Blog: Jesus did a lot of other unwritten things (05/18/21)

By Gary Olson – retired pastor

At the conclusion of the gospel of John are the words: “It is the disciple who testifies of these things and wrote them, and we know that his testimony is true” (21:24). “But there are also many other things that Jesus did; if each one of them was written, I guess the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.” (John 21:25).
These words at the end of the gospel also prompt comment from another commentator.
“Whatever we know about Christ, we have only grasped a fragment of him.
The question arose, so why was the gospel not longer if all the books in the world could not contain everything that could be written?
Interesting question. one response was that the evangelical writer John gives us the central truths of the gospel. This is one of the reasons the Gospel no longer needs to be.
What a great joy to read the Gospel of John. An author called it the spiritual gospel.
In the first chapter of the Gospel of John we read about problems that John the Baptist caused because he baptized. he replied to his interlocutors with these words: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove and he remained on him (Jesus). I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me: on whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining, it is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. “( John 1:33).
The Holy Spirit makes the wisdom of the Almighty available to each of us who have been baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and live by faith.
How lucky we are to have the gospel of John and all the word of God in the Bible. Jesus did many other things that are not written in this gospel. We can trust that John, guided by the Holy Spirit, gave us the best that we need to know in order to be faithful disciples.
The faithful discipleship of Jesus Christ has changed the world in many wonderful ways. The faithful discipleship of Jesus Christ has given us the Salvation Army, YMCA, YWAM, and many other faith-based organizations that day in and day out reach out to the poor and suffering of all races.
There are a lot of other things that Jesus did, so much so that “I guess the world itself couldn’t contain the books that would be written.” To us today this sounds like hyperbole, but it underscores the Gospel author’s point that there is much more that Jesus did and said that was not written.
Thanks to God.