This week we take a leap into John chapter 6 which is packed with some off Jesus’s more complex and difficult teachings. We see just how difficult this can be, not only for us but for the people Jesus was speaking directly to, when many of His disciples stopped following Him because what He was teaching them was too difficult for them to comprehend. I want to start out today by encouraging you to press forward! As difficult as some things are to grasp, Jesus also teaches us within this very same lesson that it is by His Holy Spirit that we are given understanding. Lean into the Holy Spirit today, and let’s explore this complex chapter.
We begin with John’s account of the feeding of the five thousand, which we discussed last week from the other 3 gospel accounts. What really gets complicated is the people’s response after they were fed by the miracle of Jesus. They went to the other side of the water to find Jesus. Here are several key takeaways from this passage.
We should not chase after earthly things.
We cannot work for eternal life – it is a gift to those who believe.
Jesus is the only way to be eternally satisfied and provide for our spiritual needs.
Those who believe in Jesus will have eternal life.
God invites everyone to believe, but only some will believe and be given spiritual life.
If we seek to be satisfied by anything but Christ, we will never be truly satisfied.
What stands out to you the most in these key points from this week’s reading? Why?
The most difficult thing about this chapter is the idea of Jesus as the Bread of Life. This is where most of Jesus’ disciples bailed on Him because this was too difficult for them to understand and they did not believe.
When we take communion, we take of the bread as a symbol of Jesus’ body broken for us, and drink of the wine or juice as a symbol of His blood spilled for us. Some believe these to be literal blood and flesh, and some see this as figurative. But here is the main point most can agree on – when we take the wine and bread, we do so in remembrance and honor of the sacrifice Jesus made for ourselves – us, you, me, each of us individually, and all of us entirely.With this, we are reminded, and our appreciation and love for Him should be rekindled and grown as we take time to remember His sacrifice for our sake and what He saved us from.
What are your beliefs about communion? How often do you take communion, and why do you personally do so? Reflect on this, and take some time to pray over this.
This Bread of Life in the original language is referring to spiritual life through faith and dependence on Jesus that results in eternal life through Jesus. When we choose to believe and have faith in Jesus, the Son of God, and depend on Him, we are given spiritual life that gives true satisfaction. He satisfies our spiritual needs while we are trusting Him to guide and provide for our physical needs. Jesus wants our faith and dependence and He will satisfy us forever with true spiritual life.
What do you understand or wish you understood better about Jesus as the Bread of Life? Take some time to pray over this and reread this chapter in multiple translations.
This week we explore John 5 which begins with the story of Jesus healing a man at the Pool of Bethesda. The Greeks built “healing centers” around natural springs and pools because they believed the pagan god of healing would use the water to heal the sick and disabled.
They built a sort of temple around the “healing center” where the sick would sleep, pray and fast while they waited for what they believed was this pagan god and his serpents to churn the water and release the healing powers. When the natural springs would bubble up, the people would then drink or bathe in the water to experience healing miracles and lay around the pool while it was calm.
When Jesus comes to the Pool of Bethesda, he wasn’t just there to heal this man – Jesus was there to debunk yet another pagan myth and display His divine power and authority. Immediately, though, and the Jewish people there rebuked the healed man for getting up and picking up the mat he’d been sleeping on by the pool, as Jesus had instructed him to do.
It was the Sabbath and Jewish Law had a lot of rules for the Sabbath, which these people believed the healed man was violating. They focused on this man, healed by a divine miracle, breaking the rules rather than seeing the miracle for what it was.
Have there been times you miss the work of God in your life because you are focused on the wrong things? How did this impact you?
Jesus goes on to proclaim Himself the Son of God, which kindled much hatred in the hearts of the people, and also explained that anyone who does not honor Him as the Son of God does not honor God. Jesus boldly proclaims His position and authority, and rebukes and warns those who do not believe Him.
One of the key things that stands out to me is that Jesus knows the heart, thoughts, intentions, words and deeds of everyone. We do not, but He does. He knows the deepest secrets and cervices of our very hearts and minds. We cannot hide anything from Him, and He will reveal all darkness in us.
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How does this knowledge that God knows our very heart and deepest thoughts and intentions help or change you in your relationship with Him?
In John 5:28-29 Jesus gives us an important lesson. We know from all over scripture that only God is good, but here Jesus says “those who have done good things” and “those who have done wicked things”. He goes on to explain that those who have done “good things” are those who have faith in Jesus as the Son of God.
