“You Follow Me” – The Personal Call of Discipleship
John 21:20–23 (NKJV)
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?”
Message
I. Peter’s Question About John (20-21)
Jesus signified by what death Peter would glorify God in John 21:19. Then, Peter saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following (20a). This disciple is John who wrote this book of John.
John had also leaned on Jesus’ chest at the supper and asked, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” (20b). This shows how close John was to Jesus. They were intimate and shared the hidden truths.
There was a relationship of revelation and prophecy between Jesus and John. Jesus revealed the truth to John (revelation), and John later proclaimed it to others—to the world—as prophecy.
Peter, seeing this John, asked Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?” Maybe Peter was curious about John’s fate (21).
What was the answer of Jesus?
II. Jesus’ Response: A Personal Calling (22)
See v22.
22 Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.”
From this, we learn that each one of us has God’s specific will for our own life. We don’t need to look at others or compare ourselves with them. We just need to obey the specific will and mission that God has given for our lives. We do all for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31; John 21:19).
Even though we follow the same Jesus, each of us has a unique destination—a personal path to glorify God through the journey as His disciple.
III. The Misinterpretation of Jesus’ Words (23)
See v23.
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?”
They misunderstood v22 and thought John would not die (23a). But v22 didn’t say that (23b). So, we should read the Bible carefully and accurately.
Again, we should focus on our own calling, as “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you?” is repeated in both v22 and v23. Let us not compare our journey with others. Let each of us follow the unique path.
