As we read the Gospel of John, I would like for us to pay attention to several characteristics. This will help us to recognize the main points.
First, in John, time begins with “in the beginning.” All those who read the Bible know that the word beginning refers to eternity. Since there is no time in eternity, there is no element of time in John. Please make certain to not read time into the Gospel of John. John shows us how the God in eternity came into us to be eternal life. As the Word in eternity past, He was without beginning or end, without the element of time. Even though He came into time and was restricted by time, He imparted to man the eternal life, a life that is beyond time. In this eternal life, there is no element of time.
I would like to insert a word about reading the Bible. Many brothers and sisters assume that since Genesis is the first book in the Bible, narrating from the very beginning, its account is the earliest. However, I would like to tell you that the account in the Gospel of John is even earlier. Why? It is because John begins from eternity past, from an eternity without beginning. The beginning in Genesis has a starting point, which is the time of God’s creation. In other words, Genesis starts at the beginning of time, while John starts before time began, in eternity past.
In addition, Genesis begins with God’s creation, but John begins with God. Genesis says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (1:1). John says, “In the beginning was the Word,...the Word was God” (1:1). It is after he speaks of the God who was in the beginning that he goes on to speak of all things coming into being through Him. Therefore, Genesis begins at John 1:3, with the clause, “All things came into being through Him.” The first two verses in John 1 are earlier than Genesis; they precede Genesis. These matters are crucial points in Bible reading. We all have to pay special attention to them.
Second, in the Gospel of John there is not the matter of space. John’s Gospel is beyond time and space. John’s time is eternity past, and John’s space is God. In 3:13 there is a sentence spoken by the Lord Himself which proves that there is no element of space in John’s Gospel: “And no one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended out of heaven, the Son of Man, who is in heaven.” We do not understand this word because we are full of spatial concepts. However, to the Lord there is no element of space. We often say that the Lord Jesus left heaven and came down to earth. Here though, the Lord Jesus said that He left heaven yet is still in heaven. We also often say that the Lord Jesus left the earth and ascended to the heavens, but I believe the Lord Jesus would say, “No, I left the earth, yet I am still on the earth.”
I would like to ask you brothers and sisters where in the whole Gospel of John it says that the Lord Jesus descended out of heaven. You may ask, “Did not the Lord Himself say that He descended out of heaven?” True, but the Lord went on to say that He is still in heaven. Likewise, you cannot find the record of the ascension of the Lord Jesus in the Gospel of John. Mark contains a record of the Lord Jesus’ ascension, and so does Luke, but neither John nor Matthew contains such a record. Perhaps you will say that out of the four Gospels there are at least two that mention the Lord Jesus’ ascension. You may ask, “Do Mark and Luke not talk about the ascension of the Lord Jesus?” However, if you can pick out two books, I can also pick out two books. Can you tell me where Matthew and John mention the Lord’s ascension? You can pick out two books that mention the Lord’s ascension; I can also pick out two books that do not mention the Lord’s ascension. The two books you pick are neither the beginning nor the end. The two books I pick are at the beginning and at the end. Moreover, of the two books you pick, one portrays Him as a Slave while the other portrays Him as a man. Both are relatively light in weight. Of the two books that do not mention His ascension, one speaks of Him as King while the other speaks of Him as God. The one that says He is King not only does not mention His ascension, but it says that He will be with us until the consummation of the age (Matt. 28:20). The beginning of the Gospel of Matthew says that the Lord is Emmanuel, which is translated “God with us” (1:23). Matthew also says that where there are two or three gathered into the name of the Lord, there He is in their midst (18:20). At the end, it says that the Lord will be with us until the consummation of the age. Matthew tells us that the Lord is Emmanuel and that He comes to rule within us as our spiritual King; therefore, He does not leave us but will be with us until the end of this age.
