The Gospel according to John

Father Meier deduces that the absolute absence of the term disciple in the letters of Paul, the Catholic Epistles, and Revelation, along with the fact that it does not figure prominently in the writings of other early Christians, indicate that the term was historically used by Jesus and His disciples. In other words, the word disciple was actually used in the time of Jesus and not just written into the Gospels because it was being used in the early church.4

Each time the word disciple is used in the Gospel according to John, it is clear that in the time of Jesus, the wider public was familiar with the word. The word disciple was used to describe a person with some association to a public figure. For example, when Jesus was on trial before Annas the high priest and Peter denied Jesus, multiple servants as well as Annas himself make reference to disciples of Jesus (John 18:16, 19, 25). This means either that the concept of discipleship was a common enough phenomenon in first-century Palestine that it was part of the normal language of the people, or that Jesus was particularly associated with disciples.5

The next question to answer is: Why focus on John? The answer is simple. Of the four Gospel accounts, John uses the word disciple more than any other: a total of seventy-eight times. Discipleship plays a more prominent role in the Gospel according to John than in any other book of the Bible.

In the Gospel according to John, we find two key words for John’ s portrait of discipleship: believe and remain. He makes this especially

4. Meier, A Marginal Jew, 3:41. 5. See Meier, A Marginal Jew, 3:40–73. The Gospel according to John thrice mentions disciples of John the Baptist (John 1:35, 37; 3:25), and the Pharisees once refer to themselves as disciples of Moses (John 9:28). The Pharisees also had disciples, but these “disciples of the Pharisees” are mentioned in only two parallel passages, Mark 2:18 and Luke 5:33. Disciples of the Pharisees are not mentioned in John.

clear in John 8:31, where “Jesus said to the Jews who had believed [pisteúō] in him, ‘If you remain [ménō] in my word, you are truly my disciples [mathētēs].’”6 A true disciple chooses to believe in Jesus, and this belief remains or abides through every struggle, always progressing toward a deeper faith. This doesn’ t mean that the true disciple never struggles or never stumbles but that he chooses Jesus again and again.7

Bible scholar Craig S. Keener writes, “Frequently John mentions that many ‘believed’ in Jesus (2:23; 7:31; 10:42; 11:45; 12:11, 42), but at least in many of these cases this faith proves inadequate to persevere for salvation.”8 The main takeaway here is that true discipleship requires both believing and remaining in Jesus. It ’ s not enough for you and me to just believe that Jesus exists or that He works miracles. No; the deep joy promised by Jesus is for those disciples who come into relationship with Jesus and stay in relationship with Him—even through struggles, persecutions, and the repentance that is necessary when we fall short.

The Gospel presents real stories of real people who had real encounters with Jesus Christ and subsequently became His disciples. As we walk through the stories of those early disciples who believed and remained, we will encounter and explore what John presents as criteria for being a disciple of Jesus—namely believing (pisteúō) and remaining (ménō). These experiences of the first disciples show us how we ourselves can live that kind of discipleship.

6. RSV-2CE translation adjusted by the author, based upon the Greek text (NA28). 7. Michael J. Wilkins, “Disciples and Discipleship,” in Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, 2nd ed, ed. Joel B. Green, Jeannine K. Brown, and Nicholas Perrin (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2013), 211. 8. Craig S. Keener, The Gospel of John: A Commentary, vol. 1 (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2003), 746. See also pp. 276–79.