Reader’s Guide: “The Word for Today” Wednesday, January 8, 2014 Read John 1:35-42 The gathering of disciples is important in each of the gospel. What is striking is the vast difference in the way in which Mark, Matthew, and Luke tell about Jesus calling disciples and the way in which John tells that story. We have already noted that the formation of the first contingent of disciples in John’s gospel is closely connected with the story and ministry of John the Baptist. In fact, John tells us clearly that at least the first couple of Jesus’ disciples were first disciples of John the Baptist. As we read the gospel of Mark, the calling of the first four disciples happens after John the Baptist has be put in prison and we would never imagine that Peter, Andrew, James and John had any connection to John the Baptist. In fact, James and John are not mentioned in John’s gospel – not once! There is a veiled reference to the sons of Zebedee in John 21 but even there their names are not given. All of the synoptic gospels find it important that Jesus selected “The Twelve” who become the core group – the symbolism of the twelve tribes of Israel is what lies behind this. And in the synoptic gospels, Peter, James, and John, and sometimes Andrew form a core within the Twelve. All of that is absent from John’s gospel. John mentions “The Twelve” three times in a later chapter but the reference there has no meaning – it likely was simply within the tradition that John inherited and he doesn’t bother to remove it. The point is that there is a marked difference between John and the other gospel writers about the formation of the disciples. The others list The Twelve – John never does – in fact we cannot count twelve disciples in John’s gospel and some who are spoken of as disciples in John are not on the list or even mentioned in the synoptic gospels. Others who are on the list of the Twelve are never mentioned in John. In this opening scene John will mention the calling of five disciples – Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip, Nathaniel, and an unnamed disciple. Other names will be added later. Of these only Andrew, Simon Peter, and Philip are part of the Twelve and Nathaniel is never mentioned in any of the synoptic gospels. Of course it is possible that the unnamed disciple was one of the Twelve and some have attempted to claim that Nathaniel is known by another name in the synoptic lists but there is absolutely no evidence to substantiate that. The point is simply to notice that John’s conception of the disciples is markedly different from the other gospel writers. Actually this is not really that important other than to help us to notice that John seems detached from the other writers. We have asked the question of the connection between John and Mark, Matthew, and Luke, and this story of the account of the formation of the disciples indicated that they were not aware of one another. John is venturing out on his own. The story, as John tells it is a very realistic story! Disciples of John the Baptist are introduced by their master to the one who he claims is more important than he is and is in fact the Lamb of God, the coming Messiah. They leave John the Baptist and follow Jesus. The connection between John the Baptist and his followers and Jesus and his followers is a dominant part of the story – and likely reflects both the reality at the time and the tension much later between these two groups at the time when the Gospel of John was coming into the form in which we have it today. The message to the followers of John the Baptist in the time when John’s gospel was being completed is that they should abandon their allegiance to John the Baptist and follow Jesus – just like the earlier followers of John the Baptist had done. There are some things we should notice about how the formation of this first contingent came into being. The use of questions is important. When Jesus notices that he is being followed he asks those who follow, “What are you looking for?” Jesus does not begin with his needs or his message but invites those who seek to express why they are seeking. This is a very good thing for all of us to keep in mind as we encounter people in our world. We are often so quick to express our views and so unable to simply encounter theirs. The answer that the seekers give is really somewhat unexpected. They ask a question in return, “Where are you staying?” At face value the question does not seem very productive. But our English translation hides something that would have been more apparent in Greek and within the Gospel of John. What they really ask is, “Where do you remain?” – or, maybe better put, “Where do you live?” And now, within the Gospel of John we are immediately drawn back to that most powerful verse, John 1:14 – “The Word became flesh and lived among us?” As he will often do John is playing with his readers to some extent at this point. The question is about the essence of Jesus – Who is he? The encounter continues with the response of Jesus which is also somewhat surprising and veiled, “Come and see.” All of this points to a reality that is a part of John’s witness – to follow Jesus will take time, it is a process, and those who desire to follow will have to come and see. Again, as we seek to bear witness to Jesus in our world the pattern we find here is helpful. Instead of claiming to know all the answers; and even being silenced ourselves because we think we don’t know the answers, when we encounter seekers in our world, we can invite them to “come and see.” We will soon learn in John’s gospel that only Jesus can finally create a disciple. Our role is to bring others to him. And that is the pattern that unfolds in our reading today and in the reading for tomorrow. As we conclude our thoughts today it is important to note that once again there is no hiddenness in John’s gospel. Andrew immediately announces to his brother, Simon Peter, that the Messiah has been found. Titles for Jesus abound in these first chapters. He is the Messiah. He is Elijah. He is The Prophet. He is the Lamb of God. He is the Son of God. We will meet more titles in the next episode.