As we continue in Lessons From the Gospel According to John, we begin to approach the last days of Jesus’ earthly ministry. The Spirit of Prophecy tells us, “it would be well for us to spend a thoughtful hour each day in contemplation of the life of Christ. We should take it point by point, and let the imagination grasp each scene, especially the closing ones. As we thus dwell upon His great sacrifice for us, our confidence in Him will be more constant, our love will be quickened, and we shall be more deeply imbued with His spirit. If we would be saved at last, we must learn the lesson of penitence and humiliation at the foot of the cross.”—The Desire of Ages, p. 83.
The apostle speaks of the true Logos as being Jesus Christ, the incarnate expression of divine wisdom, divine will, and divine power, through whom the way of salvation was opened and revealed to all men. Jesus is referred to as being the Creator of all things, the source of life, the light of the world, the living manifestation of the mind of the Father. The will of God “that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9), through the work of the Holy Spirit, is also brought to view by John, who then leads us to Gethesemane, where the fate of the human race was decided.
It appears that one of the main purposes of the book was to help Christian believers who were dispersed, who had had no personal contact with Jesus and were imbibing heathen ideas, to meet the true Logos, the true Light. Another important purpose of the writing of John was to prepare the Christians in general to face some of the dangers threatening the church at the end of the century: Primitive godliness was decreasing (Revelation 2:4) and the love of the world was gaining ground among the people of God (1 John 2:15). Heresies such as Gnosticism were encroaching upon the flock. Gnosticism denied that Christ had truly incarnated, taking human nature. Gnostics taught that men had not actually seen Christ, that what they had seen was only an apparition. Therefore, the truth revealed in John 1:14 was particularly significant in those days. Another danger that was threatening the church was persecution from the Roman authorities.
There is no doubt that the book of John was a great help to the primitive Christian church. It has been a great help to the followers of Christ down through the ages—and it is a great help to us today.
May the guidance of the Spirit of God be granted to both teachers and students as we continue going through this series of lessons!
The General Conference Sabbath School Department
