“So Send I You”
John 20:21
Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”
The last two chapters of John contain what I have called “the real last words of Christ.” Spoken after the resurrection, as opposed to those more commonly discussed words spoken from the cross, they are words of encouragement, instruction, and promise: “Peace be with you” (20:19); “As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you” (20:21); “Receive the Holy Spirit” (20:22); “Stop doubting and believe” (20:27); “Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet have believed” (20:29); “Feed my sheep” (21:16–17: cf. v. 15); “Follow me” (21:19; cf. v. 22).
Our text contains the second of these last words, though, as we will note, it follows quite closely upon the first and leads to the third. It is John’s version of the Great Commission.
The Great…
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