Changing Teams

John 1:29-42

Yesterday I told the story of 3 boys from the high school I work at. The story was true, but the names were changed to protect them (and to connect to yesterday's passage). I should mention here that when I do these devotionals, I don't look ahead to what the next day's passage is. I take the passages in the order they're presented in the weekly lectionary and process them individually.

That being said, I'm awed by how today's passage connects with yesterday's story. I believe I left the boys sitting together in a class after being shunned by the group of friends they used to have. I want to continue that story into later on in the school year.

I was tutoring some students after school when I saw two of the boys walk in with one of the friends that had shunned them. I was curios so called one of them over to talk. I edged my way in, asking him how his day was and what they were going to do during tutoring time. Then, after a few more questions I asked, "Isn't that one of the guys that accused Paul (sticking with the name) of talking bad about that girl?"

He smiled and told me that the real story came out and everyone knows the girl was exaggerating what Paul said to get some sympathy and to create some kind of fight. Apparently she wanted her boyfriend to prove his love by fighting one of his own friends. Teen drama, gotta love it.

That new boy, let's call him Andrew, was a rather new boy to that particular group, and later he told me he had a difficult time choosing which friends to hang out with. But, as Andrew put it, once the truth comes out we have to do the right thing.

John is a witness to the coming of Jesus. He baptized Jesus knowing that Jesus is the one they would call Messiah (translated as anointed one, not as the one who would save us from our history-long oppression). According to John's Gospel, Jesus was given to us by God to shine a light on all that was wrong in this world and to teach us how to make things better.

The disciples in today's passage saw this truth and decided to become a follower of Jesus to learn how to share God's love with those around them as much as know that God loves them unconditionally. They were so convinced about Jesus' reason for coming into the world, that they gave up everything they knew to take a path into the unknown.

This brings up the question as to what we're willing to give up to be a follower of Jesus. Are we willing to leave everything we know, all of our comforts, and join in the journey that the disciples did?

The Andrew in the story I told did just that. He had become comfortable with the friends he had made, but when he heard that the reason he shunned Paul was not truthful, he left those friends and joined the team that might now be considered outcasts, but were at least honorable.

Taking the path that Jesus sets us on is not easy. That path is filled with pain just as much as it's filled with healing. That path has its shares of sorrow as much as it shares in its joys. In the end, though, when we come to understand what it means to be a follower of Christ, and to live the teachings given to us, that path is filled with peace.

I have only one request this week: take an honest look at the path you're on, and if you don't see truth in it, maybe it's time to change teams and follow the Jesus of unconditional acceptance and a passion for helping all people get the same opportunities.