There is only one parable throughout the gospel, the only one being in chapter 10 where Jesus described himself as a shepherd, and looking after his herd of sheep, the sheep being his followers. In the gospel, Jesus tells the crowd that the sheep will be safe all their life if they followed the shepherd, Jesus also says he has other sheep in his fold, these other sheep represent the Gentiles, they also can become disciples and the message is universal and to everyone. The author thinks this is a very important message because this parable, like the time when Jesus performed the feeding the 5000 miracle, would have contained many gentiles not just Jews.
In the beginning of the fourth gospel, Jesus has conversations with many people who wanted to become disciples. In the conversations, they ask Jesus questions but when hew answers they don’t understand so Jesus rephrases it so that they understand, this happened to Nicodemus in ch3 v. 2. Nicodemus represents the whole Jewish community and was a Pharisee, so when he asks Jesus questions, he only asks at night so that we know that is was a secret meeting, because Nicodemus being such an influential man he should no answers to all the questions and shouldn’t be talking to Jesus, who the Pharisee’s thought was just a travelling carpenter.
The main group teachings of the disciples are given between chapters 13 and 17. The author puts them between the last meal and the arrest of Jesus in the garden. Jesus tries to teach them that the Godhead is the Trinity, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. In these chapters there are lots of warnings as if Jesus is trying to prepare the disciples for the opposition they will face after his dearth, but he also says that he will come back; they will have the Holy Spirit to help and comfort them and not to worry as they have eternal life.
When becoming a disciple, Jesus expected quite a lot from you, you were required to give up your home, your past life to become followers even if that means leaving any of your previous teachers, like in chapter 1 when Andrew and Simon Peter, left their previous teacher John the Baptist to follow and become a disciple of Jesus. It was necessary for the disciples to believe Jesus as being the Son of God. ‘For God so loved the World, that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.’ (John 3.16).
Disciples must always spread the truth about Jesus like the Samaritan woman by the well in ch. 4 v.39. They are also to follow Jesus even if that is too death, ‘Take up the cross and follow me.’ They must also worship sincerely, from the heart because if their worships are dishonest then God will know. Disciples should also e baptised so that they will have eternal life and take part in the Eucharist as the disciples did in chapters 3, 6 and 12Probably the hardest things, disciples are expected to cope with is the rejection of the world and still acting as servants to the world, like Jesus did to the disciple in the Last Supper when he washed the feet of his disciples.
However, Jesus did teach about the six rewards that the disciples would receive if they did what was expected of them. Firstly, from the moment they believe in what Jesus tells them, they will become members of God’s family and Kingdom. The disciples would always be members of the Kingdom not just at their death; the author said ‘the world of sin is over when you believe you don’t have to wait until the end of time.’ In chapter 3 verse 18, says that from the moment you believe in Jesus, you are in the Kingdom of God, everything you would have been judged on originally is freed from you. Jesus took all of the blame for the world’s sins. If you reject what Jesus is telling you, you are outside God’s Kingdom or in ‘hell’. In the fourth gospel, Futuristic Escatology is implied, when Jesus says, ‘In my Father’s house, there are many rooms’; this means that there is somewhere to go once you have died.
The second is that you will receive Holy Spirit which is key in the fourth gospel, in the final discourse, Jesus teaches the disciples of the Holy Spirit after the Last Meal and before the arrest. Jesus will give the disciples an advocate, and the first role after Jesus death is to be the advocate for the disciples before God (John 14.15-16). The Holy Spirit or Spirit of Truth is like a conscience to the disciples and the evidence will be seen in the way they live, caring for people etc. The Holy Spirit will also be a teacher so as to teach the message of God to the disciples and ensure they understand the teachings (John 15.26). The going of Jesus will begin the coming of the Holy Spirit and once it has come it will not go.
The third is that the disciples will have eternal life. Life doesn’t end with your physical death it will continue on (John 3.16). The eternal life relies on Jesus dying; it offers eternal life and salvation for all his followers.
The fourth is the forgiving of sins; sin is the one barrier between God and the World, which was put up in Genesis by Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Jesus tried to get around this barrier of sin, a part of which was the 613 laws made by the Pharisee’s and who told the Jews that if they abided by these rules, they will not sin and they would go to heaven. The laws became a hindrance rather than a help because the Jews were concentrating and putting all their energy into abiding these rules and thinking what they were and weren’t allowed to do instead of thinking about God.
Jesus told the Jews that by abiding just by these rules, then you would not get to heaven, because everyone is sinful and will not have eternal life. So in ch.3 v 17, the new route was through Jesus and those who believed in him came into a relationship with God because Jesus was going to die for them.
The fifth is the offered knowledge of ‘Truth’, that everyone wants to know the meaning of life, Jesus says ‘I AM the way, the truth and the life.’ (John 14.6) If you continue in his word, and listen to me, you will know the truth and set you free. This means that you will see things and open your minds. Even Pilate asked Jesus when Jesus was on trial, ‘And what is Truth?’ (John 18.37).
And lastly, the disciples can have unity with God, this is a prayer that Jesus says on behalf of the disciples. He goes through the problems that they will have to face and asks God to be with them and help them through their problems (John 17).