The Introductory Teachings of the Gospel of John
John's gospel contains a unique preamble to the life of Jesus.
It focuses our attention on Jesus' divine origin: as the Word of God, as sharing the divine nature of the Father, as the One through whom all things were created, and as the One through whom all things are being redeemed.
Preparation
From the Work of John the Baptist to the Temptation in the Wilderness.
John the Baptist was born 6 months before Jesus, and it is assumed that his ministry began 6 months prior to Christ's as well. That would place it in the Spring of 27 AD.
Jesus came to be baptized of John sometime in the Fall of 27 AD, shortly after he turned 30 years of age.
After His baptism in the fall of 27 AD, Jesus went into the wilderness for 40 days to be tempted.
Early Ministry
From the First Disciples Called to the Miracle at Cana
When Jesus emerged from 40 days in the wilderness of temptation, he returned to where John the Baptist was ministering, and John pointed to Him as "the Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world."
Two of John's disciples, Andrew and the apostle John, follow Jesus. They in turn brought their brothers, Simon (Peter) and James. The next day, Jesus found Philip and called him to follow, and Philip brought his friend Nathanael. These six disciples were with Jesus at the next event which was the wedding feast at Cana.
These events took place within the first 3 months since Jesus' baptism. After this, Jesus, his disciples, and his mother, made a trip to Capernaum on the north of the Sea of Galilee, for "not too many days." (John 2:12). There is a gap of a few months in the record during that time, and we don't see Jesus again until His visit to the Passover at Jerusalem in the Spring of 28 AD.
Judean Ministry
After six months of preliminary work, the next year of Jesus' ministry, would center in and around Jerusalem.
All the details of Jesus' ministry in the year around Judea come from the Gospel of John, except for the record of the imprisonment of John the Baptist, which is recorded only in Matthew and Luke.
The imprisonment of John, and the rejection of Jesus by the Sanhedrin (after He healed the man at the pool of Bethesda on the Sabbath), marked the end of Jesus' ministry in Judea, and He shifted His work to Galilee (which is covered in the sections following this one).
Early Galilean Ministry
Jesus relocated His ministry to Galilee for the next year of public work. The Early Galilean Ministry covers about 5 months of time.
Although the early part of the Galilean Ministry would normally end with the Sermon on the Mount, I have put that in a separate section following this one due to the large number of articles involved.
The Sermon on the Mount
In this masterpiece Jesus laid out the Constitution of His Kingdom. It starts with a new spiritual foundation within the heart, and then extends to the world around.
Because the people were used to a religion of forms, ceremonies and customs, Jesus explained how the real spiritual religion differed from the old ways in His exposition of the Law, Prayer, Alms, Daily Life, and Relationships to Others.
Middle and Closing Galilean Ministry
This section comprises the events of the Middle and Closing Galilean ministries, comprising about 7 months of time altogether, from September 29 AD to March 30 AD.
Just as His rejection by the Sanhedrin marked the close of the Judean ministry, so His rejection by the people, after the feeding of the 5000, when they attempted to make Him a king, marked the closing of this period of Jesus' ministry.