Well, let's open our Bibles one more time to the Gospel of John, John chapter 21.
We're concluding our series in John's Gospel this morning, if you can believe it.
And so if you would, turn to John chapter 21.
If you didn't bring a Bible with you, that's okay.
We have Bibles provided for you in the seat backs in front of you.
If it's not in front of you, look to your left or to your right.
There ought to be one nearby.
But I always encourage you to please have a copy of God's Word open in front of you.
I don't want you just to hear it from my voice, through my lips.
I want you to see it with your own eyes on the pages of God's Word.
John chapter 21, when you found that, if you would, let's stand together in honor of the reading of God's Word.
After this, Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias.
And he revealed himself in this way.
Simon Peter, Thomas, called the twin, Nathaniel of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together.
Simon Peter said to them,
I am going fishing.
They said to him, We will go with you.
They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore, yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to them, Children, do you have any fish?
They answered him, No.
He said to them, Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.
So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because of the quantity of fish.
That disciple whom Jesus loved therefore said to Peter, It is the Lord.
When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment, for he was stripped for work,
and threw himself into the sea.
The other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish,
for they were not far from the land, but about a hundred yards off.
When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire in place with fish laid out on it and bread.
Jesus said to them, Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.
So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore full of large fish, 153 of them.
And although there were so many, the net was not torn.
And Jesus said to them, Come and have breakfast.
Now none of the disciples dared ask him, Who are you?
They knew it was the Lord.
Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so would the fish.
This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.
When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter,
Simon, son of John, 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.
He said to him a second time, Simon, son of John, do you love me?
He said to him, Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.
He said to him, Tend my sheep.
He said to him the third time, Simon, son of John, 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 everything.
You know that I love you.
Jesus said to him, Feed my sheep.
Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted.
But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.
This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.
And after saying this, he said to him, Follow me.
Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them,
the one who had also leaned back against him during the supper and had said,
Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?
When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, Lord, what about this man?
Jesus said to him, If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?
You follow me.
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?
This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things and who has written these things.
And we know that his testimony is true.
Now there are also many other things that Jesus did.
Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.
This is the word of God.
Let's pray once more.
Lord, we thank you for your word.
And we pray even as we've already sung, God, reveal your glory through the preaching of your word.
Would you show us Christ this morning and give us eyes to see, give us hearts to accept and believe what you've written.
We pray this in Jesus' name.
Amen.
You may be seated.
47 sermons in the Gospel of John.
Spread out among 62 Sundays with a break here and there.
21 chapters.
Some of you probably wish it could go on a bit longer.
Many of you are probably wondering what more could possibly be said.
Well, if we take John literally here at the ending of this Gospel, he says the world itself can't contain the books that could be written about this man Jesus.
We've seen time and time and time again, haven't we?
The example after example after example, story after story after story, written about this man Jesus.
John is trying to get us to see clearly who he is.
And he's written with an aim in mind.
You ought to know this by now.
Chapter 20, verse 31.
These things are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
And that by believing, you may have life in his name.
As we bring our series to a close this morning, as we wrap up the Gospel of John,
really this shouldn't be many new things to you.
It shouldn't be new information to you.
But rather, John's putting the question to us once again, do you believe?
Have you gotten the message?
To that end, he shares two final stories of the person and work of Jesus this morning.
This will be our outline.
If you're taking notes, this will help you to follow along.
We have two final stories of the work of Jesus this morning.
We see Jesus reveals himself to his people.
And Jesus restores his people to himself.
Jesus reveals himself to his people.
And Jesus restores his people to himself.
First, we see here in verses 1 through 14, Jesus once again reveals himself to his people.
All throughout John's Gospel, we've seen him revealing himself, haven't we?
Peeling back the layer of who he is.
We've seen signs and wonders of what he's done that reveal who he is.
We've heard his own statements, these I am statements revealing who he is.
And we've seen the disciples, haven't we, progress in faith,
especially as we come to the aftermath of the resurrection of Jesus.
We see them seeing, beginning to see clearly who Jesus is.
Look there with me to verse 1.
Jesus has just appeared to his disciples twice already after his resurrection,
once without Thomas and then a second time with Thomas present.
And now John says that after this, Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias.
And John says he revealed himself in this way.
