. Have you labored in the area of career, studies, family dynamics, sexuality? Help your friends know that The Bread of Life will not let them down like the other bread. They must hear from you the unfulfilling nature of the bread that perishes.

IV. Real Steps of Faith

1. What kind of bread are you working for in your life? Are you satisfied?

2. What steps can you take to eat more of Jesus’ bread (conference, prayer, etc)?

Index Card – Question or current issue and prayer request

Sign 5: Crossing the Sea John 6.16-21

I. Attention Getter:

• “Have you ever been on a boat during a storm? If so, please tell us about it!” • “When was the last time you were truly scared for your physical safety?”

Movie Clip Suggestion: The Perfect Storm

Show chapter 22 and 23 of The Perfect Storm. Discuss the plight of the seamen and ask how they would respond in such a dangerous situation as they are rescued.

II. Understanding the Message

Read John 6.16-21

Give a quick summary of the Passover and God’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt.

(Teaching Note: Be sure to be able to answer the goodness of God in the ten plagues on Egypt. I always focus on the hardness of Pharaoh’s heart and his commitment to try and thwart the plans of God. Pharaoh only received what he asked for).

1. Highlight the power of God to part the Red Sea and the experience of Israel!

2. What must the sea have been like for fishermen to become afraid for their lives?

3. How would you have reacted if you saw your friend, Jesus, walking on the water?

4. What do we learn about Jesus and his authority over the sea?

5. Why does Jesus tell them not to be afraid?

6. What happens when they invite Jesus into the boat?

7. What is the unseen spiritual reality of the crossing of the sea?

a. The same God who parted the Red Sea is now in his creation walking on the sea

b. b. God still delivers his people from the storms of life

8. What are the lessons we can learn from the Sign?

a. Jesus has all authority over all aspects of creation in our world

b. Jesus walks toward us when we are struggling in the storms of life

c. Jesus does not want us to be afraid in life, he wants us to be full of joy

d. Jesus offers to get into our boat and get us safely onto land

III. “Come See a Man” – Personal Testimony

1. Tell a story about Jesus delivering you from your fears and the storms of this life. Be sure to be vulnerable about your fears and carefully document how Jesus overcame all obstacles to come to you and deliver you.

IV. Real Steps of Faith

1. What is one area of life where you are afraid of the waves that surround you?

2. What steps can you take to invite Jesus into the boat and lead you to shore?

Index Card – Question or current issue and prayer request

Sign 6: The Blind Man John 9.1-41

I. Attention Getter:

• Have you ever been so excited about an experience you told everyone you knew? • How do you handle conflict from authority when they disapprove of your actions?

II. Understanding the Message

Read John 9.1-41 (In this longer section you might want be creative and act it out)

Teacher Notes: Introduce the Pharisees and Jews as not being an ethnic term but used for the religious leaders. They had power to cast people out of society.

1. Do you ever think suffering and illness occurs that God’s power might be revealed?

2. What would it be like to be blind? Have you ever personally known a blind person?

8. What would it have been like to have been the man and followed Jesus’ commands?

9. At the outset, what does the blind man know of Jesus?

10. What happens to the spiritual sight of the blind man as the account unfolds?

11. What happens to the spiritual sight of the Jewish leaders as the account unfolds?

12. What do you think of the blind man’s family?

13. How does Jesus receive someone persecuted for aligning themselves with him?

14. Who in the passage sees? How does the sight come?

15. Who in the passage is blind? Why do they think they see?

16. What is the unseen spiritual reality in the healing of the blind man?

a. All are blind in darkness until the Light of the World gives them spiritual sight

17. What are lessons we can learn from the Sign?

a. Jesus is the Light that shines in the darkness and gives sight to the blind

b. For those who follow Jesus, expect persecution, even from your own family

c. Spiritual sight is a process – articulating God’s work to others brings growth

III. “Come See a Man” – Personal Testimony

1. Tell a story about your process of Jesus giving you sight.

What were your emotions and thoughts while in the dark? What were the most helpful steps of you coming to see Jesus clearly? Also highlight the experience of joy of knowing Jesus personally and worshiping him with your life.

IV. Real Steps of Faith

1. Are you growing in your understanding of Jesus by telling others?

2. What have you learned about how to handle people who might not understand and even oppose your spiritual growth?

Index Card – Question or current issue and prayer request

Sign 7: Lazarus John 11.1-44

I. Attention Getter:

• Do you think about death very often? Has it affected your life personally?

Movie Clip Suggestion: The Matrix

View scenes 36 and 37. In these scenes we see a human being who has overcome death. We see the power of light to overcome the darkness of even death. After viewing the scene, ask your GIG what it would be like if “The One” were truly a human being.

