SERIES: The Gospel of John
“Lord, What About Him?”
SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus
Introduction: Today we conclude an exposition of the Gospel of John which began in September of 1992. On that Sunday morning nearly 20 months ago I began this study by proposing the following: “The Gospel of John is the most amazing book that was ever written. It is a pool in which a child can wade or an elephant can swim. It is both simple and profound. It meets the spiritual need of the unbeliever, the brand-new Christian, and the one with many years of maturity. It has been called ‘God’s love letter to the world.’”
I trust that you now understand those words more fully. I also quoted Sir Edwyn Hoskyns, who wrote, “The critic may compare this Gospel with Philo and the Alexandrian philosophers; but did the poor and the unlearned, when they lay a-dying, ever ask their pastors to read to them out of the voluminous writings of Philo or of those like him?” [i]
The fact is, the poor and unlearned, as well as the wealthy and wise, and those of all degrees in between, have for centuries found in the Gospel of John the answers to searching questions of life and death. I hope you have found them, too. I remember distinctly hearing Professor Howard Hendricks urge us, his students, to preach expositionally through books of the Bible, but at the same time warning us that it is one thing to go through a book and quite another to have that book go through us. Let me ask you this morning, “Has the Gospel of John gone through you?” Has it changed your thinking, given you new insight into the person of Christ, helped you understand how frail our faith can be, and increased your appreciation for God’s grace, forgiveness, and restoration, and taught you the n3cessity of absolute obedience?
I do hope so. I know it has for some. A number of you have come to faith in Christ during this study. And some have come back to faith in Christ. I think we could easily take the whole hour this morning to hear testimonies from many of you about what God has taught you through this series.
In the last eight verses of the Gospel of John, as read earlier in our service, we find three conclusions. There is, first of all, the conclusion to Jesus’ personal discipleship of Peter. Secondly, in verse 24 we find the conclusion to John’s Gospel. And finally, in verse 25 we have the conclusion to the Life of Christ on earth.
The conclusion to Jesus’ discipleship of Peter (18-23)
If we didn’t believe that Jesus in His omniscience understood Peter inside and out before He ever chose him, we might justifiably conclude that Jesus was a very poor judge of character. This brash and heady fisherman seemingly withstood every attempt Jesus made to channel his extroverted enthusiasm into responsible leadership. Over and over again Peter opened his mouth instead of his mind or heart, culminating in his thrice-repeated denial of Jesus as He stood on trial for His life. But somewhere in the hard stone of this man’s character Jesus saw a diamond-in-the-rough and refused to give up on him. He continued to grind and cut and polish in an effort to produce in Peter a rock of great value.
Last week we saw one of the most remarkable demonstrations of Jesus’ patience, forgiveness, and grace, as He gave Peter three opportunities to publicly affirm his love for Jesus. These three affirmations of allegiance that Peter offered were not all we could have wished for, but they did serve to counteract Peter’s three denials of Christ and restore his confidence, as well as his leadership among the disciples.
This morning we come to the conclusion of Jesus’ personal discipleship of Peter. His message is simple: “Follow me!” He first urges Peter to …
Follow despite the consequences! Look again at verse 18: “I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus is offering a proverbial statement here to the effect that when we are young, we can pretty much do as we like and go where we want to go, but when old age creeps up on us, our freedom becomes quite limited due to lack of agility, arthritis, osteoporosis, hardening of the arteries, falling off of ladders, running into horses, etc. But the cause of the restrictions Peter will experience will not be these issues, for in the next verse we are told that Jesus intended through this proverb to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God.
There is evidence that “the stretching out of the hands” was held in the early church to refer to crucifixion. If this is the case, then we have here a prophecy of the exact mode of Peter’s death. And very early church tradition seems to bear this out. Tertullian, a second century church father, tells us that Peter was crucified in Rome under Nero in about AD 61. Eusebius adds that Peter’s wife was first crucified before his eyes. Then on the next day, as he himself was taken to the place of execution, he asked that he be crucified upside down, inasmuch as he was not worthy to be crucified in the same manner as his Lord. Perhaps this is why Jesus speaks of the kind of death by which Peter “would glorify God.”
Jesus follows His description of Peter’s martyrdom with two simple words: “Follow me!” This is Jesus’ expectation of Peter despite the consequences just described. Jesus never promised His disciples a rose garden—He promised tribulation and suffering and persecution. But He also promised His own power and presence and perseverance. And He promised more than adequate blessings to follow the sufferings.
