Tag Archives: The Gospel of John

In the Beginning was the Word, and the Word was gone…?

Lost in Translation So I was reading the New Testament in Tetum, the language of East Timor. I started to discover some interesting things that happen in translation. I thought I would blog about them, both to make notes, and to aid my fledgling comprehension of Tetum. The Tetum New Testament I am reading is […]

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A Parable to Explain Jesus’ Claim to be “Son of God”

The Kingdom of God is like a Furniture Maker… When people think about how Jesus’ can claim to be the “Son of God”, they most often think in terms of the Virgin Birth:   Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel said to her, “The Holy […]

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John 20:19-31 – The Honoured Guests and Their Servant Leaders

Blessed are those who have not seen… Ever wonder why some people got a “bolt from the blue” encounter from God, and you didn’t? Jesus says that you are the one who is blessed, not them. How does that work…? I preached this message on Sunday, April 12 2015.

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 21

Chapter 21 This is the final part in a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In Chapter 21

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 20

Chapter 20 This is part 20 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In Chapter 20 we start to draw the major themes together in some very dramatic ways. This chapter has a lot of “seeing” in it, which finally points […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 19

Chapter 19 This is part 19 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In Chapter 19, Jesus is beaten, crucified, and buried. In a chapter which begins, “Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged”, has in the middle, “So they […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 18

Chapter 18 This is part 18 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In Chapter 18, Jesus is brought before religious leaders, before being handed over to Pilate, the Roman Governor. At every stage in the process, guess who is […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 17

Chapter 16 This is part 17 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. This whole chapter is Jesus’ prayer for the disciples. It continues to underscore and reinforce our theme of hearing and believing. It becomes the central understanding around […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 16

Chapter 16 This is part 16 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. Chapter 16 opens with the profound words, “I have said these things to you to keep you from stumbling”, as if to underscore this theme of hearing and […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 15

Chapter 15 This is part 15 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In chapter 15, Jesus continues teaching his disciples in preparation for the Crucifixion. He talks about two things: The “True Vine”, and the fact that the world […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 14

Chapter 14 This is part 14 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In chapter 14, Jesus speaks with his disciples and prepares them for what is about to happen. The story is now converging on the moment at which […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 12

Chapter 12: This is part 12 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In this chapter, we see the effect that the resurrection of Lazarus had on the Jewish observers, and we find foreigners coming to enquire into the teachings […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 11

Chapter 11: The Resurrection and the Life This is part 11 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In this chapter, Jesus raises his friend Lazarus from the dead. This is a pivotal moment in the story of the Gospel of John, as […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 10

Chapter 10: The Voice of the Shepherd This is part 10 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In this chapter, Jesus uses the metaphor of a shepherd talking to his sheep to illustrate his point. Much as been said over the […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 9

 Chapter 9: To see This is part 9 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. Chapter 9 opens with Jesus restoring sight to a blind man, and the rest of the chapter is essentially expounding on the meaning of Jesus giving […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 8

 Chapter 8: The Adulteress, Light of the World, and Abraham’s Sons This is part 8 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. This chapter is a series of encounters and conversations with Jesus. We are, among other things, to grasp that the words of […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 7

 Chapter 7: The Festival, The Living Water This is part 7 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. This chapter is Jesus’ appearance at the festival of Booths. At this festival, the Jewish tradition had developed so that a water libation was […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 6

Chapter 6: Feeding the 5000, Bread from Heaven, Words of Life This is part 6 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. Chapter 6 begins with Jesus using bread to feed 5000 people, and then the question of “bread” becomes a spiritual […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 5

Chapter 5: Sabbath, and the Son of God This is part 5 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In Chapter 5, Jesus has a stand-off with the Jewish authorities, ostensibly about the Sabbath, but it becomes a conversation about his claim […]

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3 Words that will forever change the way you read the Gospel of John: Week 4

Chapter 4: The Samaritan Woman, the Harvest, and the Return to Galilee This is part 4 of a 21-part series which traces “seeing” and “hearing”, and looks at how they relate to “believing”, through the Gospel of John. In this chapter Jesus meets two special people who come to faith, both of whom are foreigners. The […]

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