Church researcher George Barna pinpoints the main reason why many believers do not share their faith. He states, “In asking Christians about their witnessing activities, we have found that nine out of ten individuals who attempt to explain their beliefs and theology to other people come away from those experiences feeling as if they have failed.” (1) Many believers feel inadequate in their ability to share their faith, and so they simply do not share at all.
We often feel we must know the correct words to say, and that we must have profound scholarly insight, and be well-versed in apologetics; and then we convince ourselves that we are not smart enough to do anything. Paul stated, “My speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (1 Corinthians 2:4-5).
Evangelism is not about having the right words. It is about being faithful in sharing our passion about what Jesus has done in our lives, and then inviting people to come and see for themselves what He is all about. In our passage of Scripture we will observe how Jesus did not begin with a list of propositions, spiritual laws, theological proofs, and arguments. He only said, “Come and see.” (2) We will come to understand that real evangelism is an invitation to a relationship, and extending an invitation is something that anyone can do. (3)
Jesus Invited Two Disciples of John (vv. 35-39)
35 Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples. 36 And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, “Behold the Lamb of God!” 37 The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. 38 Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?” They said to Him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), “where are You staying?” 39 He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour).
In verses 35-39 we can observe some simple points for evangelism. The passage begins with John the Baptist who had been baptizing in the Jordan River and preaching about the coming Messiah. “Toward the close of the day, when John had finished his work for that day, and the people were departing home . . . John fixed his eyes intently on Christ, [and] with great pleasure and delight, and pointing at Him” (4) he declared Jesus to be the Lamb of God.
When John called Jesus “the Lamb of God” he was relaying centuries of messianic prophecies in just one small statement. For example, the prophet Isaiah pictured the coming Messiah as a lamb that was slain: "He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed . . . He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth" (Isaiah 53:5, 7).
When John declared Jesus to be the Lamb of God he was, in essence, preaching the Word of God. The first simple point for evangelism is that people must hear the Word presented in order to respond in faith. Paul stated, “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? . . . So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:14, 17).
As John declared Jesus to be the Lamb of God and long anticipated Messiah, two of John’s disciples heard what he said; and what these two men heard about Jesus made them curious about Him, as the Word of God pricked their hearts. “The Spirit of God uses the Word of God to show the lost person their need of a Savior. He uses that Word to point them to Jesus. He uses the Word to create a hunger within them for something they do not have.” (5)
These two disciples were hungry for a relationship with Jesus. This is clear from the fact that they had been following John the Baptist. He had been teaching them that the Messiah was coming, and they were longing for a relationship with Him once He arrived. (6) So when John declared Jesus to be the Lamb of God, they quickly followed Jesus.
When Jesus saw them following, He asked them, “What do you seek?” (v. 38). He was asking them to examine their motives in following Him; to do some soul-searching. He also said this to encourage them to speak with Him, for otherwise they might have been afraid. (7) He wanted them to draw close to Him, and open up to confess their need. The second simple point for evangelism is that after sharing the Word, we must ask questions to prompt people to open up and confess their hunger and spiritual need.
These two men responded to Jesus’ question with one of their own: “Rabbi, where are You staying?” (v. 38). They were asking more than just “Where do you live?” These men had heard about Jesus and they wanted to know more. They needed to ask Him some questions and hear Him tell them Who He was and why He came. They were requesting an extended interview with Jesus. (8) Max Lucado says that this was a pretty bold request:
They didn’t ask Jesus to give them a minute or an opinion or a message or a miracle. They asked for His address. They wanted to hang out with Him. They wanted to know Him. They wanted to know what caused His head to turn and His heart to burn and His soul to yearn. They wanted to study His eyes and follow His steps. They wanted to see Him. (9)
The third simple point for evangelism is that we must be open to allow the person to ask questions of their own, and then be willing to answer. Jesus responded to their question of “Where are you staying?” by answering, “Come and see” (v. 39). The invitation to come to Jesus was the invitation to find out for themselves. (10) Commentator John Gill tells us, “He gave them an invitation, to go along with Him directly, and see with their own eyes, where He dwelt, and there and then converse with Him, and at any other time; to which they had a hearty welcome.” (11)
The fourth simple point for evangelism is to extend an invitation to come and see; or to give it a try and see for yourself. Perhaps we can extend an invitation such as, “Come fellowship with me at my church,” or “Come spend some time in my world and see what you think.” Jesus once declared, “If anyone wants to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority” (John 7:17). Jesus basically said, “Just give it a try, and then you will see firsthand that what I have told you is true.”
