John Chapter 1 bible study

Spread the Word!

John Chapter 1 opens with one of the most profound introductions in all of Scripture, revealing who Jesus is and why He came into this world. It also reveals a deeper connection to the book of Genesis that you may not have heard. In this video Bible study, we walk verse by verse through John 1, exploring the meaning of “the Word,” “the light” that overcomes darkness, and the promise of new life in Christ. Whether you’re new to the Gospel of John or returning with fresh eyes, this study invites you to deepen your understanding and faith.

John Chapter 1 Video Walkthrough

You can either choose to watch this video, or read the blog post below on this John Chapter 1 Bible study.

We will be taking a look at the entire book of John going chapter by chapter. We can break down John chapter 1 into three parts.

• Jesus as God the creator and the Light of the World

• John the Baptist

• The first four disciples to recognize who Jesus was.

Let’s begin by reading the first three verses in your Bible. John 1:1-3 reads, “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 were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.”

The main topic here is someone who is called the Word. This Word is said to be with God and that he was God. This Word is also said to be the creator as it was through him that all things were made.

Verses four and five tell us in him was life and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. Now it goes on to talk about Jesus being the light that shines in darkness.

To summarize, we see these verses talk about the start of creation, the creator and the light.

Do you remember where any of this was previously mentioned?

If you go to the very first verse in the Bible found in Genesis 1:1-5, it is the same theme. On day one, God created heaven and earth and that there was darkness covering the deep waters.

Then God brought in light and he separated light from darkness. If you continue to read, notice that it was only on day four that God created the sun and the moon found in Genesis 1:14.

So what was the light on the first day of creation?

John tells us that this light is Jesus and it is John the Baptist who is bearing witness to this light. The reference verse for this is John 16-8. John 1:9-13 tells us that the creator came into the world, yet the world did not accept him.

But the good news is that to all who accepted him and believed in his name, he gave them the right to become children of God. Verses 14- 18 show us how this word, who was the creator, the true light, and is God became man and came into the world to save the world.

The author of this book, John, tells us that the law of Moses was given in the Old Testament to turn people away from sin. But it was the grace of God that he offered himself as a sacrifice so we can receive salvation by believing in him and not by our own works. Verses 19-34 talk about who John the Baptist is. He denied being the Christ, Elijah, or the prophet.

But he says four very interesting things about Jesus.

In verse 23, John the Baptist quotes an Old Testament prophecy of prophet Isaiah regarding Jesus where the Old Testament prophecy is about preparing a way for God.

Next verse 27 talks about how unworthy he is of Jesus proving Jesus to hold a higher rank and authority. In verse 29, John tells us that Jesus is the lamb of God come as a sacrifice for our sins.

Here’s an interesting fact.

The first time the word lamb is used in the Bible is in Genesis 22 where Abraham was to offer Isaac as a sacrifice to the Lord. Abraham did not realize this was a test from God. When Isaac, his son, asked him, “Where is the lamb to make the offering?” Abraham said that the Lord will provide. And that is exactly what God did by coming into earth in the form of a man Jesus and being the ultimate sacrifice years later.

Finally, in verse 30, John tells us that Jesus was before him. But the gospel of Luke tells us that Jesus was born 6 months after John the Baptist. So what does he mean when he says Jesus was before him?

The last part in this chapter is about Jesus calling four of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip, and Nathanael.

• Andrew believes Jesus is the Messiah or Christ.
• Philip says that Jesus is the one prophesied in the Old Testament by Moses and the prophets.
• Nathanael calls Jesus the Son of God and the King of Israel.

Finally, Jesus ends this chapter with a strong statement about who he is, which is in verse 50-51, where Jesus says, “You will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the son of man.”

For this we can go back again to the book of Genesis 28:12-17 where Jacob has a dream and he sees something similar to what Jesus describes except that the stairway Jacob saw which connected heaven and earth on which angels ascended and descended was a foreshadowing of Jesus. In fact, Jacob called it the gateway to heaven in verse 17.

Do you know who else declared that I Am the Gate?

Jesus said

I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. John 10:9

Free Book of John Bible Study Worksheets

Download or save these free Gospel of John worksheets (PDF format), that takes you Chapter-by-Chapter. Not need to sign up for anything, download the sheets found in this post.

Spread the Word!