John

Big Idea: John’s transformation from a Son of Thunder to the one who writes “Beloved, Let us love one another, for love is from God” Is a result of the grace of God and intentional discipleship of the next generation.

Introduction Verse: 2 Corinthians 5:17

2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

Introduction story - Nicky Cruz

I would imagine many of you here have never heard of Nicky Cruz. To be honest I hadn’t either until I began working on this sermon.

Nicky Cruz was born in Puerto Rico in 1938 into what we might call less than ideal circumstances. His family was heavily involved in spiritism and occult practices and often emotionally and physically abused Nicky.

At the age of 15 if parents sent him to New York to live with his brother. There was the hope of a better life, but that is not what Nicky found. Fairly quickly, Nicky found himself not only involved with street gangs, but rising to positions of leadership in the Mau Maus gang, one of the most terrible in the 50’s. He was known for his violence, cruelty and drug and alcohol abuse. Let’s just that he is not someone any of us would have probably chosen to be around or invite to the church picnic.

But then God burdened the heart of a man named David Wilkerson to go into the city and preach the gospel to the lost in those dangerous gang filled New York City. Here he encountered Nicky Cruz for the first time and their meeting was not a peaceful one. Cruz threatened to kill Wilkerson but His response was powerful “You could cut me into 1,000 pieces and lay all those pieces in the street and each one of them would still love you.”

This message had a deep impact on Cruz. After several more encounters with Wilkerson he attended a youth rally that and was overwhelmed by the love of Jesus. He gave his life to Christ and walked away from gang life forever along with many of his fellow gang members. But the transformation didn’t stop there. He would go on to attend bible college and become a preacher himself. He has reached millions of people in his life with a simple message “If God can change me, he can change anyone.”

Its stories like this that resonant with us. Stories of transformation, of heart change, of real hope. Stories where the bad guy really repents, turns and fights alongside the good guys. Stories where we see real growth and character development.

I think this is one of the reasons why I like the story of John. The John we see in the gospels is not the same man we see when we read his letters at the end of the New Testament. Something has happened, something has changed. This morning I want to look at John the Apostle, who he was and who he became, and then spend sometime thinking about what that means for us today.

So who was John

Today we are looking at John the disciple

John began following Jesus at a young age - best evidence points towards late teenager

Still working for dad

Not Married

Lived so much longer than the others

Iraneus - Polycarp - John ( lived until the reign of Emperor Trajan)

Ministry

Disciple - Apostle -

In Jerusalem probably until the fall of the temple around 70 AD

As persecution drove Christians out into the world John settled in Ephesus to lead and pastor the church there

death

One of the few to die of old age

But what was John like when Jesus found him

I want to look at a few passages to see just what John was like when he first started following Jesus and the trouble this often got him into.

John’s moments of immaturity and anger

Luke 9:49–50 ESV

John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.”

So here is the context. Jesus is in the middle of some big teaching moments. Feeding the 5,000, healing a demon possessed boy, even telling him about his death. The disciples, kings of missing the message, start arguing among themselves. Jesus tries to bring them back to the point, seemingly one of serving and not being in charge.

And John’s response reveals his heart. He changes the subject and says “ Jesus! Look at those guys! They aren’t us, make them stop!”

John wants the attention. John wants to be the guy that everyone looks at.

Luke 9:54–56 ESV

And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” But he turned and rebuked them. And they went on to another village.

So the cross is getting closer and closer. Jesus begins to head to Jerusalem but that will take him through Samaria. We probably remember that Jews and Samaritans are not the best of friends, lots of animosity. So Jesus sends some messengers ahead to a city they would be traveling through, but they people of that city don’t welcome them in. And the brothers James and John are hot. “Jesus, say the word and we will burn this city to the ground!”

Not really something you expect to come out of the mouth of someone who literally spends their whole day walking beside Jesus. Makes it easy to see why Jesus nicknamed them “The sons of thunder” and awesome tag team wrestling name, but for these disciples, not great. At least not yet.

Mark 10:35–45 ESV

And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John.

Okay, so I’m sure you see whats happening. James and John are saying, “Jesus, we know you have this whole messiah thing going on, but we have something we need you to do. When you get everything done, make sure that we are right beside you on our own thrones.”

And everyone there understands and gets really mad at them.

So John is what?

arrogant, hotheaded, over-zealous, racist

But still Jesus saw through that and brought John into his inner circle. But we will get to that in just a minute. First, lets look at who John becomes.

We need to look at the writings of John. The events of the gospels take place around 30 AD and 1 John was written around 85 AD. So 50 years of learning and growing.

