Come and See... Follow Me

What is your life’s purpose? This is a question that you will battle for many years to come and to tell the truth, it might be a never-ending pursuit in many respects. This question might play out a number of ways for y’all. There are some of you in this room who already have the next several years planned out. Where you’re going to college, grad school, who you’re going to marry and the names of your 2.5 kids and golden retriever. 

Many are under the problem of wrangling every possible detail under their control and thus begins an anxiety laden life that never seems to lighten up. Do not get me wrong, all of you are uniquely gifted in such a ways that you should make detailed plans and seek out how to best utilize how God crafted you but let’s not lose sight of the forest for the trees. Do you understand what I mean by that? I sometimes struggle using the same figures of speech that a 70 year old man would use. But when I talk about purpose and some of you tense up because you see a thousand minute details that need to be taken care of, you lose sight of the greater picture.

Now on the other side of that coin I’m sure that many of you also look at me and when I talk about purpose you stare flatly and say, “listen, I got out of bed this morning, so you’re welcome.” While some battle the unknown and do everything in their power to control every aspect of your existence, there are many who also struggle by merely floating idly by in life. Well you have been called to something greater. Something greater than merely floating by, something greater than anything that your best planning can come up with. When we talk about purpose, we as a body of believers talk about a life spent with Jesus because indeed a life spent following Jesus is a life lived with purpose, a life lived on purpose.

And we see this sort of purposeful interaction and exchange in as John the gospel writer details, 

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

37 The two disciples heard him say this and followed Jesus. 38 When Jesus turned and noticed them following him, he asked them, “What are you looking for?”

They said to him, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”

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

40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard John and followed him. 41 He first found his own brother Simon and told him, “We have found the Messiah,” (which is translated “the Christ”), 42 and he brought Simon to Jesus.

When Jesus saw him, he said, “You are Simon, son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which is translated “Peter”).

43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. He found Philip and told him, “Follow me.”

44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the hometown of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the law (and so did the prophets): Jesus the son of Joseph, from Nazareth.”

46 “Can anything goodm come out of Nazareth?” Nathanael asked him.

“Come and see,” Philip answered.

47 Then Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said about him, “Here truly is an Israeliten in whom there is no deceit.”

48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked.

“Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you,” Jesus answered.

49 “Rabbi,” Nathanael replied, “You are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel!”

50 Jesus responded to him, “Do you believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this.” 51 Then he said, “Truly I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

Transition

We see here Jesus’ call of his first disciples and right from the get go we can see for ourselves that a relationship with Jesus, him drawing near to us and us to him leads to anything but stagnation. We see that this life of purpose that Christ is calling us to requires us to:

Live a sent life

To encounter Jesus personally

And to continually follow him.

Exposition - vv.35-39 - Living a sent life

Firstly we see that living this purposeful life with Jesus is living a “sent” life. And I say that to point this out, John the Baptist, we remember him right? He was the forerunner before Jesus, this one who would essentially announce the coming of the messiah, but what did he do hear? He lived out exactly what Jesus would come to say at the end of Matthew’s gospel when he said, 

“all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teaching them all that I have commanded you and behold, I am with you even to the end of the age.”

These were Jesus final marching orders recorded in Matthew, you don’t think that means they must be important, do you? Well John is already living that out as he sends out two of his own disciples to follow Jesus! Going against all “common knowledge.” Businesses and organizations today will tell you that you need to grow new leaders so that you can run your group more strongly and cohesively but only in the true intent of the church do we hope to build up leaders, strong and fearless to chase them off.

And so too do we hope the same for you guys! Make no bones about it. You’re not here to be babysat! Guys, whether you graduate high school and go off some far away place or stay right here in Mount Juliet, Lebanon, Gladeville, whatever, do not get it twisted, we are not pouring into you to make you a more pleasant person. We are not pouring into you so that you can “live your best life now,” we are discipling you to send you. Because that is exactly what Jesus called us to do.

Illustration

Many of you know that I love movies. There is rarely a scenario that I can’t come up with a relevant movie quote. But one particular subject of movies that I love are war movies. Saving Private Ryan, Flags of our Fathers, Dunkirk, I’ve seen them all. One of the things that fascinates me about a good, authentic I guess World War II movie is the evolution of the battleship, to this day you can visit any number of warships across the country and check them out, there are several along the eastern coastline like the USS Hornet on the coast of North Carolina where you can see this massive construction, full of fighter planes, huge cannons, and the capacity to be this incredible instrument of battle.

But low and behold, the USS Hornet along with many other warships around the country today just sit in port as a museum for people to come and look, snap a picture and just ogle at a bit. Guys we are not crafting battleships to sit in port. The purpose for which you were built was to be mobilized and engage in spiritual warfare that we see left and right. 

We don’t do this inflicting physical damage like a warship but we mobilize with the same intensity with this most profound message called the Gospel. What is our message? It is the same message that John the Baptist spoke here in our opening verses tonight. “Look! The Lamb of God!” An echo of his same exclamation made in v. 29 when he said, “Look the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world!.” We do not engage as the world engages in conflict. While many want you to inflict hurt and pain upon others, our warfare with a wold of darkness is not with guns and ammo, but with THE ultimate message of hope. “Look, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”

It is a simple message but it has the most profound potential for hope. How many people do you know who need to hear of such hope? How many of you need that hope? I invite you with the same invitation that John and Jesus both echo here when they say, “Look!” “Come and see!.”

vv. 37-46 - a purposeful life with Jesus means we personally encounter Jesus

Take note here again the personal and inviting nature of Jesus and his followers. John the apostle, Simon Peter, Andrew, Philip, Nathanial ever and over again, you… come and see, you… follow me. These disciples were drawn to Jesus, there was an allure, an attraction to him and this is exactly what Jesus spoke about in when Jesus spoke of those who would follow him and they would be salt, they would be light. There would be something different about them. There should be something different about you! And I don't mean that to say that we are to go out of our way to be so out their and in your face ...but the testimony of a Christian, whoever you are is always a marvelous and miraculous story!

