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Sunday August 25, 2024 The Gospel of John Week 75 – John 21:15-17 “Serving and Loving Jesus”

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Sunday – August 25, 2024

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Word On Worship – Sunday – August 25, 2024

John 21:17
He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Tend My sheep.

I believe the best way to understand verses 1-14 is in terms of evangelism—being fishers of men. But it is not enough to simply bring a lost sinner to faith in Jesus Christ; that person should also be discipled, and thus brought to maturity in Christ. This seems to be implicit in the Great Commission. When they had finished breakfast, Jesus turned to Simon Peter and asked, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these do?” Our Lord’s addition of the words, “more than these do,” really got to the heart of the matter. Peter could truthfully affirm that he did love Jesus, but he would not go so far as to claim that his love was greater than that of his fellow-disciples. He also speaks of his love in terms of the Savior’s assessment of it: “Yes, Lord, You know I love You.” To this our Lord replied, “Feed My lambs.”

How Peter wished that Jesus would leave it at that. Peter was grieved because he realized that the bold and even arrogant claims he had made proved to be empty. Peter is not distressed with Jesus; he is grieved over his own sin. Jesus is not attempting to shame Peter; he is seeking to reaffirm his call to service. Did Jesus question Peter about his love for Him three times? Then note that three times Jesus instructed Peter to care for His sheep. Does Peter fear he has been cast aside as useless? Jesus tells him to return to His work, three times!

Peter really did love Jesus. But Peter needed to understand that his love for the Savior was not as great as he thought, just as his ability to catch fish was not as great as he seemed to think.  Even in the thing Peter did best (fishing), he could not hold a candle to Jesus, who proved to be far better at fishing than he. The way I understand verses 15-19 is something like this: “Peter, do you really love Me as much as you say? Then prove your love for Me by taking care of My sheep.” Jesus is the “Good Shepherd,” Who cares for His sheep. If Peter really loves his Lord, then his passion will be the Lord’s passion. Jesus came to be the “Good Shepherd.” If Peter really loves the Lord, he will be a good shepherd, and shepherds shepherd by feeding the lambs, by caring for the weakest and most vulnerable of the flock.

You become like the people you love. The things they love, you love. If Peter really loves his Lord, Who is the Good Shepherd, then Peter will surely seek to shepherd in the same way. He will seek the lost sheep (evangelism). He will feed and tend the young and vulnerable lambs (discipleship). And, like the Good Shepherd, he will lay down his life for the sheep. Love manifests itself in service—humble, sacrificial, service.

Sunday August 18, 2024 The Gospel of John Week 74 – John 21:1-14 “How Shall We Serve”

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Sunday – August 18, 2024

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Word On Worship – Sunday – August 18, 2024

John 21:3
Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will also come with you.” They went out and got into the boat; and that night they caught nothing.

Jesus was not going to be with His disciples on earth much longer, but was returning to His Father, as He had indicated earlier. He promised that after His ascension, He would dwell among them, and in them, through the Holy Spirit, but at the time they had no idea what He meant. And so the disciples found themselves relating to Jesus in an entirely different way during this 40-day period of time. They were formerly with Him day and night. Now, they only saw Him from time to time.  I’m sure the disciples wished for the “good old days,” when they enjoyed much more intimate fellowship with Him.

There were other things that made this time difficult. These were perilous days. The tomb of Jesus had been sealed and was under Roman guard, by order of Pilate. When Jesus was raised from the dead, the Jews and the Roman soldiers agreed on a cover-up. They sought to explain the resurrection and the empty tomb by circulating the story that Jesus’ disciples had stolen His body. This would have been a serious crime. The disciples could have been the targets of a manhunt. No wonder they were hiding out in a locked room when Jesus came to them (John 20:19, 26).

In addition to this, there was really very little the disciples could do during these 40 frustrating days. They were told to wait until they were given power from on high. The Holy Spirit had not yet come, because Pentecost was still a few days away. These men were not yet transformed, nor were they supernaturally empowered to heal the sick, raise the dead, or proclaim the gospel. The kingdom was on hold, there was little for them to do, and Jesus was seldom seen or heard from.

