Due to our upcoming teaching trip to South Africa, this will be the last post untill April 27th.
20 Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, "Lord, who is going to betray you?") 21 When Peter saw him, he asked, "Lord, what about him?"
22 Jesus answered, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me." 23 Because of this, the rumor spread among the believers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say that he would not die; he only said, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?"
24 This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true.
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.
Dig Deeper
Anyone who has ever been a parent or spent a little time with children knows that most kids are sticklers for justice. At least justice as they see it. There is nothing that will get a child whining faster than if he thinks that he is being treated differently from those around him. Recently, I was telling my oldest son some things that I needed him to accomplish that day which included cleaning his room and bringing his dirty clothes into the laundry room. His immediate response was to notice that I had not asked his younger brother to do any sort of work like that. Now, I have to tell you that I was getting to that, but that wasn’t the point. My response to my son was, "If I want him to do nothing but play all day, that shouldn’t be something you worry about." Of course, I wasn’t going to just have him play all, he had a few things to get done as well, but my older son needed to learn to not worry about others and just be willing to do his work with a good attitude. It’s an important lesson for children to learn that they need to focus on their own tasks and not be concerned with others because as they grow older, they will realize that God has given each of us specific gifts and a specific calling in life. If we cannot come to terms with that and constantly look at what others have or have been called to, then we will quickly spiral into bitterness and jealousy.
As Jesus and Peter walk along the beach, Jesus has made it clear to Peter that he has been restored in his relationship with Jesus. His denial of Jesus has been forgiven and it’s time to move on. Yet, that moving on will mean living the life of Christ. For Peter, Jesus has informed him, it will mean a constant walk of doing God’s will rather than his own that will end in his death by crucifixion. He will go to his death for Jesus just as he thought he would before the denials. But with that status confirmed and Peter feeling a bit more secure, his attention turns to the young John following behind him. Will he die too? Is the fate that Jesus describes just for Peter or is it going to be something that he calls all the disciples to?
Peter has just been confirmed in his relationship with Jesus in what had to be a moving and emotional conversation. Now he feels a little better and his usual brashness and boldness comes through. Following at a bit of a distance, but presumably close enough to hear what was going on is the disciple whom Jesus loved. We presume that this is none other than John, the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had asked who was going to betray Jesus. This disciple that was so close to Jesus and seemed to have his special favor, what about him, Peter wants to know? What will be his fate. Some commentators see a jealousy or rivalry in this relationship and that Peter’s question here confirms that, but that is not a necessary conclusion. Peter has simply been called to a challenging life and is curious whether this is his call alone or it is going to be the call of all of Jesus’ disciples.
It’s always a bit frustrating when you want certain information from someone and they don’t give you that information. Jesus doesn’t take the bait, though, he will not give Peter the direct information that he wanted, but that’s precisely the cause of some serious misunderstandings among the first century church. Jesus did not give an answer, but a rumor had begun to spread that he had. Instead, Jesus had used an exaggerated question to make his point. What business is it of yours, he asks, if I want John to remain alive until the time of the resurrection. Peter’s calling is his and John’s calling is John’s. That’s got to be good enough for Peter. He shouldn’t be worried about the treatment of others, he can only know that he is being treated justly before God. He will glorify God by serving Him and going to his death, but John will glorify God in other ways.
Apparently, though, some in the early Christian community began to tell others that Jesus had responded to Peter’s curiosity directly with the answer that John would not die until he returned at the time of the resurrection. One question that this raises is how this belief got beyond Peter, John, and Jesus in the first place, but John does not tell us that. Perhaps this story was simply told in it’s raw form and some early believers ran with their own interpretation and it snowballed from there. Whatever the case, it seemed to have become enough of a problem that John wanted to address it directly. It does seem to give a bit of credence to the belief that John 21 was added a bit later after John had finished the first draft of the Gospel. Some have put forth the idea that John’s disciples completed chapter 21 after his death, but it is far more likely that John completed this chapter either as a part of the original Gospel or added it on soon after he finished the rest of the Gospel and before it was ever circulated.
We can imagine the concern that John would have had over this rumor, though. If the early Christians began to spread the idea that John had been told by Jesus that he would remain alive until the time of the resurrection and Jesus’ return, this would only be strengthened by the fact that John was growing old and was the only of the twelve to remain alive. Church history tells us that the remaining eleven, minus Judas Iscariot, had suffered martyr’s deaths and so the fact of John’s continuing life would only lend credence to this rumor. But John is getting older as he writes this Gospel and realizes that he is not going to live forever. He, no doubt, hoped for the return of Christ in his lifetime, but realizes that is likely not going to happen at this stage in his life. What happens, though, if many Christians have embraced the belief that Jesus told him he would not die before that time and then he does? It would seriously damage Jesus’ credibility in the eyes of the body and so John wants to deal with this problem before it goes any further and, likely, before he dies.
John has acted as our witness to the events that he has described throughout this Gospel, and we know that John took the concept of being a reliable eyewitness very seriously: "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life" (1 John 1:1). John ends his incredible Gospel with a reminder that he has acted as the selector and decider of which of Jesus’ acts he would include. He has not intended to record everything that Jesus did. If he did, even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written. John does not intend that to be taken literally, but his hyperbole makes the point clear. In one sense, perhaps, it is literally true that the world could simply not handle the truth of Jesus if John wrote everything down. It cannot, in large part, handle, what John did write down. In similar statements in 20:30-31, John tells us of his desired result in the things that he has written down. Here he describes what would happen if he wrote down everything else.
Verse 24 has led some people to think that at least this verse, if not the whole chapter, was added later by some of John’s disciples because of the sentence, "we know that his testimony is true." Scholars are mixed on how exactly to understand, whether verse 24 was written by John or the Johannine community. Being that John has repeatedly referred to himself in the third person throughout his Gospel, though, and the fact that he uses the first person singular in verse 25 seems to indicate that John has written these verses himself rather than someone else. Added to that, it was not uncommon for first century writers to use the plural "we" to include the entire community that they represented or as a form of writer’s humility to avoid stressing self, something John is quite capable of. Andreas Kostenberger rightly says, "there seems to be no ancient precedent for a later editor or group of editors using the term in the context of authenticating an ‘authorial we’ is well-attested in ancient literature, the converse feature of a ‘communal I’ is not found. This evidence appears to render untenable any redaction-critical proposals that the last one or two verses (John 21:24-25) be separated from the rest of the Gospel and assigned to a different author, and it seems to bolster the case for the unity of chapter 21, if not also for apostolic authorship of the Fourth Gospel. Hence, we conclude that 21:24-25 was most likely written by the Fourth Evangelist rather than a later community with ‘we know’ in 21:24 reflecting an authorial ‘we’ and ‘I suppose’ in 21:25 constituting a self-reference by the evangelist."
As the book comes to a close, we should each stop and ask ourselves if John’s book, written with the purpose to help us come to belief that Jesus is the Son of God, has had its desired effect in our lives. If it has, we will not just read it and have vague feelings of inspiration or approach it on an intellectual level. Instead we will become what it has described. If we have true faith, we will seek to make the word, the logos, become flesh in our own lives. We will embody the life of Christ in us and carry Jesus’ message of a light to a world that is mired in darkness.
Devotional Thought
John told us in 1:14 that the word became flesh and "tabernacled" or dwelt among us. We are, as we have seen, throughout this Gospel, to take up Jesus’ mission through his life. Do the words of the Bible truly find a home in your life, your flesh, your actions? Do you make every attempt to dwell among the people of the world and show them the life of Christ in the flesh?
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
John 21:15-19
Jesus Reinstates Peter
15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?"
"Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Feed my lambs."
16 Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you love me?"
He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep."
17 The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?"
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Feed my sheep. 18 Very truly I tell you, 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." 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, "Follow me!"
Dig Deeper
My wife and I decided a few months ago that our thirteen year old son was ready to go up to the YMCA by himself for an hour or two at a time so that he could practice playing basketball. He had been petitioning for that for some time but we just recently felt like he was ready. He did great the first couple of times that he went, but then one night I dropped him off after school. The problem came when, while inside, he lost track of time and was almost twenty minutes late coming out to the car. I could have gone in to get him, but I didn’t because I let him fail in being on time so that he could learn a lesson. It may seem like a small issue, but most parents realize that there are no small issues. Even seemingly small things can be an opportunity for a big lesson. We told him that because of this breech of responsibility, he would not be able to return to the YMCA again by himself until we felt that we could rely on him again. In this case, we didn’t feel that any punishment beyond the natural consequences of his irresponsibility was necessary. After a few weeks, we felt that he had learned his lesson and had really improved in his responsibility in many areas. After school the next day, he came home and asked if we could go the YMCA to play basketball. I could not go, but I told him "sure." We got into the car and I took him up there. As I pulled up to the door (he still thought I was going in with him) I told him to be outside by a specific time when I would pick him. He was stunned for a moment and then asked if he could really go alone again. When I told him that he could because I trusted him, he got a big smile and jumped out of the car and ran into the building. I could have just told him that we trusted him again, sure. But the best way to show him that was to let him do something. We didn’t let him go to the YMCA again to prove himself, like a probation. Letting him go was the sign that we had forgiven him and trusted him to be responsible.
Throughout the Gospel of John we have seen Jesus consistently do and say things that were for the benefit of others rather than himself and this scene is one more elegant example of that. It’s like déjà vu for Peter, a coal fire and the confrontation of three questions concerning his allegiance to Jesus. But these questions from Jesus aren’t about shame or penance. They are about restoration. Jesus, above all, wants Peter to know that despite his night of adversity in betraying Jesus, he, and all of us, can be forgiven because of Jesus’ night of affliction and agony. But Jesus doesn’t just tell Peter that he is forgiven, he is going to give him an opportunity to do something. Peter will have another chance to show that he does love Jesus and will be loyal and can be trusted.
As the meal draws to a close, Jesus presumably takes Peter off by himself, perhaps for a stroll down the beach. It will become obvious as we get into the closing verses of the chapter, however, that, whether they took a long walk or a short stroll, John was following behind closely. Peter had denied Jesus, he had failed in his loyalty when he was so confident that he would succeed. This scene is not an indication that Jesus questions his ongoing loyalty but is proof of quite the opposite. Jesus is confident that Peter will go on to serve him loyally and become a pillar in Christ’s church. The question at hand is, does Peter know that?
Jesus’ opening question is a little difficult to completely understand. He asks Peter, do you love me more than these? There is a small bit of confusion as to what "these" refers to. There are three primary possibilities that have been put forth over the years. The first is that Jesus was asking Peter if Peter loved him more than the other disciples loved Jesus. The second is that Jesus was asking if Peter loved Jesus more than he loved the other disciples. And the third is that Jesus was asking Peter if he loved Jesus more than the big haul of fish, which he was using as a representative for the things of the world. It seems that the first option is unlikely but not out of the question. The other two are more likely, but we cannot ever know for sure. The precise details are simply not all that important and perhaps Jesus’ question encompassed a a little of all of them.
Three times, Jesus asks Peter if he truly loves him. Some commentators have pointed out, over the years, that there are two different words used in this section for "love." Although there may be a slight difference between the word that Peter uses all three times and Jesus uses the last time (phileo), and the word that Jesus uses the first two times (agapao), it seems more likely that these words are fairly interchangeable and that this is just another example of John using variance within repetition, something that he does quite often in his writings. It is certainly true that Peter think Jesus has asked him the same question three times and that’s what hurts and exasperates him.
So, what is Jesus doing? Why does he repeat the question three times? The simple answer is that Peter denied him three times. There were three denials, so there will be three affirmations. The first two times, Jesus asks Peter if he is really devoted, does he really Jesus. Peter answers unequivocally that he does. Yet, Jesus asks a third time and Peter is hurt. This third time, though, Peter is hurt. Perhaps the three times seems unnecessary but Peter, by his actions, had repeatedly shown that he did not want a crucified Lord and wanted no part of that himself, when the rubber hit road. Peter, it seems, finally realizes that and stops asserting so forcefully that he does love Jesus. He certainly does, but nothing in his recent actions would show that. Yet, he believes that the Lord knows. If he doesn’t already know that Peter loves him, what more can Peter say. Peter has finally learned to stop trusting himself and puts his faith in Jesus.
We should not miss that Jesus responds the same way each time to Peter. What is notable is what Jesus does not say. He does not tell Peter that if he loves him, he needs to pray more or do anything for Jesus. The way to show that he truly loves Jesus is to love Jesus’ people. This is the same principle that Jesus used in 13:34-35 when he said that people would be able to identify the love for God of his disciples by the way they loved one another. If Peter loves Jesus, he will demonstrate that by shepherding Jesus’ people. Peter certainly got the point and the shepherding language stuck with him his whole life. In 1 Peter 5:1-4, Peter urges his fellow elders to continue the work of shepherding the people of the Chief Shepherd, "To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ's sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away."
Peter understood later in life that the way to genuinely show love for Christ is to love and care for his people. He also understood that the mission that Jesus had given him was not a proving ground of his love, a probation of sorts. Rather, the mission was the sign that Jesus had fully accepted him and fully restored him. It is the same with us. When we become disciples of Jesus, he gives us a mission and work to do (Matt. 28:18-20; Eph. 2:10). Many Christians begin to feel burdened by this call and see it as a constant source of insecurity as though the mission that Jesus has given us is the means through which we prove ourselves worthy. Yet, just as with Peter, that is simply not the case. The work that Jesus has prepared for us is not the means of proving ourselves worthy, he has graciously given us that status by entering into his life. The work and the mission are ongoing signs of that unmerited status. When we shirk back from the mission, then, it means that we are refusing, in a sense, one of the primary means of God showing his grace to us.
In 13:37, John records Peter as having boldly told Jesus, "I will lay down my life for you." To that Jesus responded a bit bemused, "Will you really lay down your life for me" (Jn. 13:38). Peter had been so sure that he was willing to lay down his life for Jesus, not understanding that in order for him to actually be able to do that, Jesus must first lay down his life for Peter and all the world. Peter is fully restored, though, and he will soon enough get that chance to lay down his life for Jesus. When he was younger, he went about life doing his own will, but that will change in the future. He has now committed himself to doing God’s will. When he is old, after doing God’s will, someone will stretch out his hands, a first-century figure of speech for crucifixion. Peter will ultimately get his wish. He will lay down his life for Jesus. That is his calling and Jesus knows that he is ready so he issues a simple command. Just "follow me." If he continues to do that, he will feed Jesus’ sheep, he will lay down his life for others, he will do God’s will, and he will lay down his life and be crucified for Jesus. Church tradition, we should note, maintains that Peter was crucified, but requested, and was granted to be crucified upside down because he was not worthy of dying in the same fashion as the Chief Shepherd.
Devotional Thought
Do you truly understand that the mission of loving and feeding Jesus’ sheep and making more disciples is a sign of his love for us and our reconciliation to God rather than something we must do to prove our love? How does understanding these things in this way change your frame of mind and the way you continue to approach your walk of discipleship?
15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?"
"Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Feed my lambs."
16 Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you love me?"
He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep."
17 The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?"
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Feed my sheep. 18 Very truly I tell you, 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." 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, "Follow me!"
Dig Deeper
My wife and I decided a few months ago that our thirteen year old son was ready to go up to the YMCA by himself for an hour or two at a time so that he could practice playing basketball. He had been petitioning for that for some time but we just recently felt like he was ready. He did great the first couple of times that he went, but then one night I dropped him off after school. The problem came when, while inside, he lost track of time and was almost twenty minutes late coming out to the car. I could have gone in to get him, but I didn’t because I let him fail in being on time so that he could learn a lesson. It may seem like a small issue, but most parents realize that there are no small issues. Even seemingly small things can be an opportunity for a big lesson. We told him that because of this breech of responsibility, he would not be able to return to the YMCA again by himself until we felt that we could rely on him again. In this case, we didn’t feel that any punishment beyond the natural consequences of his irresponsibility was necessary. After a few weeks, we felt that he had learned his lesson and had really improved in his responsibility in many areas. After school the next day, he came home and asked if we could go the YMCA to play basketball. I could not go, but I told him "sure." We got into the car and I took him up there. As I pulled up to the door (he still thought I was going in with him) I told him to be outside by a specific time when I would pick him. He was stunned for a moment and then asked if he could really go alone again. When I told him that he could because I trusted him, he got a big smile and jumped out of the car and ran into the building. I could have just told him that we trusted him again, sure. But the best way to show him that was to let him do something. We didn’t let him go to the YMCA again to prove himself, like a probation. Letting him go was the sign that we had forgiven him and trusted him to be responsible.
Throughout the Gospel of John we have seen Jesus consistently do and say things that were for the benefit of others rather than himself and this scene is one more elegant example of that. It’s like déjà vu for Peter, a coal fire and the confrontation of three questions concerning his allegiance to Jesus. But these questions from Jesus aren’t about shame or penance. They are about restoration. Jesus, above all, wants Peter to know that despite his night of adversity in betraying Jesus, he, and all of us, can be forgiven because of Jesus’ night of affliction and agony. But Jesus doesn’t just tell Peter that he is forgiven, he is going to give him an opportunity to do something. Peter will have another chance to show that he does love Jesus and will be loyal and can be trusted.