II. Understanding the Message

Read John 11.1-44 (In this long section, you might want to be creative and act it out)

1. Jesus loves Lazarus and his sisters, so why does he stay when he hears he is sick?

2. What do the disciples understand of Jesus’ plan? What do they think of him?

3. What are the promises Jesus gives to Martha and Mary in the passage?

4. How does Martha respond? How does Mary respond?

5. Why does Jesus weep as he approaches Lazarus’ grave?

6. What does that teach you about Jesus and his love for people and their families?

7. What would you have seen if you were there when Jesus spoke into the grave?

8. What if you were one of the men who let Lazarus go by unwrapping him?

9. What is the unseen spiritual reality in the raising of Lazarus from the grave?

a. Lazarus’ raising points to Jesus who will himself rise from the dead and break

through death that we all might have our graveclothes removed.

10. What are lessons we can learn from the Sign?

a. Jesus allows suffering to happen that God’s glory might be revealed.

b. We must ask God to intervene in the crises in our lives.

c. Jesus gives Mary and Martha words to believe before he reveals the glory.

d. God has the power to remove death itself from the lives of his people.

e. The life that God offers is free from the graveclothes that bind.

III. “Come See a Man” – Personal Testimony

1. Tell a story about your experience of wearing “graveclothes”.

What are the sins and the brokenness that have bound you in your life? How has Jesus’ words called you out of the grave and given you power to live a new life?

IV. Real Steps of Faith

What are the graveclothes that you are wearing? Are you happy?

Have you heard Jesus calling your name during this God Search?

Do you want to leave the grave and follow “The One” who has defeated death?

The Appendix: Calling for Commitment

The Good Shepard and the Abundant Life

John 10

Challenge is Inevitable

As one of the 72, challenging our friends and family to faith is inevitable. They will not just fall in Christianity and become Spirit-filled disciples of Jesus without help. I have seen many people who were not challenged and never committed to faith. I have also seen people who were ready to follow Jesus and wasted a great while because no one asked them to commit. Helping our friends make the commitment of their lives is central what it means to be sent by Jesus.

Here are some thoughts about when and how to help our friends commit to Jesus:

When Do I Call To Faith?

Our friends do not have to dramatically experience multiple signs from God before they are ready to be called to faith. Here is the grid I use when calling to faith:

18. They see Jesus in the word and respond at the spiritual level they are able

19. They understand the gospel and have learned the story

20. They know that the gospel requires their obedience to Jesus in all areas of their life

21. They know that the gospel requires a commitment to long term spiritual growth

22. They know that they will need other followers to help them grow

The Role of the Prophet

I love to help my friends see the big picture. They need to know that Jesus is the Good Shepherd and has been proactively seeking them. I play the role of Prophet and connect all the dots for them by interpreting what they have seen and experienced. I remind them that the God Search Seven Sign series was not an accident. God has been seeking them, wooing them, and calling them through the study. Our friends will normally not be able to put together the grand picture of God drawing them to himself. We must

help them come to the correct interpretation.

Interpret the Joy of Obedience

It is important that our friends understand the life they are receiving from Jesus. At this point of challenge, I interpret for them the experience of following Jesus’ commands. I teach them John 8.32 and that the disciples who continue in Jesus’ words will be free. Hopefully at this point, they will have already experienced some level of freedom through the study, whether it be in the area of anxiety, provision, sexual purity, honesty, or prayer, I walk them through their own experience. I will tell them that they have tasted but an appetizer of the life that God has for them and they must take the next step of ordering the entrée.

Commitment Analogies

Commitment can be a very scary word in our generation. I am always on the lookout for positive and fresh commitment illustrations to give to our friends a better understanding of commitment. For the past couple of years the two illustrations I have used are:

The Marriage Analogy

I introduce the concept of Jesus as the Great Bridegroom (Isaiah 54, Matthew 25, and John 3). Jesus is not interested in dating. He wants marriage. It is in marriage that the great transformation happens. Without that commitment, the love of God will stay on a very surface level. As we call our friends to commitment, many are ready for marriage and need only the proposal. May we see ourselves as John the Baptist and be the best friend of the Bridegroom who rejoices at his voice (John 3.29)

The Coach Analogy

Jesus is the Great Spiritual Coach. He is the One who wants to take us to the spiritual championship, but we must commit to his team and his ways. Each coach has their own philosophy for growth and development. Jesus’ gamebook is the Bible. As we obey the coach and all of his commands, we will experience the great growth and success he promises. And Jesus is un- like any other coach in that he is the Coach who loves us and invites us to know him personally. He is the only Coach who is committed to us and especially loves to help us understand and grow from our failures.

