1. What does the word "dined" mean? The same Greek word is used in verses twelve and fifteen. It means the same as having breakfast, which is really the expression "break fast" or breaking a fast. This word is why many commentators believe this miracle happened on Sunday because the disciples would have fasted on the Sabbath.
2. Interpret the phrase "more than these". Some commentators write that Jesus was referring to the disciples, the nets or boats, or the fish and bone leftovers. Dr. Towns thinks that Jesus was asking if Peter loved Him more than these, meaning more than the other disciples loved Him.
3. Interpret the two words for "love". Agapao means deep, giving, sacrificial love. Phileo means superficial, brotherly love. Jesus twice asked Peter if he had a deep, giving love for Him, and Peter responded honestly by saying that his love was only superficial. The third time Jesus and Peter both used the brotherly love term. Peter said that the Lord knew all things and that He knew that Peter's love was only superficial. Peter's love was shallow at this point, but he was being honest.
4. Interpret the three re-commissions to Peter: a. Feed my lambs (v. 15) - This verse meant teach my sheep, and Peter did this at Pentecost when he preached and three thousand were saved. b. Feed my sheep (v. 16) - This verse meant pastor my sheep, and Peter did this when he pastored the church at Jerusalem. c. Feed my sheep (v. 17) - This verse meant mature my sheep, and Peter did this by writing his epistles.
5. How long had Peter been dead when John wrote? Tradition says that Peter died by being crucified upside down. The time period would have been about 67 or 68AD, so John would have been writing his Gospel about thirty years after Peter had died.
6. What references to John are found in this chapter? In verse twenty, John called himself the disciple Jesus loved. In verse twenty-one, he called himself this man, and in verse twenty-four, he is referred to either by himself or another as the disciple. Some commentators say that John did not write the final two verses because of the words "we" and "I." John never used these words in his other writings, and he never referred to himself personally. As a young man, he had been very cocky and probably self-centered. In his old age, he was extraordinarily humble.
7. Prove that John wrote the Gospel of John. In verse twenty-four, the use of the words "we know" probably refers to the church at Ephesus, and the word "his" probably refers to him. The church accepted his writings as being from him, so there is every reason for all others to do the same. Much of the Bible was not formally accepted until the third century.
Tom of Spotswood"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." (I John 5:12)
"And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13)
Index to Selected Essays And Book Reviews
Lesson 25 - John - The Apostle Of Jesus
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