Look! There is Jesus!

JtB—The first missionary sending agency

When couples get together, it’s always interesting to hear how they met and got together. To hear the story of their relationship.

Heidi and I met at Rosedale. We were introduced by a mutual “friend” named Jesse who was dating a girl in my home community in Delaware. I first met Jesse when he came to visit this girl and went on our youth campout with us. Jesse and I shared a tent and he began to ask me about my life and my work. I was roofing at the time but I had dreams of doing something else and wasn’t very happy where I was at. Jesse began putting the idea in my head of coming to Rosedale and seeing what would transpire from there. “And besides”, he said, “There is this girl there whom I think you should meet”.

I thought it was a pretty good idea and began putting in my application to come to Rosedale. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to me, Jesse had returned to Ohio and began talking to this girl and telling her, “I have a friend who is coming to Rosedale and you need to “stay single” until he comes.”

A few weeks before the term started, I had the opportunity to drive out there and spend a few days visiting. The first thing that Jesse did was to take me down to the Rosedale campus in order to introduce me to “this girl” that he thought I should meet.

We found this girl, Heidi, but she was doing KP and couldn’t talk. So Jesse convinced another girl to volunteer and take her place so that Heidi could come out to the cafeteria and meet me.

As I recall, that first meeting didn’t go so hot. Heidi kind of ignored me and I didn’t really think much of her either. I didn’t know that she had had some trouble with Jesse prior to this which had diminished her view of him. And because I was Jesse’s friend, I was in the same boat.

But when I returned for semester, Heidi and I began striking up conversations, mainly over the lunch table and a friendship started to develop. And she began to realize that I’m not quite as bad as she feared that I was.

Long story very short, 22 years later, here we are. And we are glad for someone who introduced us to each other.

For those who are married, you can probably recall how and when you met. And we like these stories. Even us guys who like to pretend that we aren’t interested in that sort of thing, we still remember that first time that this lady caught our eye.

But an even more compelling story is the one about how we met Jesus.

How does that story go? Who introduced you to him? Maybe you grew up walking with Him for as long as you can remember.

For others of us, there is probably that time that we can point to and say, “That’s when I realized who Jesus is”

Today we are going to read about some guys who were introduced to Jesus and how that changed them. What did they do after they were introduced.

This appears to take place the day after JtB had his exchange with

the Jews who were challenging his ministry

John 1:29–31 ESV

29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.”

John 1:29-

John 1:35–51 ESV

35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38 Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” 39 He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. 40 One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. 41 He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). 42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter). 43 The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” 47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” 48 Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” 49 Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” 50 Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” 51 And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

The next day: the day after verse 29

New Living Translation (NLT)

Jesus, the Lamb of God

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 He is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘A man is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me.’ 31 I did not recognize him as the Messiah, but I have been baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel.”

32 Then John testified, “I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him. 33 I didn’t know he was the one, but when God sent me to baptize with water, he told me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God.[a]”

The First Disciples

35 The following day John was again standing with two of his disciples.36 As Jesus walked by, John looked at him and declared, “Look! There is the Lamb of God!” 37 When John’s two disciples heard this, they followed Jesus.

38 Jesus looked around and saw them following. “What do you want?” he asked them.

They replied, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”

39 “Come and see,” he said. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon when they went with him to the place where he was staying, and they remained with him the rest of the day.

40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of these men who heard what John said and then followed Jesus. 41 Andrew went to find his brother, Simon, and told him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means “Christ”[b]). (John includes this explanation for his Gentile, Greek speaking audience)

42 Then Andrew brought Simon to meet Jesus. Looking intently at Simon, Jesus said, “Your name is Simon, son of John—but you will be called Cephas” (which means “Peter”[c]).

43 The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Come, follow me.” 44 Philip was from Bethsaida, Andrew and Peter’s hometown.

45 Philip went to look for Nathanael and told him, “We have found the very person Moses[d] and the prophets wrote about! His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth.”

46 “Nazareth!” exclaimed Nathanael. “Can anything good come from Nazareth?”

“Come and see for yourself,” Philip replied.

47 As they approached, Jesus said, “Now here is a genuine son of Israel—a man of complete integrity.”

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

Jesus replied, “I could see you under the fig tree before Philip found you.”

49 Then Nathanael exclaimed, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God—the King of Israel!”

50 Jesus asked him, “Do you believe this just because I told you I had seen you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this.”51 Then he said, “I tell you the truth, you will all see heaven open and the angels of God going up and down on the Son of Man, the one who is the stairway between heaven and earth.[e]”

Behold, the Lamb of God

29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

I wonder what his listeners thought when he said this.

Did they know the verse from Isaiah that talked about the future Messiah being led as a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep before the shearers is dumb

Whatever it was that they knew or realized, John identifies Jesus as the one of whom he spoke of the day before

John—”Look, there is the Lamb of God!”

The last time we talked about JtB we noted that he was well aware of who he was and what his role was. He knew that he was not the Christ, nor anyone extremely important. But he was the fulfillment of a prophecy saying that someone was going to come an announce the coming of the Messiah

In fact, he was so dedicated to his role that when he first saw Jesus, he didn’t even know who he was

he didn’t say, “sure I’ll announce his coming, but I should probably do a background chekc on him first

He simply knew that he was to announce the coming of the Messiah and baptize folks for the repentance of sins

And we also noted the last time that JtB was very popular and that the crowds from all around were coming to him to hear him preach and to be baptized.

