Come And See (John 15:35-39)

(Reflection given at the Synod Office, Lusaka, United Church of Zambia, 3/12/19)

John 1, verse 39 - Jesus “said to them, “Come and see.” They came with him and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day.” Come and see. What a tremendous invitation when the invitation is from or about Jesus. The same invitation is issued just a few verses later.  Philip has started following Jesus. He finds his friend Nathanael who expresses great doubt about whether Jesus is worth it. Verse 46 of John 1, Nathanael asks, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip’s response, in that same verse - “Come and see.”

It is what effectively the shepherds said to each other once the angels had announced to them the wonderful news of the birth of Jesus. “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place.” Let us go and see.

In John 4 we have the record of Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman beside the well, the woman whom he asked for a drink. But how does that story end up? It is quite a surprising ending in a way. This woman, because of her lifestyle and her reputation, was virtually an outcast in the village. That was why she had gone to the well at a time when nobody would normally be there. But now, after meeting Jesus, she rushes off to speak with those same villagers, and she says to them, come and see. “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done.”

Come and see. This is what we need to do; and this is what we need to invite others to do. Come and see what Jesus has done. 

When the two disciples of John the Baptist found Jesus and were wondering about him, what was the question they asked? Well, it is there in verse 38. They asked him, “Where are you staying?” I find that fascinating - because it is not the question that I would have expected. I would have expected them to ask something like, what do you stand for? What’s your message? What are you looking for from followers? How might you help us? But they don’t say any of that. Instead, they ask: where do you live? Where are you staying? And we might wonder what that has got to do with anything? But actually it has got everything to do with what we need to discover.

One of my favourite writers is the Dutch Roman Catholic priest, Henri Nouwen, who writes on spirituality. Commenting on this passage from John 1, Nouwen says of Jesus here: “He doesn’t say, “Come into my world.” He doesn’t say, “Come, I will change you.” He doesn’t say, “Become my disciples,” “Listen to me,” “Do what I tell you,” “Take up your cross.” No. He says, “Come and see. Look around. Get to know me.” That is the invitation.”

That is so important. It is so easy for us to rush round doing and encouraging all sorts of good things, and they are good things. They are valuable and they contribute a lot - and there are times when that is just what we need to do. But it is too easy for us to neglect that critical thing of just being with Jesus. Come and see. Come and be with me.

The story that leaps to mind is, of course, that of Mary and Martha, when Jesus visited their home. I don’t think one was right and one was wrong. Martha was rushing round doing all sorts of valuable stuff - and the church needs loads of Marthas, those who will take on hundreds and hundreds of different tasks. But I am sure that a critical point in that story is the need for us to discover what Mary had discovered, that sometimes what we need is just to be with Jesus.

Of course, Jesus calls us to follow. Of course, Jesus calls us to do stuff. But that’s not where it starts. Jesus’ first call is, come and be with me. Come to my place, if we might put it that way.

Nouwen again: “This image of God inviting us to his home is used throughout scripture.  The Lord is my house. The Lord is my hiding place. ... The Lord is my refuge. The Lord is my tent. The Lord is my temple. The Lord is my dwelling place. The Lord is my home. The Lord is the place where I want to dwell all the days of my life.”

Jesus wants us to be part of his family; and we manage that by spending time with him. 

So, how do we respond when Jesus invites us to come and see?

Well, I believe that the first important thing is to listen. We should listen to others who point us to Jesus, and we should listen for what God is saying to us. Nathanael may have raised questions, but he found Jesus because he listened to Philip. God often speaks through others.

Then, secondly, we should ask. Where are you staying? It is really important that we should know who Jesus is if we want to follow him. We get to know someone by asking them questions. In a sense it is different, but in another sense it is absolutely the same. Let me put it like this: if you could ask one thing of Jesus, what would it be?

And the third thing is that we need to dwell. The two disciples with whom we started spent the rest of the day with Jesus. It is easy to say that we are too busy to do that. But, in actual fact, it is more likely that we are too busy not to need to find that time. Another word for ‘dwell’ might be ‘abide’; and, as Jesus says in John 15:9 - “abide in my love.”