Scripture Passage
John 1:29-42
29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.”
32 Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”
35 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!”
37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?”
They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
39 “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.
40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).
Sermon Script
Today’s story is about discipleship. We see the disciples of John the Baptist now following Jesus.
However, the story of the first disciples plays out a little differently here than what we might be familiar with.
In the other gospels, Jesus comes and tells them to follow him. But in the gospel of John, Jesus notices the disciples following him already.
Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” (John 1:38a)
By the sound of his question, we may think Jesus was irritated. Not at all. In another translation, he asks: “What are you looking for?”
Jesus was wondering as to why they were following him. After all, they were with John the Baptist before.
Here is where the exchange between Jesus and the disciples gets a bit interesting.
The disciples don’t answer Jesus with a straight answer. They respond with a question of their own.
They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?” (John 1:38b)
They wanted to know where he was going. Why though?
Sometimes, our questions reflect our desires and wants.
The disciples weren’t really concerned with knowing where he was going to sleep for the night. They wanted know where Jesus was staying because they wanted to be with him. They wanted to get to know him better. They were curious and interested.
They had just heard John the Baptist say that Jesus was “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” That’s a bold statement. Hearing this stirred something within them.
Now, they wanted to find out for themselves. Who is this ‘Jesus’? Is he really who John says that he is? They had this deep desire to know him more.
Jesus sensed this desire in their question. So he told them—
“Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” (John 1:39)
The word ‘stay’ that we see in today’s passage is a special word.
In Greek, it’s called ‘meno’. It is also translated as ‘remain’ (or ‘abide’).
It is the same word that Jesus uses when he says later in John:
Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. (John 15:4)
In today’s passage, this word not only appears in the disciples’ question in verse 38, but it shows up twice more in the following verse. Both versions (‘stay’ and ‘remain’) come up.
In the NRSV edition, verse 39 goes like this:
He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon. (John 1:39)
In that sense, staying (or remaining) means more than being somewhere physically.
It has a spiritual meaning. It means connecting with someone intimately. Spending time with them in an intentional way.
That is where real knowing happens.
This is not something we usually experience in our life. If anything, it is rare.
We live in a culture that does not encourage staying in anything. Rather, we are told to go from one thing to the next. There is no such thing as remaining (or lingering).
Scrolling has become our default mode of living. We know everything superficially, and nothing deeply. This also has a tremendous impact on how we do faith.
You cannot scroll through your faith journey. Life of scrolling and life of discipleship do not go together.
Being a disciple is about staying with Jesus. It is about walking with him, spending time with him, and listening to him. Even three years weren’t enough for the disciples!
Without staying, there is no such thing as learning. Without staying, there is no such thing as discovery. Without staying, there is no such thing as transformation.
It was by staying with Jesus that day that the disciples learned something new about him. What they discovered changed them in a profound way.
Look at what Andrew says when he goes to his brother afterwards:
Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). (John 1:40, 41)
Do you remember how Andrew referred to Jesus before? He called him a ‘rabbi’.
Now, he called him the Messiah. So, more than a teacher. The anointed. He was someone truly special – and worth following. That was what he discovered and wanted to share.
We need these kinds of meaningful moments in our own journey.
They open our eyes to a whole new world. They deepen our understanding of who Jesus is. More importantly, they create a stronger desire within us to know him more and more.
That is why we started our daily Bible reading. To learn how to stay and be with Jesus every day. You read the introduction to the gospel this week.
Jesus is the Word in whom there is LIFE and LIGHT.
That was John’s (not John the Baptist) confession. That was what he discovered!
When we spend time in the written word, we are staying with Jesus. We are choosing to remain in the light, rather than in darkness.
I was speaking to one of our young adults this past week. She is also reading the Gospel of John. She said how reading John this time made her feel as if she is reading the Bible for the very first time! Everything felt so new and fresh to her.
That is the beauty and joy of discipleship. I hope this can also be the experience for you.
Do not neglect the importance of staying with Jesus. Following Jesus is staying with Jesus. Discover for yourself who he is. Your faith has to be your own.
10 to 15 minutes each day is not what is important. It is the quality of time we spend with him that is important. Focus on growing in relationship with Jesus, daily.
He will be your TRUTH, your WAY, and your LIFE. He will teach you, guide you, and equip you in all things.
He will be your rabbi, your Messiah, and Christ. And you will be his disciple.
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