Illustration

In some of my earlier years interning with youth ministries, I came across one student who I took on a mission trip to Chicago. We had a partnership with a church up there and we got to interact with some of the members there and they shared their testimonies with us and one lady spoke about her previous life of addiction and just how powerfully she was snatched up out of sin and shame by the Gospel of Jesus that she gave up that hard life in exchange for a life full of grace, mercy, and peace. And my friend later that night said, “wow, I wish I could do crack so God can save me.” 

I think little Kevin kind of missed the boat a little bit. He said that all as a joke, but I think that this illustrates something for us, that sometimes we come to a point of doubt because we don’t have some radical testimony that god rescued us out of addiction, poverty, homelessness, whatever; but the truth of the matter is that if you have encountered Jesus personally and you have been changed by him and the life-giving mercy and love that he offers, you have been changed, through and through. A personal and true encounter with Jesus doesn’t make a bad person a good person, it doesn’t make a good person a better person it makes a dead person a living person. 

Encountering Jesus changes you. Receiving him as he is will up-end your life. He comes across Simon and says… no, your name is Cephas, which here it says translates to Rock. Modern day translation? You’re Rocky now. Which I love. I love a good nickname. I think it communicates something special when you address someone by their nickname. 

When I was a freshman in high school on the baseball team, we already had two other people on the team named Eric so the senior took it upon himself to give me another name that day. He looks at me and says, “you’re Ted now.” I didn’t think anything of it but day after day, everyone, only called me Ted. That was in 2006 and to this day I have friends who will only call me Ted or Teddy. People will ask them, “oh you know Eric Warren.” And their response is, “No, I don’t know Eric, but I know Teddy.” Why? Because they’re some of my best friends that I have and they know me deeply and them calling me by my nickname signifies that.

But what is interesting here is that Jesus looks at a man and gives him a name of strength, Rocky, right? But this is a man who would one day crawl out of the boat, he would walk on the water with Jesus and would begin to sink as he feared the storm rather than trusting in his savior. This is a man who would see Jesus persecuted and on trial in the temple court and when asked if he was one of his followers… he folded like a cheap lawn chair. 

Like I’ve said for the past few weeks now guys, when you are in this life-altering relationship with Jesus and God looks upon you he doesn’t see you for your sin and failure but instead sees someone who has been bought with the precious blood of His own Son. Don’t quite feel like Rocky, lately? That’s okay because Jesus is in the business of making broken things… beautiful. This is the power of a personal encounter with Jesus. 

vv. 47-51 - A life lived with purpose, with Jesus, is a life spent continually following Him

Such a simple command, “follow me,” and yet so often we find ourselves struggling with it, don't we? We come up with excuse after excuse, not unlike Nathanael, here. “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” If you don’t know Nazareth, Galilee, Bethlehem, all of these places are in the Israeli countryside so Nathanael hears Philip who had heard from Peter about this “one,” this guy whom fulfills all of this Old Testament law and prophecy and what is his response? 

“The Savior, coming out of that hick town?” You know it would be about the same as me saying, “Can anything good come out of Alabama?” Sorry if you’re from Alabama. 

But again, after a personal encounter with Jesus, Nathanael witnesses Jesus’ ability to see, to prophesy, and Nathanael makes this grand claim, “you are the Son of God, the King of Israel.” What’s Jesus’ response? “Buckle up, you’re in for so much more. You will see angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

What does this mean for you? Guys I hope to learn more and more from you guys as time goes on what has prompted you this life of faith. But I hope that as you come to Jesus you are not doing so because you think Jesus will do some cool parlor trick for your benefit and boom, I believe. But I hope that you take the words of Jesus himself, here and realize that the very movement of heaven hinges on His authority, the angels obey his every command, Paul would say the the is seated at the right hand of the Father, this seat of honor, that He, meaning Jesus has been given the name that is above every name, that He is worthy of all of our praise. 

So much more than some flash in the pan, Jesus is cool, I enjoy my friends and they are Christians so I should follow Jesus too, I hope that you see from the very words of the Bible, from the very mouth of Jesus that this is the God man. Fully divine, fully human, and he was sent here for a purpose, to die as a ransom for many. That is someone worth following. That is something that gives life purpose.

Don’t be seduced into thinking that all of this, this whole life is about you, it’s not. You are called to follow Him. You are called to a life of obedience and most of the time words like that, “following" and “obedience" might not sound all that “fun,” but in that following and in that obedience you will find both a love and a freedom that is unparalleled by anything this side of heaven. 

So if you’re in here and you are still on that fence with Jesus. If you’re like Nathanael and you’re kind of snidely keeping him at arm’s length. I pray that you would hear the call of the savior of the world when he looks at you and says, "come close,” “come with me,” “come be with me.”

But whether thats you or you have faithfully walked with Jesus for sometime now, I hope that in a world that tries to encumber you with finding your purpose in life that you see here a clearly as ever. You were created for a purpose. You were created on purpose. Wherever you may be tonight, I hope that you rest fully assured in the arms of our savior who came and died for you. 

If you need to speak with someone tonight, please do not hesitate to reach out. Your trusted leaders and myself would love nothing more than to remind you of a savior who has dealt with your sin and shame in a way that you are not able to. He hasn’t just cast it aside but he did something far more meaningful. He paid for it. Would you pray with me.