A STORY OF THREE PASSOVERS

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A STORY OF THREE PASSOVERS

• A fresh look at Johns Gospel

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Key for interpretation

• But these are written that you may believe that
• Jesus is the Christ (Messiah), the Son of
  God,
• and that by believing you may have life in
  his name.
• 
  (John 20 31)

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What is Passover ?

• Exodus 12
• The first month of the year new calendar
  (v.2)
• A male lamb without defect (v. 5)
• Together slaughter the lambs on the14th of the
  month at twilight (v.6)
• Put its blood on the doorframes of the houses
  (v.7)
• Unleavened bread for 7 days from 14th to 21st
  (v.18)
• Only for the circumcised Jews (v. 43)

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The first Passover

• The first Passover in Johns gospel is found in
  2134 54
• The cleansing / purification of the temple
• Christ the Messiah is the Temple
• Destroy this temple and I will raise it again in
  three days. But the temple he had spoken of was
  his body
• (John 219, 21)

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Biblical concept of temple

• The holy city / temple Jerusalem
• The name of the city from that time on will be
• THE LORD IS THERE (Ezk. 4835)
• I did not see a temple in the city, because the
  Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple
  (Rev. 2122)

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The second Passover

• The second Passover in Johns gospel is found in
  64
• The feeding of the five thousand
• Christ the Messiah is the heavenly Manna
• Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert
• Then Jesus declared, I am the bread of life.
• (John 6 31, 35)

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The bread of life

• I am the bread of life is the first of seven
  self-description of Jesus introduced by I am
• In the Greek the words are solemnly emphatic and
  echo I AM who I AM in Exodus 314
• The bread of life the bread that gives life

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Heavenly manna

• It was a popular Jewish expectation that when the
  Messiah came he would renew the sending of manna.
• They felt Jesus had done little compared to
  Moses.
• Jesus fed 5000 but Moses had fed a nation.
• Jesus did it only once but Moses did it for 40
  years.
• Jesus gave ordinary bread but Moses gave bread
  from heaven.

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The true bread from heaven

• Jesus corrected them, pointing out that the manna
  in the desert did not come from Moses but from
  God
• and today Father still gives (present tense)
  the true bread from heaven (life through the Son)
• The true bread of heaven is the bread of God
• For the bread of God is he who comes down from
  heaven and gives life to the world (633)

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The third Passover

• The third Passover in Johns gospel is found in
  1914,31
• Death on the cross
• Christ the Messiah is our sacrificial
  Lamb
• John the Baptist Look, the Lamb of God (129,
  36)
• The expression implies that Jesus is the
  sacrifice that will atone for the sins of the
  world

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Christ as sacrificial lamb

• About the sixth hour (1914). John uses the
  Roman clock while the other 3 gospels use Jewish
  time
• Jesus was nailed to the cross at around 9 am
• The period of darkness was from noon to 3 pm
• Jesus took his last breath at twilight (from
  3pm to sunset) same as in Exodus 126
• The people not allowed to work after sunset
  because of Sabbath rest (1931)

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The lamb that was slain

• Who is worthy to break the seals and open the
  scroll? But no one in heaven or on earth or under
  the earth could open the scroll or even look
  inside it.
• The I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been
  slain, standing in the center of the throne He
  came and took the scroll from the right hand of
  him who sat on the throne (Rev. 5 2-3, 6-7)
• Scroll records the history and the future of the
  world

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Further study of Johns gospel
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Tools for studying Johns gospel (1)

• PLOT
• 3 Passovers (Jesus as Messiah)
• 7x I AM statements (who Jesus is)
• 7x miracles / signs (how to follow Jesus)
  
• MISUNDERSTANDING / DOUBLE MEANING
• born again born from above (ch. 3)
• thirst no more (ch.4)

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Tools for studying Johns gospel (2)

• IRONY
• Jesus asking Samaritan woman for water
• king of Galilee (613) vs Lord of universe
  (620)
• CONTRAST
• Samaritan woman with no little education (ch.4)
  understands but Nicodemus with much education did
  not (ch.3)
• PERSONIFICATION
• Jacobs ladder (151), temple (221), 7x I
  AM

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Tools for studying Johns gospel (3)

• REPETITION
• I saw the Spirit come down and remain (132)
• Where are you staying? (138, 39)
• Remain in me and I will remain in you
  (154-7)

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Finding OT in Johns gospel

• In the beginning (11)
• Tabernacle (114)
• Not Isaiah but like Isaiah (121,23)
• Jacobs ladder (151)
• The third day (21)
• Passover (213,23)
• Samaria (44), Jacobs well (45-6), this
  mountain (420)
• Sabbath (510)
• Manna (631)

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Genealogy in the gospels

• Matthew Jesus is king. Hence he is the son of
  David (Mt.11), implying not only his royal
  descent but also a title for expected Messiah.
• 14 generations from Abraham to David
• 14 generations from David to Babylon
• 14 generations from Babylon to Jesus (Mt. 117)

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Genealogy in the gospels

• Mark Jesus is servant. There is no need to talk
  about the genealogy of a servant, hence no
  genealogy
• Luke Jesus is man, hence he is the son of Adam
• (Luke 338)
• John Jesus is God incarnate, hence the genealogy
  traces all the way back to in the beginning
  (John 11) .