The Study of the Gospel of John

by John-Peter Gernaat

The Gospel Study Group completed the chapter-by-chapter study of the Gospel of John in May. In June we considered a few of the main themes of this gospel and why this gospel made it into the canon of scripture.

What is one of the first things one may notice about John’s Gospel from a Christian theological perspective? John does not speak about the breaking of bread and the sharing of wine at the last Supper. In this Gospel Jesus does not say “Take this bread in remembrance of me for it is my body”, “Take this wine for it is my blood”. Instead, John presents a very long discourse that Jesus has with the disciples. Matthew would have been present at this meal and so would Mary, the Mother. Matthew writes a Gospel and Luke writes his Gospel after many discussions with Mary. Mark is a nephew of Simon Peter and wrote his Gospel based on his time spent with his uncle. None of the other Gospel writers includes anything of this long discourse. John does. For John the institution of the Eucharist is carried in the thoughts and revelations of this discourse.

John is the only disciple to be present with Jesus in the house of the High Priest and at the foot of the cross. Only in John’s Gospel do we read about the questioning of Simon of John (Simon Peter). John was a witness to events and writes down what he has witnessed.

John presents seven signs of Christ and seven “I am” statements of Christ. The events he includes in his Gospel provide a structure for these signs and statements. They are not a chronology of historical or biographical events. These signs and statements were considered in detail during the previous months of this study.

John does not present the outer events as they occurred, rather he presents an inner relationship to the outer events. John is the disciple whom Jesus loved. This love that Jesus had was in relationship to the initiation of John. John the Baptist was sent by the Father God as an angel/messenger and was in himself an initiated human being. When he was beheaded, his soul became a guarding to the circle of the disciples. After Lazarus, brother of Mary and Martha, was called forth from the tomb by Jesus after four days (one day beyond the period of the ancient temple sleep) the soul of John the Baptist united with Lazarus who had become John as a result of the initiation of death and rebirth. The name John takes on a meaning; it is no longer a name but rather a title of one who is an initiate. The young John who was a disciple of Jesus disappears from the Gospels and it may be assumed that he died. His earthly soul experience is also poured into the disciple whom Jesus loved in a further event of initiation and Lazarus becomes the ‘John’ in the circle of the disciples. The multiple initiations undergone by John provide him with a unique perspective on the events leading up to the crucifixion. He is able to comprehend the meaning of the discourse of Jesus at the Last Supper. John is further initiated on the Island of Patmos when he is taken into the spiritual world. During this spiritual experience he received further initiation as will be discovered when we study the Book of Revelation. After writing the Book of Revelation, John writes his Gospel. This Gospel is therefore the Gospel that holds the deepest mysteries of Christ’s mission on earth and of his preparation of humankind to become the Future Human Being.

The Zodiac has long been perceived by human beings as representing aspects of the Divine. Two points in the Zodiac have long been connected with powerful Divine aspects: Leo with the feminine aspect and Taurus with the masculine aspect. At ninety degrees to these is Aquarius the Mighty Lord in whom the Waters of Life flow. These signs were, from the earliest Christian times, connected with the Gospel writers. Leo with Mark; Taurus with Luke, Aquarius with Matthew. Completing the heavenly cross in the Zodiac is Scorpio which was originally experienced as an Eagle before changing to the Scorpion. John is connected with the Eagle. He has a vision for the whole picture in every event. John speaks about the Father, the Son and the Spirit more than any of the other Gospels.

We come to understand that Christianity is a religion of life through which there is a future. Christianity presents us the picture that we become co-creators with the Divine in this life. It is not a religion of the human being, being rescued by the Divine or of placating the Divine. It is a religion of responsibility through the Divine seed in us that leads us to creating our future with the Divine.