CONTINENTAL THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

THE RELATION BETWEEN FAITH AND SIGNS IN THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

A RESEARCH PAPER PREPARED FOR MR. GARY ELLISON FOR THE FULFILMENT OF THE COURSE REQUIREMENTS OF THE GOSPEL OF JOHN, BI 122E.

BY MIKKO SINIVIRTA
APRIL 1995, BRUSSELS, BELGIUM

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 
Faith
Signs
The Relation of Faith and Signs
CONCLUSION
BIBLIOGRAPHY

INTRODUCTION

Man is sceptical by nature. This is especially true when it comes to changing his previous convictions; the mind of man calls for evidence before adopting a new belief.

Thomas was a man not easily convinced. He said: "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hands into his side, I will not believe it." (John 20:25). Thomas refused to believe unless he would see.

A man writing this paper will discuss the concepts of faith and signs in the Gospel of John as well as show their relation and its importance.

Faith

What is faith? "The one demand Jesus makes of men to receive his gift of eternal life is faith, belief. This becomes explicit in John in a way that is not evident in the Synoptics." Faith in the Synoptics is primarily in God whose kingdom Jesus proclaims, and having faith or believing are used without a particular object, and often connected with the healing miracles of Jesus. In the Gospel of John, on the other hand, faith is directed more explicitly towards Christ; it plays a role in salvation which is entirely lacking in the Synoptics.

What about the word for faith? John never uses the noun for "faith", pistis in Greek, but instead the verb "believe," pisteuein. Pisteuein can also mean "have faith" or "come to faith" and John uses it 98 times which is three times as often as the three first gospels all together. Since the purpose of John "is that the readers might 'believe' (Jn. 20:30-31)," his abundant use of the verb pisteuein is not so surprising, but why is the noun pistis completely absent although it is common in Synoptic gospels? The answer is that John doesn't want "faith" to be understood "merely as correct theology" but he stresses "the act of believing more than the content, because throughout this gospel faith is a matter of relationships and not of creed.

This concept of faith is also evidenced by the usage of pisteuein in idioms, by equivalent terms, and by the association of faith and vision. Ladd says it well: "faith means complete commitment and personal union between the believer and Christ." Therefore, this is the kind of faith John wants his readers to have.

In addition, faith is connected with knowledge, which is a stage of perfection beyond mere faith. Both are concerned with the divine origin of the mission of Jesus; they are ways to reach the truth and of apprehend that Jesus is the Christ. Faith can help men to know but they will still need faith as well. Faith is also linked with obedience, since the believer is contrasted with one who does not obey the Son (3:36).

Pisteuein is often used without an object and then the meaning is "becoming a disciple" (1:7, 50; 4:42, 53; 6:47; 19:35), however, in most cases Jesus is the object of believing (2:11; 3;16, 18, etc.). This construction is not found in secular Greek and in the New Testament its found mainly in John. Thus this expression is peculiar for John; believing is not only intellectual but also moral commitment to the person of Christ.

Sometimes pisteuein is followed by hoti clause describing something of Jesus' person or mission as the object of believing. For example, "Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me." (John 14:11). Another way John describes faith is as faith in the name of Jesus (1:12; 2:23; 3:18). Still other references speak about believing in the words of Jesus (2:22; 4:21; 14:11) or in the signs Jesus does.

Therefore, "faith is always the human response to witness, whether it be the witness of John the Baptist (1:7, 15, 34), of Jesus' words (3:11; 8:14, 18), of Jesus' works (5:36; 10:25),of the Scriptures (5:39), of other people (4:39), of the Paraclete (15:26), or of the disciples (15:27, 19:35)". Faith is also an active response to the signs of Jesus.

Signs

What is meant by signs then? They refer to the miracles of Jesus. Comparing the presentation of the miracles of Jesus in the Gospel of John and in the Synoptics, some clear differences occur. While John selects only seven miracles with the specific purpose of encouraging readers to believe, the Synoptics record a far greater number of miracles emphasising their marvellous aspect by giving vivid details. Smaller difference is seen in the kind of miracles; three of the seven miracles narrated in John are also found in the Synoptics and for three others a same type of miracle is found. The former three are the healing of the officials son, the multiplication of the loaves, and the walking on the water, whereas the three latter are the healing of the paralytic, the healing of the blind man, and the raising of the dead. The first miracle, changing the water to wine, is the only one without an exact parallel in the Synoptics.

The greatest difference is in the function of the miracles. In Synoptics the miracles are primarily acts of power establishing the kingdom of God and overcoming the reign of Satan, as most clearly seen in exorcism. On the contrary, in John the exorcism is not found at all; the function of miracles is symbolic. A better understanding of how the miracles function in John is achieved by examining the two words used for them in John: works, ergon, and signs, semeion. Jesus refers to his miracles as works while the other characters and the author of the gospel speak of them as signs.

