The First Disciples Series

We all like to follow someone at various times in our lives. We may be motivated by curiosity, fear, ambition, knowledge, information. Sometimes our following is a simple and non-committed social media follow - we might just want to be in the know. Other times our following results in a certain college choice or degree field. We may even follow certain people at school in order to gain influence or avoid pain.

Whom we follow makes a difference in our lives- for good or ill.

Back in the New Testament, following a religious leader was an important part of life, especially for the spiritually minded. Today, we are going to look at some of the first followers of Jesus, and how they came to follow him.

Rather than dividing our consideration of the text into three or four points, we are just going to walk through the text and reflect on the Words, phrases, and verses.

John 1:35 “The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples,”

Up to this point in the book of John, we were introduced to Jesus as the Word made flesh. Last week, we considered John the Baptist and his ministry. Th apostle John gave us a bit of a glimpse into two days in John’s life, a day of questioning and a day when John had been with some of his disciples and had told them “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (v. 29). So here, John was with two unnamed disciples. According to the way that John is telling the story, that was the day before the events we are considering today.

John 1:36-37 “and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.”

So, John again points out Jesus to his disciples. Remember, John’s ministry was all about preparing the way for Jesus. He baptized in order to ready people for Jesus. Now, as Jesus is coming onto the scene, he is making it very clear to his disciples - who Jesus is and what his role would be.

I think it’s important to note that discipleship was and may still be a big deal in Judaism. But I believe it’s an even more important issue here in Christianity. It was not uncommon for religious leaders to have students following them. It’s almost as though John, as he is leading and teaching these two men he is pointing them to the ultimate object of their faith. John was not concerned at all about showing them to a better teacher/leader - after all, that was his calling.

So these disciples hear John’s testimony about Jesus and seem to switch allegiance - they begin following a new rabbi.

John 1:38 “Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?”

In the first century, it was often up to a student to seek out a teacher or a rabbi. These two disciples begin following Jesus on the testimony of John and so Jesus seems to be inquiring of their intentions, their motivation. And so they respond with another question.

John 1:38 And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?””

They are not interested in a quick answer, but it seems they are more intrigued by a longer conversation. They seem to want to sit and get to know this rabbi, this Lamb of God.

Jesus replies.

John 1:39 “He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.”

Jesus invites them to join him and seems to welcome the conversation.

Most likely, it was about 4PM when they went with Jesus to where he stayed.

I don’t want to read into this too much, but it seems there are some cultural elements at work. These two unnamed disciples seem to understand that the answers to their questions may not be addressed in a short conversation. For that matter, they may not even know what questions to ask, but they know that this person is someone worth spending some time with.

This attitude toward hospitality and investment of time is a lost gift in our western culture. We want quick answers to shallow questions and sometimes fail to invest the time needed to really get to know one another and get to know the issues.

I once heard someone comment about a trip the he made to Europe. This man was meeting with a few other people at a restaurant. As they sat down, the waiter came to them and asked for their orders - to which the host replied - we’ll just start with drinks and then in about an hour, we’ll order.