How is that other guy going to die? S28e181 Jn21:20

Peter is temporarily curious about the outcome of the spiritual walk of John. Jesus gives him a bit of a rebuke.  Worry about yourself.  YOU follow me first. YOU Mr. Peter, practice the habits of faith for yourself.

The faith journey of another is above your pay grade.  As for you, FOLLOW ME!

https://youtu.be/VbNQPPmIiZg

Transcript

How is that other guy going to die? S28e181 Jn21:20

Context is Jesus is restoring Peter. He tells him he’ll get old in the ministry; he’ll voluntarily lose his agency. He’ll be bound, dress in a way he does not prefer and that he’d ultimately GLORIFY God in his death.

Jesus’ words to Peter: Follow me.

         Every Christian follows the Lord as one person

         Every Christian follows the Lord in ONE BODY

         There is no such thing as Christian lone rangerism. 

WHAT ABOUT John? How is John going to die? Is he going to be faithful til the end? Will he also succumb to a violent, other-person-imposed death?

Jn21: 20 Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them, the one who also had leaned back against him during the supper and had said, “Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?” 

Intimacy of the last supper.  The last time we were all together, 7 of the disciples were at the breakfast on the shore. They are now somehow mobile, after the meal.  Little stroll? Heading back to the mountaintop?

         John, code for the disciple whom Jesus loved

         ESV section Jesus and the BELOVED Apostle

         Tells us about Jesus: He’s a love

         Tells us about John: He’s humble and trying to put Jesus forward. 

He’s VERBALLY identified as the beloeved disciple.

He’s POSITIONALLY identified as the beloved disciple. 

WTraditional meals everybody would lie on their left elbows like spokes of a wheel.  Lets say, Jesus was at the 6 oclok position. 

We hear what about John? He’s the ONE WHO LEANED BACK AGAINST Jesus

         That means he was at the 5 o’clock position.

         I’d think everybody wants to be next to Jesus, so this is an honor position

         He’s privy to more conversations, He’s in on questioning about 

                  Who is it that is going to betray you? A: Judas; 2nd: Everybody

Jesus has just told Peter about the end of his spiritual journey: end in a non volitional, violent death that he won’t particularly prefer, but he’ll do it voluntarily. He’s going to make it! His faith is not going to fail.

So Peter says to Jesus: 21 When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?” 22 Jesus said to him, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” 23 So the saying spread abroad among the brothers that this disciple was not to die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not to die, but, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?”

Rebuke of Jesus. Your primary job is yourself. If you do not take care of yourself, you cannot take care of my dear sheep. My dear Church.

This is like the moment in a plane depressurization event: If you don’t put on your own mask first, you will be of no help to those in need around you. 

Every Christian follows the Lord as one person FOLLOW HARD. 

Practice the habits of faith: Of worship. 

Of generosity, of service and of awe.

         Every Christian follows the Lord in ONE BODY 

put yourself on the path of fellowship.

         There is no such thing as Christian lone rangerism. 

If it is my will that John remain until I come….

         Jesus is coming BACK. Jesus is coming BACK. Jesus is coming BACK

         John doesn’t live that long

         But John does live til a ripe old age 90’s, fulfilling his commitment to Mary, mother of Jesus until her death, acting the Apostle on Patmos writing Revelation

Every Christian is going to have a SALVATION STORY from a human perspective

Every Christian is going to have a SALVATION STORY from a heavnly perspective

Every Christian is going to have a sanctification STORY from a human perspective

Every Christian is going to have a sanctification STORY from a hvenly perspective

You are not going to have all the information about all the stories. 

In fact, you don’t have all the information about your OWN story, 

         Much less the future story of a person who isn’t you and is going to end up hundreds or thousands of miles away, with deaths separated by decades

This is above your paygrade Mr. Peter

What is NOT above Peter’s paygrade? FOLLOW ME. Who follows? ME first.

Acts 20:28 Paul speaks to the Ephesisan leaders/overseers/teachers/shepherd

28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

Generally, failure of leadership in the church are related to the failures of self

         There are many temptations. If you lose the self, you lose the ministry.

Charge:

         Watch yourself out there everybody. Practice good spiritual habits. 

         To care about your ministry is to first care about yourself

         No self=no service;  Do the first things first. 

         This is true for the Apostles, true for Pastors, true for every person in churc

         Don’t first worry about the walk or even death of another: FOLLOW first