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1 John Bible Study, Day 6: Our Advocate

Today’s passage: 1 John 2:1–2

Focus verse: But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. (1 John 2:1)

John’s desire for us is that we do not sin. That’s one of the reasons he writes his letter. Yet if anyone does sin, he reminds us that we have an advocate to represent us to the Father.

Our advocate is none other than the righteous Jesus who sacrificed his life to atone for our sins and for the sins of the entire world.

In a general sense, an advocate is someone who represents us to a person of authority. This may be because we lack access to them or don’t have the ability to properly plead our case. We need someone to stand in for us and speak on our behalf.

A lawyer is a familiar advocate in our world today, often in the courtroom.

Lawyers are expensive and can’t guarantee a successful outcome. However, we’ll realize a much better chance of winning with a lawyer representing us than if we tried to represent ourselves. The lawyer advocates on our behalf.

In a spiritual sense, Jesus is our advocate before his Father. Imagine Jesus standing up when we sin, reminding Papa that he already atoned for them. And since we’ve confessed them, God remembers them no more; he wipes our slate clean.

This is a comforting thought that gives me much assurance, yet I’m not sure if it’s necessary. After all, Jesus and the Father are one, so they both know what the other is thinking. Jesus doesn’t need to remind his Father of anything. Father God already knows.

Yet I like the idea of Jesus as our advocate. If Jesus is for us, who can be against us? (See Romans 8:31).

Most of the time when the Bible uses the word advocate, however, it’s not in reference to Jesus but instead to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is also our advocate. How amazing is it that we have both the Spirit and Jesus to advocate for us?

And unlike our human advocates here on earth who are expensive to hire and don’t always succeed, our spiritual advocates work for us at no cost and have a much higher success rate—I suspect 100 percent. 

When we sin—and we will—we need to confess it. Then we can push aside our guilt, because Jesus has already died for that sin, and the Father has forgiven it. In addition, Jesus (and the Holy Spirit) advocates on our behalf.

We can’t lose.

Questions:

  1. How should we react to the idea of Jesus being our advocate? 
  2. When have we last thanked him for being our atoning sacrifice?
  3. What do you think about Jesus and the Holy Spirit both being our advocates?
  4. How can we let go of guilt over the sins we’ve confessed and the forgiveness Jesus has provided?
  5. When we pray for others, how might we be acting as their advocate?

Discover more about our advocate in Job 16:19, John 14:16, John 14:26, John 15:26, and John 16:7. Yes, most of Scripture’s references to advocate come from John’s writings

Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.


Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths in Love One Another, a devotional Bible study to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love others.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

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Bible Study

1 John Bible Study, Day 5: Confess Our Sins

Today’s passage: 1 John 1:8–10

Focus verse: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

As a young teen, I had a Sunday school teacher who claimed he sometimes would go an entire day without sinning. Granted, he didn’t claim to be without sin, only that he had some days where he avoided it. 

Though he was a godly man and I respected him deeply, I questioned if such a thing were possible. At least I doubted it was for me.

It could be I was too sensitive to sin or wrongly confused temptation with sin, but I wondered if I could even go one hour without sinning, let alone twenty-four.

Today’s trio of verses addresses sin and our attitude toward it. This passage opens and closes with parallel verses that restate the same idea: if we claim to live a life without sin, we delude ourselves. (My teacher only claimed to be sinless for a day, not a lifetime.)

Scripture says that everyone has sinned and falls short of God’s expectations (Romans 3:23). Therefore, if we claim we’re sinless, we make God out to be a liar and do not accept his truth.

Fortunately, we don’t need to wallow in our sinfulness. Sandwiched between these two verses about our sin-filled nature, we find a most encouraging promise. 

John says if we confess our sins, God will forgive them, purifying us from our unrighteousness, that is, from our wrong behavior. We can count on it.

John also writes that Jesus died for the sins of the entire world (1 John 2:2), but we don’t automatically receive his forgiveness. Through this sacrificial death, Jesus has prepared the gift of salvation for everyone. But until we receive his present it’s not ours. 