So John was a fiery and over zealous youngster

So remember Luke 9. We see an angry and self obsessed John. But is that the same John that we hear when we read 1 John 4:7-8

1 John 4:7–8 ESV

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

So the John who wanted to call down fire on a city full of people because they didn’t welcome him in they way he wanted, now says “the whole point is love, and if you aren’t loving people, you don’t know God. The heart of God is love, it starts with him and points towards him and when we know him, it becomes the heart of us as well. “

Compare Mark 10 with 1 John 3:18 and 3 John 1:4

1 John 3:18 ESV

Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

3 John 4 ESV

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

Now, the John who wanted to lord over people, now says that his greatest joy is knowing the church is walking in truth and loving people are they serve them. And not just the talk, but the walk.

Expound on this.

So, What made the difference?

What is the tendency of man? When we find difficult circumstances or people, our first inclination is to withdrawal, pull away or push them away. But is that the life we see Jesus teach and model for us?

Think about how difficult it must have been being around someone like John

Just those three passages we read a few minutes ago show John to be a young, hot-headed, arrogant, divisive, biased person.

I mean, how many of us would choose to be around a person like that on a regular, or even in Jesus case, daily basis?

And Jesus called these guys to follow him and be like him. So, in essence, Jesus is saying to them on their best days, see how I love all these other people despite their flaws and mistakes, do the same thing. And on their worst days? Jesus says “See how I love you with full awareness of your flaws and your mistakes, do the same thing for other people.”

Who have you pushed away because of their flaws instead of inviting them closer. Who have you looked and and said, we are just too different to hang out or there is just that one thing they do and I can’t stand it.

this is our natural tendency, bring closer those who are going to make our life easier or better or more comfortable or more attractive

Push away those who are difficult for us or too different than us

You see Jesus didn’t look at John and see all those qualities that made him hard to handle. I’m sure the other disciples did. I’d imagine there was a time or two that Peter (who had his own issues) probably told Jesus, it would all be easier if they didn’t have the kid following them everywhere.

But Jesus knew who John COULD be not just who he was.

And so instead of pushing him away or even keeping him at arms length, Jesus pulled him in even closer.

Think about the moments we see Jesus really bring John in….

Mark 5:37 and the raising of Jarius’ Daughter

Matthew 17:1-9 and the Mount of Transfiguration

Mark 14:33-34 and the Garden of Gethsemane

What impact did it have?

Let’s start with the obvious. John goes from being a hot-headed arrogant teenager to a pastor who teaches consistently on love and unity in the whole of the church

Instead of asked God if he can call down fire he commands the church to love sacrificially and without wavering.

Instead of asking to be lifted up above everyone he is willing to suffer that anyone might know the truth of Jesus Christ

But what about the places he led?

Ephesus - a massive city of 250,000 people

Paul planted the church there, Timothy helped the church find roots, and then John helped the church grow and mature.

It was a government center of the Roman Empire in Turkey, a cultural center for both greek philosophy and pagan religion. So a city that thrived in all the ways that the old John would have really struggled with.

The church there had every reason not to survive, but John loved them, cared for them and discipled them and even into the 3rd century Ephesus was know as a hub of Christian thought.

And People?

Well outside of many church leaders and bishops that we could see coming out of John’s ministry we can look at the church fathers like Polycarp who became the bishop of Smyrna (one of the seven churches of revelation)

Polycarp would disciple Irenaeus who would help the church in the second century solidify the teaching of the apostles using the teaching of John and became one of the first great defenders of the faith against heresies like Gnosticism

So whats the Point? Why would I take all this time to talk about John and his discipleship and legacy?

The Apostle John is just one example ( out of hundreds in scripture) of How God not only chooses flawed and broken people like you and me, but changes flawed and broken people, making them whole through the saving work of Jesus Christ and building them up into the people he calls them to be.

The John who writes 1,2,3 John and Revelation is not the same John who asked to call down fire or sit beside Jesus in Heaven

And maybe there is someone in your life who God wants to use and he is wanting you to be the one to reach them. He wants you to faithful love them and bring them in closer, not push them away. He wants your faithful witness to be the spark that points them to Jesus for a lifetime.

And who knows what their testimony might be in 10, 20, 50 years?

So maybe today is the day that you stop pushing people away because of what impact it might have on your life and start pulling them in closer because of how Jesus might use your life to impact them.

And after all, if you are following Jesus you should have the same testimony! A flawed and broken person saved by marvelous grace

Or maybe you are in a different place this morning. You have seen in the past or do see in yourself some of what was in John

Hotheaded, Brash or arrogant, divisive, Self-Centered

or maybe its other flaws you see in yourself.

And maybe you think those flaws are just more than what even the gospel could overcome.

I’m here to tell you this morning, the same Jesus that transformed John’s life by drawing him closer in, wants to do the same thing for you.

He is not going to push you away, no matter what flaw or mistake you feel is to much for him. No matter how other people have treated you, no matter what you might be thinking is in the way, Jesus still loks at you and says “No matter what, every piece of me will still always love you.”

So maybe today is the day that you stop pushing Jesus away and draw closer to him. Confess all those mistakes and all that brokenness to him and trust that he is faithful and just to forgive our sins when we turn to him.