The Gospel of John, chapter 1:
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
The FIRST part of chapter one tells us who Jesus is:
Jesus is the Word, Jesus is the Creator. He is life. He is Light. Verse 14 tells us, "The Word became flesh" (God became flesh, The Incarnation).
Jesus is God.
The SECOND part of chapter one tells us how to respond to The Incarnation.
Verses 10-12 tells us, "He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God." Many did not recognize Him. Many did not receive Him. But to those who did, to those who believe, he has given the right to become children of God. How awesome is that?
The Christmas Story in the Gospel of John is far different than the account in Matthew and Luke. There is no baby, no Mary and Joseph, no angels, no shepherds. But there were four wise men.
FOUR WISE MEN
1. JOHN THE BAPTIST
John 1:6-9 "There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world."
In John 1:27, John the Baptist says about Jesus, "He is the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”
And then in verses 36, John the Baptist says, "Behold, the Lamb of God!”
JOHN THE BAPTIST'S RESPONSE: BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD (That's a pretty profound response!)
Think about how significant the lamb was in Jewish culture.
a. It started with the Passover: When God brought the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt. He instructed the Israelites to take a lamb, slaughter it, and smear the blood on their door post. Then the angel of death would "pass over" their homes and spare their lives. The Jewish people have been celebrating Passover ever since.
b) Temple worship: God commanded each family bring a lamb to the Temple each year on the Day of Atonement. The father of the family would bring a lamb to sacrifice. He would lay his hand on the head of the lamb and confess the family’s sins. The symbolism was obvious: The father was identifying with the lamb. The lamb was dying in his place. The sins of the family were being covered by the blood of the lamb.
John the Baptist looks at Jesus and says, “This Person, this man, is the Lamb of God.” (That’s not what they had been expecting. They had never thought of the lamb as a person). But John said, “It’s always been about him. Everything written in the Old Testament about a lamb has been pointing to him.”
He was saying, “The Lamb and Messiah are the same person.” That would have blown their minds.
John says, “Behold him!” (“Look at Him! Recognize Him! Pay attention to Him!”)
The admonition is still relevant today: You cannot appreciate the good news until you understand the bad news. You have sinned. You deserve the wrath of God. But God sent Jesus as a lamb to die for your sins, so His wrath would pass over you.
Jesus is the Lamb sent for you. Behold him! Consider what his coming means about you.
2. ANDREW (one of John the Baptist's disciples)
John 1:40-42 "Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus.
The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus."
ANDREW'S RESPONSE: “We have found the Messiah." ("Found" - EUREKA! (The Greek is literally "Eureka! The Messiah!")
To anyone new to Christianity, let me explain. "Messiah" is Hebrew (The Old Testament was written in Hebrew). In Greek, it is "Christ" (the New Testament is written in Greek). "Christ" is NOT Jesus' last name (The Bible says "Jesus Christ" 134 times. It says Christ Jesus 86 times). It's NOT His last name. It's His title. Christ means "Anointed One" in English.
In the Old Testament, God instructed Priests, Prophets and Kings to be anointed. Nowhere in the Old Testament was anyone ever anointed to be all three (Priest, Prophet, King). But, it was prophesied that One was coming who would be anointed all three, the Messiah. He would fulfill all three offices.
And Andrew says "That's Jesus! He is the Messiah" (How profound is that?)
NOTE: "Andrew brought Peter to Jesus" (v. 42)
I read this week, the word "Brought" is the word used for taking hold of an animal (or even a prisoner) to lead him somewhere. This puts the image in my head that Andrew literally drug Peter to Jesus. He was INTENTIONAL... PERSISTENT... PASSIONATE... He didn’t take no for an answer!
AND NOTE: Peter’s new Identity! V. 42 Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon, son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).
Peter is NOT seeking a new name, but Jesus gives him one that prophecies his future.