We can receive Jesus’s gift of salvation when we admit our faults. But to do that, we must first acknowledge that our sins need forgiving.

When we confess our sins, that is, admit our faults to Jesus, we can have confidence in his response of forgiveness. This is because he’s already died for our sins to make us right with Father God.

He will be faithful to forgive. And his forgiveness is because his death satisfied what justice demands. This is what it means when John writes that Jesus is faithful and just.

When we confess our sins, we will receive his forgiveness. This purifies us from all the wrongs we have done and all the wrong things we will do. 

Questions:

  1. How do you define sin?
  2. Why does the world oppose the word sin?
  3. Have you confessed your sins to Jesus and received his forgiveness? 
  4. What does confession look like to you?
  5. How should we live our life knowing that he has purified us from our unrighteousness?

Discover more about confession in Psalm 32:5, Proverbs 28:13, and Acts 19:18.

Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.

Read the next lesson or start at the beginning of this study.


Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths in Love One Another, a devotional Bible study to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love others.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Study

1 John Bible Study, Day 4: God is Light

Today’s passage: 1 John 1:5–7

Focus verse: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. (1 John 1:5)

As John continues in his letter, he moves from fellowship and joy, to talking about the light. God is light. That is, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit give us light.

In their light there is no darkness. The good light of Jesus overcomes the darkness of the enemy where sin and evil abound.

John discusses this light—the light that shines in the darkness—in depth in his biography of Jesus (John 1:4–9). It’s a great parallel passage to today’s reading, with the two smartly complementing each other. But there’s more.

Let’s go back to the beginning, back to creation. Jesus is at creation, and all created things come through him (John 1:2–3).

When creating our reality, God first makes light. He declares that this light is good. He separates light from darkness. This marks the first day of creation (Genesis 1:3–5).

Not only is Jesus—who gives light and is light—present at creation, he’ll also be present at the end of the age. This is when God ushers in a new heaven and a new earth.

This new heaven and new earth will contain a new Jerusalem. This city will not need sun or moon to illuminate it, for God will light it through the lamp of the Lamb, the light of Jesus.

All nations and their rulers will walk by this light and give their glory to it—that is, to Jesus, the light (Revelation 21:23–24). 

From their thrones in the great city, God the Father and Jesus the Lamb will rule. They’ll give light to all, without the need for sun or lamps. In the light of our Lord there will be no more night, with God’s light forever chasing away darkness (Revelation 22:5).

Throughout this we see Jesus as light: at creation, during his time on earth, and for all eternity. And, as followers of him, he is our light today.

The light of Jesus pushes away all darkness.

Now John ties this back to fellowship. If we claim to have fellowship with our Lord yet continue to walk in darkness—that is, in sin—we delude ourselves. But if we walk in his light, we’ll enjoy fellowship with other believers because Jesus has purified us from all sin. 

We may worry that our sinful actions remove us from fellowship and make us liars. But we must remember that as followers of Jesus he has forgiven our sins (Hebrews 8:12 and 1 John 1:9; see Day 5).

This includes both in the past and for the future. As a result, we’re qualified to experience fellowship with one another and with God. 

Thank you, Jesus!

Questions:

  1. Have we received the light of Jesus? 
  2. What can we do to shine the light of Jesus into the darkness of our world?
  3. How can we fully embrace the truth that when Jesus died for our sins, he has forgiven them and remembers them no more?
  4. Why do we remember our sins when Jesus doesn’t? 
  5. What do you think about Jesus being the light at creation, for us now, and later in heaven?

Discover more about light and darkness in John 3:19–21, John 8:12, and 1 John 2:8–11.

Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.

Read the next lesson or start at the beginning of this study.


Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths in Love One Another, a devotional Bible study to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love others.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Study

1 John Bible Study, Day 3: Complete Joy

Today’s passage: 1 John 1:4

Focus verse: We write this to make our joy complete. (1 John 1:4)

John uses the pronoun we a lot in this letter, over forty times in its short five chapters. Later we’ll see him use we as inclusive language to embrace all those who follow Jesus.

Yet other times, especially in the opening, we refers to himself and a group of unidentified others who join him in penning this epistle.

