The last of the books called ‘gospels*’ is John. John was one of the men that Jesus chose and a close friend of Jesus. He wrote the words and stories about Jesus, just as Matthew and Mark did. But John wrote the way that he did for a special reason. He wrote so that people would ‘believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God’. [1] He wanted them to have the life that Jesus wanted them to have. John wanted people to ‘believe’ so that they could have eternal* life. [2]

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John said many things about Jesus. John told the things that Jesus did and the words that he said. But John also told us who Jesus was. He called Jesus the ‘Word’. He said that Jesus was with God before he created* the world. In fact, Jesus made all things. Nothing was created* that Jesus did not create*. Jesus was God coming to us in a body. He showed people God’s grace* and truth by living among them. When people saw Jesus, they got to see God’s glory*.

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John’s book begins with another man named John. He was John the Baptist. When he saw Jesus, he said, ‘Look! There is the lamb* from God. He will take away the sin* of the world.’  [3] John the Baptist was saying that Jesus would be like one of the lambs that people gave as a sacrifice*. Somehow, Jesus would be like that kind of lamb. [4]

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John wanted people to remember what the prophets* said.  The prophets* said that people would not welcome the Messiah*. That is what happened to Jesus. John said that the leaders in Israel* did not welcome Jesus. He came to his own people, the Jews. But many of them turned away from him.

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But many people were happy to listen to Jesus. He found men who wanted to follow him. Some of those men were followers of John the Baptist. They did what John the Baptist hoped they would do. They turned to follow Jesus.

Jesus did many miracles* among the people. He did these things to help people know that he was the Son of God.  He healed a man who could not walk. He fed 5000 people with only a few fish and some bread. He walked on the sea. But the leaders in Israel* still did not believe in him. Other people, like many people in Samaria, did believe.

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John also told us many things that Jesus said to the people at the temple*. Jesus said that his message came from God. He told them that he came because God sent him. Jesus did many other things to help the people see who he was. He healed a blind man. When his friend Lazarus died, Jesus made him live again. These are the kind of things that Isaiah talked about many years before. He said that God’s promised saviour* would do things like this. But the people still did not understand.

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John told about the last week of Jesus’ life in the last part of his book. Jesus said many important things in that last week. He told his friends to be humble and he gave them a new command.

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‘I give you a new command. Love one another. You must love one another, just as I have loved you. If you love one another, everyone will know you are my disciples*.’ [5]

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He told them about the Holy Spirit*. Jesus said that the Holy Spirit* would help them when he left. Jesus prayed for his friends and for everyone who would believe in the future. [6]

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John wrote his book to help people see that Jesus was the Son of God. He came to rescue his chosen people. He came to begin his new kingdom*. That was why he went to the cross*. That is why God made Jesus alive again after he died.

 

[1] John 20:31

[2] John 3:16

[3] John 1:29

[4] John 1:29

[5] John 13:34-35

[6] John 17