Jul 29, 2021
The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36
When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”
When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed
Jesus. Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked,
“What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means
“Teacher”), “where are you staying?” “Come,” he replied, “and you
will see.” So, they went and saw where he was staying, and they
spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon. (John
1:35-39)
Perhaps I could have started my discussion of Jesus call to us as
disciples with this passage. After all, this comes earlier than the
passage in Luke 5 that I have been sitting with over the last few
days. The two disciples here were among the disciples of John the
Baptist so would likely have in verses 29-34 seen the baptism of
Jesus and heard John’s testimony of Him “This is the One I meant
when I said, ‘A
man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”
So it’s interesting that they started following Jesus after the
statement of John the Baptist the next day, “Look, the Lamb of
God!” when Jesus was simply passing by.
Jesus in this passage turns to the two disciples who are in verse
40 named as Andrew and another disciple, likely John, the disciple
whom Jesus loved, and asks them a question. It seems like a
strange
question. But perhaps Jesus had seen them following John as He
baptized Jesus. Why would Andrew and John follow Jesus now and not
have made the decision to do so the previous day? “What do you
want?” Jesus says to them.
I don’t think that I’m being overly unkind in saying that the
disciples seem to be a bit dense in their response. They could tell
Jesus that they want to learn more about who He is, they could tell
Him that they want to become his disciples (after all, being the
disciple of a teacher was a profession in itself in
biblical times), they could tell Jesus that they want Him to prove
His divinity. They could have told Jesus anything! What did they
choose to say in response? “Rabbi, where are you staying?” … cue
the awkward silence.
But Jesus doesn’t leave the two disciples with an awkward look and
silence such as one like myself might have done. Instead, He offers
them an invitation: “Come, and you will see.” He doesn’t treat them
with contempt or offence that they would want to know something
seemingly so unimportant. Discipleship is a gradual process. We are
not born with the right questions or answers on our lips and hearts
and even after years as a Christian we still blunder through with
silly excuses and responses when God asks
something of us that we’re not sure of the answer to right
away.
The key in all of this is that Andrew and John accepted Jesus’
invitation and stayed with Him for the day. Jesus doesn’t mind if
we just don’t “get it” once in a while. He only asks that we accept
His invitation to stay with Him. “Abide in me, and I in you.” (John
15:4). But Jesus in John 15 asks even more of his
disciples to whom He is speaking, “If you remain in me and I in
you, you will bear much fruit, apart from me you can do nothing. If
you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away
and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and
burned” (v.5-6).
Jesus says in these verses that if we do not abide with Him that we
will be like the branches that are cut from the grapevine, good for
nothing more than kindling for the fire once is has been severed
from the vine. So are we when we do not accept Jesus’ invitation to
“Come and see.” He wants us to abide with Him. In His Word in the
Bible, in prayer, communing with Him. To see His goodness in our
days, His grace in our “stuff,” His love never ending and never
failing. We find Jesus when we find ourselves in Him, abiding in
Him and abiding with Him.
What do you want? Why do you want to follow Jesus? Because your
parents did and their parents before them? Because it’s the right
thing to do? Because of the peace, grace, and love of God that you
experience because of His presence in your life? Because you want
to learn more about who He is and who you are in Him? What do you
want from following Jesus? Who is Jesus to you?