Student Bible Study of John August to October, 2016 1. Who is the writer of this letter John? Matthew 4:21 2. Where did the writer get this information? I John 1:1-3 3. Did he write everything that happened? John 20:30-31; John 21:25 4. The writer uses several names for Jesus what are they? John 1:1, John 1:14 the and John 1:29 the of God 5. What are some ways John describes Jesus John 1:2 John 1:3 John 1:9 John 1:10 John 1:17 John 1:18 John 1:29 6. Look at John 1:12 Does receive and believe mean something different to you? Explain. The word receive means The word believe means 7. Why does the Bible say that John the Baptist was sent by God to preach? John 1:31 8. John the Baptist revealed Jesus in human form people could see him, touch him, listen to him, see the miracles he did, see people healed and raised from the dead. They saw him resurrected. What are some of the ways God reveals Jesus today? Psalm 119:105 John 14:16 Acts 1:8 John 9:3 John 16:24 I Cor 13:13 Rom 1:20 9. Which one of these has God been using the most in your own life? This week s memory verse John 1:12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.
When the disciples met Jesus, they told their family and friends about him. John 1:41 The first thing Andrew did was find his brother. We have found the Messiah. John 1:45 Philip found Nathaniel and told him we have found the one. Come and see. If you have a family member or a good friend who is still searching for spiritual answers and you would like to help them - what are the best ways to do this? a. Learn how to Mark 5:19-20 b. Learn how to Acts 17:2-4 c. Learn to when you wrong others Matthew 5:23-24 d. Learn to and serve others Matthew 5:14-16 e. Learn to (it may take many people) I Cor 3:6 f. Invite others to for themselves John 1:46 g. Let them see the I Peter 3:1-4 h. Be ready to with gentleness and respect I Peter 3:15-16 i. Don t, listen to their concerns, be kind and gentle 2 Tim 2:23-25 j. Learn to to start a conversation Acts 26:26-27 When your family goes to church, where do you usually go? When you think about God or church, what are the biggest questions you have? I used to go to church just because my family did, I didn t really understand it. Did you ever feel that way? If you asked Him, what would you want God to do in your life? Do you feel you have a personal relationship with God, or are you still on the way? Is there anything keeping you from asking Christ to come into your life? Do you think anybody can know for certain that they are going to heaven? If God asked you Why should I let you into heaven, what would you say? Can you think of a better question that would help with your friends? k. Pray for yourself to be and for God to open a Colos 4:3-6 l. Remember to not only give good news but your as well I Thess 2:8 Memory Verses (Practice saying the memory verses to the person beside you) Luke 15:17 When he came to his senses, he said. John 1:12 Yet to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God. John 3:3 I tell you the truth, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Discussion Groups 1. How far was the walk from Cana to Capernaum? How far was the walk from Capernaum to Jerusalem? 2. Who were some of the people traveling with Jesus? John 2:12 3. How many children did Mary have that we know of? Matthew 13:55-56 sons daughters About how old was Mary, when Jesus began his ministry? 4. What was something that the water into wine miracle at the wedding demonstrated about Jesus? 5. What happened because of the miracles? John 2:11, 23 6. What did Jesus reveal about the future? John 2:18-21 7. Why did he reveal the future? John 2:22 8. What else does the Bible reveal about the future the world? How does it make you feel to know these things? Matthew 24:9-12 Matthew 24:37-41 Philippians 1:6 John 10:28-29 9. What did selling animals in the temple reveal about the attitude of the religious leaders? The priests established a business of exchanging foreign money and selling the animals needed for the sacrifices. This religious market began as a convenience but in due time the convenience became a business, not a ministry. The tragedy is that this business was carried on in the court of the Gentiles in the temple, the place where the Jews should have been meeting the Gentiles and telling them about the one true God. Any Gentile searching for truth would not likely find it among the religious merchants in the temple. Their religion had become a dull routine, presided over by worldly minded men whose main desire was to exercise authority and get rich. 10. It is easy to criticize the people who lived 2000 years ago, but what about us today? Read Matthew 7:12 Make a list of 5 things we sometimes do to others that we would not want them to do to us: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
11. We do things we are ashamed of, and other Christians do this too. How do you explain this when someone says that Christians are just hypocrites. Practice our Memory Verses Luke 15:17 When he came to his senses, he said. John 1:12 John 3:3 Yet to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God. I tell you the truth, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life Discussion Groups 1. Do we see Nicodemus again in the Bible? Is there a reason to think he may have become a believer? John 19:38,39 2. Besides Nicodemus, were there other Pharissees, religious leaders, who believed in Jesus, sometimes secretly? John 12:42-43 Acts 26:5 3. Nicodemus said we know you are a teacher who has come from God. Some world religions believe Jesus was a good teacher. What is the difference between religion and Christianity? Religion follows rules, teachers, prophets, ceremonies and traditions. (Judaism, Muslim, Hindu, Buddha, etc.) Christianity is about a relationship with Christ that comes from being born again by the Spirit of God 4. Saying that Jesus was just a good moral teacher is not an option. When someone says they are the Messiah, the son of God, God in the flesh, there are three options about that person. L L L Would the disciples have suffered ridicule, prison, torture and death for someone who was the first two choices? His family, friends and disciples saw the miracles and his resurrection and chose the third option. What do you think was the most important thing that convinced the disciples that he was the son of God? 5. How would you explain to someone else what it means to be born again? Each verse explains it differently. John 1:12
