Reclining

John 13:23
Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved.

It occurs to me today,
For God is showing me
That we can know a greater reality of intimacy,
Than even John knew, as he was
Reclining, leaning on the bosom of His Savior.

I have gotten
A little “weirded out” by this image:
It tweaks something in my flawed concept
Of Manliness; gives me a twinge and a spasm.

But that’s just my corruption and immaturity,
Some deep-rooted misunderstanding
Of the scene before me.

For this is not a picture of two men
Equal in stature, engaged in such intimacy
As might appear unseemly,

But rather,
A Father and his child,
For we are like children to Him
Who is the Ancient of Days,
We are less than children,
Sitting in the lap of God,
Reclining against his chest,
Offering wet cheeks
To be wiped away
By rough palms of experience

This is who He is to us.

John knew intimacy with God.
This is a picture of unspeakable beauty,
A picture of reality,
A right and correct picture,
Of how we can relate
To our Savior, our Father,
Our beloved King.

And for John, at that time,
It was for a moment;
A slice of time with
Beginning and end;
Perhaps minutes,
Or hours.

But for us,
It can be an eternal reality,
In our daily lives,
Reclining ourselves
To lay against the bosom
Of our Savior,

To rest contented,
To know we are loved,
To refuse –
– To absolutely refuse,
To be moved from this place.

For He is faithful who promised:

Matthew 28:20
“… behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

John 15:4
“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.”

John 17:20
“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.”

Revelations 3:20
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

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Author's Note: 
This poem was inspired by the writings of Frank Laubach. 
You can view some of his writings here: 
http://www.durrance.com/laubach.htm