As the meal draws to a close, Jesus presumably takes Peter off by himself, perhaps for a stroll down the beach. It will become obvious as we get into the closing verses of the chapter, however, that, whether they took a long walk or a short stroll, John was following behind closely. Peter had denied Jesus, he had failed in his loyalty when he was so confident that he would succeed. This scene is not an indication that Jesus questions his ongoing loyalty but is proof of quite the opposite. Jesus is confident that Peter will go on to serve him loyally and become a pillar in Christ’s church. The question at hand is, does Peter know that?
Jesus’ opening question is a little difficult to completely understand. He asks Peter, do you love me more than these? There is a small bit of confusion as to what "these" refers to. There are three primary possibilities that have been put forth over the years. The first is that Jesus was asking Peter if Peter loved him more than the other disciples loved Jesus. The second is that Jesus was asking if Peter loved Jesus more than he loved the other disciples. And the third is that Jesus was asking Peter if he loved Jesus more than the big haul of fish, which he was using as a representative for the things of the world. It seems that the first option is unlikely but not out of the question. The other two are more likely, but we cannot ever know for sure. The precise details are simply not all that important and perhaps Jesus’ question encompassed a a little of all of them.
Three times, Jesus asks Peter if he truly loves him. Some commentators have pointed out, over the years, that there are two different words used in this section for "love." Although there may be a slight difference between the word that Peter uses all three times and Jesus uses the last time (phileo), and the word that Jesus uses the first two times (agapao), it seems more likely that these words are fairly interchangeable and that this is just another example of John using variance within repetition, something that he does quite often in his writings. It is certainly true that Peter think Jesus has asked him the same question three times and that’s what hurts and exasperates him.
So, what is Jesus doing? Why does he repeat the question three times? The simple answer is that Peter denied him three times. There were three denials, so there will be three affirmations. The first two times, Jesus asks Peter if he is really devoted, does he really Jesus. Peter answers unequivocally that he does. Yet, Jesus asks a third time and Peter is hurt. This third time, though, Peter is hurt. Perhaps the three times seems unnecessary but Peter, by his actions, had repeatedly shown that he did not want a crucified Lord and wanted no part of that himself, when the rubber hit road. Peter, it seems, finally realizes that and stops asserting so forcefully that he does love Jesus. He certainly does, but nothing in his recent actions would show that. Yet, he believes that the Lord knows. If he doesn’t already know that Peter loves him, what more can Peter say. Peter has finally learned to stop trusting himself and puts his faith in Jesus.
We should not miss that Jesus responds the same way each time to Peter. What is notable is what Jesus does not say. He does not tell Peter that if he loves him, he needs to pray more or do anything for Jesus. The way to show that he truly loves Jesus is to love Jesus’ people. This is the same principle that Jesus used in 13:34-35 when he said that people would be able to identify the love for God of his disciples by the way they loved one another. If Peter loves Jesus, he will demonstrate that by shepherding Jesus’ people. Peter certainly got the point and the shepherding language stuck with him his whole life. In 1 Peter 5:1-4, Peter urges his fellow elders to continue the work of shepherding the people of the Chief Shepherd, "To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ's sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away."
Peter understood later in life that the way to genuinely show love for Christ is to love and care for his people. He also understood that the mission that Jesus had given him was not a proving ground of his love, a probation of sorts. Rather, the mission was the sign that Jesus had fully accepted him and fully restored him. It is the same with us. When we become disciples of Jesus, he gives us a mission and work to do (Matt. 28:18-20; Eph. 2:10). Many Christians begin to feel burdened by this call and see it as a constant source of insecurity as though the mission that Jesus has given us is the means through which we prove ourselves worthy. Yet, just as with Peter, that is simply not the case. The work that Jesus has prepared for us is not the means of proving ourselves worthy, he has graciously given us that status by entering into his life. The work and the mission are ongoing signs of that unmerited status. When we shirk back from the mission, then, it means that we are refusing, in a sense, one of the primary means of God showing his grace to us.
In 13:37, John records Peter as having boldly told Jesus, "I will lay down my life for you." To that Jesus responded a bit bemused, "Will you really lay down your life for me" (Jn. 13:38). Peter had been so sure that he was willing to lay down his life for Jesus, not understanding that in order for him to actually be able to do that, Jesus must first lay down his life for Peter and all the world. Peter is fully restored, though, and he will soon enough get that chance to lay down his life for Jesus. When he was younger, he went about life doing his own will, but that will change in the future. He has now committed himself to doing God’s will. When he is old, after doing God’s will, someone will stretch out his hands, a first-century figure of speech for crucifixion. Peter will ultimately get his wish. He will lay down his life for Jesus. That is his calling and Jesus knows that he is ready so he issues a simple command. Just "follow me." If he continues to do that, he will feed Jesus’ sheep, he will lay down his life for others, he will do God’s will, and he will lay down his life and be crucified for Jesus. Church tradition, we should note, maintains that Peter was crucified, but requested, and was granted to be crucified upside down because he was not worthy of dying in the same fashion as the Chief Shepherd.
Devotional Thought
Do you truly understand that the mission of loving and feeding Jesus’ sheep and making more disciples is a sign of his love for us and our reconciliation to God rather than something we must do to prove our love? How does understanding these things in this way change your frame of mind and the way you continue to approach your walk of discipleship?
Monday, March 23, 2009
John 21:1-14
Jesus and the Miraculous Catch of Fish
1 Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 "I'm going out to fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
5 He called out to them, "Friends, haven't you any fish?"
"No," they answered.
6 He said, "Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some." When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, "It is the Lord," he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
10 Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish you have just caught."
11 Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12 Jesus said to them, "Come and have breakfast." None of the disciples dared ask him, "Who are you?" They knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14 This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Dig Deeper
My first year in kindergarten, I went to a public school before my parents put me in a private school for the next eight years. Overall, that year was not a pleasant memory. I don’t have a bunch of memories about that first year, but most of the ones that I do retain are not good ones. One bad memory that stands out in particular was the time when the art teacher grabbed the pilgrim hat that I was making for Thanksgiving and held it up to the whole class as an example of bad art and what not to do. Honestly though, I never spent too much time thinking about that place once I left. That was, at least, until I was in my twenties and I had to go back to the school for one day. I was a supervisor for the YMCA and they had an after school care program there that I had to go observe for the day. As soon as I began walking down the halls, the distinctive smell of the school brought back a flood of memories that I didn’t even recall having until that moment. It was an amazing experience, but memory experts say that the sense of smell is one of the most powerful agents to trigger memory in human beings.
Somehow all those bad memories that I had, with a few good ones thrown in, came flooding back with the familiar smell of the school I had attended nearly twenty years before. Yet, these were early childhood memories and mostly things that had been done to me. Can you imagine having a strong memory from your adulthood that was associated with a particularly distinct odor? Can you imagine having that memory be something that you did that was terrible, a betrayal of your best friend? Can you imagine the depth of agony that you would feel every time you smelled that pungent odor? Can you imagine all of that? Peter could.
What do you do if you’re Jesus’ disciples after Jesus’ death. They had seen the risen Christ, but what did that mean? What did he want of them? In the absence of having any clear understanding of that, the disciples apparently follow the direction given to them to return to Galilee (Matt. 26:32; 28:7, 10; Mark 14:28; 16:7). Once they were there, though, what should they do? We don’t know exactly what their thought process was, but it seems that they returned to what they knew. They likely figured that they had to make a living somehow. Surely they expected Jesus to return and give them further instruction, but in the meantime they would do some fishing, something most of them knew well.
They followed the typical practice at the time to go out fishing at night. A good haul of fish caught at night could be sold fresh in the market in the morning. But most fishermen know, or so I’m told, that if you don’t get a good catch at night, it’s very unlikely that you would fare any better during the day. Peter wanted to fish, so they decided to go with him. It’s speculation, of course, but it seems pretty reasonable to think that Peter was still devastated by his own actions. True, he had seen the risen Christ twice now, but he still had to have some lingering doubts about himself and his own status as Jesus’ follower. He had been so sure that he would be loyal to Christ, even following him to his death, but when the time came, he failed, not just once, but a second time, and a third time. It seems like Peter, on returning to Galilee, has a normal human reaction to a stressful time or a time of dealing with great failure. We go back to something safe, something we know, something that makes us feel comfortable.
They went through the entire night of fishing but caught nothing. Once again, Jesus appears but they don’t immediately recognize him. John never tries to fully explain the mystery of the resurrection body, and perhaps even years later, he still couldn’t, but it does seem that Jesus was the same, but yet somehow different. They didn’t immediately recognize him, yet they did recognize, but even then they weren’t completely sure and were filled with questions that they didn’t want to ask and seem offensive. Even though they didn’t recognize him immediately, once they did, it’s rather confusing that when they did know who he was, John still tells us that they didn’t want to ask. That only makes sense if his body was the same but somehow different. Perhaps there is a clue in the fact that the resurrection body will never see decay or deteriorate. Imagine a body that was fully grown but never was ravaged by age or the deteriorating effects of the sun. We probably should not reduce the uniqueness of the resurrection body to just that, but perhaps that accounts for some of the recognition difficulties. The more complete answer would include the fact that this is Jesus’ body and it is real and physical, yet somehow it is more than that too.
When they respond to Jesus’ query of whether they caught any fish, Jesus tells them to throw their nets on the right side of the boat. This likely seemed like a ridiculous suggestion coming from someone walking on the shore, but maybe something clicked within them, reminding them that they had been here before. Jesus had told them something similar in Luke 5:4 and they followed him simply because he said so, not because it made any sense. They didn’t know who this stranger on the shore was, but maybe they did somehow. As they put the nets in the water, they experienced the same result. Jesus was perhaps reminding them that anything they might accomplish would only be through him. Relying on their own strength would get them nowhere. They had certainly learned this lesson on the day of the crucifixion as they scattered and deserted Jesus but now he has reminded them again. He had, from the very beginning, called them to be fishers of men. He is about to remind Peter of that, but first the renewed lesson that they must rely on him not themselves. When they obeyed Jesus, simply at his word, they had a haul larger than they could imagine on their own abilities. John recounts that the haul was 153 fish. Many have tried to come up with symbolic significance for John including this number, but the reality is if John meant for this number to symbolize something (something John is quite capable of doing), he leaves us no clues as to how to understand it, and this is not a common symbolic number that can be easily decoded. It is more likely that he simply records the number as a demonstration of how incredibly large the catch was.
They didn’t recognize him immediately, but once the same result comes, they know that this is Jesus. John, who saw into the tomb and believed, also is the first to come to terms with the fact that Jesus has come to them in Galilee just as he had promised. Peter, being his usually impulsive self, jumped into the water and swam toward Jesus. He was excited to see him and was likely still feeling like there was some unfinished business between the two of them.
As they arrive on the shore, they find that Jesus didn’t need their fish. He already had some. The catch was for them. Jesus wasn’t standing on the shore helpless, waiting for them to provide for him. This is a lesson that the church today is wise to remember. God doesn’t need us but chooses to work through us for our benefit not His.
As they approach Jesus, though, they find something even more incredible. Jesus has carefully built a coal fire. John used a specific word, anthrakia, that means "fire of coals." This word is used only one other time in the entire Bible and it is John 18:18. John has carefully shown us something with the rare use of this specific word. Jesus knows the failure that Peter experienced. He knows what Peter has gone through and is still putting himself through. He knows that as Peter denied Jesus, he stood warming himself next a coal fire, a fire which makes an incredibly distinctive smell. Peter would forever be reminded of his failure every time he smelled a coal fire. Jesus knows that not even the wonderful truth of the resurrection would simply erase that memory for Peter. Jesus intentionally, it seems, builds a coal fire. Let’s bring up the memory and let’s deal with. He is, as we will see in the next section, about to give Peter a new memory to attach to the old one. Not to erase the old memory, but to redirect it. He wants Peter to be reminded and motivated by these two memories rather than simply be paralyzed by the first one. Jesus has carefully re-created a coal fire for Peter. How could Peter help but to be flooded with the memories of that night? But Jesus doesn’t just talk to Peter immediately. He’ll get to that, but first he gives Peter a few moments to go back and help bring in the fish and to eat breakfast, all the while taking in the smells and being reminded of his failure. I guess that’s the way it has to be. We can’t truly be restored until we’ve faced our sin fully and come to an honest realization of what we’ve done. Only when that happens can we truly be forgiven and truly forgive ourselves.
Before he talks to Peter, Jesus hands out bread and fish to his disciples. John, it would seem, wants us to hear some echoes of chapter 6 here, when Jesus miraculously fed the multitudes that were following him. He told that crowd that they would have to trust in his life alone if they were to experience the freedom of the life of the age to come. Most of those crowds concluded that this was a teaching that was too difficult to accept. As Jesus recapitulates that action with his true disciples, there is no such defection. They would still have to rely on him alone, but they had already made the decision to follow him and trust in his life alone. This is a truth that believers today must constantly wrestle with and return to. As we return to the memories of our own failures, our own coal fires, we must remember that we need to take the fish and the bread from Jesus. We cannot bring restoration and reconciliation on our own. We must rely on faith alone in the life of Christ alone.
Devotional Thought
Jesus declared in chapter 10 that he was the Good Shepherd who laid his life down for his sheep. We’ve seen him do that not only in his physical death but also in the way that everything he said and did was for the benefit of others. Now, in this scene, we see another example of that. Rather than thinking of himself or demanding an apology, Jesus acts with Peter’s best interests first. He is very intentional about forgiving Peter and making sure that Peter feels forgiven and has a mission that will demonstrate his forgiveness to himself. Take some time today and think about how you can model the kind of forgiveness that Jesus did.
1 Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 "I'm going out to fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
5 He called out to them, "Friends, haven't you any fish?"
"No," they answered.
6 He said, "Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some." When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, "It is the Lord," he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
10 Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish you have just caught."
11 Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12 Jesus said to them, "Come and have breakfast." None of the disciples dared ask him, "Who are you?" They knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14 This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Dig Deeper
My first year in kindergarten, I went to a public school before my parents put me in a private school for the next eight years. Overall, that year was not a pleasant memory. I don’t have a bunch of memories about that first year, but most of the ones that I do retain are not good ones. One bad memory that stands out in particular was the time when the art teacher grabbed the pilgrim hat that I was making for Thanksgiving and held it up to the whole class as an example of bad art and what not to do. Honestly though, I never spent too much time thinking about that place once I left. That was, at least, until I was in my twenties and I had to go back to the school for one day. I was a supervisor for the YMCA and they had an after school care program there that I had to go observe for the day. As soon as I began walking down the halls, the distinctive smell of the school brought back a flood of memories that I didn’t even recall having until that moment. It was an amazing experience, but memory experts say that the sense of smell is one of the most powerful agents to trigger memory in human beings.
Somehow all those bad memories that I had, with a few good ones thrown in, came flooding back with the familiar smell of the school I had attended nearly twenty years before. Yet, these were early childhood memories and mostly things that had been done to me. Can you imagine having a strong memory from your adulthood that was associated with a particularly distinct odor? Can you imagine having that memory be something that you did that was terrible, a betrayal of your best friend? Can you imagine the depth of agony that you would feel every time you smelled that pungent odor? Can you imagine all of that? Peter could.
What do you do if you’re Jesus’ disciples after Jesus’ death. They had seen the risen Christ, but what did that mean? What did he want of them? In the absence of having any clear understanding of that, the disciples apparently follow the direction given to them to return to Galilee (Matt. 26:32; 28:7, 10; Mark 14:28; 16:7). Once they were there, though, what should they do? We don’t know exactly what their thought process was, but it seems that they returned to what they knew. They likely figured that they had to make a living somehow. Surely they expected Jesus to return and give them further instruction, but in the meantime they would do some fishing, something most of them knew well.
They followed the typical practice at the time to go out fishing at night. A good haul of fish caught at night could be sold fresh in the market in the morning. But most fishermen know, or so I’m told, that if you don’t get a good catch at night, it’s very unlikely that you would fare any better during the day. Peter wanted to fish, so they decided to go with him. It’s speculation, of course, but it seems pretty reasonable to think that Peter was still devastated by his own actions. True, he had seen the risen Christ twice now, but he still had to have some lingering doubts about himself and his own status as Jesus’ follower. He had been so sure that he would be loyal to Christ, even following him to his death, but when the time came, he failed, not just once, but a second time, and a third time. It seems like Peter, on returning to Galilee, has a normal human reaction to a stressful time or a time of dealing with great failure. We go back to something safe, something we know, something that makes us feel comfortable.
They went through the entire night of fishing but caught nothing. Once again, Jesus appears but they don’t immediately recognize him. John never tries to fully explain the mystery of the resurrection body, and perhaps even years later, he still couldn’t, but it does seem that Jesus was the same, but yet somehow different. They didn’t immediately recognize him, yet they did recognize, but even then they weren’t completely sure and were filled with questions that they didn’t want to ask and seem offensive. Even though they didn’t recognize him immediately, once they did, it’s rather confusing that when they did know who he was, John still tells us that they didn’t want to ask. That only makes sense if his body was the same but somehow different. Perhaps there is a clue in the fact that the resurrection body will never see decay or deteriorate. Imagine a body that was fully grown but never was ravaged by age or the deteriorating effects of the sun. We probably should not reduce the uniqueness of the resurrection body to just that, but perhaps that accounts for some of the recognition difficulties. The more complete answer would include the fact that this is Jesus’ body and it is real and physical, yet somehow it is more than that too.
