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INTRODUCTION

The gospel message that Jesus Christ is the Son of God is now navigating a season of ever increasing pressure. This reality calls for a fresh look at the Gospel of John, the New Testament book that establishes Jesus as God's Son.

One of these points of tension comes from the arena of pluralism. Political pluralism certainly opens many doors to mutual understanding in the sphere of politics and government. It is indeed wisdom to respect the rights and views of all citizens, and let a ballot box and not a gun settle differences.

This same kind of thinking when applied to religion is now being dangerously advanced under the banner of religious pluralism. This form of pluralism asserts no religion holds the singular answer to man's salvation; instead, each world religion is a valid path to God for its sincere adherents. This is considered to be true even if people are following such diverse approaches as the many forms of nature worship (pantheism), or the worship of many gods (polytheism), or the worship of one God (monotheism).

Religious pluralists maintain for people in the world community to get along, all beliefs must come together in mutual tolerance and find a new unity under the banner of pluralism. This reasoning has set up religious pluralism as a new shrine to which all religions are invited to come and find their common ground.

Pluralism draws significantly on the tools of sociology to analyze what all religions have in common. For example, each world religion has a god idea, a path to salvation, an afterlife teaching, etc.

THINK ABOUT IT: Religious pluralism makes its claim that all religions are valid paths to God, because, to pluralists, 21st century popular culture is the proper lens for interpreting the Bible. But make no mistake: the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, as recorded in the Bible, is the trumpet that will sound the final word of judgment on the 21st century.

A second sphere of increasing pressure is coming from Christian universalism. The core idea of this belief is characterized by the term, universal reconciliation. Its advocates maintain people who reject Jesus in this life will ultimately be reconciled to God after their deaths and will live for eternity with God in Heaven. Use of the term "Christian" indicates proponents of this school of universalism hold many of the orthodox doctrines of Christianity but reject the Biblical doctrine of rewards and punishments, including such attributes of God as justice and judgment.

Pressure points like these mandate that we re-think the Gospel of John. The hope is the reader will pick up additional themes and make his own applications as John's portrayal of the Son of God confronts 21st century culture. The church must rediscover and in some cases actually encounter for the first time the Messiah who although despised and rejected, proved Himself to be God's Son (Isaiah 53:3).

Two millennia ago, John the son of Zebedee was an apostle in the inner circle of Jesus Christ. He wrote the Gospel of John in the second half of the first century, just a few decades removed from Jesus' death and resurrection. He did it in the very dominating and enslaving era of the Roman Empire to give the evidence for Jesus of Nazareth as the Son of God. His book became one of the four gospels in the New Testament.

John expressed his thesis at the end of his book: "These are written that you may believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name" (John 20:31).

To make Jesus' case, the great apostle offers an introduction (the most theological part of the book), to show the Son of God has existed from eternity (John 1:1-18). The eternal Word came down from His heavenly Father in an incarnation at Nazareth, and became Mary's Baby in the silent night of Bethlehem. "The word became flesh and dwelt among us" (John 1:14 KJV; Luke 2:15-19).

As John developed His narrative he drew from Jesus' ministry seven miracles, seven discourses, and seven "I AM" declarations to frame Jesus' identity. John's assumption was that open-minded readers would be compelled to conclude only God could do such miracles, teach so masterfully, die so nobly, and rise from the grave so victoriously, all the while loving people – all people – so totally.

A subtheme of John's work is the stories of people who confessed Jesus as Messiah (a term to be equated to such additional terms as Son of God, Son of Man, anointed One, the Christ, and the God-man). Another subtheme is John's faithfulness to record accounts of people who did not take this step of faith. A third portrays how Jesus kept His focus and did some of His greatest teaching and miracles amid the greatest opposition.

John sealed his case giving the second half of his book to the last week of the Lord's ministry, including Jesus' brutal crucifixion and gloriously triumphant resurrection (chapters 12:12 - 21).

In the contemporary era of mass communication and marvelous medical technology, these seven miracles continue to prove only God can do such things. Modernity, with all of its genius, must stand back in awe of them.