John

Finally, we come to the book of John. It is far different from the other gospels, and it is quite the favorite of most religious leaders, mainly because the words of Jesus in it are easier to reconcile with the rest of the New Testament. Scholars also consider this to be the latest of the gospels written, with estimates ranging between 90 and 120 CE. It is far different in the events reported from Jesus' life, and it disagrees with the other gospels on several important points, not least on the issue of Jesus' identity and the method of salvation.

Jn 1:1-5 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
Here at the start of this book, we see a major departure from the other gospels. Jesus is equated with God, and given esoteric names, like "the Word" and "the light." The use of these things indicates the nature of the religion, that of a mystery religion, where the followers made up special meanings for words, thinking that this proved that they were better than the outsiders, and the special pets of God.

Jn 1:9-11 - The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him.
We also get an early start on the process of demonizing those who don't accept what is said.

Jn 1:18 - No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made him known.
This is Jesus talking, and he makes a major blunder as far as information about God. In the Old Testament, there were several people who saw God - Moses , Job and Isaiah, in particular, as well as other minor prophets, one of whom (Micaiah) didn't even rate his own book.

Jn 1:35-42 - The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, "Look, here is the Lamb of God!" The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, "What are you looking for?" They said to him, "Rabbi" (which translated means Teacher), "where are you staying?" He said to them, "Come and see." They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o'clock in the afternoon. One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He first found his brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated Anointed ). He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, "You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas" (which is translated Peter ).
This says that Andrew, Peter's brother was a disciple of John the Baptist, but all the other gospels show Andrew and Peter being fishermen, pulled into the wake of Jesus from the middle of a fishing expedition. Makes you wonder which of the writers, if any, knew what the deal really was!

Jn 1:45 - Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth."
Isn't it strange that this most Christian of gospels doesn't mention the miraculous birth of Jesus? Instead, we have Jesus identified simply as the son of Joseph.

Jn 1:47-49 - When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, "Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!" Nathanael asked him, "Where did you get to know me?" Jesus answered, "I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you."
Nathanael must also have been an Israelite in whom there was no brain. In one comment, a rather strange compliment at that, Nate instantly figures that Jesus knows him. He didn't even wait for Jesus to tell him anything specific! He must have been the sort of guy who calls telephone psychics and gushes about how they know everything about them!

Jn 2:2-4 - Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come."
Any son I know would get a slap for saying something like that to his mother. Interestingly, in the Greek, Jesus' reaction to Mary is with the same words that the demons used in greeting him in Matthew!

Jn 2:10,11 - ...and said to him, "Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now." Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
So Jesus starts off right, it seems. He shows his glory by making people even more drunk than they already were, sort of a Bacchus-type god, apparently. This was a good reason to believe?

Jn 2:18-21 - The Jews then said to him, "What sign can you show us for doing this?" Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." The Jews then said, "This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and will you raise it up in three days?" But he was speaking of the temple of his body.
Once again, we're seeing intentionally garbled communication (in the best case) or an ad hoc definition being used to cover up a failed statement by Jesus.

Jn 2:23-25 - When he was in Jerusalem during the Passover festival, many believed in his name because they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part would not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to testify about anyone; for he himself knew what was in everyone.
In other words, Jesus was all-knowing, and his opinion was that no one could be trusted. This sounds like the mindset of a paranoid, such as we saw in Luke, when he said that those who didn't support him were his enemies.

Jn 3:1,2 - Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God."
I wonder how Nicodemus might have come by this idea? Many of the "wondrous signs" mentioned in the Bible can be reproduced by simple efforts that even I can think up. I'll be willing to bet that a trained magician could think up ways to stage an awful lot of the others. However, there's also the issue of what I like to call "magical thinking." These people believed in all sorts of supernatural critters, capable of doing great things by magic, both good and evil. Who was to say what wonder was exclusively in the power of one god rather than another?

Jn 3:13 - No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.
More disagreement between Jesus and the Jewish scripture. In Genesis, we see Enoch, the father of Methuselah, taken by God; in 2 Kings, Elijah is taken to heaven in a fiery chariot.

