Where we left off... 40 Days - Day 1:
In a judicial trial, one considers “evidence” to draw conclusions. Our judicial system requires that sufficient evidence be produced to persuade a reasonable person to a particular end. John wrote his gospel specifically "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."
What you should learn this week:
Witness the life of Christ through the eyes of the disciple who was arguably closest to Him during His ministry here.
Understand that the disciples saw a lot of evidence to support that Christ is who He claimed to be.
Some Thoughts for Group Discussion
Show your progress on the memory verse, practice the Faith in Action challenge, and discuss the various questions in the reading schedule.
Together finish reading John's gospel (chapters 18-21).
There are seven significant "I am the..." statements made by Christ that John recorded.
I am the bread of life (John 6:35, 48, 51)
I am the light of the world (John 8:12, 9:5)
I am the door for the sheep (John 10:7,9)
I am the good shepherd (John 10:11,14)
I am the resurrection and the life (John 11:25)
I am the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6)
I am the true vine (John 15:1,5)
But, the most significant declaration he made was in John 8:58, where Christ identified Himself as the same who spoke to Moses from the burning bush...The Great I AM. (Exodus 3:1-14) The hearers in John 8:58 knew exactly what He was claiming, and, that's why they picked up stones.
Your "Faith in Action" challenge this week:
Take a moment and tell someone (or re-tell someone) precisely what you believe about Christ and why you came to believe it.
We call this "giving your testimony." If you find this uncomfortable, remind yourself that God is consistently calling us to "put to death" old ways of thinking and acting.
Study Tool to Explore
The Blue Letter Bible is a great online resource and mobile app that will help you dig deeper into God's word.
There are lots of resources on their site. But, the one we'll be using often is the "interlinear" tools that let you compare the English translation to the original language. Don't worry, you don't need to speak the language to learn a lot of the tool.
Check out this video to see how easy it can be.