When they respond to Jesus’ query of whether they caught any fish, Jesus tells them to throw their nets on the right side of the boat. This likely seemed like a ridiculous suggestion coming from someone walking on the shore, but maybe something clicked within them, reminding them that they had been here before. Jesus had told them something similar in Luke 5:4 and they followed him simply because he said so, not because it made any sense. They didn’t know who this stranger on the shore was, but maybe they did somehow. As they put the nets in the water, they experienced the same result. Jesus was perhaps reminding them that anything they might accomplish would only be through him. Relying on their own strength would get them nowhere. They had certainly learned this lesson on the day of the crucifixion as they scattered and deserted Jesus but now he has reminded them again. He had, from the very beginning, called them to be fishers of men. He is about to remind Peter of that, but first the renewed lesson that they must rely on him not themselves. When they obeyed Jesus, simply at his word, they had a haul larger than they could imagine on their own abilities. John recounts that the haul was 153 fish. Many have tried to come up with symbolic significance for John including this number, but the reality is if John meant for this number to symbolize something (something John is quite capable of doing), he leaves us no clues as to how to understand it, and this is not a common symbolic number that can be easily decoded. It is more likely that he simply records the number as a demonstration of how incredibly large the catch was.
They didn’t recognize him immediately, but once the same result comes, they know that this is Jesus. John, who saw into the tomb and believed, also is the first to come to terms with the fact that Jesus has come to them in Galilee just as he had promised. Peter, being his usually impulsive self, jumped into the water and swam toward Jesus. He was excited to see him and was likely still feeling like there was some unfinished business between the two of them.
As they arrive on the shore, they find that Jesus didn’t need their fish. He already had some. The catch was for them. Jesus wasn’t standing on the shore helpless, waiting for them to provide for him. This is a lesson that the church today is wise to remember. God doesn’t need us but chooses to work through us for our benefit not His.
As they approach Jesus, though, they find something even more incredible. Jesus has carefully built a coal fire. John used a specific word, anthrakia, that means "fire of coals." This word is used only one other time in the entire Bible and it is John 18:18. John has carefully shown us something with the rare use of this specific word. Jesus knows the failure that Peter experienced. He knows what Peter has gone through and is still putting himself through. He knows that as Peter denied Jesus, he stood warming himself next a coal fire, a fire which makes an incredibly distinctive smell. Peter would forever be reminded of his failure every time he smelled a coal fire. Jesus knows that not even the wonderful truth of the resurrection would simply erase that memory for Peter. Jesus intentionally, it seems, builds a coal fire. Let’s bring up the memory and let’s deal with. He is, as we will see in the next section, about to give Peter a new memory to attach to the old one. Not to erase the old memory, but to redirect it. He wants Peter to be reminded and motivated by these two memories rather than simply be paralyzed by the first one. Jesus has carefully re-created a coal fire for Peter. How could Peter help but to be flooded with the memories of that night? But Jesus doesn’t just talk to Peter immediately. He’ll get to that, but first he gives Peter a few moments to go back and help bring in the fish and to eat breakfast, all the while taking in the smells and being reminded of his failure. I guess that’s the way it has to be. We can’t truly be restored until we’ve faced our sin fully and come to an honest realization of what we’ve done. Only when that happens can we truly be forgiven and truly forgive ourselves.
Before he talks to Peter, Jesus hands out bread and fish to his disciples. John, it would seem, wants us to hear some echoes of chapter 6 here, when Jesus miraculously fed the multitudes that were following him. He told that crowd that they would have to trust in his life alone if they were to experience the freedom of the life of the age to come. Most of those crowds concluded that this was a teaching that was too difficult to accept. As Jesus recapitulates that action with his true disciples, there is no such defection. They would still have to rely on him alone, but they had already made the decision to follow him and trust in his life alone. This is a truth that believers today must constantly wrestle with and return to. As we return to the memories of our own failures, our own coal fires, we must remember that we need to take the fish and the bread from Jesus. We cannot bring restoration and reconciliation on our own. We must rely on faith alone in the life of Christ alone.
Devotional Thought
Jesus declared in chapter 10 that he was the Good Shepherd who laid his life down for his sheep. We’ve seen him do that not only in his physical death but also in the way that everything he said and did was for the benefit of others. Now, in this scene, we see another example of that. Rather than thinking of himself or demanding an apology, Jesus acts with Peter’s best interests first. He is very intentional about forgiving Peter and making sure that Peter feels forgiven and has a mission that will demonstrate his forgiveness to himself. Take some time today and think about how you can model the kind of forgiveness that Jesus did.
Friday, March 20, 2009
John 20:24-31
Jesus Appears to Thomas
24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!"
But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."
26 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!" 27 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."
28 Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
29 Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
The Purpose of John's Gospel
30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Dig Deeper
This past winter I had the unique opportunity to coach my five-year old son in a basketball league. This was quite a different experience from the coaching experiences that I’ve had in the past. There’s a big difference between coaching high school basketball and coaching five-year olds. As a high school coach I never had to yell to a player that he was dribbling towards the wrong basket, I never had to remind a player that they couldn’t dribble directly towards their mother every time they got the ball, and I certainly never had to take the team for a potty break in between quarters. Yet, the biggest difference is that the coaches actually go out onto the playing floor during the game. We run up and down the court with the players and are able to shout directions to them and help them out during each play. We could even stop play momentarily if we needed to in order to explain or teach something to a player. In the early part of the season, I was always very near the players and shouted out directions constantly. I really praised the players who listened to my direction and learned what to do and when to do it. As the season wore on, however, I got further and further away from the players and gave out less directions. I began to praise the guys who listened to the instructions at time outs and before quarters and the guys who were doing the right things without being told or reminded on every play. Some guys still needed some help, but the emphasis began to shift to praise for those who didn’t need constant reminders. The reason for this was simple. Next year they will be in the six-year old league and coaches don’t go on the floor during that league. They’ll be on their own much more and expected to know what to do. Things were changing and we needed to encourage the type of behavior that would fit into their soon to be reality.
In a much more profound way, things are changing for Jesus’ followers. Up to the point of his death, they were able to observe his life, his signs, his wonders, his words and follow him closely. They were able to see what he was doing and follow in his footsteps. That was fine for the time, but Jesus increasingly stressed the importance of having belief based on his word, the logos, rather than because they could observe something. It has now reached a climax. Jesus’ disciples need to embrace and highly value belief apart from observation because the ability to directly observe Jesus will no longer be an option. They are about to lead and be part of communities that are based on faith and the subtle guidance of the Holy Spirit. Things were, after all, changing, and they needed to encourage the type of behavior that would fit into their soon to be reality.
We’re not told where Thomas was during the amazing events of the first day of the week of the new creation, but we do know that he wasn’t there. The disciples eagerly tell him that they have seen the Lord, but Thomas is skeptical. We’ve seen descriptive aspects of Thomas’ blunt nature before (Jn. 11:16; 14:5) and his response here fits with what John has sketched for us in describing his personality. Thomas’ demand to see empirical proof before he believes isn’t so much a skepticism about Jesus’ potential resurrection as it is likely a lack of confidence to some degree in the accuracy of the disciples report.
John uses his desire for proof as an opportunity to combat a docetic heresy that was beginning to take shape by the time he writes his Gospel. Docetism was the belief that Jesus was a spirit being that only looked human but was not a truly flesh human being. John will have none of that. Nor will Thomas. He wants to see the nail marks and put his hand into his side. Thomas is a practical man who is not about to be taken in by any fraud or hysteria.
Perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that Jesus did not appear again, says John, until the next Sunday. It was another first day of the week, just like Jesus’ first appearance to the disciples The doors are locked again just like before. The disciples may have been encouraged and filled with joy at seeing the risen Jesus but they evidently aren’t filled with the kind of boldness that we see them display without fail in the book of Acts. They will need the indwelling of the Holy Spirit for that. As Jesus appears, again declaring "peace be with you," as he had before, he gives Thomas the proof that he needed. He then gives Thomas a gentle rebuke to stop doubting and believe.
Thomas marveling both at receiving the proof that he desired and the realization that Jesus knew that’s what he wanted without being told is the first person to say what John has been getting at since the opening verse. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Here is the Word become flesh. We should not miss the fact that this passage provides ample evidence that the early church considered Jesus to be God. Thomas responds by worshiping Jesus as Lord and God (cf. Ps. 35:23-24). The TNIV obscures the fact that Thomas literally calls Jesus "the Lord of me and the God (ho theos) of me, leaving no doubt that he is recognizing Jesus as the one, true God. Jesus does not rebuke Thomas for carelessly misapplying such a lofty title to him, nor does he chide him giving worship to him that belongs to God alone. Jesus willingly accepts Thomas’ declaration and praise. Thomas, John no doubt wants us to see, has rightly identified Jesus and given him the proper respect.
Jesus’ response to Thomas has often been taken as a rebuke to Thomas for wanting evidence that Jesus had been resurrected, and perhaps, as earlier, there is a mild rebuke there, but that is hardly the primary point of Jesus. He is not so much concerned with denouncing the type of faith that Thomas has demonstrated but he is marking a transition from faith based on seeing Jesus and his signs to those who will believe on the basis of the message, the logos, of the disciples. They are the ones that are the recipients of Jesus’ blessing. Jesus knows that his time is short and the option of believing Jesus by sight is over. In the future, the body of Christ will be built around faith in the message and word of the disciples testimony. Thomas’ behavior is still acceptable to this point, but that kind of "faith" will not be an option in the future. We must remember, in all fairness, that Thomas still did not have available to him the guidance of the Holy Spirit that leads believers into truth.
As John brings this chapter to a close, it does, admittedly, seem very much like a fitting and proper ending to the Gospel. Yet, we know that there is one more chapter. There are two main theories that we will briefly mention to explain this. One theory says that chapter 20 is the ending of the book proper, where the book proper begins in 1:19. They argue that chapter 21 is intended as an epilogue to balance the prologue of 1:1-18. The other theory says that chapter 21 was added a little later, either by John himself or by his immediate disciples shortly before or shortly after his death. There does seem to be something to the idea that there are several points of contact between this passage and the opening chapter of the Gospel (including Jesus finally being identified as God and the similarities between this encounter with Thomas and Jesus’ encounter with Nathanael in 1:47-51) which might indicate that, at least, for a short time, this was the original ending of the Gospel of John. We will discuss the possible purposes of the addition of chapter 21, if it was indeed added, although it must be said that this is all speculation because there has never been a manuscript of John’s Gospel without chapter 21. If it was added, it was likely added almost immediately, and almost surely by John himself or at his direction.
As John winds the chapter down, he points out that Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples which are not recorded in this book. John’s intent was not to write a biography or history of Jesus. He wrote selectively in order to fulfill the purpose of inducing faith in those who read this Gospel. John’s self-stated purpose in writing is overtly evangelistic.
John wrote this book for the specific purpose which is obscured a bit by the TNIV and most English translations. The original language does not convey that John wrote so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, but that the readers might believe that "the Messiah, the Son of God, is Jesus." The difference is subtle but important. John’s point is not that, after having followed and observed Jesus, the disciples were left to find an appropriate category for him and decided upon Messiah and Son of God. They were waiting for the Messiah, with all of their preconceived notions of what he would be. It took time and much modeling of who the true Messiah was by Jesus, but they eventually discovered that the Messiah was Jesus. He was the one that had life in him (Jn. 1:4). If we remember that the Jewish concept of "name" carried with it the meaning of nuance of the word "life," that John’s concluding thought is that those who believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God will have "life in his life." As John had hinted in the opening prologue, "In him was life, and that life was the light of men."
Devotional Thought
Jesus blessed those that would come to belief in him without seeing and in the book of Romans 10:14, Paul says that people cannot come to belief without hearing the message and that they cannot hear unless someone preaches to them. Do you know the message well enough to help bring someone to belief? Have you, through constant study of the word, prepared yourself to be used by God to spread the message of faith in the life of Christ?
24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!"
But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."
26 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!" 27 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."
28 Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
29 Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
The Purpose of John's Gospel
30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Dig Deeper
This past winter I had the unique opportunity to coach my five-year old son in a basketball league. This was quite a different experience from the coaching experiences that I’ve had in the past. There’s a big difference between coaching high school basketball and coaching five-year olds. As a high school coach I never had to yell to a player that he was dribbling towards the wrong basket, I never had to remind a player that they couldn’t dribble directly towards their mother every time they got the ball, and I certainly never had to take the team for a potty break in between quarters. Yet, the biggest difference is that the coaches actually go out onto the playing floor during the game. We run up and down the court with the players and are able to shout directions to them and help them out during each play. We could even stop play momentarily if we needed to in order to explain or teach something to a player. In the early part of the season, I was always very near the players and shouted out directions constantly. I really praised the players who listened to my direction and learned what to do and when to do it. As the season wore on, however, I got further and further away from the players and gave out less directions. I began to praise the guys who listened to the instructions at time outs and before quarters and the guys who were doing the right things without being told or reminded on every play. Some guys still needed some help, but the emphasis began to shift to praise for those who didn’t need constant reminders. The reason for this was simple. Next year they will be in the six-year old league and coaches don’t go on the floor during that league. They’ll be on their own much more and expected to know what to do. Things were changing and we needed to encourage the type of behavior that would fit into their soon to be reality.
In a much more profound way, things are changing for Jesus’ followers. Up to the point of his death, they were able to observe his life, his signs, his wonders, his words and follow him closely. They were able to see what he was doing and follow in his footsteps. That was fine for the time, but Jesus increasingly stressed the importance of having belief based on his word, the logos, rather than because they could observe something. It has now reached a climax. Jesus’ disciples need to embrace and highly value belief apart from observation because the ability to directly observe Jesus will no longer be an option. They are about to lead and be part of communities that are based on faith and the subtle guidance of the Holy Spirit. Things were, after all, changing, and they needed to encourage the type of behavior that would fit into their soon to be reality.
We’re not told where Thomas was during the amazing events of the first day of the week of the new creation, but we do know that he wasn’t there. The disciples eagerly tell him that they have seen the Lord, but Thomas is skeptical. We’ve seen descriptive aspects of Thomas’ blunt nature before (Jn. 11:16; 14:5) and his response here fits with what John has sketched for us in describing his personality. Thomas’ demand to see empirical proof before he believes isn’t so much a skepticism about Jesus’ potential resurrection as it is likely a lack of confidence to some degree in the accuracy of the disciples report.
John uses his desire for proof as an opportunity to combat a docetic heresy that was beginning to take shape by the time he writes his Gospel. Docetism was the belief that Jesus was a spirit being that only looked human but was not a truly flesh human being. John will have none of that. Nor will Thomas. He wants to see the nail marks and put his hand into his side. Thomas is a practical man who is not about to be taken in by any fraud or hysteria.
Perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that Jesus did not appear again, says John, until the next Sunday. It was another first day of the week, just like Jesus’ first appearance to the disciples The doors are locked again just like before. The disciples may have been encouraged and filled with joy at seeing the risen Jesus but they evidently aren’t filled with the kind of boldness that we see them display without fail in the book of Acts. They will need the indwelling of the Holy Spirit for that. As Jesus appears, again declaring "peace be with you," as he had before, he gives Thomas the proof that he needed. He then gives Thomas a gentle rebuke to stop doubting and believe.
Thomas marveling both at receiving the proof that he desired and the realization that Jesus knew that’s what he wanted without being told is the first person to say what John has been getting at since the opening verse. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Here is the Word become flesh. We should not miss the fact that this passage provides ample evidence that the early church considered Jesus to be God. Thomas responds by worshiping Jesus as Lord and God (cf. Ps. 35:23-24). The TNIV obscures the fact that Thomas literally calls Jesus "the Lord of me and the God (ho theos) of me, leaving no doubt that he is recognizing Jesus as the one, true God. Jesus does not rebuke Thomas for carelessly misapplying such a lofty title to him, nor does he chide him giving worship to him that belongs to God alone. Jesus willingly accepts Thomas’ declaration and praise. Thomas, John no doubt wants us to see, has rightly identified Jesus and given him the proper respect.
Jesus’ response to Thomas has often been taken as a rebuke to Thomas for wanting evidence that Jesus had been resurrected, and perhaps, as earlier, there is a mild rebuke there, but that is hardly the primary point of Jesus. He is not so much concerned with denouncing the type of faith that Thomas has demonstrated but he is marking a transition from faith based on seeing Jesus and his signs to those who will believe on the basis of the message, the logos, of the disciples. They are the ones that are the recipients of Jesus’ blessing. Jesus knows that his time is short and the option of believing Jesus by sight is over. In the future, the body of Christ will be built around faith in the message and word of the disciples testimony. Thomas’ behavior is still acceptable to this point, but that kind of "faith" will not be an option in the future. We must remember, in all fairness, that Thomas still did not have available to him the guidance of the Holy Spirit that leads believers into truth.
