Word to the Wise
Wednesday, January 4, 2023 - Jan. 4
[1 John 3:7-10 and John 1:35-42]John was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God." The two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them, "What are you looking for?" They said to him, "Rabbi," (which translated means Teacher), "Where are you staying?" He said to them, "Come, and you will see." So they went and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day." [John]
JANUARY 4 ST. ELIZABETH ANN SETON
The "encounter" with Jesus described in today's gospel scripture from the Gospel According to John is very much worth our attention if only for the question Jesus asks: "What are you looking for?" But there is more. Andrew and "the other disciple" (some traditions hold that it was ``the Beloved Disciple") would probably not have paid attention to the passer-by if John the Baptist had not said, "Behold the Lamb of God." They then "followed" Jesus and when Jesus confronts them, he asks the big question: "What are you looking for?" They seem to blurt out "Rabbi, where are you staying?" The Greek verb translated "staying" in the text is the one translated elsewhere as "remaining" and indicates relationship (e.g. "If you remain in me and my words remain in you....." John 15:7). Jesus' response is equally important: "Come, and you will see." Seeing and believing are also very important themes in the Gospel According to John. [cf. the story of the man born blind John 9:1-41 and the post-resurrection encounter with the apostle Thomas, 20:24-29).The two disciples went and saw where Jesus was "staying" and "stayed with him that day."
What happens next is also very important. Andrew goes and finds his brother Simon and says, "We have found the Messiah" and "Then he brought him to Jesus." The encounter with Jesus bears fruit. "By this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples." [John 15:8] Another good example may be found in John 4:28-29 and 41-42 as a result of the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan Woman at the Well.
I mention all this because our own encounter with Jesus is worth contemplating. Do we simply keep it to ourselves? Bringing others to belief is the hallmark of a disciple in the Gospel According to John. The two disciples not only "stayed" (remained) with Jesus, they went and brought others. What kind of disciple are we? AMEN