Continued

someone opened the eyes of a man who had been born blind. If this man was not from God he could not have been able to do anything." They (the Jews) answered and said to him "You were born wholly in sins and you are you teaching us?" And so they cast him outside. Jesus heard that they had cast him outside and finding him said "Do you believe in the Son of man? The man answered and said "Who is he, sir that I may believe in him?" Jesus said to him "You have seen him and he is the one who is (now) speaking with you." He said "I believe, sir" and he worshipped him. Jesus said "I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see and the ones who see may become blind. Now some of the Pharisees who were with him (Jesus) heard some of these things. They said to him "Are we blind as well?" Jesus said to them "If you were blind you would not have had sin. But now that you say "We see" then your sin remains."

In these arguments with 'the Jews' in the paragraphs above there are many levels at work. There is a pattern of repetition on the part of Jesus which has some parallels with the repetitive couplets of the psalms. The original language spoken would have been Aramaic and there could have been elements of a melodious chant (c/f The Koran and other Arabic poetry and even the Essenes). Even so within the pattern of repetition Jesus gradually introduces new concepts in a step by step way until he reaches a conclusion “Before Abraham came to be I am”.

As well as being conscious of what Jesus was saying one can also be conscious of John the writer who is recording this. At one point Jesus addresses 'the having believed Jews'. Yet next he is telling them their father is the devil and they want to kill him. Is this an editing error? Consider the position of the early church. There would been 'believing Jews' who thought of themselves as Jews who happened to be Christian. First priority for them would be the continuation of their Jewish law. Yet John is telling them to let go of their detailed rituals. 'The word' of Jesus is setting them free. In a second paragraph he talks of the need for the grain of wheat to fall into the ground and die. Unless these people 'let go' others will be turned away from the church. At the turn of the first century the Jewish religion had by now adjusted to its loss of Temple worship. Jews moved into the future with their focus on the Torah the first five books of the Bible and the local synagogue. But what would be the focus of Christians? John puts forward Jesus as the center-point. So he tells Jewish church members. 'Stop over-stressing your heritage from Abraham.' Within the text Jesus says "Why are you trying to kill me?" Unless church members (all of them) recognised Jesus as the Living Word they would be denying his full reality and in this way they would be trying to kill him. In the pattern of the paragraphs it appears that just as Jesus delivers an ultimatum to his Jewish opponents, so the writer John is delivering an ultimatum to these Jewish Christians people as well. In the meantime 'gentile' people are wanting to join the church

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10. Is commanded by Father			division / judging
10:1-21	"I am the door"	12:44-50		"I a light have come"

10:1-21 "Truly, truly I tell you the one who does not enter the sheep fold through the door but goes there by another way, that one is a thief and a robber. But the one who goes through the door is the shepherd of the sheep. The door keeper opens up to this one and the sheep hear his voice. He calls each of his sheep by name and he leads them out. When he has collected all those who belong to him he sets out in front of the sheep and they follow him because they know his voice. But as for a stranger, they will not follow him but rather run away from him because they do not know the voice of strangers." Jesus told them this as an allegory but those men did not know what he was saying to them. Jesus therefore said again "Truly, truly I tell you that I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters, it is through me. He will be saved and will go in (to the sheep fold) and will (then) go out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they (the sheep) may have life and may have it in abundance. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hireling (on the other hand), is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. He sees the wolf coming and leaving the sheep he flees. (Then) the wolf seizes the sheep and scatters them. Because such a man is a hireling what happens to the sheep does not matter to him. I am the good shepherd. I know mine and mine know me. This is just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this fold and it behoves me to bring them (into this fold) also. They will hear my voice and there will be one flock and one shepherd. Therefore the Father loves me because I lay down my life so that I may take it up again. No one took it (my life) from me. I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and I have authority to take it up again. I received the commandment (to do this) from my Father." Again there was a division amongst the Jews because of these words. Many of them said "He has a demon and is raving. Why do you listen to him?" Others said "These are not the words of someone who is possessed by a demon. A demon cannot open the eyes of blind men."

12:44-50 But Jesus cried out and said "The one who believes in me believes not in me but in the one who has sent me, and the one who sees me sees the one who has sent me. I have come as a light into the world and everyone who believes in me will not remain in darkness. And as for anyone who hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but so that I might save the world. The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has one judging him (that is) the word which I spoke. That will judge him in the last day. This is because I did not speak of myself. The Father who has sent me. He has commanded me about what I may say and what I may speak. I know that his commandment is eternal life. What things therefore I say, are according to what the Father has told me to say."