As John brings this chapter to a close, it does, admittedly, seem very much like a fitting and proper ending to the Gospel. Yet, we know that there is one more chapter. There are two main theories that we will briefly mention to explain this. One theory says that chapter 20 is the ending of the book proper, where the book proper begins in 1:19. They argue that chapter 21 is intended as an epilogue to balance the prologue of 1:1-18. The other theory says that chapter 21 was added a little later, either by John himself or by his immediate disciples shortly before or shortly after his death. There does seem to be something to the idea that there are several points of contact between this passage and the opening chapter of the Gospel (including Jesus finally being identified as God and the similarities between this encounter with Thomas and Jesus’ encounter with Nathanael in 1:47-51) which might indicate that, at least, for a short time, this was the original ending of the Gospel of John. We will discuss the possible purposes of the addition of chapter 21, if it was indeed added, although it must be said that this is all speculation because there has never been a manuscript of John’s Gospel without chapter 21. If it was added, it was likely added almost immediately, and almost surely by John himself or at his direction.
As John winds the chapter down, he points out that Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples which are not recorded in this book. John’s intent was not to write a biography or history of Jesus. He wrote selectively in order to fulfill the purpose of inducing faith in those who read this Gospel. John’s self-stated purpose in writing is overtly evangelistic.
John wrote this book for the specific purpose which is obscured a bit by the TNIV and most English translations. The original language does not convey that John wrote so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, but that the readers might believe that "the Messiah, the Son of God, is Jesus." The difference is subtle but important. John’s point is not that, after having followed and observed Jesus, the disciples were left to find an appropriate category for him and decided upon Messiah and Son of God. They were waiting for the Messiah, with all of their preconceived notions of what he would be. It took time and much modeling of who the true Messiah was by Jesus, but they eventually discovered that the Messiah was Jesus. He was the one that had life in him (Jn. 1:4). If we remember that the Jewish concept of "name" carried with it the meaning of nuance of the word "life," that John’s concluding thought is that those who believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God will have "life in his life." As John had hinted in the opening prologue, "In him was life, and that life was the light of men."
Devotional Thought
Jesus blessed those that would come to belief in him without seeing and in the book of Romans 10:14, Paul says that people cannot come to belief without hearing the message and that they cannot hear unless someone preaches to them. Do you know the message well enough to help bring someone to belief? Have you, through constant study of the word, prepared yourself to be used by God to spread the message of faith in the life of Christ?
Thursday, March 19, 2009
John 20:19-23
Jesus Appears to His Disciples
19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21 Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of anyone, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."
Dig Deeper
One of the great goals that we had every year when I was a high school teacher was to get the students to write a research paper in both their English and Social Studies classes. Because I was a history teacher, that meant that the research paper was one of the things that I had to accomplish in class every year. The reality was that most of our students, at least the freshmen and first-year students to our school, simply did not have a clue of how to write a research paper. This meant that we had to start from the most basic elements and work our way up to a finished product, all the while supposedly teaching them history as well. One of the things that was always beneficial for the students was to see a finished product and go through it so that they could see what it was supposed to look like. Once we had done that, they would begin to work on their own product. They would never, however, simply take the paper that I had shown them and re-write that and then it turn it in as their own. That would have made little sense and not demanded anything of them. They would learn from and build on the concepts of the paper that we studied but they wouldn’t just repeat it back to me. In the end, they would wind up with something that looked much like the original paper but that was a new paper that dealt with the subject about which they had chosen to write.
It would be amazing enough if Jesus had come and lived a life that perfectly represented the will of the Father and did the work of the Father. Of course he did that, but he did more than that. He didn’t just come to model what God was like and then leave everyone, mouths agape, to marvel and wonder at it all. Jesus came to live that life and then to say, "here, now you go do that too." He called us to be for the world what he was for Israel, challenging them, calling them to repentance, showing them who the real God was and what He was doing through the new creation, and putting into reality the new family that Jesus began.
As we begin this passage, John is sure to stress again that this is the first day of the week. We are still dealing with the onset of the new creation. It is the opening day of the new reality in Christ. But the disciples are demonstrating anything but an understanding of that. They aren’t loudly declaring to the world that the new creation has come that Christ has defeated death. They’re not holding candlelight vigils by his tomb, waiting for him to appear to them. They don’t know what to make of the day’s events. Instead we find them likely in the same house where they had partaken of the last supper just days before, holed up in hiding. They apparently had bolted both the outside door and the door to the upper room as most houses would have had bolts on both doors. They don’t know what it is going on, but surely they understand that if rumors get out that Jesus’ tomb is empty, or worse yet that he is still alive, they are afraid what the response of the Jewish leaders might be.
The whole point of the locked doors was to keep anyone else out but that proved no obstacle. He suddenly appears in a room that likely contained a group of his disciples that included Mary, ten of the twelve (minus Thomas and Judas Iscariot), and several other disciples. His appearance could have easily caused them fear, so he issues a standard Jewish greeting, peace be with you, which would have let them know immediately that they had nothing to fear. From their, perspective, what could this be other than a ghost or Jesus’ spirit of some type. They were not ready to understand this yet as a physical resurrection, a permanent overcoming of death, so Jesus’ sets about to demonstrate the truth for them immediately. He shows them his hands which were pierced with nails affixing him to the cross (the words for hands would have referred to his hands but also included his wrists) and his side where the spear was thrust.
This tells us two important things about the resurrection body. The first is that Jesus had the same body that he had before death. It was somehow glorified and transformed and yet it retained the marks of victory that he had achieved on the cross. Jesus hinted at this truth when he challenged the Jewish leaders to "destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days." The same body that died would be the same one that was raised. The early church leader, Justin Martyr confirmed this belief saying that Christians "expect to receive our own bodies." The early church believed that Jesus was resurrected in his own (albeit glorified) body and so would they be, as another early church leader Irenaeus indicated when he wrote that those resurrected, "will have their own bodies, their own souls, and their own spirits, in which they had pleased God."
The second truth is that the resurrection body seems to have abilities to move through doors, appear, disappear, etc., that normal bodies do not. The simplest explanation of this is that the resurrection body appears to be equally at home in both the physical and the spiritual realms. Our bodies currently are only adapted to the physical realm. The resurrection body has no problem in the physical realm but it can also function perfectly well in the spiritual realm. It is a body built for the time when heaven and earth are brought together as one in the age to come (Eph. 1:10).
Having been reassured that they had nothing to fear and that it was indeed their Lord, the disciple were overjoyed. He had overcome death but before they can begin to ponder what that might mean, Jesus gives them a preview. They will receive the Holy Spirit but that won’t just give them a wonderful spiritual experience. It will enable and empower them to do for the world what Jesus had done for Israel. He came to do the work of the Father, something only the Son of God could do. Now he is commissioning them to partake in that work as part of the family. Not in the same way that Jesus had done but in a way that was inspired by what he had done. They were to share in the work. They have, incredibly, been brought into the unity of mission that was shared by the Father and the Son. They are sent to take part in that work.
Jesus is entrusting them through the power of the Spirit to carry the message and reality of the new creation to the world. He had modeled it, now it would be their turn. They were being formed into the new humanity, the apex of the new creation that would exercise God’s dominion throughout His creation. Just as God breathed the breath of life into man in Genesis 2:7, giving him the spark of life, so Jesus does as he creates this new community, this new body, once-for-all. In breathing on them and saying "receive the Holy Spirit," Jesus conceives the community that would be born through the power of the Spirit on Pentecost day, about fifty days later (Acts 2). They have been commissioned as the new community of Christ in anticipation of the event that will take place after his ascension. It is to this new humanity that Matthew records Jesus’ words to "go and make disciples," echoing the charge from God to Adam and Eve to "be fruitful and multiply."
Understanding all of this is to understand why Paul and the other New Testament writers rarely quoted Jesus. Some critics have gone so far as to claim that Paul knew nothing of the real person, the historical Jesus, but only knew of him as a "God" that he later created largely from his own imagination. As evidence of this they cite the fact that Paul rarely quotes Jesus, speaks little of his life, and addresses different issues than Jesus addressed. But that is the whole point. Jesus has sent his community to be sent as he was sent but not to do precisely what he did. They would build on his mission, not recreate it. Jesus came to bring the new creation to reality, his community was to go announce the kingdom and to live it in the world. To go around and do exactly what Jesus did and preach the same message that he preached would be an act of disloyalty and disobedience. He announced the kingdom and the new creation, we are to live it and invite the world into it. We are not to be Jesus, we are to be for the world what he was to Israel. We are to share in his work based on him as the foundation of what we do. He calls his community to create a building on the foundation of Christ, "For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1 Cor. 3:11).
As part of this mission Jesus says of his new community, that if they forgive the sins of anyone, their sins are forgiven, but if they do not, they are not forgiven. Jesus is not, we should carefully note, bestowing some priestly ability to forgive sins of other human beings, something only God can do. If that were the case, then we would also have the ability to not forgive sins if we so chose. Jesus is, instead, using a common figure of speech which applied in the first century to someone being included or excluded in the synagogue community. The disciples were to witness by the word, life, and love of their new community concerning the new creation available through dying to self and entering into the life of Christ. Those who embraced this message would have their sins forgiven, while those who rejected it would not. Jesus is affirming, in other words, that his new community will have the power, through their mission and message, to call people to forgiveness. Entrance into Christ would come through entrance into his community. One cannot be separated from the other.
Devotional Thought
The immediate result of Jesus’ resurrection was his call to his body of believers to go out and announce his new creation and kingdom, to be his ambassadors. How much time and effort do you invest into that calling? Is it honestly the focal point of your time, your resources, and your attention? Do you constantly announce and/ or build God’s kingdom in your family or at your job?
19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21 Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of anyone, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."
Dig Deeper
One of the great goals that we had every year when I was a high school teacher was to get the students to write a research paper in both their English and Social Studies classes. Because I was a history teacher, that meant that the research paper was one of the things that I had to accomplish in class every year. The reality was that most of our students, at least the freshmen and first-year students to our school, simply did not have a clue of how to write a research paper. This meant that we had to start from the most basic elements and work our way up to a finished product, all the while supposedly teaching them history as well. One of the things that was always beneficial for the students was to see a finished product and go through it so that they could see what it was supposed to look like. Once we had done that, they would begin to work on their own product. They would never, however, simply take the paper that I had shown them and re-write that and then it turn it in as their own. That would have made little sense and not demanded anything of them. They would learn from and build on the concepts of the paper that we studied but they wouldn’t just repeat it back to me. In the end, they would wind up with something that looked much like the original paper but that was a new paper that dealt with the subject about which they had chosen to write.
It would be amazing enough if Jesus had come and lived a life that perfectly represented the will of the Father and did the work of the Father. Of course he did that, but he did more than that. He didn’t just come to model what God was like and then leave everyone, mouths agape, to marvel and wonder at it all. Jesus came to live that life and then to say, "here, now you go do that too." He called us to be for the world what he was for Israel, challenging them, calling them to repentance, showing them who the real God was and what He was doing through the new creation, and putting into reality the new family that Jesus began.
As we begin this passage, John is sure to stress again that this is the first day of the week. We are still dealing with the onset of the new creation. It is the opening day of the new reality in Christ. But the disciples are demonstrating anything but an understanding of that. They aren’t loudly declaring to the world that the new creation has come that Christ has defeated death. They’re not holding candlelight vigils by his tomb, waiting for him to appear to them. They don’t know what to make of the day’s events. Instead we find them likely in the same house where they had partaken of the last supper just days before, holed up in hiding. They apparently had bolted both the outside door and the door to the upper room as most houses would have had bolts on both doors. They don’t know what it is going on, but surely they understand that if rumors get out that Jesus’ tomb is empty, or worse yet that he is still alive, they are afraid what the response of the Jewish leaders might be.
The whole point of the locked doors was to keep anyone else out but that proved no obstacle. He suddenly appears in a room that likely contained a group of his disciples that included Mary, ten of the twelve (minus Thomas and Judas Iscariot), and several other disciples. His appearance could have easily caused them fear, so he issues a standard Jewish greeting, peace be with you, which would have let them know immediately that they had nothing to fear. From their, perspective, what could this be other than a ghost or Jesus’ spirit of some type. They were not ready to understand this yet as a physical resurrection, a permanent overcoming of death, so Jesus’ sets about to demonstrate the truth for them immediately. He shows them his hands which were pierced with nails affixing him to the cross (the words for hands would have referred to his hands but also included his wrists) and his side where the spear was thrust.
This tells us two important things about the resurrection body. The first is that Jesus had the same body that he had before death. It was somehow glorified and transformed and yet it retained the marks of victory that he had achieved on the cross. Jesus hinted at this truth when he challenged the Jewish leaders to "destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days." The same body that died would be the same one that was raised. The early church leader, Justin Martyr confirmed this belief saying that Christians "expect to receive our own bodies." The early church believed that Jesus was resurrected in his own (albeit glorified) body and so would they be, as another early church leader Irenaeus indicated when he wrote that those resurrected, "will have their own bodies, their own souls, and their own spirits, in which they had pleased God."
The second truth is that the resurrection body seems to have abilities to move through doors, appear, disappear, etc., that normal bodies do not. The simplest explanation of this is that the resurrection body appears to be equally at home in both the physical and the spiritual realms. Our bodies currently are only adapted to the physical realm. The resurrection body has no problem in the physical realm but it can also function perfectly well in the spiritual realm. It is a body built for the time when heaven and earth are brought together as one in the age to come (Eph. 1:10).
Having been reassured that they had nothing to fear and that it was indeed their Lord, the disciple were overjoyed. He had overcome death but before they can begin to ponder what that might mean, Jesus gives them a preview. They will receive the Holy Spirit but that won’t just give them a wonderful spiritual experience. It will enable and empower them to do for the world what Jesus had done for Israel. He came to do the work of the Father, something only the Son of God could do. Now he is commissioning them to partake in that work as part of the family. Not in the same way that Jesus had done but in a way that was inspired by what he had done. They were to share in the work. They have, incredibly, been brought into the unity of mission that was shared by the Father and the Son. They are sent to take part in that work.
Jesus is entrusting them through the power of the Spirit to carry the message and reality of the new creation to the world. He had modeled it, now it would be their turn. They were being formed into the new humanity, the apex of the new creation that would exercise God’s dominion throughout His creation. Just as God breathed the breath of life into man in Genesis 2:7, giving him the spark of life, so Jesus does as he creates this new community, this new body, once-for-all. In breathing on them and saying "receive the Holy Spirit," Jesus conceives the community that would be born through the power of the Spirit on Pentecost day, about fifty days later (Acts 2). They have been commissioned as the new community of Christ in anticipation of the event that will take place after his ascension. It is to this new humanity that Matthew records Jesus’ words to "go and make disciples," echoing the charge from God to Adam and Eve to "be fruitful and multiply."
Understanding all of this is to understand why Paul and the other New Testament writers rarely quoted Jesus. Some critics have gone so far as to claim that Paul knew nothing of the real person, the historical Jesus, but only knew of him as a "God" that he later created largely from his own imagination. As evidence of this they cite the fact that Paul rarely quotes Jesus, speaks little of his life, and addresses different issues than Jesus addressed. But that is the whole point. Jesus has sent his community to be sent as he was sent but not to do precisely what he did. They would build on his mission, not recreate it. Jesus came to bring the new creation to reality, his community was to go announce the kingdom and to live it in the world. To go around and do exactly what Jesus did and preach the same message that he preached would be an act of disloyalty and disobedience. He announced the kingdom and the new creation, we are to live it and invite the world into it. We are not to be Jesus, we are to be for the world what he was to Israel. We are to share in his work based on him as the foundation of what we do. He calls his community to create a building on the foundation of Christ, "For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1 Cor. 3:11).
As part of this mission Jesus says of his new community, that if they forgive the sins of anyone, their sins are forgiven, but if they do not, they are not forgiven. Jesus is not, we should carefully note, bestowing some priestly ability to forgive sins of other human beings, something only God can do. If that were the case, then we would also have the ability to not forgive sins if we so chose. Jesus is, instead, using a common figure of speech which applied in the first century to someone being included or excluded in the synagogue community. The disciples were to witness by the word, life, and love of their new community concerning the new creation available through dying to self and entering into the life of Christ. Those who embraced this message would have their sins forgiven, while those who rejected it would not. Jesus is affirming, in other words, that his new community will have the power, through their mission and message, to call people to forgiveness. Entrance into Christ would come through entrance into his community. One cannot be separated from the other.
Devotional Thought
The immediate result of Jesus’ resurrection was his call to his body of believers to go out and announce his new creation and kingdom, to be his ambassadors. How much time and effort do you invest into that calling? Is it honestly the focal point of your time, your resources, and your attention? Do you constantly announce and/ or build God’s kingdom in your family or at your job?
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
John 20:11-18
Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene
11 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
13 They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?"
"They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him." 14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
15 He asked her, "Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?"
Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him."
16 Jesus said to her, "Mary."
She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means "Teacher").
17 Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' "
18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he had said these things to her.
