“Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved
following them, the one who also had leaned back against him during the supper
and had said, “Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?” When Peter saw
him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?” Jesus said to him, “If it
is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” So
the saying spread abroad among the brothers that this disciple was not to die;
yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not to die, but, “If it is my will
that he remain until I come, what is that to you?” This is the disciple who is
bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we
know that his testimony is true. Now there are also many other things that
Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world
itself could not contain the books that would be written.” (John 21:20–25, ESV)
I began this journey through John in June of last year, and
it has been incredible. After many years of reading through the gospels and
studying portions of them, taking time to work through this particular one has
shown me more about the character of our Lord than probably any other study I
have done. In doing it I have been greatly blessed, and I am so thankful to God
for giving me His Word that is made alive anew in our hearts as we hide it
there. It becomes fresh when we meditate on it, and it encourages us when we
are tempted or become discouraged.
John did not continue his writing up to the point of Jesus
ascension and returning to the Father, but he left it there on the beach. He
didn’t even end it with the powerful reaffirmation of Peter as he could have as
a reminder of the power of Christ to redeem lives and use them for the glory of
God. What John left it with just before his powerful statement of his truthful
words as an eyewitness was Peter turning to Jesus and asking what about John?
It was John who referred to himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved, and it
was John who leaned against Jesus after He spoke of His betrayal to ask Him
which one of them it was who was going to do such a thing. Obviously Peter and
John had grown quite close. Jesus had just told Peter that he was going to live
to become old, and Peter turned to Jesus to ask Him about his good friend John.
But Jesus did not make the same statement of a long life
concerning John. Rather He looked at Peter and said, “If it is my will that he
remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” That appears to be
the end of the discussion, and for all intent and purpose it seems that the
record of Jesus by John had ended with this question—what about John?
I had not thought about this question much until wrapping up
this letter. But several years ago, when a church I was on staff with was going
through some restructuring and decisions were being made about which staff were
to remain and which ones were to go, the leadership could not come to a clear
decision concerning me. I remember going to one congregational business meeting
where what they had been working through was being updated and there a
PowerPoint slide was put up on the wall. It simply stated, “What about Joe?”
I must admit that seeing these words really hurt, but it was
the question they had been trying to answer and the one for which neither they
nor Robin and I had a clear answer. They were not trying to force an answer,
but were honestly trying to let the congregation know that this one big answer
was still being awaited. They loved God and wanted to do His will. They loved
us and they wanted our best. The congregation loved us and desired to know. But
only God had the answer, and over the next couple of weeks God would make that
answer known in part, assuring Robin and I that it was time to step aside and
await His leading to a new position. This was not an easy thing to do, nor has
it been an easy path to walk, and it is one on which I have struggled greatly
at times.
But Jesus did not just tell Peter that it was none of his
business. No, He added (in front of John), “If it is my will….” These are
incredibly powerful words. They are the words that remind me that no matter
what else is going on or what else might be pushing in that God is always in
charge and He will do things just right according to His will. And if it was
His will that John would remain until Jesus’ returns then it was really no one
else’s decision but God’s. Jesus had told Peter to be faithful to follow Him,
and to leave to Him the details about how the other things work out. We can all
take great encouragement from this knowing that God has not given to us the
charge to solve every issue out there or to have every answer. What He has
given us is the charge to faithfully follow Him and to trust Him to order our
days, making decision based in the wisdom that comes generously from Him (James
1:5).
Jesus said that He came to do the will of the Father. If I
take nothing else from this study (which I know I have gotten so much more), it
is my prayer that I might also be found faithful to follow Him all the days of
my life.
This is the end of what John wrote. Though he could have
written so much more, how fitting it is to end with the extreme affirmation
that John knew that Jesus held Him firmly in His hands and that He was the one
who held every day of John’s life. Regardless of what others thought it might
have meant (as John indicated), God knew every detail to its smallest fragment.
And this is only the tip of the iceberg.
John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, did indeed live longer
than the other disciples. While we do not know for certain when or how he died,
early church tradition speaks of him being released from his imprisonment on
the island of Patmos where he received and recorded the book of Revelation, and
finishing his final days in Ephesus where he might have died close to 100 a.d.
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