John 3:16 Acts 1:5 Acts 2:38 Romans 2:29 Romans 8:9 Romans 10:12,13 II Cor 5:17 Romans 6:23 6. In John 3:19-20, Jesus talks about light and darkness many crimes are committed in darkness because people are trying to hide their crimes and keep their identity from being discovered. In the same way, Jesus says that in our natural state without a relationship to God, people love darkness instead of light. See if your group can come up with 5 reasons or ways that we might choose to hide in the dark in our relationship with God and others (instead of coming into the light): 1 2 3 4 5 Scripture Memory Luke 15:17 When he came to his senses, he said. John 1:12 John 3:3 John 3:16 him Yet to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God. I tell you the truth, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in shall not perish but have eternal life John 5:24 I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned, he has crossed over from death to life. Discussion Questions 1. The Jews had an ongoing feud with Samaritans that had gone on for hundreds of years. Why did the Jews dislike the people living in Samaria? (About the distance from Atlanta to Macon) II Kings 17:16-17 II Kings 17:24 Over the years, foreigners intermarried with Jews in Samaria, and mixed belief in God with other idols as well. Jews avoided the Samaritans socially and spiritually. They were not friendly toward them.
2. How did the Jews treat the Samaritans? John 4:9 What did the Jews think about the Samaritans? John 8:48 What did the disciples want Jesus to do to Samaritans? Luke 9:54-56 3. How did the Samaritans feel about the Jews? Luke 9:51-53 4. How did Jesus show compassion and God s love toward the people in Samaria? John 4 He went to Samaria, he talked to the woman at the well and the town s people for 2 days Luke 10:33 (Who was the hero in the story Jesus told?) Acts 1:8 5. How can we tell if Jesus disciples learned to have compassion for the Samaritans and Gentiles also? Acts 8:4-5 Acts 10:34-35 6. All over the world, in every culture, there is still discrimination and racism today. Make a list of groups of people who face discrimination, are looked down on and avoided, in American culture? What are some things that we, as Christians, can do to show the love of God to everyone, including these groups? Is it easy to show compassion as a student in Middle School, High School and College? Why or why not? How? 7. The power of a testimony The people in the town wanted to know more about Jesus because of the woman s testimony. What part of your story, your testimony, might be interesting to others? If someone asked you, Does God really make a difference in somebody s life? How did God make you different? What would you tell them? What kind of healings did Jesus do during his ministry on earth? Luke 7:22 Were there times when some people were not healed? Mark 6;5,6
Were only good people healed or forgiven or shown grace by God? John 5:14 Luke 17:14-17 Matt 5:44-45 Healing at the Bethesda Pool There were a great number of disabled who were there at the Pool of Bethesda. How many were healed? John 5:8,9 We see the many benefits when we have faith, trust in God, pray, follow Him and receive the gift of eternal life. But does the Bible promise that we will have an easy life, never get cancer and never have a loved one die? So why do Christians have faith and give their lives to Christ if they will still have problems in this world? 1. Romans 6:23 2.Galatians 5:19-21 3. Galatians 5:22-23 4. I Cor 13:3-8 John 5:17 My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working. Can you think of 5 ways that God is still working today John 5:19 Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. When we see situations where God is working, what are some ways that we can join Him? Name several things that happen in our life according to John 5:24 Discussion Groups 1. In verse 7, Philip realizes that with the large crowd that had gathered to follow Jesus, it would take more than half a year s wages to purchase enough bread for each person to have just a bite to eat. During this time how do you think the disciples felt? 2. Have you ever faced a situation where you felt overwhelmed and unable to meet the needs of the situation? 3. How did you react, or what actions did you take to get through the difficult situation? 4. When we come to a difficult or overwhelming time in life, is it okay to immediately pray to God for help, or does He expect us to work on it ourselves? Consider the following verses:
