Alright!
Welcome back to Isaac Hunter’s Online Bible Study. We’ve now reached the midpoint of our August reading.
This month, we’ve been working through John 16–21. As with every mid-month check-in, the goal isn’t to arrive at final conclusions but to pause, reflect on what we’ve read so far, and consider the themes John continues to develop.
One of the things that has stood out to me is how intentionally John records the final hours of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Rather than rushing through these familiar events, he slows the narrative even further, highlighting Jesus’ final prayer, His arrest, His trials, and ultimately His crucifixion. The emphasis is not simply on what happened, but on how every event unfolds according to the Father’s purpose.
Jesus repeatedly reminds His disciples that sorrow is coming, but that it will not have the final word. He promises peace in the midst of trouble, prays for those the Father has given Him, and willingly lays down His life. Even in His arrest and trial, John presents Jesus not as a helpless victim but as the One who remains fully aware of—and in control of—everything taking place.
As the narrative moves toward the cross, John continues weaving together themes that have been present throughout the Gospel: belief and unbelief, light and darkness, truth and falsehood, life and death. Yet these themes now reach their climax in the death and resurrection of Christ.
The question running beneath these chapters is both simple and deeply personal:
How should the reality of the risen Christ shape the way we believe, follow, and live?
Let’s jump in…
– Mid Month Check In –
!! ISAAC HUNTER’s BIBLE STUDY !!
By the midpoint of these chapters, one pattern becomes increasingly clear: the Gospel of John is pressing toward its climax.
Jesus has finished preparing His disciples. Now the events He has been predicting begin to unfold. His prayer for His followers gives way to His arrest, His trials before the Jewish leaders and Pilate, and ultimately His crucifixion. Yet John consistently presents these events from a different perspective than we might expect.
Rather than portraying Jesus as a helpless victim caught in circumstances beyond His control, John emphasizes His complete awareness of everything taking place. Jesus knows what is coming, willingly submits to the Father’s will, and repeatedly demonstrates that every step toward the cross is part of the mission He came to accomplish.
As these chapters unfold, another pattern becomes increasingly evident:
- The resurrection is not presented as the conclusion of Jesus’ work, but as the beginning of His followers’ mission.
- The risen Christ appears to His disciples, strengthens their faith, restores Peter after his denial, and once again calls His followers to continue the work He has entrusted to them.
One truth continues to surface as I read these chapters:
- The Christian life is not centered merely on the death of Christ, but on following the living, risen Savior who continues to call His people to believe, serve, and follow Him.
That, more than anything else, seems to be the thread that holds John 16–21 together.
Some Questions:
- What part of Jesus’ prayer in John 17 has stood out to you the most, and why?
- What does John’s account of the resurrection teach us about the relationship between faith, eyewitness testimony, and belief?
Our 2nd Half of the Month:
In the second half of the month, we shift from primarily reading and recording observations to in-depth research. While I still recommend reading through John 16–21 at least once each day for the remainder of the month, our attention now turns to consulting commentaries, Bible dictionaries, cross-references, historical background resources, and the broader witness of Scripture to help answer the questions that have emerged during our reading.
By this point, your text should also be marked and organized using your hierarchical outlining method. Continue refining that outline as your understanding develops. In these chapters especially, pay close attention to recurring themes and images: the work of the Holy Spirit, prayer, glory, truth, fulfillment, sacrifice, kingship, witness, resurrection, restoration, belief, mission, and discipleship. As you study, notice how these themes converge in the death and resurrection of Christ and how John concludes his Gospel by pointing readers beyond the empty tomb to a lifetime of following the risen Lord.
Word of Reminder:
- This study is not about speed or volume.
- You do not need to “finish” quickly.
- You do not need polished answers.
- You do not need to resolve every tension.
If you are following the monthly reading schedule, continue working through John 16-21 at a steady pace. There is no requirement to match anyone else’s speed.
Read patiently and watch for repeated patterns. And let the text expose what it intends to expose before attempting to resolve it.
John 16-21
The Gospel of John opens not by addressing a drifting people, but by revealing a person—Jesus as the Word, the light, and the source of life—and then immediately moves into how individuals respond when they encounter Him; rather than building slowly, John establishes His identity upfront and shows that while clarity is given, responses vary—some recognize Him, some misunderstand, some hesitate, and some begin to oppose—making the central point clear: exposure to truth does not guarantee acceptance of it.
!! Use the Form Below to Join the Club !!
