Dr. Andy Woods

John’s Gospel - Review 1.John was an eyewitness. 1:14; 19:35; 21:24 2.John used the word ‘believe’ 100 times. 3.John’s purpose is to evangelize. 20: A ‘sign’ is a miracle with great meaning. 5.These signs were chosen specifically because they lend themselves to the development of true faith. 20:30-31

John’s Purpose Statement John 20:30-31 And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but 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.

The Signs in John’s Gospel The first three signs show how salvation comes to the sinner: 1. Water into wine (2:1–11)—salvation is by the Word 2. Healing the nobleman’s son (4:46–54)—salvation is by faith 3. Healing the paralytic (5:1–9)—salvation is by grace The last four signs show the results of salvation in the believer: 4. Feeding the 5,000 (6:1–14)—salvation brings satisfaction 5. Stilling the storm (6:16–21)—salvation brings peace 6. Healing the blind man (9:1–7)—salvation brings light 7. Raising of Lazarus (11:38–45)—salvation brings life Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the New Testament

1st Sign - Roadmap to Blessing 1.Turn to Christ first in times of trial 2.Advise others to do the same 3.Blessing requires humility and obedience 4.Eternal life is the greatest blessing of all

1st & 2nd Signs Happened in the same location Prompted by personally requesting help from Jesus Prompted by a crisis Preceded by a censure from Jesus Resulted in stronger faith MaryThe nobleman Ran out of wineNobleman’s son about to die “My hour has not yet come” “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.” The disciples believedNobleman’s family believed Cana of Galilee v2:11 v4:54

The Second Sign - Outline 1.Cana of Galilee v Imploring v “Your son lives” v50, 51, 53 4.Confirmation v Believe v53

Jesus did not believe in them The words ‘believed’ in John 2:23 and ‘commit’ in John 2:24 are the same Greek word. These people believed in Jesus, but He did not believe in them! They were “unsaved believers”! It was one thing to respond to a miracle but quite something else to commit oneself to Jesus Christ and continue in His Word. John was not discrediting the importance of our Lord’s signs, because he wrote his book to record these signs and to encourage his readers to trust Jesus Christ and receive eternal life (John 20:30–31). However, throughout the book, John makes it clear that it takes more than believing in miracles for a person to be saved. Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the NT

The Nobleman In verse 46 he is described as a nobleman, a royal official (basilikos, 4:46) from Capernaum. Most scholarly opinion leans in favor of the man’s having been in the service of Herod Antipas, a subordinate ruler (for the Romans) or tetrarch in charge of Galilee and Perea...This official may have been a military officer, but since he was from Capernaum (a town on the Sea of Galilee near the border of another tetrarchy), the official could have been involved in other duties such as revenue collection. The New American Commentary: John 1–11

The Second Sign - Outline 1.Cana of Galilee v Imploring v “Your son lives” v50, 51, 53 4.Confirmation v Believe v53

The Nobleman’s mistakes He thought that... 1.Jesus had to travel to Capernaum. 2.If his son died, it would be too late.

The Second Sign - Outline 1.Cana of Galilee v Imploring v “Your son lives” v50, 51, 53 4.Confirmation v Believe v53

The Second Sign - Outline 1.Cana of Galilee v Imploring v “Your son lives” v50, 51, 53 4.Confirmation v Believe v53

The Nobleman’s Faith Crisis - Confident - Confirmed - Contagious 1.This man began with crisis faith. He was about to lose his son and therefore had no other recourse but the Lord Jesus Christ. 2.The nobleman’s crisis faith became confident faith: he believed the Word and had peace in his heart. 3.His confident faith became confirmed faith. Indeed, the boy had been completely healed! And the healing took place at the very time when Jesus spoke the Word. 4.He had contagious faith and shared his experience with others. Warren Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary

The Second Sign - Outline 1.Cana of Galilee v Imploring v “Your son lives” v50, 51, 53 4.Confirmation v Believe v53

Believing without seeing The point of this story is that it illustrates a new dimension of believing: namely, a believing without the immediacy of seeing. Accordingly, it foreshadows the concluding words of Thomas about believing without seeing The New American Commentary: John 1–11