23 May 26 | The Beloved Disciple
Peter looked at someone else's path and Jesus said what concern is it of yours.
The Gospel: John 21:20-25
²⁰ Peter turned and saw the disciple following whom Jesus loved, the one who had also reclined upon his chest during the supper and had said, "Master, who is the one who will betray you?" ²¹ When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, "Lord, what about him?" ²² Jesus said to him, "What if I want him to remain until I come? What concern is it of yours? You follow me." ²³ So the word spread among the brothers that that disciple would not die. But Jesus had not told him that he would not die, just "What if I want him to remain until I come? What concern is it of yours?"
²⁴ It is this disciple who testifies to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true. ²⁵ There are also many other things that Jesus did, but if these were to be described individually, I do not think the whole world would contain the books that would be written.
Today’s Focus
Jesus redirects Peter from comparing his path to the beloved disciple's with the command to follow Him alone, the Gospel closes with the beloved disciple's identification as eyewitness author, and the final note is that the world cannot contain all that could be written about what Jesus did.
In the Margins
Peter has just been restored and commissioned. Jesus has told him where following will lead, including the kind of death that will glorify God. Then Peter turns around, sees the beloved disciple following, and asks the question that is as human as anything in the Gospel. Lord, what about him?
Jesus’ answer is direct. What if I want him to remain until I come? What concern is it of yours? You follow me. The redirecting is the point. Peter has received his restoration, his commission, and the honest word about what is coming. His immediate response is to look at someone else’s path and compare. Jesus cuts through the comparison entirely. The beloved disciple’s story is not Peter’s concern. Peter’s concern is following Jesus.
John then notes that a misunderstanding circulated among the brothers. The word spread that the beloved disciple would not die. He corrects this precisely. Jesus had not said the disciple would not die. He had asked a conditional question that became a rumor that became a theological position that was wrong. John is showing the early community working through what Jesus actually said, willing to correct its own misreading in the final chapter of the Gospel.
Then the identification. It is this disciple who testifies to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true. The Gospel closes with a claim of eyewitness authority and an acknowledgment of selection. Not everything Jesus did is in this book. There are also many other things that if described individually the whole world could not contain the books that would be written. The selection was intentional. John 20:31 stated the purpose: these things are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in His name.
The Gospel ends not with a doctrinal crescendo but with a conversation about minding your own path. Peter’s tendency to look sideways at someone else’s calling is not a character flaw unique to him. It is the natural human reflex toward comparison, toward measuring your own cost or calling against someone else’s. Jesus gives the same answer to everyone who asks it. What concern is it of yours? You follow me.
The testimony is true. The book is complete. What remains for the reader is the same thing that remained for Peter on that shore, not the management of other people’s callings but the daily choosing to follow the one who said I am the way.
Reflection Question
Where are you looking at someone else's calling instead of keeping your eyes on the one who is calling you, and what would it mean to follow without the comparison?