The Gospel of John says that the Lord is the One from the beginning, from eternity past, who came into our midst. He did not come from heaven to earth but from God to man. This is not a matter of place but a matter of persons. He never left the heavens, and He never left the earth. He says, “Abide in Me” (15:4). This is a fact which we can have today. To abide in the Lord we do not need to go to heaven. We do not need to climb a ladder that goes up to heaven to abide in the Lord for a while and after a few days come down. We do not need this because there is no element of space. The Lord says, “Abide in Me and I in you.” Today the Lord Jesus lives in us without having to descend from heaven; likewise, we live in the Lord without having to climb a ladder up to heaven.
This kind of speaking may seem to be a joke, but I am using an illustration to show you that the Gospel of John does not have the element of space. The Lord descended, but He was still in the heavens. After He resurrected, He ascended, but He was still on the earth. After the Lord’s resurrection, the disciples were inside the house with its doors and windows shut, and the Lord suddenly came into their midst. This was truly wonderful. Through what did He enter? We do not know. He was not merely a Spirit; He also had a body with bone and flesh. Still, the doors and windows were shut, so we do not know how He entered the house. Then after He spoke to the disciples and told them to receive the Holy Spirit, He disappeared again. We do not know where He went. If we say that He went away, we do not see Him opening the door. He reappeared when Peter and the other disciples went fishing in the sea, and we do not know where He went afterward. When we read the Gospel of John, we cannot find verses telling us where He went.
Why is it that the Gospel of John does not say where the Lord went? It is because in the Gospel of John there is no element of space. Today He is everywhere. Even as we meet here this morning, He is here. If there are one thousand people sitting here this morning, strictly speaking there are not only one thousand but one thousand and one, because the Lord Jesus is here as well. He is One who is beyond time, and He is also One who is beyond space. You need to pay attention to these two points when reading the Gospel of John.
Please remember that in His incarnation He came not from heaven to earth but from God to man. In His death and resurrection He went not from earth to heaven but from man to God. The places John mentions are persons, not actual places.
Third, the entire Gospel of John covers the matter of life being in the Lord. The first verse of this book says, “In the beginning was the Word.” This is speaking of the beginning, of God Himself. Then verse 3 speaks of creation, and verse 4 says that in Him was life. The whole universe is a story of life, and this life is in Him. When you read Genesis, you first see creation; then you see life. The life signified by the tree of life in Genesis 2 is in Him. Please pay attention to the sequence in John. John begins by saying that in the beginning was God; then it speaks about God’s creation, and then it tells us how God came to be man’s life because life was in Him. From this point on, the whole Gospel of John talks about the matter of life being in Him. This is what we need to pay attention to.
Fourth, the Gospel of John is divided into two major sections. One section is on coming, and the other is on going. Chapter one to chapter thirteen is on the Lord’s incarnation, His coming. Chapter fourteen is a turning point. Chapter fourteen through the end of the book is on the Lord’s death and resurrection, His going. However, the Lord’s coming and going here do not have the element of time or space. The Lord’s incarnation is God coming among men, God coming into man. The purpose of the Lord’s death and resurrection is to bring man into God. There is no element of space or place here.
Therefore, chapter fourteen is a great turning point. Chapter one to chapter thirteen talks about His incarnation, about His bringing God among man and into man, and about His enabling man to see God, touch God, and receive God. These are things related to incarnation, which is God coming among man. However, man had not yet entered into God, so beginning from chapter fourteen, this Gospel speaks about His bringing man into God. Before chapter fourteen there was no such word as “Abide in Me”; He could not say such a word. In chapter fourteen He said, “In that day you will know that...you [are] in Me” (v. 20). Without the arrival of “that day,” the disciples could not know, because it was not possible to have such an experience. The story after chapter fourteen is a story of “that day.”
Therefore, when we read the Gospel of John, we need to pay attention to these points. Chapters one through thirteen talk about the situation and the story of the Lord’s incarnation, which brought God among men and into man. Then starting from chapter fourteen we see the way He took to bring man into God. I hope that you brothers and sisters can follow these principles to properly read the Gospel of John. In the next few days we will specifically focus on studying the writings of John. I believe it will cause us to have a better understanding of the building of God. After studying in this way, we will then understand what exactly God’s building in the universe is.