Jesus invited the two men to lodge with Him and spend the night. The text says, “Now it was about the tenth hour” (v. 39). According to the Jewish method of calculating, figuring twelve hours to a day, it must have been around four o’clock in the afternoon, when there were but two hours until night. (12) Alan Carr says, “It was getting close to dark and these men were anxious to talk to Jesus. They spent the rest of that day, and probably that night, in His presence. They spent the rest of their lives in His service!” (13)
Andrew Invited His Brother Peter (vv. 40-42)
40 One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. 41 He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which is translated, A Stone).
What I want us to grasp from here on out is how Jesus’ followers had learned from His example; and thereby adopted and practiced His style of evangelism. Verse 40 shares that one of John’s two disciples who had followed Jesus was Andrew, which was Peter’s brother. Andrew was so overjoyed with His discovery of Jesus that he just had to tell someone about it. Whenever we come to know Jesus as the Messiah and Savior, who saves us from our sins, then we too should have such an overflowing joy that we cannot contain it!
Keep in mind that all believers are expected to share about Christ. Jesus commanded in the Great Commission, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20a). Even though we are expected to share our faith, some of us tend to view the Great Commission as the “Great Suggestion.”
Since the natural response to finding Jesus is being so excited that we must tell others of our faith, then with whom should we share first? We read about Andrew that “he first found his own brother Simon” (v. 41). Commentator John Gill states, “Before he found any other person . . . [he went] in all haste in search of his relations, friends, and acquaintances, to communicate what he had seen and heard, in order to bring them to the knowledge of the same.” (14) If you feel led to share your faith in Jesus Christ, then it begins with those closest to you, such as your family, friends and coworkers.
Notice how Andrew made reference to the Scripture, just as John the Baptist had earlier done in witnessing to him. He declared to Peter, “We have found the Messiah,” which the text elaborates, “is translated, the Christ” (v. 41). In this one statement Andrew made reference to centuries of prophecies about the long-awaited deliverer, thus allowing the Word of God to stir Peter’s heart to curiosity in the same way it had earlier done for Andrew. He did this with the intention of bringing Peter to Jesus.
Notice what the text says Andrew did next: “And he brought him to Jesus” (v. 42). The purpose in sharing our faith is to bring people to Jesus. “Andrew brought his brother [Peter] to Jesus; he persuaded him to go along with him, and showed him where He was.” (15) He did not expect Peter to accept his testimony right away, but he asked him to personally go and see Jesus, that he might become acquainted with Him. (16) Andrew was certain that if Peter could just meet Jesus that he would be totally convinced of who He was.
The main thing we are responsible for in evangelism is having the courage to invite people to Jesus. We are to testify to others and bring them to the Lord, who will do the rest. (17) You may have heard the expression, “We catch ’em, and He cleans ’em.” This statement is pretty accurate. We can’t change someone’s heart, but we can invite the individual to meet Jesus, or invite the person to church; and if we are faithful, the Lord will do the rest. Knowing that we don’t have to win people to Christ relieves a lot of pressure and fear associated with evangelism.
