JULY 4, 2024
“…of his disciples, whom Jesus loved.” (John 13:23)
“…and the disciple standing by, whom he loved…” (John 19:26)
“…to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved…” (John 20:2)
“Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter…” (John 21:7)
“…seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following…” (John 21:20)
Here are the five instances in the Book of John where John refers to “the disciple that Jesus loved.” I’ve always found this phrasing interesting for many reasons, but mostly because it is unique within the Gospels (not used in Matthew, Mark, or Luke). So, who does it refer to, and why is it used?
Before we identify who it is, let’s be clear that when the author calls himself five times “the one whom Jesus loved,” he’s not saying that Jesus doesn’t love the others. It’s this very author who says in John 11:5 that Jesus loved Mary, Martha, and Lazarus as well as in John 15:9, he directly quotes Jesus (speaking to all of His disciples) as saying, “As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you.” In other words, this writer is not trying to claim that this disciple was the only one that Jesus loved.
But back to the question of whom we’re talking about. We should start by narrowing the field from twelve to three. Jesus had a strong relationship with every disciple, but we see in the other Gospels that Peter, James, and John were the closest associates of Him. For example, those three, and only those three, went up with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration. Jesus had an extraordinary relationship with these three, so we’re likely talking about one of them.
It appears from the way this Gospel presents this unnamed disciple that he also had quite a close relationship with Peter. For example, on the morning of the resurrection, Mary Magdalene runs to report what she has seen and runs to Peter, who is with the disciple Jesus loved. So, there they are, apparently hanging out together.
So, you have this repeated close relationship between the disciple Jesus loved and Peter. And we know that Peter, James, and John had a very close relationship with each other and Jesus. And we know that John, one of the sons of Zebedee, was on the boat fishing when a disciple who is identified as the one whom Jesus loved was there. And we know that James had been killed by the time this Gospel was written (Acts 12:2), so he’s not an option for this very close relationship with Peter. That leaves us with the high probability that John, the apostle and writer of this book, is the disciple Jesus loved.
John used the phrase because he knew the Lord loved him. His confidence, seasoned with humility, can be felt in those words. In John, we see how a person can be changed by being in constant contact with Jesus. We observe that the sustained emersion in His presence and His words are transforming. The recipient becomes more of a human being than he ever was before. The love and devotion of each of the disciples for Jesus and their surrender to Him changed them into something new; they were born again. They each became something the world had never seen, a new kind of man indwelt by the Living Christ.
The “disciple that Jesus loved” became one of the most prolific writers of Scripture, second only to Paul in New Testament writings. As you progress through his Gospel account and letters, it is evident that this “Son of Thunder” has changed. The man who penned those writings was a man filled with immeasurable love.
Following Christ changed John completely; he no longer identified as “John” but became “the disciple that Jesus loved.” He measured himself based on his proximity to Jesus, the most essential thing in his life. John never wrote his book for personal glory; he’s barely even a character in his book. Jesus Christ is the protagonist of this story, and the only important thing about John is how Jesus felt about him, something he strives to make clear. To be able to tell others that we are “the disciple that Jesus loved (or loves)” is something every Christian should yearn for. We should all desire to have that kind of relationship with Him.
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