John Chapter 21
By Pastor Neil
Scripture: John 21:24-25
How Much Has Jesus Done?
One of the things that has interested me from time to time is how much of what Jesus said and did in His earthly ministry of which we have no record. We have a wonderful collection of His parables and many stories of miraculous healings. We get bits and pieces of conversations and of things that happened, but all together, what we have in the New Testament, does not add up to nearly enough to fill all the hours of His three years of ministry. As I read the last chapter of John’s Gospel, I was struck by the last two verses of the chapter. Think with me for a few minutes about these two verses.
Verse 24 says “This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true”. Peter had just wondered aloud to Jesus about John and the rumor that John would never die. John clarifies what Jesus said, namely, that Jesus said, in effect, that He wished John to remain alive until He returned, what is that to Peter? He was basically saying that what He, Jesus, did was none of Peter’s business. John then says, in verse 24, that “this is the disciple…” It is the author of the Gospel of John, John himself, who has written the Gospel we have just read. And of course John knows that his testimony is true since he is the writer and commentator. It’s almost as if John is saying “I wrote this Gospel and I know it is true because I wrote it”. In other words, John is not relying on the testimony of others or of hearsay but is relying on what he himself knows to be true. One of the great privileges we have as Christians is to just tell our story to others. We don’t need a lot of material that others supply us about their experiences. All we really need is what we know to be true in our own experience. Think about your own experience of coming to know Christ as your Savior. You may not think that your experience is nearly as compelling as John’s is in his Gospel, but it’s your story and you can tell it with clarity and conviction. And it may just be what someone needs to hear, the inspiration that can make a difference in their life. Go ahead, tell your story!
John concludes his Gospel in verse 25 by noting that Jesus did many other things as well, so much so that the world could not hold all the books that the full story would fill. Why not take some time to reflect on what Christ has done for you in your own life? Go ahead, and know that it adds even more to the story of all Jesus has done and continues to do in the lives of many. Let your inspiration for the day be that in you, Christ has added to His story on earth.
Click here to read John Chapter 21
