Chapter XXXIII: Legends and Traditions of St. John (2)

John of Galilee was one of those who obeyed the injunction "Repent ye." With all his lovable qualities which we have imagined in his childhood--his refinement, his faithfulness in his home and synagogue, and his honest toil--he saw that within himself which was not right in the sight of God. He repented of his sins and sought forgiveness. A lovely character became more lovely still, to be known as the loving and beloved one. He was ready to welcome the Messiah of whom the Baptist told. He had no fears that another Judas of Galilee had arisen. He believed that the promises concerning the coming One were being fulfilled. He was a faithful disciple of the prophet and forerunner, to whom he must have been a great joy, but who was ready to have him, whenever the time should come, transfer his following to the Lord of them both. For how long a period the two Johns continued together, we do not know, but it was drawing to its close.

_CHAPTER X_

_The Messiah Found_

"They found Him not, those youths of noble soul;
Long seeking, wandering, watching on life's shore,
Reasoning, aspiring, yearning for the light.

* * * * *

"But years passed on; and lo! the Charmer came,
Pure, simple, sweet, as comes the silver dew,
And the world knew Him not,--He walked alone,
Encircled only by His trusting few."
--_H.B. Stowe_.

"We"--Andrew and John--"have found the Messiah."--_Andrew to
Peter_.

"We"--Andrew and Peter, James and John, and Philip--"have found
Him, of Whom Moses in the law, and the prophets did write, Jesus of
Nazareth."--_Philip to Nathanael_.

"The fulness of the time was come," not only when "God sent forth His Son," but "when the Son should reveal Himself to the world." So Jesus came forth from His retirement in Nazareth to enter on His public ministry.

"Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan, unto John to be baptized of him." What a meeting! Probably the first in their lives. It is no marvel that John said, "I have need to be baptized of Thee, and comest Thou to me?" But he obeyed Jesus' bidding, "Suffer it to be so now." "So He was baptized of John in Jordan." Then followed the prayer of the Son of God; and then "the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon Him"; and then the voice of the Father, saying, "Thou art my beloved Son: in Thee I am well pleased." Let us remember that voice: we shall hear it again.

And then for forty days and forty nights Jesus was hidden completely from the face of man, alone on the Mount of Temptation, with wild beasts, until ministering angels come to Him from heaven.

He returned to the region where the Baptist was preaching. "John seeth Jesus coming to him." His eye is turned away from the multitude thronging about him, and is fastened upon Jesus only. His thought is of Him of whom Isaiah wrote long before--"He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter." Pointing to Jesus he exclaims, "Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world!"

The Galilean disciples were doubtless present, and were deeply moved by their Master's exclamation. Because of their previous training in their homes, and in the wilderness with the prophet, it must have kindled in them deeper emotion than it did in any others of that astonished throng. But it was to become deeper still. This was especially true of two of them.

The next day, probably a Sabbath, was to become a memorable day in the history of the two and of their master. It was a morning hour. We think of the three as alone, before the multitudes had gathered, or the day's ministry of preaching and baptizing had begun. They walked along the bank of the river communing together of Him whom they had seen the day before. In the distance John saw the Figure again. In awe and reverence, and with a fixed gaze, "John was standing, and two of his disciples; and he looked upon Jesus as He walked, and saith, Behold, the Lamb of God!" The exclamation was in part that which they had heard in the presence of the multitude; but that was not enough. It was as if John had said, "Behold the Messiah for whom our nation has waited so long; Him of whom our Scriptures have told us; Who has been the theme in our homes from childhood; of whom I have been the prophet and herald. He it is of whom I have taught you, my disciples, as you have followed me in the wilderness until I now can bid you behold Him. Henceforth follow Him."

John says that one of the two was Andrew. There is no doubt that the other was himself. We shall notice in his writings that he never uses his own name. This incident is our first definite knowledge of him. All we have said hitherto is what we think must have been true, judging from circumstances of which we do know, and from his character revealed after this time.

We long to know whether "Jesus as He walked" came near the Baptist, and with what salutation they met, and what were their parting words, for this seems to be the last time of their meeting. If Mary and Salome were sisters, and Elizabeth was their cousin--as we use the term--John of Galilee and Jesus were related to John the Baptist in the same way. But there was a closer relationship than that of family. In this Jesus was the connecting link between the two Johns. "One on each side of Christ"--this was their joy and their glory. One was the last prophet to proclaim His coming: the other was to be the last evangelist to tell the story of His life on the earth.

