1 May 2008
In the Gospel of John we find the apostle telling us the story of Jesus from the perspective of the people He encountered, their interaction and how they responded to His teachings. Matthew, Mark and Luke mostly tell us what Jesus did; John tells us what Jesus taught. And it was to that teaching that people, the powerful and the commoner alike, were challenged to decide who Jesus was and whether or not they would follow Him.
John tells us of different people who met and heard Jesus, and who then went to find others, telling them what they had heard and who they believed Jesus to be—the Messiah sent by God to save the world. These people John portrays include names we recognize like Andrew and Philip (who introduced Peter and Nathanael to Jesus), and the religious leader Nicodemus. But the characters also include a woman whose lifestyle kept her on the fringe of polite society, a man with a disability and unnamed foreigners who were seeking spiritual truth among the Jews. In other words, the people who we meet on the pages of the fourth Gospel are a lot like us, people from every walk of life. Just by writing of their encounter with Jesus and their desire for others to also meet Him, we realize that Jesus came for all, none are considered ineligible to receive Jesus’ message, none are barred from His love.
So what was their approach to others? Did they repeat His teachings or try to explain His persona or debate why He was so popular? We aren’t told all of their conversations, but what we see is that each of these people who were drawn to Jesus, to what He said, to how He lived, to what He promised, simply wanted others to also find what they had found. So to those they sought to influence, who they desired to discover what they had come to know, their explanations and exhortations all ended with one challenge, “Come and see!” In others words, their efforts to persuade could only go so far. For another to come to the same conclusion, the only way was for them to also meet this amazing, marvelous man of God. Only through their own encounter would they be able to believe; only through their own discovery would they also become His disciple.
Their approach is still valid today. (Read through John, especially chapters 1,3,4,5,9 and 12, to see their effort to introduce their friends to Jesus.) Even after 2000 years, we who have decided to follow Jesus, who believe that He is both Lord and Savior, still want to introduce others to Him so they will find the same life and love that we have found. But too often we make this opportunity too complicated or we try to explain the wrong things. We, just like Andrew or the woman at the well, have met the only One with the answers to our deepest need and questions, and we want others to also meet He who has the words of life. Why, then, do we find it easier to talk about programs, policies or politics instead of Christ? Why do we end up discussing ethics, doctrines and ideology instead of the Lord?
Yes, these topics are important at the right time. But what people really need, and what is of first importance, is for them to meet Jesus! That is where we should always start. We should always suggest to any we talk to about our faith that they should “Come and see!” For ultimately it doesn’t really matter to others what we believe as much as Whom we follow. Our beliefs won’t save anyone—but Jesus will. Let’s do as those who met Jesus did—introduce our friends to the Lord of Life. “Come and see!”
Denis Whittet
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