They are fishermen. Sons of another successful fisherman - Zebedee (Matthew 4:20-22). They are the third and fourth apostles called (recorded in Matthew, Mark, and Luke).
In Mark 3:17, Jesus gives them the nickname, Boanerges, or “Sons of Thunder”. That’s apparently a reference to their bold, aggressive personalities. What comes to mind when you hear “Sons of Thunder”? Perhaps the next superhero movie should be about them. Or maybe they are members of a down-and-dirty motorcycle gang.
We think James and John might have been called “Sons of Thunder” because they asked Jesus to let them bring fire from heaven to destroy a Samaritan village that rejected them.
Luke 9:51-55: “When the days were approaching for His ascension, He was determined to go to Jerusalem; and He sent messengers on ahead of Him, and they went and entered a village of the Samaritans to make arrangements for Him. And they did not receive Him, because He was traveling toward Jerusalem. When His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” But He turned and rebuked them.”
You may also remember that their mother asks Jesus to give them special positions, sitting beside Him in His kingdom (Matthew 20:20–28; Mark 10:35-45). Yes, their mother asks for the favor, but Jesus then replies to James and John directly: He says, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They ignorantly tell Him, “We are able [to drink the cup you are about to drink], but to sit at My right and at My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father.”
What does it mean that they will drink the cup that Jesus is about to drink? It means that they will be persecuted because of their faith. James is the first of the apostle’s to die: The first verses of Acts 12 tell us, “Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church, to do them harm. And he had James the brother of John executed with a sword.” That’s a Roman style of execution, probably carried out in Jerusalem around AD44. As mentioned in a recent sermon, Clement of Alexandria is recorded as saying that the guard assigned to James was so moved when he saw James testify in court that he confessed that he was a Christian, too. He made a point to ask James to forgive him. James kissed him and told him, “I wish you peace,” after which both were beheaded at the same time.
His brother John, however, lives into old age. John is exiled to the island of Patmos where he writes the book of Revelation. There are some who are under the belief that John never died, but that he ascended into Heaven like Elijah or Enoch. Others think he was killed by a group of Jewish men.
Tertullian, a writer from the late second and early third centuries, reported that before the Romans banished him to Patmos, they displayed him in a coliseum and dunked him in a vat of boiling oil. Supposedly, when John emerged from the boiling oil without harm, the entire coliseum converted to Christianity. None of those ideas, of course, are something that we read in Scripture, but it does explain while a lot of illustrations of John show him in a vat of boiling oil.
There is, of course, more information about John than there is for James. I love that he leaves his name out of the narrative, preferring to call himself the disciple whom Jesus loved (a direct contrast to being a “Son of Thunder”).
In an emotional moment at the crucifixion, John is in a small group of people at the cross. Jesus gives John the added responsibility to take care of Mary, Jesus’ mother (John 19:26f). Historians believe Mary dies in Ephesus while still under the care of the apostle John.
When John and Peter hear that Jesus has returned from the grave, they run to the tomb to see for themselves. John outruns Peter, but waits outside the tomb until Peter arrives and runs past him into the tomb. He makes the point of admitting in John 20:1-10 that the followers of Christ did not understand promise and prophecy that Jesus would rise from the dead.
John writes five books in the New Testament: his version of the Gospel, as well as 1, 2, and 3 John, and Revelation. In writing, John teaches us about humility. We have that initial example that he doesn’t often write about himself directly, but we also see him writing about that ultimate example of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet. Sometimes it feels like John preaches to himself as much as he writes to us.
Look at some other things we learn from this apostle, focusing specifically in his first letter::
He tells us that we are walking either in the light or without the light. I John 1:6f says, “If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”
And just as we are in the light or not, we see also that we are of God or not (1 John 4:4f)
“You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. They are from the world, therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them.”
Do we claim to be born in the God? Then we need to reread 1 John 3:9: “No one who has been born of God practices sin, because His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin continually, because he has been born of God.”
We’ve noted that John sure writes a lot about love, doesn’t he? He uses the word some 80 times in his writing. In fact, he tells us in 1 John 4:7f, “Beloved, let’s love one another; for love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”
We are to be certain in our knowledge of salvation (1 John 5:13): he says, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.” That means not only that we may accept that we are saved, but that we should move forward in our faith to the point of confidence. Now, if we’re not careful, that can also progress to the point that we become haughty about it, so we have to take care to remain humble and gracious (not self righteous) in the knowledge that Jesus has paid the price to save us.
With all of that, the apostle still understands that believers slip, but he recognizes that sin is not the dominant part of an obedient believer’s daily life. Instead, it is faithfulness that our God rewards. “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us” (1 John 1:8-10).
In all the best novels, the main character undergoes change, and that’s no different for historical figures. The apostle John takes the route from being a “Son of Thunder'' to becoming a gentle man. In fact, we could say for both of these brothers, they learned to deal with their harsh ambitions and passions by instead looking toward the expectations of the One they followed. We should do the same, putting away our selfish motives and becoming a true servant like Christ.