When the Baptist the second time uttered the cry, "Behold the Lamb of God!" "the two disciples heard Him speak and followed Jesus." Their old master saw them turn from him without a jealous, but with a gladsome thought. Encouraged by him, and drawn by Jesus, with reverential awe, in solemn silence or with subdued tone, they timidly walked in the footsteps of the newly revealed Master. The quickened ear before them detected their footsteps or conversation. "Jesus turned and saw them following," as if to welcome their approach, and give them courage. He then asked them a question, "What seek ye?" It was not asked because He was ignorant, but to encourage them in familiar conversation, as He did at other times. Their answer was another question, "Rabbi, where abidest Thou?" They longed for a fuller opportunity than that on the road to be taught by Him. "Come and see," was His welcome reply. "They came and saw where He dwelt, and abode with Him that day." First by a look, then a question, then an invitation, then hospitality, they were drawn to Him, and into His service.

Often in after years must Andrew and John have recalled that walk with Jesus, and "rehearsed the things that happened," and said one to another, "Was not our heart burning within us while He spake to us in the way?" So afterward did other two, of Emmaus, when "Jesus Himself drew near and went with them." But the eyes of Andrew and John were not "holden that they should not know Him." The pleasing dream of years was past: they were wakening to a glorious reality. Their following of Him in that hour has been claimed to be "the beginning of the Christian Church."

That day of abiding with Jesus was the first of many days these disciples spent with Him, knowing Him more and more perfectly, and the truth which He alone could reveal. They were then passing from the school of the Baptist to that of the Greatest Teacher. What was said in those sacred hours? John has reported other private interviews with Jesus, but concerning this one his lips are sealed. Did he tell of his surprise and joy to learn that He, Jesus, the son of his aunt, Mary, was the Messiah of whom his mother, Salome, had taught him from his early days? Were there any memories of childhood--of the sandy beach of Bethsaida, or the hills of Nazareth; or, were all such thoughts buried in newer and deeper question? Was there any hint of their future relation too sacred for others then to know? Was this the beginning of that sweet intimacy so private then, but of which the whole world should hear in all coming time?

After the evening meal in Emmaus the two disciples there "rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem," with joyful and quickened steps to report the glad tidings of what they had seen and heard. Andrew and John were to be of the number who, in three years, would hail these disciples from Emmaus. Like them, Andrew and John hastened away from the sheltering booth on the Jordan bank on a like errand. But they went not together, nor to an assembled company. They each went in search of his own brother--Andrew for Peter, and John for James. Andrew found his brother first. Afterward John found his: so we infer from his narrative. Each carried the same tidings, "_We have found the Messiah!_"

Andrew is thought to have asked leave to bring his brother. "He brought him to Jesus." When John wrote that simple statement, he did not think how much was included in it concerning Peter and his own relation to him. As little did Andrew think to what the promptings of his brotherly affection would lead. His mission seems to have been that of bringing others to Christ--his own brother, the lad with five loaves and two fishes, and certain Greeks who desired to see Jesus. John only has made note of these three incidents. In so doing he has given to us the key to the character of his friend, and caused him to be held in everlasting remembrance. Andrew is remembered in the cross that bears his name; in his anniversary day; in the choice of him for the patron saint of Scotland; in orders of knighthood, and in Christian societies of brotherhood named after him, as an example and inspiration to the noblest of Christian endeavor--that of bringing old and young to Christ.

It is John alone who wrote of that memorable day on the Jordan. His impressions were deep and lasting. The record of them is so fresh and minute that we seem to be perusing a notebook which was in his hands when these events were transpiring. His memory is distinct of the exact location of each; of the attitudes and movements of the actors,--as when "John stood," and "Jesus walked," and "Jesus turned"; of the fixed and earnest look of Jesus--as on Andrew and John in the way, and Peter in the place of His abode. John remembered the words of the Baptist, and of his two disciples, and of Jesus. He remembered the day not only, but that "it was about the tenth hour when he accepted the invitation to come and see where Jesus was tarrying."

All these pictures hung unfading on the walls of John's memory. This was not strange. It was the day and the hour for which he looked through all his early years, and to which he looked back in his latest. Then was the beginning of a most blessed relationship, alone in the history of mankind; that which was to make his name immortal, and radiant with a halo which encircles none other.

"The day following, Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow Me. Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter." So writes John, recalling to us the Galilean group of Bethsaidan boys. When we became familiar with their names, there was no prospect that the two pairs of brothers and their friend would head the roll of disciples of the Messiah for whom they were looking. But such a day had come. We know not that Philip had a brother whom he could bring to Jesus, as did Andrew and John, but he was as full of wonder and joy as they. Like them he must go in search of some one to whom he could repeat their exclamation. The search was not long. John tells the result. "Philip findeth Nathanael and saith unto him, We have found Him." But this simple declaration is not enough for Philip. He recalls those Scripture scrolls in his home and the Rabbi's school, and the synagogue, that told of the coming Messiah, and so he exclaims, "We have found Him of whom Moses and the Law, and the Prophets did write"--thus repeating the phrase we were to remember till we should hear it again. Nathanael, coming to Jesus declared in wonder and admiration, "Thou art the Son of God; Thou art the King of Israel." His name was added to those of the Galilean group.