One of the most difficult things for us to accept is why suffering is necessary in the lives of those who faithfully follow Christ. Joni Eareckson Tada wrote a powerful book on suffering entitled, A Step Further. One chapter in that book deals with the fact that suffering must be laid at Satan’s feet, yet while Satan schemes, God redeems. Listen to her words:
“Satan intends the rain which ruins a church picnic to cause the people to curse their Lord; but God uses the rain to develop their patience. Satan plans to hinder the work of an effective missionary by arranging for him to trip and break a leg; God allows the accident so that the missionary’s patient response to the pain and discomfort will bring glory to Himself. Satan brews a hurricane to kill thousands in a small Indian village so he can enjoy the misery and destruction; God uses the storm to display His awesome power, to show people the awful consequences that sin has brought to the world, to drive some to search for Him, to harden others in their sin, and to remind us that He is free to do as He pleases—that we will never figure Him out. Satan schemed that a 17-year-old girl named Joni would break her neck, hoping to ruin her life; God sent the broken neck in answer to her prayer for a closer walk with Him and uses her wheelchair as a platform to display His sustaining grace.” [ii]
She also adds, “The world’s worst murder became the world’s only salvation.” [iii]
Jesus wants us to follow Him despite the immediate consequences, based upon the knowledge that the ultimate consequences could not be better. But Peter, even at this late date in the process of becoming a true disciple, is not willing to accept Jesus’ exhortation to follow Him without arguing, and so we see secondly that Jesus, in even stronger language, urges Peter to …
Follow without comparing! It seems in verse 20 that Peter is distracted from his conversation with Jesus by the sight of the Apostle John following at a distance. And he uses a time-honored defense mechanism to avoid the personal implications of Jesus’ exhortation to follow Him. He decides to shift the attention to John. He asks, “Lord, what about him? If you’re asking me to follow you even though death by martyrdom lies ahead of me, what are you asking of John? What kind of suffering is he going to face? What kind of death?”
Charles Swindoll has stated, and probably rightly, that “comparing” is the Christian’s favorite indoor sport. We compare our positions, our looks, our wealth (or lack thereof), our popularity, our IQ’s, our accomplishments. We compare our pastors, our teachers, our churches. We compare our trials, our sufferings, and our hardships.
“When God brings some trial into our lives, we always want to know why it happened to us rather than to someone who deserved it so much more. When someone wins $10 million in the Publisher’s Clearinghouse Sweepstakes, we wonder why it wasn’t us. When someone gets nominated to an important office, we wonder why we didn’t win instead. When someone receives praise for faithful service, we wonder why we didn’t receive praise; after all, we do more than that person ever did.” [iv]
But Jesus says that our responsibility to follow Him is unrelated to anyone else. Notice what He tells Peter in verse 22: “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.” Peter, get your eyes off John and on to Me! What a crucial lesson for all Christians to learn! Let us serve Christ where Christ has put us. Our glory is never in comparison with others; our glory is the service of Christ in whatever capacity He has allotted to us.
In Paul’s epistle to the Galatian church, we have further instruction regarding this sin of comparing. Turn there with me to Galatians 6:3: “If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else.” The implication of this verse is that boasting is not necessarily wrong.
It’s O.K. to have pride in your work, even a positive feeling about your spiritual progress. But that can’t be based upon how you compare with others. It has to be based upon what you have accomplished with what God has given you. The reason for this is God has not gifted everyone alike. Some have been given five talents, some two, and some only one. What is required is that each one be faithful with what he has been given. There is no place for comparing except comparing ourselves to Jesus Christ.
Before leaving this portion on Jesus’ concluding words to Peter, it is important to notice an intriguing historical note in verse 23. We are told that a tradition developed from Jesus’ words to Peter to the effect that John would not die, but rather would still be alive at the time of the Second Coming. Well, John is quite old when he is writing this book, perhaps as many as 30 years after the death of Peter and 60 years after the death of Christ. He senses that his own eminent death might cause a panic among believers, generating skepticism about the Second Coming. So he clarifies for his readers the facts: “But Jesus did not say that he (John) would not die; he only said, ‘If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?'” To paraphrase Jesus’ words, “If I want John to live to be 2,000 years old what’s that to you? You follow Me.”
And with that Jesus concludes His personal discipleship of Peter. Somehow these last words seem to have a dramatic and lasting impact upon him, for the next time we find Peter, he is leading the other disciples in the city of Jerusalem in perhaps the greatest evangelistic campaign the world has ever seen.
