John 1: 35-51.
John the Baptist points his own disciples to Jesus. He understands his purpose in life is to point people to Christ. He isn't interested in having people following himself, being liked or popular, being surrounded by friends, or getting validated by such. He compels others to follow Christ. Is that what I'm about?
The very first words of our Savior in His adult ministry are recorded here in John, when Jesus notices the two disciples following Him. "What do you want?" I believe this is the deepest, most profound question He can ask us even today. What do you really want out of this life? You need to get this straight. You need to reckon with what is truly important. You have a longing for the real meaning of life. So, I sense Him invading my conscience with this same question today. "What do you want?"
And note, the question comes with a promise, as if from the One who can provide the answer. He is the source of satisfaction, reward, purpose, and meaning. We need to continually go to Him for our validation and identity.
He is saying that what we really want is Him. We so often mistakenly ask for His hand instead of seeking His face. We want His presents instead of His presence. We ask for help, healing, blessings, things to be good and right, etc. He is promising us that if we will truly seek Him, He is the answer to all of our needs.
These two disciples caught on to this. "Where do you dwell?" They wanted to go be with Him. Something stirred in their hearts to forsake everything else and just be with Him. "Come and see", Jesus invited. Do I "be" with Jesus? Am I such a busy "doer" that I miss out on the benefit of my existence as a human "being"? I need to be strong in the habit of spending time with Jesus.
Andrew brought his brother to Christ. Save your family. That's what I get out of that. Bring people to Jesus. His brother is Simon, which can mean "shifting sands". He was son of Jonah, a very unstable, disobedient, and undependable man. Jesus said He would make Simon turn into Peter "rock". Shifting sands turns into rock. That's the kind of benefit we stand to gain if we will follow Jesus. Another interesting point is that Jesus not only accepts us as who we are, but also can see us as He will make us in the future.
Pastor John Courson expounds on the story of Philip and Nathanael: Nathan was under a fig tree, doing devotions, as was common for Jews at the time. The fig tree was a national symbol for Israel. Scholars deduct that Nathan was studying the story of Jacob, the trickster, and how he wrestled with Jesus, who broke Jacob's hip, then dreamed of angels descending and ascending a ladder from heaven. Jesus would change Jacob's name to Israel, even having his twelve sons become the twelve tribes of Israel. Nathan was true in heart, unlike Jacob. So Jesus says, "here is an Israelite with no deceipt", He is blowing Nathan's mind immediately. Nathan has just been reading about the deceitful Jacob. Jesus explains that He saw him doing devotions under the fig tree even before Philip found him. That's all Nathan needs to know to be convinced Jesus is it. But just to completely awe him, Jesus says Nathan will see the angels ascending and descending on the Son of Man. Jesus is stating He is the ladder, or the Way, to God. Nathan must be in shock, as Jesus illustrates and personifies the very picture he was just reading about in the story of Jacob.
