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Lesson OneLuke–John: The Gospel According to Luke and John5 Activities1 Assessment
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Lesson TwoJesus and John: Two Miracle Births5 Activities1 Assessment
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Lesson ThreeWho IS This Man?: The Beginning of Jesus' Ministry5 Activities1 Assessment
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Course Wrap-UpCourse Completion1 Activity1 Assessment
Participants 96
Discussion Questions
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After learning about the gospel of John, why do you think he chose to focus the first half of his book on seven miracles or signs from Jesus? How did this help John accomplish his purpose that was discussed in the lesson?
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John focuses on the deity of Jesus through telling us about the miraculous power He has to heal the sick, open blind eyes, restore damaged limbs on the people and raise the dead. Because of those types of miracles and more, Jesus can and does forgive sins, as was presented in the story of the man who Jesus forgave his sins and then when challenged by the religious leaders of the time as to His authority to do so, He heals the man in their presence.
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The miracles proved Jesus came from God. He wrote the Gospel so that we would believe Jesus is the Christ and we would have life in his name.
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By emphasizing Jesus’s miraculous works, John convinces the reader that Jesus is more than just a man. John provides example after example in order to secure in the reader’s mind that Jesus is more than just a magician or a holy man. Since his purpose was to show that Jesus was the Christ and in fact God, John uses these seven miracles to serve as evidence of Jesus’s divinity.
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In order to work through why John’s first half focuses on the miracles and signs of Jesus, I find it helpful to identify his purpose statement that is declared in the body of his book. It is found in John 20:31 . He says here that he has written this book “that you may know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that in believing you may have life in his name.” The other piece that stuck out to me when reflecting on his decision to focus on the miracles and signs was when Blomberg suggests that John is intentional about not repeating in his writing what he believes early Christians had already taught well in generations of the past. In connection to his purpose, he is showing that to know Christ as the Son of God is to know him by his miracles and signs. These are things that can only be taught following Christ’s life and ministry and could not have been known through previous teachings. As the reader experiences the explanation of the miracles (each more amazing than the last), this is a powerful testimony to his work and ministry that demonstrates that he was not only flesh, but truly divine in nature.
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In the book of John, The author started that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. The miracles that Jesus performs and John’s narration of these events lead the reader to understand Jesus’ divine nature. In John 1:36-48, the calling of the disciples, Jesus is referred to as “The Lamb of God” (the atonement) the Messiah, a true Israelite, and The Son of God. Each miracle seems to be more miraculous than the last, with Jesus walking on water and even inviting Peter to join him on the waves. So, when, in Chapter 7, there is some division over Jesus’ divinity, the reader sees Jesus’ purposes clearly, that he is doing His Fathers work. “I am not here on my own authority, but he who sent me is true.” (Jn 7:28) He proclaims himself as the “I am” (Jn8:58) “the Resurrection and the Life” (Jn 11:25) and “the Way, the Truth and the Life” (Jn 14:6), and eventually that “I and the Father are One” (Jn 10:30).
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Dr. Blomberg says, “Luke clearly seems to have been a Gentile.” What significance do you see in this? How might this have affected how Luke’s gospel was written and how it was received at the time it was written?
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Luke being a gentile is greatly significant to the testimony of Jesus’ character. It is possible that Luke wrote the gospel with gentiles in minds he focused on Jesus being Savior more than Messiah, a Jewish term.
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For me the fact that Luke was a Gentile, holds a huge comforting assurance. As a Gentile he wrote of so many things about our Lord Jesus Christ. As a Gentile historian, all his recordings have been canonized as it were., There is surely hope for us mere mortals still here on earth. Luke’s writings are so intimately accurate, and show the compassion of Jesus; the interactions with outcasts, and people who would normally not be associated with; all this is taken up in the Gospel, the Truth has been preserved.
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Luke was Paul’s companion, and was well known amongst the Greek Christians. Luke joined Paul in Troas in Asia Minor during Paul’s second missionary journey (Acts 16:6–11). In this time period, the culture had the gentiles being very different than Jewish culture. The two were very separate. Being a gentile, Luke clearly brings a reach into the gentile world, and Theophilus is an example of how the gospel is reaching the people. Luke’s perspective is in telling Theophilus of the story of Jesus coming and his purpose as he wrote in Luke 19:10 (“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”).
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Luke being a Gentile is significant as he addresses a Gentile audience who can relate and he can make them feel more comfortable and he also tended to speak to the more socio-economically mixed audience so that they would not forget to give to the poor and less fortunate.