It was not an easy time for the disciples at all. I can imagine that Peter could have gone home, only to find Mrs. Peter standing in the doorway, with her hands on her hips. “Peter,” she might have said sharply, “we’ve got bills to pay and mouths to feed. When are you going back to work? How long are you going to wait around, wondering what to do with yourself?” All of the disciples must have been thinking similar thoughts. They had families to support. They had to do something. They couldn’t just wait around. Why would we be surprised that it was Peter who decided to do something? Why would we find it unusual for Peter to speak out? This is precisely where the final chapter of John’s Gospel takes up.

Sunday August 11, 2024 The Gospel of John Week 73 – John 20:24-31 “Seeing and Believing”

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Sunday – August 11, 2024

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Word On Worship – Sunday – August 11, 2024

John 20:30-31
Many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

The disciples seem to have been convinced of our Lord’s resurrection, except for Thomas who was not there. He did not see the resurrected Lord, nor did he behold the Savior’s wounded hands and side. And so it was that when Thomas was told that Jesus had appeared to them, he refused to believe. He insisted that in order for him to believe, he would have to see Jesus with his own eyes. He would have to personally inspect the Lord’s nail-pierced hands and His pierced side. Only then would he believe. Before we become too harsh with Thomas, let me remind you that the other disciples did not believe until they saw, either. Thomas is really demanding to see the same things that convinced the others. He is not asking for anything more than what the others saw.

Eight days passed and the disciples were all together once again, including Thomas. The doors were locked, but in spite of this Jesus arrived and stood in their midst. Jesus repeats the greeting He gave at His earlier appearance, “Peace be with you” (verses 19, 21). Immediately, Jesus turns His attention to Thomas. He summons Thomas to come and to put his finger where the nails had pierced His hands, and to feel His side where the spear had pierced it. He challenged Thomas to forsake his unbelief and to believe.

We do not know whether Thomas actually pressed his fingers into our Lord’s nail-pierced hands or not. Since John does not tell us that Thomas actually felt the wounds of our Lord, it may well be that after seeing Jesus alive he no longer required this proof. It may have taken this sight to convince Thomas, but once convinced, Thomas got it right. He does not merely profess a belief that Jesus has risen from the dead. Thomas professes to believe in what the resurrection proved—that Jesus was God, and that He was Lord (verse 28).

The contrast Jesus seeks to emphasize is between those who must see in order to believe, and those who will believe without seeing. Peter seems to take up this same thought in his first epistle: “You have not seen him, but you love him. You do not see him now but you believe in him, and so you rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, because you are attaining the goal of your faith—the salvation of your souls (1 Peter 1:8-9). It is not too hard to see what John is leading up to. John is writing this Gospel for those who have never seen the risen Lord. He has selected just a few of the many miraculous signs Jesus performed to demonstrate that Jesus is who He claimed to be.

Sunday August 4, 2024 The Gospel of John Week 72 – John 20:19-23 “Mission Possible”

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Sunday – August 4, 2024

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Word On Worship – Sunday – August 4, 2024

John 20:26-27
A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

John’s gospel deals with four of our Lord’s four post-resurrection appearances in the Gospel of John. The first appearance is to Mary Magdalene, and the next three are to the disciples. Jesus will appear to Mary Magdalene (20:10-18), then to the disciples, minus Thomas (20:19-23), then to the disciples, with Thomas (20:26-29), and finally to the seven disciples, including Thomas, who were fishing on the Sea of Tiberias (21:1ff.). What is striking to me is that we do not really know a great deal about the time between our Lord’s resurrection and His ascension.

When you stop to think about it, a significant portion of each of the Gospels is taken up with the events of the last week of our Lord in Jerusalem. And yet, the 40 days following our Lord’s resurrection gets very little attention in comparison. The material we do have about this period is not meant to satisfy our curiosity about all that happened during this time, but is recorded to prove one important fact: Jesus Christ rose from the dead and ascended to the right hand of the Father!

