God Will do Great Things with You!

John 1:35-42

John 1:35-42.

They said to Him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), “where are You staying?” ³⁹ He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour).

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

Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which is translated, A Stone). In today's world there are only a few famous people. When you stop and think about it, most of the world is made up of people who will never gain international, national, or even local notice.

There are plenty of "nobodies"around, and most of us would fall into that category. Before you get offended or upset with me, let me say that I don't think that is bad thing at all! As a matter of fact, where would most famous people be without the influence of normal, everyday 'nobodies'?

Have you ever considered the person that visited the shoe store where Dwight L. Moody worked and challenged him to give all to the Lord? What about the elderly woman who prayed faithfully for Billy Graham for over twenty years?

Pick a truly important figure, and you will find that there was someone who had great influence in their lives that no one knows anything about!

Let us to consider a 'nobody'from the pages of Scripture, and the impact that his faithfulness had on the entire world. Story about choosing a team member in the school. If your team doesn’t win, you may not be chosen to be a captain anymore. You must make your choices in a hurry because you don’t have much playing time before the bell rings.

It’s not always easy to make choices. It’s especially difficult when other people are affected by your choices. The Lord Jesus is making some choices. It was the day after His baptism. John the Baptist witnessed the voice from heaven and the Spirit descending as a dove, and he had proclaimed that Jesus was the Messiah.

This was to be the first day of Jesus’ discipleship ministry. It was time to begin choosing “His team”. These men whom Jesus would be training, and who would continue the ministry after Him. It was also a day when He would be getting some help in the selection process.

Greatest statement by John and best scripture is from the gospel of John.

John 1:14-16, And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. ¹⁵ John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ ” ¹⁶ And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. John written this Gospel by the eyewitness so that, through his inspired testimony, we could join him in the seeing His glory.

This glory of Jesus who is God incarnate is full of grace and truth, and we receive grace when we see his glory. Jesus is the Goal of John the Baptist Ministry. Apostle John shows Jesus to be the goal of John the Baptist’s ministry.

V 35–37, Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples. ³⁶ And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, “Behold the Lamb of God!” ³⁷ The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. These are John the Baptists disciples.

Suddenly they are gone. They follow Jesus.

This is very humbling for John. His following and his ministry are vanishing. Jesus will one day be named as the Leader of 2.1 billion people worldwide. The point of John’s ministry was to call our attention to the superiority of Jesus.

John 1:20, He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.”

John 1:27, It is He who, coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.”

John 1:29-30, The next day John 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 is preferred before me, for He was before me.’

John 3:27-30, John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. ²⁸ You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before Him.’ ²⁹ He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. ³⁰ He must increase, but I must decrease. I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.

The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore, this joy of mine is now complete. The increase of Jesus is the goal of John’s ministry.

Jesus is the Sin-Removing Lamb. Jesus is followed as “the Lamb of God,” the sin-remover of the world. V 29, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” To call Jesus the Lamb of God meant that finally, at the climax of Israel’s history. God was sending the final sacrifice for sin that would end all other sacrifices.

Jesus would die in our place the way the Lamb was sacrificed in the Old Testament in place of the sinner. The connection between verses 36 and 37 means that the reason that John the Baptist’s disciples left John and followed Jesus is because Jesus is the sin-remover.

This discipleship is first and foremost the expressed need for a saviour from our sins.

Following Jesus is not heroic. We follow Jesus not the way David’s mighty men followed him to serve him and protect him as their revered sovereign. No. We follow Him the way sheep follow the shepherd. Because we need to be protected.

We need to have our sins forgiven.

• We are weak, and He is strong.
• We are foolish, and He is wise.
• We are hungry, and He is bread.
• We are thirsty, and He is living water.

The point of the connection between verses 36 and 37 is that following Jesus calls attention to his strength, not ours.

• His goodness, not ours.
• His wisdom, not ours.

Jesus made this crystal clear.

Mark 2:17, When Jesus heard it, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

The reason these two disciples of John left Him and followed Jesus was because Jesus is the Lamb of God.

• They are sinners.
• Jesus is the sin-remover.

That’s part of the fullness of His divine glory, and that’s why His glory is full of grace and truth. This grace is coming to you right now.Receive it. Jesus is the giver of spiritual sight. V 38–39, Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?”

They said to Him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), “where are You staying?” ³⁹ He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour).

Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” They said to Him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” 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 [that is, about 4 p.m.—the tenth counted from 6 a.m.]. Here we begin to see the multi-levelled meanings in some of John’s simple language.

Regularly in this Gospel people are talking at the physical level, and Jesus is taking their language and leading them deeper to the spiritual level using the same language.

For example

 Nicodemus is talking about physical birth, and Jesus is talking about spiritual birth (John 3:3– 8).  And the woman at the well is talking about water from the physical well, and Jesus is talking about spiritual water that he will give (John 4:7–14).

