Gospel for the Day: Downline Recruitment

After reading today's reading, I realized that the story of the call of the first disciples is unique in John's Gospel. In the Synoptics, Jesus says "Come follow me" and the beckoned disciple follows.

In John's Gospel, this happens only once with Philip. Jesus sees him and simply says, "Follow Me" and (we assume) Philip follows. (The Gospel suggests he runs off to find Nathanael)

In the case of Andrew and John, Jesus walks past them and they follow. The invitation comes after Andrew and John ask where Jesus stays and Jesus says, come and see.

Aside from the subtle recruitment of Andrew and John, the recruitment of Peter and Nathanael can be considered downline recruitment. In yesterday's Gospel, Andrew tells Peter, "We have found the Messiah" and Andrew brings Peter to Jesus. Downline recruit #1.

Philip hurries off to find Nathanael, shares the news and Nathanael is skeptical at first but he heads toward Jesus and ends up being convinced (and even makes a public declaration of faith). Downline recruit #2.

These stories of downline recruits are not surprising in the Gospel of John and may even be a central theme in the Gospel. After all, Andrew and John themselves were downline recruits of John the Baptist who allowed them to shift allegiances to Jesus.

And if you read the (first) ending of John's Gospel and the First Epistle of John, you will see that in a very real sense, John is recruiting his readers. In John 20: 31, John says that "these are written," he says, "that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name".

The beginning of the First letter of John is a beautiful piece on testifying to what he had heard for himself, what he had seen for himself, and touched with his hands. And he testifies so that we might come to believe.

What was from the beginning,
what we have heard,
what we have seen with our eyes,
what we looked upon
and touched with our hands
concerns the Word of life 
for the life was made visible;
we have seen it and testify to it
and proclaim to you the eternal life
that was with the Father and was made visible to us
what we have seen and heard
we proclaim now to you,
so that you too may have fellowship with us;
for our fellowship is with the Father
and with his Son, Jesus Christ.
We are writing this so that our joy may be complete.
1 John 1: 1-4

That our joy may be complete. John the recruiter. We are the Peters and Nathanaels who are being recruited, who are being brought to Jesus, who are being encouraged to head towards Jesus. And down the line, Jesus asks us to recruit our own downline recruits.