John became a close friend of Jesus, long before John left this world.....
In John's Gospel, he writes of the close friendship which he cherished between himself and Jesus.
In the Gospel of John, the only Gospel to write this, John writes:
1. John 13:23 "One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to Him."
2. John 19:26 " When Jesus saw His mother there, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother: "Dear woman, here is your Son." ( Later Jesus asked John to take care of His mother. Many historians conclude John's mother Salome, was a sister to Mary, the mother of Jesus.)
3. John 21:7 "Then the disciple whom Jesus loved, said to Peter: "It is the Lord!"
John was the brother of James, the sons of Zebedee, who were fishermen in Galilee. In fact, John, James, Peter, and Andrew along with Zebedee might have been partners in some type of fishing business...fishing on the Sea of Galilee...when they heard His words "Follow Me".
John became a leading figure in Christianity prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., and has been reported to have moved to Ephesus and pastor the local early church in Ephesus. Ephesus is later written of in one of the "7 letters to the churches" in the book of Revelation, and was reprimanded by Jesus for losing their "First Love". John was the writer of this letter as given to Him by Jesus on the island of Patmos.
John seemed to have had good relationships with other early Christian churches throughout the region of Asia Minor, and is indicated through the writings to the 7 churches in the book of Revelation.
While John's brother James was the first to die as one of The Original in 44 A.D., John was the last apostle to die of The Original, and perhaps died peacefully in Ephesus around 100 A.D. Church tradition writes that Jesus mother Mary may also had been with John for a time in Ephesus.
While John was a pastor in Ephesus, it was here he ran into problems with the Roman Emperor Domitian, who demanded the worship of himself as a Roman god. Christians could not do that, for their belief was there was only one God, the Lord Jesus Christ. As I have wrote previously, Christians would not suffer harm if they acknowledged other gods within their culture along with their belief in Christ Jesus, Christians would suffer harm if they only acknowledged one God...that being the Lord Jesus Christ.
The result of this confrontation was John was sent to the island of Patmos, an island where criminals of the Empire were sent to serve time.
There is an interesting story about John at the time of his prison sentence given by the Roman emperor Domitian. Ancient historians of that era including Pliny and Tacitus describe the conditions at the island of Patmos. Yet there is another story which is not recorded in the Scriptures, but has been passed down through church tradition. The story goes like this:
Before the sentencing of John to the island of Patmos, the emperor Domitian had sentenced the Apostle John to be boiled in oil. During that period of history the use of hot oil was a common torture as well as military tactics when engaging with their enemies ( soaking animal fats and hides with hot oil and having them fired upon their enemy). The thing about boiling oil is the temperature of boiling oil is much higher than that of water (212 degrees Fahrenheit). Boiling oil could range from olive oil at 375 degrees to sunflower oil at 510 degrees.
John was said to have been put into boiling oil and came out totally unharmed. Because of this miracle, many around him were convinced the God John believed in was the True God, and as a result...many came to the Lord. As a result, John was sentenced to the island of Patmos for a time. Turtullian, a 2nd century theologian, writes of this event in "The Prescription Against Heretics" in chapter 36. In the book by John Foxe on "Martyrs" also makes mention of this event.
Is it true? No one really knows...yet church tradition has passed this on...
What we do know is John was sentenced to the island of Patmos. Patmos was an island approximately 30 miles in circumference that was off the west coast of Asia Minor in the Aegean Sea. The word Patmos is translated "my killing" and was a sterile island. A sterile island is one that is unable to produce offspring (like crops) with no fruits or vegetables able to grow because of it's rocky terrain.
Patmos was used to sentence criminals, and it was here they worked in mines under harsh conditions. The only positive thing that was noted at that time in regards to Patmos is the beauty of it's sunrise and sunsets. Since that time of the Roman Empire, Patmos has gone through numerous changes and there are communities that live there today.
It was here...in Patmos that John wrote the book of Revelation, in what is called the "Cave of the Apocalypse" in the latter part of the first century. John also wrote the Gospel of John as well as first, second, and third John which are all a part of the New Testament...yet written at earlier dates prior to the book of Revelation.
Historians write John was eventually released from the island of Patmos, most likely after the death of Domitian as the Roman Emperor ( he was emperor for 15 years before being killed), and John is said to have returned to Ephesus. One early historian writes: "Founded and built churches throughout all of Asia, and wore out by old age, John died in the sixty-eighth year after the Lord's Passion, and was buried near the same city of Ephesus".
One other church tradition writes of John in his late age while in Ephesus. It is written he had become quite weak and had to be carried to the church. John would often repeat the phrase, "Little children, love one another"...until one asked John, "Why John,,,why do you keep saying this?" John was said to reply, "If you are able to do this one thing...it is enough."
Whether this is a valid story or not, again, who really knows.
What we do know....John loved this man he met at the shore of the Sea of Galilee...and responded to those words "Follow Me"...the very Messiah...the Son of God!
