| SUNDAY | January 6 |
Discipleship Among the Greeks
"Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, 'Sir, we wish to see Jesus'"(John 12:20, 21, NRSV).
The fact that these Greeks went to worship at the festival should tell us something about them already. Also, the verses beforehand reveal that so much was happening that the attitude of the Greeks should not be surprising.
Read the following texts. What insight could they shed upon what was happening here? Jer. 29:13; John 1:9; 6:44; Acts 10:34, 35.
Last week we saw that Jesus always chose His own disciples. The above texts might, at first glance, indicate something different. Yet, that is not the case. Even here the Spirit was wooing these Greeks.
In Greek culture, discipleship took many different forms. Though some Greek teachers would initiate the call to discipleship, the tradition was for the students to choose the teacher. The students, not the teacher, initiated the relationship. Also, it was common for the teachers to charge a fee for the students who studied with them.
In this case, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, these Greeks were seeking Jesus, to learn from Him. Given that God uses what we know to teach us what we need to know, this is a viable notion. Indeed, Ellen G. White notes that "the Greeks longed to know the truth in regard to His mission."—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 622. She also said that Jesus granted their request.
| If someone were to come up to you, as these Greeks did to Philip, and say, "We would see Jesus," what would you answer? How would you introduce them to Him? |
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