by Randall Beatley
John 21 is more than an epilogue to the Gospel of John. It is a chapter about restoration, calling, obedience, and the mission Christ gives to His people. After the resurrection, Jesus meets His disciples on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. They have returned to fishing, yet despite their experience, they catch nothing—until Jesus tells them where to cast their nets. From the miraculous catch of 153 fish to Peter recognizing the risen Christ, every detail points beyond the fish themselves. Then comes one of the most powerful moments in the Gospel: Jesus restores Peter. Three times Peter denied knowing Jesus. Three times Jesus asks him, “Do you love Me?” And three times Peter is commissioned to care for Christ’s sheep. Jesus doesn’t merely forgive Peter. He restores him and sends him. But John 21 also forces us to wrestle with something else: following Christ is not about comparing our calling to someone else’s. When Peter asks about John, Jesus essentially tells him, You follow Me. John ends not simply with a resurrection account, but with a commission. The same Christ who restores broken disciples is the Christ who sends them. He restores. He commissions. He commands: Follow Me.
What happens when God doesn’t give you what you want—but gives you exactly what you need? In John 20:11–31, we come to one of the most powerful sections of John’s Gospel: the risen Jesus begins revealing Himself to His disciples. Mary Magdalene comes to the tomb grieving, only to hear Jesus call her by name. The disciples are hiding behind locked doors in fear, but Jesus enters their midst and declares, “Peace be with you.” Thomas refuses to believe without seeing the wounds of Christ—and Jesus meets him exactly where he is, leading him to one of the greatest confessions in the New Testament: “My Lord and my God!” In this episode of Exposit, we walk verse by verse through this incredible passage, examining the Greek text, the cultural and historical setting, the significance of the empty tomb, Jesus’ resurrection wounds, the giving of the Holy Spirit, Thomas’s confession, and John’s ultimate purpose in writing his Gospel.
Jesus is dead. His body is pierced. His death is confirmed. He is wrapped in linen, placed in a new tomb, and sealed away. But the story isn’t over. In this episode of Exposit, we walk through John 19:31–20:10, examining the burial of Jesus and the first discovery of the empty tomb. John shows us that Christ’s death was not an accident, His burial was not incidental, and His resurrection was not an afterthought. Every detail points us back to the promises of Scripture and forward to the victory of the risen King.
Exposit | Ep. 48 | John 19:1–30 | Were You There When They Crucified My Lord? In John 19:1–30, we come to the darkest and most significant scene in the Gospel of John: the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. John takes us from the scourging and mocking of Jesus, to Pilate’s repeated attempts to release Him, to the final sentence of crucifixion, and ultimately to Jesus declaring, “It is finished.” But John is not simply giving us a tragic account of an innocent man being executed. Throughout the narrative, the irony is unmistakable: the Roman governor declares Jesus the King, soldiers unknowingly crown Him, and the Jewish leaders reject their Messiah while proclaiming their allegiance to Caesar. And at the center of it all stands the cross. In this episode, we walk carefully through John 19:1–30, examining the historical setting, the significance of the scourging and crucifixion, the Passover context, Jesus’ kingship, the fulfillment of Scripture, and what John means when he records those three words: “It is finished.” This isn’t merely the story of how Jesus died. It is the story of the King who was crucified, the Lamb who was offered, and the work that was completed. Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
What is truth? In John 18:28–40, Jesus stands before Pontius Pilate, and one of the most profound questions in Scripture is asked: “What is truth?” But Pilate is asking the question while standing face-to-face with the One who is Truth. In this episode of Exposit, we walk through Jesus’ trial before Pilate and examine the contrast between religious hypocrisy, political power, worldly kingdoms, and the kingdom of Christ. Jesus declares that He is a King, but His kingdom is not of this world—and He tells us why He came: “to testify to the truth.” We’ll explore: • Why the Jewish leaders were more concerned about ceremonial defilement than the injustice they were committing • What Jesus means when He says, “My kingdom is not of this world” • Why Jesus came into the world to testify to the truth • What it means that those who are “of the truth” hear Christ’s voice • The irony behind Pilate’s question, “What is truth?” • How John’s Gospel presents Jesus as Truth incarnate • The connection between Jesus’ innocence and Barabbas being released • How this passage points us toward substitutionary atonement • What this passage teaches us about spiritual blindness and humanity’s response to truth The question Pilate asked still confronts us today. What is truth? And more importantly: What will we do with the Truth standing before us?