The disciples were going fishing.
Peter, ever the vocal leader of the disciples, says,
I'm going fishing, who wants to come?
And it says Thomas and Nathaniel of Cana, the sons of Zebedee, James and John,
and two others came with him, that's seven in all,
which would not have been an unusual thing, right?
Peter, James, and John were all fishermen when Jesus called them to follow him.
They would have been used to a long night out on the sea fishing.
But what was unusual for them this evening was that after a night full of fishing all night long,
they had nothing to show for it.
And John says they came back and they had no fish all night long,
casting nets, casting nets, casting nets, and nothing.
Which wouldn't be strange if I was in the boat, right?
That's how it normally goes when I go fishing.
But these men, these were experienced fishermen.
They weren't fishing with a rod and a hook and a worm.
They were casting nets.
They were expecting to haul in a number of fish.
But John says the night came and went.
Morning was approaching and they caught nothing.
Very unusual.
That's not the only unusual thing that happened, was it?
And to make matters worse, there on the shore,
some strange man calls out to them,
children, have you caught any fish?
Now maybe I just imagine this,
that maybe they had a more gracious tone than I would have had
after a night without sleep, without anything to show for it.
But they answered and said, no, we have no fish.
And so the strange man on the shore tells them,
well, try casting the net on the right side of the boat.
And whether out of despair or desperation or defeat, I don't know,
they cast the net on the other side.
And all of a sudden, just imagine it,
after a night of fruitless labor,
all of a sudden they go to pull in the net empty as before,
and this time it won't budge.
It's weighted.
It's full.
It's full of fish.
After all their efforts, that whole night they listened to the man on the shore.
They tossed the net off the right side.
And this time they can't even pull the net up into the boat.
It won't budge.
Something unusual and incredible has happened.
And John says that it was here at this point,
John, the disciple whom Jesus loved,
he realized who this mysterious man on the shore must be.
And he proclaims.
He says, it is the Lord.
He's back.
Just imagine the joy and the excitement of that moment.
The risen Lord Jesus is right there on the shore,
just a hundred yards away.
He's back.
He's come to visit us once again.
One of the joys of being a father of kids that are still young
is that they're still excited to see me.
Often.
A lot of the time.
Right?
And I love going to the preschool pickup line at their school
and seeing the kids just charge out of the door
and run into the arms of their parents.
And some of them just leap in for a hug.
Other ones, they jump off.
They fly off the curb.
And they land in their parents' arms.
They're excited to be reunited with the ones who love them most.
And we've seen, haven't we, throughout John's gospel,
no disciple is more like a preschooler than Peter.
Right?
And John says, it's the Lord.
As soon as he tells Peter, it's the Lord.
What does Peter do?
He puts on his clothes.
He was stripped down for work.
He wraps himself up.
And he tosses himself in the water.
He says he swam a hundred yards to go see Jesus,
to be reunited with the one who loves him most.
And when he got there,
he found that Jesus had prepared a fire with fish and bread.
And he told them,
go bring the fish that you just caught
and come and let's have breakfast.
Now, this is an aside, right?
But Peter must have been either incredibly strong
or just jacked up on adrenaline from seeing the Lord
because he just swims a hundred yards.
And then at the command of Jesus,
verse 11 says that he got back up in the boat
and he hauled that heavy net ashore
full of 153 large fish.
And although there were so many, John,
he points out this small detail,
the net was not torn.
So right there on the beach,
reunited once again with bread and fish,
and I can only imagine with joy and laughter,
the disciples enjoyed a little fish for breakfast with Jesus.
John tells us in verse 12
that none of the disciples, not one,
none of the disciples dared ask him,
who are you?
They all knew it was the Lord.
See, we see a little bit of their progress
in the faith here, don't we?
They knew it was the Lord.
What a moment.
But you know, as I read this
and studied this text,
as I thought about this event,
as I imagined it in my mind,
I asked the question and I wondered,
maybe you asked the same question
as you read this text.
How in the world did they know it was the Lord?
How were they so confident
that it was the Lord Jesus?
Confident enough for John,
a hundred yards away in the dark of the early morning,
to say it's the Lord?
Confident enough for Peter
to throw himself in the water
and go swim up to the shore.
How did they know it was the Lord?
