John Part 11

Intro

a story that isn’t in some manuscripts but seems too much like Jesus’ character to leave out

sounds enough like something he would do

the reason some things are missing verses- in case you ever hear someone bring up the superiority of the KJV

A Test for the Teacher

while he is up for the feast of booths

he goes again to the temple to preach

the day before they could not seem to stump him

they couldn’t even convince the Romans to arrest him

they bring a woman who has been caught in adultery- the specifics we do not know about

we aren’t really even told if they are telling the truth or if they just pulled some poor woman whose own account wouldn’t mean much

Jesus writes in the dirt for all of them to see as they continue to question him

here is what I figure he wrote- Ex 34:4- judgement and mercy are God’s to provide

it doesn’t matter what he wrote, it matters who these people are in the eyes of God

God in his character shows that he is not only the judge of the guilty but the one who is full of grace as well

there are consequences to our actions that we can feel and will affect us

all of us have fallen short, even the most pious

regardless, God extends a hand of mercy and invites us to be transformed

Arguments at the Temple

Jesus testimony about himself- they ought to know that he and the Father are the same working toward the same goal

none of them will fully understand until Jesus is lifted up on the cross

Jesus offers true freedom

who is your father

Before Abraham was I AM

Application

Jesus has a long conversation after a unique and interesting story

the most important points are at the beginning and the end

we’ve talked about this before but its an important point to hammer home before you go off into the world and have your faith challenged

remember this if you remember nothing else from our studies of John; Jesus is God and he claims himself to be so

not only is he God and claims to be God, but he shows us the true nature of God lived out as a person walking among people

the reason that story survives is because that is how we reason God would act