Of the details we do find regarding our Lord’s ministry after His resurrection, a number of them are recorded only in Acts and 1 Corinthians. I am not sure why I had concluded that my understanding of the post-resurrection period was dependent solely upon the Gospels. It was probably due, in part, to my assumption that if one Gospel didn’t mention something I knew about this time period, it was because it was recorded in one of the other three Gospels.

If it were not for Acts 1 and 1 Corinthians 15, we would not know nearly as much about the Lord’s ministry during the 40 days following His resurrection. From Acts 1:3 we learn that during this time, Jesus taught His disciples about the kingdom of God which was yet to come. While our Lord’s instruction to His disciples to wait for the coming of the Spirit can be found in Luke’s Gospel (24:49), we probably remember this command from Acts 1:4-5. Apart from 1 Corinthians 15:5, we would not know that Jesus appeared to over 500 people at one time after His resurrection. It is from Paul (1 Corinthians 15:5), as well as from Luke (24:34), that we know Jesus made a private appearance to Peter. We would certainly not expect the replacement for Judas to be Saul, to whom our Lord made another (albeit, a later) post-resurrection appearance (1 Corinthians 15:8). A great part of what little we know of this period in our Lord’s life and ministry comes from outside the Gospels.

Sunday June 30, 2024 The Gospel of John Week 68 – John 19:17-30 “How Great a Salvation”

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Sunday – June 30, 2024

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Word On Worship – Sunday – June 30, 2024

John 19:17-19
They took Jesus, therefore, and He went out, bearing His own cross, to the place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha. There they crucified Him, and with Him two other men, one on either side, and Jesus in between.

Donald Grey Barnhouse tells about visiting a 16th century Augustinian monastery and palace near Madrid, Spain, called El Escorial. It is a magnificent building where the kings of Spain have been buried for centuries. The architect who built it made an arch so flat that it frightened the king, so he ordered the architect to add a column that would uphold the middle of the arch. So the column was built. Years later, the king died and the architect then revealed that the column was a quarter of an inch short of the arch, which had not sagged in the slightest. In over 400 years, the arch has not moved.

That arch is like our salvation in at least three ways. First, there is a master designer or planner behind it. It did not just happen, but was carefully planned and carried out by God. Second, it is totally sufficient in and of itself. Just as the arch didn’t need the help of a column to stand, so our salvation as provided in Christ is perfect and sufficient without human works needed to supplement it. Third, there is a practical aspect or function to it. The arch wasn’t just for looks, but to support that building. Our salvation isn’t just for looks, but is to result in a life of good deeds to glorify our Lord.

The fact that Jesus finished or accomplished our salvation on the cross means that we cannot add anything to what He did. To add human works or merit to the finished work of Christ is like building a column to support an arch that doesn’t need any support. It detracts from the architect’s design and skill, as well as from the beauty of the arch he made. As Paul put it (1 Cor. 1:30-31), “But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, ‘Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.’”

Just as the arch in the Escorial served a practical function, so our salvation is not just for looks. God designed it to bring Him glory as we engage in good deeds. As Ephesians 2:10 adds, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” I can only call you to the question asked by the writer of Hebrews: “How will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” (Heb 2:3) The answer is we won’t escape! Make sure that you do not neglect the great salvation that our gracious God and Savior provided at the cross! Trust in Him and serve Him with all your heart!

Sunday June 16, 2024 The Gospel of John Week 66 – John 18:28-38 “Jesus Before Pilate Part 1”

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Sunday – June 16, 2024

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Word On Worship – Sunday – June 16, 2024

John 18:28-29
Then the Jews led Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness the Jews did not enter the palace; they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?”