In this episode of Exposit, we enter John 18:12–27 and encounter “The Tale of Two Trials.” Jesus is arrested, bound, and brought before Annas while Peter remains nearby in the courtyard. As Jesus is questioned about His teaching, He stands firm, speaks openly, and refuses to compromise the truth. Meanwhile, Peter—the disciple who promised he would die for Jesus—finds himself under a very different kind of pressure and denies knowing Him three times. But there is much more happening in this passage than Peter’s failure. We’ll dig deeply into the Greek text, first-century Jewish culture, the role of Annas and Caiaphas, the legal and religious context surrounding Jesus’ interrogation, and the literary contrast John creates between Jesus and Peter. We’ll also examine the identity of the mysterious “other disciple,” including whether the text gives us any reason to consider Nicodemus as a possibility. Most importantly, we’ll see the theological heart of the passage: Peter’s faithfulness fails, but Christ’s faithfulness never does. Jesus stands trial while His disciple falls. The innocent Christ is bound while the guilty disciple walks free. And the One who is being condemned is ultimately going to the cross for the very people who cannot remain faithful to Him on their own.
In this episode of Crossroads, we examine the Lindsay Clancy case and the difficult questions surrounding mental illness, moral responsibility, and justice. Clancy’s actions have sparked intense debate, particularly around the argument that her alleged mental illness should fundamentally change how we understand or judge what happened. But where should Christians draw the line between explaining an action and excusing it? Does a psychological diagnosis eliminate moral responsibility? Can someone be genuinely mentally ill and still be morally accountable for horrific choices? We’ll also examine the broader cultural tendency to extend sympathy and justification differently depending on who commits an act—and ask whether compassion for mental illness has sometimes been confused with denying human responsibility. This isn’t an episode about mocking mental illness or denying that severe psychological disorders can profoundly affect a person’s thinking and behavior. It’s about wrestling with a deeper question: When does understanding why someone did something become an attempt to justify what they did? And from a Christian worldview, what does Scripture have to say about human responsibility, culpability, justice, compassion, and the reality of human depravity? This is Crossroads.
In John 18:1–11, Jesus enters the garden knowing exactly what awaits Him. Judas arrives with a heavily armed force to arrest Him, yet John presents a striking picture: Jesus is not a helpless victim being taken against His will—He is the sovereign King willingly giving Himself. In this episode, we examine Jesus’ encounter with Judas and the soldiers, the significance of His declaration “I AM,” why the soldiers fall backward, and how Jesus protects His disciples by saying, “If you seek me, let these men go.” We’ll also explore the deeper theological themes of Christ’s sovereignty, the Good Shepherd laying down His life for His sheep, Peter’s attempt to fight with a sword, and Jesus’ declaration: “Shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me?” John 18:1–11 takes us straight to the heart of the gospel: Jesus was not conquered by His enemies. He willingly submitted Himself to the cross to accomplish the Father’s redemptive purpose for His people. The King knew. The King protected. The King submitted. And the King willingly gave Himself.
What does Jesus mean when He prays that His people “may all be one”? In John 17:20–26, Jesus turns His attention from the apostles to every believer who would come to faith through their proclamation of the Gospel—including us. In this episode of Exposit, we take a deep dive into Christ’s prayer for the unity of His church. This unity is more than simply agreeing on doctrine or avoiding conflict. It is a unity rooted in our union with Christ: we belong to the same Savior, the same Father, the same family, and the same mission. Jesus connects the church’s unity directly to its witness. We are united to Christ, united to one another, and sent into the world to proclaim the Word. Our love for one another is meant to demonstrate to the world that we truly belong to Christ and that the Father really did send the Son. We’ll explore the passage verse by verse, examining its teaching on union with Christ, the Trinity, election, apostolic preaching, Christian unity, the church’s mission, divine love, Christ’s preexistence, glorification, and the believer’s ultimate hope of being with Christ and seeing His glory. The church is not merely united for unity’s sake. We are united in Christ so that Christ might send us into the world as one people, proclaiming one Gospel and displaying His love to a watching world.
John 17 is one of the most profound chapters in all of Scripture. Often called the High Priestly Prayer, this chapter gives us a glimpse into the heart of Christ as He prays just hours before His arrest and crucifixion. In this verse-by-verse exposition, we examine Jesus’ prayer in its biblical context, unpack key Greek words and phrases, and explore how the disciples would have understood His words. We’ll see Christ pray for His own glory, for the preservation and sanctification of His disciples, and for every believer who would come to faith through their message. Join us as we discover the beauty of Christ’s work as our Mediator, the unity of God’s people, the certainty of our salvation, and the love the Father has for those who are in His Son.