#1 - Authorship
Traditionally it was written by John the son of Zebedee, the last surviving member of the apostolic band.
He was one of the sons of Zebedee (Mark 1:19, 20), a fisher man of Galilee and of
Salome who was probably the sister of Mary, Jesus‟ mother. He grew to manhood in Galilee and was a partner with his brother and with Andrew and Peter in the fishing business.
He may have belonged first to the disciples of John the Baptist, and possibly was the companion of Andrew mentioned in John 1:40. John then followed Jesus on his first tour of Galilee (1:43). He attended the wedding feasts at Cana where Jesus turned water into wine and many other occasions.
In the apostolic lists he always appears in the first group of four, along with Peter, Andrew, his brother James. He became the member of the special inner circle of three disciples who were with Christ at the raising of Jairus‟ daughter, on the mount of transfiguration.
The internal content of the book supports Johannine authorship.
The author must have been a Jew.
He quoted from the Old Testament (12:40; 13:18; 19:37).
His knowledge of the various Jewish religious feasts seemed to be very natural (2:23; 5:1; 6:4; 7:2; 10:22; 13:1).
He aware of the minute details within the Jewish customs: wedding feasts (2:1-10), ceremonial purification (3:25; 11:55) and manner of burial (11:38, 44; 19:40) and etc.
He must have been a resident of Palestine because of his graphic geographical descriptions. His familiarity with Jerusalem and its surrounding area can be seen
In his awareness that the pool of Bethesda had give porches (5:2),
That Bethany was only fifteen furlongs away from Jerusalem (11:18),
That Ephraim was near the wilderness (11:54),
That the garden of Gethsemane was on the other side of the brook Cedron (18:1) and etc (19:13; 4:5-6; 4:11; 4:20-21; 1:44, 46; 2:1 and 2:21).
The author clearly implies that he was an eyewitness of many of the events in Christ‟s earthly ministry.
He had beheld his glory (1:14) which would include at least both the transfiguration and the performance of the miracles (2:11).
He was at the Crucifixion where he observed that Christ‟s side was pierced and that his legs were not broken (19:33-35).
He knew the number and size of the water pots used in the creation of wine (2:6),
The appropriate value of the anointing perfume (12:5) and
The exact number of fish caught (21:11).
The author apparently identified himself as the disciple “whom Jesus loved,” an expression used five times and as the other disciple. Since the name of John is conspicuously absent in the book although he was one of the major apostles, it would seem very plausible to regard him as the anonymous disciple and the author of this Gospel. In addition, the style and vocabulary of the three Johannine Epistles bear a striking resemblance to this book. His emphasis upon love is so noticeable that John has been characterized as the “Apostle of Love.”
The traditional position of the early church fathers, such as Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, Origen and Hippolytus, ascribed the fourth Gospel to John, the youngest of the twelve disciples.
#2 - DATING AND THE PLACE OF THE GOSPEL
Although some liberals dates the book as early as AD 40 while others push it into the second century (AD 140-170), conservatives are agreed that the Gospel was written after the Synoptic Gospels and rather late in the first century, probably between 85 and 95AD.
Tradition has placed its composition at Ephesus where John spent his senior years. The discovery of the Rylands fragment, which preserves a scrap from John 18:31-33, 37, 38 shows that John was probably in use in the first half of the second century, probably AD 125-135.
This means that the Gospel had to be in circulation before the second century began. The tenth decade of the first century best fits the life history of John. It was probably written for Gentiles because the various feasts and geographical locations described for the readers.
#3 - PURPOSE OF THE GOSPEL
The purposes for writing this Gospel are clearly seen in these two verses (20: 30, 31):
FIRST- The first was to convince his readers that Jesus was both divine and human. Living in the time when the truth of the Incarnation was being attacked by an increasing Gnostic element within the church, John wanted to show that Jesus was not merely an appearance of God or a man in whom dwelt the spirit of Christ. He intended to demonstrate that Jesus was both God and man and that within His single person was a perfect union of the two natures.
SECOND- The second purpose was based on the first. He wanted his readers, convinced of Jesus‟ true identity to believe on him to receive the divine gift of eternal life. John‟s purpose then are both apologetic and evangelistic.
