132) Gospel of John: Deity of Christ Interpreters are Wrong

One God Report

In this episode we explain how the deity-of-Christ interpretation of John’s Gospel is wrong.

Three, Yea verily Four Keys to Understanding John’s Gospel

1. The Purpose statement of the author, John 20:30-31

“Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”

The original target audience of the Gospel of John was Israelites in the Diaspora. John wrote to convince and help them to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. See more below.

2. In John’s Gospel, Jesus declares that he is a man who told the truth which he heard from God.

John 8:40, “but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God.”

Jesus differentiates himself from God. Jesus is a man, not a god-man, not one person of God who is incarnated in a human nature. Jesus states that he is a human being, a man who declares the truth that heard from someone else, specifically, from God.

3. In John’s Gospel, Jesus declared that the Father is the only true God.

John 17:1-3 “Father… this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you sent.

The God that was speaking and working in and through the man Jesus was the Father.

Christology of John is agency, not incarnation. Jesus as God’s unique human son was sent by God and as such represented God, is to be regarded as the very presence of God (the Father) who sent him.

4. John is an Israelite, writing to Israelites. He is not writing originally to Gentiles.

a. Metaphors, figurative language.

John 10:6 (context is the thief vs. the shepherd), “This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.”

John 16:25, "I have said these things to you in figures of speech.”

Come into the world, come down from heaven, “This is the bread that has come down from heaven” (6:50) “the bread I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” (Joh 6:51) Jesus’ flesh literally descended from heaven?

“The baptism of John, was it from heaven or from man” (Mar 11:30) means “Was John's baptism of heavenly or of human origin?” (Mar 11:30)

b. “Jews” means “Judeans”. “He came to his own, but his own received him not”. Samaritans, and Israelites in Galilee and Perea accepted him.

c. “world” does not mean planet earth, but the Israelite world. The world that God loved (John 3:16), is Israel.

Resources:

In the Gospel of John the “Jews” are Judeans, Not All “Jews”

https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2022/02/in-gospel-of-john-jews-are-judeans-not.html

The “Greeks” in John’s Gospel are Greek Speaking Israelites, not Gentiles

https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-greeks-hellenists-in-gospel-of-john.html
What About John 1:1?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fw44JRTIiV0