Come and See
Father, another gift of a day! Warmth and sunshine in abundance, it is most certainly welcome! Thank You for Your wondrous gift!
John 1:35-39 (<<click here to read the passage)
Until I read through this portion of Scripture from John 1, I had forgotten all about a man by the name of Bob Bennett. I don’t remember the first time I heard his music, but I would guess it would have been when I was in college.
At the beginning of verse 39, Jesus is being followed by two of John the Baptist’s disciples (one we find out to be Andrew and the other is probably John, the author of this Gospel – who by the way does not name himself but refers to himself at the end of his Gospel as “the disciple whom Jesus loved” John 20:2). Anyway, as Jesus passed by John the Baptist point Jesus out to the two saying, “Look! There is the Lamb of God!” – remember he was a pointer!
When John’s two disciples heard this, they followed Jesus.
Jesus looked around and saw them following. “What do you want?” he asked them.
They replied, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
“Come and see,” he said… vs37-39 NLT
Come and see.
That phrase is what tripped a memory in my mind. I remember it being a song or at least a part of a song. It took me a bit but, in my searching, I eventually saw Bob Bennett’s name and knew right away that that was the song I had recalled from so long ago.
It was from an album he released in 1982. I may have been a freshman or possibly a sophomore in college when I first heard the song Come and See. (That fall, by the way, was when I first met Miss Karen Yough, the love of my life!)
The song was actually the result of an assignment he and a classmate received. They were to write a song based on anything in the book of John. And as many students are in the habit of doing, they waited until the night before the assignment was due and this is the song they came up with.
Here are the lyrics and a YouTube posting of him singing it…enjoy!
Come and see, come and see
Come and see a Man from Heaven
Come and see, hear Him speak
He has seen the face of God
Come and see, come and see
This Jesus of Nazareth
Come and see the One that we
Have heard of all our lives
A voice crying in the wilderness
A voice from the sky loud and clear
A still, small voice deep inside
And a voice still ringing in my ear … saying
Follow Me, Follow Me
And I will show you My Father
Follow Me and you will see
The Heavens opened wide
Come and see, come and see
Come and see this Man from Heaven
Oh, could it be? Could it be
We will see the face of God?
Mar 9th, 2021, Tue, 8:16 pm
Called To Be a Pointer
What a beautiful day, Father! It may still be a bit cool, but it is beautiful nonetheless! Spring is not quite here but beauty is here! All praise to You, Heavenly Father!
John 1:32-34 (<<click here to read the passage)
At the Kohl’s store where I worked, the Jewelry Department sat front and center. For a majority of my time there, there was pretty much always an associate behind the counter. If we needed a break of any sort, we had to procure another associate to take our place until we returned.
Shoppers knew that if they had a question, they would find someone in Jewelry. I could not tell you how many times someone asked me where the restrooms were or where to take returns! I, and all of the associates who worked with me, would dutifully point them in the right direction.
John the Baptist was a pointer, too. His God-appointed responsibility was to point people to Jesus, though at the first he admitted, “I didn’t know he was the one…” But seeing the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him, that is Jesus…the long-awaited Messiah, he knew and proclaimed, “I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God.” vs33-34 NLT
For hundreds of years, the people of Israel had waited. They waited for a deliverer from their bondage. They waited for a king! Jesus was those things but so much more! He was for them what they didn’t even know they needed. He would be their Savior. The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23) and, though innocent, he would be the one to die in their stead.
Thank God, Jesus’ deliverance, His kingship, His saving, His death, they are all for us, as well. And because of this indescribable gift (2 Corinthians 9:15), we are now called to be the “pointers”!
My study Bible says, “Today people are looking for someone to give them security in an insecure world. Our job is to point them to Christ and to show that he is the one whom they seek.”
Lord Jesus, may how we live, how we speak, how we listen…may it all point people toward You. Help us not to become a wall blocking others from seeing You and all You afford us! Amen.
*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
Mar 8th, 2021, Mon, 12:39 pm
Can You Hear Him Now?
What a nice day it has been Father! Time in worship, followed by time with Karen! Then time at home. Thank You for Your presence in it all!
John 1:29-34 (<<click here to read the passage)
Almost 20 years ago a popular mobile phone carrier began an advertising campaign using the slogan, “Can you hear me now?” We’ve come a long way since those days but when this campaign began individual employees of the carrier would literally drive more than 100,000 miles a year to test the reliability of their network.
Back then “Can you hear me now?” was a common question when using a cell phone since much of the country just didn’t have good cell reception at the time. It has vastly improved but there are still a lot of “dead” spots depending on where you are.
Cell phone receptivity is contingent upon the signal from towers being clearly received. You can have the most up-to-date cell phone, but if a signal can’t get to your phone…you’re out of luck.
In a way, we are like cell phones. The entity trying to reach us with His signal is God. Except for this time His signal is not the issue. It is clear as a bell. He can literally reach any corner of the globe.
Psalm 139:7-12 shows this to be true.
I can never escape from your Spirit!
….I can never get away from your presence!
If I go up to heaven, you are there;
….if I go down to the grave, you are there.
If I ride the wings of the morning,
….if I dwell by the farthest oceans,
even there your hand will guide me,
….and your strength will support me.
I could ask the darkness to hide me
….and the light around me to become night—
….but even in darkness I cannot hide from you.
