Notes for this theme
Reading comfort
GRM 46.15
After the struggle, there comes victory and the angels serve and defend the winner from Satan’s hatred. They restore him with celestial dews, with the Grace that they pour with full hands into the heart of the faithful son, with a blessing that caresses his soul.
One must be determined to defeat Satan, and have faith in God, and in His help.
Jesus talks about temptation.
GRM 47
Jesus walks near the ford of the Jordan. A group passes by, and among them are John and James of Zebedee. It is John who notices the Master and naturally goes towards Him, while his brother follows behind. He greets him, calling him the Lamb of God. Jesus asks him whom he is looking for, and the Beloved replies that he is looking for the Master. He knows this because John the Baptist told him so, and he calls him Lamb because that's what he heard the Forerunner call him. John the Baptist is now imprisoned, and they no longer have their guide. However, John shows up, and he introduces James. He asks where Jesus lives, and Jesus points out that whoever follows him will have to abandon everything: "home, parents, way of thinking, even life." He's not a rich man, and you have to be spiritually reborn in God to follow him. The two men nevertheless want to follow him, and Jesus accepts their request.
Christ then gives two dictations. The first deals with purity and virginity, including consecrated virginity. He explains that "there are many ways of being a virgin", and returns to those who make a vow to the Lord. If souls make a vow, but give in to sensuality (even that of thought), they are only half virgins.
The Master then returns to his own temptation in the desert and the sensuality the Devil proposed. Then he dwells on the pure, who see God. Finally, he focuses on John, the Pure One among the disciples, who was his first disciple.
GRM 47.1-3
47.1 I see Jesus walking along the green strip of vegetation that borders the Jordan. He has gone back to the same place where He was baptised. He is near the ford that apparently was well known and commonly used to cross to the other bank towards Perea. But the place, which was so crowded before, is now deserted. There are only a few travellers going on foot, or riding donkeys or horses.
Jesus does not seem to be aware of them. He proceeds along His way, northwards, absorbed in His thoughts. When He reaches the ford, He meets a group of men of different ages, who are discussing animatedly, and then they part, some southwards, some northwards.
Amongst those going northwards, I see John and James.
47.2 John is the first to see Jesus, and he points Him out to his brother and companions. They talk a little amongst themselves, and then John starts walking quickly to reach Jesus. James follows him, walking a little slower. The others do not show any interest. They walk slowly while discussing.
When John is near Jesus, about two or three metres behind Him, he shouts: «Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world!»
Jesus turns around and looks at him. There are now only a few steps between them. They look at each other: Jesus with His serious, scrutinising look, John with his pure eyes smiling in his beautiful, youthful face, that looks like the face of a girl. He is about twenty years old, and on his rosy cheeks there is only the sign of a blond down, like a golden veil.
«Whom are you looking for?» asks Jesus.
«For You, Master.»
«How do you know I am a Master?»
«The Baptist told me.»
«Well then, why do you call Me Lamb?»
«Because I heard him call You so one day, when You were passing by, just over a month ago.»
«What do you want from Me?»
«I want You to tell us words of eternal life and to comfort us.»
«But who are you?»
«I am John of Zebedee, and this is James, my brother. We are from Galilee, and we are fishermen. But we are also disciples of John. He spoke words of life to us and we listened to him, because we want to follow God and deserve His forgiveness doing penance and thus prepare our hearts for the coming of the Messiah. You are the Messiah. John said so, because he saw the sign of the Dove descending on You. He said to us: “Here is the Lamb of God”. I say to you: Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world, give us peace, because we no longer have anyone who may guide us, and our souls are upset.»
«Where is John?»
«Herod has taken him. He is in prison, at Machaerus. The most faithful amongst his disciples have tried to free him. But it is not possible. We are coming from there.
47.3 Let us come with You, Master. Show us where You live.»
«Come. But do you know what you are asking for? He who follows Me will have to leave everything: his home, his relatives, his way of thinking, also his life. I will make you My disciples and My friends, if you wish so. But I have neither wealth nor protection. I am poor, and I shall be even poorer, to the extent of not having a place where I may rest My head and I will be persecuted by My enemies, even more than a lost sheep is pursued by wolves. My doctrine is even more rigid than John’s, because it forbids also resentment. And My doctrine is concerned not so much with external matters, as it is with the soul. You must be re-born if you want to be My disciples. Are you willing to do that?»
«Yes, Master. Only You have words that can give us light. They descend upon us, and where there was darkness and desolation because we had no guide, they shed light and sunshine.»
«Come, then. Let us go. I will teach you on our way.»
In 47.2, John's physical description.