Jn 3:16-18 - "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
Here is the heart of today's Christian message (we see the first verse quoted about every time we turn around). It basically says that eternal happiness and no punishment is given to those who believe, while eternal punishment is given only for the crime of not believing. In other words, God has no interest in the value of people's actions, only what they believe!

Jn 3:19-21 - "And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God."
This takes the idea that actions should be judged and turns it around. Now, only those who are judged as good can do good, and those who aren't accepted can only be seen as doing evil.

Jn 4:21-24 - Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."
Jesus says that he worships something? That's an interesting thought! Also interesting is the idea that Jesus was interested in changing the way people worshipped, a thing forbidden in the laws given by God. It looks like Jesus was not the great upholder of the old Jewish laws that he claimed to be!

Jn 4:39 - Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman's testimony, "He told me everything I have ever done."
These people were, I expect, predisposed to believe just about anything. After all, they were willing to throw their old religion out the window because one person (with a low standing in the community, as she was a prostitute) tells them something without any supporting evidence. You'd think someone would be interested in asking about this supposed person who could tell her things that were probably well-known in the community. But no, she's telling them about this wonderful person who promised eternal life, so he must be able to deliver! Let's all join that religion!

Jn 4:46-50 - Then he came again to Cana in Galilee where he had changed the water into wine. Now there was a royal official whose son lay ill in Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. Then Jesus said to him, "Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe." The official said to him, "Sir, come down before my little boy dies." Jesus said to him, "Go; your son will live." The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and started on his way.
Did Jesus shame this person into changing his attitude? Or was Jesus wrong in his estimation of the man's attitude? Or, did Jesus (being a god) take away the man's free will and force him to believe? When we're looking at magic, all the rules go out the window, and you're free to believe anything you want about this passage!

Jn 5:2-7 - Now in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate there is a pool, called in Hebrew Beth-zatha, which has five porticoes. In these lay many invalids-blind, lame, and paralyzed. [waiting for the stirring of the water; for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool, and stirred up the water; whoever stepped in first after the stirring of the water was made well from whatever disease that person had.] One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been there a long time, he said to him, "Do you want to be made well?" The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; and while I am making my way, someone else steps down ahead of me."
This passage is quite interesting in several respects. First off, verse 4 (in the brackets in black) is not included in many copies of this gospel, and the NRSV has it included in a footnote, rather than in the normal text of the passage. Second, I recall the fact that this location was unearthed in Jerusalem some years ago, and the archeologists discovered that this place was the location of one of the cruelest hoaxes perpetrated by the Jewish priests I have ever heard of. There was a duct that led from this pool to a nearby temple, allowing the priests in the temple to dump water into the duct, causing the pool water to "stir." By coordinating their actions, they were able to place a shill in the crowd, who was then able to be the first into the pool, knowing when the stirring would take place. Thus, a huge crowd of cripples were always attracted to this one place, and their hope kept falsely alive by an act put on by the priests. Now, to me, I find it interesting that Jesus would have done these people a bigger service by exposing this fraud, but he appears not to know about it. Certainly, the author thought the legend was true.

Jn 5:14 - Later Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, "See, you have been made well! Do not sin any more, so that nothing worse happens to you."
Here's an interesting new twist to Jesus' new religion. If you're healed, you'd better not do anything else wrong with your life, or you'll be given a worse problem!

Jn 5:30-32 - "I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge; and my judgment is just, because I seek to do not my own will but the will of him who sent me. If I testify about myself, my testimony is not true. There is another who testifies on my behalf, and I know that his testimony to me is true."
Here, it seems that Jesus understood the need to have evidence to support his claim to be what he claims to be, and cites the words of those who support his claim. I also think it's interesting that Jesus claims he can't do anything on his own, but that he's doing what God wants him to do, as if he isn't the equal of God.

Jn 5:36-38 - But I have a testimony greater than John's. The works that the Father has given me to complete, the very works that I am doing, testify on my behalf that the Father has sent me. And the Father who sent me has himself testified on my behalf. You have never heard his voice or seen his form, and you do not have his word abiding in you, because you do not believe him whom he has sent.
What I wonder at reading this is how can we be aware of God's "testimony" to the validity of Jesus, if we can only see or hear him after we believe? Surely, if we first believe, we no longer have any need for God's testimony, do we?