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Those who have faith in Jesus are destined for the resurrection of life, while those who do not believe in Jesus as the Son of God are destined for the resurrection of condemnation. No “good works” are done without faith in Jesus Christ, and Jesus tells us this so that we may believe and be saved, as He explains in John 5:33.
Jesus takes it further and explains that just because someone reads scripture, or says they have faith, that does not mean they have a relationship with God. Only those who have true faith in Jesus are saved and enter a personal relationship with God.
What about this passage resonates with you and why?
This study is part of the Study with Me: Chronological Gospels study series. It is an annual 48-week Bible study designed to encourage readers to follow along all year and dive deeper into the meat of the passages designated each week. I pray that you learn more about your Savior and grow in your relationship with Him through this study series. There is a free printable booklet available for download as well which allows you to print and take notes as you go through this study with me.
In this week’s study, we open up with Jesus’ first sign where He turned water into wine. I love this story in John 2 because His mother, Mary, pleaded with Jesus to help the wedding hosts and Jesus obliged. Jesus’ love for His mother is so beautiful and I love each glimpse we get into their relationship. As a mother myself, I can’t imagine what it would be like to be raising the Begotten Son of God, but I do know the love of a mother for her child and this moment is such a mom moment to me.
I also love that through this first sign it says that His disciples believed in Jesus by this display of His glory. Jesus displayed His glory in helping with the wine, which brought praise on the wedding hosts, but it also revealed Jesus’ glory and led to true belief in Him.
What about this story jumps out at you and why do you think that is?
The next part of the story tells us about a moment where Jesus was angry. This story is an easy one to miss the true message within. Jesus is showing His anger, and yes God does get angry, but remember that we are instructed to be angry and do not sin. Here, Jesus is displaying righteous anger – this is anger caused by the defiling of God’s temple by turning it into a marketplace, a place for profits to be made, versus reserving it with honor as a place of worship.
What is the difference between righteous anger and sinful anger? Why is this important?
Chapter 3 teaches us of the importance of focusing on things of Heaven versus earthly things. Jesus explained to Nicodemus, a Pharisee, that only those born of the Spirit will understand things of Heaven, things of light. Unfortunately, people love the darkness and struggle to enter the light where their sin is revealed.
This is where Jesus says one of the most quoted passages in all of scripture – John 3:16. Don’t miss the next verses, though. Because of the love of God, He sent His only begotten Son so that those who will believe in Jesus will have eternal life – but that’s not all. Jesus came not to condemn, but to save the world through Him. The world is saved through Jesus – through faith in Jesus as the only begotten Son of God.
Those who choose to live in the light will learn the truth, love the truth, live in the truth, and shine the light of Christ wherever they go. We must be lovers of the light and not lovers of the darkness, attempting to live in and conceal our sin. We must repent and believe in the only Son of God to be saved from the penalty of sin and be born again, made alive by God’s Spirit, and receive the promise of eternity with Him.
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What about this passage stands out to you for the very first time?
Through the remainder of John 3 and into John 4 there is a very clear message – all that we have is a gift from God. When we have faith and believe in Jesus, He blesses us immeasurably, and provides rest for our souls. Jesus Christ is the Living Water for the thirsty land of our very soul.
Throughout our lives we are drawn into Jesus by our Heavenly Father. We are given a great thirst that can only be satisfied by Jesus Christ. We all long for Jesus, but so often we are deceived into thinking our longing is for things of this earth instead.
How does this news impact your life today?
Not only is Jesus the Living Water our souls long for, but He is also the Gardener of our souls. He refreshes us, satisfying the thirst of our souls, and then He plants, prunes, and waters us as we grow in our faith and relationship with Him and bear fruit of His Spirit.
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By abiding in Him, we abide in the Vine, and we bear His fruits in this world, planting seeds for the gospel in the lives of others who have not yet discovered that Jesus is what they are longing for. We have been given a great honor to be saved by the grace of God through faith in His Son, and with this we then have another great honor to be used by God for His great purposes.
We see the Samaritan woman go and tell her whole village of her testimony, drawing others to Jesus, and they too came to believe in Him. Testifying to the truth of the gospel, letting the Living Water of Jesus and the fruits of His Holy Spirit plant seeds in the hearts of others through your faithfulness is a vital responsibility and privilege every Christian has.
