John
Signs point us in the right direction. As you read John, watch for the signs (miracles) that point out how Jesus is God's powerful Son.
Start readingWhat makes John special?
John tells about the life and words of Jesus in a way that is different from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. (See the Introduction to the Gospels and Acts, INT 1.0.) The key events in Jesus' life are mentioned, but John pays a lot of attention to three questions:
Why was John written?
John 20.31 clearly states why the Gospel was written: “These are written so that you will put your faith in Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of God. If you have faith in him, you will have true life.”
What's the story behind the scene?
The Gospel seems to have been written down a number of years after Jesus died and was raised from death, and probably after the Romans destroyed the temple and ended a Jewish uprising in a.d. 70. After this time, Jewish people who accepted the teachings of Jesus began to be banned from the synagogues (Jewish meeting places) to keep them from spreading the message about Jesus there. John refers to this terrible rejection three times (9.22-23; 12.42; 16.1).
How is John constructed?
The action in John shifts back and forth quickly between Galilee and the area in and around Jerusalem. Time is also marked by certain Jewish festivals. The basic outline of John can be described in the following way:
Chapters
21 chapters