The disciples now numbered five or six--Andrew, John, Peter, Philip, Nathanael, and probably James. These were one half of a completed circle to surround Jesus. All but one of them were of the Bethsaidan band. John has drawn lifelike pictures of them, more complete than those of the other apostles,--except that of Judas, whom he contrasts with all the rest. We have thought of James and John as nearest to Jesus in kinship. We are already beginning to think of John as nearest in discipleship.

_CHAPTER XI_

_John a Wedding Guest_

"There was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus
was there: and Jesus also was bidden, and His disciples to the
marriage."

"The mother of Jesus saith unto Him, They have no wine."

"The ruler of the feast tasted the water now become wine."

"This beginning of His signs did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and
manifested His glory; and His disciples believed on Him."--_John_
ii. 1-3, 9, 11.

Again John notices the very day on which occurred a remarkable event, of which he had a vivid recollection. It was the third, as is probable, after the departure of Jesus from Jordan for Galilee.

He was invited to a wedding in Cana. His disciples were invited also, we may suppose out of respect to Him. James and John might have been there without the rest. It is possible that they were relatives of the family, as their aunt Mary is thought to have been. She was there caring for the guests, and what had been provided for them. The marriage feast lasted several days. Jesus and His disciples were not present at the beginning. After their arrival, Mary discovered that the wine had given out. Like the sister of another Mary, in whose house Jesus was a guest, she was troubled because it looked as if the family had not provided for all the company. She had probably been a widow for several years, and as Jesus was her oldest Son, she had gone to Him for advice and help when in trouble at home. So now "when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto Him, They have no wine." We are not to suppose that she intended to ask Him to do a miracle. Perhaps she simply said, "What shall we do?" as many a housekeeper has said when in doubt. He made a reply which seems harsh and unkind, unless we understand His meaning, and imagine His words to have been spoken in a kind tone, and with a kind and loving look. She was not offended by His reply. Thinking He might do something--she knew not what--she said unto the servants, "Whatsoever He saith unto you, do it."

It might be said of Him at this time, as it was at another, "He knew Himself what He would do." He gave three simple commands to the servants. The first was, "Fill the water-pots with water." They did as Mary had said, and obeyed Him. Watching them until the jars were full, He said, "Draw out now and bear unto the ruler of the feast." This was probably a special friend of the family, who with Mary was directing it. While Jesus' command was being obeyed, His first miracle was performed. "When the ruler had 'tasted the water now become wine, and knew not whence it was,' ... he called the bridegroom," and in a playful joke praised the goodness of the wine which he imagined had purposely been kept to the last.

"The water now become wine" is the brief statement of the first of the thirty-six recorded miracles of our Lord. It was seen by the six disciples. They witnessed the first of the miracles since those in the days of Daniel, of which they had read in their Scriptures, one of the last of which was at the impious feast of Belshazzar. There the holy cups from Jerusalem were used in praising false gods of silver and gold, in the hands of the king and his lords, as they read the handwriting on the wall, interpreted by Daniel. How different the feast in Cana. There was no fear there. When the disciples saw the cup in the hands of the hilarious governor, and heard his playful words, they were not in a sportive mood. Theirs was that of astonishment and reverence at the miracle. No Daniel was needed to interpret the meaning of that water changed into wine. John tells us what they understood thereby--that "Jesus manifested His glory." He showed the power which belongs to God only.

John immediately adds, "And His disciples believed on Him." This is the first time they are spoken of as such. As yet they were disciples only. At the end of the blessed week in which they had "found the Messiah," there had been formed a close companionship which was to become closer still. But the time had not yet come for them to leave their homes and business, and attend Him wherever He went. They were not yet Apostles. The marriage feast had become to them more than a social festival. Their Lord had intended that it should be so. Their faith in Him on the Jordan, was strengthened in Cana.

"This _beginning_ of miracles," says John. What was this beginning? It was not the healing of the sick, nor raising of the dead, nor supplying a hungry company with bread, nor furnishing a necessary drink. There was no display. Jesus stretched forth no rod over the water-jars, as did Moses over the waters of the Nile when the same Divine power changed them into like color, but different substance, and with a different purpose. The first manifestation of His glory was for "the increase of innocent joy."

When John had read the story of Jesus in the first three Gospels, and found no record of this miracle, did he not feel that there had been a great omission which he must supply? Nowhere else does Jesus appear just as He did at that feast, though other incidents of His life are in harmony with it. It is sometimes said He "graced" that marriage feast, as royalty does by mere presence. But He did more. He entered into the innocent festivities, and helped to their success. A glance into that village home is a revelation of Jesus in social life, and His interests in human friendships and relations.

We must remember that it was only innocent pleasures that He helped to increase, in which alone we can seek the presence of His Spirit, and on which alone we can ask His blessing.

This marriage feast must have been of special interest to John, if, as is supposed, the family was related to Mary and probably to him. This would seem to be her first meeting with Jesus since He bid her farewell in Nazareth, and left the home of thirty years, to be such no longer.

