Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” John 1:38
John’s Gospel makes it clear that many people followed Jesus for a time but then did not continue. Some drifted in with the crowd, and then drifted away. Some followed because of the miracles.
At first sight the answer of these first disciples might seem rather dull, but they could not have given a better response: “Rabbi” (or Teacher), “Where are you staying?” (1:38). In other words, “We want to be with you. We want to spend time with you. We don’t want our experience of you to be an occasional thing. Now tell us, where are you staying?”
“He said to them, ‘Come and you will see.’ So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day…” (1:39). What is the difference between a person who professes faith and then drifts away and one who sticks at following Christ for a lifetime? What is the difference between a person who gets attached to the church for a time and then moves on, and a person who gives him or herself to ministry over the long haul?
Why does Peter come back to Jesus after denying him? “Lord, you know that I love you.” Why does Paul persevere in ministry after so many sufferings? “I want to know Christ, and to that end I will do whatever it takes, even if that means the fellowship of his sufferings.”
Christian, the reason you will keep following Christ, even in the hardest and darkest times of your life, is that though you have not seen him you love him (1 Pet. 1:8).
Many people followed only for a time, and then moved on because they did not get what they were looking for. Why are you following Jesus?