John now says that their purpose in writing is to make their joy complete. On the surface it strikes me as a self-centered reason. It’s as if he’s not writing for our benefit, but for his, quite simply to experience complete joy. 

Yet when we’re doing what God calls us to do, joy should be the outcome. As we obey him fully, it’s reasonable to expect that we’ll have complete joy.

The word joy appears in over half of the books of the Bible. John uses it in all three of his letters, as well as in his biography of Jesus.

Joy is more than happiness. Some people are often happy, but they’re not as often joyful. We can think of joy as an immense satisfaction or an intense, ecstatic happiness. We can experience joy in an accomplishment or in a situation. 

For example, I feel joy each time I complete a book to share with others. It’s an outcome of being obedient and answering God’s call to do my part to advance his kingdom.

Whether it’s few people or many—I pray that it’s many—I know that my words will affect others on their journey with Jesus. This fills me with joy. 

Even more so, joy fills me knowing that my books are a legacy. They can continue to encourage others in the future, even after I move from this earth to live with Jesus eternally. This gives me even more joy. I might say it makes my joy complete.

In addition to accomplishments, situations can also fill me with joy. 

These seldom occur when I’m alone. They happen when I’m with others, enjoying community with them. It’s times of Christian fellowship—the kind John writes about—that fill me with joy.

In this way, fellowship and joy connect, with God-honoring fellowship producing God-given joy.

Another situation that fills me with joy doesn’t occur when I’m savoring a spiritual connection with people. Instead, it’s when I’m connecting with God.

Though I need to be in the company of others to interact with them, I can interact with the Almighty at any time. 

Sitting with him and basking in his presence in the spiritual realm fills me with joy, an indescribable joy. In fact, I had a time of fellowship with him as I sought his direction on what to write for this chapter.

And the results fill me with joy.

Questions:

  1. If our fellowship doesn’t produce joy, what needs to change? 
  2. How can we make our joy complete?
  3. How can we help others experience joy?
  4. How do you define joy?
  5. In what ways can we experience joy when we fellowship with God?

Discover more about joy in 2 John 1:4 and 12. Read what Jesus says about joy in John 15:11, John 16:19–24, and John 17:13.

Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.

Read the next lesson or start at the beginning of this study.


Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths in Love One Another, a devotional Bible study to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love others.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Study

1 John Bible Study, Day 2: Fellowship

Today’s passage: 1 John 1:2–3

Focus verse: We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. (1 John 1:3)

Building on the phrase Word of life, John continues by saying that the life appeared—that is, Jesus appeared—whom John has seen and testifies about. He proclaims Jesus’s life (eternal life) to us.

Why does he do this? He doesn’t say it’s so we’ll go to heaven when we die, even though eternal life is a sweet outcome of following Jesus.

John’s goal is that we might enjoy fellowship with other followers of Jesus. And this fellowship is also with Father God and his Son. This means that as part of Jesus’s church, we can also fellowship with our Creator and our Savior.

But fellowship is a strange word to me. 

As a child, the only time I ever heard fellowship was when churches had “fellowship hour” or “a time of fellowship.”

This meant the adults would sit around drinking coffee, making small talk, and laughing at amusing anecdotes. Aside from taking place in a church building, God had little part in our fellowship time.

But fellowship bored us kids. For our part, we spent this time seeking creative ways to entertain ourselves, with the goal of avoiding getting into trouble. 

Though supplying some insight, the dictionary doesn’t offer much clarity into what John means with fellowship either. In defining fellowship, it talks about companionship, friendship, and comradeship.

This understanding may explain most churches’ fellowship time, but it falls short of what Christian fellowship could and should be.

The churches’ and the dictionary’s superficial views of fellowship aren’t what John writes about. The reality that God is part of our fellowship suggests it exists, at least in part, on a spiritual level where we enjoy a supernatural connection. 

Consider the pair of disciples walking to Emmaus after Jesus’s crucifixion. The resurrected Christ appears to them, but they don’t recognize him.

When they at last realize who he is, Jesus disappears. Reflecting on what happened, they say, “Weren’t our hearts burning when he talked to us and explained the Scriptures?” (Luke 24:32).

