Come and See!

Life on Mission: Come and see!

This is exactly how Jesus began his journey with his initial followers. I am not asking you to buy in all at once—you just start with an invitation to come and see.

John 1:35–39 (NIV)35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” 37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?” 39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”

He invited them to experience His presence and his peace His preaching and His Power.  The were awed by what he said and doubly awed by what he did.

• Three Movements of the Invitation:
• 1) It always starts with Curiosity (hope)
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God often uses our questions to pull us closer.

Jeremiah 29:13 “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

• Curiosity can be the first step toward Christ.
• 2) Take and Action Step
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Faith is always a verb before it’s a noun.

• Billy Graham once said, “The greatest act of faith sometimes is simply to take the first step.”
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James 4:8 “Come near to God and He will come near to you.”

Where are your faith steps today. 

• Faith grows when you move, not when you stand still.

Curiosity, Action step…

• Discovery (Stay and See)
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John 1:39 Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.

Psalm 34:8 “Taste and see that the Lord is good.”

C.S. Lewis put it beautifully: “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen—not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.”

40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ).

Andrew’s curiosity led him to spend time with Jesus and his first response was to get his brother.  I have to tell him what I have discovered.

This is how our Christianity works.

• The closer you walk with Jesus, the clearer life becomes. He turns shadows into light, confusion into clarity, and despair into hope.”
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“When you stay with Jesus, you don’t just see life differently—you live it differently, because He changes everything you see.”

42 And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).

I love this.  He is connected to Jesus by his brother and in his first encounter Jesus sees past his name sake, his old identity and speaks to his future.. You will be called.

When Jesus met Simon, He gave him a new name:  By renaming Simon to Peter, Jesus was speaking over him the person he would become, not just the person he was in that moment.

• Simon in Hebrew means he has heard. It represented Simon’s past identity.
• Peter (Rock) symbolized stability, strength, and the foundational role he would play in the early church.

43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

 46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked.

“Come and see,” said Philip.

• Relational evangelism is how the world will be reached.
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We have provided a place for Jesus to be experienced.  To feel his presence to sense his peace…..Oasis is and extension of the heart of God….a place to come and SEE

For seekers: You don’t need to have everything figured out. You don’t need all the answers. Jesus isn’t asking for perfection. He’s just inviting you to start.

For believers: Be like Andrew. (John 1:41–42 – Andrew immediately brings his brother Simon to Jesus.) Someone else is waiting for your invitation

You don’t have to convince anyone. You just need invite them Jesus’ first words to the disciples were, “Come and see.” Philip’s words to Nathanael were, “Come and see.” And now those words are in your mouth.

• “Found people find people.”
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• “Evangelism is just one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread.” – D.T. Niles

Who do you need to invite this week? Who in your life is just one invitation away from meeting Jesus?

Matthew 11:28–30 – 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Revelation 3:20 – “20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”