 The crowds asked for physical bread, but Jesus meant that he was the living bread (John 6:30–51).  The Pharisees deal with a man who was given physical sight in John 9, and Jesus speaks of spiritual sight. Verse 39: “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.”

There were people who followed Jesus, seeking the wrong thing.

John 6:26, “You are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.” Jesus is asking John’s disciples here: What are you seeking? I think he would ask you the same question.

What are you seeking? They do not go to that level. They simply ask, “Where are you staying?”—we are seeking your address. As usual, Jesus is patient with this kind of response, and He gives them another chance. Only this time, It is not a question but a command with a promise.

V 39, “Come and see.” On one level, it could mean simply: You will see where I am staying. But in the mind of Jesus and the mind of John this meant is that if you truly come to Me, you will see spiritual reality. You will have spiritual sight.

Coming to Jesus in John’s Gospel means again and again entrusting yourself to Jesus and receiving His promises.

John 5:40, But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.

John 6:35, And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.

John 6:37, All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.

John 6:44, No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.

John 7:37, On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. So, they come to Him, and they stay with him the rest of the day. V 40–41 show that they have indeed “seen.” “ One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. ⁴¹ He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated, the Christ). Jesus began the relationship by saying, “What are you seeking?” (verse 38).

We hear Andrew say to his brother, “We have found the Messiah.” At first, they were only seeking where He was staying. Then because they came to Him and spent time with Him, they saw. Andrew was a Nobody. Usually noted as Peter's "brother."

He is only mentioned by name in twelve verses. In eight of those verses, he is referred to as Simon Peter's brother. He is nearly always mentioned second. In lists of the apostles, he is in middle. Andrew wasn't included in Jesus'inner circle. (Peter James and John) Yet he was one of the first two humans to follow Jesus.

Don’t you think that was important? But there is no evidence that Andrew ever got resentful; he just kept following Jesus.

Andrew brought people to Jesus. 1. The first thing we read of Andrew doing after he was introduced to the Savior, was to go get his brother, Peter. V 40.

2. When the young boy with 5 loaves and 2 small fishes came to him, he brought the boy to

Jesus.

John 6:8-9, One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, ⁹ “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?” 3. When there were some Greeks who were looking for Jesus, it seems Philip didn't know what to do, but Andrew took them to Jesus.

John 12:20-22, Now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast. ²¹ Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” ²² Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus.

Most of us are not bold leaders, but we all can be like Andrew.

• Importance of sowing seed.
• Witnessing with giving out tracts is great.
• But many are hesitant, because they don't know answers to hard questions.

Some simply don't know their way around Bible, but if we can't witness with confidence, we need to take them to someone who can point them to Jesus. We can invite our friends to Sunday School and church. There they can hear and learn of Jesus Christ.

How can we bring people to Jesus?

• Have desire for them to be saved.
• Pray for them.
• Tell them what Jesus did for us; give them our testimony.
• Invite them to a place or an event where they will hear gospel.

1 Corinthians 1:21, For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

God can do a work in their lives, but a person must hear the Word to be saved!

Romans 10:13-14, For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” ¹⁴ How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? Evangelism done one-by-one.

• Mass conversions are very rare.
• Great movements are usually one-by-one.
• Even with Jesus, they came by ones and twos.
• Evangelism from personal contact.
• Few are saved from telecasts or radio broadcasts.
• Most who are saved in church services are there because they were invited by a friend or neighbour.

Personal work has no substitute. Start right now and begin to invite friends to come. Don't be discouraged if they do not come the first time they are invited. Persistence with prayer will prevail. We set of to start a great year.

We can look back with many regrets of what we could have or maybe what we should have done differently. But we cannot go back and change anything! Each day that we awake, God in His great grace has given us another opportunity to be an Andrew.

We may feel like we are 'nobodies’ but look at the souls that were won through the great ministry of Andrew's brother. Thousands of people turned to Christ as a result of his preaching! Who is waiting for us to bring them to Jesus?

Perhaps there is one here today who needs to come and trust Christ as their Saviour.

Romans 10:9, that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Alexander Whyte pastored a large church in Edinburgh, Scotland. During that time a salesman by the name of Rigby would travel to Edinburgh regularly just to hear him preach. He would often invite other businessmen to accompany him to the services. One Sunday morning he asked a fellow traveller to go to church with him. Reluctantly, the man said yes. When he heard Whyte’s message, he was so impressed that he returned with Rigby to the evening meeting. As the preacher spoke, the man trusted Christ as his Saviour.

The next morning, as Rigby walked by the home of Pastor Whyte, he felt impressed to stop and tell him how his message had affected the other man’s life. When Whyte learned that his caller’s name was Rigby, he exclaimed, “You are the man I have wanted to see for years!”

He went to his study and returned with a bundle of letters.

Alexander Whyte read Rigby some excerpts – all telling of changed lives. They were men that Rigby had brought to hear the gospel. Like the Samaritans who had been led to Jesus by the woman at the well, these men “believed in Him because of the word” of Rigby.