Well, it could have been
that they're just so familiar with him,
having spent three years together,
eating meals.
They ate breakfast, lunch, and dinner with Jesus.
They had the opportunity to observe
his mannerisms, his personality,
how he broke the bread
when he distributed it to the masses
and fed the thousands.
And they had eaten bread and wine
at the last supper before the death of Christ.
There's familiarity in the breaking of bread.
It could have been that
he revealed himself to them
in the way that he served them.
And no one served them like Jesus.
And after a long night of fishing,
here was Jesus preparing a fire,
making breakfast,
preparing the fish,
and setting the table.
He revealed himself
in his persistent desire to serve them.
This was the master that washed their feet.
The Son of Man,
who came not to be served,
but to serve,
and to give his life as a ransom for many.
They knew it was him by his service.
That still doesn't explain, does it,
how John knew it was him
from a hundred yards away.
How Peter was so confident
it was him from a hundred yards away.
There's one more reason
why I think they knew it must be him,
even before arriving on the shore.
They knew it was him
because something similar
had happened to them
and with them
and another encounter with Jesus
earlier in another gospel,
but with a few key differences.
Luke chapter 5,
verses 1 through 11.
You can turn there if you like,
but what I want you to notice
is that these two stories
are so similar.
In fact, they're so similar
that critics of the Bible
say that this is just the same story
repurposed and told
in different places
and in different ways,
but I think that
that misses the point here.
Oftentimes,
when we're studying God's word,
if you see two similar stories,
two similar occurrences,
the point,
the message,
is in the similarities,
but also in the differences
between the stories.
So look here,
Luke chapter 5.
Luke tells the story
of Jesus calling the first disciples
to follow him.
This was the very beginning
of their relationship.
This was the very first time
they ever heard the voice of Jesus.
It's the beginning
of Jesus revealing himself to them.
Now, I want you to listen
and see if you can spot
the differences here.
Luke chapter 5.
Luke says that Jesus
was teaching
at the side
of the lake Gennesaret
and he saw two boats
by the lake,
but the fishermen
had gone out of them
and were washing their nets
and he got into one
of the boats
which happened to belong
to a man named Simon
who we know is Peter.
And he taught the people
from the boat
and when he finished,
listen to this,
he said to Peter,
put out into the deep
and let down your nets
for a catch.
And Simon answered,
Master,
we toiled all night
and took nothing,
but at your word
I will let down the nets.
And when they had done this,
Luke says,
they enclosed a large number
of fish
and their nets
were breaking.
And they signaled
to their partners
in the other boat
to come and help them
and they came
and filled both the boats
so that they began to sink.
But when Simon Peter saw it,
he fell down
at Jesus' knees
saying,
depart from me
for I am a sinful man,
O Lord.
For he and all
who were with him
were astonished
at the catch of fish
that they had taken.
And so also
were James and John,
the sons of Zebedee,
who were partners
with Simon.
And Jesus said to Simon,
do not be afraid.
From now on
you will be catching men.
And when they had brought
their boats to land,
they left everything
and followed him.
It's interesting,
isn't it?
This event,
obviously,
it would have been
seared into their memories.
This was one of those
life-changing
foundational events.
And so when it happens
again here in John
chapter 21,
of course they knew
it was Jesus.
Why?
Because this was
the exact way
he had first
revealed himself
to them.
What was the lesson
for them back
at the beginning?
Come follow me.
and I will make you
fishers of men.
Well, what are they doing
here in John 21?
They're still catching fish.
Could it be?
What's the lesson here?
Could it be
that Jesus is saying,
guys,
the time has come.
The plan of salvation
has been accomplished.
I have come.
I have lived.
I have died.
I have risen.
The time has come
for you to stop
catching fish
and go out
and begin
catching men.
Could it be
a lesson for them?
I have sent you out
to proclaim forgiveness
of sins in my name
and here you are
still catching fish.
You've gone back
to your old life.
You've gone back
to life as usual,
as if the resurrection
didn't happen.
Don't you know
the resurrection
changes everything?
And now it's time
for you.
If you've seen me
clearly for who I am,
it's time for you
to go share
that message
with others.
It's time for you
to go and be
a fisher of men.
