You Follow Me
John 21:18-25
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I want to start today by first drawing your attention to the last two verses of John’s Gospel. In John 21:24, John points out that he is the one referred to as the disciple whom Jesus loves throughout the Gospel, and that he’s the one who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and that his testimony is true. In other words, this Gospel was written by a reliable eyewitness. John was there, he saw what Jesus did, heard what Jesus said and witnessed the death and resurrection of Jesus. So what he says is trustworthy.
Then in John 21:25 John says, “And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen.” Can you hear John’s heart? it’s like he wishes he could’ve written more, that he could’ve testified to more of the works of Christ, but thinking more realistically, there are so many that this world simply couldn’t handle a book that big. The riches of God’s grace in Christ, the glory of His majesty, and the wonders of His mercy are inexhaustible. Indeed, Jesus Christ is infinitely glorious. We will spend all eternity marveling at such things and worshiping our God. It’s been John’s goal throughout this Gospel not to recount everything Jesus did, but to give us sufficient testimony so that we would behold His glory and believe on Him for eternal life.
Two and a half years ago we began this journey through the Gospel of John. It gives me not just a sense of joy in what we have learned but also a sense of sorrow over what we have left unsaid. As you have experienced with me, there is a depth to John that simply cannot be fathomed. J.C. Ryle said that coming to the last verses of John, “… is like listening to the parting words of a friend, whom we may possibly not see again.” For me, knowing how much more of the Bible there is to teach and the limited number of days that the Lord gives me on this earth, I may never get the chance to preach through this wonderful book again.
My hope and prayer for us as we have walked through John’s Gospel has been that we would truly behold the glory of Jesus Christ, that we would get a glimpse of the Son of God in His magnificence, and thus believe in Him, fall in love with Him, and be compelled to pour out our lives for Him.
Essentially, that is what we find in these last few verses of John 21. Jesus has just walked Peter through his restoration as an apostle and church leader. Three times Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love me?”; and three times Jesus commissioned him to feed or shepherd His sheep. We learned that a disciple of Jesus loves the Lord and that love compels us to serve. In our passage today you will notice that twice (John 21:19, 22) Jesus repeats to Peter the command that He gave Him when He first called him as a disciple, “Follow Me!” (Matt. 4:19; see, also, Jesus’ initial command to Philip in John 1:43). Watch for what it means to follow Jesus as I read our passage today starting in John 21:15–
15 So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Feed My lambs.” 16 He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My sheep.” 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.”
18 “Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.” 19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”
20 Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” 21 Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?” 22 Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.” 23 Then this saying went out among the brethren that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you?”
24 This is the disciple who testifies of these things, and wrote these things; and we know that his testimony is true. 25 And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen.
Jesus says to Peter, “You follow Me.” What does it mean to be a disciple, a follower of Jesus? Last time in John 21:15-17 we saw being a disciple of Jesus means loving Him and serving Him. Today we also see being a disciple of Jesus means:
1. Sacrificially following Jesus (John 21:18-19)
We can trust and follow the Lord for our future, including trials and the time and manner of our death. Look at John 21:18; Jesus says, “Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.” We do not have to wonder about what that means because John explains in John 21:19, “This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God.” The phrase, “stretch out your hands,” was commonly understood in the ancient world to refer to crucifixion (D. A. Carson, The Gospel According to John [Eerdmans/Apollos], p. 679). The day would come in Peter’s later years in which they would stretch out his hands (as in crucifixion), and someone else would ‘gird him’ (perhaps a figure of speech for being ‘bound’ by ropes or fetters), and that he would be taken where he did not wish.
Clement of Rome (AD 96) reports Peter’s martyrdom, although he doesn’t mention how he was executed. In the 3rd to 4th century, Eusebius of Caesarea, wrote in his Church History (Book 2, Chapter 25), “It is, therefore, recorded that Paul was beheaded in Rome itself, and that Peter likewise was crucified under Nero. This account of Peter and Paul is substantiated by the fact that their names are preserved in the cemeteries of that place even to the present day.”
The reason this is significant is that Peter had at one time boasted that, even if everyone else stumbled and denied the Lord, he himself would not (Matthew 26:33). He had said, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” (Matt. 26:35). All the others said the same, of course; but Peter was the lead voice. In this John 13 when Jesus tells His disciples that they cannot follow Him now as He goes to His death, Peter protests, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake” (John 13:37).