And he was gathering his own following of disciples because he was regarded as a teacher and as a leader.

But when he baptized Jesus and the Holy Spirit showed up, JtB suddenly knew whom he had just baptized. It was the Messiah! It was the one for whom John had been preparing the way

And I believe that at that point, JtB knew that his mission was over. He had done the work that he had been sent to do.

Because after the Jews come and challenge him and he sees Jesus, he says, “Look! There is the Lamb of God! He’s the one that I’ve been telling you about! This is why I have been baptizing with water: to prepare the way for this man!

John is the first person to refer to Jesus in this way

JtB didn’t understand nearly everything about the kind of Messiah that Jesus was, but he did know through the power of the Holy Spirit that Jesus was the One who would take away sin for all time!

JtB understood that the entire OT sacrificial system pointed forward to the arrival of this man, Jesus.

And how the hearts of his listeners must have leapt at that announcement, both in amazement and in consternation.

Here is the Lamb that will take away sins, once and for all! No more sacrifices

“The sins of the world!?” You mean, not just of the Jewish people, but of the entire world, including the Gentiles?

But when JtB announces the Lamb of God the first time, we don’t see anybody responding.

But the next day, again JtB sees Jesus. This time he has a couple of his disciples with Him.

So again, he says, “Look! There is the Lamb of God!”

In my mind’s eye, I see him looking pointedly at his disciples, urging them to understand the significance of what he is saying to them

Look, I’m pointing you to the One that I’ve been talking about! You should not be following me, any more. There is the One whom you should be following!

Again, JtB would have had every “right” to hang on to his followers to bolster his own self-importance, to make him feel like he was accomplishing something.

But instead, he cuts them loose. He says, “Guys, I’ve been preparing my whole life for this moment, and I have been preparing YOU for this moment. Go! Follow Him!”

You know, it’s a temptation for me and probably temptation for all of us to measure ministry effectiveness by how many people are in these pews.

Don’t get me wrong. I would love to see standing room only in here!

A few weeks ago, when Amos Raber was here and these pews were so well filled, I found myself thinking and dreaming: what if there were this many people here every Sunday morning?

Shortly after I started here, I said something that I really meant and that bears repeating: I am not so concerned about the numbers of people sitting in our pews, but with rather with our heart toward Jesus and how we are doing in following what He has called us to do.

But the reality is, I would love to be sending folks out into the harvest just as fast as they are coming through the doors.

This was John’s attitude. He didn’t try to hang on to his disciples, but rather said, “There He is, guys! Go follow him and learn what He wants you to do. You are His disciples now!”

And so they follow and we see what they do.

Andrew—Look! Here is the Messiah!

Andrew, the brother of Peter was one of these disciples

He and his friend immediately follow Jesus.

Jesus turns around and says, “What are you seeking?” Not “whom” but “what”.

Jesus is encouraging them to put their thoughts into words and say what is on their minds

They say, “Teacher” where are you staying?

I used to think that this question was kind of strange response. Kind of like a kid caught eating candy when he hasn’t asked. “What do you have in your mouth?” “Ummm....the wrapper just fell off and I had to eat it” Amazing what kids will come up with. Very creative

“Quick, quick, think of something to say! Umm....Teacher, where are you staying?”

But maybe that’s not it at all. Just maybe they want to know where He lives because they want to come and stay with Him because they want to be His disciples.

So Jesus says, “come and see”

And what is the first thing that Andrew does? Before he comes to Jesus’ house, he says, “Wait, there’s something that I have to do first” (my words)

He runs and finds his brother, Simon. He tells him, “We have found the Messiah!”—The Chosen One

In Greek, “Christ”

Again, Andrew could have felt all self important because the Messiah wanted HIM to come and stay at HIS house.

Instead, excitement overtakes him and he just has to go out and find someone to share it with!

Philip—Look! Here is the fulfillment of the OT!

After this, Jesus goes to Galilee, back to his home territory

The first thing he does is find Philip, who was from the same city as Andrew and Peter…probably knew them too

And Philip runs and finds Nathaniel (who we later learn is from Cana, Chapt 21:2)

He tells him, “We have found the One of whom Moses spoke about in the law, and also of whom the Prophets spoke about”

Philip realized that the OT law pointed toward the coming of the Chosen One, the Messiah. The one who would be the fulfillment of the Law

I love the excitement of these early Jesus Followers. They instinctively did what we should all be doing: telling others about Jesus!

And the news spread

JtB had laid the ground work by making and maturing Andrew and possibly Peter.

I want to show you something. Do you remember how at the beginning of this study, we talked about how John and his brother James, immediately left their fishing boats and nets and followed Jesus?

There might be a reason for that.

Jesus was baptized in, or close to, the Jordan River just north of the Dead Sea where JtB was baptizing.

This is also where he ran into Andrew and Peter! Where were they from? Bethsaida, on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. Andrew, at least, was a disciple of JtB.

But when we read about their interactions, we don’t read about Jesus calling them to follow Him.

Where did that take place? According to Gospel of Mark, on the shores of the sea of Galilee, where we see not only Peter and Andrew tending their nets, but also James and John, who wrote this Gospel.

So it looks like when Jesus called them by the shores of the Sea of Galilee, that they already knew who he was! Not only but judging from the speed at which James and John left their nets, Peter and Andrew had told them about Jesus as well!

And the rest is history!