You see,
if you have seen
Jesus for who he is,
if he's revealed
himself to you,
you don't just go back
to your old way
of life.
How could you?
You have a repurposed
identity in Christ.
The resurrection
of Jesus,
when you see it
with eyes of faith,
changes everything
about who you are.
We are now sent out
as fishers of men
with an unbreakable net,
the finished work
of the gospel
of Jesus Christ
and a Lord
that commands you
to cast.
Of course,
there's a problem,
isn't there?
When you hear
that command
that we're called
to go be fishers
of men,
there's a problem.
I've heard each of you,
many of you,
express this to me
when I've spoken
with you about
our call
and the task
of personal evangelism,
that you and I
are called,
each one of us
as followers of Christ,
we are called
to go be fishers
of men.
We are called
to go share
the gospel
with our friends
and our family members
and our co-workers
and our neighbors.
We come across
a problem.
Do you know
what it is?
We feel so
insufficient
for that call,
don't we?
Who are we
to go
and proclaim
this gospel message?
We know
that we're sinful,
we're insufficient.
Who are we?
Which is why
the second point
this morning
is so encouraging
for sinners
like us.
Jesus reveals
himself to his people
and second,
Jesus restores
his people
to himself.
If anyone
was disqualified
from useful service
to the Lord,
it was Peter.
Right?
It was Peter.
You remember
Peter and the size
of his failure
three times.
He denied the Lord.
He was unwilling
to associate
with the Lord.
He wanted nothing
to do with the cost
of following Jesus.
I don't know him.
And now as he sees
the Lord on the shore,
I mean,
he's excited to see him,
but he has to be carrying
just a load of guilt.
Right?
And there's this
unresolved tension
here.
But what Peter learns
in this moment,
and it's such an important
lesson for us as well,
is that his status
before the Lord
and his usefulness
for the Lord's ministry
is not in his goodness.
It's not in his strength.
It's not in his faithfulness,
but in the faithfulness
of Christ.
Look there to verse 15.
John says,
When they'd finished breakfast,
Jesus said to Simon Peter,
Simon, son of John,
do you love me
more than these?
You've boasted before
about the strength
of your love.
What about now?
Do you love me?
And he said,
Yes, Lord,
you know that I love you.
And he said to him,
Feed my lambs.
So he said to him
a second time,
Simon, son of John,
do you love me?
And again,
he replied a second time,
Yes, Lord,
you know that I love you.
And he said,
Tend my sheep.
So he said to him
a third time,
Simon, son of John,
do you love me?
And he says,
Peter was grieved
because he said to him
the third time,
Do you love me?
And he said,
Lord, you know everything.
You know that I love you.
You can see right into my heart
and know the truth.
You know that I love you.
And Jesus said,
Feed my sheep.
Why?
Why does he ask him
this question three times?
Oh, you remember,
three times previously,
Peter had denied him.
I don't know him.
And now Jesus,
three times,
asks him,
Do you love me?
And now three times,
Peter is able to respond
to the Lord,
Yes, I love you.
Yes, Lord,
you know that I love you.
This is Jesus
graciously restoring
his servant
to himself
and to his service.
And if you've ever
failed the Lord,
and if you've ever denied him,
like Peter has done here,
and we all have,
we should take heart.
Now this is a clear illustration
of the heart of Jesus
towards sinners like us.
You know,
we were traveling this past week,
and on the way,
we listened to the kids' version
of Pilgrim's Progress.
I forget what it's called.
Littlest Pilgrim,
Big Journey,
something like that.
John Bunyan's
Pilgrim's Progress.
You know,
you know the classic book.
And we got to the point
where Christian,
the pilgrim,
as he's journeying
on his way
to the celestial city.
On his way
to be reunited
with the king
who's called him there,
called him to this journey.
He's on his way,
and he comes,
and he meets Apollyon.
And Apollyon begins
to accuse Christian.
And he says,
you've been faithless.
You've denied the Lord.
You've swerved from the path.
You've been lazy.
You've been prideful.
He piles on accusation
after accusation
after accusation.
And Christian responds,
I love this.
He says,
all this is true
and much more
that you left out.
But the prince
whom I serve
and honor
is merciful
and ready to forgive.
Now we often sing
when Satan tempts me
to despair
and tells me
of the guilt within.
