Foreword
The Lord Jesus Christ is wonderfully set forth in the Gospel of John, perhaps here more personally and intimately than in any other single book of holy scripture. The mutual love and familiarity between John and his Master is woven throughout the gospel narrative in modest shades that creates a backcloth upon which are highlighted the clearest and most profound revelations of Christ’s human and divine natures.
In many ways, therefore, it is not difficult to find the Lord Jesus in the Gospel of John. He is on every page, the theme of every chapter and verse. Yet, in these two volumes Pastor Don Fortner has done an excellent job in gathering key insights and applications of our Saviour’s words and works to remind us of where our focus must lie if we are properly to understand the word of God and the divine purpose.
There is much here for every kind of reader. The material in the following pages is comforting and challenging, simple yet profound, practical yet sublime. It opens up cause for reflection in our own souls yet draws our eyes from ourselves to look upon the One whose ministry and sacrifice brings every good and perfect gift to needy sinners.
These individual chapters were originally delivered as preached sermons to a local congregation of Christian believers, though they have been adapted for print and ease of reading. For that reason you will find a complete and compact message in each chapter, lending the book increased value whether it is used as portions for daily reading, read through in its entirety, or referred to for the meaning of a particular passage. It is not a commentary in the usual sense but a meditation upon and an explanation of John’s message, drawing out the story of the narrative, the meaning of the passage but also the personal application and significance for the Lord’s people today.
As always, Pastor Fortner’s aim has been two-fold. First, to lift up the Lord Jesus Christ and highlight his glory and greatness in the execution and sovereign accomplishment of his plan and purpose to save his people from their sins. Then, secondly, to explain and apply the outworking of free grace in the hearts and lives of God’s elect people.
I feel sure that no one who reads these chapters will be left in any doubt but that in these two goals the author has been successful. Consequently, I am very confident the reader will discover something new and thrilling in these pages about the blessed Lord Jesus Christ from the Gospel of John.
Peter L. Meney, Pastor
Sovereign Grace Church
Great Falls, Montana