Dig Deeper
Many years ago when my wife and I were newly married, she had a nursing job which required her to work a ridiculous amount of hours during a week and included shifts during which if someone on the next shift didn’t come in, she would be required to stay on and continue working until they could get someone else to come in. It became routine for that to happen and for her to have to work shifts of 16-18 hours. Needless to say, she would be quite tired at the end of these shifts and still had to make a drive home that was nearly an hour. On one morning, she was supposed to be home very early in the morning but I didn’t think too much of it when she wasn’t yet home by mid-morning. As the day wore on, however, I began to get more and more concerned. By about 10:00 AM I called her job only to find out that she had left over three hours ago. Now I was worried. It wasn’t unheard of for her to stop at the grocery store or something like that, but she should have definitely been home by now. This was in the days before we had cell phones so there was no way to try to call her. By the afternoon I was beyond worry and began thinking the worst. Yet, I felt so hopeless because there was just so little that I could do. Finally, about three in the afternoon, the phone rang and I heard her voice on the other end. I immediately knew it was her and I had such a feeling of relief that came over me that it is difficult to describe. Just hearing her voice told me that everything was going to be alright. There was no better sound in the world at that moment than being reassured by the sound of her voice. For those that are wondering what happened, it turns out that she was so tired that when she got down to the car in the hospital parking lot, she fell asleep and slept for about seven hours seated behind the steering wheel.
In John 10:3-4, Jesus declared that "the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice." As John continues describing the swirl of events on the Sunday following his death, the first day of the new creation, he brings us to the lonely isolation of Mary who has evidently stayed at the tomb by herself, weeping and mourning for the death of her beloved teacher, but driven even further into that grief by the mysterious disappearance of his body. All of her emotions are twisted up in a mass of worry, grief, confusion, and loss of control. That is all about to change instantly as the very sound of Jesus’ voice calling her name reassures her that everything is going to be alright.
In Luke 15, Jesus tells what has become one of his most beloved parables. It is an account of a son who has rejected his father’s love, presence, and will. By the standards of Jesus’ day, the son completely shames his father and his entire family and strikes out on his own, seeking his own will. After a time, things go badly and then go from bad to worse. The young man decides that he will return home to get a job from his father, but on the way, he is enveloped by his father who lovingly restores him to his status as his son. The son that was once estranged from his father by his own choices and behavior is fully restored to the family, not because anything that the son has done but solely out of the love of the father for his son.
Throughout the Gospel of John, Jesus had spoke to the people of Israel about his Father. He had come from his Father, did the will of his Father, spoke the words of his Father, and was soon returning to his Father. It was unusual and would have been offensive for Jews to hear someone speak of God not as "the Father" or "our Father" but as "my Father." It was, after all, Exodus 4:22 which proclaimed Israel as god’s firstborn son. Later in the Old Testament, the Psalmist declared that "He will call out to me, 'You are my Father, my God, the Rock my Savior.' And I will appoint him to be my firstborn, the most exalted of the kings of the earth. I will maintain my love to him forever, and my covenant with him will never fail. I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure" (Ps. 89:26-29). What the Jews did not envision is that this passage would literally be fulfilled by one person rather than the nation of Israel as a whole. What Jesus taught, as is evidenced by his declaration in 15:1 that he was the true vine, was that only he could fulfill the covenant as God’s Son. He was the Son of God and his throne was established forever in that empty tomb.
Mary, of course, had no idea of all of this as she stood at the tomb crying. She looks into the tomb and sees two angels (they are dressed in white as angels often are depicted in the Bible: Dan. 10:5-6; Ezek. 9:2; Rev. 15:6) who ask her why she’s crying. The current source of her grief, says Mary is not just that Jesus is dead but that his body appears to be missing. As she turns around, she sees what she thinks is just an ordinary man, demonstrating that, despite some incredible characteristics, the resurrection body is no different in appearance from any other. The man repeats the question of the angels and adds who she is looking for. Perhaps that’s her whole problem she is not looking for a "who" but is looking for a "what," a body. The "who" that she should be looking for is right there in front of her.
Mary thinks that this man is a gardener. Although she is wrong, it makes sense on one level because who else would be in the garden that early? On another level, though, I believe that John wants us to see that she is absolutely correct. This is one more example of John including the irony of someone saying something that is true beyond their ability to understand it at the time. As Mary stands in the garden of the new creation, she is looking at the gardener. He is the new Adam, the one charged with bringing order from the chaos of the old creation. He is the true Adam that will never be expelled from the Garden.
All Mary wants to know, though, is if this man knows where the body is. In her grief, she doesn’t even stop to think of the implausibility of going to get the body by herself. The New Testament writers never explain exactly why, but it seems that the resurrection body, although the same but glorified body, is not exactly the same in appearance (we’ll leaves thoughts as to why that is for another time). It’s at that moment that the Shepherd calls the name of one of his sheep. We’re not sure what about him calling her name allowed her to recognize who he was, but Jesus had promised that the sheep would know his voice and she surely has. Her relief and affection explode as she lovingly and respectfully calls out to him as her teacher. She doesn’t yet fully understand the depth of who she is, but she does the best with what she knows.
Jesus’ response to Mary’s joy seems a bit confusing and has puzzled commentators over the years. Most commentators seem to agree on one thing, though, and that is that rather than the TNIV’s "do not hold on to me," Jesus’ words are better understood as something like "don’t cling to me." He seems to be telling her that a radical change has occurred in their relationship. Before his death, the disciples followed Jesus everywhere and clung to him as their counselor and their support. They will still be seeing him for a little while but not in that way anymore. Yet he has not yet ascended to the Father, so the spiritual relationship with him through the Spirit has not yet come either. This is a strange transition period in which they will not be able to cling to him as they had, but they do not yet have the relationship with him that they will. Perhaps Mary thought that this is how Jesus would come to them and dwell with them forever and she is not about to let him go. She seems determined not to lose him a second time, but she is yet to grasp the spiritual nature of the future relationship between Jesus and his disciples.
One thing is clear in all of this, however. Something has changed. Jesus tells Mary to go to his brothers and tell them that he is ascending to "my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." Clearly Jesus is not referring to his birth half-brothers, but rather to his disciples. They are now brothers rather than just friends. The Father is no longer just his Father, He is their Father. The disciples have been invited into the family of God just as Jesus promised them (John 14:1-3). He has prepared a place for them and they are now welcome into the family. They can now know the Father as Jesus knows him and have the intimate type of relationship with the Father that Jesus does. Jesus became the prodigal son so that those who would enter into his life and have faith in his life would be able to return to the father and be welcomed back into the family. Those who believe in him can now experience the words of Luke 15 for ourselves, "’Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’" The long exile between man and God is over. A way back to His house has been made.
Devotional Thought
When was the last time you spent some time thinking about what it really means to be part of God’s family and the role that Jesus had in making that happen? When is the last time you took some special time in prayer to give praise and glory to God for brining you into His family solely on the basis of His grace and mercy?
11 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
13 They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?"
"They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him." 14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
15 He asked her, "Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?"
Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him."
16 Jesus said to her, "Mary."
She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means "Teacher").
17 Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' "
18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he had said these things to her.
Dig Deeper
Many years ago when my wife and I were newly married, she had a nursing job which required her to work a ridiculous amount of hours during a week and included shifts during which if someone on the next shift didn’t come in, she would be required to stay on and continue working until they could get someone else to come in. It became routine for that to happen and for her to have to work shifts of 16-18 hours. Needless to say, she would be quite tired at the end of these shifts and still had to make a drive home that was nearly an hour. On one morning, she was supposed to be home very early in the morning but I didn’t think too much of it when she wasn’t yet home by mid-morning. As the day wore on, however, I began to get more and more concerned. By about 10:00 AM I called her job only to find out that she had left over three hours ago. Now I was worried. It wasn’t unheard of for her to stop at the grocery store or something like that, but she should have definitely been home by now. This was in the days before we had cell phones so there was no way to try to call her. By the afternoon I was beyond worry and began thinking the worst. Yet, I felt so hopeless because there was just so little that I could do. Finally, about three in the afternoon, the phone rang and I heard her voice on the other end. I immediately knew it was her and I had such a feeling of relief that came over me that it is difficult to describe. Just hearing her voice told me that everything was going to be alright. There was no better sound in the world at that moment than being reassured by the sound of her voice. For those that are wondering what happened, it turns out that she was so tired that when she got down to the car in the hospital parking lot, she fell asleep and slept for about seven hours seated behind the steering wheel.
In John 10:3-4, Jesus declared that "the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice." As John continues describing the swirl of events on the Sunday following his death, the first day of the new creation, he brings us to the lonely isolation of Mary who has evidently stayed at the tomb by herself, weeping and mourning for the death of her beloved teacher, but driven even further into that grief by the mysterious disappearance of his body. All of her emotions are twisted up in a mass of worry, grief, confusion, and loss of control. That is all about to change instantly as the very sound of Jesus’ voice calling her name reassures her that everything is going to be alright.
In Luke 15, Jesus tells what has become one of his most beloved parables. It is an account of a son who has rejected his father’s love, presence, and will. By the standards of Jesus’ day, the son completely shames his father and his entire family and strikes out on his own, seeking his own will. After a time, things go badly and then go from bad to worse. The young man decides that he will return home to get a job from his father, but on the way, he is enveloped by his father who lovingly restores him to his status as his son. The son that was once estranged from his father by his own choices and behavior is fully restored to the family, not because anything that the son has done but solely out of the love of the father for his son.
Throughout the Gospel of John, Jesus had spoke to the people of Israel about his Father. He had come from his Father, did the will of his Father, spoke the words of his Father, and was soon returning to his Father. It was unusual and would have been offensive for Jews to hear someone speak of God not as "the Father" or "our Father" but as "my Father." It was, after all, Exodus 4:22 which proclaimed Israel as god’s firstborn son. Later in the Old Testament, the Psalmist declared that "He will call out to me, 'You are my Father, my God, the Rock my Savior.' And I will appoint him to be my firstborn, the most exalted of the kings of the earth. I will maintain my love to him forever, and my covenant with him will never fail. I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure" (Ps. 89:26-29). What the Jews did not envision is that this passage would literally be fulfilled by one person rather than the nation of Israel as a whole. What Jesus taught, as is evidenced by his declaration in 15:1 that he was the true vine, was that only he could fulfill the covenant as God’s Son. He was the Son of God and his throne was established forever in that empty tomb.
Mary, of course, had no idea of all of this as she stood at the tomb crying. She looks into the tomb and sees two angels (they are dressed in white as angels often are depicted in the Bible: Dan. 10:5-6; Ezek. 9:2; Rev. 15:6) who ask her why she’s crying. The current source of her grief, says Mary is not just that Jesus is dead but that his body appears to be missing. As she turns around, she sees what she thinks is just an ordinary man, demonstrating that, despite some incredible characteristics, the resurrection body is no different in appearance from any other. The man repeats the question of the angels and adds who she is looking for. Perhaps that’s her whole problem she is not looking for a "who" but is looking for a "what," a body. The "who" that she should be looking for is right there in front of her.
Mary thinks that this man is a gardener. Although she is wrong, it makes sense on one level because who else would be in the garden that early? On another level, though, I believe that John wants us to see that she is absolutely correct. This is one more example of John including the irony of someone saying something that is true beyond their ability to understand it at the time. As Mary stands in the garden of the new creation, she is looking at the gardener. He is the new Adam, the one charged with bringing order from the chaos of the old creation. He is the true Adam that will never be expelled from the Garden.
All Mary wants to know, though, is if this man knows where the body is. In her grief, she doesn’t even stop to think of the implausibility of going to get the body by herself. The New Testament writers never explain exactly why, but it seems that the resurrection body, although the same but glorified body, is not exactly the same in appearance (we’ll leaves thoughts as to why that is for another time). It’s at that moment that the Shepherd calls the name of one of his sheep. We’re not sure what about him calling her name allowed her to recognize who he was, but Jesus had promised that the sheep would know his voice and she surely has. Her relief and affection explode as she lovingly and respectfully calls out to him as her teacher. She doesn’t yet fully understand the depth of who she is, but she does the best with what she knows.
Jesus’ response to Mary’s joy seems a bit confusing and has puzzled commentators over the years. Most commentators seem to agree on one thing, though, and that is that rather than the TNIV’s "do not hold on to me," Jesus’ words are better understood as something like "don’t cling to me." He seems to be telling her that a radical change has occurred in their relationship. Before his death, the disciples followed Jesus everywhere and clung to him as their counselor and their support. They will still be seeing him for a little while but not in that way anymore. Yet he has not yet ascended to the Father, so the spiritual relationship with him through the Spirit has not yet come either. This is a strange transition period in which they will not be able to cling to him as they had, but they do not yet have the relationship with him that they will. Perhaps Mary thought that this is how Jesus would come to them and dwell with them forever and she is not about to let him go. She seems determined not to lose him a second time, but she is yet to grasp the spiritual nature of the future relationship between Jesus and his disciples.
One thing is clear in all of this, however. Something has changed. Jesus tells Mary to go to his brothers and tell them that he is ascending to "my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." Clearly Jesus is not referring to his birth half-brothers, but rather to his disciples. They are now brothers rather than just friends. The Father is no longer just his Father, He is their Father. The disciples have been invited into the family of God just as Jesus promised them (John 14:1-3). He has prepared a place for them and they are now welcome into the family. They can now know the Father as Jesus knows him and have the intimate type of relationship with the Father that Jesus does. Jesus became the prodigal son so that those who would enter into his life and have faith in his life would be able to return to the father and be welcomed back into the family. Those who believe in him can now experience the words of Luke 15 for ourselves, "’Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’" The long exile between man and God is over. A way back to His house has been made.
Devotional Thought
When was the last time you spent some time thinking about what it really means to be part of God’s family and the role that Jesus had in making that happen? When is the last time you took some special time in prayer to give praise and glory to God for brining you into His family solely on the basis of His grace and mercy?
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
John 20:1-10
The Empty Tomb
1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"
3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7 as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. 8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) 10 Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.
Dig Deeper
One of the truly cool ways to honor people in our culture is with a surprise birthday party. Our youngest son recently had his sixth birthday and birthday party but it wasn’t a surprise at all. Almost every day since then he has asked if he can have a surprise party. I keep trying to explain to him that he can’t have a surprise party if he keeps asking about it but he doesn’t quite get all of that yet. When you throw a surprise party for someone and they truly don’t know it’s coming, though, it’s fantastic. The look of shock on their face and their complete lack of preparation for the event are often priceless. That’s the great thing about surprises. You don’t know they’re coming. We recently were part of a surprise birthday party for a good friend of mine. It was a huge party thrown by his wife that had probably close to a hundred people there. The best part was that he truly had no idea that it was coming. When he arrived at the house, he wasn’t dressed in any special way, he didn’t have any party food or anything else with him. He simply wasn’t expecting a party and was completely surprise and unprepared.
If it seems like we’re stressing a simple point here, it’s because we are. The point is you don’t prepare for what you don’t know is coming. In fact, my friend thought he was going to watch the Superbowl with his wife and a couple of friends for his birthday. He wasn’t preparing to have a huge party with his house full of friends and family. How could he? In the same way. The disciples, both the men and the women, weren’t expecting anything beyond the normal when they woke up Sunday morning. They weren’t preparing to find an empty tomb. The women were going to the tomb to mourn and prepared with more spices and to make sure that the body was properly prepared after the hasty preparation it likely received before the Sabbath. This certainly gives this story the ring of truth, a true surprise. If they were making this all up, as some later critics have claimed, we might expect them to describe themselves as waiting in eager prayer and anticipation of Jesus resurrecting just like he said he would. But that’s not what we get. We get a group of people who were not expecting what they found. They found the biggest surprise of their entire lives.
With the long dark week nearly over, Mary wakes up early in the morning and heads off to Jesus’ tomb. It is the first day of the week, which is unusual because we might expect John to stress that it is the third day from the crucifixion. It’s a new week with a new beginning. In the last week, Jesus was presented on the sixth day, Friday, as Pilate uttered the ironic words, "here’s the man." Truly he was the man, the true Adam presented to the world on the sixth day, just as Adam had been introduced to the world on the sixth day of creation. Creation had reached it’s culmination and God rested. In the week that John has described, Jesus is presented as the true Adam but he is put to death by those who are in the fallen image of the original Adam rather than the image of God. Again in this week, though, there was rest on the seventh day but now, John wants us to see, there is a new week. The new creation has ripped into the darkness of the old creation.
The synoptic Gospels tell us that Mary had other women go with her and that they were going presumably to finish the job of preparing Jesus’ body (Matt. 28:1; Mark 16:1; Lk 24:1). This was likely due to the haste with which his body was prepared before sundown and the onset of the Jewish Sabbath. As Mary approaches the tomb, it must have felt like insult being added to injury. Jesus has been killed and now someone has messed with the body. Why would someone do that? What has happened? Mary’s first response is to run back and breathlessly tell Peter and John what she had seen. Confused and full of adrenalin, no doubt, John and Peter raced to the tomb, with the younger John reaching it first.
As they arrive they find something exceedingly strange. If tomb robbers had come by, why would they leave the linen and the spices which would have been worth money? That would be like breaking into a bank and leaving the money. The strips of linen are still lying on the shelf as though a body had passed right through them. Why would thieves have done that? What’s more, the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head, was folded or rolled up neatly (the NIV strangely has "lying in its place" which loses the intended original meaning). Imagine the confusion and emotions that were welling up inside of them. What was going on?