Having our hearts burn within us is an example of fellowship. 

God-honoring fellowship should cause our hearts to burn when we talk about the things of God, explore the Bible together, and live in authentic Christian community.

And we can also experience this intense, personal fellowship with God. Through the Holy Spirit, we can connect with God the Father and God the Son in the spiritual realm.

This fellowship with other believers and with our Lord is why John proclaims Jesus. And when we follow Jesus, we can experience this sincere, profound, and deep connection on a spiritual level.

Questions:

  1. Is our fellowship more than sitting around and drinking coffee? 
  2. How can our fellowship with other believers be more meaningful?
  3. How can we have fellowship with God?
  4. When is the last time your heart burned within you over spiritual matters?
  5. What role can the Holy Spirit play in our fellowship?

Discover more about fellowship in Acts 2:42, 1 Corinthians 1:9, and 2 Corinthians 13:14, as well as 1 John 1:6–7.

Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.

Read the next lesson or start at the beginning of this study.


Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths in Love One Another, a devotional Bible study to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love others.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Study

1 John Bible Study, Day 1: Word of Life

Today’s passage: 1 John 1:1

Focus verse: This we proclaim concerning the Word of life. (1 John 1:1)

We notice many similarities between the beginning verses of 1 John and the opening passage of the gospel of John. We don’t know which one John wrote first, but we sense that one informed the other.

It could be that John wrote his letter first and then expanded on the opening verses when he wrote his biography of Jesus. Or it could be the other way around, with John penning his gospel first and condensing the first eighteen verses to begin his letter.

In the opening lines of 1 John, the disciple confirms Jesus’s presence at our world’s formation (also consider John 1:1–2). And John confirms Jesus’s presence during the apostle’s lifetime.

Consider other biblical writers. We can applaud Luke for investigating the life of Jesus to write his biography of the Messiah (Luke 1:3–4). We can also affirm Paul’s experience with Jesus who appeared to him last (1 Corinthians 15:7–8) in a supernatural encounter (Acts 9:3–6).

Yet John reminds us that his knowledge of Jesus is firsthand. He has an eyewitness account of the life of Jesus. Using the pronoun we, John says he’s not alone in his testimony of the Messiah. It was a group encounter.

Along with others, John heard Jesus’s words. John saw Jesus with his own eyes. And after Jesus rose from the dead, John experienced the resurrected Christ, looking at him and seeing his scars (John 20:20).

John writes his letter to tell others of his experience with the Savior. He proclaims what he knows about the Word of life—about Jesus—to his readers then and to us today.

In addition to being the Messiah (the Christ) and our Savior, Jesus is the Word of life. 

Just as the words he spoke brought forth life during creation, the words he spoke during his time on earth brought forth life to those who followed him then—and to us now.

And when we die, the Word of life will bring forth eternal life for us so we can join him and live with him in paradise.

Yes, Jesus is the Word of life. 

And John proclaims the Word of life to the readers of his letter so that we can personally experience Jesus. His kingdom is for us now and for eternity. As the Word of life, he guides us in how to live our lives today and guides us into living with him forever.

Questions

  1. What do you think about Jesus taking part in creation?
  2. What does the phrase Word of life mean to you?
  3. Do you believe in the Word of life?
  4. How might John’s firsthand witness of what Jesus did elevate John’s writing above most other books of the New Testament?
  5. What do you think about Jesus’s kingdom being for us now and for eternity?

Discover more about the Word of life in Philippians 2:16 and the words of eternal life in John 6:68.

Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.

Read the next lesson or start at the beginning of this study.


Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths in Love One Another, a devotional Bible study to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love others.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Study

John’s First Letter

Some refer to the book of John as the gospel of love because he mentions the word love thirty-nine times, more than Matthew, Mark, and Luke combined and more than any other book in the New Testament.

In all the Bible, only the lengthy 150-chapter book of Psalms uses love more often.

In John’s much shorter letter of 1 John, love shows up twenty-seven times (and seven more times in 2 and 3 John).

John, it seems, is all about love. And as followers of Jesus, so should we. That is, we should love one another. This is what Jesus tells us to do and what John repeats to us.