Jn 5:45-47 - "Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; your accuser is Moses, on whom you have set your hope. If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. But if you do not believe what he wrote, how will you believe what I say?"
I guess this only applies to Jews, as I don't set any store by the Old Testament or Moses, or the Mosaic laws. However, I have to wonder at why Jesus says Moses wrote about him? After all, the idea that the Torah was written by Moses is simply Jewish tradition - it's not stated anywhere in the 5 books themselves, and it's pretty easy to establish that Moses (if he existed at all) didn't write anything in the Bible.

Jn 6:18-21 - The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. But he said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid." Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going.
Yet another version of the walking on the water trick, this time, Jesus instantly transports them to safety by magic. I'd have thought that the various gospels would have at least agreed on what this miracle entailed!

Jn 6:45,46 - "It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father."
Jesus here repeats this mistake about what's in Jewish scriptures. He contradicts the Old Testament by saying that no one has seen God. He must have meant it.

Jn 6:48-51 - "I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh."
More mystery religion fare. Here, we see a common pagan practice of eating the flesh of the god in order to partake of the god's immortal nature. This idea was copied from other religions in circulation at the time Christianity was created.

Jn 7:6,7 - Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify against it that its works are evil."
Here's a common cult practice - make the followers believe that they are hated by the whole world, and that everyone else is doing evil. Of course, a more balanced view might be that people are capable of doing things that are quite harmful, as well as things that are quite helpful. But to simply define everything outside as evil - that's a pretty simplistic and unfair assessment!

Jn 7:8-10 - Go to the festival yourselves. I am not going to this festival, for my time has not yet fully come." After saying this, he remained in Galilee. But after his brothers had gone to the festival, then he also went, not publicly but as it were in secret.
Here, we see Jesus telling his closest, most beloved and special followers a lie. How trustworthy do you think this fellow could be, given the standards he presented to us?

Jn 7:16-18 - Then Jesus answered them, "My teaching is not mine but his who sent me. Anyone who resolves to do the will of God will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own. Those who speak on their own seek their own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and there is nothing false in him."
Well, from the previous passage, we know whether there's anything false in Jesus. I don't think we need any special insights brought magically by belief to be able to figure out whether Jesus was truly teaching on his own or not.

Jn 8:13,14 - Then the Pharisees said to him, "You are testifying on your own behalf; your testimony is not valid." Jesus answered, "Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid because I know where I have come from and where I am going, but you do not know where I come from or where I am going."
Wait a minute! Just a couple of chapters back, Jesus said that his words weren't valid unless verified by others. Now, he says the opposite! Not only that, but he gives a pretty specious reasoning to try and justify his claim that he should be believed with no supporting evidence.

Jn 8:16-18 - Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is valid; for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me. In your law it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is valid. I testify on my own behalf, and the Father who sent me testifies on my behalf.
Jesus goes on trying to validate himself, by calling God as his own character witness. Of course, God doesn't count in a court of law (at least, not these days), as he's never answered a summons and both sides in each debate claim his support. This is hardly a good argument!

Jn 8:23-25 - He said to them, "You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. I told you that you would die in your sins, for you will die in your sins unless you believe that I am he." They said to him, "Who are you?" Jesus said to them, "Why do I speak to you at all?"
This is a common response you get from Christians. They spout a bunch of mystical gibberish that is almost incomprehensible. When you ask for a little clarification, you get this very quote: "why do I speak to you at all?" All these people were doing was asking a valid question, and with a distinct lack of patience, Jesus dismisses them.

Jn 8:33,34 - They answered him, "We are descendants of Abraham and have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean by saying, 'You will be made free'?" Jesus answered them, "Very truly, I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin."
What Jew would claim to be a descendant to Abraham, but never to have been slaves? Every year at Passover, Jews recall being slaves of Pharaoh! But here, we see in Jesus' reply the comment that is a favorite of Christians everywhere - that everyone is a slave to sin! What that means is that no one can help but sin, though then the concept of sin is enormously broadened to include things far outside the scope and spirit of the laws given by God.