With the detail of the grave clothes that are lying in their place and the cloth neatly folded up, John has painted us an incredible picture of contrast. In chapter 11, as Jesus called Lazarus out of the grave, John described his grave clothes as well. They were still wrapped around Lazarus as he came out, though, and Jesus called for someone to help him take them off. When Jesus had arrived, he told Martha not to fret about Lazarus’ death because he would rise. Martha is a little frustrated and not consoled by this news, because, of course, she knows as does everyone else, that God’s people will all be raised on the last day. But this is not what Jesus is talking about. She’s wrong. Only those in Christ, those who believe in his life, will be raised and to show that he is the resurrection, he calls Lazarus out of the tomb. But this is not resurrection, it is a sign that points to resurrection. Lazarus will still die again one day physically. He still has the grave clothes wrapped around him. He is still bound by the clutches of death which will grab hold of him again one day. This, John wants us to see, is different. The grave clothes have been cast aside. They have no hold on Jesus, nor does death. Something new, something entirely different has happened on this first day of the new creation. Death has been defeated (1 Cor. 15:54) and will one day be completely destroyed (1 Cor. 15:24). In the resurrection, God has dealt with the ultimate enemy of humankind.
As John views all of this, being the first one in the tomb, he clearly has something welling up inside of him. At first John might not have known what to make of all of this, but then he felt that surge of faith. He saw and believed. He had seen and believed before, of course. He believed that Jesus was the Messiah, that Jesus was sent by God to speak the words of the Father. But this was much bigger than all of that. He believed that Jesus’ disappearance wasn’t just some strange mistake or that his body had been stolen. He believed that somehow Jesus had defeated death. Someway, somehow he had walked into death and out through it. He didn’t understand from the Scriptures. His faith didn’t yet come from the word, it came from seeing. That is better than no faith at all, but as John will stress, faith that comes from belief in the word of God without seeing is superior (Jn. 20:29). Andreas Kostenberger says that the fact that John admits that he did not understand what was happening because of Scripture, "proves that the disciples did not fabricate a story in order to fit their understanding of Scripture; rather they were confronted with certain facts without initially relating them (or being able to relate them) to Scripture."
But this raises a practical question. Daniel 12:2 says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." Jews clearly believed in resurrection despite the fact that no one else in the ancient world did. So, why was this so difficult to process? Why could they not understand from Scriptures like Daniel 12:2 that resurrection was not just a possibility but had happened? It wasn’t that they didn’t believe in resurrection, it was all about timing and scope. Jews that believed in resurrection believed that the resurrection would include "everyone whose name is found written in the book" (Dan. 12:1). They believed that this would happen at the end of time, when God would restore his creation, deal with the enemy of his people, and exalt Israel. What they did not yet understand is that Jesus was the book, that the enemy was death not Rome, and that Jesus was the true Israel (Jn. 15:1, etc.). They never envisioned that the new creation would be made available through the resurrection and in the life of Jesus now, in the middle of the present age, anticipating the full consummation of the age to come.
It wasn’t that the disciples couldn’t comprehend resurrection. It was that they couldn’t envision that God was going to work like this, now. As soon as John sees it, though, faith begins to well up inside of him like the living water that Jesus had promised to those who would believe. The wells of the new creation, the living water, have begun to break open. He admits that they didn’t understand that all immediately, but with the help of the Spirit, they will soon enough. Our job, over 2,000 years later, is to believe, not because we see like John did, but based on the logos. Our job is to let the streams of living water that flow from the new creation, from this first day of the new week, to flood our lives and overflow into those around us.
Devotional Thought
Is the word of God enough for you. If you see something in the Scriptures, does that settle it, or do you need to constantly see proof that it will be beneficial to you? Make a determination that you will be obedient to the Scriptures rather than needing to see evidence that what they are calling you to will work.
1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"
3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7 as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. 8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) 10 Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.
Dig Deeper
One of the truly cool ways to honor people in our culture is with a surprise birthday party. Our youngest son recently had his sixth birthday and birthday party but it wasn’t a surprise at all. Almost every day since then he has asked if he can have a surprise party. I keep trying to explain to him that he can’t have a surprise party if he keeps asking about it but he doesn’t quite get all of that yet. When you throw a surprise party for someone and they truly don’t know it’s coming, though, it’s fantastic. The look of shock on their face and their complete lack of preparation for the event are often priceless. That’s the great thing about surprises. You don’t know they’re coming. We recently were part of a surprise birthday party for a good friend of mine. It was a huge party thrown by his wife that had probably close to a hundred people there. The best part was that he truly had no idea that it was coming. When he arrived at the house, he wasn’t dressed in any special way, he didn’t have any party food or anything else with him. He simply wasn’t expecting a party and was completely surprise and unprepared.
If it seems like we’re stressing a simple point here, it’s because we are. The point is you don’t prepare for what you don’t know is coming. In fact, my friend thought he was going to watch the Superbowl with his wife and a couple of friends for his birthday. He wasn’t preparing to have a huge party with his house full of friends and family. How could he? In the same way. The disciples, both the men and the women, weren’t expecting anything beyond the normal when they woke up Sunday morning. They weren’t preparing to find an empty tomb. The women were going to the tomb to mourn and prepared with more spices and to make sure that the body was properly prepared after the hasty preparation it likely received before the Sabbath. This certainly gives this story the ring of truth, a true surprise. If they were making this all up, as some later critics have claimed, we might expect them to describe themselves as waiting in eager prayer and anticipation of Jesus resurrecting just like he said he would. But that’s not what we get. We get a group of people who were not expecting what they found. They found the biggest surprise of their entire lives.
With the long dark week nearly over, Mary wakes up early in the morning and heads off to Jesus’ tomb. It is the first day of the week, which is unusual because we might expect John to stress that it is the third day from the crucifixion. It’s a new week with a new beginning. In the last week, Jesus was presented on the sixth day, Friday, as Pilate uttered the ironic words, "here’s the man." Truly he was the man, the true Adam presented to the world on the sixth day, just as Adam had been introduced to the world on the sixth day of creation. Creation had reached it’s culmination and God rested. In the week that John has described, Jesus is presented as the true Adam but he is put to death by those who are in the fallen image of the original Adam rather than the image of God. Again in this week, though, there was rest on the seventh day but now, John wants us to see, there is a new week. The new creation has ripped into the darkness of the old creation.
The synoptic Gospels tell us that Mary had other women go with her and that they were going presumably to finish the job of preparing Jesus’ body (Matt. 28:1; Mark 16:1; Lk 24:1). This was likely due to the haste with which his body was prepared before sundown and the onset of the Jewish Sabbath. As Mary approaches the tomb, it must have felt like insult being added to injury. Jesus has been killed and now someone has messed with the body. Why would someone do that? What has happened? Mary’s first response is to run back and breathlessly tell Peter and John what she had seen. Confused and full of adrenalin, no doubt, John and Peter raced to the tomb, with the younger John reaching it first.
As they arrive they find something exceedingly strange. If tomb robbers had come by, why would they leave the linen and the spices which would have been worth money? That would be like breaking into a bank and leaving the money. The strips of linen are still lying on the shelf as though a body had passed right through them. Why would thieves have done that? What’s more, the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head, was folded or rolled up neatly (the NIV strangely has "lying in its place" which loses the intended original meaning). Imagine the confusion and emotions that were welling up inside of them. What was going on?
With the detail of the grave clothes that are lying in their place and the cloth neatly folded up, John has painted us an incredible picture of contrast. In chapter 11, as Jesus called Lazarus out of the grave, John described his grave clothes as well. They were still wrapped around Lazarus as he came out, though, and Jesus called for someone to help him take them off. When Jesus had arrived, he told Martha not to fret about Lazarus’ death because he would rise. Martha is a little frustrated and not consoled by this news, because, of course, she knows as does everyone else, that God’s people will all be raised on the last day. But this is not what Jesus is talking about. She’s wrong. Only those in Christ, those who believe in his life, will be raised and to show that he is the resurrection, he calls Lazarus out of the tomb. But this is not resurrection, it is a sign that points to resurrection. Lazarus will still die again one day physically. He still has the grave clothes wrapped around him. He is still bound by the clutches of death which will grab hold of him again one day. This, John wants us to see, is different. The grave clothes have been cast aside. They have no hold on Jesus, nor does death. Something new, something entirely different has happened on this first day of the new creation. Death has been defeated (1 Cor. 15:54) and will one day be completely destroyed (1 Cor. 15:24). In the resurrection, God has dealt with the ultimate enemy of humankind.
As John views all of this, being the first one in the tomb, he clearly has something welling up inside of him. At first John might not have known what to make of all of this, but then he felt that surge of faith. He saw and believed. He had seen and believed before, of course. He believed that Jesus was the Messiah, that Jesus was sent by God to speak the words of the Father. But this was much bigger than all of that. He believed that Jesus’ disappearance wasn’t just some strange mistake or that his body had been stolen. He believed that somehow Jesus had defeated death. Someway, somehow he had walked into death and out through it. He didn’t understand from the Scriptures. His faith didn’t yet come from the word, it came from seeing. That is better than no faith at all, but as John will stress, faith that comes from belief in the word of God without seeing is superior (Jn. 20:29). Andreas Kostenberger says that the fact that John admits that he did not understand what was happening because of Scripture, "proves that the disciples did not fabricate a story in order to fit their understanding of Scripture; rather they were confronted with certain facts without initially relating them (or being able to relate them) to Scripture."
But this raises a practical question. Daniel 12:2 says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." Jews clearly believed in resurrection despite the fact that no one else in the ancient world did. So, why was this so difficult to process? Why could they not understand from Scriptures like Daniel 12:2 that resurrection was not just a possibility but had happened? It wasn’t that they didn’t believe in resurrection, it was all about timing and scope. Jews that believed in resurrection believed that the resurrection would include "everyone whose name is found written in the book" (Dan. 12:1). They believed that this would happen at the end of time, when God would restore his creation, deal with the enemy of his people, and exalt Israel. What they did not yet understand is that Jesus was the book, that the enemy was death not Rome, and that Jesus was the true Israel (Jn. 15:1, etc.). They never envisioned that the new creation would be made available through the resurrection and in the life of Jesus now, in the middle of the present age, anticipating the full consummation of the age to come.
It wasn’t that the disciples couldn’t comprehend resurrection. It was that they couldn’t envision that God was going to work like this, now. As soon as John sees it, though, faith begins to well up inside of him like the living water that Jesus had promised to those who would believe. The wells of the new creation, the living water, have begun to break open. He admits that they didn’t understand that all immediately, but with the help of the Spirit, they will soon enough. Our job, over 2,000 years later, is to believe, not because we see like John did, but based on the logos. Our job is to let the streams of living water that flow from the new creation, from this first day of the new week, to flood our lives and overflow into those around us.
Devotional Thought
Is the word of God enough for you. If you see something in the Scriptures, does that settle it, or do you need to constantly see proof that it will be beneficial to you? Make a determination that you will be obedient to the Scriptures rather than needing to see evidence that what they are calling you to will work.
Monday, March 16, 2009
John 19:38-42
The Burial of Jesus
38 Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate's permission, he came and took the body away. 39 He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. 40 Taking Jesus' body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. 41 At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. 42 Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
Dig Deeper
No culture has become more well known throughout the history of the world’s civilizations for extravagant burials than have the ancient Egyptians. The Egyptians were motivated by their firm belief in their conception of life after death. They believed that they would need to take certain items from this life into their burial chambers or tombs with them to enjoy in the afterlife. This also motivated their belief in and practice of mummification. As a direct result of this belief about death, the Egyptians would bury loved ones with certain needed items for the underworld. This was usually a rather modest affair for a normal individual, but not the king. Absolutely nothing was spared for the Pharaoh. We don’t even really have a complete idea of just how much wealth was buried when the important Pharaohs died but we do know that it was massive and far beyond that of any regular citizen. We get an idea, though, from the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun, the only Pharaoh’s tomb ever found intact. Tut, however, was a relatively minor king who died at a young age on short notice, but even with that, the wealth that was buried with him is nearly unimaginable. We can only speculate at the kind of burials that important and long-reigning kings had. All of this was not only to prepare the king for their erroneous beliefs in the afterlife, but also to show people in this life just how important and powerful the Pharaoh really was. Although the Egyptian’s specific burial practices were quite unique, the fact that they gave special and extravagant burials to their kings is nothing new or unique in human culture. Cultures have always done that and the nations of Jesus’ day were no different.
The specific burial customs of the Jews could actually take up to a year. They would take a body and wrap it in spices to help cut down on the smell as the body decomposed. The spices would be put on the body and then it would be wrapped up in long strips of linen and covered by a burial shroud. The body would then be placed on a shelf in a tomb cut into a rocky hill. Because this was difficult and expensive work, the tomb was generally used multiple times, often times for an entire family. After a time period that could be up to a year, people would go back into the tomb and retrieve the bones that were left of the decomposed body. The bones would be placed in a bone box called an ossuary and set on a separate shelf within the tomb. But even the Jews didn’t escape the desire to have special burials for their kings. The burial of a king would be similar to a regular person, but the amount of spices that would be used, for instance, would be far greater than a regular person.
It would have been the most common practice in Judaism, for the closest relative to collect the body for burial, but it was also a common practice for disciples to take charge of the body of their teacher and to handle his bury. That seems to be the case here with Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. But wait, you might ask. Where’s Peter, where’s Andrew, where’s Thomas? Surely that’s part of John’s point in this passage. It seems that the events surrounding Jesus’ arrest and death have scattered the twelve but have had the opposite effect on two men who never seemed to have publicly embraced Jesus during his life.
Joseph was a disciple of Jesus (Matt. 27:37), but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders, and he was waiting for the kingdom of God (Mk. 15:43; Lk. 23:51). He had followed Jesus but not in a way that had cost him anything, until now. Joseph, perhaps feeling as though he hadn’t done much for Jesus during his life, was now going to honor him in his death. He takes a major risk by going boldly (Mk. 15:43) to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. This was a risky move for a man that was clearly quite wealthy (Matt. 27:57) and powerful. To associate with someone who had been jointly put to death as an enemy of both Rome and the Jewish leadership was not a good situation for Joseph.
Similarly, Nicodemus was likely wealthy and powerful, being a member of the Sanhedrin like Joseph. He was first mentioned in 3:2 as the one who came to Jesus at night, a detail that was extremely important and symbolic to John. John is the only of the Gospel writers to mention Nicodemus and he does so only three times. In chapter 3, he came to Jesus in the dark but seeking answers. After that encounter, John speaks of those being in the darkness hating to come into the light. The next time we see Nicodemus (Jn. 7:50-52), he stood up for Jesus but only tepidly on a technicality of the law. He had, though, perhaps come into the shadows. This time, it may be only just before the darkness sets in for the night, but it was during the light nonetheless. He has, it seems, stepped into the light with Joseph and will openly associate with and honor Jesus in his death. These two men may not have done much for Jesus during his life but they will do everything they can in his death.
It seems likely that Joseph took care of the political arrangements, securing Jesus’ body, while Nicodemus brought the mixture of myrrh and aloes. These spices would be wrapped up with the body as a way of honoring the dead and keeping down the putrefying smell of the body. None of this would have been unusual except for one detail that one gives us. Nicodemus brought about seventy-five pounds of spice. That’s about a hundred times more than the amount that Mary had used to anoint Jesus with (Jn. 12:3). This was an incredible amount of spice, the amount you might use for a king. And that’s John’s point in including this detail, and likely Nicodemus’ intention in bringing this much. When Pilate hung that sign on the cross that declared Jesus to be the king of the Jews, he was right. He was the king, not just of the Jews but the whole world, and he deserved the burial of a king. If there ever was a proper king in Israel to take David’s throne, this was it.
Throughout the Old Testament, particularly the book of Isaiah, God had promised that he would send a king that was both the root and the shoot of the house of David, meaning that he would be both the antecedent to and descendant of David. He would be the suffering servant (Isa. 42:1-4; 53:1-11) through whom the kingdom of God would come. This was a kingdom that would be characterized by righteousness and holiness (Isa. 11:1-5) and would be a kingdom that was ruled perfectly by the Messiah (Isa. 9;6-7). This kingdom would be for all nations (Isa. 11:9) in fulfillment to the promises that God had given Abraham that all nations would be blessed through his descendents (Gen. 18:18). This was the kingdom that would last forever and would be a part of the present age while transcending that age (Dan. 2:44-45).
But here’s the rub. It’s one thing to realize that no one of Jesus’ day had really connected all of the dots and realized how this would all work out in one person. No one could have imagined exactly the way that God put it all together. That’s one thing. And it was one thing to begin to believe that Jesus might be the Messiah, the one to pull of these aspects of God’s kingdom together. But the real catch was, how could all of this happen through Jesus now that he was dead?
And he was certainly dead. John wants there to be no mistake about any of that. The Romans had beaten him, hung him on the cross until he was dead. They made sure of that death by sticking a spear into his side, and then pulled his lifeless body off of the cross. John was there and saw all that; he saw the blood and fluids ooze from Jesus’ corpse. And then he tells us that Joseph and Nicodemus took his body and wrapped it tightly in linen and spices, placed it in the tomb and rolled the large stone over the entrance way. There was no way in or out without the Romans stationed outside knowing about it. John gives us one more detail by the way. He says that this was a brand new tomb. There was no mistaking the wrong body or the wrong shelf or even the wrong tomb.
