John

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**John** was James' brother and was one of Jesus' twelve apostles. Before Jesus called him to be a disciple, he was a fisherman (Matthew 4:18-22, Mark 1:16-20). John’s relationship with Jesus was so close that he was called “the disciple Jesus loved.” John wrote the Gospel of John, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, and Revelation. which will appear in superbook season 6

John survived years of persecution. After banishment to the island of Patmos, God visits him with visions of future restoration. God instructs him to write them down as the Book of Revelation.

## Bible InfoScan

John was the son of Zebedee and the brother of James. The two brothers were nicknamed the “Sons of Thunder” by Jesus (Mark 3:17), and it seems that John was in a leadership position among the disciples. Before Jesus called him to be a disciple, he was a fisherman in the family business on the Sea of Galilee (Matthew 4:18-22, Mark 1:16-20). He became one of Jesus’ closest disciples. Jesus invited only John, James, and Peter to go with Him to heal Jairus' daughter, Jesus’ transfiguration, and to stay with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 5:37, Luke 9:28-29, Matthew 26:36-38). James seemed to be fiercely loyal and protective of Jesus and the group of twelve disciples.

John told Jesus that they had seen someone casting out demons in Jesus' name. They told the man to stop because he wasn't in their group. Jesus rebuked them for it! In another instance, Jesus wasn’t welcomed in a Samaritan village because He was on His way to Jerusalem. “When James and John saw this, they said to Jesus, “Lord, should we call down fire from heaven to burn them up?” But Jesus turned and rebuked them. (Luke 9:54-55). One time, the mother of James and John came to Jesus with her two sons. She asked Jesus to let her sons sit in places of honor on His right and left side in His kingdom. Jesus said they didn't know what they were asking because they would need to suffer like Him. He also said that only God could choose who sat with Jesus. The other disciples were upset when they heard James and John had made that request to Jesus. (Matthew 20:20-24; Mark 10:35-41). At times, John and his brother acted and spoke without thinking, similar to Peter. They, like Peter, were well meaning, loyal, and bold for Jesus. John’s relationship with Jesus was so close that he was called “the disciple Jesus loved”.

At Jesus' crucifixion, Jesus handed Mary, His mother, to John. John took Mary into his home and cared for her as his own mother (John 19:26-27).

John was one of the disciples who chose to go fishing with Peter on the Sea of Galilee. They fished all night and caught nothing. Jesus appeared on shore that morning and called to them to put their nets on the right side of the boat. They didn’t recognize Him but still obeyed. They couldn’t even haul in their net with a miracle catch of 153 large fish! John was the first one to recognize that the man on the shore was Jesus. This prompted Peter to immediately jump in and swim toward the shore. John and the rest of the disciples hauled the miracle catch in and enjoyed breakfast with Jesus. It was the third time that John and the other disciples had seen Jesus after His resurrection. (John 21:1-13). After Jesus took Peter aside and restored him, He told Peter about how he would serve Christ and how his death would glorify God. Peter then looked at John and asked Jesus if he would experience the same things. Jesus replied, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? As for you, follow Me.”

So the rumor spread among the community of believers that this disciple would not die. But that isn't what Jesus said at all. He only said, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?” (John 21:22-23).

After the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter and John preached God’s Word boldly and healed a lame man. They were thrown into jail and told to stop preaching about Jesus. The Jewish leaders were amazed at the boldness of Peter and John. After all, they were fishermen not educated men! The two men chose to obey God rather than men. They continued to preach boldly about Jesus! (Acts 3:1-8; Acts 4:1-31).

John wrote the Gospel of John, “so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name” (John 20:31). He also wrote 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, and Revelation. The book of Revelation was written when John was on the island of Patmos. This was a small island in the Aegean Sea just off the coast of Turkey (Revelation 1:9-11). John was exiled to this island during the time of the persecution of the early Christians. This was most likely during the reign of the Roman Emperor, Domitian (A.D. 81-96). John lived to an old age and died on the island.

## Life Lessons

* Follow Jesus when He calls you to be a disciple.
* Love others as you are loved.
* Accept your responsibilities.
* Tell others that Jesus is the Son of God.
* Obey God not man.
* Be filled with the Holy Spirit and speak God's Word boldly.
* Declare to others what you have seen and heard so they might believe in Jesus.