What if your worst traits could become your greatest strengths—not through self-improvement, but through something far more powerful? Pastor Marc Paskiewicz takes us through the remarkable transformation of the Apostle John, from a rageful, fire-seeking disciple known as a “son of thunder” to the gentle apostle who resting his head on Jesus’ chest became known as the apostle of love.
The Call: Come and Be With Me
John’s story begins not with a commission or a task, but with an invitation. When John the Baptist pointed to Jesus and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God,” John and another disciple followed Jesus. What did Jesus do when He saw them following? He didn’t hand them a mission statement. He didn’t assign them to ministry. He simply said, “Come and you will see.”
They spent the day with Him. Just that. Being in His presence.
Pastor Marc noted that this was a distinctly Jewish pattern. In first-century rabbi culture, disciples would follow a teacher, eat with him, sleep where he slept, learn by watching how he lived. Jesus was doing something radical—He wasn’t in a hurry. He wasn’t rushing to build a movement. He simply loved to be with His disciples, pouring into them and spending time with them.
That invitation hasn’t changed. Jesus still says, “Come and be with Me.”
The Nickname: Son of Thunder
In Mark 3:13–19, Jesus calls the twelve apostles to Himself. Among them are Simon (Peter), James, and John the brother of James—to whom Jesus gave the name Boanerges, which is Aramaic for “son of thunder.”
This wasn’t exactly a compliment. Pastor Marc described it as describing someone “rageful, rash, aggressive, and very forthcoming.” These were guys you didn’t want to mess with. They were fighters. They were ride-or-die disciples who would do anything for Jesus—including, apparently, calling fire down from heaven to destroy anyone who rejected Him.
That scene plays out in Luke 9:51–56. When a Samaritan village refused to welcome Jesus, James and John asked, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” Pastor Marc laughed as he described the moment: “John’s like, ‘Okay, can we just kill them all?’ Say the word, Jesus. We’re calling fire down. We’re wiping the whole thing out.”
But Jesus turned and rebuked them. And here’s the beautiful part—He didn’t reject John for having that fire. He didn’t tell him to suppress his passion. He said, in essence: I love your zeal, but you’re not in the right spirit. That’s not what I’m doing here. I’m not here to rain down fire. I’m here for a different kind of work.
Jesus takes John right where he is—flaws and all—and says, “I’m going to transform that.”
The Bold Request: Glory Seats and a Hard Lesson
Later, in Mark 10:35–40, James and John come to Jesus with a bold request: “Grant us to sit one at your right hand and one at your left in your glory.” They wanted the prime positions in the kingdom. Pastor Marc said he almost respected the audacity—”at least they wanted to be a part of it.” But the request revealed they still didn’t understand the nature of Christ’s kingdom. It wasn’t about prestige or power. It was about sacrifice and service.
When authority was taken over John—when he was rebuked—he didn’t run. He didn’t complain. He didn’t start gossiping about Jesus. He began to change. The rebuke wasn’t the end of his story. It was the beginning of his transformation.
The Transformation: From Thunder to Love
The transformation of John becomes most visible at the Last Supper. In John 13:23–25, we read: “One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining at table close to Jesus. So Peter beckoned to him and said, ‘Tell me who it is of whom he speaks.’ So leaning back against Jesus’ chest, he said to him, ‘Lord, who is it?'”
John is no longer the fire-seeking disciple. He’s the one resting his head on Jesus’ chest. He’s close. He’s intimate. He’s changed.
Pastor Marc noted that this is the first time John is identified in the Gospel of John—not by his own name, but as the disciple whom Jesus loved. That’s who he became. Not a son of thunder, but a son of love.
John went on to write the Gospel of John, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, and the book of Revelation. He wrote more about love than any other New Testament writer. He who wanted to call fire down from heaven became the apostle who taught that “God is love” (1 John 4:8).
The Key: Abiding, Not Doing
So what caused this transformation? What changed John from a son of thunder into the apostle of love?
Pastor Marc’s answer was clear: Abiding. Not effort. Not discipline. Not self-reform. Abiding in Christ.
In John 15:1–8, Jesus says: “I am the true vine. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
Pastor Marc drove the point home: “Transformation doesn’t come by doing. It comes by abiding.”
What’s the fruit? The fruit is not comfort or health or wealth. The fruit is knowing Jesus. The fruit is transformation—”being changed from what you were into the image of Christ.”
When John abide in the vine, what was the fruit? A rageful, abrasive, murderous man became the apostle of love who took care of the mother of Jesus. That’s the fruit.
You want transformation in your marriage? Abide in the vine. You want transformation with your kids? Abide in the vine. That sin that entangles you and you need freedom from? You need Jesus. That’s the answer.
The Urgent Question
Pastor Marc ended with a challenging question: “When was the last time you just spent an hour with the Lord?”
Not sermon prep. Not lesson planning. Not rushing through a devotional because your schedule is packed. Just sitting before God, asking Him to reveal Himself, asking what it means to abide in the vine, asking what fellowship with Him actually looks like.
“It’s easy to just live how we’re living,” Pastor Marc admitted. “It really is.”
John 15:6 gives a stark warning: “If anyone does not abide in me, he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.” This is a reminder that there is a real hell—and a real urgency to abide in Christ, to be in Him, to know Him.
But the invitation remains open. Come. Be with Jesus. Abide in the vine. Let Him transform your thunder into love.
Scripture References
- Mark 3:13–19 — The Calling of the Twelve; “Son of Thunder” nickname
- Luke 9:51–56 — The Samaritans Reject Jesus; John Wants Fire from Heaven
- Mark 10:35–40 — James and John’s Bold Request for Glory
- John 13:23–25 — John Leans on Jesus’ Chest at the Last Supper
- John 15:1–8 — The Vine and the Branches; Abiding and Fruit
- 1 John 4:8 — God Is Love