John 21
In an echo of Jesus’ first call to Peter and Andrew, the disciples are out fishing. It appears they had been unsure of how to proceed so had returned to their former occupation. Jesus appeared and asked them if they had caught any fish. No they replied. So He told them to put their nets on the other side of the boats. Having done this they found their nets overflowing. It was at this point that John realised the man on the shore was Jesus and he told Peter. Peter responded to this news by racing to the shore without waiting for his boat to reach it. Once all had reached the shore, they sat with Jesus and had breakfast with Him.
Peter still had unresolved guilt on his conscience. He had denied Jesus three times and this had not been addressed. Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves Him and asks him to shepherd His sheep. There is much speculation about why Jesus asked Peter three times. It may be because of Peter’s sin of disowning Jesus three times, it may just be for emphasis to ensure Peter is definite in his acceptance and also understands the importance of what he is being asked to do.
Peter asked about John. Jealously and rivalry still affected these men, even after all they had seen. Their lives were to be great in their service to Jesus, yet despite all this they were still human. Their work for Jesus depended on Him. It is a good way to end, remembering that no matter what we do for Jesus, we do it in His strength and in His power. We never do things on our own.
The final verse describes how Jesus did much more than was written in the gospel, or in fact than could be written in the whole world. This demonstrates how Jesus is much greater than all that is said about Him in the Bible. This greatness is something we can only learn as we grow in our relationship with Him.
This ends the study of John. For me the overriding message of John is the love and dedication Jesus had for God and for us. He willingly served His Father so that He might fulfil God’s plan for our salvation. He is so deserving of our total dedication and praise. We are undeserving of the wonderful gift of forgiveness and life He gave us. My prayer for you is that this is the launching point for you to continue to grow in your love and knowledge of Jesus.
I end with an excerpt from “Infinite Supply” 10 December 2011 (http://infinitesupply.org/december10)
“When we see Christ as All in All then it will be impossible for us to ever again be reduced to the small, the trivial, the petty things which occupy us and waste so much of our time. Our only hope is seeing a Christ that fills us, a Christ that is greater than us, a Christ that is larger than we can fathom, an indescribable Christ that overshadows, overwhelms, and consumes us through and through!”
In the words of John the Baptist (John 3:30): we must become less and Jesus must become greater. May you diminish every day as Jesus becomes greater within you.

Commencing with my next blog will be a study of the sermon on the mount.

John 20:24-31
Apparently Thomas was not with the other disciples when Jesus came to them. He did not believe them when they said they had seen Jesus. He wanted to see the nail marks and feel the hole in Jesus’ side. So Jesus came and gave Thomas the proof he sought. As a result of Jesus’ visit, Thomas believed. Jesus told him he believed because he saw; however, those who do not see but still believe are blessed. I also love reading that because I realise Jesus was referring to us. We have not had the opportunity to see those nail scarred hands or the spear pierced side yet we still believe. We are truly blessed. We can believe that too because Jesus said it.
Thomas became dubbed in Christian tradition as doubting Thomas. It is true he did doubt initially, but it is recorded he worked as hard as the rest of the disciples and was, like many of them, martyred. Sometimes people struggle to believe, but this does not mean their faith is weaker. God is patient with us, although we still need to come to the point of belief, faith and trust in God and in all Jesus has done for us.

John 20:1-23
It is the Sunday. The Passover is over and before dawn Mary Magdalene has come to the tomb. When she arrives, the stone has been rolled away and she can see the tomb is empty. It is recorded here she ran to Peter and another disciple (most probably John). They ran to the tomb and saw the neatly folded funeral clothes that had wrapped Jesus’ body. Up to this point John admits they had not understood the scripture that spoke of Jesus’ resurrection. However it is noted that He saw the empty tomb and believed.
Mary came back to the tomb, crying. She did not yet believe. She thought Jesus’ body had been taken away. In the tomb she saw two angels. They asked her what was wrong and she told them Jesus’ body was missing. Turning around, she saw a man standing there. He asked her why she was crying. She told him the story of what had happened to Jesus and how His body was now missing. He spoke her name and her eyes were opened. She recognised Jesus. Overjoyed she ran to tell the disciples.
Later that day, as the disciples hid behind closed doors in fear of the Jews, He appeared to them and gave them the traditional peace greeting. Coming from Jesus’ lips this greeting carried more weight than the traditional peace. Here was the promise of 14:27 and 16:33 of His peace. Also, many of the disciples, having run away on the Thursday night and avoided Him on the Friday, may have thought He would condemn them. Instead He demonstrated His forgiveness and acceptance of them.. They too were overjoyed.
Jesus then provided the proofs that He was indeed risen by showing them the hole in his side and his nail scarred hands.
Then it is recorded He breathed on them so that they might receive the Holy Spirit and He gave them the authority to forgive others. There is a lot of conjecture about what this means. Most commentators consider this is the promise of what was to come at Pentecost. The bestowing of the Holy Spirit at this point seems to be more connected with forgiving sins than the promised power that was bestowed at Pentecost. The promise given by Jesus was that they had the power to forgive sins, a power that only God had, because they were now open for God to act through them using the Holy Spirit in them. This power of the spirit in these verses was also about the power of preaching the Gospel.
The disciples were still to wait for the promised power of the Holy Spirit that would come at Pentecost. Many years ago, a great Christian man told me that far too many people fail to move beyond those early days after the crucifixion. They happily sit in the risen Jesus but do not move on as He intended to Pentecost where they can receive the power He intends them to have to do His work on this earth.
If you prayerfully consider this statement, where do you think you are? Are you still stuck in the locked room, or have you reached Pentecost yet?

John 19:28-42
These verses contain several confirmations of scripture. John sought to prove to the Jews reading his gospel, the ones that knew the scriptures, that Jesus death fulfilled what had been written about the Messiah. For example, in verse 28 Jesus announced he was thirsty, took a sip of wine vinegar and gave up his spirit. This is thought to refer to Psalm 69:21. In fact the entire psalm is a good description of what Jesus endured.
Shortly afterward, the soldiers came to break the legs of the crucified men. Seeing Jesus was dead, they pierced his side in order to confirm this (v34). This also fulfilled scripture in Isaiah 53:5 and  Zechariah 12:10.
John sought to prove to those who could not see God’s plan in Jesus death that this was a vital part of God’s plan.
In a final act, two men who had hidden their faith in Jesus because of fear, came and took his body and buried it. They were Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus.
Throughout the story of Jesus’ final hours there are incidences of people being challenged to step forward and proclaim their faith in Jesus. Peter failed the test, only to repent later and become the leader of the early church. Pilate failed the test and sunk into obscurity. Now Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus came forward. Nicodemus had earlier been too afraid to be seen supporting Jesus, but now he was not afraid. It is not known what happened to these men, but they are recorded in this gospel, for all to read, as being men of courage.