In John’s portrayal of Jesus’ trial before Pilate, he wants us to see that even though Jesus was despised and rejected by the Jews, mocked by the soldiers, and finally condemned by Pilate, the man on the cross is the King. John wants us to see the majesty of Christ as He faced this suffering on our behalf. He also wants us to see the depth of sin that resides in every heart. Apart from God’s grace, we would have responded to Jesus as the Jewish leaders or Pilate or the Roman soldiers did. But also, hidden in this story is the way that we all should respond to Christ. You can reject Christ for many reasons, but many reject Christ because He threatens our self-righteousness. This was the tragic response of the Jewish leaders. It was the worst choice possible because they knew the Old Testament with its prophecies about the Messiah.

Why did the Jewish leaders reject Jesus as their Messiah? There are many reasons. For one thing, He didn’t fit the image that they had of Messiah as a mighty warrior who would free Israel from her political enemies. This was a major reason why even the disciples could not conceive of a suffering Servant as the Messiah. He didn’t fit their expectations. In a similar way, I’ve seen people who initially profess faith in Christ, but they expect Him to solve all their problems and to protect them from trials. When things don’t work out that way, they reject Him.

Before we condemn the Jewish leaders, we need to make sure that there are no logs in our own eyes! Religious pride and hypocrisy are not the exclusive sins of the Jewish leaders. How often we as Christians think like the Pharisee in Jesus’ parable (Luke 18:11), “God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.” It’s so easy to take pride in our church attendance or our morality or good deeds and look down on those who are not outwardly as good as we think we are! It’s even easy to take pride in your Bible reading or Bible knowledge! As Paul said (1 Cor. 8:1), “Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.” A true understanding of what the Bible teaches about God’s holiness and your sinfulness and God’s grace as demonstrated at the cross leads you to “pour contempt on all [your] pride.” It leads you to view people who have not trusted in Christ with love and compassion, as you realize that, except for the grace of God, you would be just like they are, or worse.

Sunday June 9, 2024 The Gospel of John Week 65 – John 18:12-17 “Jesus Takes the Fifth”

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Sunday – June 9, 2024

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Word On Worship – Sunday – June 9, 2024

John 18:22-24
When Jesus said this, one of the officials nearby struck him in the face. “Is this the way you answer the high priest?” he demanded. “If I said something wrong,” Jesus replied, “testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?” Then Annas sent him, still bound, to Caiaphas the high priest.

Let’s be honest. When someone exercises his Fifth Amendment right not to testify against himself, aren’t you inclined to think he is guilty? We ask ourselves, “Why would someone who is innocent be unwilling to tell the truth?” You may even wonder why there should be a Fifth Amendment. In our text, Jesus exercises what today would be known as His Fifth Amendment right not to testify against Himself.  In Jewish justice, as in our own system, no one can be compelled to testify against himself. Annas was seeking to compel Jesus to testify against Himself. Jesus rightly refused to respond to this kind of questioning. One of the officers who stood by considered the response of Jesus to be insolent, and so he struck Him.

This slap explains why the Fifth Amendment is important. The officer who struck Jesus is probably acting out of habit. If there is no such thing as a Fifth Amendment right, then a person can be compelled to testify against himself. If the person refuses to cooperate by giving the kind of “testimony” the “examiners” are seeking, then force is applied, until the testimony conforms to what the interrogators want. When Fifth Amendment rights do not exist, or are violated, “interrogation” becomes synonymous with physical abuse and torture.

Legally, Jesus was not required to defend Himself, just as He was not required to offer testimony against Himself. Biblically, Jesus had to remain silent in order to fulfill prophecy. Our Lord’s purpose was not to defend Himself and avoid the cross; it was to give His life as a ransom for many. Jesus kept quiet because it was the Father’s will for Him to die on that cross, bearing the guilt and punishment for sinners like you and me.

The question John’s Gospel poses to its readers is this: “How do you stand in relation to Jesus as the promised Messiah, the King of the Jews?” There is no more important question in all the world. Your eternal destiny is determined by your answer to this question. As we read about the trial of our Lord, it is no longer Jesus who is on trial, nor the Jewish religious leaders, nor Annas, nor Pilate, nor Peter—it is you who are on trial. When Jesus Christ comes again, and you stand before the judgment bar of God, He will want to know only one thing from you: “What have you done with My Son?” This is the question you must answer.