Let me ask you something this morning. Was that command that Jesus gave Peter (“You must follow me!”), just for Peter, or was it for all those that name the name of Christ? If the latter, what have we done about it? Are some of us failing to follow Jesus for fear of the consequences? What consequences do we fear? Are we afraid that God might take our “stuff” away and leave us poverty-stricken? That seems to be an unfounded fear, for there is no absence of wealthy believers in either the OT or NT, and besides it’s so out of character for God to deprive His children unless there is some unusually good purpose that can be accomplished no other way. Jesus Himself asked, “Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:9-11)
Or are we afraid that God may ask us to serve Him in a place and manner that would make us miserable? Will He send us to Rwanda? I experienced such a fear when I was in Bible College preparing for the ministry—I was afraid God would send me to Africa as a missionary. But I have since learned that when God calls us somewhere, He can be counted on to provide a burden and desire to go there. Linda Rich’s brother is a fine physician. He was serving as a missionary in Zaire until several years ago, when he was forced out by civil war. So he set up practice in Rwanda. Now the same thing has happened there, and the family is now in Kenya. But they are not depressed. God gave them a heart for ministry to go along with their assignment.
The main point I am driving at is this: following Christ does not lead to misery. It may, in rare occasions, lead to martyrdom, as it did with Peter after 25 years of fruitful ministry, but there are a lot worse ways to die than as a martyr for Jesus Christ. I believe the happiest people in the world are those who are serving God with their whole heart—whether in school, in business, at home, in the neighborhood, or retired.
Could it be that we are failing to follow Christ because we are spending too much time comparing ourselves to other believers? Maybe we’re saying to ourselves, “Well, I’m about as involved in serving God as most Christians I know.” That may be true, but are we as involved as Jesus wants us to be? Are we pursuing His will for our lives?
We turn now to the second conclusion in today’s passage.
The conclusion to John’s Gospel (24)
In verse 24 we read, “This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true.” It is not entirely clear who wrote verse 24. If John himself wrote it, then his use of the pronoun “we” is a bit difficult to understand. If instead, some early church leaders wrote it, it seems strange they didn’t identify themselves. We can say that verse 24 is very early, for it is found in even the most ancient copies of the NT.
Three important facts are verified for us here.
John was an eyewitness. The phrase, “this is the disciple,” in verse 24 is an obvious reference back to “the disciple whom Jesus loved” in verse 20, the same one who leaned back on Jesus at the Last Supper. This was undoubtedly the Apostle John, not only one of the Twelve, but also a member of the Inner Circle of Three. He was Jesus’ closest companion throughout His earthly ministry. This is of great importance, for it means that the Gospel of John cannot be dismissed as a collection of fables drawn together decades after the fact, nor as the dreams and visions of a fanatical mystic. The author was an eyewitness of all he wrote.
John himself wrote the Gospel. It seems a bit of a truism to say that the author of a book wrote the book, but it is not a foolish thing to emphasize in view of the some of the criticisms of John’s Gospel which have been leveled by liberal scholars, such as those in the Jesus Seminar. Some would have us believe that the events of the life of Christ were passed down orally by the Apostles to succeeding generations and were perhaps committed to writing only in the late second century. The intervening time, of course, would allow many errors and myths (like the alleged miracles of Christ) to creep into the text.
But such a view is disallowed by verse 24, for it tells us that the eyewitness author actually wrote these things down. And in recent years archaeological evidence has lent great weight to this claim, as earlier and earlier copies of the Gospel of John have been uncovered. One small manuscript containing verses from John 18, for example, is dated A.D. 118, probably less than 30 years after John wrote it.
John was trustworthy. This fact is critical, for it would be possible for an eyewitness to write a book and fill it with lies or prejudicial interpretations. Or he might paint the hero as a superman when in fact he was very ordinary. But not John. He was a man of integrity and at every point at which the early church could check him out, they found him to be totally honest and accurate. He certainly didn’t paint himself and his colleagues, the Apostles, as extraordinary saints. Therefore, the Church was willing to accept the affirmation that “We know his witness is true.”
If I did not have this same confidence I would not be standing here today. When the biblical author speaks, we do not have to wonder if he’s telling the truth, or ask if he might have been deceived, or wade through the stories looking for the kernel of truth. We can stand and say, “Thus says the Lord.”
There is still one more conclusion before us in our text. We have seen the consummation of Jesus’ personal discipleship of Peter. And we have seen the conclusion to John’s Gospel. Finally, we are given …
The conclusion to the life of Christ on earth. (21:25, 20:30-31)
Look at verse 25: “Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.” This verse is mind-boggling as it directs our thoughts to …
The things Jesus did. (21:25) Would that we had time today to review the entire life of Christ as recorded for us in just this one Gospel. One’s mind goes back
to His calling of His disciples,
to the wedding He attended at Cana
to His encounter with Nicodemus
to His meeting with the woman at the well
to His discourses on the Bread of Life, the Good Shepherd, and the light of the World
to His parables
to His triumphal entry
to His washing of the disciples’ feet
to His high priestly prayer
to His arrest, trial, crucifixion, burial and resurrection
and then to His post-resurrection ministry.