These two analogies have proven helpful in communicating what it means to follow Jesus. Our friends must understand that Jesus is serious about discipleship because that is the way to insure the freedom that we all long for.

Persuading Our Friends to Follow the Good Shepherd

I like the close the time and call for commitment with The Good Shepherd passage from John 10. I highlight the numerous traits of Jesus and the blessings that are found being under his leadership. I am proactively persuading the person at this point to look at my own life and decide if I have made the right choice. I normally use two to three compelling illustrations from my own life about how the Good Shepherd has given me the abundant life as my husband or my coach. I then look them in the eye and ask them what is keeping them from committing to follow the Shepherd. They will either commit to Jesus on the spot, have very legitimate issues they need to work through, or have illegitimate fears that can be exposed and worked through on the spot through prayer.

Being in Jesus’ presence will often reveal and dissolve the fears that block them from Jesus. The more comfortable we become at this ministry of persuasion, similar to Paul in the marketplace daily (Acts 17.17), the more readily we will be able to walk through the doors that Jesus opens for us.

First Steps of New Life

As the person has committed their life to Christ, I make it a point to encourage the following first steps of faith:

• Concretely identify and repent from the things God hates. • They should tell everyone they have decided to follow Jesus (John 9 Sight Plan) • Model and teach discipline in prayer and study of the word • Model and teach the new disciple concrete love for the poor • Gather the disciples’ family and friends to celebrate their new life in Jesus • Encourage the new disciple to lead a God Search of their own!

The New Life

After the first week of commitment, I would also have a very honest discussion with the new disciple about the need for Christian community. As the God Search leader, you must be aware that the great inherent weakness in the God Search is that the person could still be unattached to the larger church. It will be easy for them to have an amazing experience with God and then never commit to the local congregation of believers. I love to show them the model of Jesus and the 12 and point out that they have not only committed to Jesus, but also to his team. (As weird as the team might be for them). All that you can do to help them get to know the other believers will be a great blessing for them and their new life of following the Good Shepherd!

Water into Wine The Seven Signs John 2.1-11

1 On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. 3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus said to her,

“Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother

said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6 Now there were six stone water jars

there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7 Jesus

said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And

he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they

took it. 9 When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not

know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the

master of the feast called the bridegroom 10 and said to him, “Everyone serves the

good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have

kept the good wine until now.” 11 This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee,

and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

i Royal Official’s Son The Seven Signs John 4.46-54

46 So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And at

Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. 48 So Jesus said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” 49 The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” 50 Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word

that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way. 51 As he was going down, his servants met

him and told him that his son was recovering. 52 So he asked them the hour when he

began to get better, and they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left

him.” 53 The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, “Your son will

live.” And he himself believed, and all his household. 54 This was now the second sign

that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee.

ii The Man at the Pool The Seven Signs John 5.1-16

5:1 After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. 3 In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. 5 One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” 7 The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.” 8 Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” 9 And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.

Now that day was the Sabbath. 10 So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.” 11 But he answered them, “The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.’” 12 They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk’?” 13 Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the place. 14 Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” 15 The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. 16 And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath.

iii The Bread of Life The Seven Signs John 6.1-15; 25-27; 35

6:1 After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. 2 And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. 3 Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. 4 Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. 5 Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” 6 He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. 7 Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” 8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, 9 “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. 11 Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. 12 And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” 13 So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. 14 When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!” 15 Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

25 When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” 26 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27 Do not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.”

iv 35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.

v Crossing the Sea The Seven Signs John 6.16-21

16 When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. 19 When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. 20 But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21

Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

vi The Blind Man The Seven Signs John 9.1-40

9:1 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 Having said these things, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud 7 and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.

8 The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” 9 Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” 10 So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11 He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.” 12 They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”

13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. 14 Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15 So the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, “He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” 16 Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them. 17 So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.”

18 The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight 19 and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” 20 His parents answered, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. 21 But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.” 22 (His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.) 23 Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”

24 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, “Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner.” 25 He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” 26 They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” 27 He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” 28 And they reviled him, saying, “You

vii are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” 30 The man answered, “Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. 32 Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” 34 They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.

35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 36 He answered, “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” 37 Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you.” 38 He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. 39 Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.” 40 Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” 41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.

viii Lazarus The Seven Signs John 11.1-44

11:1 Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. 3 So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” 4 But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. 7 Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” 8 The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?” 9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. 10 But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” 11 After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” 12 The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” 13 Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. 14 Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, 15 and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” 16 So Thomas, called the Twin, [2] said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

17 Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, 19 and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. 20 So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. 21 Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha said to him, “I know

ix that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”

28 When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” 29 And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. 31 When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. 32 Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. 34 And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept. 36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” 37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”

38 Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” 43 When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”