BIBLE STUDY NOTES FROM TUESDAY-THURSDAY PROGRAMS
JOHN: copestone o f the gospels
I d o n o t know of any book in the Bible that is used so much to lead souls to Christ as their Saviour, as the Gospel of John, unless, of course, it be Romans or Ephesians. Perhaps there are twenty great verses in this book that can be used by individuals in lead ing another to the Saviour. If God will make clear to us that this is the book we are to use, enlarging our knowledge of it as we go along, then, it may be that we shall have the great joy of leading more to know the Lord than ever before through the study of this, the copestone of the Gospels. Let us ask the Lord, as we dip into its truth, that it be given deep lodg ment in our hearts and increase our use of it to the effective leading of others into the knowledge and fellow ship of Christ. The purpose ef the Book of John— as we shall see in a verse at the end of the book — is to prove that the Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. The great truth of the Book of John is that God sent His own Son into the world to die, that men might be saved simply by believing on Him. This Gospel of John differs from the other three Gospels. Matthew, Mark, and Luke are called the Synoptic Gos pels — that is, in each of the three there is given a part (as the author was led by the Holy Spirit to write it) of the birth, childhood, and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. But John makes no attempt to give us the life of Christ. Dr. Edward Drew says, “John seems to keep us always in the heavens. When you follow Matthew, Mark, and Luke you are down among men, and you see the Son of God toiling as a man, toiling with Israel. But when you read the Book of John you do not feel you are
among men; somehow you feel you are away off in the heavens observing Christ, God’s Son. You feel that you are an eagle soaring in the heavens and that God has given you an eye so strong, you can go into the very full ness and brightness of the sun at noon day, because this must be done to see Christ in the Book of John.” Note how the Book begins: John 1:1,2— “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with Godr But first I want you to see a comparison of the beginning of the Book of John with that of Matthew, which Book opens the New Testament. Matthew 1:1 — “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham .” Now as a Gentile, that may not mean anything to you, unless you are a sound Bible student. But, a strict Orthodox Jew, of old European stock, who under stands God’s Covenant with Abraham and with David, will immediately see sense in the first verse of Matthew. Verse one of the Book, gives you the clue to the purpose of its writing, for the first sixteen verses contain the genealogy of Christ and Matthew is here proving that He is the Messiah of Israel. Mark's plan is to show that Christ is the mighty Servant of Jehovah. We see that Christ came to subject Himself to the will of the Father and to do the work which His Father had sent Him to do. Mark 1:1-4— “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God; As it is written in the proph ets, Behold, 1 send my messenger
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