John 1:35-39:
Still the next day, John was there with two of his disciples. Looking at Jesus coming and going, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God! The two disciples heard what he said, and followed Jesus. Turning around, Jesus saw that they were following him, and said to them, "What are you looking for?" They replied, "Rabbi - which means Master - where are you staying?" He said to them, "Come and see. So they went and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was about the tenth hour (about four o'clock in the afternoon).
GRM 47.2
»
«But who are you?»
«I am John of Zebedee, and this is James, my brother. We are from Galilee, and we are fishermen. But we are also disciples of John. He spoke words of life to us and we listened to him, because we want to follow God and deserve His forgiveness doing penance and thus prepare our hearts for the coming of the Messiah. You are the Messiah. John said so, because he saw the sign of the Dove descending on You. He said to us: “Here is the Lamb of God”. I say to you: Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world, give us peace, because we no longer have anyone who may guide us, and our souls are upset.»
«Where is John?»
«Herod has taken him. He is in prison, at Machaerus. The most faithful amongst his disciples have tried to free him. But it is not possible. We are coming from there.
GRM 47.2
«I am John of Zebedee, and this is James, my brother. We are from Galilee, and we are fishermen. But we are also disciples of John. He spoke words of life to us and we listened to him, because we want to follow God and deserve His forgiveness doing penance and thus prepare our hearts for the coming of the Messiah. You are the Messiah. John said so, because he saw the sign of the Dove descending on You. He said to us: “Here is the Lamb of God”. I say to you: Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world, give us peace (...) »
John of Zebedee spoke to Jesus and said:
GRM 47.4
47.4 Jesus says:
«The crowd that met Me was a large one. But only one recognised Me. He, whose soul, mind and flesh were pure and free from all lewdness.»
After Maria had seen the first encounter with John, Jesus said to her:
GRM 47.7
47.7 The world sneers at pure people. Those who are guilty of lewdness strike them. John the Baptist is the victim of the lust of an obscene couple. But if there is still some light in the world, this is due to the pure of the world. They are the servants of God, they understand God and repeat God’s words. I said: “Happy the pure in heart, they shall see God”. Also in this world: since the fumes of sensuality do not perturb their hearts, they “see” God, they hear Him, they follow Him and they show Him to other people.
GRM 47.8
47.8 John of Zebedee is a pure soul. He is the Pure One amongst My disciples. A soul as beautiful as a flower in an angelical body! He calls Me with the words of his first master and asks Me to give him peace. But he already has peace in his heart because of his purity, and I loved him because of his purity, to which I entrusted My teachings, My secrets, and the most dear Creature I had.
He was My first disciple, who loved Me from the very first instant he saw Me. His soul had melted with Mine from the day he saw Me passing near the Jordan and he saw the Baptist pointing to Me. Even if he had not found Me later, when I came back from the desert, he would have looked for Me until he found Me, because who is pure, is humble and anxious to be taught in the science of God, and like the water that flows to the sea, he goes towards those he knows to be masters in the celestial doctrine.
GRM 47.9
Follow Jesus as John did. You will be walking among thorns, but as roses you will find the drops of blood of Him Who shed them for you, to defeat the flesh in you too.
Jesus said to Maria:
GRM 47.10
47.10 I will forestall a remark as well. In his Gospel, John mentioning his meeting with Me says: “And the following day”. It would therefore appear that the Baptist pointed Me out the day after My baptism and that John and James followed Me at once. But that conflicts with what the other Evangelists said about the forty days spent in the desert. But you should read as follows: “(John having already been arrested), one day, later, the two disciples of John the Baptist, the ones to whom he had pointed Me out saying: ‘Here is the Lamb of God’, on seeing Me again, called Me and followed Me”. After I had come back from the desert.
And we went back together to the shores of the lake of Galilee, where I had taken shelter to begin evangelising from there, and the two – after being with Me during the whole journey and then for one day in the hospitable house of a friend of My relatives – spoke of Me to the other fishermen. But it was the initiative of John, whose will to do penance had made his soul, already so limpid owing to his purity, a masterpiece of pellucidity in which the Truth was clearly reflected, bestowing on him also the holy daring of the pure and generous, who are never afraid of stepping forward, wherever they see that there is God, and truth and doctrine and the way of God. How much I loved him for that simple, heroical feature of his!
John 1:35-39:
Still the next day, John was there with two of his disciples. Looking at Jesus coming and going, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God! The two disciples heard what he said, and followed Jesus. Turning around, Jesus saw that they were following him, and said to them, "What are you looking for?" They replied, "Rabbi - which means Master - where are you staying?" He said to them, "Come and see. So they went and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was around the tenth hour (about four o'clock in the afternoon).