Three key words are prominent in this brief passage: signs, believe and life. The sign refers to miracles that have some special significance behind their performance. They were designed to reveal and illustrate different areas of His power and collectively bear witness to the central doctrine of the Gospel, His deity. They may be classified as follows:
1.Turning water into wine (2:2-11) – quality
2.Healing the nobleman‟s son (4:46-54) – space
3.Healing the impotent man (5:1-15) – time
4.Feeding the five thousands (6:1-14) – quantity
5.Walking on the water (6:15-21) – natural laws
6.Healing the blind man (9:1-41) – misfortune
7.Raising Lazarus from the dead (11:1-44) – death
These seven miracles operated precisely in the areas where man is unable to effect any change of laws or conditions which affects his life. In these areas Jesus proved Himself potent where man is impotent and the works that He did testify to his supernatural ability.
The second word, believe, is the key word in the Gospel, occurring 98 times. It is customarily translated as believe, though sometimes it is rendered as trust or commit. It usually means acknowledgement of a personal claim, or else it stands for the complete commitment of the individual to Christ.
The third word in the key to the Gospel is life, which in Johannine language, is the sum total of all that is imparted to the believer in his salvation. Life according to John, involves a kind of new nature and a new consciousness. Christ is presented as the example of this life which is God‟s gift to the Christian and God‟s goal for the Christian.
These signs, believe and life provide logical organization for the Gospel. In the signs is the revelation of God; in belief is the reaction that they are designed to produce; in life is the result that belief brings.
#4 - EMPHASIS OF THE GOSPEL OF JOHN
The author of the Gospel of John places the most emphasis upon the deity of Christ through recording His actual claims about himself. When Christ said: “Before, Abraham was I am” (8:58), the people knew that He was claiming the very name of God that was revealed to Moses at the burning bush (Exod. 3:14). The claims of Jesus are set forth in seven major IAM‟s:
1. The bread of life – 6:35
2. The light of the world – 8:12, 9:5
3. The door – 10:7
4. The good shepherd – 10:11, 14
5. The resurrection and the life – 11:25
6. The way, the truth and the life – 14:6
7. The true vine – 15:1
At the same time, the humanity of Jesus was also emphasized. He was weary (4:6), thirsty (4:7), impatient (6:26), wistful (6:67), severe (8:44), sorrowful (11:35), troubled (12:7), and loving (13:1). To his contemporaries who met Him casually he was “the man that is called Jesus” (9:11); to those who lived with him he became “the holy one of Israel.”
#5 - DIFFRENCE BETWEEN JOHN’S GOSPEL AND SYNOPTIC GOSPEL
There are four differences that we can see between John‟s Gospel and the Synoptics. Let us look at those in detail.
Firstly - John‟s aim is different. It is to bring the reader to faith “these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.” (Jn. 20:30-31). The Synoptics on the other hand, were written to help converts understand about the life and teaching of Jesus Christ.
Secondly - his style is therefore different and more philosophical in his approach. So he selects just seven from Jesus‟ many miracles and terms them as “signs” that show clearly that he is the son of God. There are no parables in John‟s Gospel, unlike the Synoptics. His teaching is also different from Matthew‟s accounts and he seems to concentrate on what Jesus says about himself.
Thirdly - most of the events take place in Jerusalem during the various festivals. In fact the basic plot structure does not follow that of Mark.
Fourthly - even the report of the Last supper is different since John does not include the institution of Lord‟s supper/Holy Communion but instead describes the washing of the disciple's feet by Jesus the Upper Room Discourse on the Holy Spirit and Jesus‟ high priestly prayer.
Outline
John 1:1-18 - Prologue
John 1:19-51 – Jesus’ first disciples
John 2:1-12:51 – Jesus’ public ministry: seven signs
John 13:1-17:26 – Jesus’ discourse in the upper room
John 18:1-19:37 – Jesus’ arrest, trial and crucifixion
John 19:38- 20:31 – Jesus’ burial and resurrection
John 21:1-25 – Epilogue