Upward I look
and see him there
who made an end
of all my sin.
The Lord
restored Peter
not only to himself
but also to tremendous service,
to tremendous responsibility.
As we read through the book of Acts,
Peter becomes a pillar
of the early church.
He tells him here
this responsibility
three times.
Feed my lambs.
Tend my sheep.
Feed my sheep.
Does the Lord care for his sheep?
Of course he does.
This is no small responsibility
that he's entrusting to Peter.
Feed my sheep.
What was the qualification?
What claim?
What right did Peter have
to do this service?
It's not in his goodness,
is it?
It's in the goodness
and the restoration
and the grace
that he's received
by the ministry
of Christ Jesus.
And the good news for us,
church,
is that this
restorative ministry
of Jesus.
It's not just for Peter.
It's not just for shepherds.
This is the work of Christ
for all of his people.
Jesus restores his people
to himself.
You know,
there's not a person in here
who can honestly say
that you have perfectly
followed the Lord.
Every one of us
in our own way
has denied him
just like Peter.
But as we grow
to understand
the heart of Christ
towards sinners like us,
the more that he reveals himself
to us
so that we see him clearly
for who he is,
we won't hide our sin
from him like Adam.
And we won't try
and put on some appearance
of false holiness.
We'll run to him
with our sin
like Peter.
That's exactly
what he wants us to do.
You know,
it's interesting, isn't it?
The first time
that Jesus filled the nets
and he called Peter
to follow him,
do you remember the response?
What did he say?
I'm sinful.
Depart from me.
I'm a sinful man,
O Lord.
That was just
after a glimpse
of the holiness
and divinity of Christ.
That was a short glimpse
of the identity of Jesus.
But here,
after three years
spent with the Lord,
and here,
after what had to be
the very pinnacle,
the very peak of his sin,
what does he do?
He jumps out
and swims
to the Lord
for restoration.
Now, we should know
that both responses
are correct, right?
As sinful men
and women
on one side,
we ought to stand
in reverent fear
of the holiness of God
and what that means
for us as sinners.
We should never
treat our sin lightly.
We should never
misuse and abuse
the grace of God,
the kindness of God
as an excuse
or a license
to sin.
And yet,
if we understand
the gospel,
and the more
we understand
the heart of Christ,
that Christ Jesus
came and died
to take away
our sin
from us,
that he came here
for sinners
like us,
that he died
to restore
sinners like us
to fellowship
with God,
we ought to
cast ourselves
like Peter
into the depths
of his heart
of grace
towards sinners
like us.
The more clearly
we see him,
the more quickly
we'll run to him
for grace
and restoration
and say,
Lord, use me
however you see fit.
Jesus gives us
one final lesson
to Peter
here in verses
18 through 23.
He shares with him
how he will die.
Which, you know,
that seems like,
that seems a little
strange at first glance,
doesn't it?
But what he's doing
is he's sharing
with Peter
that this ministry,
following me,
fishing for men,
shepherding my sheep,
will come at
great cost.
Following me
will come
at great cost.
Look what he says,
Truly, truly,
I say to you,
when you were young,
you used to dress yourself
and walk wherever
you wanted,
but when you are old,
you will stretch out
your hands
and another will dress you
and carry you
where you do not
want to go.
And this he said
to show by what kind
of death
he was to glorify God.
And after saying this,
he said to him,
Follow me.
We don't see
Peter's death
in the scriptures,
but tradition
and church history,
historical records
indicate that
Peter was put to death
in Rome
at the hands
of the emperor Nero.
As part of a widespread
persecution
against Christians,
Peter was crucified.
But at his request,
he was crucified
upside down
because his testimony
was that
he would not
be worthy
to be put to death
in the same way
as the Lord
Jesus Christ.
His hands
were stretched out
and he was carried
where he did not
want to go.
But it's amazing,
isn't it?
Peter was finally
willing
to bear public
shame
for the sake
of Christ.
He was finally
willing
to associate
with this man
Jesus
whatever the cost
may be.
He was restored
and then some.
John says
that Peter,
he turned
and he saw
the disciple
whom Jesus loved
following them.
The one
who had leaned
back against him
during the supper.
This is John.
And Peter said,
well,
what about this man?