What Andrew learned about inviting people to Jesus was incorporated into a lifestyle of invitation. There is a good example in John’s account of the feeding of the five thousand (cf. John 6:5-13). When Jesus saw the multitude of people gathered before Him, He asked Philip, “Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?” (John 6:5). Philip was perplexed; but Andrew brought a young boy over to meet Jesus, and Andrew spoke up and said, “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish” (6:9). It was from this child’s bread and fish that Jesus performed His miracle of feeding the five thousand.
Philip Invited His Neighbor Nathanael (vv. 43-46)
43 The following day Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, “Follow Me.” 44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote - Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 And Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
Notice in verse 43 how Jesus extended an invitation to Philip. He said, “Follow Me.” Jesus invited Philip to come and see, and to experience Him firsthand; and when Philip came to know Jesus Christ, He just had to tell someone. The person He told first was Nathanael. We don’t know a whole lot about Nathanael. He could have been either Philip’s friend or his neighbor. What we do know is that he was someone who had been searching the Scripture most of his life.
It is surmised that since Nathanael was called “an Israelites indeed, in whom is no deceit” (v. 47), that he was a faithful Jew who committed himself daily to the study of the Law and Prophets. The first thing that Philip declared to him was, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote” (v. 45). This was a strategic move on Philip’s part, for He knew that Nathanael’s heart was fertile soil in which to plant a seed of faith.
The seed that Philip planted in his heart was the Word of God, just as John the Baptist had done for Andrew, and Andrew had done for Peter. Remember, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Romans 10:17). He reminded Nathanael of what the Scripture had said about the coming Messiah. When Nathanael replied with skepticism, Philip urged him to “Come and see” (v. 46).
What Philip learned about inviting people to Jesus was incorporated into a lifestyle of invitation, just as it was for Andrew. In John chapter twelve we read about how some Greeks had come to Jerusalem to worship at the Passover feast, and they approached Philip requesting to see Jesus (John 12:20-21). Philip told Andrew about it, and they both invited these Greeks to come and see Jesus (12:22).
The Enduring Legacy of Inviting Others
You never know the lasting effects of one small invitation. Andrew invited Peter to come and see Jesus, and Peter eventually became the head of the New Testament church. Jesus recognized his role when He declared, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas,” which the Scripture adds, “is translated, A Stone” (v. 42). In Matthew, Jesus addressed Peter, declaring, “I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church” (Matthew 16:18a).
Philip invited Nathaniel to come and see Jesus, and Nathaniel became a faithful disciple of Jesus, who later began inviting people to Christ. This can be observed in John chapter twenty-one where Nathaniel is listed as one of the disciples who went fishing with Peter, Thomas, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples. They had fished all night long and caught nothing; but when Jesus told them to cast their net on the other side of the boat (John 21:1-5), “they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish” (21:6).
For a disciple of Christ, fishing is a metaphor for being a fisherman of men (Matthew 4:19). The lesson that Jesus taught His disciples was that no one can lead an individual to the Lord apart from His help. Jesus was sharing this lesson in order to make Nathaniel and the others better witnesses. Nathaniel became a fisherman of men, continuing with the task of inviting people to “come and see” Jesus.
I wish to share an illustration about one Sunday school teacher who was faithful to invite his students to come and see Jesus.
Edward Kimball was concerned about one of his young Sunday school students who worked at a shoe store in town. One day Kimball visited him at the store, found the student working in the back stocking shelves, and led him to Christ then and there. Dwight L. Moody eventually left the shoe store to become one of the greatest preachers and evangelists of all time.
Moody, whose international speaking took him to the British Isles, preached in a little chapel pastored by a young man with the name of Frederic B. Meyer. In his sermon Moody told an emotionally charged story about a Sunday School teacher who personally went to every student in his class and led each of them to Christ. That message changed Pastor Meyer’s ministry, inspiring him to become an evangelist like Moody. (18)
Meyer was encouraged to reach out more to the lost, and he became one of England’s most sought-after preachers. He published many books, which are still being used today to encourage faith in Jesus.