We are called to be unashamed of the gospel, and we also are taught here that our testimony is meant to be shared with others in order to plant seeds for the gospel and help draw others to Him. We get to participate in God’s great plan, doing the work He has prepared for us to do, and sharing our own testimonies along the way.
Who in your life could you share your testimony with this week?
This study is part of the Study with Me: Chronological Gospels study series. It is an annual 48-week Bible study designed to encourage readers to follow along all year and dive deeper into the meat of the passages designated each week. I pray that you learn more about your Savior and grow in your relationship with Him through this study series. There is a free printable booklet available for download as well which allows you to print and take notes as you go through this study with me.
In this week’s passages we read about the temptation of Jesus. Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness where He fasted and underwent temptations by Satan for 40 days and nights. This story in scripture is incredibly important for all Christians to read as we get to see the Son of God go through temptations and resist as only He can do.
This example of His divine strength should stand as a hope and encouragement to us that Jesus understands what it is like to be tempted, but also, we can trust in His strength to resist our own temptations. By His strength we can endure, persevere, and grow in faith and strength.
What is it about Jesus’ time in the wilderness that sticks out to you the most, and why?
The devil leaves, John the Baptist is arrested, and then Jesus ventures over to Galilee which fulfills the prophecy from Isaiah 9:1-2. In the very beginning of His public ministry Jesus immediately jumped into preaching about repentance.
Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, As when at first He lightly esteemed The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, And afterward more heavily oppressed her, Bythe way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, In Galilee of the Gentiles. 2 The people who walked in darkness Have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, Upon them a light has shined.
Soon after Jesus began His public ministry, He began calling His first disciples to follow Him. We see Andrew go and get his brother Peter, which is a great example to us. Andrew has a habit of going to get others to come and follow Jesus with him. We then see John and James, sons of Zebedee, called to follow Jesus. He then calls on Philip, Nathanael and Matthew to follow Him.
When Jesus calls on Nathanael, Nathanael is stunned that Jesus knows him and understands that Jesus is the Son of God. Nathanael’s faith is also a wonderful example to us of how we are called to respond when we learn about Jesus. We should have faith that He is truly who He says He is, that He is in-fact the Only Begotten Son of God.
What stands out the most to you about Jesus calling on these disciples to follow Him?
The remainder of Luke 5 shows us some of the first miracles Jesus performed in His public ministry. We also see Jesus take time away from the crowds and the disciples to pray alone. For me, this speaks volumes about the need for us to take time to do God’s work, and also to take time to be alone with God. Even Jesus took time to be alone with God. In our culture there are extremes of people being completely anti-social and introverted, and the opposite of feeding off of social interaction. It can be difficult to find balance.
I am also reminded here that there is a time and a place for being with others, for doing the Lord’s word, and for being alone with God. In all of this we also see that no matter where Jesus was, no matter what He was doing or who He was with, He was praying, worshiping, serving, teaching, healing… He was constantly focused on God the Father and His plan.
Are there areas of your life, relationships, or situations where you do not focus on God? How can Jesus’ example in our passages encourage you today?
This study is part of the Study with Me: Chronological Gospels study series. It is an annual 48-week Bible study designed to encourage readers to follow along all year and dive deeper into the meat of the passages designated each week. I pray that you learn more about your Savior and grow in your relationship with Him through this study series. There is a free printable booklet available for download as well which allows you to print and take notes as you go through this study with me.
Today we are diving into Luke 1 and John 1:1-14. There are so many nuggets here and I invite you to read these passages over the next week and join the conversation to study alongside one another.
What are some things you found interesting about the message from Gabriel to Zechariah about the coming birth of John?
One thing I noticed today is that Elizabeth is from the tribe of Aaron, which was the tribe ordained by God to be priests. John the Baptist was of the line of Aaron, which is fitting for the one who would be the prophet born to go before Christ and make the way ready for His coming.
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I also love that even in the womb, John was filled with the Holy Spirit and that it was revealed to Elizabeth also that Mary would bear the Lord and Savior. Throughout this whole chapter, I love seeing Mary and Elizabeth both praising God and being faithful, willing, and obedient to the will of God, to be used in such ways as they were.
Throughout this whole first chapter in Luke, I cannot help but notice the theme of God as a Promise Keeper. Sometimes it can be so difficult to remember not only that God keeps His promises, but that He MAKES promises.
How can remembering that God makes and keeps promises encourage you or someone you know today?