Jn 8:43,44 - Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot accept my word. You are from your father the devil, and you choose to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
Jesus starts with an interesting question. My reaction is that I can't understand a message that has so many internal inconsistencies and incoherencies. If what I read was consistent and easy to understand, that would be a big help. He then goes on to blame the problem on the devil, being a convenient scapegoat, but considering that Jesus told his followers a lie about going to the festival, I don't think he has much ground to stand on here.

Jn 8:54,55 - Jesus answered, "If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, he of whom you say, 'He is our God,' though you do not know him. But I know him; if I would say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you. But I do know him and I keep his word."
So Jesus thinks he has the moral high ground, by claiming to keep God's word, yet his whole effort was to change the religion of the Jews away from the original form, something the Jewish scripture says is not allowable!

Jn 9:1-3 - As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God's works might be revealed in him."
Here's yet another cheery thought! I just can't imagine thinking well of a creator god who purposely inflicts blindness on babies just so he could impress people 30 or so years later! I mean, I'd expect there should be other ways to impress people than to make someone suffer for years on end, just to end the suffering in front of an audience.

Jn 9:39 - Jesus said, "I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind."
I wonder what Jesus could have had against any who could see? Surely, whatever this metaphor was supposed to be about, a more admirable goal would be to have everyone able to see?

Jn 10:11-13 - "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away-and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep."
Frankly, I feel offended by this idea that I should be set on the same level as a sheep. It implies that I don't have the ability to handle my own life, that I need divine assistance to make my life work. And it seems to me that the metaphor Jesus used was pretty thin. He may have thought that shepherds naturally sacrificed themselves to protect their sheep, but I have my doubts. However, with the way things worked out in the Christian Church, with the priests taking on the mantle of the shepherd (see Jesus' conversation with Peter at the end of this book), the image has unfortunately become quite apt.

Jn 10:29-32 - What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father's hand. The Father and I are one." The Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus replied, "I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these are you going to stone me?"
A typical strategy I have seen from many religious people. They say something to get people angry, then act all innocent, and ask why they're angry, talking about something totally different! Jesus should have known full well that equating himself with God would upset the Jews (remember in Deuteronomy, where it says "God is not a man?"), then talks as though he thinks they're upset because they didn't like him performing miracles. This is called a "strawman" argument, one thatis quite commonly used by defenders of religion.

Jn 11:3-6 - So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, "Lord, he whom you love is ill." But when Jesus heard it, he said, "This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God's glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it." Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.
Once more, we see Jesus cast as an opportunist who has no problem with making anyone suffer and even die if he thinks it'll impress people.

Jn 12:4,5 - But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, "Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?" (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.)
Boy, Old Judas has caught it from everyone! It's not bad enough that he was possessed by the devil in Mark and Luke, but now, he's called a thief! But this is an ad hominem attack, and doesn't take away the validity of the question - why is it good to waste money on God, rather than giving it to people who need it?

Jn 12:31,32 - Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.
If Jesus had done that, it might have been impressive. However, it would have gone against all the other verses, talking about how exclusive heaven really is!

Jn 12:36 - "While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of light." After Jesus had said this, he departed and hid from them.
This is an interesting turn of phrase, because in the Dead Sea Scrolls, it appears that the Essenes just happened to call themselves "children of light." There's a fair amount of evidence that Jesus was actually a fanatic follower of this sect, which had been around in the desert for over a century before Jesus arrived on the scene.

Jn 12:37-42 - Although he had performed so many signs in their presence, they did not believe in him. This was to fulfill the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah: "Lord, who has believed our message, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?" And so they could not believe, because Isaiah also said, "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, so that they might not look with their eyes, and understand with their heart and turn- and I would heal them." Isaiah said this because he saw his glory and spoke about him. Nevertheless many, even of the authorities, believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they did not confess it, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue.
I think it more likely that the lack of belief Jesus encountered was not due to hardness of heart, but because the Jews were more interested in being faithful to their religion, as their laws commanded them.