If that's
what it's going
to cost me,
what's it going
to cost him?
If that's what
you have planned
for me
as I follow you,
what about him?
And John said
that Jesus replies
to him,
well,
if it's my will
that he remain
until I come,
what is that to you?
You follow me.
Do you get the message?
You know,
apparently this
started a bit
of a rumor
that John
wasn't going
to die
and that he
would instead
live and remain
until the return
of Christ
but John
sets us straight
and he said
that's not
what Jesus said,
that's not the point.
What's the point?
The point
for Peter
and for us,
church,
is you
follow
me.
Don't get
hung up
on
whatabouts.
don't get
tripped up
on comparing
callings
with this guy
or that.
If you have
seen Jesus
clearly
for who he is,
if you have
been restored
as a broken
sinner,
restored to
fellowship
with God himself
by the blood
of Christ,
your call,
whatever the cost,
you
follow
me.
And for some,
that may
mean
going
into
dangerous
places,
proclaiming
the name
of Christ,
being persecuted,
even giving
your life
for the cause
of Christ.
That may be
the path
that God
has for you
or it may
be that
the Lord
has called
you to pray
and to share,
to give generously
to kingdom
causes,
to faithfully
teach your family
about Jesus,
to teach your
children and
your neighbors
to evangelize
your friends.
It may be
that the Lord
has called
you to live
to a ripe
old age
and die
as an old
man or woman
faithful to
Christ.
Or it may
be that the
Lord causes
you to stretch
your hands
out on a
cross and
die for the
sake of
Christ.
What
difference
does it
make for
you?
The call
is you
follow
Christ.
And if
Jesus is
who this
book has
proclaimed
him to
be,
then church
he is
worth it.
Amen?
John ends
this gospel
with this
fairy tale
ending.
Don't you
love this?
He says,
this is the
disciple who
is bearing
witness about
these things
and who
has written
these things
and we
know that
his testimony
is true.
There are
also many
other things
that Jesus
did.
Were every
one of them
to be written,
I suppose
that the
world itself
could not
contain the
books that
would be
written.
That sounds
at first
like an
exaggeration,
doesn't it?
And maybe
it is,
but if this
man Jesus
is who
John has
told us
that he
is,
remember
John chapter
one?
It says,
all things
were made
through him
and without
him was not
anything
made that
was made.
All things,
all the books
that have ever
been written
on geology,
on ecology,
on astrology,
on ornithology,
all of it
rightly understood
is theology,
is Christology.
All of it
is from
him and
for him,
Paul says,
to him be
the glory
forever.
Christ Jesus
made it
all.
John says
another wonder
of wonders
is that the
one who made
it all
stepped down
into his
creation
in order
to redeem
it.
How many
books could
we fill?
To tell
the stories
of Christ?
How many
books could
be written
to tell
the stories
of men
and women
who have
been given
eyes to
see him
for who
he is?
How many
books can
be written
to share
the stories
of restoration?
Even in
this room,
sinners
reconciled to
God by the
blood of
Christ.
How many
stories can
be written
through the
ages of the
church after
years and
years?
I don't
think John
is exaggerating
church.
all the
shelves of
the world
would not
be enough
to contain
the books
that can
be written
of this
man,
Jesus
Christ.
And we
have all
of eternity
to explore
the wonders
of the
grace of
God towards
us who
believe.
But this
book,
the gospel
according to
John,
was written
with one
purpose in
mind,
that you
may believe
that Jesus
is the
Christ,
the Son of
God,
and that by
believing you
may have
life in
His name.
Have you
gotten the
message?
Do you
believe He
is who He's
claimed to
be?
Let's pray.
Lord, as we
close this
book,
we thank
You and we
praise You
again for
Your Word.
We thank
You and we
praise You
again for
the person
and work
of Jesus.
And we
pray, Lord,
it's my
desire that
this church,
Father, that
You would
make us a
people who
see You
clearly.
Would You
reveal Yourself
to us more
clearly that we
might love You
and honor You
and worship You.
And Lord,
would You lead
us to be quick
to confess our
sin to You
and quick to
run to You
for restoration.
And Lord,
would You make
us quick to
share about You
and that others
might come to
know You as
we do.
We love You,
Lord.
We pray this
in Jesus'
name.
Amen.