EVANGELISM

“The Witness of Andrew”

John 1:35-42

Introduction: The Man Called Andrew

1.       Andrew was apparently the first disciple of our Lord.  He had been a disciple of John the Baptist looking for the Messiah.

2.       Andrew was convinced that Jesus was the Messiah, Jesus granted him a very special friendship.

3.       He was always helping people (John 6:8-9; 12:21-22)

4.       Tradition says Andrew preached in Jerusalem and was crucified for preaching against idolatry.  He was hung on a cross in the shape of an X.

A.      Important Points for Witnessing

The Doctrinal Statement (John 1:6-8)

John was a man sent from God (v.6)

                John came to bear witness of the Light [Jesus] (v.7)

1.       In order that he might identify the Light

2.       In order that all men might believe.

The Witness of John in Action (John 1:19-34)

Those who actually did believe as the result of John’s witness illustrate the doctrinal statement for us.

1.       Andrew & an unnamed disciple (whom I believe is the apostle John)

2.       Through their witness and the witness of Philip, also Peter & Nathanael.

The Stories of these Conversions Occupies

1.       The Next Three Days of the First Week of Christ’ Ministry

2.       Fills out the next 17 verses. 

I.                   Family Evangelism-The Witness of Andrew

A.      The Lesson

John’s witness resulted in Andrew, Philip & eventually John, Peter & Nathanael becoming the next witnesses.

They all followed the same pattern of witnessing as John did

1.       By not attracting attention to themselves

2.       They bore verbal witness to Jesus

3.       In order for those whom they were witnessing would believe not just to win an argument.

The Story – Read (vv.35-42)

1.       The next day John was standing with two of his disciples near the place where they had been baptizing.

2.       Jesus walked by, after returning the day before from his forty days in the wilderness (Matt. 4:1-11) & John said, “behold the Lamb of God” (v.35-36) & the two disciples followed Jesus.

3.       Jesus saw them following Him & said, “what do you seek?  They answered, “where are you staying” (v.38).

4.       Jesus said, “come and see” they went with Jesus about 4:00 in the afternoon.

What was said that night when they were with Jesus?

1.       We do not know, but the next morning Andrew set out to find his brother Simon Peter.

2.       When Andrew found his brother he said, “We have found the Messiah” (v.41).

B.      A Brother (v. 41)

All true witnessing should begin at Home.

Donald Grey Barnhouse“Even before the Lord Jesus told His disciples that He would make them fishers of men, Andrew witnessed to his brother and landed the big fisherman, Simon Peter.  Many who think that they can be used in far fields have never begun where the Lord Jesus meant them to begin—right at home.

1.       The God of Abraham became the God of Sarah, Abraham’s wife

2.       And then the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.

Household salvation is a very precious truth (2 Timothy 1:5).

1.       It often happens that God uses one of a household to draw the rest to himself.

2.       God calls an individual, & uses him or her as sort of a spiritual decoy to bring the rest of the family to God.

a.       Has God used you in that way?

b.       Do you have a brother or sister who still do not know the Lord?

c.        Are you giving your maximum effort to lead your family to Christ?

                “I have no brother or sister” then lets read on about the witness of Philip (John 1:43-46)

1.       Philip had no brother but he brought his friend to Jesus.

2.       Because of Philips witness Nathanael concluded that Jesus was the Son of God, the King of Israel

3.       Begin with you Friends or Neighbor

4.       He is the one God has placed in your path; it is a witness to him that God has entrusted to your charge

C.      Come & See

If we are to be a successful witness we must meet certain conditions.

1.       A change in our manner of life “a willingness to take second place.”

2.       We must be willing to let Jesus win them through us & not depend on our clever techniques or arguments.

Illustration of witnessing in a waiting room compared to your own brother.

The First Condition – Andrew was one who willingly placed himself second in order that he might bring others to Jesus.

We do not know much about Andrew accept he was Simon Peter’s brother

1.       The story recorded here (John 1:40:41).

2.       He brought to Jesus the boy who had five loaves & two small fish (John 6:8-9)

3.       He brought the Greeks to Jesus (John 12:20-22).

4.       He was always helping people.

The Second Condition – Be willing to let Jesus win them through us & not depend on our clever techniques or arguments.

