Bent Oak Church

Most people have heard about the Jewish and Samaritan division. We understand the tension of a Jewish man sticking up a private conversation with a Samaritan woman. But most miss the bigger reality of Jesus' conversation. The language of division—gender, ethnicity, place of worship—is hers. Jesus instead offers something new and better—living water, Spirit, and truth.

John uses the word believe more than 100 times in his gospel. It is used on almost every page. But what does it mean? Many around Jesus misunderstood. We take a look at the importance of believing in Jesus.

Under the cover of darkness, Nicodemus came to Jesus. He had seen Jesus's signs and recognized Jesus had come from God. But Jesus pushed that conversation much deeper leaving Nicodemus confused and disoriented. At the center of the conversation was a question about faith. What does it mean to believe in Jesus?

Jesus's clearing of the temple was not an emotional outburst. It was another sign. A deliberate action by which Jesus revealed himself to his followers. The temple was not the future, not the physical one at least. Jesus, by His resurrection, would become a new and better temple. 

John tells us that Jesus's first sign was turning water into wine, but he also gives us several other details crucial to understanding the significance of Jesus's action. He was not pressured into by his concerned mom, Jesus chose this miracle for its symbolic meaning. Jesus was the messiah who came to offer a better wine and an eternal banquet. 

Jesus, realizing he was being followed, turned and asked the two men, "what do you seek?" It was a question that would change their lives and the world. Those men became some of Jesus's first followers. 

John the Baptist was questioned by religious leaders from Jerusalem. "Who do you say you are?" they asked him. John wasn't interested in that question. He wasn't interested in himself. John was helping Israel see the one standing in their midst. "Behold, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world."

John builds our anticipation for who this word is. He takes his time to get to the answer, explaining the problem of our preferring darkness and the divine solution of the word becoming flesh. The result is that we have seen God's glory and finally, John reveals it is seen through the flesh of Jesus Christ.

John begins his gospel with a prologue. In the beginning, was the word...Before we are introduced to John the baptist or to Jesus, we a reminded of what is at stake. The eternal word of God made flesh. This is a story that is set in the context of eternal salvation.