K.E.Y. Bible Study

K.E.Y. Bible Study The K.E.Y Bible Study program at Dawson is a systematic Bible study that allows participants to become acquainted with the basic truths of the Bible over a five-year period. Each lesson is self-contained, so, you can join the study at any time during the five years. Purpose: To help Christians: Keep the Faith Be Equipped to Serve Become Yoked in Ministry “The Grand Opening of the Ministry” September 25, 2013 John 1: 29-51 First century readers/hearers of the gospel would have wanted to know how Jesus built such an intensely loyal group of followers in a relatively short time, and how Introduction John the Baptist fit into the story. The Gospel of John was written approximately 50 years after the resurrection. John quickly addressed both questions. • The primary character is God as revealed in Jesus, the Christ. • John the Baptist was an eccentric prophet. In early Jewish history, prophets were very common; however, by the time of Jesus, they had a diminished role in public life. Frequently, the prophets would start out with a message, but once Who they achieved recognition, they would claim to be the Messiah. John the Baptist does just the opposite. He made a deliberate effort to tell people that he was not the Messiah. We know from Luke that John the Baptist was the son of a temple priest, so it is not surprising that he used traditional religious language. Jesus grew up in the home of a carpenter, and his vocabulary is less religious and more related to people in the secular world. • Four role-players are introduced by name and one is not identified. The four are: Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip, and Nathaniel. From verse 36, it is evident that there was another disciple of John the Baptist who is not mentioned by name. Most believe this was John the writer of this gospel account. These events occurred in approximately 26 A.D. – 27 A.D. The events described in these verses happened one day after the priests and Levites asked John the Baptist When why he baptized. John’s meeting with the religious leaders would have been more confrontation than friendly conversation. Bethany beyond the Jordan is identified as the place where this happened; yet, there is very little evidence that there was a village by that name on the eastern shore of Where the Jordan River. It may have been a location on the river rather than a village. K.E.Y. Bible Study (2013 - 2014) Dawson Family of Faith Gary Fenton K.E.Y. Bible Study What Happened John 1:29-34 • John the Baptist announced that Jesus was the Lamb of God. This was relatively close in time to the Passover (see chapter 2), so the people to whom John the Baptist spoke would have understood that he was using deliverance, sacrifice, and atonement language. While we think of the lamb as a means of atonement, the first-century Jews would have made atonement secondary to deliverance. • The phrase “who takes away the sin of the world” is pointing out that this is not just a Jewish redeemer but a Savior for the world. • John the Baptist said that Jesus was the fulfillment of his prophecies and his followers should switch their allegiance to Jesus. • When John said, "I myself did not know him,” he said that at first he did not recognize that Jesus was the Messiah. John the Baptist would have known Jesus; surely, they had met at family or religious gatherings over the years. • John wrote that he saw the Spirit of God come on Jesus. Also, John testified that God had revealed to him that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit and that He was the Son of God. Verse 34 is the central truth of this passage. Meeting And CAlling the Disciples There are three different accounts of how Jesus called His disciples. These are not contradictory. Rather, each is a partial account. When we place them together, we have a more accurate understanding. 1. John’s account, which we will examine in more detail, is when Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip, and Nathanael first meet Jesus. It is apparent that none of these four had previously known Jesus, although they may have heard his name through John the Baptist. It is very likely that these four disciples spent a brief amount of time with Jesus and then returned to their secular jobs. 2. In Matthew 4 and Mark 1, we find Jesus encountered some of the future disciples a second time. Here Jesus invited Simon Peter and Andrew to be “fishers of men.” Jesus also invited the sons of Zebedee, James and John, to follow Him. It is assumed they stayed with Jesus for a while and then may have returned to families and work to complete some responsibilities. They were still followers but also connected to their jobs and local communities. 3. Luke 5 is a third calling narrative involving a dramatic event in which these men had been fishing and had not caught anything. Jesus told them where to place their nets, and they caught a very large number of fish. Then in Luke 5:11 we read, “So they pulled their boats on shore, and left everything and followed him.” We should not be surprised at this; it is consistent with what we experience today. We have a moment when we come to Jesus, but our discipleship is a growing awareness of progressive process. John 1:35-42 • The next day John the Baptist again publicly identified Jesus as the Lamb of God. The writer John emphasized that John the Baptist was deliberately recognizing that Jesus is the Lamb of God. K.E.Y. Bible Study (2013 - 2014) Dawson Family of Faith Gary Fenton K.E.Y. Bible Study • At least two of John the Baptist’s disciples immediately followed Jesus. They were not rejecting John the Baptist but were following John the Baptist’s example and his instruction. The early readers would have known about Simon Peter but would probably not have heard much about Andrew. While the other gospel accounts point out that the first disciples were fisherman, John does not. The disciples’ occupations were not relevant because John’s focus was on showing that Jesus was the Son of God and Savior of the world. • Jesus entered a conversation with the two followers of John the Baptist. Aware that these two were physically following him, Jesus asked, “What do you want?” These are the first words of Jesus in the Gospel of John. They responded with question, “Where are you staying?” which was what you would ask a traveling rabbi if you wanted to be taught or have questions answered. • Late in the afternoon (the tenth hour would have been 4:00 p.m.), Andrew found and told his brother, Simon that he had found the Messiah and brought Simon to Jesus. • Jesus changed Simon’s name to “Cephas” which was an Aramaic word meaning “rock.” The Greek name is translated “Peter.” The name of Simon was a common adaptation of the name of Jacob’s second son in Genesis. The original Simeon was known to be impetuous, passionate, and ruthless. The name change is a “signal event” in that it points to a larger reality. When Jesus comes into our lives, our character is changed. • The last portion of verse 42 is an explanation for the Gentile readers who may have not known the Aramaic language. John tried to avoid “insider” language, which is a good example for us to follow today. John 1:43-51 • Then next day, Jesus encountered Philip who was from Bethsaida, which means “house of fishing” and was also the hometown of Andrew and Peter. Using simple and direct language, Jesus invited and called Philip to “Follow me.” This is the essence of the Christian life, following Jesus. • Philip found Nathanael and invited him to come and see for himself if Jesus was the one promised by Moses. Nathanael is probably the disciple known as Bartholomew in other gospels account. Notice the people reaching people pattern described by John. An implied question in this gospel is, “How did this Jewish Messiah so quickly impact the world?” and the answer is people began telling each other. The Christian faith was not promoted; it was caught. • When Philip says “in the Law and about who the prophets also wrote,” he is using an idiom for referring to the entire Old Testament. • Nathanael’s sarcastically asked if anything good can come from Nazareth. The Jews despised Nazareth because a Roman army garrison was located there. Also, the area was not known for high morals or strong religious practices. It is important to note that Nathanael’s hometown of Cana was a rival community located about four miles from Nazareth. Local loyalties are not new and are not restricted to the South. • The very brief summary dialogue confirmed to Nathanael that Jesus was the Son of God and the Messiah. Nathanael believed it was a miracle when Jesus told him that he knew he had just been sitting under a fig tree when Philip called him. To Jews, the fig tree stood for peace and sitting under your own fig tree meant that you were at peace. Further, the fig tree was leafy and shady, and it was customary to sit and meditate under the roof of its branches. • Nathaniel acknowledged that Jesus was the Son of God and the King of Israel. Both have Jewish nationalistic significance, but the Gentile readers probably understood “Son of God” differently than Nathanael.

Load more