1.       Andrew did not argue with Peter.

2.       Philip did not argue with Nathanael

3.       They invited the one whom they were witnessing to “Come and see.”

Where did they learn this technique?  From Jesus Himself (John 1:37-39).

The first question that Jesus asked them is “What do you seek?”

1.       This is where we should begin; for the gospel relates to the needs and longing of men.

2.       Some people come to Jesus for the wrong reasons & the result is devastating (Matt. 13:18-22).

The One Who Know Jesus Should

1.       Express His or Her Faith Without Reserve

2.       & Not be ashamed of Christ (Romans 1:16).

D.      Time With Jesus

Before Andrew and the other disciples became witnesses they “Spent Time with Jesus”

1.       It was about the tenth hour when they arrived at the place where Jesus was staying—they spent the night.

2.       We do not know what they talked about

Christ Speaks to the Emmaus disciples (Luke 24:13-32).

Jesus showed them from the Old Testament

1.       Beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself (Luke 24:27)

2.       How it was necessary for Him “to suffer these things and to enter into His glory.”

3.       These two said that their hearts burned within them while Jesus talked with them (v.32)

II.                Credibility: Bridging the Gap

A.      Assurance

On What Do You Base Your Hope for Eternal Life On?

1.       Works, self-righteousness, good deeds, etc.

a.       Paul said, “what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ” Phil.3:7

b.       Are you holding on, or trusting in anything else other than what Christ has done?

2.       Or is it the finished work of Christ death on the Cross at Calvary (John 19:30) it is finished

3.       Paul said, “for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that day—2Timothy 1:12

Paul committed his life to Him – Have you?

You must know that God’s saving Work has been done in your life and that it has been done forever.

If you are uncertain about your salvation, then all your efforts must be expended in solving these problems for yourself.

1.       Sometimes the lack of assurance is due to sin in our lives.

2.       There are those who are not certain of their salvation from week to week.

Martin Luther—starved himself, beat himself, and gave himself to a deep and systematic study of Scripture

1.       His reputation for being a “young saint” spread throughout the other monasteries of Germany.

2.       In spite of all his efforts & discipline, Luther was uncertain about his salvation & no use to anyone. 

3.       It was only after Luther had come to the knowledge of the gospel of grace & was assured of his own salvation that he became a witness to others.

Is this the same with you?

                If you are uncertain about your own relationship to God, you will not be able to witness effectively about Jesus to others.

1.       Periodic doubts about one’s salvation are not necessarily wrong.

2.       Such doubts must be confronted & dealt with honestly and biblically.

3.       Scripture encourages self-examination (2 Corinthians 13:5)

a.       Psalms 26:2 – Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; Try my mind and my heart.

b.       Psalms 139:23 – Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.

c.        Colossians 1:21-23 – are you continuing in the faith, grounded steadfast, & not moved away from the hope of the Gospel?

d.       James 4:4 – are you friends with the world?

Has the gospel become real to you?

1.       Jesus Christ is the Light of the World, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the World.

2.       Is He your light, who has taken away your sins?

3.       Is He your Teacher, your Lord, your Savior?

If he is, then follow in His footsteps standing firmly upon the Word of God which declares:

If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this is the witness of God which He has testified of His Son… And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.   He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.   These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God. (1 John 5:9, 11-13 NKJV)

B.      Still  A Sinner

You are still a sinner even after your conversion, & that in yourself you do not want God’s will.

This also includes witnessing about Him to others.

Your heart is deceitfully wicked.

1.       The Israelites during their march to the Promised Land, rebelled against God’s counsel.

2.       But God kept at them so they would eventually learn that nothing matters but the purposes of God.

3.       God wanted them to determine to do His will even though they did not naturally want to do it.

C.      Surrendered to God

We must recognize that we do not belong to ourselves we are “bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's. (1 Corinthians 6:20).

1.       God does not want a half-hearted commitment (Luke 9:57-62) but a complete one (Romans 12:1-2).

We are like Jacob who had been gone from his homeland for many years because of fear of his brother Esau whom he had cheated out of his birthright.