Hopping over to the first bit of John we see John’s account of the birth of John and proclamation of Jesus. Throughout both passages this morning I am drawn to the different names for Jesus we see right off the bat; Son of the Most High, Son of God, the Word, the Light, the Life, the only Son from the Father.
What names of Jesus that we read today stand out to you the most, and mean the most to you?
I also love what John tells us that Jesus, the Word, was with God from the very beginning and that all things were created through Him. Not only was Jesus sent to redeem all of creation, but creation was created through Him as well as redeemed through Him.
What does knowing Jesus the light mean to you?
Jesus is the light, and no darkness can overcome Him. When we believe in Jesus as the Son of God, we have His light in us, we are children of God with Him, and His light cannot be overcome. We should bring His light into the world, and participate in the great and wonderful work of drawing more and more people to God through faith in Jesus Christ.
This study is part of the Study with Me: Chronological Gospels study series. It is an annual 48-week Bible study designed to encourage readers to follow along all year and dive deeper into the meat of the passages designated each week. I pray that you learn more about your Savior and grow in your relationship with Him through this study series. There is a free printable booklet available for download as well which allows you to print and take notes as you go through this study with me.
Who wrote the Books of 1, 2, and 3 John and who did they write it for?
The Apostle John, son of Zebedee, is believed to have written the epistles of 1, 2, and 3 John. 1 and 2 John were likely written to churches in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey), while 3 John was written to a man named Gaius who is also thought to have been in an Asia Minor church.
When did the events of Books of 1, 2, and 3 John happen?
John most likely wrote these letters after he had written his account of the Gospel, the book of John. It is believed he wrote these letters while he was in Ephesus, probably between 80-95 AD, near the end of his life.
What was the setting of the Books of 1, 2, and 3 John?
First John was written to a church that had members who believed that Jesus, who died on the cross for our salvation, was not the same divine Jesus, Son of God. They also believed that all things physical were evil while only spiritual things were good, that they were morally perfect, and that they had a divine understanding of God, however, their behavior was not godly.
Second John is addressed to a church with a similar issue but warns believers not to let false teachers into their homes. Third John was written to Gaius to encourage him in the truth of the gospel.
What is the purpose of the Books of 1, 2, and 3 John?
The Apostle John wrote all three of the epistles of 1, 2, and 3 John. Each letter was written to a specific person or group of people to address specific issues each was facing at the time. John wrote the Gospel of John, all three of these letters, as well as the book of Revelation.
These letters were most likely written while John was in Ephesus, toward the end of his life. He wrote First John to a church in Asia Minor that was dealing with some downright heretical teachings. Some of the church members believed themselves to have divine knowledge of God and that they were themselves morally perfect, yet their lives seem to have displayed otherwise. They rejected that Jesus was fully divine and fully man, and they also lived sinful lives, as we see explained within the letter of First John.
John writes to encourage the church to stand firm in the truth they have learned and believed and to not let these heretical teachings sway them. One of the key points of this letter is that your life should be evidence of a true relationship with God and faith in Jesus. Correct beliefs are necessary for godly living.
This letter can certainly likewise serve as a reminder and encouragement for us today that it is important to hold firm to the truth of the Gospel of Jesus and not let false teachings sway us from this truth. This is not new to our generation, but has been and will continue to be experienced by every generation of believers.
Second John was somewhat similar in nature, as John wrote to another group of people to extend the warning not to invite false teachers or those who hold to heretical beliefs into their homes. Again, a word of caution we need today as well.
Third John was a more personal letter written to a man named Gaius who John encouraged with the need for hospitality. This letter is short and sweet but serves to remind us of the importance of hospitality in the life of every Christian.
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Have you accepted the grace of God?
If you have not accepted the grace of God and chosen to believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, I encourage you to pray to God now and invite Him in, accept Jesus as the sacrifice for your sins, and repent of your sins. Submit it all to God, lay it at His feet, seek the forgiveness of God, welcome Him into your life, and believe that Jesus died and rose again to save you from your sins.
If you would like to learn more about salvation, you can find a couple of studies that may help here:
I am a wife, mom, writer, crafter, and above all, a Child of God. I love to study the Bible, fellowship with other Christians, and serve God. I am thrilled to invite you to join me in seeking to satisfy our thirsty souls with the Living Water of Christ, which is what Water On Thirsty Land is here to do.