Peter not only gets a second chance at ministry and leadership, he gets his second chance at sacrifice. Peter would indeed lay down his life for Jesus sake after all. Here, Jesus proves true what Peter has just said (John 21:17), “Lord, You know all things…” Jesus knew Peter’s future, including when and how he would die. We all have to die (unless Jesus returns before then). The question is, “will your death glorify God? Paul’s aim was (Phil. 1:20) “… that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.”
This has been an important theme in John’s gospel. In John 9 the disciples ask Jesus if the man born blind or his parents had sinned to cause his blindness. Jesus gave this answer (John 9:3), “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.” In John 11 Jesus gets the news that His friend Lazarus is sick and when Jesus heard it He said (John 11:4), “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” In John 12 Jesus said (John12:23), “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified,” and prayed (John 12:28, “Father, glorify Your name.” Then He said (John 12:32), “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.” John explains (John 12:33), “This He said, signifying by what death He would die.” John has been teaching us that your life, your disease, your suffering, and yes, even your death are to be for the glory of God.
How do we die in such a way to glorify God? The way to glorify God in our death is to follow Him while we live. At the end of John 21:19 we read, “And when He had spoken this, He said to him, ‘Follow Me’” If we are dong what Jesus said in Luke 9:23—denying ourselves, taking up our cross daily and following Him—then we will be ready to glorify God in death because we have glorified Him in life.
Peter spent the rest of his life serving the Lord Jesus, feeding His lambs, tending His sheep. Peter, no doubt, had this conversation in mind when, later, he would write (2 Peter 1:12-15),
For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.
Because Peter glorified the Lord in his life to the very end, he would also glorify the Lord in his death.
Well, we need to move on to point two. Being a disciple of Jesus means not only sacrificially following Jesus but also,
2. Personally following Jesus (John 21:20-23)
We can trust and follow the Lord for how and where we serve Him, without being concerned about how He uses others. John 21:20-21 says, “Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, ‘Lord, who is the one who betrays You?’ Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, ‘But Lord, what about this man?’” In John 21:24 John informs us that this same man that Peter asked about is John himself, the author of this Gospel.
We don’t know whether Peter asked out of curiosity or concern for John or the need to compare himself with John. But whatever his reason, Jesus replies (John 21:22), “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.” This was a gentle way of Jesus saying to Peter “that’s none of your business.” Jesus determined how Peter would serve Him and when and how Peter would die. He did the same for John; and, He does that for all who follow Him.
John is quick to dispel the rumor that seems to have developed from Jesus’ question, writing (John 21:23), “Then this saying went out among the brethren that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, ‘If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you?’” The point is not that John wouldn’t die before the Lord returned, the point is that it should not be Peter’s concern.
It is tempting to compare ourselves with others, but it is detrimental to our calling and our service to the Lord. As a pastor, it’s easy to compare myself to other pastors and wonder, “Why does God bless their ministries as He does, but not mine?” But I am not them, and God’s gifts and His calling on my life is unique. So is yours.
We must all follow the Lord Jesus Christ personally. Finally, being a disciple of Jesus Christ means,
3. Obediently following Jesus (John 21:24-25)
We can trust the Lord concerning the reliability of His Word, including what it contains and what it omits. The Bible was not written so that we would know everything there is to know, but so that we would believe and obey. Look again at John 21:24, “This is the disciple who testifies of these things, and wrote these things; and we know that his testimony is true. Here, John is testifying to the truthfulness of all that he has written in his Gospel concerning Jesus. He wants us to believe his testimony and put our faith in Jesus Christ. Then John concludes by writing, “And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen.”
In other words, the Bible is a miracle of brevity in light of its divine subject! The world could have been filled with page after page of material explaining, declaring, and illuminating us on our great Redeemer. But John, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, was selective. What he wrote was enough—enough for you and me to understand the simple gospel truth that leads to eternal life (Phil Newman). J.C. Ryle wrote, “There is enough to make every unbeliever without excuse, enough to show every inquirer the way to heaven, enough to satisfy the heart of every honest believer, enough to condemn man if he does not repent and believe, enough to glorify God.”
So we end our study of the Gospel of John with joy and thankfulness for the clear and plain presentation of the way to eternal life by believing in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the Son of God. We end with sorrow and humility when we think of how little we have laid hold of the treasures that this Gospel contains. And finally, we end in awe and wonder at the amazing grace and infinite glory we have found in our Lord Jesus Christ. Know Him; believe in Him; love Him; worship Him; serve Him; glorify Him. That is what this Gospel, and all of life, is about.
