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... but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,
and that believing you may have life in His name.  John 20:31

Lesson 3, John 3:1 - 4:42
JESUS TEACHES


    Jesus Christ the Teacher (John 3:1-21)
  1. From reading John 2:23-25 and 3:2, what can we surmise about why Nicodemus came to Jesus and addressed Him as a teacher come from God?



    What was Nicodemus’ position? Why might he have come at night?



  2. Why would Jesus reply about being born again to see the kingdom of God to Nicodemus’ opening statement of acknowledgment that Jesus was a teacher from God?



  3. Instead of asking more questions about Jesus and the kingdom of God, Nicodemus focused on Jesus’ comments of being born again. In what ways is a spiritual birth like a physical birth?



  4.   Tell of your rebirth and how it changed your life.



  5. Nicodemus seemed to be surprised at Jesus’ explanation. What did Jesus use as a second illustration of the truths of salvation in the kingdom in verse 8?



  6. Speaking of the kingdom, a new birth, the wind and the Spirit may have brought Ezekiel’s vision to Nicodemus’s mind. How does Ezekiel 37:1-14 relate to John 3:1-13?



  7. What was the third illustration Jesus shared with Nicodemus in verse 14? See Numbers 21:4-9 to explain the incident to which Jesus was referring.



  8. Moses lifted up the serpent to save the Israelites from their sin. From John 3:14-16, why must the Son of Man also be lifted up?



  9. What word or expression in John 3:16 and 17 explains the following points:

    1. The Giver ________________________________

    2. The greatness of the gift ________________________________

    3. Who can enjoy ________________________________

    4. The blessing ________________________________

  10. From verses 19-21, what was the fourth illustration of salvation that Jesus gave Nicodemus?



  11. Jesus claimed to be the light of the world (John 8:12). Considering the benefits of light, why would some men choose darkness rather than light?



    Jesus the Bridegroom (John 3:22-30)

  12. Jesus and John continued to baptize disciples while Jesus remained in Judea. What seemed to be a necessary physical requirement for their baptizing? What does this indicate? Who actually did the baptizing? See John 4:2.



  13. How does John the Baptist orate the differences between his and Jesus’ position & purpose?



    Jesus the Witness (John 3:31-36)

  14. In this chapter the author John emphasizes a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is: Why should we heed Jesus’ witness (testimony)?


    The Bad Samaritan
            In Jesus’ day orthodox Jews hated Samaritans and had nothing to do with them. The Samaritans were a people of mixed Assyrian and Jewish blood. After the Northern Kingdom of Samaria was conquered by the Assyrians in 727 B.C. and many Jews carried away, their territory was repopulated by Gentiles from the Assyrian Empire. Over the centuries the Assyrians intermarried with Jews to form the hybrid group known as the Samaritans. The Jews did not accept them as their neighbors and it was with this in view that Jesus spoke to the Jews in the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37.
            The fact that Jesus ministered to Samaritans made Him suspect to the Scribes and Pharisees. But Jesus came not to respect position; He came to call all sinners to repentance.
            After teaching a learned, devout ruler of the Jews in chapter 3, Jesus finds His next student in the lowest of the low - a woman, a Samaritan half-breed, and a divorced adulterer. Not only did He talk with her, He asked her to give Him a drink. A ‘good’ Jewish man would have considered drinking from a Samaritan’s vessel a pollution of his body.


    The Samaritan Woman (John 4:1-26)

  15. What had the Pharisees heard about what Jesus was doing in the region of Judea? Why did Jesus leave that area and return to Galilee?



  16. While Jesus was resting at Jacob’s well, who came to draw water? What was so unusual about this encounter?



  17. What did the Samaritan woman need to learn about who Jesus was, what He had to offer and how she could receive it?



  18. Why did Samaritan woman perceive that she was talking to a prophet?



  19. Before men and women can be saved, they must realize that they are lost! How did Jesus point out the woman’s condition to her?



  20. After Jesus got the woman to admit to a sinful life, how did she try to deter the conversation?



  21. In this gospel, one of John’s goals was to stress that the old legal system had ended and a new worship had emerged with grace and truth through Jesus Christ that would depend on man’s inward integrity, not outward geography. From the following verses, what is new?


  22. What did Jesus reveal to the woman about who He is?



    The Disciples (John 4:27-38)

  23. What are the disciples’ concerns when they return to find Jesus talking with the woman?



    What does Jesus take the opportunity to teach them?



    The Samaritans (John 4:39-42)

  24. What happened in the Samaritan city as a result of Jesus’ conversation with a woman that most would have considered the least likely prospect for Jesus’ attention?



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