I love a good origin story, especially one where a rag-tag group of characters is assembled to overcome impossible odds and do something incredible. John 1:35-51 reads with all the drama of an epic adventure as disciples gather around the story’s hero, Jesus, and we anticipate what they will do together.
When we think about “the calling of the disciples,” the picture that usually comes to mind is Jesus walking by characters (probably men in a boat) and commanding them, “Follow me.” The three synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, all tell some version of this story (Matt. 4:18-22; Mark 1:16-20; Luke 5:1-11).
The gospel of John, however, gives us a different perspective on how a group of people first encounter and begin to follow Jesus. As I read John’s story carefully and think about what it is communicating, something stands out to me that matters yet for Christians today: the life of discipleship is a life of relationship with Jesus at the center.
When we focus on the details of this scene and compare it to similar episodes in the synoptics, we notice some similarities and differences. As for similarities, we have a few important characters who show up in both—especially Andrew and Peter, but also Philip. Jesus has knowledge that impresses the soon-to-be disciples and makes them pay attention to him. At some point in every version of the story, Jesus commands someone to “Follow me.”
John points to Jesus
The differences, however, are significant. In John 1, the sequence starts with John the baptizer, who has no connection to the calling of the disciples in the synoptics. In this version, the baptizer is essentially the first domino to fall. He recognizes Jesus for who he truly is and won’t stop drawing attention to him.
The first disciples to follow Jesus (literally, as in trailing him as he walks down the street) were already following a different rabbi. Andrew and the unnamed disciple were students officially dedicated to the life, teachings and ministry of their teacher, John the baptizer. While the text doesn’t state it outright, some scholars see an implicit transfer of authority between John and Jesus when the baptizer points out the Lamb of God to his disciples, and they leave to follow him. John essentially tells his disciples to follow this greater rabbi.
From there, we see two very interesting instances in which a character who has recognized Jesus is compelled to find a friend or relative and tell them about Jesus. The baptizer points the Lamb of God out to his disciples, including Andrew, who then follow him.
After spending the day with Jesus, Andrew is compelled to bring his brother Peter to the Messiah. “Finding Philip,” Jesus commands him to follow him, then “Philip found Nathanael” and tells him that Jesus is the “one Moses wrote about.” The ways in which Andrew and Philip are first introduced to Jesus become models for the ways they introduce others to him.
Learning from John
What can we learn from John’s story of the gathering of Jesus’s disciples? How can a close reading of this episode inform the way we follow Jesus in our own time and culture, acknowledging that being a disciple of the resurrected Jesus in 21st-century America looks different from walking with Jesus down the streets of 1st-century Capernaum or Jerusalem?
This passage demonstrates that the life of discipleship is a life of relationship with Jesus at the center, an important concept that transcends time and culture.
Notice how people come to recognize Jesus’s true identity. In the run-up to this episode, we learn that John the Baptizer did not initially know who Jesus really was (1:32-34), but the Father revealed Jesus’ identity during the baptism scene (which is referenced but not narrated in John). Now that the baptizer knows who Jesus really is, he repeatedly declares his identity publicly: “Look! The Lamb of God!”
The baptizer’s relationship with the Father draws his attention to Jesus and allows him to recognize him. From there, the dominoes continue to fall. By the end of the episode, Andrew, the unnamed disciple, Peter, Philip and Nathanael all meet Jesus, see him for who he really is and their lives are changed.
Following Jesus
In John 1, Jesus only commands one disciple to “Follow me.” We might anticipate that he would say this to Peter because of what we know from the other gospels, or perhaps to Andrew because he is the first named disciple in John. Instead, Jesus gives this direct command only to Philip.
Why Philip and not the others? This is a curious question to which I don’t have an answer. Philip is not a major character in the gospel of John. In this episode, however, he is the only person whom Jesus is said to seek out: “Finding Philip, he said to him, ‘Follow me.’”
It is appropriate to ask why Jesus sought out Philip, but it is equally (if not more) notable to see how the other four disciples in this story come to recognize and follow Jesus. They become students, friends and brothers of Jesus not because they heard the audible voice of the Son of God command them to follow, but because someone in their lives drew their attention to Jesus and helped them see his true identity.
Discipleship today
What can John 1 teach us about being a disciple of Jesus today? First, people become disciples of Jesus when they see him for who he really is. We can and should try to explain who Jesus is, but it is much more important that we help others see him for themselves.
Second, relationships are the main way that people come into contact with Jesus. While some people recognize him because God speaks directly to them, John 1 elevates the importance of friends and family putting their loved ones in contact with Jesus. Life-changing relationships with Jesus often start because of very normal relationships with other people.
Third, following Jesus as a disciple means following him in relationship with other disciples. This idea pops up in a few places in John’s writings. In John 1:14 and 1 John 1:1-4, the author uses the first-person plural when describing how “we” have experienced Jesus. John makes it clear that the life of a disciple is not “me and Jesus” but “we and Jesus.”
Fourth, Jesus is the center of the life of discipleship. Yes, he is the rabbi, but he is so much more. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
There are many significant differences between 1st-century and 21st-century discipleship, but John 1 reminds us that community is centrally important to becoming and continuing to be a disciple of Jesus. If we desire to follow Jesus in our time and culture, we must prioritize relationships with others and commit to “doing” community well.
I propose that this is most dynamic when it occurs beyond the structures of church programming, in the nooks and crannies of everyday life. When Jesus is the center of our lives, and we seek intentionally to follow him together, I trust that we will declare like John: “We have seen his glory!”
Eric Foster-Whiddon is assistant professor of biblical studies and director of the Graduate Studies in Ministry initiative at Tabor College. Originally from Georgia, his family moved to Hillsboro, Kansas, after four years in the UK. Foster-Whiddon is a New Testament scholar, specializing in the gospel of John.