Jn 13:21-28 - After saying this Jesus was troubled in spirit, and declared, "Very truly, I tell you, one of you will betray me." The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he was speaking. One of his disciples-the one whom Jesus loved-was reclining next to him; Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. So while reclining next to Jesus, he asked him, "Lord, who is it?" Jesus answered, "It is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish." So when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot. After he received the piece of bread, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, "Do quickly what you are going to do." Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him.
I find this pretty hard to believe! Jesus is sitting at the "Last Supper" and pretty well hands this information to everyone on a silver platter! How could anyone hear "I'm going to be betrayed by Judas, here" and not understand what was going on?

Jn 13:34,35 - I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
It would seem to me that this would not be a very telling sign, that everyone in a religious community would feel close to each other. Otherwise, the community wouldn't keep together.

Jn 14:2 - In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?
Well, I don't know. Would he have told his disciples he wasn't going to a festival if he in fact was going?

Jn 14:10-14 - Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves. Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.
Here's a combination of Trinitarian mumbo-jumbo and a side order of promise to give believers anything they ask for. Jesus also promises that Christians will do things greater than he did. I have yet to hear about a miracle greater than the things described in these gospels. Frankly, I'm far from impressed with the Christian track record in this respect.

Jn 14:25,26 - "I have said these things to you while I am still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you.
I thought I read in Mark that Jesus said he had told his followers everything. Now here he is, telling his followers that they'll learn everything from the Holy Spirit, after he's gone to heaven. Sounds like these writers didn't have their acts together!

Jn 15:7 - If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
Is God great, or what! He promises all his true followers to give them everything they can wish for! I suppose this means that if there's anyone who gets everything they ask God for, that's a really good indicator that they're God's special pets. Of course, if the only thing you ask God for is for the sun to rise in the morning, I'd not be much inclined to accept your claim.

Jn 15:19-23 - If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. Because you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world-therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, 'Servants are not greater than their master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also. But they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin. Whoever hates me hates my Father also.
This is a fine example of an effort to set up a martyr complex in a group of followers who were also told to love their enemies. Now, they're told to expect (and to even look for) hatred from all those who don't join their group. But I also wonder at the statement that if Jesus hadn't come along, "they would not have sin." Surely, this is a confusing statement, from about every other aspect of the Bible's message! One should be very cautious of anyone who thinks indifference or non-participation is the same as hatred.

Jn 16:2-4 - They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, an hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God. And they will do this because they have not known the Father or me. But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them. I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you.
This shows a particular lack of understanding about the Jewish religion, I think. I say this because I have read the Jewish laws as presented in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. The original compact between God and the Hebrews was very specific, and any who attempted to change it were to be killed, along with their whole villages. If a Jew was determined to follow the laws and the contracts as stated in those books, I fail to see what choice they'd have. To say that following the letter of the law would violate the intent of the law is to invalidate the very existence of the law, thus making the entire Old Testament invalid.

Jn 16:23,24 - On that day you will ask nothing of me. Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.
Here we have yet another unfulfillable promise from Jesus. The number of times Jesus said this is truly remarkable to me. I suppose that he must have meant it. It makes me wonder, though, why people keep believing when these promises continue to fall through?

Jn 16:29,30 - His disciples said, "Yes, now you are speaking plainly, not in any figure of speech! Now we know that you know all things, and do not need to have anyone question you; by this we believe that you came from God."
The disciples have a pretty strange notion of what constitutes plain speech and believability. Also, if I had just spent 3 years or so with a leader who suddenly changed from confusing to understandable, I think some questions would be very appropriate! Imagine anyone else trying to tell you that their leader shouldn't be questioned!

Jn 17:20-23 - I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
Ah, yes! There's nothing like complete uniformity of thoughts and actions! And looking at those who claim to be followers of Jesus, we see nothing like complete uniformity of thought and actions! Of course, in my opinion, this problem stems from the flaws in the Bible as a source book for this religion. It is far from a unified and unambiguous whole.

Jn 18:20 - Now the slaves and the police had made a charcoal fire because it was cold, and they were standing around it and warming themselves. Peter also was standing with them and warming himself. Then the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and about his teaching. Jesus answered, "I have spoken openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all the Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret."
I think we have yet another lie, here, and boy! Is it a whopper! Jesus spent most of his public life speaking in secret to his disciples, giving them "secret knowledge" that was only to be known to them, and only to be understood after his death.