Unlike most of the letters in the New Testament, John doesn’t address 1 John to a specific church or person, with content unique to them. Instead, he gives universal truths for everyone.

As such, we can apply 1 John to ourselves to follow Jesus with more intention and greater confidence. 

Questions:

  1. What does love mean to you?
  2. How well do we do at loving others? 
  3. What can we do to love more fully?
  4. As followers of Jesus are we known for our love? What does that say about us?
  5. How willing are you to consider 1 John as more applicable to us than Paul’s letters?

Discover more about love in John 3:16, John 13:34–35, and 1 Corinthians 13.

Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.

Read the next lesson or start at the beginning of this study.


Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths in Love One Another, a devotional Bible study to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love others.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Study

Bible Study Introduction: John’s Letters

The apostle John (not to be confused with John the Baptist) is one of Jesus’s twelve disciples and part of Jesus’s inner circle, along with his older brother James and his friend Peter.

But there’s more. In his biography of Jesus, John refers to himself as the disciple Jesus loved. 

Imagine that. 

Consider that Jesus has many followers. He picks twelve of them to be his disciples and three of them to be in his inner circle, but beyond that John rises above them all as the disciple Jesus loves. (The word love occurs often in John’s writing, which we’ll cover throughout this study.) 

John also wrote five of the New Testament books. Only Paul wrote more. 

As far as the New Testament’s content, John wrote about 20 percent of it. Only Paul and Luke wrote more, about 33 percent and 25 percent respectively.

This clearly places John as one of the top three authors in the New Testament and a leading source of our Scriptural understanding of Jesus and our faith.

It’s interesting that Paul wrote only letters (epistles), while Luke wrote only historical accounts (the books of Luke and Acts). John, however, wrote in both of these genres, as well as a prophetic book, making his contributions to the Bible more holistic.

John is best known for his beloved biography of Jesus (his historical book). Many cite it as their favorite gospel for its poetic language and unique content. 

John is also well known for his epic vision of the end times, called Revelation (his prophetic book). Its evocative imagery intrigues and perplexes readers. 

John’s letters, however, are not as well known. He wrote three of them, which we know as 1 John, 2 John, and 3 John.

This is unfortunate as John’s letters present valuable insights to help us grow in our faith and understanding of what it means to follow Jesus. This is most true of his longest letter, 1 John.

We’ll dig deep into these three letters to mine simple truths and profound insights to move us forward on our faith journey.

Questions:

  1. What else do you know about John?
  2. What do you think about John calling himself the disciple Jesus loved?
  3. Which of John’s five books do you like the most?
  4. Which of John’s five books do you know the least about?
  5. What are your expectations for this Bible study?

Discover more about John’s writing in Living Water: 40 Reflections on Jesus’s Life and Love from the Gospel of John and A New Heaven and a New Earth: 40 Practical Insights from John’s Book of Revelation.

Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.

Read the next lesson.


Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths in Love One Another, a devotional Bible study to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love others.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Study

John Bible Study, Day 40: Peter Restored

Today’s passage: John 21:12–25

Focus verse: Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” (John 21:17)

As Jesus wraps up his stint on earth, he spends time with the disciples he trained for three years. They must carry on without him, albeit under Holy Spirit direction. He wants to make sure they’re ready.

First, he must restore Peter, who, a few days earlier, claimed to have no connection with Jesus. It was Peter’s darkest moment. He denied even knowing his teacher.

Yet I don’t criticize Peter for this. Although I hope to respond better than Peter, I suspect that if facing the threat of death, I could do the same thing.

Considering the depth of Peter’s error and what it implies, the master is gentle but intentional. To counter Peter’s three denials, Jesus has his wayward disciple give three affirmations of love. 

Three times Jesus asks Peter, “Do you love me?” 

Three times Peter confirms he does. Three times for emphasis.

Each time Jesus then tells Peter to “Take care of my followers,” that is, his church.

Then Jesus ends with the simple instruction to “Follow me.”

These are the essential requirements of faith: To love Jesus and follow him. It’s that simple. And don’t let anyone tell you faith in Jesus is any more complicated.

