Come And See Series

Rafael Antonio Lozano, a computer programmer from Plano, Texas, was a man with a mission. In 1997, he began a quest to visit every company-owned Starbucks on the planet. At the time, there were only 1,304 such stores worldwide.

Since then, Lozano, who calls himself Winter, has spent over $150,000 on the project, drinking an average of 10 cups of coffee a day. Once, he spent $1,400 on a plane ticket to purchase a cup of coffee from a Starbucks in British Columbia before it closed. And he plans on visiting his 19,000th Starbucks before the end of the year (2023).

Despite his impressive pace, Winter is realistic about the nature of his quest. Several years ago, he said, “As long as they keep building Starbucks, I'll never be finished.” He is also realistic about the importance of his mission. “Every time I reach a Starbucks, I feel like I've accomplished something,” he said, “when actually I've accomplished nothing” (Jayne Clark, “Sooner or Latte, He'll Get There,” USAToday.com 10-13-05; Lyn Mettler, “This man has spent $150,000 trying to visit every Starbucks shop in the world,” TODAY, Aug. 30, 2019; www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100092166492280; www.PreachingToday.com).

Some people seek after the strangest things. Tell me. What do you seek? What do you live for these days? What is your mission in life? Well, if you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to John 1, John 1, where Jesus asks that question of His first followers.

John 1:35-38 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” (ESV)

What?! Is that all? They could have said, “We are seeking the world. We are seeking eternal life. We are seeking a place beside You in Your Kingdom. We are seeking to be whole. We are seeking a bright future. But no. They simply ask, “Where are you staying?” Literally, “Where are you abiding.”

This is the first of 40 times the word “abiding” appears in the Gospel of John. It’s an important theme in the Gospel, which describes the union of the believer with Christ (cf. John 15:4ff). You see, these two disciples wanted to abide with Jesus, to remain with Him, to live with Him. So they ask, “Where are you abiding?” And Jesus answers with a simple invitation.

John 1:39 He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour (ESV)—or 4 o’clock in the afternoon, since their day started at 6 a.m.

Jesus invites all who would follow Him, “Come and you will see.” You must first come and then you will see. You must first come to Jesus. Then you will find what you seek.

When Jesus walked by and John declared, “Behold, the Lamb of God,” two of John’s disciples left John to follow Jesus. Perhaps, they were looking for someone to take away their sins. What about you? Do you seek freedom from the guilt and pain of your past? Then come to Jesus and…

FIND FORGIVENESS IN HIM.

Discover a clean heart when you choose to come to Christ. Secure release from your guilt and shame when you choose to follow Him.

Peter Grant talks about visiting Scotland, where he saw lots of sheep. Among those sheep, he saw a little lamb running around the field with an extra fleece tied around its back. There were little holes in the fleece for its four legs and a hole for its head. He later learned its mother had died.

Now, without the protection and nourishment of a mother, any orphaned lamb would die. If you take an orphaned lamb and try to introduce it to another mother, the new mother will butt it away. She smells a different scent and refuses to care for a baby from another mother.

Thankfully, the flock was large enough to include a ewe that had recently lost a lamb. So the shepherd skinned the dead lamb and made its fleece into a covering for the orphaned lamb. Then he took the orphaned lamb to the mother whose baby just died. She sniffed the orphaned lamb and smelled the fleece of her own lamb. As a result, she did not butt the lamb away, but accepted it as her own (Peter Grant, In What Way Is Jesus Christ Different? www.PreachingToday.com).

Similarly, Jesus, the Lamb of God, died on a cross for your sins. So, when you trust Christ with your life, God clothes you with His own Son’s righteousness and accepts you as one of His own.