Sermon Tone Analysis

The Call of Christ

Introduction:

The Gospel of John begins and ends with the same themes.

First is Christ Revealing Himself.

John 1:9 Jesus is “the true light, which gives light to everyone..” Jesus is also referred to as the “Word”- John says (Jn 1:18) “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made Him known.”

Jesus reveals God the Father.

Just as our words reveal our hearts.

John 21 Jesus reveals Himself to the disciples while they are fishing.

When they are on the beach eating with Him He gives this call “Follow Me”

Here the text that we are looking at today, we see this same call to, “Come and you will see” (John 1:39).

John Points to Jesus

Is repeated in again at the very beginning of our text, “Behold the Lamb of God.”

This is the Gospel message.

Christ had to come as the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world,” revealing God in order for us to know.

We see the pattern Christ came God revealed to John (Jn 1:32)

“ John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him.

33 I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’

34 And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

John borne witness to what God had revealed to Him.

Christ came as light to those in darkness revealing God the Father to sinners who were lost.

In John Chapter 1 we see Christ revealed as

The Word

The Lamb of God

The Son of God

Rabbi “Teacher”

Messiah “The Lord’s Anointed”

King of Israel

Son of Man

It Is because Jesus was revealed that here in John 1:35-42 Jesus gains his first disciples.

The first two we see attach themselves to Christ because of the witness of John the baptist.

What was this Testimony?

The lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

This is important because the people wanted a savior that would free them from the Roman control and establish a new kingdom here, and sit on a thrown here on earth.

But Christ is first revealed as the Lamb of God.

This is the true Gospel.

Charles Spurgeon said, “ You all know the old, old story.

The world was lost; God must punish sin; he sent his Son to take our sin upon him that he might honour the law of God, and establish God’s government by being obedient to the law, and yielding himself up to the death-penalty.

He whom Jehovah loves beyond all else came to earth, became a man, and, as a man, was obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

It is he who is called in our text “the Lamb of God”, the one Sacrifice for man’s sin.

There is no putting away of sin without sacrifice, and there is only one Sacrifice that can put sin away, and that is Jesus Christ, “the Just for the unjust,” the sinless for the sinful, “that he might bring us to God,” and reconcile us to the Father.

This is the testimony that John gives pointing to Christ the perfect Sacrifice for the sins of the world, When he says, “Behold the Lamb of God.”

This is our ministry to our friends, family, co-workers.

Behold the Lamb of God.

The who died in our place for we could have redemption of sins.

We don’t sell a cheap gospel “come to Jesus and get everything you want”, “having hardships come to Jesus and He will just take it away,” “hurting come to Christ and you will get healed.”

No it is “Behold the Lamb of God who died so that we who are unworthy, can now be washed clean.”

Eph 2:1,5 We were dead in our trespasses and sin, but God being rich in mercy made us alive- hallelujah for the Cross

Jesus Invites Them to Come and See

This is an amazing invitation that Jesus offers these two men who had just heard John’s witness and started to follow Him.

This is the begging of their intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, An Invitation.

Jesus calls to come can be seen in Matthew 11:27-28, “and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

After staying with what happens?

Andrew brings his brother Peter to Jesus.

This message of the Messiah organically begins to spread.

First John, then Andrew and the other disciple, and now to Peter.

All through testimony

It was a simple message that we see again later in the text with Nathaniel “Come with me and see.”

Bringing others to Christ, the only one who can save, the only one who can restore, the only one who can give forgiveness of Sins.

This is our message, Christ has revealed Himself as our savior, and now we say to others come with me and see the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

Jesus Changes Simon’s Name

When Simon comes to Christ he is assigned a new name.

John 1:42, “You are Simon the son of John.

You shall be called Cephas” (Which means Peter)”

This is a declaration of what Peter will become.

This is not so much a merely predictive utterance as a declaration of what Jesus will make of him.

There is a pattern that is taking place here.

In John 1, the focus is much less on what this name change means for Peter, than on the Jesus who knows people thoroughly (cf.

vv.

43–51), and not only ‘sees into’ them (cf.

47–48) but so calls them that he makes them what he calls them to be.

God Saw Nathanael long before He saw Jesus.

Philip is called by God to “follow Him” (John 1:43) Nathanael.

John 1:45, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the law (and so did the prophets): Jesus the son of Joseph from Nazareth.”

The term “the Law and the Prophets” commonly referred to the entire Old Testament.

This is the stance of the entire Gospel of John: Jesus fulfills the Old Testament scriptures.

Everything was pointing to Jesus.

Jesus says John 3:14-15, “ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.”

Philip is saying “all of the writings have pointed to this Jesus,” which John the baptist has already shown, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”

This Lamb that God provides is far better then any passover lamb, because God in not just passing over their sins with His sacrifice, but He is removing them.

Nathanael is so honest in his response, John 1:46, “Can anything Good come out of Nazareth?”

“how can this even be?”

“Come and see” This response is both a challenge to Nathanael as it is an invitation to us the readers.

Philip brings Nathanael along with him to Jesus.

Philip didn’t have to have all the answers but he brought Nathanael to the one who was the answer.

What do we see?

Nathanael was willing to examine for himself the claims being made about Jesus.

For us we don’t have to have all the answer but we say “come with me, and we will see.”

Philip found Nathanael and witnessed to him.

That has been the foundational principle of truly Christian expansion ever since: new followers of Jesus bear witness of him to others, who in turn become disciples and repeat the process

What we see is that God is sovereign over Salvation.

Christ had to reveal, had to come as the Lamb of God, and had to call us in order for us to “follow Him.”

There is this tension that happens salvation and that tension lies between God’s Sovereignty an our responsibility.

Not is our ability.

For we were dead before God made us alive (Eph 2:1-5)

Jesus would later go one in John 3 and speak of being born again- All of us had no control in our birth.

Happened and here we are, so it is with our spiritual birth, it is and act of God, not by our ability.

Jesus sought Nathanael way before Nathanael ever confessed Jesus to be “The Son of God” and “the King of Israel”

What we need to understand is the purpose of the Gospel of John and that is found in John 20:31, “ but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”

In this text we saw four men come and believe that Jesus is the messiah.