(1) Jesus was accusing the Jews for not believing that He is sent by His Father and He said that their father was Satan, the liar (8:44). This obviously infuriated them. Why would they say the following things about Jesus?
a. Jesus was a Samaritan
b. Jesus was demon-possessed (7:20; Mk. 3:22)
(2) What symptoms were normally associated with demon-possession in Jesus’ time? (See Matt. 8:28ff, 9:33ff; 12:22ff)
(3) Did Jesus exhibit anything that remotely resembled any of these symptoms?
(4) How did Jesus defend Himself in vv. 49-51? In particular, what was the most important point that Jesus was trying to make in His response? (vv. 48-51)
(5) As Jesus points out the truth that “whoever obeys my word will never see death”:
a. How did the Jews misunderstand His word?
b. The Jews asked, “Who do you think you are?” (v. 53). Did they not know who Jesus claims himself to be? If so, what does this “question” show?
(6) How has the Father glorified the Son so far? How will the Father glorify Him? (See 1 Tim. 3:16)
(7) In addition to claiming He is the Son of God, what does Jesus claim to be in v. 56 and v. 58? (You may wish to reflect on this question further as you read today’s Meditative Reflection).
(8) Summarize what Jesus has said about “who He is” in this section.
(9) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
This appears to be the continuation of Jesus’ time in Jerusalem after the Feast of Tabernacles:
(1) What did the disciples say upon seeing the blind man? Why would they ask such a question?
(2) Is such kind of thinking still common today among people, including Christians upon seeing some misfortune happen to themselves or others?
(3) Does blindness, sickness or misfortune happen “so that the works of God might be displayed”? Why or why not?
(4) Was Jesus only the “Light of the world” while he was on earth? What about now?
(5) What was the emphasis on “while I am in the world” about? (v. 4)
(6) How might we apply the same emphasis to us today?
(7) What does the healing of the blind have to do with Jesus being the Light of the world and the doing of the works of God as He has been sent to do? (vv. 3-5)
(8) This healing was a two-step process: What was the significance of having him wash in the Pool of Siloam and why did John bother to tell his reader the meaning of the Pool of Siloam?
(9) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Let’s study this longer passage by reflecting on the three (groups of) characters in the story:
(1) The Pharisees and the Jews:
a. What did they know about the incident? (vv. 14, 15, 20, 25)
b. Why did they refuse to acknowledge it? (vv. 16, 24, 28)
c. What was the result of their “investigation”?
d. What was their agenda?
e. What sin have they committed?
f. If they did not even know where Jesus came from (v. 29), what should their attitude be?
(2) The parents:
a. What did they know about the incident? (vv. 20-21)
b. If you were the parents, how would you react to the incident? Why?
c. Why did they leave their son to fend for himself?
d. Can you blame them? Why or why not?
(3) The blind man:
a. Before Jesus revealed Himself to him, how did he interpret this miracle? (vv. 17, 25, 27, 30-33)
b. Was he afraid of the Pharisees? Why or why not?
c. How different was he from his parents?
d. How precious was his faith and what do you appreciate about him most?
(4) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
We purposely stopped at 9:38 yesterday so that we may continue to study the rest of chapter 9 with chapter 10 today, as we do not want to consider the teaching of the “Good Shepherd” on its own, but understand it as part of Jesus’ answer to the Jews (especially the Pharisees) who wished to persecute Him because of the healing of the blind on Sabbath:
9:39-41—Who are the blind?
(1) Who are the real “blind?”
(2) What does it have to do with “judgment”? (v.39)
10:1-10—The parable of the Gate
Before we consider this and the subsequent parables, we need to understand that a parable may have many facets in order to convey its central message. And it is important to focus on what its central message is and interpret it based on what is made plain, without necessarily dwelling on minor aspects of the parable which may not be central to its message. When reading vv. 1-10, the plain message is Jesus being the “Gate”, with the implication that He is also the “true shepherd” which is only plain in verses subsequent to this first parable.
(3) According to vv. 1-2, what normally distinguishes a shepherd from a thief?
(4) In vv. 3-4, Jesus highlights the relationship between the shepherd and the sheep:
a. Why does the shepherd not have to climb in?
b. Who is the gate keeper?
c. How does the shepherd tend the sheep?
d. Why would the sheep listen and follow him?
e. How does this describe your relationship with Jesus Christ?
(5) How differently do the sheep respond to a thief or robber? (v. 5) Why?
(6) What did Jesus try to say to the Pharisees so far?
