3.25.15
Who Introduced You to Jesus?
John 1:35-51
The next day John was standing again
with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus walking along he said, “Look! The
Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard what he said, and they followed Jesus.
When Jesus turned and saw them
following, he asked, “What are you looking for?”
They said, “Rabbi (which is translated Teacher),
where are you staying?”
He replied, “Come and see.” So they went
and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about
four o’clock in the afternoon.
One of the two disciples who heard what
John said and followed Jesus was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter. He first
found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which
is translated Christ ). He led him to Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said, “You are
Simon, son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).
The next day Jesus wanted to go into
Galilee, and he found Philip. Jesus said to him, “Follow me.” Philip was from
Bethsaida, the hometown of Andrew and Peter.
Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We
have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law and the Prophets: Jesus, Joseph’s
son, from Nazareth.”
Nathanael responded, “Can anything from
Nazareth be good?”
Philip said, “Come and see.”
Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him
and said about him, “Here is a genuine Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”
Nathanael asked him, “How do you know
me?”
Jesus answered, “Before Philip called
you, I saw you under the fig tree.”
Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are God’s
Son. You are the king of Israel.”
Jesus answered, “Do you
believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see
greater things than these! I assure you that you will see heaven open and God’s
angels going up to heaven and down to earth on the Human One.”
In
the verses preceding this passage, John the Baptist gave testimony that one is
coming that is greater than he: one whom “I am not worthy to untie his sandal”
(1:27); one “who ranks ahead of me because he was before me” (1:31); one on
whom he had seen “the Spirit descend and remain” (1:33). John declares that Jesus is the one who
is the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (1:29), “the one who
baptizes with the Holy Spirit” (1:33), “the Son of God” (1:34).
The
next day, Andrew was with John the Baptist when Jesus walked by. John identified Jesus as the Lamb of
God. Andrew and his friend (probably
John, the writer of this Gospel) followed Jesus. When Jesus saw them following him, he invited them to come
see where he was staying and they stayed with him for the rest of the day. When Andrew left Jesus, he went
directly and told his brother, Simon, “We have found the Messiah” and he took
his brother to Jesus. Jesus looked
at Simon and renamed him Peter.
The
next day, Jesus saw Philip and called him to follow. Philip found
his friend Nathaniel, and invited him to come to see the one “about whom Moses
in the law and also the prophets wrote.”
Nathaniel was skeptical but went to see Jesus and was convinced when
Jesus knew him before they met.
So
Andrew followed Jesus based on the testimony of John, and Philip followed when
Jesus invited him. Both
immediately found the person closest to them, and shared the good news that
they had found the Messiah, the one written about by the prophets. Andrew brought his brother to Jesus;
Philip brought his friend. Jesus knew
who Simon and Nathaniel were before they were introduced by Andrew or Philip;
changed Simon’s name to Peter; and promised Nathaniel that he would see great
things.
As
we read these verses, stop to think about two things. First, Who was Andrew or Philip to you? Who introduced you to Jesus? Second, which family member or friend is waiting for you to
introduce them to Jesus?
Sometimes
I am amazed how fast news travels!
Bad news or good news – both travel fast! When I ask, “How do you know?” or “How did you find out?”
there are so many answers: “I saw it
on Facebook.” “(name) texted
me.” “(name) called to tell
me.” “I got an email.” We are all excited to hear the news when someone we know is
getting married or expecting a baby, and want to tell others we know. Many times the news we share is about
the brackets for the basketball tournament, the latest diet, a new exercise
plan, the newest electronic gadget, a video game, a new song on the radio, a TV
show we like, or a movie that is coming out.
The
disciples and early Christians weren’t confused about what was good news. When they found out about Jesus, they
wanted to share it first with those who were closest to them, then with the
rest of the world. When was
the last time we were so excited about the good news of Jesus Christ that we
couldn’t wait to share it with someone else?
Prayer:
Jesus, Son of God, as you called Andrew and Philip, you call us to
follow you.
Before someone introduced us to you, you knew who we were.
You answer our belief in you with promises of something even
greater.
Remind us again of the good news of our salvation,
and instill in
us a burning desire to share the news of your love
with those closest to us, and then
with others we meet. Amen.
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