A Closer Look at God's Word

Lesson 22 of 33. Many Jews who had witnessed the resurrection of Lazarus were believing in Him–and this would not do. Caiaphas, the high priest, gave his pronouncement that Jesus must die for the nation. In fact, this was God’s plan, not his, and God was speaking through him. Also, in this lesson, Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, anoints the feet of Jesus with costly ointment and wipes them...

Lesson 21 of 33. Jesus had raised others from the dead, but this time it was different. Lazarus had been dead for four days, and as everyone knew, decomposition had set in. Nevertheless, when Jesus cried, “Lazarus, come forth,” the dead man came back to life and, by his very existence, became a testimony to Jesus’ mighty power. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John...

Lesson 20 of 33. Faced with Jesus’ supernatural abilities, the Jews continued to ask Him for a sign that He was their Messiah. In answer, Jesus referred to His mighty works and told them the reason they did not believe was because they were not His sheep. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John10_19-42and11_01-08.pdf

Lesson 19 of 33. Using the well-understood example of a shepherd and his sheep, Jesus illustrates His mission as the Good Shepherd—to bring the lost house of Israel and the Gentiles into the Church of Jesus Christ. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John10_01-18.pdf

Lesson 18 of 33. Faced with the obvious fact that Jesus had healed a man who had been born blind, the Pharisees refused to believe Jesus was from God because He had made clay on the Sabbath. In response, the man who had been healed defended Jesus—and was cast out of the synagogue. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John09_12-41.pdf

Lesson 17 of 33. In this lesson, Jesus, using the “I am” name of God, reveals the fact that He had revealed Himself to Abraham. Once again, the Jews took up stones to cast at Him, but He miraculously escaped out of their midst. Also, in this lesson, Jesus heals a man who had been blind from birth. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John08_50-59and09_01-11.pdf

Lesson 16 of 33. In this lesson, Jesus draws the line of demarcation between the children of God and the children of the devil. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John08_21-49.pdf

Lesson 15 of 33.Unable to arrest Jesus, the Pharisees tried to disgrace Him in front of the people He was teaching in the temple. Right in the middle of His lesson, they asked Him to pronounce judgment on a woman taken in adultery. But instead, Jesus placed His finger on the Pharisees’ sins—and, one by one, they left. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John08_01-20.p...

Lesson 14 of 33.In Jerusalem, things were heating up. Jesus made no attempt to sidestep His right, as the Son of God, to heal the impotent man on the Sabbath. On top of that, He was openly teaching the people in the temple, and the religious leaders seemed powerless to arrest Him. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John07_19-53.pdf

Lesson 13 of 33.Jesus’ popularity continued to wane. First, it was the crowd that He had so miraculously fed. Then it was the religious Jews in Capernaum. Then it was His own half-brothers and, finally, the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John07_01-18.pdf

Lesson 12 of 33.During this lesson, Jesus lost most of His followers. Nevertheless, when Jesus asked His twelve disciples, “will ye also go away?” Peter, speaking for the rest of the disciples, asked . . .  “Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.” Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-con...

Lesson 11 of 33. In this lesson, we see Jesus at cross purposes—first with the crowd in the wilderness—and then with the religious Jews. The first group wanted to force Jesus into becoming their king so that He might overthrow Roman rule and they would have an endless supply of food. The religious Jews in the synagogue at Capernaum would not accept the fact that He had miraculously come down from...

Lesson 10 of 33. In defence of His claims, Jesus offers five witnesses: John the Baptist, the marvellous works that His Father had given Him as His credentials, His Father’s testimony from heaven, and the Holy Scriptures that we can read today. Also, in this lesson, we have the feeding of the 5,000 with a boy’s lunch of five loaves and two fish. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/up...

Lesson 09 of 53. The Jews persecuted Jesus because He had healed the impotent man on the Sabbath. In answer to their accusations, Jesus claims to be equal with God. Throughout His earthly ministry, the religious leaders continuously sought to kill Him because of His claim to deity. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John05_17-31.pdf

Lesson 08 of 33.Having left Samaria and returned to Galilee, Jesus meets a nobleman whose son was sick at his home in Capernaum. Rejecting his insistence that Jesus come down to Capernaum and heal his son, Jesus sent him back home with His assurance that his son was healed. Returning to Jerusalem to attend another feast of the Jews, Jesus heals the impotent man at the pool of Bethesda. Transcript...

Lesson 07 of 33. As a result of the Samaritan woman’s testimony and having seen no miracles, the Samaritans believed that Jesus was the Christ—the Messiah—the Saviour of the world. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John04_27-54.pdf

Lesson 06 of 33.Jesus breaks an established Jewish tradition—having a conversation with a Samaritan—and not only that, but with a woman who was despised by her own people. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John04_05-26.pdf

Lesson 05 of 33.Here we have the last testimony of John the Baptist, Jesus’ faithful herald and forerunner of His public ministry. John 3:30 “He must increase, but I must decrease.” Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John03_22-36and04_01-04.pdf

Lesson 04 of 33. Here, we have the gospel in a nutshell. John 3:16-17: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John03_14-...

Lesson 03 of 33. Jesus attends the first Passover during His public ministry, casts the sellers of oxen, sheep and doves out of the temple, and overthrew the tables of the money changers. In this lesson, we also have Nicodemus’ visit and Jesus’ insistence upon the fact that . . . “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploa...

Lesson 02 of 33. In this lesson, we have many firsts. Jesus called His first four disciples : Andrew, Peter, Philip, and Nathaniel. Jesus performed His first miracle at a marriage celebration in Cana of Galilee. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John01_36-51and02_01-11.pdf

Lesson 01 of 33. The gospel, according to John the disciple, begins with much the same words as the book of Genesis—and for the same reason. Both books identify God the Father, God the Holy Spirit, and God’s Son, Jesus—the entire Trinity—as the Creator of all things. Transcript here: https://closerlook.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/John01_01-36.pdf

Lesson 53 of 53. (Next, we go to the book of John) And by God’s express command, Jacob’s family went down into the land of Egypt. For the duration of the famine and for many long years, they would enjoy the rich pastures of Goshen and the special care of Israel’s favourite son, Joseph. There, these 70 souls would increase to the mighty nation we now know as the Children of Israel. Transcript here:...

Lesson 52 of 53. Upon his sons’ return from Egypt, Jacob’s life was renewed beyond his expectations. Benjamin was safe, Simeon was safe, and best of all, Joseph was alive. And seeing the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry his family down to Egypt, Israel said (for we can start calling him by his new name once more). . . “It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive: I will go and see him before I di...

Lesson 51 of 53. Well, they had passed the test. Given the opportunity to go home, they would not forsake their younger brother Benjamin. In fact, Judah was even willing to take his brother’s place and become a slave in Egypt. It was then that Joseph revealed his identity to his brothers. He also revealed God’s plan. Yes, “. . . God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and...