2026/06/01

250. The Gospel of John and the Priesthood of the New Covenant: A Review and the Second Sign

In my reflections on the theme "The Gospel of John and the Priesthood of the New Covenant," upon reaching the scene in Chapter 4 of Jesus' dialogue with the Samaritan woman, where highly condensed content relating to the priesthood of the New Covenant is conveyed, I devoted a great deal of time to matters connected with it. Looking back on the journey thus far, the Gospel of John begins, from the very beginning of Chapter 1, with a context reminiscent of Genesis, prompting the reader to recall what has transpired between God and humankind since the creation of the world and throughout the Old Covenant. This is to lead them to the awareness of the fact that, at the very origin of God's creation of humankind, God—having completed the creation of heaven and earth—had a desire to celebrate the seventh day, which He had rested upon, blessed and sanctified, together with humankind; and that there was a divine plan to nurture humankind until they would worship God "in spirit and truth" (Jn 4:24). Therefore, God was waiting for the time when John the Baptist, who had the legitimate lineage to succeed the priesthood of the Old Covenant, would appear as the final prophet.

John the Baptist had prophesied that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, would appear openly in the world, become the light of the world through the Holy Spirit, and bring about the priesthood of the New Covenant. From John the Baptist's words, the reader could learn about the descent of the Holy Spirit upon people, baptism by water, and baptism by the Holy Spirit. In these passages, we found that surprisingly, among the first disciples, who were called by Jesus whilst fishing as recorded in the Synoptic Gospels, some had already been trained as disciples of John the Baptist. Then, after hinting at the Blood and Body in Chapter 2, Jesus revealed the work of the Holy Spirit in Chapter 3. He did so because the Holy Spirit works to ensure that the state Jesus Himself fulfilled His words on the cross, "that whoever believes in him [the Son of man] may have eternal life" (Jn 3:15), may be sustained.

Just as the work of the Holy Spirit became visible in this world through Jesus, who was both God and man, so God desired human cooperation when the Holy Spirit works. Jesus brought with Him from the Father the priesthood of the New Covenant to bestow upon the New Covenant people, who were called to receive it. The priesthood of the New Covenant is placed particularly within the memory of male believers so that the Holy Spirit may freely draw it forth from them and have them serve the lives of all people born of women. In the final prophecy of John the Baptist at the end of Chapter 3, we see the figure of a priest: He acts as the mouth, hands, and feet of the Holy Spirit, collaborating with the Holy Spirit to celebrate the Mass, as a friend of the Holy Spirit (the Bridegroom) who draws out and welcomes the priesthood of the New Covenant (the Bride) from the memory of the priest who had it bestowed. The priest, having emptied himself, surely hears the Holy Spirit and rejoices greatly, understanding the words of John the Baptist: "He must increase, but I must decrease. "

"No one can receive anything except what is given him from heaven. You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him. He who has the bride is the bridegroom; the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice; therefore this joy of mine is now full. He must increase, but I must decrease" (Jn 3:27–30).

The Gospel of John, Chapter 4, concludes by referring to the passage: "This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee" (Jn 4:54). This sign took place when Jesus granted the official’s plea to heal his son, who was at the point of death (cf. 4:43–54). We have already discussed this sign in Blog No. 208, based on Hebrews, so I would like to proceed with reference to that.

The writer of Hebrews states: "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old received divine approval. By faith we understand that the world was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was made out of things which do not appear" (Heb 11:1–3). He then briefly outlines the history of the Old Covenant figures who were commended by God because of this faith (cf. 11:4–38), concluding as follows: "And all these, though well attested by their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had foreseen something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect" (11:39–40).

The official was assured that Jesus would heal his son. Therefore, he paid no heed to Jesus' words, "Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe" (Jn 4:48), and immediately said, "Sir, come down before my child dies" (4:49). He was assured of what he hoped for and sought to be convinced of the as-yet-unseen fact that Jesus would heal his son. In fact, later on, he confirmed the exact moment Jesus said, "Go; your son will live" (4:50), and the moment his son was healed (cf. 4:51–53). And it is written, "He himself believed, and all his household" (4:54). They were a model of Old Covenant faith—"being assured of what they hoped for and being convinced of things not seen." Yet, though they were approved by God because of their faith, they did not receive what was promised.

What was "promised" is "something better for us"—the priesthood of the New Covenant—which the author of Hebrews later describes, "God had foreseen something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect." At the wedding in Cana of Galilee, Jesus' first sign—turning water into wine in response to his mother’s request when she told him the wine had run out—suggests the Eucharist (cf. 2:1–11). This passage states, "This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory; and his disciples believed in him" (2:11). At that time, the disciples were simply following Jesus. This went beyond the Old Covenantal faith of "the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."

Maria K. M.