Did not Mary, mother-like, call John aside from the festive scene and say to him, "What has happened at the Jordan? tell me all about it." I seem to hear John saying to her; "It is a wonderful story. Of some things I heard, and some I both saw and heard. You know of the ministry of your cousin Elizabeth's son John--of his preaching and baptizing. Jesus was baptized by him. Immediately they both had a vision of 'the Spirit of God descending upon Him; and lo! a voice from heaven saying, This is My beloved Son.' Then John was certain who Jesus was. He told the people about the vision, saying, 'I saw and bear record that this is the Son of God.' And one day when my friend Andrew and I were with him, he pointed us to Jesus saying, 'Behold the Lamb of God,' whom we followed, first to His abode on the Jordan, and then here to Cana. We were disciples of John, but now are _His_ disciples, and ever shall be. You know, aunt Mary, how from childhood I had thought of Him as my cousin Jesus, and loved Him for His goodness. From what my mother has told me, which she must have learned from you, there has been some beautiful mystery about Him. It is all explained now. Hereafter, I shall love Him more than ever, but I shall think of Him, not so much as my cousin Jesus, as the Messiah for whom we were looking, and as the Son of God."

How the mother-heart of Mary must have throbbed as she listened to her nephew John's story of Jesus on the Jordan. How it must have gone out toward him, because of his thoughts about her son, and his love for Him. How grieved she must have been as she thought of her own sons who did not believe as John did concerning their brother Jesus. The time was to come when Jesus would make her think of John, not so much as a nephew, as a son.

In that festive hour, Mary too learned the lesson that human relationships to Jesus, however beautiful, were giving way to other and higher. The words He had spoken to her at the feast, like those He had uttered in the Temple in His boyhood, and the things that had happened on the Jordan, showed her that henceforth she should think, not so much of Jesus as the Son of Mary, as the Son of God.

In thoughts she must have revisited the home of Elizabeth, whose walls, more than thirty years before, had echoed with her own song, "My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour."

_CHAPTER XII_

_John and Nicodemus_

"There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the
Jews: the same came unto Him by night."

"We speak that we do know, and bear witness of that we have
seen."--_John_ iii. 1, 2, 11.

"There is Nicodemus, who visited Jesus by night--to the
astonishment of St. John--but who was soon afterward Jesus'
friend."--_John Watson_.

"The report of what passed reads, more than almost any other in the
gospels, like notes taken at the time by one who was present. We
can almost put it again into the form of brief notes.... We can
scarcely doubt that it was the narrator John who was the witness
that took the notes."--_Alfred Edersheim_.

Three incidents mentioned by John only comprise all we know of Nicodemus. In each of them he refers to him as coming to Jesus by night. That visit seems to have made a deep impression on John. We may think of Him as present at the interview between the Pharisee and the "Teacher come from God."

We are not told why Nicodemus came at a night hour. Perhaps he thought he could make sure of a quiet conversation, such as he could not have in the daytime. Perhaps he did not want to appear too friendly to Jesus until he knew more about Him, though he already had a friendly feeling toward Him. Perhaps he was afraid of the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish Court. Most of its members hated Jesus and had commenced their opposition to Him, which was continued during His life, and resulted in His death. Not so felt Nicodemus, though a member. At a later day he opposed their unjust treatment of Him. If he did not think of Jesus as the Messiah, he yet thought of Him as a prophet, "a teacher come from God." He was anxious to know more. So cautiously and timidly he sought Jesus in the night.

We suppose that, at the time of Jesus' death, John had a home in Jerusalem. It has been thought possible that when and before he became a disciple of Jesus he had an abode there, attending to the business connected with the sale of fish from his home in Galilee. There Jesus might be found in the guest-chamber on the roof of the oriental house which was reached by an outside stair. Nicodemus had no invitation, such as Andrew and John had to Jesus' abode on the Jordan, but he had an equal welcome to John's home, whither he had come on a like errand, though with different views of Jesus, to learn of Him. He sees still burning in the upper chamber the night lamp of Him whom he is to know as "the light of the world." He ascends the stair, stands at the door and knocks; and it is opened. Apparently without lengthy salutation, or introduction, he makes known his errand in the single sentence, "Rabbi, we know that Thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do these signs that Thou doest, except God be with Him." He might have added, "What shall I do?" Jesus gave a very solemn answer to his question,--"Except a man be born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God." He taught him that doing certain things, and not doing others, was not enough; he must _be_ good. To be good there must be a change of spirit. As a child has a beginning of its earthly life, he must have the beginning of a spiritual life, or he cannot be fitted for the kingdom of God in this world or that which is to come. That great change comes "from above," from God Himself.