In John's Gospel, he writes of the close friendship which he cherished between himself and Jesus.
In the Gospel of John, the only Gospel to write this, John writes:
1. John 13:23 "One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to Him."
2. John 19:26 " When Jesus saw His mother there, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother: "Dear woman, here is your Son." ( Later Jesus asked John to take care of His mother. Many historians conclude John's mother Salome, was a sister to Mary, the mother of Jesus.)
3. John 21:7 "Then the disciple whom Jesus loved, said to Peter: "It is the Lord!"
John was the brother of James, the sons of Zebedee, who were fishermen in Galilee. In fact, John, James, Peter, and Andrew along with Zebedee might have been partners in some type of fishing business...fishing on the Sea of Galilee...when they heard His words "Follow Me".
John became a leading figure in Christianity prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., and has been reported to have moved to Ephesus and pastor the local early church in Ephesus. Ephesus is later written of in one of the "7 letters to the churches" in the book of Revelation, and was reprimanded by Jesus for losing their "First Love". John was the writer of this letter as given to Him by Jesus on the island of Patmos.
John seemed to have had good relationships with other early Christian churches throughout the region of Asia Minor, and is indicated through the writings to the 7 churches in the book of Revelation.
While John's brother James was the first to die as one of The Original in 44 A.D., John was the last apostle to die of The Original, and perhaps died peacefully in Ephesus around 100 A.D. Church tradition writes that Jesus mother Mary may also had been with John for a time in Ephesus.
While John was a pastor in Ephesus, it was here he ran into problems with the Roman Emperor Domitian, who demanded the worship of himself as a Roman god. Christians could not do that, for their belief was there was only one God, the Lord Jesus Christ. As I have wrote previously, Christians would not suffer harm if they acknowledged other gods within their culture along with their belief in Christ Jesus, Christians would suffer harm if they only acknowledged one God...that being the Lord Jesus Christ.
The result of this confrontation was John was sent to the island of Patmos, an island where criminals of the Empire were sent to serve time.
There is an interesting story about John at the time of his prison sentence given by the Roman emperor Domitian. Ancient historians of that era including Pliny and Tacitus describe the conditions at the island of Patmos. Yet there is another story which is not recorded in the Scriptures, but has been passed down through church tradition. The story goes like this:
Before the sentencing of John to the island of Patmos, the emperor Domitian had sentenced the Apostle John to be boiled in oil. During that period of history the use of hot oil was a common torture as well as military tactics when engaging with their enemies ( soaking animal fats and hides with hot oil and having them fired upon their enemy). The thing about boiling oil is the temperature of boiling oil is much higher than that of water (212 degrees Fahrenheit). Boiling oil could range from olive oil at 375 degrees to sunflower oil at 510 degrees.
John was said to have been put into boiling oil and came out totally unharmed. Because of this miracle, many around him were convinced the God John believed in was the True God, and as a result...many came to the Lord. As a result, John was sentenced to the island of Patmos for a time. Turtullian, a 2nd century theologian, writes of this event in "The Prescription Against Heretics" in chapter 36. In the book by John Foxe on "Martyrs" also makes mention of this event.
Is it true? No one really knows...yet church tradition has passed this on...
What we do know is John was sentenced to the island of Patmos. Patmos was an island approximately 30 miles in circumference that was off the west coast of Asia Minor in the Aegean Sea. The word Patmos is translated "my killing" and was a sterile island. A sterile island is one that is unable to produce offspring (like crops) with no fruits or vegetables able to grow because of it's rocky terrain.
Patmos was used to sentence criminals, and it was here they worked in mines under harsh conditions. The only positive thing that was noted at that time in regards to Patmos is the beauty of it's sunrise and sunsets. Since that time of the Roman Empire, Patmos has gone through numerous changes and there are communities that live there today.
It was here...in Patmos that John wrote the book of Revelation, in what is called the "Cave of the Apocalypse" in the latter part of the first century. John also wrote the Gospel of John as well as first, second, and third John which are all a part of the New Testament...yet written at earlier dates prior to the book of Revelation.
Historians write John was eventually released from the island of Patmos, most likely after the death of Domitian as the Roman Emperor ( he was emperor for 15 years before being killed), and John is said to have returned to Ephesus. One early historian writes: "Founded and built churches throughout all of Asia, and wore out by old age, John died in the sixty-eighth year after the Lord's Passion, and was buried near the same city of Ephesus".
One other church tradition writes of John in his late age while in Ephesus. It is written he had become quite weak and had to be carried to the church. John would often repeat the phrase, "Little children, love one another"...until one asked John, "Why John,,,why do you keep saying this?" John was said to reply, "If you are able to do this one thing...it is enough."
Whether this is a valid story or not, again, who really knows.
What we do know....John loved this man he met at the shore of the Sea of Galilee...and responded to those words "Follow Me"...the very Messiah...the Son of God!
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