John 21:1-14, Introduction to John’s Gospel (1)

We are about to embark on a journey through John’s Gospel, from John 1:19-12:19.  Why just part of John’s Gospel?  Because we have been verse by verse through the rest of it.  You can ask us for copies of our devotional books that cover the rest of John’s Gospel.  Or it can be found in our blog in the following locations:

·       Ch. 1:1-18 2014, 11/28-12/5 (Birth of Christ)

·       Ch. 13-17 2017 2/14-3/28 (Upper Room Discourse)

·       Ch. 12:20-50; 18-20 2018 6/8-8/20 (Passion and Death of Christ)

·       Ch. 19-21 2016 2/28-3/29 (Resurrection of Christ)

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The Gospel of John has been described as “simple yet sublime.”  How true that is.  John’s vocabulary is the simplest of all the gospels, keying on basic terms like believe, life, light, love and truth.  And yet it contains some of the most important passages revealing the person of Christ, the claims of Christ, the provision of God for the believer, the nature of faith, and the path to effective witnessing.

At one time, John’s Gospel was the normal first diet for new Christians.  But in recent years the trend has been more to direct new Christians into topical Bible studies.  Is John really a good book for the novice?  Let us introduce ourselves to this book and see why it is excellent material for new and old believers alike.

AUTHOR

The author does not identify himself.  However, two lines of reasoning lead to the conclusion that it was John the Apostle, brother of James, one of the Twelve.

The first line of evidence is that the writers of the early Church, who lived close to John’s time, all claimed that John wrote this gospel.  Consider this list of men, whose names may be unfamiliar, and yet who were the great Christian writers of the second and third centuries: Irenaeus, 180; Theophilus, 165; Clement of Alexandria, 220; Tertullian, 220; Tatian, 150.  Eusebius, the great Church historian of the fourth century, also attributed this gospel to “John, the companion of Peter.”

The second line of evidence is within the book.  While his name is not mentioned, there are many indications that leave us with John as the logical choice as author.  Consider the following:

·       He was an eyewitness (1:14; 19:35; 21:24-25).

·       He was one of seven who went fishing (21:2; the language indicates he must be one of the last four: the two sons of Zebedee, or two unnamed disciples).

·       He was associated with Peter (13:23-24; 20:2,8; at other times John and Peter were close: Mk. 5:37; 9:2; 14:33; Lk. 22:8; Ac. 3:1,11; 4:13; 8:14; Gal. 2:9; also in John 21:2,7,20ff.)

·       The fact that the author names the other disciples but not himself, choosing to refer to himself in hidden phrases, suggests John is the author (13:23f; 21:20,24; 19:26f).

·       The author had intimate knowledge of Jewish customs.

·       The author had knowledge of the little things that would come only from close association with Jesus (6 jars, 2:6; odor, 12:3; action, 13:24; weight, 19:39; 100 yards, 21:8; 153 fish, 21:11).

·       He also had knowledge of names that were anonymous in the other gospels (6:7f; 12:3; 18:10).

John the son of Zebedee, is the obvious choice.  Peter is mentioned in the third person and James was already dead (Ac. 12:2).  John fits the evidence quite well.