Matthew 11:28 Philippians 4:6 1 Thessalonians 5:17 5. Why did Jesus feed the large crowd of 5,000 people? Matthew 14:14-16, Mark 6: 34-35 6. John 6:12 says When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, Gather the pieces that are leftover. Let nothing be wasted. After having only 5 small barley loafs and 2 small fish to feed 5,000, there were still leftovers after each person finished eating. What do you think this reveals about Jesus and his provision over us? 7. After witnessing the miracle Jesus performed of feeding the 5,000 people, what did people think about Jesus? John 6:14 8. What did people want Jesus to do as a result of this? John 6:15 9. When Jesus walked on the water to get to the boat that the disciples were on, how far did he have to walk until he reached them? John 6:19 10. How did the disciples react when they saw Jesus walking on the water? 11. How do you think you would have reacted? 12. Do you think that God still performs miracles today? If so, share about a time when you believed that you experienced, witnessed, or heard about a miracle that God performed in today s time. 1. What are the works God requires of us? John 6:29 2. Do you remember a time when you believed in Jesus? What would you say has been the most important fruit or result of that decision? 3. Is it possible that someone who truly believed in Jesus will not go to heaven? John 6:39-40 Romans 8:34-39 4. Jesus compares Himself to the manna the Israelites ate during their wandering in the desert and says, I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty (John 6:35)
Can you think of 3 hungers and thirsts that Christ satisfies in our life? 5. What do you think Jesus means when He says, whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood (John 6:54)? John 8:31-32 Psalms 34:8 Hebrews 11:6 6. How did many of Jesus disciples respond to His teaching about eternal life? John 6:60-61, 66 7. How did Simon Peter respond? John 6:68-69 8. See if you can think of 5 reasons why you think people are offended by Jesus teaching about eternal life? 1 2 3 4 5 9. Have you ever been offended or convicted by something Jesus has said? What did you do about it? What can you do about it? James 4:4-10 Isaiah 1:18-20 Matthew 19:16-22 10. In Matthew 19:16-22, we see that Jesus gave the man an option to obey an uncomfortable instruction. Instead, the man obeyed his feeling of offense rather than Jesus. If Jesus has been telling you to do something, what are the next steps you need to take to obey Him? What would help you the most to be successful in obeying? What usually keeps you from obeying? John 7:14-18 Bible Study 14 Not until halfway through the festival did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach. 15 The Jews there were amazed and asked, How did this man get such learning without having been taught? 16 Jesus answered, My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. 17 Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. 18 Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory, but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. 1. If you were on top of a tall building, you could look down and see the beginning and the end of a
parade. Does God see the beginning and the end of our lives, the past and the future? Psalm 139:13 and Psa 139:16 John 1:48 John 21:18-19 Matthew 20:17-19 Knowing the things above, what does it mean to you personally? 2. What are some of the ways God reveals his will to us? Psalm 119:105 John 14:26 James 1:5 Acts 10:33-35 Which one of the above does God use most often in your life? 3. At the same time He guides us, God also gives us great freedom in our choices. I Corinthians 7:39 Ephesians 3:17,23 4. Does God have a purpose and plan for our life? Acts 13:36 Jeremiah 29:11 Do you feel that Christians have to feel called to a profession (doctor, lawyer, engineer, teacher, policeman, business owner, etc. or do you feel that God calls us to live for Him in whatever profession we choose? 5. What are some benefits when we listen to and follow God s will for us? Proverbs 1:2,3,7 Proverbs 3:5,6 6. Can God s will sometimes be very specific about something to do or not to do? Acts 18:9 Genesis 46:2,3 Ephesians 4:32 Matthew 5:16 7. We obey God because it is right but sometimes we may have a false expectation that this might protect us from having bad things happen. God does bless us in many ways when we listen and obey Him, but is there a danger in expecting to have happy results every time we obey? Can you think of examples where we do what is right but things are still difficult? 8. In Verse 18 Jesus says he came to bring glory to God As a Christian, we all are trying to bring glory to God with our lives. What are some examples of times you think it is easiest and hardest to do that?
9. Put a check beside some of the ways that you could obey God s will and bring glory to Him with your life Forgive someone who has wronged me Ask someone to forgive me that I have wronged Pray for a friend who needs a personal relationship with Christ Serve someone who needs my help Be a friend to someone who needs a friend and an encourager Be a peacemaker and promote peace, love and faith 1. Why did many people, including the Jewish leaders, refuse to believe that Jesus was the Messiah? John 7:27 John 7:42 Micah 5:2 2. In the book of John, we see Jesus use the analogy of hungering and thirsting. Why do you think Jesus chose those words what do you think he was trying to teach people about God? 3. In John 7:39, the Spirit had not yet come upon the Disciples. Does the Spirit live in us today? Acts 1:5 John 14:15-17 1 Corinthians 3:16 Acts 5:32 4. What does God s Spirit in our life enable us to do? Romans 8:1-2 Romans 8:26-27 Galatians 5:22-23 2 Corinthians 3:17 5. When do we commonly see the Holy Spirit working in either someone else s life or our own life? 6. In John 7:34, Jesus directly told the religious leaders that they would not be able to find Him even though they would look for Him. The religious leaders had head knowledge about the Old Testament scriptures. What were some of the reasons they had trouble following Jesus? Matthew 7:21 John 11:47-48 John 12:43 1 Corinthians 1:23,27 7. All of us are tempted at times to put on a good face to others, even though we are struggling on the inside. How can we make sure that we are seeking God rather than simply putting on a good face? Matthew 7:15-20 1 John 4:16 James 3:13 8. Difficult times, temptations, and dry spells will come into our lives. If a friend of yours said they are struggling and don t really feel God any more, how would you advise them to get close to God again?