The Life of Christ (8)

1. The Life of Christ (8) John Bears Witness of Jesus; John the Baptist’s Death; Jesus’ Gathering of His First Disciples • Vocabulary • Disciple – a student, refers to one who follows a particular teaching or teacher. • Guile – sly, sneaky, cheating, or dishonest behavior. • Scripture • John 1:6-34 • John 1:35-51 • Mark 6:17-29 The Life of Christ (8)

2. The Life of Christ (8) John Bears Witness of Jesus • John repeatedly declares who Jesus is in John 1 verses 29, 34, and 36. • The term “Lamb of God” in John 1:29 references the symbolism of animal sacrifices as a teaching aid for the work of Christ. • John’s words show that the people had no excuse for not understanding who • Jesus was and believing in Him. • The sacrificial lamb was killed to illustrate the judgment of Messiah at the First Advent rather than the victorious powerful kingly Messiah the people were looking for. • In John 1:34 John gives his testimony that Jesus is the Son of God. • Throughout his ministry John was a faithful servant, never claiming anything for himself, but always pointing to Jesus. The Life of Christ (8)

3. The Life of Christ (8) The Death of John The Baptist • John is killed by Herod Antipas early in Jesus’ ministry. • John’s death is described in Mark 6:17-29. • John was imprisoned by Herod for about a year and a half. Matt. 4:12 • Herod was an evil, but weak ruler. • This Herod Antipas is not Herod the Great who was alive at the birth of Christ, but is his son. • He had divorced his wife and married his half-brother’s wife, Herodias. • John rightly tells Herod that “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”Mark 6:17-19 • John had begun to repeatedly rebuke Herod for this. • Herodias was an evil and ruthless woman and had her husband imprison John. • Herod did not kill John because he feared the multitude. Matt. 14:5 He was superstitious about killing a righteous man, and he had a strange desire to have conversations with John. The Life of Christ (8)

4. The Life of Christ (8) The Death of John The Baptist • The fact that Herod thought John was righteous and enjoyed talking to him does not mean that Herod was either righteous or positive. • At first, Herod actually kept John safe. Mark 6:20 • Because all of Herod’s followers did not like John speaking the truth about Herod, they held a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death. • At Herod’s birthday celebration, his wife’s daughter, Salome, dances for him. Mark 6:21 • The Greek vocabulary indicates the girl was probably 12-18 years old, with 15-16 likely being close. • The evidence suggests that her dance was probably a sensual form of entertainment. • Herod is so pleased with the dance that he shows off before the party guests and promises her anything, up to half of his kingdom. Mk. 6:23 • The girl, because of her youth, seeks the advice of her mother. Mk. 6:24 The Life of Christ (8)

5. The Life of Christ (8) Salome’s Dance The Life of Christ (8)

6. The Life of Christ (8) The Death of John The Baptist • Herodias sees an opportunity to get what she has wanted all along, the death of her tormentor, John the Baptist. • Because of his foolish oath, Herod is now put in the position of either killing John or losing face and looking foolish before his guests. • Like most weak men, Herod feared being thought of as weak by those around him. • He should have said “John’s head is not mine to give, because he has not committed a capital offense.” Mark 6:25 • Nevertheless, Herod orders the immediate decapitation of John. Mk. 6:27 • Luke 3:19-20 says this is just one of the many wicked things Herod did. • John’s disciples take his body away, bury it, and report the events to Jesus. John 6:29 • Jesus spoke as highly of John the Baptist as He ever spoke of anyone. Matt. 11:11 • John’s ministry lasted only a couple of years and he was killed while still in his thirties. The Life of Christ (8)

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8. The Life of Christ (8) The Gathering of Jesus’ Earliest Disciples • John 1:35-51 records Jesus’ earliest association with His disciples. • The term disciple means student and refers to one who attaches himself to a teacher. • Two of John’s disciples follow Jesus; one is Andrew and the other is probably John (in keeping with his anonymity throughout the gospel of John.) • Once Andrew determined where Jesus was staying he went to find his brother Simon Peter. • Although these men accept John’s witness and believe in Christ as the Messiah, they do not yet understand all that this will mean for them. • Then Jesus found Phillip on the road to Galilee and told him to “Follow Me”. • Phillip then went and sought out Nathanael (believed to be Bartholomew). • Nathanael shows his prejudice when hearing that Jesus came from Nazareth. John 1:46 “…can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” • Residents of Judah considered themselves more sophisticated than the people of Galilee, who lived a more rural life. The Life of Christ (8)

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10. The Life of Christ (8) The Gathering of Jesus’ Earliest Disciples • The Holy Spirit gave Jesus the ability to be able to tell the true nature of a person upon first seeing them. Matthew. 9:4, 12:25. • The Jewish old sin nature had a propensity for deceit going back to Jacob. • Jesus states that Nathanael was an exception to the rule and did not have the common Jewish sinful trend. • In doing so Jesus is trying to show Nathanael that He is an exception to the rule that nothing good can come from Nazareth. John 1:46-47 • Application: We must learn to not draw our conclusions about a person based upon race, nationality, locality, or culture. • In John 1 verse 48 Jesus states that he saw Nathaniel standing under a fig tree even before Philip called him. • This evidence is enough to convince Nathaniel that Jesus is the Son of God. (Note that even when they used the term Son of God, no one comprehended that Jesus was God) • In the final two verses Jesus promises them greater evidence of His Messianic credentials. John 1:50-51. • Jesus uses the title “Son of Man”, taken from Daniel 7:13 which is clearly a Messianic title and emphasizes the Second Advent. The Life of Christ (8)

11. The Life of Christ (8) Jesus Calling His Disciples • In Matthew 4:18-22 Jesus calls the four fisherman – Simon, Andrew, James and John. As noted earlier, John and Andrew went to find Simon, Andrew’s brother, to tell him about Jesus. Also, Jesus had found Phillip on the road to Galilee and commanded him to “Follow Me”. • Mark records the calling of Simon and Andrew by the Sea of Galilee along with James and John in Mark 1:16-20. • Luke records in Luke 5:1-11 how Jesus shows them His power by filling their nets with fish. He then tells them that they will be changing from fishers of fish to “fishers of men”. • Peter, Andrew, James and John were all from Capernaum. • Capernaum was situated on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee and was an important town on the caravan route to Damascus. It was the site of a customs station (Mark 2:14) and had a Roman garrison. Matthew 8:5-13 • Jesus calls Matthew – Matthew 9:9-13; Mark 2:13-17; Luke 5:27-32. • In Mark 3:13-19 and Luke 6:12-16 we have passages that show Jesus calling the twelve apostles and what He authorizes and commands them to do. • Jesus had many disciples (followers) but He chose twelve specific men to be apostles. The Life of Christ (8)

12. The Life of Christ (8) Jesus Calling His Disciples The Twelve Apostles • Simon (Peter) • Andrew • James, son of Zebedee • John, son of Zebedee • Phillip • Bartholomew • Matthew • Thomas • James, son of Alphaeus • Thaddaeus • Simon, the Zealot • Judas Iscariot The Life of Christ (8)