It’s as if John is setting up all the details because he’s got something big to tell us. Here, John tells us was another garden. Again, we have echoes of Genesis, but this is not the garden of betrayal. It is the garden of new birth and new creation. They laid his body in the tomb and it was Friday, but Sunday is coming. They would have to wait through the Sabbath, the last day of the week and we are left to ponder what that day must have been like for his disciples. But that week is coming to an end. A new week is about to dawn. A Friday world is about to meet the new creation of Sunday. The old week of the old world is about to draw to a close. The eighth day of the new world is on its way.
Devotional Thought
Joseph and Nicodemus both learned that even though they had remained secret disciples and not done much for Jesus during his lifetime, that there was always time to step up and boldly reflect the light of Jesus to the world. Do you ever feel a bit like these two men when you’re at work or school? Do you ever feel more like a secret disciple than one who is bold and out in the open with your faith? It’s never too late to step out into the light. It’s what you’ve been called to do. What are you waiting for?
38 Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate's permission, he came and took the body away. 39 He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. 40 Taking Jesus' body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. 41 At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. 42 Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
Dig Deeper
No culture has become more well known throughout the history of the world’s civilizations for extravagant burials than have the ancient Egyptians. The Egyptians were motivated by their firm belief in their conception of life after death. They believed that they would need to take certain items from this life into their burial chambers or tombs with them to enjoy in the afterlife. This also motivated their belief in and practice of mummification. As a direct result of this belief about death, the Egyptians would bury loved ones with certain needed items for the underworld. This was usually a rather modest affair for a normal individual, but not the king. Absolutely nothing was spared for the Pharaoh. We don’t even really have a complete idea of just how much wealth was buried when the important Pharaohs died but we do know that it was massive and far beyond that of any regular citizen. We get an idea, though, from the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun, the only Pharaoh’s tomb ever found intact. Tut, however, was a relatively minor king who died at a young age on short notice, but even with that, the wealth that was buried with him is nearly unimaginable. We can only speculate at the kind of burials that important and long-reigning kings had. All of this was not only to prepare the king for their erroneous beliefs in the afterlife, but also to show people in this life just how important and powerful the Pharaoh really was. Although the Egyptian’s specific burial practices were quite unique, the fact that they gave special and extravagant burials to their kings is nothing new or unique in human culture. Cultures have always done that and the nations of Jesus’ day were no different.
The specific burial customs of the Jews could actually take up to a year. They would take a body and wrap it in spices to help cut down on the smell as the body decomposed. The spices would be put on the body and then it would be wrapped up in long strips of linen and covered by a burial shroud. The body would then be placed on a shelf in a tomb cut into a rocky hill. Because this was difficult and expensive work, the tomb was generally used multiple times, often times for an entire family. After a time period that could be up to a year, people would go back into the tomb and retrieve the bones that were left of the decomposed body. The bones would be placed in a bone box called an ossuary and set on a separate shelf within the tomb. But even the Jews didn’t escape the desire to have special burials for their kings. The burial of a king would be similar to a regular person, but the amount of spices that would be used, for instance, would be far greater than a regular person.
It would have been the most common practice in Judaism, for the closest relative to collect the body for burial, but it was also a common practice for disciples to take charge of the body of their teacher and to handle his bury. That seems to be the case here with Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. But wait, you might ask. Where’s Peter, where’s Andrew, where’s Thomas? Surely that’s part of John’s point in this passage. It seems that the events surrounding Jesus’ arrest and death have scattered the twelve but have had the opposite effect on two men who never seemed to have publicly embraced Jesus during his life.
Joseph was a disciple of Jesus (Matt. 27:37), but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders, and he was waiting for the kingdom of God (Mk. 15:43; Lk. 23:51). He had followed Jesus but not in a way that had cost him anything, until now. Joseph, perhaps feeling as though he hadn’t done much for Jesus during his life, was now going to honor him in his death. He takes a major risk by going boldly (Mk. 15:43) to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. This was a risky move for a man that was clearly quite wealthy (Matt. 27:57) and powerful. To associate with someone who had been jointly put to death as an enemy of both Rome and the Jewish leadership was not a good situation for Joseph.
Similarly, Nicodemus was likely wealthy and powerful, being a member of the Sanhedrin like Joseph. He was first mentioned in 3:2 as the one who came to Jesus at night, a detail that was extremely important and symbolic to John. John is the only of the Gospel writers to mention Nicodemus and he does so only three times. In chapter 3, he came to Jesus in the dark but seeking answers. After that encounter, John speaks of those being in the darkness hating to come into the light. The next time we see Nicodemus (Jn. 7:50-52), he stood up for Jesus but only tepidly on a technicality of the law. He had, though, perhaps come into the shadows. This time, it may be only just before the darkness sets in for the night, but it was during the light nonetheless. He has, it seems, stepped into the light with Joseph and will openly associate with and honor Jesus in his death. These two men may not have done much for Jesus during his life but they will do everything they can in his death.
It seems likely that Joseph took care of the political arrangements, securing Jesus’ body, while Nicodemus brought the mixture of myrrh and aloes. These spices would be wrapped up with the body as a way of honoring the dead and keeping down the putrefying smell of the body. None of this would have been unusual except for one detail that one gives us. Nicodemus brought about seventy-five pounds of spice. That’s about a hundred times more than the amount that Mary had used to anoint Jesus with (Jn. 12:3). This was an incredible amount of spice, the amount you might use for a king. And that’s John’s point in including this detail, and likely Nicodemus’ intention in bringing this much. When Pilate hung that sign on the cross that declared Jesus to be the king of the Jews, he was right. He was the king, not just of the Jews but the whole world, and he deserved the burial of a king. If there ever was a proper king in Israel to take David’s throne, this was it.
Throughout the Old Testament, particularly the book of Isaiah, God had promised that he would send a king that was both the root and the shoot of the house of David, meaning that he would be both the antecedent to and descendant of David. He would be the suffering servant (Isa. 42:1-4; 53:1-11) through whom the kingdom of God would come. This was a kingdom that would be characterized by righteousness and holiness (Isa. 11:1-5) and would be a kingdom that was ruled perfectly by the Messiah (Isa. 9;6-7). This kingdom would be for all nations (Isa. 11:9) in fulfillment to the promises that God had given Abraham that all nations would be blessed through his descendents (Gen. 18:18). This was the kingdom that would last forever and would be a part of the present age while transcending that age (Dan. 2:44-45).
But here’s the rub. It’s one thing to realize that no one of Jesus’ day had really connected all of the dots and realized how this would all work out in one person. No one could have imagined exactly the way that God put it all together. That’s one thing. And it was one thing to begin to believe that Jesus might be the Messiah, the one to pull of these aspects of God’s kingdom together. But the real catch was, how could all of this happen through Jesus now that he was dead?
And he was certainly dead. John wants there to be no mistake about any of that. The Romans had beaten him, hung him on the cross until he was dead. They made sure of that death by sticking a spear into his side, and then pulled his lifeless body off of the cross. John was there and saw all that; he saw the blood and fluids ooze from Jesus’ corpse. And then he tells us that Joseph and Nicodemus took his body and wrapped it tightly in linen and spices, placed it in the tomb and rolled the large stone over the entrance way. There was no way in or out without the Romans stationed outside knowing about it. John gives us one more detail by the way. He says that this was a brand new tomb. There was no mistaking the wrong body or the wrong shelf or even the wrong tomb.
It’s as if John is setting up all the details because he’s got something big to tell us. Here, John tells us was another garden. Again, we have echoes of Genesis, but this is not the garden of betrayal. It is the garden of new birth and new creation. They laid his body in the tomb and it was Friday, but Sunday is coming. They would have to wait through the Sabbath, the last day of the week and we are left to ponder what that day must have been like for his disciples. But that week is coming to an end. A new week is about to dawn. A Friday world is about to meet the new creation of Sunday. The old week of the old world is about to draw to a close. The eighth day of the new world is on its way.
Devotional Thought
Joseph and Nicodemus both learned that even though they had remained secret disciples and not done much for Jesus during his lifetime, that there was always time to step up and boldly reflect the light of Jesus to the world. Do you ever feel a bit like these two men when you’re at work or school? Do you ever feel more like a secret disciple than one who is bold and out in the open with your faith? It’s never too late to step out into the light. It’s what you’ve been called to do. What are you waiting for?
Friday, March 13, 2009
John 19:31-37
31 Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. 32 The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. 33 But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34 Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. 35 The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. 36 These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: "Not one of his bones will be broken," 37 and, as another scripture says, "They will look on the one they have pierced."
Dig Deeper
One weird habit that I have while I am studying the Bible or biblical sources is that I need to have background noise, so I usually turn on the television to accomplish that for me. Generally I don’t watch the television and I often don’t even pay attention to what is actually on, I just need the noise. Today, though, as I type this I’m watching a show on the history channel on so-called prophets like Nostradamus and Edgar Cayce. Those who really embrace these men as true prophets marvel over how well their prophecies "correspond" with exact points and events from history. They must have seen the future argue these proponents, because what they write about clearly happened at certain events that were still in the future for them. Critics, however, argue that these are not at all precise prophecies. They are things that are so vague that they could be about virtually anything. One expert compared what the proponents of these prophets do to someone who finds an arrow already shot into a wall and then paints a target around it. When the prophecies of these men like Nostradamus are carefully examined, two things become very clear. One is that their prophecies are generally so vague that they could be about almost anyone at any time. The other thing is that the proponents never really talk about the things that these prophets predicted that didn’t come true. Shoot enough arrows into a tree and you’re bound to hit a squirrel every now and again.
That is one of the things that is so striking when it comes to the over three hundred predictions in the Old Testament concerning the Messiah. They’re not vague. They could not just be applied to anyone. They talked of his nature, from where he would come, what he would be like, and what he would accomplish. They were so specific that many Jews began to believe that there must be at least two Messiahs. They just could not see how some Messianic passages could be reconciled with others. After the life of Christ, though, disciples of Jesus like John were able to look back and see the stunning truth. All of these predictions did find fulfillment in Jesus. The Christ really was just one person. It is to this marvelous truth that John points again and again throughout his Gospel. He didn’t just hear about these things. He is not just inventing clever stories. He was there as an eyewitness to these things. He stands witness to and seems indelibly impressed by the realization that all of the prophecies did indeed come to pass in the life of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
The normal circumstances of a Roman crucifixion were intentional brutality. The average crucifixion would last hours and usually days as the person on the cross died slowly and painfully, usually from asphyxiation. The pain was so horrible and terrifying that our word "excruciating" comes from the pain endured on a roman cross. The victim would be hung on the cross with his hands outstretched and his feet affixed to the vertical beam, making breathing a difficulty. Only by lifting oneself up by pushing up with the legs could someone get a breath. Eventually, at least in many crucifixions, a large mallet or the butt of a spear would be used to shatter the shin bones of the sufferer. Once that had happened, suffocation would take place in a few painful minutes as they would no longer be able to push themselves up with their legs to breathe.
John tells us that this day was a special day. The next day was not just a Sabbath, but a special Sabbath and according to Jewish law, "If a man guilty of a capital offense is put to death and his body is hung on a tree, you must not leave his body on the tree overnight. Be sure to bury him that same day, because anyone who is hung on a tree is under God's curse. You must not desecrate the land the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance" (Deut. 21:22-23). The Jewish leaders were concerned about the bodies of these men defiling the land on the eve of special Sabbath and so they requested that Pilate have these men killed quickly so as to avoid that situation. Pilate, not wishing to incur any unnecessary problems, granted their request. One thing is sure though, he certainly wasn’t in the routine of letting men get down from the cross alive. If there was one thing that the Romans did well, it was putting people to death. Roman soldiers certainly weren’t going to let someone escape death on the cross at the risk of their own death if that ever happened.
When they came to Jesus, though, he was already dead. He had chosen to give up his spirit. Breaking his legs was simply not necessary. He was dead. The soldiers knew it. John was right there and he saw it clearly. One of the soldiers, presumably to ensure that he wasn’t faking, plunged his sword in to Jesus’ side.
Sometimes when we are a witness to traumatic events, it can be easy to wonder why we had to be there. Why did we have to see that? If John was ever tempted to wonder that, by the time he writes his Gospel, he certainly knows why he was there, why no one bothered to harass or arrest him. It was so that he could serve as an eyewitness to Jesus’ death and the circumstances surrounding it. Clearly, John sees two remarkable things regarding the moments of and immediately following Jesus’ death.
The first that we will consider is what John actually mentions secondly. What happened to Jesus was certainly a strange turn of events that were, at the very least, unusual. It was very common that someone dying on a cross would have his leg bones broken to finish off the job, but it was very rare to be pierced in the manner that Jesus was. In those two strange events, occurring together, John sees a remarkable fulfillment of Scripture, showing once again that God is in control throughout this entire terrifying scene. History wasn’t happening to Jesus. Jesus was happening to history. In the fact that Jesus’ bones were not broken, John has in mind Exodus 12:46 and Numbers 9:12, connecting the death of Jesus to the proper preparation of the Passover Lamb. Once again, John has depicted Jesus as the true Passover Lamb. Truly the words of Numbers that referenced the Passover Lamb find their fulfillment, in John’s eyes, in the events surrounding Jesus’ death, "They must not leave any of it till morning or break any of its bones. When they celebrate the Passover, they must follow all the regulations." The other strange event surrounding the condition of Jesus’ body was the fact that he was pierced. John sees, in this unusual event a fulfillment of Zechariah 12:10, "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son." How could it be that the Scriptures could indicate God Himself being pierced while being looked at as a firstborn son. This is how, says John, take a look at the pierced Son of God on the cross.
The second area where John sees deep symbolism is in what happened when that spear penetrated Jesus’ side. John, we must be clear, is not inventing symbolism and creating events to connect to Jesus’ death. He is describing what he witnessed and attaching the proper symbolic meaning to those actual events. The spear, John informs us, brought a sudden flow of blood and water. John sees such significant symbolism in this moment that he swears that he saw it and verifies it as true. Many creative ideas have been put forth for the meaning that John sees in this event, but I don’t believe that we need to look any further than the way that John has used these terms in his Gospel.
The only time that John specifically refers to blood in his Gospel is 6:53-56 when Jesus speaks of the need to benefit from the sacrifice of his life, using the Jewish figure of speech of drinking his blood. He speaks of water much more often, but usually in reference to the spiritual life giving symbolism of water. John’s point in all of this is that when Jesus was pierced, real blood and water (actually a clear substance in the body that was referred to as water in John’s day) came flowing out, it flowed from his death. Benefit and life flowed from the very death of Jesus. Just as the first Adam had life taken from his side (Gen. 2:22), so life flowed from the side of the true Adam. In him was life (Jn. 1:4).
Devotional Thought
One thing that John seems to have had a special knack for was seeing God at work in everything. He took time to see the significance of God at work in even the little things. How are you at doing that? Do you ever, through prayer and contemplation, look for God at work in the little things in your life. If you don’t, you just might be missing some of His best work.
Dig Deeper
One weird habit that I have while I am studying the Bible or biblical sources is that I need to have background noise, so I usually turn on the television to accomplish that for me. Generally I don’t watch the television and I often don’t even pay attention to what is actually on, I just need the noise. Today, though, as I type this I’m watching a show on the history channel on so-called prophets like Nostradamus and Edgar Cayce. Those who really embrace these men as true prophets marvel over how well their prophecies "correspond" with exact points and events from history. They must have seen the future argue these proponents, because what they write about clearly happened at certain events that were still in the future for them. Critics, however, argue that these are not at all precise prophecies. They are things that are so vague that they could be about virtually anything. One expert compared what the proponents of these prophets do to someone who finds an arrow already shot into a wall and then paints a target around it. When the prophecies of these men like Nostradamus are carefully examined, two things become very clear. One is that their prophecies are generally so vague that they could be about almost anyone at any time. The other thing is that the proponents never really talk about the things that these prophets predicted that didn’t come true. Shoot enough arrows into a tree and you’re bound to hit a squirrel every now and again.
That is one of the things that is so striking when it comes to the over three hundred predictions in the Old Testament concerning the Messiah. They’re not vague. They could not just be applied to anyone. They talked of his nature, from where he would come, what he would be like, and what he would accomplish. They were so specific that many Jews began to believe that there must be at least two Messiahs. They just could not see how some Messianic passages could be reconciled with others. After the life of Christ, though, disciples of Jesus like John were able to look back and see the stunning truth. All of these predictions did find fulfillment in Jesus. The Christ really was just one person. It is to this marvelous truth that John points again and again throughout his Gospel. He didn’t just hear about these things. He is not just inventing clever stories. He was there as an eyewitness to these things. He stands witness to and seems indelibly impressed by the realization that all of the prophecies did indeed come to pass in the life of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
The normal circumstances of a Roman crucifixion were intentional brutality. The average crucifixion would last hours and usually days as the person on the cross died slowly and painfully, usually from asphyxiation. The pain was so horrible and terrifying that our word "excruciating" comes from the pain endured on a roman cross. The victim would be hung on the cross with his hands outstretched and his feet affixed to the vertical beam, making breathing a difficulty. Only by lifting oneself up by pushing up with the legs could someone get a breath. Eventually, at least in many crucifixions, a large mallet or the butt of a spear would be used to shatter the shin bones of the sufferer. Once that had happened, suffocation would take place in a few painful minutes as they would no longer be able to push themselves up with their legs to breathe.