Listen to some of the wonderful truths Jesus taught to Nicodemus. They are for us as well as for him. 1. Those who do not have this change of spirit must "perish." 2. But none need to perish, for "eternal life" has been provided. 3. This life is through the suffering and death of the "Son" of God. 4. God "gave His only begotten Son" to do all this. 5. God did this because He "so loved the world." 6. This "eternal life" can be had only by "believing on" the Son of God. 7. "Whosoever" so believes may have eternal life.

All this is included in one sentence:

"God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish, but have eternal life."

This is the golden text of St. John's Gospel, and of the whole Bible. Through all the ages it has sounded, and will sound to the end of time, as the gospel itself.

John must have been a most attentive listener to all that Jesus said. This was at the beginning of His Lord's ministry. Fresh truths easily impressed him. They were the buddings of which he was to see the bloom, of whose fruitage he would partake most abundantly, and which he would give to others long after the echo of the Great Teacher's words had died in the chamber where he and Nicodemus heard them.

It was long after that nightly visit that John wrote his account of it, including the golden text whose keyword was _Love_. It is supposed that he wrote his Epistle about the same time. That text was so present in his thought that he repeated it in almost the same words: "Herein was the Love of God manifested in us, that God hath sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him."

At the close of his long life, in which he had learned much of the power and justice and holiness and goodness of God, it seemed to him that all these were summed up in the one simple saying, "God is love."

When John bade Nicodemus good-night, he could not look forward to the time, nor to the place where we see them together again. John the lone apostle with Nicodemus and his Lord at the beginning of His ministry, is the lone apostle at the cross. Then and there, he recalls the first meeting of the three as he beholds the Rabbi approaching. This is his record; "Then came also Nicodemus, who at the first came to Jesus by night."

There is a tradition concerning Nicodemus that after the Resurrection of Jesus, his faith in Him was strengthened. The "teacher come from God" he now believed to be the Son of God. The timid Rabbi became a bold follower of the Lord whom he once secretly sought. For this he was no longer permitted to be a ruler of the Jews. He was hated, beaten, and driven from Jerusalem. At last he was buried by the side of the first martyr Stephen, who had baptized and welcomed him into the fellowship of the Christian Band.

_CHAPTER XIII_

_St. John and the Samaritaness_

"He cometh to a city of Samaria, called Sychar.... Jacob's well was
there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with His journey, sat thus on
the well. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said
unto her, Give Me to drink."--_John_ iv. 5-7.

"Probably John remained with the Master. They would scarcely have
left Him alone especially in that place; and the whole narrative
reads like one who had been present at what passed."--_Edersheim._

The vale of Sychar is one of the most interesting spots in the Holy Land. Jacob's well is one of the sacred sights about whose identity there is no dispute. I count the Sabbath when my tent overshadowed it one of the most memorable of my life. It was a privilege to read on the spot John's story of the Master tarrying there, and of the truths there revealed.

John tells us that Jesus, on His way from Judæa to Galilee, passed through Samaria, arrived at Jacob's well, and "being wearied with His journey sat thus on the well," while His disciples went "away unto the city to buy food."

It is not necessary to suppose that all of the six went to the neighboring city. Probably John remained with the Master. His narrative is one of the most distinct word-paintings in the whole Gospel story. He writes like one who saw and heard all that passed, not only when the other disciples were with him, but also and especially what happened when they were absent from the well.

John tells us that Jesus "was wearied with His journey." The observing, tender-hearted disciple saw and remembered his Master's weariness. In this simple, brief record, he reminds us of Jesus' humanity, and so how much He was like ourselves. How much of his Lord's weariness and suffering the sympathizing disciple was yet to witness.

We may think of John alone with Jesus, seated in an alcove which sheltered them from the sun. They may often have been thus found in loving companionship. With what delight would we read of those private interviews. How sacred and precious they must have been to John.

At the well, what subjects there were for conversation, suggested by memories of the spot. Here Abraham had erected his first altar in Canaan to the true God, whom Jesus was about to reveal more perfectly. This was the parcel of ground which Jacob had bought, and in which he had buried the false gods of his household. Here Joseph had been a wanderer seeking his brethren. This was the place which Jacob when dying had given to his son Joseph, on whose tomb Jesus and John looked as they talked together. The twin mountains of Ebal and Gerizim looked down upon them, reminders of the days of Joshua, when the two Israelitish bands called to each other in solemn words, and the valley echoed with their loud "Amen." Not every Jew could have the personal interest in that well, such as the two weary travelers could claim, through the family records of their common ancestor even to Abraham. It was not on account of John that these records had been kept, but of the "Son of Man" at his side, whom he had learned to look upon as "the Son of God." As they sat together John could not look into the future, as his Master could, and think of the time when they would be in the region together with an unfriendly reception; nor of that other time when John would come to it again and have a friendly reception, but with memories only of his Lord.

