A Challenge!

I spent some time pouring through the Gospel of John to remember the context for our verse this month. Oh reader! The Gospel of John is all that it promises us in the title! You see, gospel (the word) actually means good news. And, John just lavishes good news upon us! His scope is broad and sweeping. From verse one, he sets Jesus Christ in the center of all things - the universe, the world, and life itself. Throughout the book, people experience the power of his miracles, the authority of his teaching, and his own claims and they too ask, “Can this be the Christ?”  Moreover, he challenges us as readers to weigh for ourselves the marvelous centrality of Christ. Again and again, John beautifully recalls varied interactions and claims made by Jesus that compel us to ask, “Who is this man, really?”

So here is my challenge to you this month. Read the Gospel of John. ALL of it! Read it with a critical eye and an open heart. Ask God to speak to you and reveal more clearly who Jesus is. Certainly, even the wisest, crustiest Christian must be humbled to read and meditate on these words. And for those who are wondering and searching, consider the purpose of this glorious book:

...these [things] are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

I am excited to take up this challenge with you. God used the Gospel of John to bring me from skeptic to convinced believer. And, in all of the years since, I am even more grateful for its glorious good news.

John 8:12

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”