(7) Why didn’t they understand?
(8) Do you?
(9) Now comes the explanation by Jesus in vv. 7-10,
and He seems to combine the “gate” and the “shepherd” in the parable together:
a. Who is the gate of the sheep?
b. Who are the ones to whom He refers as having come before Him? (See Note below.)
c. Why have they failed?
d. What is meant by entering into the fold through Him as the gate?
e. List all the results of having entered into the fold through Him, instead of through anyone else.
f. What do you understand by having life to the full or “abundant life”? What is its opposite?
g. Is that your personal experience? Why or why not?
(10) What is His message to the Pharisees?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
V. 8 “Cannot refer to the prophets who preceded
Jesus. It must refer to the false
messiahs and supposed deliverers of the people who had appeared in the period
following the restoration from the Exile and especially in the century before
Jesus’ advent. After the death of Herod
the Great in 4 B.C., there were many factions that contended for the leadership
of the nation and attempted by violence to throw off the Romans yoke. Jesus’ purpose was not political, as the
emphasis of the discourse shows.”
(The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 9, 108)
Jesus now shifts from the emphasis on being the “Gate” to being the “Good Shepherd”, with the emphasis on Him laying down His life for the sheep:
(1) Vv. 11-13: Contrast between “Hired hand” and “owner/shepherd”:
a. What normally distinguishes a “hired hand” from the “owner/shepherd”?
b. Who are the “hired hands”?
c. How good is He as the “Shepherd”?
(2) Vv. 14-15: Intimacy between the shepherd and the sheep:
a. By comparing His relationship with the flock to that with His Father, what does Jesus wish to point out?
b. What kind of knowing is this?
c. What does it have to do with Him laying down His life for the sheep?
(3) V. 16: Other Sheep:
a. Who are these sheep not of “this sheep pen”?
b. How would He bring them into His pen?
c. What is meant by “They too will be one flock”?
(4) Vv. 17-18: Dying on His own volition:
a. As Jesus talks about laying down His life the third time, what are His emphases?
b. Why does He bring up the love of the Father?
c. How then may we gain the love of the Father?
(5) With this message of “Gate” and “Good Shepherd”:
a. Why were there such divided opinions about Him?
b. What might have made some consider Him as raving mad?
c. What might have caused some to think His words might be credible?
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) From the account given by John, Jesus has consistently said of Himself that He is the Son of God and that He called God His Father:
a. Why did the people appear to be more interested about whether He was the Messiah?
b. How important was the Messiah to them?
(2) How did Jesus answer them? To what did He direct their attention? (v. 25)
(3) What reason did Jesus give for their unbelief? (v. 26)
(4) Repeating the former theme of sheep when He was last in Jerusalem, Jesus talks about the mark and the importance of being His sheep.
a. What is the mark of His sheep? (v. 27)
b. What might be the relationship between being known by Him and following Him?
c. What is eternal life?
d. How secure is it?
e. Why?
(5) What does Jesus mean by saying that “I and the Father are one”?
a. How does it affirm “monotheism”?
b. Why is this truth far more important than the original question they raised in v. 24?
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
It was not a biblical festival, but one instituted by Judas Maccabaeus in 167 BC in commemoration of the cleansing and rededication of the temple after its profanation by Antiochus Epiphanes. The annual celebration of this festival, also known as the Festival of Lights, takes place on the 25th of Chisleu (about the middle of December) and is observed throughout the country (not just in Jerusalem) for eight days. Today it is also commonly known as Hanukkah. Presumably, after the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus left Jerusalem only to return during the Festival of Dedication.
(1) Based on their reaction, can you tell what the Jews understood by “I and the Father are one”?
(2) Jesus once again drew attention to the many good and miraculous works that He has performed, and yet they chose to ignore them completely:
a. In what way were they right?
b. In what way were they wrong?
(3) Read Psalm 82:6, the passage quoted by Jesus (It is helpful to read the whole psalm):
a. Does it mean that we are gods?
b. In what way are we?
c. In what way are we not?
d. Why did Jesus point out that “Scripture cannot be set aside”?
(4) Vv. 36-38:
a. How does Jesus distinguish Himself from us as the “Son of God”?
b. How does He back up His claim?
c. How does v.38 clarify for us the meaning of “I and the Father are one” (v.30)?
d. What does it point to?
(5) Judging from vv. 40-41
a. How did John the Baptist fulfill His mission? (1:23)
b. Was his ministry a failure?
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?