But their visit alone did not last until the return of His disciples. It was suddenly interrupted. "There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water." She was no fitting companion for them. She was not prepared to enter into their thoughts and feelings. She was an ignorant woman of the lower order of society, sinful, and not worthy of the respect of those who knew her. "Give me to drink," said Jesus--fatigued, hungry, thirsty. She gazed upon Him with astonishment. She knew by His appearance and dress that He was a Jew. She supposed that any such would be too full of hatred and pride to ask even such a simple favor of a Samaritan. Her answer showed her surprise. He gently spoke of her ignorance of Him, and of a richer gift than the one He asked, and which He was ready to bestow. It was "living water"--"the grace and truth of which He was full." Changing her manner toward Him, and addressing Him more respectfully, she asked, "Art _Thou_ greater than our father Jacob?" She meant, "Surely Thou art not greater." How strange this must have sounded to John as his eye turned from her, to Him before whom Jacob would bow in adoration could he have joined that circle on the spot where he had built an altar many years before. Jesus explained more fully the difference between the water for which He had asked, and that which He would give. He had asked a very small favor of her; He would bestow the greatest of gifts, even eternal life.

Not fully understanding Him, and yet believing He was some wonderful person, she repeated His own request, but with a changed meaning,--"Sir, give me this water." Perhaps to make her feel her sinfulness and to lead her into a better life, He showed her that though He was a stranger, He knew her past history. Her astonishment increased and she exclaimed, "Sir, I perceive that Thou art a Prophet." Ashamed, she quickly changed the subject.

She and her people claimed that Mount Gerizim was the holy place of the Holy Land; while the Jews said that Jerusalem was "the place where men ought to worship." She wanted the Prophet she had so unexpectedly met to decide between them. With calmness, solemnity and earnestness, He made a sublime declaration to her, meant for Jews, Samaritans and all men. It was this: "Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when neither in this mountain, nor yet in Jerusalem, shall ye worship the Father.... The hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth: for such doth the Father seek to be His worshipers. God is a spirit: and they that worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."

But this did not satisfy her. It was all so new and strange, so different from what she and her people believed, that she was not prepared to accept it from an unknown stranger, though he seemed to be a prophet. She thought of One greater than she thought He could be, One who was wiser than any prophet then living, or who ever had lived, One who she believed was to come. So, with a sigh of disappointment, her only reply was, "I know that Messiah cometh; ... when He is come, He will declare unto us all things."

How the quickened ear of John must have made his heart thrill at the name Messiah. Until a few weeks before, he too had talked of His coming, but already had heard Him declare many things which no mere prophet had spoken. Is he not prompted to break the silence of a mere listener? Is not his finger already pointed toward Jesus? Are not the words already on his tongue?--"O woman, _this is He_," when Jesus makes the great confession he made before Pilate, saying to the Samaritaness, "I that speak unto Thee, am He."

So it was that He whose coming the angels in their glory announced to the shepherds in Bethlehem, He whom the Baptist proclaimed to multitudes on the Jordan, He whose glory was manifested to the company in Cana, made Himself known to this low, ignorant, sinful, doubting, perplexed stranger, in words "to which all future ages would listen, as it were with hushed breath and on their knees."

These words of Jesus to the woman, "I am He," closed their conversation, so unexpected to her when she came with her water-pot, in which she had lost all interest. Her mind and heart had been filled instead. She had drawn from Him richer supplies than Jacob's well could ever contain. From that hour she thought of it, not so much as Jacob's well as the Messiah's well.

The disciples returning from the city, coming within sight of Jesus, "marveled that He was speaking with a woman." The people then and there had a mistaken idea that to do so was very improper. The disciples were the more astonished because she was a Samaritan. But they had such a sense of His goodness, that they did not dare to ask, "Why talkest Thou with her?"

She was interrupted in her conversation with Jesus, by the coming of the disciples. She left her water-pot at the well. Too full of wonder and gratitude to stop to fill it, or to be hindered in carrying it, she hastened to the city with the good news of what she had seen and heard. So had Andrew and John each carried the good news to his brother saying, "We have found the Messiah." She believed she had found Him. But the good news seemed almost too good to be true, and she wanted the men of the city to learn for themselves. So she put her new belief in the form of a question, "Is not this the Christ?" A great number obeyed her call, and believed with her that Jesus was the Messiah.

Meanwhile the disciples asked Him to eat of the food they had brought. But His deep interest in the woman, and joy in the great change in her, was so great that for the moment He felt no want of food. So He said to them, "I have meat to eat that ye know not." ... "My meat is to do the will of Him that sent Me." Never again did the disciples marvel that their Master talked with a woman, or with a sinner of any kind. We seem to see John, weary and hungry as his Master, but unmindful of bodily discomforts, because of his intense interest in what is passing. His record does not give his own experiences, but we can imagine some of them. His watchful eye detects every movement and expression of his companions,--the calm, earnest, loving, pitying look of Jesus; and the excited, scornful, surprised, joyful, constantly changing looks of the woman. He first marks her pertness of manner; then the respectful "Sir"; then the reverence for a prophet; and at last the belief and joy in the Messiah.

