Come and See

Pray

I came across an article this past week that explains the following…. It states: The pleasure of taste starts with the taste buds and ends with electrical signals reaching the reward centers in the brain. This is not just true of people; it is true of animals as well. All animals have taste buds, including those that live under the water. The catfish, for example, has taste buds virtually all over its skin, earning it the nickname “the swimming tongue.” Flies, spiders, and fruit flies have taste buds on their feet. These insects have receptors on their feet which allow them to detect chemicals in their environment and determine if something is edible or not. This is why these insects often walk around on food before eating it.

Animals taste and enjoy their food as much as we do. Watch a squirrel closely next time you come across one squatting on the lawn holding an acorn with its two hands and nibbling the insides. You’ll see it nibbling away with its teeth quite rapidly. What you don’t see is the tongue inside the mouth that is busy manipulating the little bits of food and tasting the ingredients, swallowing what is delicious and even just acceptable.

Taste it seems, especially a pleasant one… is important…

We hear this story this morning… if I were to ask you, what are some of your favorite foods, what would your response be?

How about this… are there any foods that you just can’t stand?

Yeah, each of us… from one person to the next… has foods we like… and foods, we don’t… There are some foods, maybe, that are gross like maybe spam, or for me… cottage cheese, there are others that are great… what are some foods that are good? Ken corrected me some rice cakes are good.

The truth is… there are some foods we like… and…There are some foods, we don’t like… There are some foods that sit well with us, that we enjoy… and some foods, that we taste and spit out.

We transition then to ourselves this morning in our walk with Christ. Each of us can relate with things that we’ve tried, which left us empty. Each of us can also relate with experiences or moment... we’ve tasted something… only to spit it out. We’ ve tried something, only to see we didn’t like it…

Psalm 34:8 tells us: Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.

You see it’s when we experience Christ, that our shift changes in thinking… It’s in seeing him move, it’s in tasting and seeing… it’s in the experience…

The question becomes, how has our experience with Christ been as of late? How is life this morning?

If you have your Bibles, turn with me to John 1. The invitation this morning to:

1. Come and See. 2. Come and find Good.

Beginning with point 1. Come and See

John 1:35-42 35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”

37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?” 39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.

40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).

As we look to the scripture this morning, there are several things that we notice. Verse 35 opens with 35 The next day John (or John the Baptist) was there again with two of his disciples. (the disciples being Andrewand the apostle John)

and 36 When he (John the Baptist) saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” 37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus.

Now here’s what’s interesting. Andrew and the apostle John… had been following John the Baptist… For an undisclosed amount of time… They were Johns disciples… and a few verses earlier…

John 1:15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”)

So, John had spoke of Jesus previously of the coming of Jesus… Jesus who had been prophesied all throughout the Old Testament… Who the Israelites, were longing and looking for… who John himself said

John 1:27 “He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”

Here In this moment… 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” (immediately)

37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”

39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.

Now we notice the disciples call Jesus “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), and this term would have been a sign of respect, ”), Go on to ask “where are you staying?” and in affect, that not simply asking where Jesus is laying his head at night. They’re asking for a personal interview with Jesus…They have a curiosity inside of them, and their looking for answers… and what is Jesus reply: Here’s the key…

39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.

39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”

2 words I want to examine. The word See: 1. Means not only to see with the eyes 2. to see with the mind, to perceive, know 3. become acquainted with by experience…

And so, the invitation was to come and see, or experience, and have their minds open…

The word Come means: 1.to come from one place to another. 2. Means to go 3. to come into being, to be established.

And so, it was an invitation to come into being… or to be established.

And so, here’s the point… Jesus is expressing to his disciples… an opportunity to come and experience, to see firsthand… and as they see… as they experience… there eyes will be open, but so won’t their hearts. You see this experience will shift who they are… these young men, will go from ordinary fisherman, an ordinary tax collector, a zealot… to first century, followers of Christ, who will change world.

You see, here was what they found. After they “came” and “saw…”

The bible tells us: 40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).(42 here?)

The disciples, for themselves… went and investigated the claims of the Messiah… They went, they saw where he was staying (that would be a cool fieldtrip, if we this morning could go anywhere right now… that would be awesome right?)

But they don’t just see where Jesus is sleeping, where Jesus is staying, they go and fellowship, they interact, they probably break bread… they commune… and their conclusion?

“We have found the Messiah”

You see, It was pretty evident, it was pretty clear to them… they didn’t have any more questions… They had found the Messiah… they may not have had all the answers at that time… they may have still had questions… but the messiah, the expected, prophesied king of Israel, God’s anointed Son… they had found Hin. And it changed their lives.