In v. 42, Jesus goes through 3 forms of Peter’s identity: “Simon,” (that’s his current name) “Son of John,” (that’s his heritage; his past) and then ‘Cephas,’ which means “rock,” (a picture of what Jesus is going to make him into). That was all in their first conversation! What an introduction!
There’s an IMPORTANT LESSON here for us:
When you come to Jesus,
1) you cease to be defined by your past--who your parents were
2) or your present, what you’ve accomplished or your mistakes and failures
3) and you start to be defined by who Jesus is making you into and the plans he has for you.
He knows who you are; he knows who you were; and, most importantly, he knows who he is shaping you into.
Let me ask you: What “name” has defined your past and present? What names have been assigned to you by your Enemy? (Stupid. Unloved. A Failure. Difficult. A Problem. A Burden. Not Enough. Addict. Broken. Damaged goods. Criminal.) That might be accurate based on who you WERE; it might even be who you ARE, But Jesus calls you by a new name and says, “That’s not who you will be. I give you a new name: Beloved. Chosen. Adopted. Children of God (JN 1:12), Redeemed. Restored. A rock for my church. A fountain of blessing. A co-heir and co-ruler. One who shines like the stars in the sky. That’s your new name. That’s what I’m calling you - beginning right now!"
(TS) Well, Peter ISN"T one of the four wise men in the Gospel of John. Peter doesn't say anything wise until you get to the book of Acts. John The Baptist was wise. Andrew was wise.
3. PHILIP
v. 43 The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.”
It's amazing how NON-spectacular, NON-sensational Philip's conversion is. Jesus simply says to him, "Follow me" and Philip follows (Jesus had to knock Paul to the ground and blind him with light to get him to follow)
PHILIP'S RESPONSE: HE FOLLOWED
What does it mean to become a Christian?
According to the Gospels, very simply, to follow Jesus. It’s not about being perfect; it’s not knowing all the Bible. It’s just following Jesus.
Ray Vander Laan, says the greatest praise you could give to a disciple was “the dust of your rabbi is all over you.” (That didn’t mean “You’re dirty! You need to go take a shower!") It meant, “You have followed your rabbi so closely that you’ve heard everything he said, seen everything he’s done, and everything he’s stepped in has splashed up on you.”
Ray Vander Laan’s says the definition of a disciple is: “...someone who seeks not only to know what his master knows, but also to do what his Master does.”
a) So, the first part is KNOWING: You want to know what your master knows. You say, “But I’m not really an academic kind of person.” You don’t have to be. If you’re in love with somebody, you’re going to learn all about them—and that’s a big part of the Christian life.
b) The second part is DOING. (WWJD: What would Jesus do?) It comes from an old book written in the 1890’s by a guy named Charles Sheldon called In His Steps-- It’s the story of a really wealthy young adult who took this invitation to imitate Jesus really seriously, and he started to ask himself, in every situation: ‘If Jesus were in my place, what would he do? WWJD if he had my resources? WWJD if he was presented with these alternatives I have in front of me?
PHILIP'S RESPONSE:
v. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
"WE HAVE FOUND (EUREKA!) THE ONE MOSES WROTE ABOUT, AND WHO THE PROPHETS WROTE ABOUT (What a profound insight!)
(TS) And that leads us to
4. NATHANAEL (Barthalomew)
v. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
NATHANAEL'S RESPONSE: (v. 46) Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”
Nathanael seems to me to be the Eeyore of the disciples (pretty negative). Nathanael asks "Nazareth?" (Where everybody chews tobacco and dates their cousins) “Can anything good come out of there?”
a) Philip & Nathanael
PHILIP'S RESPONSE: COME & SEE (Great evangelism strategy! Don't argue with them. Just say, “Come see for yourself.”)
Some of you have a friend you want to tell about Jesus, but you don’t, because you are afraid of how they are going to react.
Follow this example of Philip. Jesus doesn’t need your help converting them, he’ll do that.
Just tell them your story, like Philip did, and when they ask you an antagonistic question, you say, “Come and see for yourself.”
Come to our Christmas services with me. Let’s read the Bible together.” COME & SEE
b) Jesus & Nathanael
v. 47-49 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”
NATHANAEL'S RESPONSE: “RABBI, YOU ARE THE SON OF GOD... THE KING OF ISRAEL”
Jesus says, “I saw you under the fig tree” and Nathanael responds, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” (Pretty radical!)
I think the only reason Nathanael would respond that way is if something was happening under that fig tree that was so personal and so private for Nathanael that Jesus knowing about it indicated to Nathanael that Jesus knew EVERYTHING about him.
I like the way THE CHOSEN depicts this: They show Nathanael under the fig tree at the end of his rope, his dreams and his spirit utterly crushed. He’s been betrayed and his dreams are destroyed. He’s barely holding on to life.
Q. Do you have a fig tree that represents your deepest hurts, deepest shame:
Q. What’s it like for Jesus to say to you, “There. I saw you there.”
I think that phrase, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” - indicates that Nathanael had been falsely accused and everybody thinks he’s guilty. And Jesus says, “I know the truth; I know the injustice you’ve endured. I see you.”
Q. What if there was a Savior who knew everything about you? Who understood you when no one else did? Who knew all your sin and shame, and loved you anyway?
Q. Would you follow him?
v. 50-51 Jesus answered (Nathanael) him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”
That phrase, “The angels of God ascending and descending” is a reference back to something in the Old Testament.
Q. Does anyone know what Jesus is referring to? (Jacob's Ladder)
Genesis 28, Jacob, the younger son of Isaac, is running for his life. His older brother, Esau, is trying to kill him because Jacob had cheated him out of his birthright. Jacob is at the end of his rope. His father, who had protected him from Esau for all those years, has just died, so now Jacob is completely vulnerable.
And that’s when he has a dream, and in that dream, he sees a “ladder” between heaven and earth. And on this ladder, Jacob sees angels going up and down.
Angels are the military might of Heaven. We know they are terrifying to behold, because every time in the Bible somebody encounters an angel, the angel’s first words are, “Fear not! Don't be afraid!” So, Jacob has this dream of a great ladder on which Heaven’s mighty militia are traveling to and fro, and the promise is that this might is going to now assist Jacob in his journey. Jacob has been a liar and a cheat, but God promises his help to him anyway.
Jesus then draws a parallel to Nathanael. “You, Nathanael, you are like Jacob: Vulnerable. Friendless. Empty. Guilty. But salvation has found you under the fig tree, Nathanael, just like it found Jacob.”
But then Jesus adds an amazing twist: He says, vs (51), “Nathanael, you are going to see “these angels of God ascending and descending ON the Son of Man.”
This is an astounding claim. Jesus says, “I am the mighty power of God. All of Heaven’s might resides upon me. I know it doesn’t look like it: I’m just a humble teacher from Nazareth. But the might of God has come to earth - as a poor baby, born in a stable—a baby who grew up to be a humble carpenter walking through Jerusalem; a meek man who will lay down his life for his enemies rather than slaying them.
Jesus could have come to earth as the lion, but instead he came as the lamb.
Our God showed his real power not by destroying his enemies, but by dying for our sin.
And now that Lamb offers salvation to all who will receive it.
To any who are humble enough to receive it.
Q. What is YOUR response?
John the Baptist: "Look, the Lamb of God!"
Andrew: "We have found the Messiah!"
Philip: “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote!
THEY WERE CONVINCED WHO JESUS WAS!
Nathanael was convinced too: "You ARE the Son of God... the King of Israel!"
Q. What is YOUR response?
Do we REALLY believe that Jesus is the Christ? The Messiah?
- That He can give us a new Identity
- That He knows everything about us
- That He died for our sins, and rose and beat death, and that He is the Son of God, the King of kings?
If we don't believe that - why would we tell anyone about Jesus?
BUT if we do believe - How can we be silent?