Whether or not John was witness to all that passed at the well, or whether Jesus gave him the minute details, or whether the Samaritaness, during the two days that Jesus and His disciples remained in Sychar, told Him all, his story is one of the most lifelike in the Gospels, teaching the greatest of truths.

If that noon hour at Jacob's well was a memorable one for the woman, it was also for John. For him Christ was the Well of Truth. Of it he was to drink during blessed years. Standing nearest to it of any mortal, receiving more than any other, he was to give of it to multitudes thirsting for the water of life.

_CHAPTER XIV_

_The Chosen One of the Chosen Three of the Chosen Twelve_

"Walking by the sea of Galilee, He saw two brethren, Simon, who is
called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea,
for they were fishers. And He said unto them, Come ye after Me, and
I will make you fishers of men. And they straightway left the nets,
and followed Him. And going on from thence He saw other two
brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the
boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and He called
them. And they straightway left the boat and their father, and
followed Him."--_Matt._ iv. 18-22.

"He was the Supreme Fisher, and this day He was fishing for
them."--_Stalker._

"When it was day, He called His disciples; and he chose from them
twelve, whom also He named apostles, Simon, whom He also named
Peter, and Andrew his brother, and James and John, and
Philip...."--_Luke_ vi. 13, 14

"Jesus taketh with Him Peter, and James, and John."--_Matt._ xvii.
1.

"One of His disciples, whom Jesus loved."--_John_ xiii. 23.

"We know not all thy gifts,
But this Christ bids us see,
That He who so loved all,
Found more to love in thee."

Once more we find the two pair of brothers on the shore of Gennesaret, not together, but within hailing distance. All night long they have toiled at fishing without any reward. The morning has dawned. Wearied and with the marks of labor on their persons and their garments, their empty boats drawn upon the beach, they are mending their nets which have been torn by the waves, and cleansing them from the sand which has been gathered instead of the fishes they sought.

Meanwhile a multitude of people in the neighboring field is listening to the Master. The fishermen may hear His voice, but their nets must not be left in disorder; they must be put in readiness for another trial, which, though they know it not, will be most abundantly rewarded.

They cannot go to Him, but He comes to them with a greeting and a command, "Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men."

The time had come for Him to gather His first disciples more closely about Him for instruction and preparation and service in His kingdom. They had seen proofs of His Messiahship. They had been with Him long enough to know something of His work and teachings, and what was included in His call to follow Him. They understood it meant leaving their boats and nets by which they had earned their daily bread, and even leaving their homes, and going with Him wherever He went, trusting Him for support, ready to do anything to which all this would lead them. Their belief in Him, and their love for Him, were enough to secure immediate obedience to the new command.

In their faithfulness in their duties in their former life, in the carefulness in mending their nets, in the patience and perseverance during the nights of fruitless toil, in their thoughtfulness, skill and experience in catching fish--in such things Christ found likeness of what He would make them to become--fishers of men. From their old business He would teach them lessons about the new,--of His power, the abundance of His store, and the great things they were to do for Him and their fellow-men. Before they leave it, He makes Himself a kind of partner with them. Having used Simon's boat for a pulpit for teaching, He tells him to launch out into the deep and to let down his net. It encloses a multitude of fishes. Andrew and James with their brothers whom they had called to Jesus, the first company to follow Him from the Jordan, are the first to do so in a new and fuller sense from the shores of Gennesaret, where they first learned of Him.

There is something touching in the special reference to the call of the sons of Salome, whose relation to Mary first interested us in them. It is said of Jesus, "He saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother and He called them. And they immediately left their father in the ship with the hired servants. They forsook all and followed Him."

What reminders do we here have of the past! James and John, true brothers in childhood, united in business in early life, now hand in hand commence life anew. Having become the help, and much more the companions of their father they must leave him to the companionship of hired servants. But in this hour of sundering family ties, the loving father and loving sons rejoice in Jesus as their Master whom they all willingly obey.

He chose twelve whom He called Apostles. Such was the glorious company, composed of young men, the most honored in all earthly history, to be His closest companions, His missionary family. During the remainder of His life He would train them; and when leaving the world trust their faithfulness and devotion in extending His kingdom. The two pair of brothers and their early friend Philip are the first named of the Apostles. The early Bethsaidan group composed almost one-half of the apostolic company. But within that circle there was another. Three of the twelve were chosen by the Lord for closer intimacy. They were to be special witnesses of His greatest power, His most radiant glory, and His deepest sorrow upon earth. They were Peter, James and John. Two of the three, Peter and John, were to be united in special service for their Lord while He was with them, and so continue after He was gone. But of the twelve Jesus drew one closest to Himself, most loved and the most glorious of them all: it was John.

