In
the ancient world one of the things you did to introduce someone of importance
use of titles extravagantly. John opens
of his Gospel introducing Jesus with some quite significant titles - “Lord”,
“Lamb of God”, “Son of God”, “Rabbi”, “Messiah”, and “Christ”. The disciple Nathaniel just a few verses down
the page confesses Jesus outright saying, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God, the
King of Israel.”
If
you were a 1st Century Jew these were significant titles. They all refer to Jesus being the One the Jews
were expecting God to send to deliver them from Roman oppression and finally establish
the Kingdom of God on Earth once and for all.
At the opening of his Gospel John calls this One the Word of God become
human; the very speaking of God become human; indeed, God himself become human. If you were a Jew these titles said explicitly
that your God himself has come to deliver you.
If
you were a non-Jew, and particularly a Roman, in these titles you would hear a
rival challenge to the divine authority of the Roman Emperor. The title Son of God was particularly
interesting because Caesar himself claimed to the Son of Jupiter, the greatest
of their god’s. Other titles like Lord
and Saviour were distinctively reserved for Caesar as well. John opens his Gospel introducing Jesus as a
rival to Caesar.
That
said, one of things we should do if we want to read John’s Gospel in a way faithful
to its original context is maybe we should be listening for ways in which John
compares Jesus to iconic Roman emperors such as Julius Caesar. Taking up this task, one of the most famous
things Julius Caesar said and which everybody knew he said was, “Vini, vidi,
vici.” “I came, I saw, I conquered.”
This
phrase was probably the most iconic pop-culture dude-phrase in Western history
up until Frank Sinatra sang “I did it my way” and more recently Nike’s slogan,
“Just do it.” I can imagine it being like a Monday Night Raw wresting mantra
for what it is to be and to project yourself as all-powerful, invincible, and
without rival. “I came, I saw, I
conquered” puts an end to challenge.
It’s like being in an interview and someone asks, “Tell me about your
self” and you answer in your gruffest, most intimidating voice, “I conquer.”
If
“I came, I saw, I conquered” was a well-known pop-culture phrase describing the
epitome of what it is to be powerful in Jesus’ day, maybe we shouldn’t see it
as too much of stretch to say that John was dropping a little pop-culture
reference into his Gospel here at the very beginning to do a little compare and
contrast at describing the way of Jesus’ disciples and what it is to be a true
person. John writes, “They came and they
saw where he was staying and they abided with him for that day.” They came, they saw, they abided. What makes a person truly a person isn’t
conquering others, but rather abiding with Jesus - being in a disciple’s
relationship with Jesus the Rabbi, Son of God, King of Israel, Spirit of God
Anointed One, Lord of the Cosmos.
John
leads us to notice instead of the word “conquer” we get the word “abide” or
“remain”. Jesus himself does not
conquer. He rather invites people into a
relationship with him. “Come and see,”
he says and they came, they saw, they abided.
As a side note, John later in his own life uses the word “conquer” to
describe the followers of Jesus. In the
Book of Revelation, a book very much about what it was to be a Christian in a
Roman world, John often says that those who conquer are those who have been
martyred for Jesus.
But
here, instead of conquer John uses the word abide, a word that he uses over forty
times in his Gospel. The word in Greek, meno, has a wide range of meaning from
quite literally meaning staying in a place to the more metaphorical meaning of
enduring through trials, standing your ground in faith. It is a relationship word, a hospitality word
about keeping space and time in the life of another and welcoming other’s into
your own life meaning stay with me, abide with me, see how I live, know me.
In
John’s Gospel meno is a very
theologically significant word. The Holy
Spirit descends and abides on Jesus and also upon and in us. We abide in Jesus and he in us. God the Father abides in Jesus and Jesus in
him. So, abiding in Jesus we are
participants in the triune life of God, the relationship of God the Father and
God the Son in and by means of God the Holy Spirit. We are bonded to Jesus by the presence of the
Holy Spirit with and in us so that we participate in his relationship with God
the Father as beloved children just as Jesus is the Beloved Child of God. Abiding in Christ we discover this utterly
transforming personally re-creative relational knowledge about ourselves and
one another.
John
further describes abiding in Jesus as being where we grow and become like Jesus. As the True Vine Jesus says, “Abide in me”
that we may bear fruit. If we keep his
commandments we abide in his love. The life-creating
word of God, which is Jesus abiding in us, is “faith”. Abiding in him in “faith”, in the Holy Spirit
bonded relationship with Jesus and each other, this is discipleship. Abiding in him we find prayers answered. Those who do not abide in Jesus abide in
darkness and even experience “the wrath of God.” Abiding with and in Jesus is where we hear
this word that God loves even me as his own beloved child.
So
what is it then to “abide”? Abiding is
maintaining a relationship with Jesus and this is something we cannot simply
mistake as merely our own personal relationship with him. Abiding in Christ must include how we relate
to others. Jesus gives us a Great
Commandment to live by in response to God revealing his great love for each of
us in, through, and as Jesus in, by, and as the presence of the Holy Spirit:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and love
your neighbour as yourself. Rick Rusaw
and Brian Mavis give us a nice little four-word memory device to help us with
this in their book The Neighboring Church: Getting Better at What Jesus Said
Matters Most. They say develop the
habits of “Stay, Pray, Play, Say”.
“Stay”
means to live a life open to God. Seeking his will above your own. Most of us live our own lives as good people
hoping God blesses what we do. Rather,
we should live seeking what God wants for us and the ministries he has gifted
us each for. This is something we
discover in Christian fellowship and flowers when we devote ourselves to
getting to know our neighbours and how we might serve them in Christ. Get to know God. Get to know each other. Get to know our neighbours.
“Pray”
goes without explanation. Let us be
praying people who live our lives knowing we are always in the presence of God
and in conversation with him. It’s hard
to get in trouble that way. Pray for
each other and get to know your neighbours well enough to know what you can be
praying for on their behalf.
“Play”
means fellowship and hospitality are important.
This is more than simply Fellowship time at church with coffee and
cookies. Kick it up a notch like Latona
does with the Corn Roast. Kick it up a
further notch by having each other over to your homes. But don’t stop there. Do fun stuff with our next-door neighbours
and have them over to your house and going to their parties.
“Say”
means be open to share your own life with each other and with your
neighbours. If Jesus gives you the
opportunity to speak a word of encouragement or whatever on his behalf, just do
it. If he gives you the opportunity to
share how he has worked in your life and been faithful to you, share it. Let us not be mute when God deserves praise.
Stay,
Pray, Play, Say. Give it a try. These are good habits for abiding in Jesus
and growing in him and bearing fruit.
Amen.
