Sometimes in the evening when our daughter, Aurora, gets sleepy, she rests her head on her daddy’s shoulder and watches TV with him. I say sometimes because Aurora is a ball of energy usually right until it’s time to put her in the crib. But in those rare moments when she decides to rest on her daddy’s chest, I get out the camera to capture it.
Aurora knows she is loved by her daddy and she climbs on him by herself, with no regard of “personal space,” in order to take rest in his arms. She chooses when and where she does this. She is the daughter whom Rob loves. And she knows it!
Now, what if we did the same thing with our Abba Daddy?
“Gasp! But that’s God, The Almighty. The Creator of the Universe! He is Holy and to be revered and feared. We are to come to Him with our heads low in complete humility, unworthy to look at Him.”
Oh, really?
Then I guess the disciple whom Jesus loved got it all wrong then…
“When Jesus had said these things, He was troubled in spirit, and testified and said, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.’ Then the disciples looked at one another, perplexed about whom He spoke. Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask who it was of whom He spoke. Then, leaning back on Jesus’ breast, he said to Him, ‘Lord, who is it?’ Jesus answered, ‘It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it.’ And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.” John 13:21-26 NKJV
“Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.”
How about them apples?
John was leaning on Jesus’ bosom. Much like Aurora leans on her daddy, this full-grown adult man was leaning on Jesus.
And to top it off, Peter had him ask Jesus that important question, “Lord, who is it?” Why didn’t Peter just ask Him himself? Notice also that not only did John ask the question, but he leaned “back on Jesus’ breast” to do so.
That is what is called bold comfort. John knew who he was in Christ, which is loved. This gave him the boldness to not only take comfort in His Savior’s arms, but to also boldly declare himself the disciple whom Jesus loves.
“Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16 NKJV
John also had been given a great responsibility, being the disciple whom Jesus loved.
“Standing near the cross were Jesus’ mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary (the wife of Clopas), and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside the disciple he loved, he said to her, ‘Dear woman, here is your son.’ And he said to this disciple, ‘Here is your mother.’ And from then on this disciple took her into his home.” John 19:25-27 NLT
Why did Jesus entrust the care of His mother to John?
Perhaps the answer lies within John’s ability to freely receive His love. Those who receive His love have a greater ability to forward that love to others. Maybe Jesus knew John’s gratitude would serve His mother well. Whatever the reason, it was the disciple whom Jesus loved that was given the responsibility to care for His mother.
And when Jesus manifested Himself to the disciples, it was John who recognized Him first.
“But when the day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. So Jesus said to them, ‘Children, you do not have any fish, do you?’ They answered Him, ‘No.’ And He said to them, ‘Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat and you will find a catch.’ So they cast, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord.’ John 21:4-7 NAS
I would gather that John recognized Jesus’ voice and instruction. Much like Aurora recognizes my voice when I pick her up from the nursery at church. It is usually quite noisy with all the moms and dads getting their little ones. But over the hustle and bustle of it all my daughter perks up, not when she sees me, but when she somehow hears me say, “Hello, HoneyBear!”
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” John 10:27 NKJ
Don’t be afraid to come boldly to God, declaring, “I am your child whom You love!”
In His Service,
Rebecca Hamilton, Founder/ Executive Director
For Every Great Battle, There is a Great Victory!!