Come And See

There are some things you just have to come and see to really appreciate.

That’s why businesses offer free samples, dealerships offer test drives, TV ads invite you to “come in and see for yourself!”

When the new parents bring home the baby, they have many “come and see moments.” Come and see him smile, come and see her laugh, come and see him wiggle his toes, come and see him eat him take his first steps, come and see her fall asleep eating spaghetti in her high chair. You’ve got to come and see this!

When you see something really unusual, you might have a “come and see moment.” Kids call their parents to come see some strange bug making strange sounds. “Daddy, come look!”

At school or at work you see something funny, something that doesn’t make sense, something that your friends just have to see for themselves. Come and see something unusual, something strange, something wonderful, something funny, something shocking---come and see, come and see, come and see!

Today is a special Sunday we set aside here at Rock Springs when we invite our family, our friends, and our neighbors to “come and see.” We want you to experience something wonderful, something unusual, maybe even something shocking. We want you to come and see something special here, gathered together with God’s people in the Name of Jesus Christ, listening and watching for what He will do in our lives.

To help us do that, I want to talk to you a few minutes about some folks who experienced a “come and see” moment. It wasn’t at a church, but it was a turning point in their lives, and I believe that as you and I read this Scripture this morning, it can be a turning point in your life as well. Read with me in John 1:29-34.

The first “come and see” moment comes for a preacher named John the Baptist and two disciples, or followers. John is one of those fire and brimstone preachers everybody claims to like until he starts he points to you and yells you are going to hell if you don’t repent! He’s popular with common people, but he doesn’t get invited to preach by the stuffy religious leaders. John is very passionate and serious about the importance of personal repentance. If you want to get right with God, John would say, you’ve got to change your evil ways.

But John also preached passionately about another subject: the Messiah, or Christ. Israel expected God to send a Messiah, Somebody who would rescue them from their enemies and make everything right again. Some people thought John was the Messiah, but he told them straight up I am not the Man—but the Messiah is coming soon, and He will rescue His people and make everything right.

And sure enough, vs. 29-34 tell how John recognized Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah as when Jesus was baptized. Immediately John begins to invite everybody to a “come and see moment” in vs. 29 (read.)

Behold=come and see! What? The Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world!

John you call me to come and see, but what am I looking at? What does he mean by the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world?

He’s obviously speaking symbolically. Anybody can see Jesus is a Man, not a sheep. But the people of Israel were very familiar with sheep, especially in relationship to their religion. Part of the daily worship in the Temple was the slaughter of two lambs each day, two lambs offered up before God to cover the sins of the people. Why did God demand this sacrifice? Because the wages of sin is death. Only the death of these innocent lambs purchases the pardon of the sins of the people. These lambs had to be the best, they had to be spotless to qualify as God’s Lamb. When John the Baptist shouted out Behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world! Everyone who heard him already had the image in their mind of the spotless little lambs that would lose their lives that day to cover their sins. John is calling for all the world to come and see this Man Jesus is God’s Lamb Who takes away the sins of all the world not just for a day, but forever!

Through these words, the Holy Spirit calls out to you to come and see the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world. He comes to earth to pay the wages for your sin—your debt of death you owe for all of the evil and wicked things you have done. Go back in your mind and think about the worst sin you can remember ever committing—stealing? Lying? Sexual sin? Hatred? Your sins were the reason Jesus died on the Cross. He died to wash away your guilt so you could be completely and absolutely forgiven.