Read Genesis 32:13-30

1.       We are like Jacob, we go to church and sing, “I surrender all” but we do not give ourselves.

2.       That night the angel came and wrestled with Jacob, and brought him to the point of personal submission.

3.       Through this Jacob became a spiritual man and was used by God to give Israel some Great Revelations in the Old Testament about the coming of the Messiah.

At what period of Jacobs life are you?

1.       Before Jabbok or after Jabbok?

2.       If you are still before Jabbok, when is the angel going to come and wrestle with you?

D.      Time With Jesus

We must spend time with Jesus

If we do not, then our witness, no matter how brightly it shone forth at one time, will eventually flicker & go out.

We are like oil-burning lamps, if we are to shine then two things are to take place:

1.       We must first be lit by Jesus Christ.

2.       We must be fed by Him

Spend in the Light—Time with Jesus in His Word and prayer

1.       In His presence as Moses did (Exodus 33:6-23; 34:29)

2.       In His Word (Psalm 119:105, 130; Proverbs 4:18-19)

Live in the Light—Reflecting Him to a lost dark world.

1.       Ephesians 5:8; Romans 13:11-14; Philippians 2:15

Proclaim the Light—(Matthew 10:27)

1.       Matthew 10:27; 2 Timothy 4:2 cf. Romans 10:15

2.       Matthew 5:14-16 set our light on a candlestick

III.             The Mark of the Christian

E.      Knowledge: Grounded in the Great Truths of Scripture

This does not mean you need to be a Theologian

It does mean that you must:

1.       Understand the basic content of the gospel as it is contained in Scripture & be able to articulate it.

2.       Ministers & believers are called and entrusted with the Gospel (1 Thess. 2:1-4 cf. Romans 10:13-15).

3.       Remember, the gospel is the power of God unto salvation (Rom. 1:16; 1 Thess. 1:5)

What does the word “Gospel” mean?   “Good News”  

                What is the good news?

1.       God has not left us alone in our sin to face the certainty of spiritual death & judgment.

2.       God has come to us in the person of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to die for us.

3.       & on the basis of His death, to offer us the gift of eternal life

F.       You Must Be Planted

What must be true of a seed if it is to sprout and be fruitful?

#1 – It must be alive.

If you are to bear fruit as a Christian you must first of all be alive in Christ (Ephesians 2:1-10 cf. Colossians 3:1-3)

1.       But even a living seed will not produce fruit if it left alone & never inserted into the ground.

2.       It must be planted if you are planted you will bring forth fruit.

a.       Psalm 1:1-3… Jeremiah 17:5-8

b.       John 15:1-5… Ephesians 3:14-17… Colossians 2:6-7

Do not uproot yourself or your roots will never go deep!

G.      Hard Work – Matthew 25:14-27 cf. Matthew 9:35-38 The harvest is truly plentiful, but the laborers are few.

Not all Christians are noted for their hard work or diligence.

In fact, some Christians are quite lazy.

Shortly before His crucifixion Jesus told a story that pointed up to this truth encouraging His followers to be diligent.  

1.       Do we do this?  Sometimes we do.  The Lord places a great opportunity before us.

2.       & instead of considering it an opportunity, we think of it as a burden.

3.       Some Christians seem to think of every opportunity is a burden.

“A person who regards everything as a burden cannot be a faithful servant of the Lord; he cannot even be a faithful servant of men… Our characters need to be disciplined till we cease to find work irksome and can delight in spending time and strength and material resources without stint in order to serve others.”

H.      Characterized by Love – 1 Corinthians 13:1-8

The Final Point is this: If we are to win others for Jesus Christ, everything we do must be characterized by Love.

Is everything I do characterized by Love?

Not in just one area of our live but in all times in all places until the Lord Jesus returns?

1.       Love is & must be the mark of Christ’ disciples (John 13:33-35)

2.       Christ’ disciples must grow more & more in love (Philippians 1:9-10; 1 Thess. 4:9-10)

3.       Christ’ disciples must labor in love (Heb. 6:10 cf. 1 Thess. 1:3)

4.       Christ’s disciples must love in deed and not in word only (1 John 3:18-19)

5.       Christ’s disciples must put on love (Col. 3:13)

6.       Christ’s disciples must love one’s enemies (Matt. 5:44; Luke 6:27-31)