Guest Author - Bettyann Schmidt

Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins. John's Story: The Last Eyewitness. Putnam Praise Publishers. 2006

I don't know where to start with this book. It's a far reaching and broad story that gave me many, many new insights.

The main characters are the Apostle John; Polycarp, John's student and transcriber; and Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch and former underling of John. Early church research backed up the facts woven into the story's narrative.

Ignatius comes to Ephesus to visit John and agrees to "fill in" for his old master, teaching the parisoners of the Church at Ephesus, so that John can dictate his Gospel account to Polycarp. John was inspired to write his gospel as an attack against an Ephesian Gnostic, Cerinthus, with his own followers, who deny Jesus's divinity. Several heated debates transpire between the two, and we see a much different John in this setting.

I took note when John used Paul's earlier writing to caution the believers against becoming enamored of philosophy and vain deceit and saying, "Those who enjoy considering every new wave of doctrine run the risk of being blown about by the wind." I'm reminded of today's new waves of doctrine floating about, like "New Earth." So many people "blown about by the wind."

John preaches freedom, shouting his famous, "The truth will set you free--free from the bondage of vanity, of empty philosophy and deceit." I can picture the decrepit, weathered apostle telling his followers, "Yes, I am old, and perhaps my memory is not what it once was. But when you have walked with the Messiah, the chosen One...you cannot forget."

The thrilling account of John dictating to his young, red-haired student, Polycarp, "In the beginning..." gave me chills. His account of the trials and torture of Jesus is beyond moving. The reader here pictures the words of the Gospel spoken from agonizing memory.

To refute Cerinthus's heresy of Jesus never claiming to be the Christ, the Son of God, John produces the seven signs that prove otherwise. Each of the seven are told as an eye-witness account. Indeed, it would seem Jesus made the claim of deity over and over during his time on earth, and John brilliantly exposes each of them to the light and says, "Jesus was nearly stoned for making himself God, and yet people still say he never claimed deity?"

John agonizes that the work of copying his words will not be finished before he dies. "While the evil serpent of vain philosophy and deceit threatened the truth around the world, its very head now resided in John's own adopted city... John believed with all his heart that the truth of Christ need fear no man-made religion, but he was also persuaded that he himself had been called to stand and fight."

Indeed, shortly after finishing his gospel, he is torn away by Roman soldiers and boiled in oil, again something I researched and the tale has been told over the centuries. He was not killed, however, and so whisked away to the Island of Patmos where he had his Revelation vision.

Part II of John's Story, "The Revelator" tells the story of John on Patmos and being freed and coming home to Ephesus, to his church and Polycarp, and his dictation of "Revelation." A bonus of this book by LaHaye and Jenkins is the insight into The Book of Revelation, as we read the story of it being written. John's description of the "New Earth," reads in part, "And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it...And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it." A glorious picture, people from all nations.

In the end, in the Epilogue, John, with Polycarp's help, writes his three letters shortly before he dies in his sleep. Ignatius is martyred first for refusing to deny his Christian faith, and then Polycarp suffers the same fate for preaching the Gospel of Jesus.

Polycarp's parting words, though, on refusing to recant his beliefs, are magnificient: "For we Christians are fixed in our minds not to change from good to evil; but for me it will be good to be changed from evil to good."

This is a beautifully written and powerful book I will never forget reading.