If you would like to join us for Isaac Hunter’s Official Bible Study, use the form at the bottom of this email, then post a comment below to confirm you are present and accounted for. If you are reading this months or years later, by all means, join in after the fact, post below, and start reading. Better late than never!
!! IF YOU LIKE JOHN 16-21, YOU WILL LOVE OUR DAUGHTER !!
You can purchase the first book in the Witch Gnostic Heresies right now for a limited time up to 70% OFF, so act now while we still have copies in stock!
Check out this excerpt from my novel, Our Daughter:
“Okay, mom,” Randy said.
“You behave yourself and be nice. You’re lucky to have company while you wait for the doctors.”
The woman turned and started back the way she came.
“The nurse said it would be twenty or thirty more minutes, so we’ll eat quick and be back up here before they take you in, okay?”
“Okay, mom.”
“Sorry for him,” the woman said to Katie as she walked by.
“He’s funny.”
Katie grinned.
As the woman left, Katie noticed the boy moving around again on the bed. Before she realized what was happening, the tiny lump disappeared and she could hear the faint sound of bare hands and feet on the tile floor.
He was low crawling under the beds toward her.
A moment later, Randy popped his head out from under the nearest hospital bed, craning his neck around to look up at her.
“Hello, there,” Katie said.
Randy disappeared back under the bed, the bed sheet draping down almost to the floor. Katie could still see three little fingers pressed to the tile.
“What are you here for?” Katie asked, readjusting her seat in the chair, trying to get the ache in her chest to lessen.
For whatever reason, the wheelchair was really uncomfortable.
“Why are – “
Randy’s voice trailed off for a moment as he looked around.
“Why are you here?”
“I’m getting my leg fixed,” Katie said. “See?”
Randy poked his head back out from under the bed and looked at the leg she was pointing to.
“What’s wrong with it?”
“The doctor said it’s broken,” Katie said. “Shattered.”
“Ouch.”
“Yeah. Ouch.”
“Can you feel it?” Randy asked, able to stay out from his hiding place.
“I can feel it, but it’s not too bad,” Katie said, then tapped the IV in her arm. “This thing is giving me medicine of some kind for the pain. At least that’s what the nurses said.”
“Why are you – “
Randy stopped mid-sentence.
He scooted out from under the bed entirely and slowly crept over to er on all fours.
“What are you, some kind of spider?” Katie asked, giggling a little.
“What are you?” Randy echoed.
He was now only about a foot away from her chair and sat there, his legs folded up under him, gawking up at her.
“What are you staring at me for?”
“I’ve never – “
Randy put out a hesitant hand and ever so gently touched her arm.
“Are you some kind of ghost?”
He looked around again.
“Are you – ”
He leaned in, talking in a whisper.
“Are you dead?”
A nurse came around the corner and stopped abruptly, spotting the empty bed in the far corner where Randy should have been.
“Randy Andrews,” the nurse said, her hands now on her hips. “You get right back into the bed and you stop playing around, please. They are ready for you in surgery.”
Katie watched as Randy scrambled on all fours under the beds and back up onto his, pulling the sheet back over top of himself again.
She started to ask him about his question, but couldn’t get the words out before his parents appeared at the door.
Katie sat there quietly, watching Randy stare back at her from under his sheet. She glanced over at his parents and the nurse, noticed Randy’s dad had no hair on the top of his head.
Are you dead?
What kind of question was that?
The snap of the wheel locks being disengaged on Randy’s hospital bed jarred Katie out of the confusion she was in.
The doctor she’d first seen was now at the door, waiting for Randy.
He was his surgeon.
They wheeled Randy out of the room, his parents following right behind, disappearing to the left, heading for his operating room.
The pre-op room was empty again.
Dead.
Are you dead?
What kind of crazy question was that?
The nurse came back through the double doors.
“It won’t be long now,” she said.
“Okay.”
Katie tried not to think about the dull ache growing just behind her sternum.
The nurse disappeared around the corner as Katie watched the double doors to the operating rooms slowly shut.
Buy my book Our Daughter and begin the adventure of a lifetime, as you uncover the mysteries behind Katie Cadora’s new life after the horrible accident that stole her mother away from her. Will she find sure footing again? Will the pain ever stop? Will she discover the secrets her new foster family are keeping from her? Is the boy’s question right? Is Katie Cadora actually dead?
Click here and grab your copy today and jump into this Witch Gnostic Heresy trilogy with both feet!
But, trust me when I tell you, there are deceivers in our midsts! Get started in this bone chilling suspense novel right away and find out why….sometimes….you’re just better off DEAD!
!! Get Your Copy Today !!
What do you think?