Meyer spoke regularly in the United States. On one of his evangelistic tours there, a young student named Wilbur Chapman professed faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Chapman, believing the importance of challenging people about faith in Jesus, for years to come, toured the United States with the message that Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
To help him spread the Good News, Chapman asked a young convert named Billy Sunday to help him with his evangelistic efforts. Billy Sunday was an ex-baseball player, and was a very popular evangelist, greatly used of God for the salvation of lost souls.
In 1924 Billy Sunday held an evangelistic campaign in Charlotte, North Carolina. After the meeting, a number of men met together regularly to pray for conversions. Ten years later they held a prayer meeting on the property of Frank Graham. They were praying about a forthcoming evangelistic campaign. One of the men prayed that out of their own area the Lord would raise up one who would preach the gospel faithfully. During that campaign Billy Graham was saved.
Because of what Edward Kimball did for the Lord, countless souls have found the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. The number of people who have been converted through the chain of events started with Edward Kimball is incalculable. And we must remember that people are still being converted through that chain of events, which continues today. (19)
If you will be faithful to invite just one person to come and see Jesus, it could change the world!
Time of Reflection
I wish to close by asking, “Have you ever been invited by someone to come and see Jesus?” If you are not a believer - meaning that you have never confessed Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior - then I want you to know that you are not here this morning by accident, for you were led here by the Holy Spirit; and because you are here today, you’ve had an opportunity to hear Jesus say, “Come and see.” The Scripture declares, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!” (Psalm 34:8).
The Lord invites all to come and see Him for who He really is; to taste of His mercy, His goodness, and His grace. Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:29); and in the book of Revelation, John declared, “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who hears say, ‘Come!’ And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely” (Revelation 22:17). Will you come today and receive eternal life?
NOTES
(1) Donald S. Whitney, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life (Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 1991), pp. 102-103.
(2) Bob Kaylor, “Come and See,” posted March 14, 2011, TypePad Blog: bobkaylor.typepad.com/bob_kaylor/2011/03/come-and-see-john-143-51.html (Accessed October 27, 2011).
(3) Ibid.
(4) John Gill, John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible, Bible Study Tools: www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/gills-exposition-of-the-bible/john-1-36.html (Accessed October 27, 2011).
(5) Alan Carr, “Great Bible Invitations - Sermon Number 7,” The Sermon Notebook: www.sermonnotebook.org/new%20testament/John%201_35-42.htm (Accessed October 27, 2011).
(6) Ibid.
(7) John Gill, John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible, Bible Study Tools: www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/gills-exposition-of-the-bible/john-1-38.html (Accessed October 27, 2011).
(8) Alan Carr, “Great Bible Invitations - Sermon Number 7.”
(9) Max Lucado, Experiencing the Words of Jesus (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2008), p. 3.
(10) Cornelis Bennema, Encountering Jesus (Colorado Springs, CO: Authentic Media, 2009), p. 48.
(11) John Gill, John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible, Bible Study Tools: www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/gills-exposition-of-the-bible/john-1-39.html (Accessed October 27, 2011).
(12) Ibid.
(13) Alan Carr, “Great Bible Invitations - Sermon Number 7.”
(14) John Gill, John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible, Bible Study Tools: www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/gills-exposition-of-the-bible/john-1-41.html (Accessed October 27, 2011).
(15) John Gill, John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible, Bible Study Tools: www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/gills-exposition-of-the-bible/john-1-42.html (Accessed October 27, 2011).
(16) Ibid.
(17) Cornelis Bennema, Encountering Jesus, p. 48.
(18) C. Sumner Wemp, “A Nobody Named Kimball,” sumnerwemp.com/witnessing/a_nobody_named_kimball.htm (Accessed October 27, 2011).
(19) Elizabeth Fulcher, “Faithful Edward Kimball,” Staincliffe Baptist Church: staincliffebaptist.com/#/edward-kimball/4523276728 (Accessed October 27, 2011).
