Much Debate

Here in the Jesus public ministry there was much confusion about who he was.  There were many myths about what Messiah would do and where he would come from.

John 6: 


the Son of Joseph -  ⁴¹ Then the people began to murmur in disagreement because he had said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” ⁴² They said, “Isn’t this Jesus, the son of Joseph? We know his father and mother. How can he say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”


^{Holy one of God - 68} Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. ⁶⁹ We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God


John 7: 
^{Demon possessed - 20} The crowd replied, “You’re demon possessed! Who’s trying to kill you?”


Is he Messiah ? -  ²⁵ Some of the people who lived in Jerusalem started to ask each other, “Isn’t this the man they are trying to kill? ²⁶ But here he is, speaking in public, and they say nothing to him. Could our leaders possibly believe that he is the Messiah? ²⁷ But how could he be? For we know where this man comes from. When the Messiah comes, he will simply appear; no one will know where he comes from.”

Divided opinions -  ⁴⁰ When the crowds heard him say this, some of them declared, “Surely this man is the Prophet we’ve been expecting.”^[g] 41 Others said, “He is the Messiah.” Still others said, “But he can’t be! Will the Messiah come from Galilee? ⁴² For the Scriptures clearly state that the Messiah will be born of the royal line of David, in Bethlehem, the village where King David was born.”^[h] 43 So the crowd was divided about him. ⁴⁴ Some even wanted him arrested, but no one laid a hand on him.

John 8: ²⁵ “Who are you?” they demanded.


A Samaritan devil -  ⁴⁸ The people retorted, “You Samaritan devil! Didn’t we say all along that you were possessed by a demon?”

^{possessed by a devil - 52} The people said, “Now we know you are possessed by a demon.

Divided opinions  -   ^{John 9: - 16} Some of the Pharisees said, “This man Jesus is not from God, for he is working on the Sabbath.” Others said, “But how could an ordinary sinner do such miraculous signs?” So there was a deep division of opinion among them.


Not from God


Ordinary Sinner

A prophet -  ¹⁷ Then the Pharisees again questioned the man who had been blind and demanded, “What’s your opinion about this man who healed you?”

   The man replied, “I think he must be a prophet.”

^{A sinner - 24} So for the second time they called in the man who had been blind and told him, “God should get the glory for this,^[b] because we know this man Jesus is a sinner.”

Divided opinions - John 10: ¹⁹ When he said these things, the people were again divided in their opinions about him.


^{Out of his mind - 20} Some said, “He’s demon possessed and out of his mind. Why listen to a man like that?” 


^{Demon possessed - 21} Others said, “This doesn’t sound like a man possessed by a demon! Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”


^{Are you the Messiah ?   24} The people surrounded him and asked, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”

Blasphemer, a mere man -  ³³ They replied, “We’re stoning you not for any good work, but for blasphemy! You, a mere man, claim to be God.”

Occurrences of sign or signs in John

These are the occurrences of the word sign in John when it speaks of a miracle.  In all 18 occurrences the phrase "miraculous sign(s)" is used.

John 2:11

This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

John 2:18

But the Jewish leaders demanded, “What are you doing? If God gave you authority to do this, show us a miraculous sign to prove it.”

John 2:23

Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in him.

John 3:2

After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. “Rabbi,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you.”

John 4:48

Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?”

John 4:54

This was the second miraculous sign Jesus did in Galilee after coming from Judea.

John 6:2

A huge crowd kept following him wherever he went, because they saw his miraculous signs as he healed the sick.

John 6:14 

When the people saw him do this miraculous sign, they exclaimed, “Surely, he is the Prophet we have been expecting!”

John 6:26

Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs.

John 6:30

They answered, “Show us a miraculous sign if you want us to believe in you. What can you do?

John 7:31

Many among the crowds at the Temple believed in him. “After all,” they said, “would you expect the Messiah to do more miraculous signs than this man has done?”

John 9:16

Some of the Pharisees said, “This man Jesus is not from God, for he is working on the Sabbath.” Others said, “But how could an ordinary sinner do such miraculous signs?” So there was a deep division of opinion among them.

John 10:41

And many followed him. “John didn’t perform miraculous signs,” they remarked to one another, “but everything he said about this man has come true.”

John 11:47

Then the leading priests and Pharisees called the high council together. “What are we going to do?” they asked each other. “This man certainly performs many miraculous signs.

John 12:18

That was the reason so many went out to meet him—because they had heard about this miraculous sign.

John 12:37

But despite all the miraculous signs Jesus had done, most of the people still did not believe in him.

John 15:24

If I hadn’t done such miraculous signs among them that no one else could do, they would not be guilty. But as it is, they have seen everything I did, yet they still hate me and my Father.

John 20:30

The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book.