Themes in the Gospel of John (Entire Lecture!) | N.T. Wright Online

Watch the entire first lecture from our course, "Themes in the Gospel of John."

The Gospel of John has been a favorite of many readers of the New Testament and is full of beauty, mystery, and, occasionally, surprises. Jesus, in this Gospel, points to a new way of living. It is the Kingdom of God way of life. This way of life was in contrast to the normal Roman way of living in the first century A.D as much as it is in contrast to what most people in the twenty-first century experience.

The course approaches the Gospel of John in a way that looks at seven key themes. These themes bind the Fourth Gospel together in a manner that allows us to see this ‘new way of living’ as possible for followers of King Jesus. In so doing, we then apply these themes to the current era in order to ask ourselves questions about how we are putting them into practice. In a way, this is the story of how to live out being the presence of God on earth through the indwelling of God’s spirit.

[gjk]

John's gospel - shows the way forward to live today's life. there are several aspects to today's life that need guidance. NTW gives this long introduction, I guess, mainly for people who think that a sense of justice is NOT inherent. (it is learned human behaviour and varies depending on social norms) - My thanks to NTW who took time to explain and also create intrigue as to how does Bible (John's gospel) provide guidance in dealing with today's prevailing injustice.

[paullatif]

Good gracious Bishop Wright,
Four years on here in Hamilton, NZ your commentary is as contemporary as it was first
shared !!
▪︎"Justice" such a huge topic and so relevant for 2023 in our place of life as it was seen through the Johnine Gospel of Jesus's interaction of His day !!

[bachnbrahms]

This sounds as if it is actually a promo for a course on the Gospel of John. I guess I was expecting a list of bullet points identifying the themes in John, as the title leads interested viewers that this video would, in only nine minutes, reveal these themes - plural. NTW only expounds on justice, a singular theme. It isn’t until near the video’s end @8.25 that we find out if we sign up for the course we will learn more. Seems a bit naughty. Titles should be transparent, especially if the topic is on justice. Those not familiar might ask how John’s gospel is any different from today’s government documents.

That said I am looking forward to delving into this study with Bishop Wright. It is sure to reveal more layers of truth and goodness, blessing us all.

[blackphi]

Rather a puzzling video: plugged in a marketing email as an answer to the question "what is the course like?" this barely mentions John's Gospel or the Bible. Is that typical across the course?

Presumably not. I'd guess this is just an introductory video for one particular theme, raising issues that later lectures are intended to address. Do these subsequent lectures address the issues well, relevantly, interestingly? Who knows - this video doesn't help, I'm afraid.

[countmontecristo]

I like ntw teaching but I'd like him to be more specific and straightforward instead of beating around the bush.

[sarahtucker]

I always appreciate your teachings Sir. But it seems that this issue of the themes in JOHN's Gospel is not handled correctly You went too far away.So it makes it Soo boring for mist of us.
Please give the intro, then the topic.

[MarkAndrewRitchie]

are you going to so much as speak about the Gospel of John?

[dannorris]

Either Wright doesn’t know what the themes of John’s gospel are or the channel doesn’t know what they are. Probably both.

[Andantalas]

Great intro, please pass on that a yellow background (wall color) does not compliment his skin tone.