After he said these things, Jesus became visibly upset, and then he told them why. "One of you is going to betray me." The disciples looked around at one another, wondering who on earth he was talking about. One of the disciples, the one Jesus loved dearly, was reclining against him, his head on his shoulder. Peter motioned to him to ask who Jesus might be talking about. So, being the closest, he said, "Master, who?" (John 13:21-25 from The Message)Sometimes reading a different version of a passage in the Bible will give us a different viewpoint. When I read these verses of John from The Message, I was struck by the line "was reclining against him." That phrase creates a vision of John leaning against Jesus in my mind.
Our beagle is a pack dog. She likes to be close. She'll jump up on the couch when I'm sitting on it, find a spot, and start walking in circles. Once she has massaged the couch into submission, she plops down, right against me. It doesn't matter if she has the entire couch as a resting place, she chooses to shove herself against me.
Shouldn't we be that way with God? Reclining against him when we have questions?
Consider Thomas, one of the lectionary readings for this week. He had doubts, and he gets a bad name because of it. Really, though, he did what we are all to do -- he asked Jesus for help. He leaned against God. Sometimes I think I am too slow to remember to do the same thing.
Kim Matthews
