John 1:19-51

In our Life group meeting this week we studied John 1:19-51. In our previous meeting I’d given the group some questions on the passage to guide them in preparing for our group study of it. In this meeting we discussed those questions Here is what I can remember from our discussion of them augmented by comments from my answers to the questions in my personal study of the passage.

John the Baptist Denies Being the Messiah (1:19-28)

What questions did the priests and Levites sent by the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem ask John the Baptist?
The priests and Levites asked John who he was and if he was the Messiah (apparently), Elijah, or the Prophet. “The Messiah” or “Christ” was the one whom the Jews were looking forward to delivering them from their enemies and ruling them. The Jews remembered that Elijah had not died and believed that he would come back to earth to announce the end time. “The Prophet” was the prophet like him that Moses told the Israelites that God would raise up among them in Deuteronomy 18:15.

What was the purpose of John’s ministry?
The purpose of John’s ministry was to get people to repent and be baptized as a sign of repentance in preparation for the coming of the Messiah (see Mark 1:4).

John Testifies About Jesus (1:29-34)

What did John mean by calling Jesus “the Lamb of God” and “the Son of God”?
By calling Jesus “the Lamb of God” John may have been pointing to the sacrificial offering that Jesus would become. See Exodus 12:1-13 and Isaiah 53:7. By calling Jesus “the Son of God” he would be emphasizing that Jesus was divine as well as human. Some manuscripts and versions have “God’s Chosen One” instead of “the Son of God,” referring to Isaiah 42:1.

What proof did John give to support his claim?
In support of his claim, John testified that he seen the Holy Spirit descend from heaven as a dove and remain on Jesus.

Jesus’ First Disciples (1:35-42)
Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael (1:42-51)

What titles are used to describe Jesus in verses 35-51?
Titles used in verses 35-51 to describe Jesus are the Lamb of God, Rabbi or Teacher, the Messiah or Christ, the Son of God, and the Son of Man.

What do you think each of them means?
The Lamb of God may identify Jesus with the Passover lamb (see 1 Corinthians 5:7). Rabbi or Teacher refers to Jesus’ role in teaching his disciples. The Messiah or Christ refers to the one whom the Jews were looking forward to delivering them from their enemies and ruling them. The Son of God refers to Jesus as the eternal son of God. The Son of Man refers to the one like a son of man described in Daniel 7:13-14.

How was contact made with each of the five people called in verses 35-51?
John the Baptist pointed out Jesus to Andrew and the apostle John; Andrew told Peter about Jesus; Jesus found Philip; and Philip told Nathanael about Jesus.

What did each of them know about Jesus when he decided to follow Jesus?
John the Baptist referred to Jesus as the Lamb of God when he pointed him out to Andrew and John; Andrew told Peter that they had found the Messiah; and Philip told Nathanael that they had found the one Moses and the prophets had written about and that Jesus was the son of Joseph and came from Nazareth. We commented on the importance of witnessing.

Application

How were you first introduced to Jesus?
All of us referred to Sunday School as being where we were introduced to Jesus, but we also observed that probably our parents had introduced us to Jesus before we started attending Sunday School.

Which of the titles used for Jesus in the passage means the most to you, and why?
We identified the Lamb of God and the Messiah or Christ as the titles used for Jesus in the passage that meant the most to us, the Lamb of God because it points out what he did for us in saving us and the Messiah or Christ because it points to his return. However I observed that, as Pastor Ryan brought out in his series of studies on the names given for God and of Jesus, each name tells us something about Jesus and thus helps us realize who he is.

In the meeting we decided to meet weekly instead of biweekly and to be flexible on what day and what time we meet. Also the group agreed with my proposal that we study a chapter each meeting with the aim of completing our study of the Gospel of John before the summer break. After the meeting I decided to revert to using the questions in Serendipity Bible for Study Groups instead of composing my own questions as a foundation for our study.