Skip to main content

Come and See

Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, who abides in which of us. Amen.

Our gospel story today begins with an image that the Jews of Jesus’ day would have easily understood. When John saw Jesus coming toward him, he said, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” The mention of the “lamb “would have surely reminded those listening of the Passover lamb. At the first Passover, described in Exodus 12, as the Hebrews prepared to flee their slavery in Egypt, a lamb without blemish was to be sacrificed by each household and the blood applied to the doorposts of that home. When the final plague, death of the firstborn, began, the blood on the doorposts caused the angel of death to pass over the homes of the Hebrews. Now, centuries later, John offers a new Passover Lamb, one that will be the ultimate sacrificial lamb. Although his followers wouldn’t have fully understood what that meant at the time, their curiosity led them to follow Jesus to see just what this “Lamb” would mean for them. This is how, according to John, Jesus’ ministry began.

Until this point, we have not heard from Jesus in John’s Gospel, but as John’s disciples follow Jesus, suddenly Jesus’ ministry begins with a question and an invitation. Jesus’ first words in John’s Gospel are not a sermon or some powerful lesson; Jesus begins his ministry with a question to those who are following him. “What are you looking for?” But as you now, oftentimes in the English translation we don’t get the full richness of the words as they are stated in the Greek. From the Greek, we could just as easily translate this, “What are you seeking?” or “What do you hope to find?” or “What do you need?

It’s a great question, and one we rarely ask or try to answer in church, which is a shame because our consumeristic culture asks and answers it all the time. We hear it in advertisements all the time, don’t we? “What do you need?” quickly becomes, “I know what you need – a new pair of running shoes, a more expensive car, whiter teeth, to lose ten pounds,” all of which, we’re told, can be had for a price and eventually. After being asked and told so many times, we finally wear down and begin to believe that true happiness and satisfaction can be found in these substitutes for what we really need, and that is love and healthy relationships.

Today we are challenged to think about this question in a new and hope-filled way. What do we really need, long for, or hope for? Is it relationship in a world in which we are increasingly isolated? Is it community in an individualistic and often lonely culture? Is it the chance to serve and be connected to others in a world that encourages putting yourself first? Is it hope and courage when headlines inspire fear and despair? Is it a way to find rest and renewal in a 24/7 world where our relentless schedules have become a badge of honor and are regularly substituted for meaningful activity and necessary rest?

So let’s get back to the story. After Jesus asks the disciples what they are seeking, they reply by asking another question, “Rabbi” (which, translated, means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?” Again, our translation is a little lacking. What they were really asking was where he was dwelling or abiding. They want to know where they can come and simply be with him. And that leads to Jesus’ invitation. In response to their question, Jesus doesn’t offer an answer; he issues an invitation, an opportunity for them to come and be in relationship with him. Jesus knows the only way they will truly understand who and what he is will be for them to be in relationship with him. They need to experience who he is. That is also true for us today. We cannot truly understand who Jesus is or what our faith is all about unless we can experience our faith. When people have questions about their faith, we don’t have to have all the answers, but we do need to able to joyfully offer an invitation to come and see, or to come and experience this thing we call the Christian faith.

Jesus’ invitation is really quite simple: “Come and see.” It’s nonthreatening, it’s clear, and it’s something any of us can say. And in Jesus’ invitation we see that we, too, are called to be an invitational people. I am not saying we need to be intrusive and forceful with others, but when the opportunity arises and others around us are seeking to know what it means to be a person of faith, instead of giving them some fancy answer all we need to do is be brave enough to say, “Come and see.” Today we are challenged to be willing to always be ready to offer a simple invitation to other people seeking something more than the culture has to offer: come and see. The point here is not to get more people to church or to stop decline, but rather to invite people into the joy and life we have experienced in Christ. This is really what being a Christian is all about. It isn’t about growing our numbers so we can have more people in the pews or get more money for our budget, but it is about inviting others to experience a relationship with Christ that can be life changing.

So often I hear how difficult it is to share our faith with others, but the truth of the matter is all we need to do to share our faith is to offer an invitation to others to come and experience our faith. The invitation is as simple as, “Come and see what it is like to serve at Children’s Memorial on a Saturday afternoon.” “Come and see what it is like to have a meal with friends at Oasis every Wednesday evening.” “Come and see what it is like to serve those in need in the wider community through our Pantry Pack program.” “Come and see what it means to be with people who will love you and accept you as you are.”

The disciples wanted to know about this lamb who would sacrifice his life for others, and when they were willing to get to know him he transformed their lives. Today we are invited to be like Jesus and invite the world to come and see. We are challenged to invite others to come and experience the love of Jesus and we, too, are invited to “come and see” who Jesus is. We are reminded that God’s forgiveness and love proclaimed in Jesus Christ is meant to be good news for us and for all people. As we encounter Christ, our lives are changed. Like John and Andrew in today’s gospel, we are called to share with others who we have seen Jesus to be. Amen.

Tags: Sermons