Sabbath School Summary

By Elder Dr Masimba Mavaza

Epilogue: Knowing Jesus and His Word

Lesson 13

Memory Text: “ ‘You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me’ ” (John 5:39, NKJV).

INTRODUCTION

John’s Gospel, like Mark’s, ends with a meeting in Galilee. This final lesson on John deals with that meeting but integrates it with the theme of how we know Jesus and the Word of God—a concept that runs through the fourth Gospel.
Though they were with Jesus more than three years, the disciples were still greatly unprepared for the Crucifixion and Resurrection, even though Jesus had told them again and again what would happen.
Unfortunately, they didn’t take Him at His word.
We today can be in danger of doing the same thing: hearing or even reading the Word of God but not listening to it, not abiding in it, and not obeying it. That is, not accepting it as the light that should guide our thoughts and actions. This, unfortunately, is where, perhaps unwittingly, too many Christians are.
In this, our last week in John, we will look at some of this Gospel’s key points, which can help us move beyond the mere head knowledge of Jesus to, instead, knowing Him better and more closely abiding in Him and in His Word.

SABBATH:
The greatest knowledge is knowing Jesus Christ. As the deer pants for the water, so must the soul, heart, & mind long to know Him. One can know Him in the written Word (Bible). All who know Christ reflect His light. Though the disciples were with Him, they didn’t know Him fully. They were unprepared for the Crucifixion & Resurrection. To know Him, we must not only hear/read the Word but also listen to it, abide in it, & obey it (see John 21:2; Mark 16:7).

SUNDAY:
Nighttime is the best time for fishing. But when Peter & a few of the disciples put on their fisher’s coat after the crucifixion, they caught nothing at night. Yet, a stranger brought them joy when by His direction, they caught so many fishes. This stranger was Jesus (John 21:1-19, Luke 5:1-11). Jesus asked Peter questions about love (agapaō) & Peter responded with love (phileō). Peter was humble in his words. Jesus restored him again (John 13:37, 38).

MONDAY:
Any man can disappoint us, but the Son of Man (Jesus) will never disappoint us. Fixing our eyes on Jesus alone is our hope & safety. Peter learnt this vital lesson when he inquired from Jesus about John’s manner of death (John 21:20-22). Jesus answered that John’s death will happen at His will. But some misunderstood Him to mean John will never die (John 21:23-25). They felt that Jesus will come again before John died. But John corrected this notion.

TUESDAY:
The deep things of God are as high as the heavens that humanity, in this fallen world, cannot comprehend. It is only through Christ that our world is illuminated with light for man to find his way to the true God. We need God’s spirit to have divine knowledge (DA, p. 412; John 1:4-10; 3:19-21; 5:35; 8:12; 9:5; 11:9, 10; 12:35). John talks of Jesus as a heavenly Messenger who explains who the Father is (John 1:18; 8:44).

WEDNESDAY:
You can go through the Bible cover to cover, expound texts, & solve theological questions but without putting Christ at the center of the study, you’ll only operate with the “theology from below”. The man who asked Jesus to heal his son in Cana, Galilee, lived by the theology from below. He would only believe in Him through signs. “Theology from above” talks of faith in God & His Word (John 4:48; 6:14, 15; 5:46, 47, 38; 8:31; 2 Tim. 3:16; see John 7:17, 14:23).

THURSDAY:
The aim of John’s Gospel is to draw us to Jesus & abide in Him. We have seen that people who met Jesus either accepted or rejected Him (John 12:32). The woman at well, Nicodemus, the royal officer, the man at Bethesda’s pool, the 5000, Jesus’ brothers, Mary & Martha, the religious leaders, the man born blind, & Pilate all made choices. Theology from below questions God & is flawed (Rev. 14:1-12, John 15:1-11). We abide in God only through the Word.

FRIDAY:
God’s perspective differs vastly from that of humans. He reveals His will to us through the Bible, under the power of the Holy Spirit. We have the choice to either walk in darkness or accept the light of Jesus Christ found in the Word. Integral to this choice is our personal surrender to Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the Redeemer of humanity. Through the Holy Spirit, God the Father has revealed the depth of His love in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 143.

Keywords

John & Mark- John’s Gospel, like Mark’s, ends with a meeting in Galilee.

Theology from below- It sets rules and standards for God and His Word. Human ideas, as flawed and as limited and as subjective as they are, become the final authority on how people interpret the Word of God.

Theology “from above”- In contrast, it responds by faith, with belief in God and His Word first.

DA- The Desire of Ages.

Agapaō- Unconditional love. The highest form of love.

Phileō- Friendy love

Captions

SUNDAY- Meeting in Galilee
MONDAY- Keeping Your Eyes on Jesus
TUESDAY- Light and Darkness
WEDNESDAY- Theology From “Above” or From “Below”
THURSDAY- Abiding in Jesus

Discussion Questions

📌 Of all the stories in the book of John, which one speaks the loudest to you about the love and character of God? Share with your class why you find that story so compelling.

📌 In practical terms, how should one go about the search for truth?

📌 Why is it usually difficult to lay aside self as the arbiter of truth? Can we ever fully do it, or will our humanity, to some degree, still impact how we view the Scriptures? Why must we recognize this fact, and how does humility come in to help us surrender our prejudices to the Word of God?

📌 The history of Western Christianity is filled with horrific examples of what happens when the Word of God is made subject to the politics and prejudices of humans. What are some of those examples, and what lesson can we learn from them today about just how dangerous it is when human perspectives become the dominant filter to “interpret” the Bible?

📌 Summarize in your own words the big picture of the Gospel of John. What is its central message for us today?

For December 21–27, Happy Sabbath! Thanks for participating in the study. The next study guide is titled “God’s love and Justice.” Remain Blessed!