Rickey Henderson was one of baseball’s most colorful figures. Besides being the best leadoff hitter in the history of the game and Major League Baseball’s all-time stolen base leader, Rickey loved to talk about Rickey.
“Nothing’s impossible for Rickey. You don’t have enough fingers and toes to count out Rickey.”
“Don’t worry, Rickey, you’re still the best.”
“Rickey don’t like it when Rickey can’t find Rickey’s limo.”
They call that illeism – the act of referring to oneself in the third person. In our world today, people who use illeism often come across as brash and cocky.
One of the writers of the Bible had a penchant for illeism, but he didn’t refer to himself by his given name. He called himself “the disciple whom Jesus loved.”
That’s how John talked about John.
And at first glance, John can sound a bit like Rickey Henderson – as if he were saying that he was somehow better or more loved by Jesus than the other disciples.
But John was actually doing the opposite.
John wasn’t saying, “Look at John.”
He was saying, “Look at Jesus.”
John wasn’t saying, “I am what I have done.”
He was saying, “I am who Jesus says I am.”
Every time John talked about himself, he turned the spotlight on Jesus. John knew he had earned none of it – not the honor, not the closeness, and certainly not Jesus’ love.
And yet, he was the disciple Jesus loved.
And so are you. So am I.
And yet, so often, I turn the spotlight back on myself. I base my identity on me and what I accomplish.
As a teenager, I was obsessed with becoming a great basketball player. My value, my purpose, and my self-worth were wrapped up in being a basketball player.
And then, in the blink of an eye, my basketball career was done.
Today, many people know me simply as Pastor Andy. That name carries a reputation in my community that is far kinder than I deserve.
But one day, that public identity will fade. My articles won’t be published, my videos won’t be posted, and my sermons won’t be preached in church. If those things were all that I am, then I would be left with nothing.
Thankfully, my identity is not Pastor Andy. It does not rest on public affection or pastoral reputation, but on my baptism and on Jesus, who loved me so much 2,000 years ago that he suffered my punishment and died my death so that I could live with him forever in heaven.
Andy is the disciple Jesus loved.
And so are you. Pastor Andrew Schroer has been a pastor for over 25 years and is currently serving at Redeemer Lutheran Church in Edna, Texas. You can find his latest books, “364 Days of Thanksgiving” and “364 Days of Devotion,” on Amazon.com.
