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The Gospel Of John, The Apostle Essay

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John, the apostle, wrote the Gospel of John as an apologetic to proclaim the deity of Christ, so that everyone may believe and have eternal life (John 20:31) (Voorhees). While written in Ephesus to Diaspora Jews and Proselytes, he desired to reach a larger audience. One can divide John into two books. This passage falls under the “Book of Signs: The Signs of the Messiah.” These signs are meant to state that Christ, the Son of God, is Jesus (Kostenberger 9-10). John 6:22-58 harmonizes well with the book through the theme of belief and the source of Jesus as eternal life. Jesus uses the Bread of Life Discourse to show that while sustenance on earth is vital, the eternal life he will grant through his death is superior. John wrote the Gospel in 80 AD (Carson 82). The early Gentile mission had occurred, the Jerusalem temple had been destroyed, and early gnostic thought was infiltrating. People were looking for ways to fill the void from the loss of the temple. John writes to show that Jesus is the temple’s replacement, and he fulfills symbols in the Jewish festivals (Kostenberger 8).
The Feeding of the Five Thousand in the first part of chapter 6, sets the stage for the bread of life discourse. Jesus used five loaves and two fish from a little boy to feed the hungry crowd. It is possible that he repeatedly broke the bread until all were filled (Tenney 72). Here Jesus temporarily satisfied their physical hunger before he tells them how to satisfy their spiritual hunger.

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