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The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, \u201cLook, the Lamb of God!\u201d When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus.\xa0 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, \u201cWhat do you want?\u201d They said, \u201cRabbi\u201d (which means
\u201cTeacher\u201d), \u201cwhere are you staying?\u201d \u201cCome,\u201d he replied, \u201cand you will see.\u201d So, they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon. (John 1:35-39)

Perhaps I could have started my discussion of Jesus call to us as disciples with this passage. After all, this comes earlier than the passage in Luke 5 that I have been sitting with over the last few days. The two disciples here were among the disciples of John the Baptist so would likely have in verses 29-34 seen the baptism of Jesus and heard John\u2019s testimony of Him \u201cThis is the One I meant when I said, \u2018A
man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.\u2019\u201d So it\u2019s interesting that they started following Jesus after the statement of John the Baptist the next day, \u201cLook, the Lamb of God!\u201d when Jesus was simply passing by.

Jesus in this passage turns to the two disciples who are in verse 40 named as Andrew and another disciple, likely John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, and asks them a question. It seems like a strange
question. But perhaps Jesus had seen them following John as He baptized Jesus. Why would Andrew and John follow Jesus now and not have made the decision to do so the previous day? \u201cWhat do you want?\u201d Jesus says to them.

I don\u2019t think that I\u2019m being overly unkind in saying that the disciples seem to be a bit dense in their response. They could tell Jesus that they want to learn more about who He is, they could tell Him that they want to become his disciples (after all, being the disciple of a teacher was a profession in itself in
biblical times), they could tell Jesus that they want Him to prove His divinity. They could have told Jesus anything! What did they choose to say in response? \u201cRabbi, where are you staying?\u201d \u2026 cue the awkward silence.

But Jesus doesn\u2019t leave the two disciples with an awkward look and silence such as one like myself might have done. Instead, He offers them an invitation: \u201cCome, and you will see.\u201d He doesn\u2019t treat them with contempt or offence that they would want to know something seemingly so unimportant. Discipleship is a gradual process. We are not born with the right questions or answers on our lips and hearts and even after years as a Christian we still blunder through with silly excuses and responses when God asks
something of us that we\u2019re not sure of the answer to right away.

The key in all of this is that Andrew and John accepted Jesus\u2019 invitation and stayed with Him for the day. Jesus doesn\u2019t mind if we just don\u2019t \u201cget it\u201d once in a while. He only asks that we accept His invitation to stay with Him. \u201cAbide in me, and I in you.\u201d (John 15:4). But Jesus in John 15 asks even more of his
disciples to whom He is speaking, \u201cIf you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit, apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned\u201d (v.5-6).

Jesus says in these verses that if we do not abide with Him that we will be like the branches that are cut from the grapevine, good for nothing more than kindling for the fire once is has been severed from the vine. So are we when we do not accept Jesus\u2019 invitation to \u201cCome and see.\u201d He wants us to abide with Him. In His Word in the Bible, in prayer, communing with Him. To see His goodness in our days, His grace in our \u201cstuff,\u201d His love never ending and never failing. We find Jesus when we find ourselves in Him, abiding in Him and abiding with Him.

What do you want? Why do you want to follow Jesus? Because your parents did and their parents before them? Because it\u2019s the right thing to do? Because of the peace, grace, and love of God that you experience because of His presence in your life? Because you want to learn more about who He is and who you are in Him? What do you want from following Jesus? Who is Jesus to you?