Just as Jesus restored Peter into right relationship after the disciple turned his back on his Rabbi, Jesus wants to make us right with him and Papa when we falter. We need only affirm our love for him and do what he tells us to do, which starts with following him.

Yet following Jesus isn’t a one-time decision. It’s a recurring resolve to go after Jesus each day. This includes the days we feel like it and even more so on the days we don’t.

We follow Jesus when our life is going well and we’re walking in close fellowship with him.

An even more important consideration is to stick with Jesus when life isn’t so great, when we want to give up, or when we question if our commitment is worth the cost. It is.

If we stray from Jesus, he waits for us to return. (Consider the parable of the lost son in Luke 15:11–32.) With open arms Jesus asks if we love him. We say yes, and he once again reminds us to follow him.

Questions:

  1. How can you live your life under Holy Spirit direction, like the disciples?
  2. How have you responded to your darkest moment?
  3. Do you see God as being gentle with you? Why?
  4. What must you do to follow Jesus every day? 
  5. When you mess up, how willing are you to profess anew your love for him and follow him?

Discover more about following Jesus in John 6:60–68, John 8:12, and John 10:1–15, 27. What insights can you glean from these passages?

Go to the next Bible study or start at the beginning of this study.

Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.


Read more in Peter’s new book, Living Water: 40 Reflections on Jesus’s Life and Love from the Gospel of John, available everywhere in e-book, paperback, and hardcover.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Study

John Bible Study, Day 39: A Great Catch

Today’s passage: John 21:1–11

Focus verse: They were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish. (John 21:6)

The book of Luke has a story of Jesus. It’s early in his ministry. In this account, he tells a couple of fishermen to go out to deep water and cast their nets, despite having fished all night with no success.

Imagine that, a carpenter giving fishing tips to seasoned fishermen.

The amazing thing is, when they do as he suggests, they take in so many fish that their nets are about to break. It’s as if Jesus wants to get their attention. He does. 

Jesus seeks disciples. Because of this miraculous catch, they abandon their trade to follow him. From now on, he says, they’ll fish for people (Luke 5:4–11). 

Jesus calls these career fishermen to a greater purpose. Instead of casting their fish nets to catch fish to earn a living, they’ll now cast spiritual nets to fish for people to build Jesus’s kingdom (Matthew 4:19 and Mark 1:17).

As they transition to fish for people, the implication is they will experience a great catch. Today we see just how much. Building on what they began, about two billion people in the world now align themselves with Jesus.

This great catch works so well in getting their attention that Jesus does it again. This occurs at the end of his ministry, after he rises from the dead, but before he returns to heaven.

The fishermen-turned-disciples don’t know what to do with their risen leader saying he will soon leave, so they return to fishing. They catch nothing.

Jesus hollers for them to try fishing on the other side of the boat. They do and another miraculous catch occurs. Again, he gets their attention. This should remind them that he wants them to transition to fishing for people.

The New Testament has another fish story that ties in with this. It’s a parable. Some people call it the parable of the net and others say it’s the parable of the great catch (Matthew 13:47–50).

Jesus uses this story to teach about the kingdom of heaven (the kingdom of God). 

He tells us to imagine a great net lowered into a lake and dragged through the water. When full, the fishermen haul the catch to shore to sort the fish. They place the good fish in baskets, and they throw the inferior fish away.

This teaches us about the end times, with angels separating those who lived right from those who did wrong.

Questions:

  1. How do you respond when God tells you to do something that doesn’t make sense?
  2. What has God done to get your attention?
  3. What have you given up to follow Jesus?
  4. Are you fishing for people to join you in Jesus’s kingdom? 
  5. In the last day, will you be among the good fish?

Discover more about God growing his kingdom in Matthew 13:1–23, Mark 4:2–20, and Luke 8:4–15. What insights can you glean from these passages?

Read the next lesson or start at the beginning of this study.

Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.


Read more in Peter’s new book, Living Water: 40 Reflections on Jesus’s Life and Love from the Gospel of John, available everywhere in e-book, paperback, and hardcover.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

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