And where did it start? Started when they came, and they saw… 39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”

I’m reminded of an article I came across this week that explains: When Galileo introduced the telescope as a tool to peer into the galaxies, his contemporaries did not believe him. Scoffing, they refused to even look through the device. Galileo sat alone with his telescope. He was the sole observer of the vastness of the cosmos. A single witness of galaxies beyond anything anyone had seen or imagined. Galileo had the stars to himself.

Undermining Aristotle’s previous explanations of the universe, Galileo published his own findings based on what he’d seen through the telescope. He painted a picture for the entire world through words, a display of the heavens scratched across bound pages. He wrote about mountains and craters on the moon, spots upon the sun, satellites orbiting Jupiter, and multitudes of stars never known to exist.

These were monumental discoveries that would shape future space explorations, but they fell on ears refusing to hear and eyes refusing to see. Galileo’s peers mocked him and his toy. Strictly adhering to Aristotle’s descriptions of the universe, they refused to believe anything contrary to what they had held to for so long.

We hear this story this morning, and the truth is… out of all these Astronomers, only one would experience the beauty of experiencing the galaxy. The others scoffed, the others laughed at Galileo, but Galileo had an encounter with the stars, like no one else of his time.

What about us this morning?

God’s invitation is here for you and I… And his desire is to not just see him in His Word… but experience Him in life…. And as we do this, it shifts our outlook entirely. “Come” and “you will see”

2. Come and find Good

43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip.

47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.” 48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.” 49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”

50 Jesus said, “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” 51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”

As we go back to the scripture, we find the next day, after Jesus encounter Peter… he would leave for Galilee. Jesus finds Philip…

we’re told: Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. Bethsaida being a fishing village on the Northeast shore of the sea of galilee. Jesus calls to Him “Follow me.” Phillip follows, but then he goes on to get his friend Nathanel…

45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

And what is Nathanael’s response? Does he say, “Sounds great!” “Let’s Go!” Is that he responds?

46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. (what’s the response?) “Come and see,” said Philip.

It’s interesting… previously, Andrew and the Apostle John… would ask Jesus “where are you staying?” (and Jesus would reply) 39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”

This time were told Nathanael would say 46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” (Phillip would say) “Come and see,” said Philip.

You see Phillip had only met Jesus that day… but he came, and he saw… and it was enough time to realize Jesus was the real deal… that Jesus was good…

For us this morning, living in Ohio… there are others that we would question if there is any good in them… can you think of any?

Perhaps if you go to Kenton, your local rival may be Ridgemont, or Ohio Northern… ? Living in Ohio, we also know there is a team up north… Can we use that name in church? we all love Michigan, right?!

You see Nazareth was an insignificant town. There was no mention of Nazareth in the Old Testament. There was nothing glamorous or luxurious about this place. Nazareth was only just 10 miles north of Nathanaels hometown of Cana… There’s a sense of disapproval on the part of Nathanael… Just complete disbelief that anything good could actually come from Nazareth, and what is Philipps response? Come and see!

47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.” 48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.” 49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”

50 Jesus said, “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” 51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”

Friends from this day forward Nathanael would follow Jesus… Phillip, Andrew, Peter, the rest of the disciples… they would “come” “and see…” and what did they find? They found good.

46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip.

We talk about good this morning, each of us, from one person to the next, can relate with the idea of things that are good… or things that are bad… Just to lighten things up a little bit…

I found an article that explains the following. It says: Did you know that cats can’t taste the flavor of sweetness? That’s right. Felines cannot taste sweet. It’s like their tongues are color blind to sugar. No wonder cats are so grumpy all the time! They can taste sour, bitter, saltiness, and meatiness, but not sweetness.

Are you a cat? Maybe you should get a dog in your life. Maybe when dogs are barking at cats, they’re just trying to cheer them up! If you’re a dog, use your bark to cheer up a cat. And if you’re a cat who struggles to taste the sweetness of life, find a dog to be your friend. I know dogs can be really annoying but they’re good for your soul.

bit of a silly article… but there’s truth to it… For cats, they’re missing out on the good things in life… the sweet things… the enjoyable things… the better things…

Friends, this morning, be a dog… and not a cat…

This morning… God extends good to us… the word good. (If we can pull it back up on the screen)

46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip.

Good means – 1. Of good nature 2. Useful. 3. Pleasant, agreeable, joyful, happy, excellent, upright, honorable…

46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip.

I’m going to call the elders up at this time… and as they come forward… we’re going to prepare for a time of communion together…

· Read Matthew 14:22-32…(Come, didn’t mean the journey would always be easy…)

But the invitation today… as it was then… is to come and see…

The invitation is to Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him…

· Some of us are hungry

· Some aren’t satisfied

· Come and see

communion