In Mark 3:17, Jesus gives them the nickname, Boanerges, or “Sons of Thunder”. That’s apparently a reference to their bold, aggressive personalities. What comes to mind when you hear “Sons of Thunder”? Perhaps the next superhero movie should be about them. Or maybe they are members of a down-and-dirty motorcycle gang.
We think James and John might have been called “Sons of Thunder” because they asked Jesus to let them bring fire from heaven to destroy a Samaritan village that rejected them.
Luke 9:51-55: “When the days were approaching for His ascension, He was determined to go to Jerusalem; and He sent messengers on ahead of Him, and they went and entered a village of the Samaritans to make arrangements for Him. And they did not receive Him, because He was traveling toward Jerusalem. When His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” But He turned and rebuked them.”
You may also remember that their mother asks Jesus to give them special positions, sitting beside Him in His kingdom (Matthew 20:20–28; Mark 10:35-45). Yes, their mother asks for the favor, but Jesus then replies to James and John directly: He says, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They ignorantly tell Him, “We are able [to drink the cup you are about to drink], but to sit at My right and at My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father.”
What does it mean that they will drink the cup that Jesus is about to drink? It means that they will be persecuted because of their faith. James is the first of the apostle’s to die: The first verses of Acts 12 tell us, “Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church, to do them harm. And he had James the brother of John executed with a sword.” That’s a Roman style of execution, probably carried out in Jerusalem around AD44. As mentioned in a recent sermon, Clement of Alexandria is recorded as saying that the guard assigned to James was so moved when he saw James testify in court that he confessed that he was a Christian, too. He made a point to ask James to forgive him. James kissed him and told him, “I wish you peace,” after which both were beheaded at the same time.
His brother John, however, lives into old age. John is exiled to the island of Patmos where he writes the book of Revelation. There are some who are under the belief that John never died, but that he ascended into Heaven like Elijah or Enoch. Others think he was killed by a group of Jewish men.
Tertullian, a writer from the late second and early third centuries, reported that before the Romans banished him to Patmos, they displayed him in a coliseum and dunked him in a vat of boiling oil. Supposedly, when John emerged from the boiling oil without harm, the entire coliseum converted to Christianity. None of those ideas, of course, are something that we read in Scripture, but it does explain while a lot of illustrations of John show him in a vat of boiling oil.
There is, of course, more information about John than there is for James. I love that he leaves his name out of the narrative, preferring to call himself the disciple whom Jesus loved (a direct contrast to being a “Son of Thunder”).
In an emotional moment at the crucifixion, John is in a small group of people at the cross. Jesus gives John the added responsibility to take care of Mary, Jesus’ mother (John 19:26f). Historians believe Mary dies in Ephesus while still under the care of the apostle John.
When John and Peter hear that Jesus has returned from the grave, they run to the tomb to see for themselves. John outruns Peter, but waits outside the tomb until Peter arrives and runs past him into the tomb. He makes the point of admitting in John 20:1-10 that the followers of Christ did not understand promise and prophecy that Jesus would rise from the dead.
John writes five books in the New Testament: his version of the Gospel, as well as 1, 2, and 3 John, and Revelation. In writing, John teaches us about humility. We have that initial example that he doesn’t often write about himself directly, but we also see him writing about that ultimate example of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet. Sometimes it feels like John preaches to himself as much as he writes to us.
Look at some other things we learn from this apostle, focusing specifically in his first letter::
He tells us that we are walking either in the light or without the light. I John 1:6f says, “If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”
And just as we are in the light or not, we see also that we are of God or not (1 John 4:4f)
“You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. They are from the world, therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them.”
Do we claim to be born in the God? Then we need to reread 1 John 3:9: “No one who has been born of God practices sin, because His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin continually, because he has been born of God.”
We’ve noted that John sure writes a lot about love, doesn’t he? He uses the word some 80 times in his writing. In fact, he tells us in 1 John 4:7f, “Beloved, let’s love one another; for love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”
We are to be certain in our knowledge of salvation (1 John 5:13): he says, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.” That means not only that we may accept that we are saved, but that we should move forward in our faith to the point of confidence. Now, if we’re not careful, that can also progress to the point that we become haughty about it, so we have to take care to remain humble and gracious (not self righteous) in the knowledge that Jesus has paid the price to save us.
With all of that, the apostle still understands that believers slip, but he recognizes that sin is not the dominant part of an obedient believer’s daily life. Instead, it is faithfulness that our God rewards. “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us” (1 John 1:8-10).
In all the best novels, the main character undergoes change, and that’s no different for historical figures. The apostle John takes the route from being a “Son of Thunder'' to becoming a gentle man. In fact, we could say for both of these brothers, they learned to deal with their harsh ambitions and passions by instead looking toward the expectations of the One they followed. We should do the same, putting away our selfish motives and becoming a true servant like Christ.