Work, ergon, in John, refers 18 times out of 27 to the works of Christ. His works are distinctive from the works of men, they are from the Father, and they function to teach men. However, the concept of work includes more than only miracles; the words of Jesus are works as well (14:10) and once Jesus sums up his whole ministry as "the work you [Father] gave me to do" (17:4).

Sign, semeion, points to the meaning of the miracle when used by John; they are means of communicating spiritual truth. "A 'sign' is a mighty work wrought by Jesus that represents the revelatory and redemptive event happening in him." R. E. Brown summarises:

In summary, the two Johannine terms for miracles, "works" and "signs," share as a background the OT description of God who acts on behalf of man. . . . The term "work" expresses more the divine perspective on what is accomplished, and so is a fitting description for Jesus himself to apply to the miracles. The term "sign" expresses the human psychological viewpoint, and is a fitting description for others to apply to the miracles of Jesus.

The Relation of Faith and Signs

What is the relation of these two concepts, faith and signs? There seems to be a tension; signs are meant to lead to faith in Jesus (2:23; 6:14; 7:31; 10:42) but some people saw the signs and did not believe (6:27; 11:47; 12:37). Jews are even rebuked since they will not believe unless they see signs (4:48; 6:30). The tension is that faith is required to see the true meaning of the signs and their witness to Jesus, but if the faith is lacking the signs are mere prodigies without meaning. But for those who response with faith the signs strengthen that faith which is thus further developed. Jesus doesn't use signs to compel people to believe in him but, on the other hand, they are a sufficient evidence for those who see them; in addition, the signs will confirm and condemn the "spiritually blind" of their sinfulness. Thus, the conclusion is that there is different levels of faith in John.

R. E. Brown says that "stages of faith are closely related to the reactions of men to the signs of Jesus." Actually, the signs in John can be compared to the parables in the Synoptics; both divide the audience with the enigmatic element. While some by faith penetrate this enigma and raise on the level of receiving the revelation behind the sign or parable, others by unbelief stay on the level of materialistic understanding.

Four levels of faith as reaction to the signs can be distinguished, first two unsatisfactory and then two satisfactory. First, the faith of those who refuse to see the signs with any faith at all, for instance, Caiphas who exhorts the Pharisees to kill Jesus despite the signs Jesus had performed (11:47). Second, the faith of people who believed that Jesus was a some kind of an magician form God (2:23-25, etc.). But "it is not sufficient to be impressed by the miracles. . . they must also be seen as a revelation of who Jesus is, and his oneness with the Father." Third, "the reaction of those who see the true significance of the signs and thus come to believe in Jesus and to know who he is and his relation to the Father." This kind of faith is the climax of four sign narratives (4:53; 6:69; 9:38; 11:40). Within this level of faith sub-levels can be seen; the disciples believed already in Cana (2:11) but their faith was still growing later (6:60-71; 14:5-12) until "the fullest profession of faith" by Thomas (22:28). "With the confession of Thomas, John reached the high peak of belief: faith can rise no higher than when it avows Jesus of Nazareth to be its Lord and God." This "full salvific faith in Jesus is a gift of God which, like the gift of the Spirit, can come only after the resurrection. Another satisfactory level of faith is that which comes even without seeing the signs; Jesus blesses people who had this kind of faith (20:29).

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, the importance of the relation of faith and signs is clear when John's plan in the text is kept in mind; the fourth gospel is a gospel of belief, written that the readers would believe that Jesus is Christ. John wants to create faith in his readers; as one reads the narratives of signs he is faced with the same choice as the people who saw the signs. To choose the way of belief or continue on the avenue of unbelief.

Thomas was not convinced by the signs of Jesus. But there was more proof to believe that Jesus was who he said he was. Jesus rose from the grave and proved what he claimed by his signs. The faith of a Christian is based on the resurrection of Jesus. Touching the wounds of resurrected Jesus Thomas finally believed and said: "My Lord and my God!" (20:28).

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Arichea JR., Daniel C. "Translating 'Believe' in the Gospel of John." The Bible Translator 30, no. 2 (April 1979): 205-209.

Brown, Colling, ed. The New International Dictionary of  New Testament Theology. Exeter: Paternoster Press, 1975. S.v. "Faith" by O. Michel.

Brown, Raymond E. The Gospel According to John I-XII. The Anchor Bible. Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company, 1966.

Douglas, J. D., ed. New Bible Dictionary. Grand Rapids, MI: William. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1962. S.v. "Faith," by L. L. Morris.

Guthrie, Donald. New Testament Theology. Leicester, England: Inter-Varsity Press, 1981.

Kittel, Gerhard and Gerhard Friedrich, eds. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Translated and abridged in one volume by Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Grand Rapids, MI: William. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., and Exeter, Devon: Paternoster Press, 1985.

Ladd, George Elton. A Theology of the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1974.

Tenney, Merrill C. JOHN: The Gospel of Belief. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1976.

Tenney, Merrill C., gen. ed. Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Pub. House, 1975. S.v. "Faith, faithfulness," by R. E. Nixon.