In seeking a reason for Christ's fixing the number of His disciples, some have found a fancied one in the twelve precious stones of Aaron's breastplate. The most precious stone would represent John, the chosen one of the Great High Priest. In his own vision of the new Jerusalem "the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones." "And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them twelve names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb." It was that Lamb of God to which he had been pointed on the Jordan, and to which he points us as he beholds Him by the "glassy sea." As John read those names did he not recall the day when Jesus chose twelve whom "He named Apostles"?

_CHAPTER XV_

_John in the Home of Jairus_

"He suffered no man to follow with Him, save Peter, and James, and
John. And they came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue."

"And taking the child by the hand, He saith unto her, Talitha cumi;
which is, being interpreted, Damsel I say unto thee, Arise. And
straightway the damsel rose up, and walked."--_Mark_ v. 37, 38, 41,
42.

The first scene in which we find John as one of the favored three is in the house of mourning. It was the home of Jairus in Capernaum. He was a ruler of the synagogue. "He had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she lay a dying." He hastened to Jesus, fell at His feet, worshiped Him, and besought Him saying, "Come and lay Thy hands on her that she may be healed; and she shall live."

Did he not have in mind Peter's wife's mother, living in the same town, and how Jesus "came and took her by the hand and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her"? Jesus started for the house, followed by a throng, some doubtless full of tender sympathy for their townsman, and some curious to see what the wonder-worker would do.

A messenger from Jairus' home met him saying, "Thy daughter is dead; trouble not the Master." But the father's faith in Jesus was not limited to the power to heal. Could not the hand that had already touched the bier of the widow's only son, be laid on his only daughter, with life-restoring power? Could not the command spoken in Nain "I say unto thee, arise," be repeated in Capernaum, and in like manner be obeyed? Without heeding the messenger's question about troubling the Master, he cried out yet more earnestly, "My daughter is even now dead; but lay Thy hand upon her, and she shall live." But the father's entreaty was unnecessary, for Jesus was already responding to the messenger's words as, turning to Jairus, He said, "Fear not, only believe."

How eagerly the curious crowd hastened toward the ruler's home, because of a possible miracle, even raising the dead. But they were not to be witnesses of such display of Divine power. Yet even if the throng be excluded, might not the Twelve, following close to Jairus and Jesus, expect admission to the home? What was the surprise and disappointment of nine of them to be forbidden admission by Him whom they were following. But so it was. "When He came to the house He suffered not any man to enter in with Him, save Peter, and John and James, and the father of the maiden, and her mother."

This is the first we know of this distinction in the apostolic band. We almost hear the nine saying, "Why is this?" Can it be that, in that hour, at the door of this house of mourning, there was awakened the feeling of jealousy which afterward appeared? Did it inspire in the three a sense of superiority, and ambition to be higher in position than the rest in the kingdom of their Lord? Did James and John especially hope for promotion above the nine, and even the ten including Peter? So it will appear. But all this was to pass away when the band better understood the nature of their Lord's kingdom, and possessed more of His spirit.

The death-chamber was too sacred a place for numbers, even for the nine, whose admittance would be more fitting than that of the hired mourners whom Jesus excluded with them. He had His own wise reasons for the choice of the three. We do not wonder that John was one of them. With all his manifest failings--which he at last overcame--he was the most like his Master. In that death-chamber the Lord was to show His "gentleness and delicacy of feeling and action" such as John could understand, and with which he could sympathize.

"And taking the child by the hand, He saith unto her, Talitha, cumi." We are glad that Mark has preserved for us the very words that must have thrilled the heart of John. They had been interpreted, "My little lamb, my pet lamb, rise up." In them was a lesson for John. They were a revelation of his Master's tenderness toward childhood. It was a needed lesson, which he finally learned.

As John and Peter saw the returning life of the little maid, and heard their Master's command "that something should be given her to eat," they thought not of the time when they should stand together again near the same spot with the same Master, Himself risen from the dead, and hear Him utter another command, "Feed My lambs."

As they with James followed their Lord out from the death-chamber--such no longer--and heard His charge "that no man should know" what had happened, the very secrecy drew more distinctly the line of the inner circle about the three. It was not to be erased during the Lord's earthly sojourn with the twelve.

_CHAPTER XVI_

_John a Beholder of Christ's Glory_

"We beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the
Father."--_St. John_ i. 14.

"We were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received from God the
Father honor and glory ... when we were with Him in the holy
mount."--2 _Peter_ i. 16-18.

"As brightest sun, His face is bright;
His raiment, as the light, is white,
Yea, whiter than the whitest snow.
Moses, Elias, spake with Him.
Of deepest things, of terrors grim,
Of boundless bliss, and boundless woe,
Of pangs that none but Christ may know.

"A voice sublime I panting hear,
A voice that conquers grief and fear,
Revealing all eternity;
Revealing God's beloved Son,
Born to redeem a world undone;
Filled with God's fulness from on high,
To gain God's noblest victory."
--_Trans. Kingo of Denmark._