Jn 18:29-31 - So Pilate went out to them and said, "What accusation do you bring against this man?" They answered, "If this man were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you." Pilate said to them, "Take him yourselves and judge him according to your law." The Jews replied, "We are not permitted to put anyone to death."
This makes for a major internal inconsistency within just this book! How could the Jewish community make this statement when earlier in the book, they were on the verge of stoning the adulterous woman? Obviously, the ancient Hebrew laws not only permitted executions for heretics, but commanded them. The only possible argument to support this might be that the Roman laws forbid Jewish executions - but then the woman would not have been in danger, would she?

Jn 18:37 - Pilate asked him, "So you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."
Talk about a liar! Pilate asks a question, and Jesus tries (in a pathetic way) to claim that Pilate stated that he was a king! Someone had a severe problem with what constitutes the truth!

Jn 19:5-7 - So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, "Here is the man!" When the chief priests and the police saw him, they shouted, "Crucify him! Crucify him!" Pilate said to them, "Take him yourselves and crucify him; I find no case against him." The Jews answered him, "We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has claimed to be the Son of God."
I don't see where the problem is arising here. This says that the Romans didn't have a civil case against Jesus (and from what I've read in the gospels, they didn't - Jesus supported paying taxes and said nothing against the Roman authorities), but they didn't have a problem with the Jews doing their own lynching. There's something very unbelievable about this whole scene!

Jn 19:16,17 - Then he handed him over to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus; and carrying the cross by himself, he went out to what is called The Place of the Skull, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha.
That's strange! In all the other gospels, we read that some guy named Simon carried the cross for Jesus! Yet another continuity problem, and I'm really having trouble with this concept of "the gospel truth."

Jn 19:34,35 - Instead, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once blood and water came out. (He who saw this has testified so that you also may believe. His testimony is true, and he knows that he tells the truth.)
This, to me, shows that the author knew that much of this book would be very hard to believe. After all, there's an awful lot of problems, truth-wise here. So he tries to make it easier to believe what he writes (a visual "proof" of actual death), by saying "This is true! Really!!" Personally, I see no reason to believe, just on this person's word!

Jn 19:36,37 - These things occurred so that the scripture might be fulfilled, "None of his bones shall be broken." And again another passage of scripture says, "They will look on the one whom they have pierced."
The man starts into the prophecy fulfillment game with a couple of weak entries. He pulls a couple of quotes from the Psalms out of context, and claims that these individual lines were in fact prophecies concerning the messiah. Instead, they were part of the psalms that were whining over how hard a life the writers were living.

Jn 19:38-40 - After these things, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, though a secret one because of his fear of the Jews, asked Pilate to let him take away the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission; so he came and removed his body. Nicodemus, who had at first come to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it with the spices in linen cloths, according to the burial custom of the Jews.
Yet another story line problem! Here, Joseph and Nicodemus are shown preparing the body of Jesus before sealing it in the tomb! In other words, the burial procedure was completed before the Sabbath, whereas all the other gospels state that the preparation was put off till the first of the next week!

Jn 20:22,23 - After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."
Here's some more muddling of theology! Now, the decision-making process on going to heaven or hell is dependent on the whims of any Christian who has received the Holy Spirit! How much more confusing do you think it can get?

Jn 20:25-29 - So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe." A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe." Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe."
Here's an object lesson for all the believers out there! If you ask for evidence on something, you're a wimp! You'll have a greater reward and be truly blessed if you believe in something without any evidence!

Jn 21:20-23 - Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them; he was the one who had reclined next to Jesus at the supper and had said, "Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?" When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, "Lord, what about him?" Jesus said to him, "If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? Follow me!" So the rumor spread in the community that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, "If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?"
Here's an interesting bit of information! The author says that there was a rumor that John wouldn't die before the second coming. Of course, that rumor was not based on this rather silly, non-sequitur comment. It was more likely based on the comments in the other gospels that specifically stated "There are some standing here who will not taste death before" the second coming. I listed those quotes in Matthew and Mark. Look them up.