John 1:35-42

John 1:35-42

On the next day, John had again been standing with his two disciples and after looking at Jesus while he walked by he says, “Behold!  The lamb of God!”  And his two disciples heard while he said this and they followed Jesus.  And after Jesus was being turned around and after watching while they followed Him, He says to them, “What do you all seek?”  And they said to Him, “Rabbi,” – that which is said while being translated as teacher – “Where are you staying?”  He says to them, “Come and see.”  Therefore they came and saw where He stays and they stayed with Him that day for it was the tenth hour.  One out of the two that heard from John and who followed Him was Andrew the brother of Simon Peter.  He first finds his own brother Simon and says to him, “We have found the Messiah” – that is translated Christ.  He led him to Jesus.  After observing him Jesus said, “You are Simon son of John.  You will be called Cephas” – which means Peter.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Notice that Andrew and a second disciple follow Jesus well before they are a part of His “in crowd.”  For the record, church tradition holds that this second disciple with Andrew is John the Gospel writer.  Andrew and John follow Jesus before they have any official interaction with Jesus.  They are curious.  They want to know more.  They don’t need Jesus to invite them in; they follow out of their own curiosity.  Yes, eventually Jesus does invite them to “Come and see.”  But that only happens after Jesus notices them following Him around in the first place.

Are you naturally curious about Jesus?  Do you seek out people who can teach you more?  When you look around you, do you see people who are actively seeking out Jesus or people who are passively waiting to be invited in?

Second Thought:

In this passage we see what being a disciple of Jesus is all about.  John the Baptizer leads Andrew and John to Jesus.  Andrew leads his brother Simon (Peter) to Jesus.  Tomorrow we’ll hear another story about this to reinforce this point.  What is the very first thing we hear about disciples doing?  Disciples open avenues for other people to come to Jesus.  It is our primary goal in life.  It is our fundamental goal in life.  It is what drives us.  It should be our identity.

Honestly, how many people do you know who are “in the church” and who are leading other people to Christ?  What conclusion can we reach about the modern church’s understanding of being a disciple of Jesus compared to the early disciples?

Third Thought:

I am always amazed at Jesus when I hear about His first interaction with Peter.  Jesus looks at Simon and immediately names him Peter (Greek) or Cephas (Aramaic).  Both of those names mean “rock.”  Jesus looks at Peter and sees a rock.  On one hand, rocks are hard and difficult to penetrate.  Sometimes when I look at Peter’s progression as a follower of Jesus and all the mistakes he makes I cannot help but wonder if Jesus had this understanding of a rock in mind.  But the greater understanding is that when Jesus looked at Peter He saw someone upon whom He could build.  Peter had what it takes to become a firm foundation.  Peter had the character upon which Jesus could build faith.  Even so, it would take Jesus three years of intimate training to get Peter to the point of beginning to lead.  It would take Peter even more years before he would truly be a competent leader.  Even in all of this, Peter would have his difficulties – after all Galatians 2:11-14 tells us that Peter and Paul even had their differences!  When Jesus looks at Peter, He sees what Peter will become, not what he currently is.  That is what it means to see through the eyes of God.

Why can this perspective on Peter be inspiring?  What can we learn from Jesus’ willingness to mold and shape Peter over the years?

Passage for Tomorrow: John 1:43-51