The Festival of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist

21:19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”

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?”

24 This is the disciple who testifies of these things, and wrote these things; and we know that his testimony is true.

It is a strange passage of Scripture. Our Lord may be hinting that John would live a very long life, the only one of the original Apostles who did not die a martyr’s death. His life would instead be something of a living martyrdom; not sacrificed in a moment, but a long process of sacrificing all his days and years under persecution in service to the Lord who loved him.

We who are not overtly threatened with death on account of our faith may take John as a noble example of how to live our lives. Nevertheless, we do well to heed Jesus’ words to Peter concerning John, as well. The Lord had His use for the life of John, and our lives will not be—cannot be—just like his. Whatever the Lord’s will for John was, it is given to us to follow Jesus!

The “how to” is pretty simple: Repent of your sins. Trust in the Incarnate God, our Lord Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of our sins. And undertake to make the most of every opportunity to serve Christ with works that express love for our neighbor, in the day and age and place where the Lord has been pleased to place us.

Collect: Merciful Lord, we beseech Thee to cast the bright beams of Thy light upon Thy Church, that it being instructed by the doctrine of the blessed Apostles, may so walk in the light of Thy truth, that it may at length attain to the light of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.

Grant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that the new Birth of Thine Only-Begotten Son in the flesh may set us free who are held in the old bondage under the yoke of sin; through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.