John tells us that this day was a special day. The next day was not just a Sabbath, but a special Sabbath and according to Jewish law, "If a man guilty of a capital offense is put to death and his body is hung on a tree, you must not leave his body on the tree overnight. Be sure to bury him that same day, because anyone who is hung on a tree is under God's curse. You must not desecrate the land the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance" (Deut. 21:22-23). The Jewish leaders were concerned about the bodies of these men defiling the land on the eve of special Sabbath and so they requested that Pilate have these men killed quickly so as to avoid that situation. Pilate, not wishing to incur any unnecessary problems, granted their request. One thing is sure though, he certainly wasn’t in the routine of letting men get down from the cross alive. If there was one thing that the Romans did well, it was putting people to death. Roman soldiers certainly weren’t going to let someone escape death on the cross at the risk of their own death if that ever happened.
When they came to Jesus, though, he was already dead. He had chosen to give up his spirit. Breaking his legs was simply not necessary. He was dead. The soldiers knew it. John was right there and he saw it clearly. One of the soldiers, presumably to ensure that he wasn’t faking, plunged his sword in to Jesus’ side.
Sometimes when we are a witness to traumatic events, it can be easy to wonder why we had to be there. Why did we have to see that? If John was ever tempted to wonder that, by the time he writes his Gospel, he certainly knows why he was there, why no one bothered to harass or arrest him. It was so that he could serve as an eyewitness to Jesus’ death and the circumstances surrounding it. Clearly, John sees two remarkable things regarding the moments of and immediately following Jesus’ death.
The first that we will consider is what John actually mentions secondly. What happened to Jesus was certainly a strange turn of events that were, at the very least, unusual. It was very common that someone dying on a cross would have his leg bones broken to finish off the job, but it was very rare to be pierced in the manner that Jesus was. In those two strange events, occurring together, John sees a remarkable fulfillment of Scripture, showing once again that God is in control throughout this entire terrifying scene. History wasn’t happening to Jesus. Jesus was happening to history. In the fact that Jesus’ bones were not broken, John has in mind Exodus 12:46 and Numbers 9:12, connecting the death of Jesus to the proper preparation of the Passover Lamb. Once again, John has depicted Jesus as the true Passover Lamb. Truly the words of Numbers that referenced the Passover Lamb find their fulfillment, in John’s eyes, in the events surrounding Jesus’ death, "They must not leave any of it till morning or break any of its bones. When they celebrate the Passover, they must follow all the regulations." The other strange event surrounding the condition of Jesus’ body was the fact that he was pierced. John sees, in this unusual event a fulfillment of Zechariah 12:10, "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son." How could it be that the Scriptures could indicate God Himself being pierced while being looked at as a firstborn son. This is how, says John, take a look at the pierced Son of God on the cross.
The second area where John sees deep symbolism is in what happened when that spear penetrated Jesus’ side. John, we must be clear, is not inventing symbolism and creating events to connect to Jesus’ death. He is describing what he witnessed and attaching the proper symbolic meaning to those actual events. The spear, John informs us, brought a sudden flow of blood and water. John sees such significant symbolism in this moment that he swears that he saw it and verifies it as true. Many creative ideas have been put forth for the meaning that John sees in this event, but I don’t believe that we need to look any further than the way that John has used these terms in his Gospel.
The only time that John specifically refers to blood in his Gospel is 6:53-56 when Jesus speaks of the need to benefit from the sacrifice of his life, using the Jewish figure of speech of drinking his blood. He speaks of water much more often, but usually in reference to the spiritual life giving symbolism of water. John’s point in all of this is that when Jesus was pierced, real blood and water (actually a clear substance in the body that was referred to as water in John’s day) came flowing out, it flowed from his death. Benefit and life flowed from the very death of Jesus. Just as the first Adam had life taken from his side (Gen. 2:22), so life flowed from the side of the true Adam. In him was life (Jn. 1:4).
Devotional Thought
One thing that John seems to have had a special knack for was seeing God at work in everything. He took time to see the significance of God at work in even the little things. How are you at doing that? Do you ever, through prayer and contemplation, look for God at work in the little things in your life. If you don’t, you just might be missing some of His best work.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
John 19:28-30
28 Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus' lips. 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
Dig Deeper
George Washington has become one of the most famous men in the history of America for good reason. He led the Army of the Potomac through incredibly difficult circumstances and often overwhelming odds with quite underwhelming supplies. Yet, he always maintained the respect of his men and led them eventually to victory over the far more advanced and better supplied British army. One of the things that particularly won the respect of his men was that Washington didn’t isolate himself from the difficult circumstances of his men. He was right there with them through the bitter cold, the lack of food, and he always led in battle from the front. Most Americans know all of these things and that’s one of the reasons he is so respected to this day. One of the stories about Washington that has slipped by the American conscious, however, happened near the end of the war. His army had not been paid for months because the states, with victory in sight, didn’t want to pay more money out to the new Federal Government. The officers of his army had prepared the men to march on Pennsylvania, the then capitol, and take control of the city until they received their due payment. On hearing of this, Washington called all of his officers together and walked to the front of the room. He prepared to read a statement to them urging them to not do anything that might endanger the new government. As he pulled the paper out, he looked at it for a moment and then grabbed a brand new pair of reading glasses and put them on. He asked their indulgence as he said he had not only grown gray in serving with them, but half blind as well. Nearly every man in the room broke down in tears at that humble admission. The man they had revered and idolized as nearly super human was now standing before them humbled. It connected with something inside of them. It made them realize what was important. They didn’t march on the capitol that day, in fact they never did, all because of a pair of reading glasses.
What do you do when the one on whom you have always looked to for strength suddenly finds themselves in need? What does that tell you about them? What does it tell you about yourself? Jesus had always seemed to be in control and command of the situation. He went about his life calmly doing everything he could possibly do for the benefit of others. He seemed to have little need for anything for himself. He always provided for everyone else. Now, though, as he hangs on the cross, John wants us to see a tender and heart-wrenching moment of humility and human frailty. It’s so easy to quickly skip over a detail like that, but let’s take a few moments to take in everything John wants us to see in this scene.
Throughout the Gospel of John, John has told us over and over again about the theme of water. In the opening prologue, he doesn’t specifically mention water, but he is clearly writing a new Genesis, he is describing a new creation event complete with his "In the beginning" and the talk of light and darkness. One of the major events in the Genesis 1 creation account is that the world, covered by the chaos of waters, was brought to order by the Creator God who separated the light and the darkness and brought order to the world out of the waters.
In chapter one, it was at Jesus’ baptism with John the Immerser, that the Spirit settled on Jesus, declaring him to be the Son of God, with whom the Father was well pleased. It wasn’t that Jesus became something that day that he wasn’t already, but more that he was anointed and set apart by God in the eyes of men for the work for which he came.
In chapter two, we see the theme of water pop up again as the wedding party disastrously runs out of wine. Mary doesn’t understand anything about his time and when it will come but she does know that if they do what he says, things will happen. Jesus transforms the water contained by the symbols of the old life, the old law into the rich new wine of God’s presence and His age to come.
In chapter three, Jesus informs Nicodemus that the only way to be born again is through the Spirit and the life giving water that is connected with the Spirit. And then in chapter four, Jesus begins to share with the Samaritan woman the truth about the living water that he has. If she and Nicodemus will only put down their obsessions with the present world and see that they have a thirst that they can never quench on their own. The whole world is dying from a lack of the living water that only Jesus can give them. They can only find that wellspring in his life. He is the one who gives life and water to the world, bringing light to the chaos and disorder of the darkness.
In chapter 6, John shows Jesus to be the master of water, walking calmly on the surface of the storm-ridden waves. Only God could control the water and that is exactly what Jesus was doing and precisely who he is. He goes on in that chapter to tell the skeptical crowds that those who believed in his life would never be thirsty or hungry again. He was the one that would bring them his bread and his drink. They must rely on him and him alone.
This water theme culminated in chapter 7 at the Festival of Tabernacles, a celebration of God’s provision through water and other life-giving sustenance. At the very moment of the water pouring as Israel was crying out for God to act and bring His mighty salvation to them through the return of His presence, Jesus stood up and shouted to the crowd, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them." This living water, the salvation and presence of God, was available to anyone who wanted it. They could come and drink forever, never being thirsty again. And beyond just not being thirsty, they would have wells of this living water springing up from within them, flowing over into the lives of those around them.
At every turn, the theme of water is important in John’s Gospel, and Jesus was clearly depicted as the bringer of the living water that would keep everyone from being thirsty ever again. Now, read verse 28 again and let the full impact of what John is telling us sink in. Jesus is thirsty? How could this be? Of course, it makes sense on a literally physical sense. Jesus was physically thirsty, but we should know by now that John wants us to see more than just that. Did the source of water run out? Could he save others from thirsting but couldn’t save himself? Or was it that by becoming thirsty himself, he would quench the thirst of all who would come to him. He would quench our thirst by becoming thirsty. He would defeat death by dying. He would crush sin by becoming sin for us (2 Cor. 5:21).
This is how Scripture would be fulfilled. John doesn’t mean that Jesus simply said this in order to fulfill Psalm 69:21. God is in control. That is his point. This thirst wasn’t unforeseen. It was how God intended to work all along. He would gain victory by humbling himself in weakness. He had offered to quench the thirst of the world and had brought the best of wine through water (Jn. 2:10), but now the world was offering him the cheapest of wines. This is how he would turn the water of the world into true living water, the best wine of God’s age to come. He came to the place of thirst for us so that we never have to go thirsty again.
Once he had taken a drink, Jesus uttered the striking word, "teleo". This word does mean "it is finished" or "completed," but it was also the word that was stamped or written at the bottom of bills in the ancient world. When there was an outstanding debt that was finally paid off, "teleo" would be stamped at the bottom. It meant "paid in full." The price of sin, the thing that separates us all from the wells of living water had been paid in full. The price has been paid, the work completed.
With that, John says, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. John wants us to see one more time, that Jesus is in control. History is not happening to Jesus, Jesus is happening to history. He didn’t die as a result of events gone terribly wrong. This is how the Father would be glorified. Jesus didn’t die tragically at the hands of the world. He died willing for the sins of the world. The long drought of humankind was finally over.
Devotional Thought
John goes to great lengths to stress that fact that despite chaos swirling about him, Jesus was always completely in control right up to his very last death. Could that be said of you? We cannot control our circumstances but through the living water that flows within us as a result of Jesus’ defeat of death, we can control our responses to whatever circumstances we face.
Dig Deeper
George Washington has become one of the most famous men in the history of America for good reason. He led the Army of the Potomac through incredibly difficult circumstances and often overwhelming odds with quite underwhelming supplies. Yet, he always maintained the respect of his men and led them eventually to victory over the far more advanced and better supplied British army. One of the things that particularly won the respect of his men was that Washington didn’t isolate himself from the difficult circumstances of his men. He was right there with them through the bitter cold, the lack of food, and he always led in battle from the front. Most Americans know all of these things and that’s one of the reasons he is so respected to this day. One of the stories about Washington that has slipped by the American conscious, however, happened near the end of the war. His army had not been paid for months because the states, with victory in sight, didn’t want to pay more money out to the new Federal Government. The officers of his army had prepared the men to march on Pennsylvania, the then capitol, and take control of the city until they received their due payment. On hearing of this, Washington called all of his officers together and walked to the front of the room. He prepared to read a statement to them urging them to not do anything that might endanger the new government. As he pulled the paper out, he looked at it for a moment and then grabbed a brand new pair of reading glasses and put them on. He asked their indulgence as he said he had not only grown gray in serving with them, but half blind as well. Nearly every man in the room broke down in tears at that humble admission. The man they had revered and idolized as nearly super human was now standing before them humbled. It connected with something inside of them. It made them realize what was important. They didn’t march on the capitol that day, in fact they never did, all because of a pair of reading glasses.
What do you do when the one on whom you have always looked to for strength suddenly finds themselves in need? What does that tell you about them? What does it tell you about yourself? Jesus had always seemed to be in control and command of the situation. He went about his life calmly doing everything he could possibly do for the benefit of others. He seemed to have little need for anything for himself. He always provided for everyone else. Now, though, as he hangs on the cross, John wants us to see a tender and heart-wrenching moment of humility and human frailty. It’s so easy to quickly skip over a detail like that, but let’s take a few moments to take in everything John wants us to see in this scene.
Throughout the Gospel of John, John has told us over and over again about the theme of water. In the opening prologue, he doesn’t specifically mention water, but he is clearly writing a new Genesis, he is describing a new creation event complete with his "In the beginning" and the talk of light and darkness. One of the major events in the Genesis 1 creation account is that the world, covered by the chaos of waters, was brought to order by the Creator God who separated the light and the darkness and brought order to the world out of the waters.
In chapter one, it was at Jesus’ baptism with John the Immerser, that the Spirit settled on Jesus, declaring him to be the Son of God, with whom the Father was well pleased. It wasn’t that Jesus became something that day that he wasn’t already, but more that he was anointed and set apart by God in the eyes of men for the work for which he came.
In chapter two, we see the theme of water pop up again as the wedding party disastrously runs out of wine. Mary doesn’t understand anything about his time and when it will come but she does know that if they do what he says, things will happen. Jesus transforms the water contained by the symbols of the old life, the old law into the rich new wine of God’s presence and His age to come.
In chapter three, Jesus informs Nicodemus that the only way to be born again is through the Spirit and the life giving water that is connected with the Spirit. And then in chapter four, Jesus begins to share with the Samaritan woman the truth about the living water that he has. If she and Nicodemus will only put down their obsessions with the present world and see that they have a thirst that they can never quench on their own. The whole world is dying from a lack of the living water that only Jesus can give them. They can only find that wellspring in his life. He is the one who gives life and water to the world, bringing light to the chaos and disorder of the darkness.
In chapter 6, John shows Jesus to be the master of water, walking calmly on the surface of the storm-ridden waves. Only God could control the water and that is exactly what Jesus was doing and precisely who he is. He goes on in that chapter to tell the skeptical crowds that those who believed in his life would never be thirsty or hungry again. He was the one that would bring them his bread and his drink. They must rely on him and him alone.
This water theme culminated in chapter 7 at the Festival of Tabernacles, a celebration of God’s provision through water and other life-giving sustenance. At the very moment of the water pouring as Israel was crying out for God to act and bring His mighty salvation to them through the return of His presence, Jesus stood up and shouted to the crowd, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them." This living water, the salvation and presence of God, was available to anyone who wanted it. They could come and drink forever, never being thirsty again. And beyond just not being thirsty, they would have wells of this living water springing up from within them, flowing over into the lives of those around them.
At every turn, the theme of water is important in John’s Gospel, and Jesus was clearly depicted as the bringer of the living water that would keep everyone from being thirsty ever again. Now, read verse 28 again and let the full impact of what John is telling us sink in. Jesus is thirsty? How could this be? Of course, it makes sense on a literally physical sense. Jesus was physically thirsty, but we should know by now that John wants us to see more than just that. Did the source of water run out? Could he save others from thirsting but couldn’t save himself? Or was it that by becoming thirsty himself, he would quench the thirst of all who would come to him. He would quench our thirst by becoming thirsty. He would defeat death by dying. He would crush sin by becoming sin for us (2 Cor. 5:21).
This is how Scripture would be fulfilled. John doesn’t mean that Jesus simply said this in order to fulfill Psalm 69:21. God is in control. That is his point. This thirst wasn’t unforeseen. It was how God intended to work all along. He would gain victory by humbling himself in weakness. He had offered to quench the thirst of the world and had brought the best of wine through water (Jn. 2:10), but now the world was offering him the cheapest of wines. This is how he would turn the water of the world into true living water, the best wine of God’s age to come. He came to the place of thirst for us so that we never have to go thirsty again.
Once he had taken a drink, Jesus uttered the striking word, "teleo". This word does mean "it is finished" or "completed," but it was also the word that was stamped or written at the bottom of bills in the ancient world. When there was an outstanding debt that was finally paid off, "teleo" would be stamped at the bottom. It meant "paid in full." The price of sin, the thing that separates us all from the wells of living water had been paid in full. The price has been paid, the work completed.
With that, John says, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. John wants us to see one more time, that Jesus is in control. History is not happening to Jesus, Jesus is happening to history. He didn’t die as a result of events gone terribly wrong. This is how the Father would be glorified. Jesus didn’t die tragically at the hands of the world. He died willing for the sins of the world. The long drought of humankind was finally over.
Devotional Thought
John goes to great lengths to stress that fact that despite chaos swirling about him, Jesus was always completely in control right up to his very last death. Could that be said of you? We cannot control our circumstances but through the living water that flows within us as a result of Jesus’ defeat of death, we can control our responses to whatever circumstances we face.
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