For 15 months we have studied the recorded things that He did. But still we have merely scratched the surface. Dr. James Montgomery Boice preached through John’s Gospel at Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia. He used his Sunday morning services for over 8 years to do it—nearly 300 sermons, published in 5 volumes of 2000 pages. And even he merely scratched the surface. He said in his last sermon, “I have not covered it all, and I suspect that I could now go back to the beginning and do it all over again, learning even more than I did the first time—so infinite is God’s Word.” [v]
But notice that in verse 25 John’s focus is not upon the recorded actions of Jesus at all, but rather upon the many other things He did—things that if every one of them were written down, the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.
Doesn’t that just blow your mind? My imagination goes wild when I start to think about what Jesus must have done besides what is recorded for us. With delightful hyperbole the writer tells us that the subject is unfathomable. Whatever we may know of Christ, we have only grasped a fragment of Him. Whatever the wonders we have experienced, they are as nothing compared to the wonders we may yet experience. Human categories are powerless to describe Christ, and human books are inadequate to hold Him. Frederick Lehman wrote these words:
“Could we with ink the ocean fill
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill
And every man a scribe by trade,
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry,
Nor could the scroll contain the whole
Though stretched from sky to sky.
O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure—
The saints’ and angels’ song.”
The love of God is seen most clearly in the person and work of Jesus Christ. But we’re not quite finished. There are two verses at the end of chapter 20 which I purposefully left untouched several weeks ago because of a dramatic parallel which they have with verse 25 of chapter 21. Whereas the last verse of the book speaks of the “things Jesus did,” the end of chapter 20 speaks of …
The signs Jesus performed (20:30). “Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book.” Think for a moment of the miracles of Jesus which are recorded here in John’s Gospel. There was
the changing of the water into wine,
the healing of the nobleman’s son,
the healing of the man who was an invalid for 38 years,
the feeding of the 5,000,
the walking on the water,
the healing of the man born blind,
the resurrection of Lazarus,
and His own resurrection.
And there are dozens more miracles recorded in the other Gospels.
But again, John focuses upon the many other signs which weren’t recorded for us. How many other healings did Jesus do out of the compassion of His heart? How many other times did He contravene the laws of nature? How many others were raised from the dead? And perhaps most importantly, why weren’t we told about these other miracles? The answer to that last question is given in verse 31 where we find …
The reason “these” miracles were recorded. (20:31) “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” John reveals two reasons for his selectivity. He has chosen to include what he did,
1. That you may believe, and
2. That you may have life.
If you have sat with us through this exposition of John’s Gospel and still do not believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, then either I have failed miserably to let the Son shine through these pages, or perhaps you have hardened your heart and refused to accept what God claims to be clear and sufficient evidence.
But frankly I am just as concerned about those who have come to accept the fact that Jesus is the Son of God but may have failed to commit their lives to Him. It is not enough to accept intellectually that certain facts are historical. We must act upon those facts by acknowledging that Jesus paid for our sin when He died on the cross in our place and by trusting Him only for our salvation. The result of such a commitment is that “believing you may have life in his name.”
If you have never personally invited Jesus into your life, won’t you right now where you’re sitting admit to God that you are a guilty sinner, accept His forgiveness through the death of Christ, and invite Jesus to be the Lord of your life. In fact, I am going to pray a sinner’s prayer, and I invite you to pray silently after me if this is the desire of your heart.
Prayer: Father, I know that I am a sinner and do not deserve to spend eternity with You. I believe that You sent Your one and only Son to die in my place and to forgive me of my sins. I receive Jesus by an act of my will to be my Lord and Savior. Thank you, God, for Your free gift of salvation. Help me as I seek to follow Jesus.
Our gracious heavenly Father, we thank you for the experience which has been ours to study the life and ministry of our Savior during these many months. We have learned much about Yourself, much about ourselves, and much about Jesus. Our hearts have been thrilled as we have seen Your love manifested to us in sending Your only Son to die on Calvary’s cross that we might have eternal life. May everyone here today be certain in their hearts that they have received the forgiveness of sins which is granted as a free gift to those who commit themselves by faith to Jesus Christ.
DATE: April 24, 1994
Tags:
Following
Comparing
Authorship of the Gospel of John
[i] Cited by Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John, 7.
[ii] Joni Eareckson & Steve Estes, A Step Further, 140.
[iii] Ibid., 137.
[iv] Citation lost.
[v] James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of John, Vol. 5, 387.