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The Gospel of John: An Expositional Commentary #1
The Gospel of John: The Coming of the Light
This expositional commentary on one of the Bibles most popular books combines careful scholarship and clear communication in a way that informs and helps a wide range of readers, from serious Bible students to interested laypersons. James Montgomery Boice not only explains the meaning of the text verse by verse and section by section, he relates the texts concerns to the world in which we live, the life of the church, and the realities of the Christian life. He occasionally interrupts the verse-by-verse commentary for more extended treatment of key themes. Based on messages preached at Philadelphias world-renowned Tenth Presbyterian Church, these expositions are ideal models for preachers and excellent resources for teachers of classes and small groups. There are five volumes in the commentary, each comprising a major section of the -The Coming of the Light
-Christ and Judaism
-Those Who Received Him
-Peace in Storm
-Triumph through Tragedy An earlier edition of this commentary, based on the KJV text, was published by Zondervan in 1985. This edition has been totally redesigned and uses the NIV.
-Christ and Judaism
-Those Who Received Him
-Peace in Storm
-Triumph through Tragedy An earlier edition of this commentary, based on the KJV text, was published by Zondervan in 1985. This edition has been totally redesigned and uses the NIV.
368 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1999
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48 people want to read
About the author
James Montgomery Boice
268 books100 followersJames Montgomery Boice was a Reformed theologian, Bible teacher, and pastor of Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia from 1968 until his death in 2000. He was also president and cofounder of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, the parent organization of The Bible Study Hour on which Boice was a speaker for more than thirty years.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 15, 2023
This is my first reading of a work by James Montgomery Boice, and I took my sweet time enjoying every sentence. This is gold. I’ll be back for the remaining volumes.
The narration by Mr. Lescault left something to be desired. His voice is somewhat robotic.
The narration by Mr. Lescault left something to be desired. His voice is somewhat robotic.
November 5, 2016
The Gospel of John, Volume 1: The Coming of the Light (John 1-4)
by James Boice
Boice is theological gold, and this collection of sermons differs only in addressing Scripture even more directly to the normal lives of God’s people in the pew. With a natural blend of exposition and application, Boice draws instruction from every ounce of every verse.
As an example, in writing on the Incarnation from John 1:1, 14 (a 5-page chapter/sermon on just these two verses), he applies the truth that Jesus became a man this way:
“By becoming man Jesus has also provided us with an example of how the life that is fully pleasing to the Father should be lived…. I often have been asked by people who are concerned with the state of the church today why it is that so many of the young men who go to seminary (even a good seminary, for that matter) come out of it without much of a message and without much of an ability to lead the churches they eventually serve. This is good questioning. As I have thought about it, I have come to feel that one of the main reasons is that they lack an adequate example of what the Christian ministry can be. They have never had contact with a strong church or with an intelligent preaching ministry that is Bible-centered and faithful to the great themes of the gospel. SO, lacking an example, they wander about in their approach and fail to provide strong leadership…. Thus, Jesus became man in order to go through all sorts of situations with all sorts of people in order that we might be provided with a pattern upon which our Christian life can be constructed.”
He goes on to describe Jesus as a needlework sampler that we look to as we live our life and do our work. Excellent illustration and application of biblical themes.
My one quibble would be that he goes a little too slow through the text, sometimes drawing in lots of other biblical texts and themes only tangentially related to the text. I think he does so to increase biblical literacy, which is good. But it obscures the main point occasionally.
by James Boice
Boice is theological gold, and this collection of sermons differs only in addressing Scripture even more directly to the normal lives of God’s people in the pew. With a natural blend of exposition and application, Boice draws instruction from every ounce of every verse.
As an example, in writing on the Incarnation from John 1:1, 14 (a 5-page chapter/sermon on just these two verses), he applies the truth that Jesus became a man this way:
“By becoming man Jesus has also provided us with an example of how the life that is fully pleasing to the Father should be lived…. I often have been asked by people who are concerned with the state of the church today why it is that so many of the young men who go to seminary (even a good seminary, for that matter) come out of it without much of a message and without much of an ability to lead the churches they eventually serve. This is good questioning. As I have thought about it, I have come to feel that one of the main reasons is that they lack an adequate example of what the Christian ministry can be. They have never had contact with a strong church or with an intelligent preaching ministry that is Bible-centered and faithful to the great themes of the gospel. SO, lacking an example, they wander about in their approach and fail to provide strong leadership…. Thus, Jesus became man in order to go through all sorts of situations with all sorts of people in order that we might be provided with a pattern upon which our Christian life can be constructed.”
He goes on to describe Jesus as a needlework sampler that we look to as we live our life and do our work. Excellent illustration and application of biblical themes.
My one quibble would be that he goes a little too slow through the text, sometimes drawing in lots of other biblical texts and themes only tangentially related to the text. I think he does so to increase biblical literacy, which is good. But it obscures the main point occasionally.
August 10, 2017
Another excellent Boice commentary! Great insights. Made God's Word more alive. Start Volume 2 today. I find that I mediate more on God's word this way during the day.
December 9, 2012
Only volume 2 can be better than volume 1..These commentaries follow very closely to his online sermons..great to listen to, then go back and read it. James Boice is so easy to understand! Timeless!
September 20, 2013
Super helpful in expository preaching of John.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews