Jesus Calls You - Finding Jesus part 2

Introduction

Welcome we are in a new series called finding Jesus. The central theme is this. Everything we believe as Christians rises and falls on a man named Jesus. If what Jesus says is a lie then we are the ones to be most pitied but if what Jesus says is true then this changes everything

I’m not sure of everyone’s background religious upbringing or if you call yourself a follower of Christ or not. Regardless I’m so glad you are here please know this is a safe place to explore the claims of Christ. Trying to understand some of these claims made by Jesus we have begun to walk through the gospel of John. Today we are in John 1:35-42

Lets read John 1:35-37

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

John was standing next to two of his disciples. Men who John had begun to invest time into. Then one day John walked by Jesus and said to his disciples behold the Lamb of God. Then suddenly these two young men that John had been investing time into suddenly leave and start following Jesus look at

vs 37

“The two disciples heard him say this and they followed Jesus”

Do you think John was upset? How would you feel if someone you had been investing all your time in just picked up and left? Found a new job moved to another state for a better opportunity

Or maybe you can relate to a kid moving on to college for a better opportunity. The truth is it hurts

Watching people move forward in life even if it is for a better opportunity never feels good. It can hurt and be very painful. But here is what I have learned about pain and suffering

Bold point; People are not so much against suffering as they are with suffering for no reason

We will gladly suffer if we think it will make us skinner for summer

We will gladly suffer guys if we think it will make us look jacked for summer

We will gladly suffer if we think those investments will make it worth it in the end

The truth is pain can actually be one of the key ingredients to success. Again do you think John felt pain when his two disciples left him? I don’t know. The bible does not say

But if we love that person then even though it hurts we also are happy for them. We also want that person to move forward. I also imagine John was a good teacher and worth following. Its not that John was not worth having disciples its that the disciples found someone who was worth giving up something good for

Bold point: Jesus was worth is worth giving up something valuable to obtain something more valuable

For example I love fishing mountain biking and anything outdoors. I will make sacrifices to save up and buy that next outdoor thing I want. Maybe it is a fish finder maybe a new brake system for my bike. I will even give up enjoying certain treats such as eating out so that I can afford to get something that I find worth sacrificing for. I will suffer through the pain of not getting those amazing honey butter rolls from Texas Roadhouse so that I will have more money for my new fish finder

Here is the thing. If I’m willing to sacrifice for a new fish finder. If I am willing to give up things that I enjoy so that I can afford that next best thing

How much more should I be willing to sacrifice for Jesus? I think John felt the pain of watching his disciples go but the joy of knowing they found the one true Christ far exceeded his pain of losing his disciples

Matthew 13:44-46 44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field

45 “Again the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls 46 who on finding one pearl of great value went and sold all that he had and bought it

Again: Bold point: Jesus was worth is worth giving up something valuable to obtain something more valuable

The word that John uses to describe Jesus is the “Lamb of God.” There is a very specific place in scripture that comes to mind when I hear Jesus described like this

Revelation 5:2-6

2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” 3 And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it 4 and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it 5 And one of the elders said to me “Weep no more behold the lion of the tribe of Judah the root of David has conquered so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals”

6 And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a lamb standing as though it had been slain with seven horns and with seven eyes which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth

Jesus was God’s sacrificial lamb and a sacrificial lamb was born with one purpose and that was to die. Jesus the lamb of God slain for the sins of the world. If I’m willing to sacrifice for a fish finder then how much more am I willing to sacrifice for the Lamb of God who sacrificed everything for me

For example

I really want to go on that exotic vacation. But then I can’t afford to go on the mission trip

I really want to get that new electric E-bike. But then I won’t be able to give money for my kids to go to church camp

I really want to follow Jesus but I just want everything else also

See you can’t actually have both. Now I’m not saying you should not get that new fish finder or go on the vacation. What I am saying is that if that thing you want controls your life to the point that you would sacrifice intimacy with Jesus then we have a problem

Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money”

In vs 37 John’s disciples made a decision to stop serving John and start serving Jesus. It was not oh well we will be John’s disciples on the weekends but during the week we will serve Jesus

What did John’s two disciples do? They left and followed Jesus

And John was proud of them. John counted Jesus’ sandals more worthy than him John 1:27 “he who comes after me the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to unite”

Lets keep reading in vs 38a

“Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them “What are you seeking?”

That’s a great question and it is a great question for you and I. What are you seeking?

Are you seeking a man?

Are you seeking a woman?

Are you seeking money?

Are you seeking fame?

Are you seeking to be accepted?

Are you seeking to stand out?

Are you seeking that promotion?

One of the guys I meet with on Tuesday mornings pointed out and I think he is right

Many today are seeking meaning

And you know what? I think that is what these two disciples were seeking after also

Keep reading in vs 38b “And they said to him “Rabbi (which means Teacher) where are you staying”

Now that’s a strange way of saying hello to someone. Where do you live? Where are you staying? Imagine I just asked you where do you live? But what were they doing? They were seeking to spend time with him

Notice what they call him. They called him Rabbi. This meant they were seeking to be discipled by him. In other words we want to follow you. Your meaning will give us meaning. So they ask where are you staying? Let us stay with you

The word teacher here is an interesting word. This depicts very well with a bible verse in

Matthew 23:9-10 that says 9 “And call no man your father on earth for you have one Father who is in heaven. 10 Neither be called instructors for you have one instructor the Christ

Now obviously we have fathers on earth. We also have teachers here on this earth. So what does it mean to not call anyone father or teacher? It means who is your ultimate authority. Christ. Christ should be your ultimate authority. Everything about the Christian faith rises and falls on this man named Jesus. You’re not following a religion. You’re following a man named Jesus. Who is the Christ and because of this you are a Christian

I love Jesus’ response to his new disciples. Where are you staying? Jesus responds in

vs 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

The tenth hour probably just means 4-5pm. Don’t ask me why. That’s just how the Jewish calendar works. It means 2 hours before sunset. Jesus says “Come and see.” I find this interesting because think about the verse

Matthew 8:20 “And Jesus said to him “Foxes have holes and birds have nests but the son of Man has nowhere to lay his head”

Now could Jesus have been talking about his desire to be with the Father here or was this a literal translation of his sleeping arrangement? Probably a little of both

Regardless as followers of Christ I believe we must be willing to follow Christ even if it costs the comfort of our own bed. Even if it costs us the comfort of our own home. Jesus said a lot of confusing things. This was not the first one. Remember when Jesus said if your eye causes you to sin then pluck it out or if your hand causes you to sin cut it off. Well if we took the verse literally I’m not sure that there would be a single Christian walking around today who would have any eyes or hands

The hard truth about Jesus is that

Bold point: Jesus is worth following but it could cost you everything

I think as Christians we must at some point make the honest ask what are we willing to give up for this man named Jesus

Lets keep reading

John 1:40-41 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)

So we see Andrew one of the first disciples to ever follow Jesus who then goes to his brother Simon and tells him of Jesus. But notice that Andrew was not alone. There were two disciples. So who was Andrew with? Well most bible scholars tend to believe that this was probably John himself. John the apostle

But notice

What was Andrew’s first response? To go and tell the person that was closest to him. Andrew did not keep Jesus to himself. He went and told the person who probably meant the most to him in the world. How could you not? If we have the greatest news in the world that is to give people life and give them an eternity with the Lamb of God. How could you not tell the people in your life who mean the most to you?

Sharing the gospel starts with your family

I know that can be hard to hear because some of us would rather tell anyone but our family. But God did not give you the family you have by accident and if not you then who. Your witness starts in your home. Sometimes as followers of Christ we become so busy with sharing the gospel of Christ to others that we ignore the very people we love the most

Now I know it’s not always easy reaching family. Even Jesus himself found reaching family to be difficult. Maybe you might want to write these two verses down

Mark 6:4 4 And Jesus said to them “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household”

John 7:5 5 For not even his brothers believed in him

So you’re not alone. Just remember God did not call you to save your family only to love and share the gospel with them

Then in vs 41 notice how they call Jesus the Messiah. This is important because this word Messiah goes all the way back hundreds of years before Jesus was ever on earth. Jeremiah Ezekiel Isaiah and other minor prophets all prophesized of this coming Messiah who would save God’s people and bring eternal redemption to God’s people. The very promise Davidic covenant the promise that God gave to David promised of a Messiah who would come and rescue God’s people. The Messiah means Christ which is chrīstós meaning anointed one. This was the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world establish a new Jerusalem create peace on earth

Lets keep reading

John 1:42 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)

So he

“You shall be called Cephas (which means Peter)

Cephas which is Aramaic and which means Peter and that really does not mean much to us but in Hebrew it means Rock. Its like Jesus gave Simon the nickname Rocky. However if we dive in a little deeper here the word Peter translates Petros which means stone or pebble. A word that would be used to describe a small rock you found on a creek bank. Why is this important? Well because there are those who might translate this along with

Matthew 16:18 And I tell you you are Peter and on this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it

From this many people have used this scripture to describe Jesus as the foundation of the church. However this is not the word used to describe rock here. The word here is petras which is the feminine word used for rock that describes the foundation of rocks connected together. Maybe this would make a little more sense if we were to read this passage as a whole and not just take one verse out of context

So let’s back up to Matthew 16:13-18

13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi he asked his disciples “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said “Some say John the Baptist others say Elijah and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets” 15 He said to them “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied “You are the Christ the Son of the living God” 17 And Jesus answered him “Blessed are you Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you you are Peter and on this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” 20 Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ

Ah notice that in vs 13 Jesus asks the disciples who do you think I am? Not who do you think Peter is? Then Peter says “you are the Christ the son of the living God.” So it’s Jesus’ confession that Jesus is acknowledging as the rock of the church not Peter. This changes everything. Why? Because Peter is not the head of the Church Christ is

Colossians 1:18 says And he is the head of the body the church. He is the beginning the firstborn from the dead that in everything he might be preeminent

1 Corinthians 10:4 says For they drank of that spiritual Rock (Petra) that followed them and that Rock (Petra) was Christ

Never in scripture is Peter referred to as Petra but Petros

In Matthew 16:18 they are identifying Jesus as the Christ the Petra the head of the church the Messiah the Lamb of God. Everything in the Christian faith rises and falls on the claims of Christ. Jesus changes everything

Jesus must become your greatest authority

The question though is just as Jesus said in John 1:38 what are you seeking?