To you the night shines as bright as day.
….Darkness and light are the same to you.
We cannot escape from the Spirit of God. But something we can do is to ignore Him. Even those who do not know Him can be reached and spoken to. Yet they too can turn a deaf ear to Him.
As I read through verse 33, it is clear that John heard God and responded to His directive. He said, “…God sent me…he told me”.
You may struggle as I do, but when God speaks…and He unquestionably does…His signal is strong, coming through loud and clear…but when He speaks, are we listening? Have we trained ourselves to ignore His voice? Do we now turn a dear ear to His calling?
If we respond to Him that way, we are not stuck in that mode. He can change us! It will take work on our part, but we can once again train ourselves to listen…to hear.
When many of us were younger, especially in the summer, we would play until way after the sunset. (In middle school, the kids in my neighborhood played flashlight tag – it was a blast! I loved being “it”!) But when it was time to wrap things up, a voice would shout into the darkness, “It’s time to come in!” and I knew it was my mom. I knew that voice. I loved that voice. I was attuned to that voice…and I obeyed.
We must do the same with God, and the only way to know His voice, the only way to love His voice, the only way to be attuned to His voice…is to spend time with Him. He wants that more than anything else…us spending time with Him. Oh, the places He will take you!
John listened – and so can you. It’s your call. Can you hear Him now?
Mar 7th, 2021, Sun, 6:44 pm
Have Questions? He’s Got the Answers!
A little later than normal, Father, but I would ask for Your hand on my shoulder as we come together this evening. Direct my thoughts and may I share Your word with whoever might observe it. Amen.
John 1:29-34 (<<click here to read the passage)
A struggle we all have when shopping for particular items is finding a knowledgeable associate. Having worked in retail for close to half my life I realize pretty quickly if the person helping us knows what they are talking about. The inexperienced can yap all they want but often their ignorance speaks much louder than their words.
J.T. was already working for Kohl’s when I came on board back in 2000. At the time he was a very knowledgeable and experienced head of maintenance. If anything needed to be addressed in the physical plant of our facility, he was the one to go to.
After a few years, they outsourced our maintenance and J.T. became the supervisor over the Home Department. Very quickly he became the go-to person over the merchandise in that entire area. Vacuums? Pillows? Electronics? He seemingly knew everything that needed to be known and if for some reason he didn’t, he was sure to find out in short order. When you needed something or advice on which way to go, J.T. was the man! He was the best person to go to for the answers to our questions.
In the opening line of today’s passage, John the Baptist saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! v29 NLT
Reaching all the way back to Exodus in obedience to the Law a lamb was sacrificed every morning and evening (Exodus 29:38-42). Only the ones as perfect as possible were chosen to appease the Lord’s command. The penalty for sin was death, a life had to be given. For thousands of years, day after day, lambs had been sacrificed but not one of them could cover their sins but for a few hours.
But God had a plan, and it would fulfill all of His requirements in their entirety! To bring this about God himself had to choose the Lamb, and God’s Lamb was His one and only Son. No other sacrifice would suffice.
No matter how hard we try we are but novices. We may think we know everything but in the grand scheme of things we know next to nothing. So, to whom do we go when we need hard answers to all of life’s hard questions? We go to the One who knows all of the answers. Before we even knew the questions, He already knew the answers!
Lord Jesus, enable us to avoid wasting time trying to find the answers to life’s questions all on our own. No one but You will know how to help us because You alone are the answer! Amen!
Mar 4th, 2021, Thurs, 8:01 pm
A Gentleman Like No Other
Thank You for a productive day, Father. I was able to get quite a bit done with everything else going on. And thank You for the assistance given to do so.
John 1:24-28 (<<click here to read the passage)
One of the finest managers I had the privilege to work under at Kohl’s was a gentleman by the name of Roland. I know of no one who thought poorly of him. He was (and still is) well respected by all.
When I typed the word “gentleman” I felt compelled to look it up and came across an article in the Columbia (South Carolina) Metropolitan Magazine. It was entitled, Qualities of a Gentleman: Letters from refined Columbians and it fits Roland to a T.
My primary point to you is that a gentleman strives to excel as a person and provides kindness and respect toward others. He does this regardless whether it is beneficial for him to do so. He demonstrates humility and shows graciousness to all people and things. The gentleman puts others first before himself. Education, breeding and wealth are not necessary determinants of a gentleman. A gentleman is a man of character. The gentleman shows respect and a sense of pride in himself, e.g. health and appearance, but is not boastful or “wears it on his sleeve.” The gentleman personifies the total concept of chivalry, not just in manners, but also in knowing that there is “right and wrong.” The gentleman is willing to stand up for what is “right” and be willing to fight for it with his mind and/or body. A gentleman does not “play the fool” or act as a doormat. Some people do not understand how one can be both gracious and firm. A gentleman understands balance.
Another man that this could be said of was John the Baptist. Yes, he most definitely was quite a unique character, but these qualities fit him to a T, as well.
Before Jesus came on the scene, John had acquired quite the following, hence the arrival of representatives from the Pharisees. John could easily have been full of himself but absolutely everything he said and did showed submission and humility.
Take, for example, his statement when pressed answers as to why he did what he did.
“It is He [the preeminent One] who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie [even as His slave].” v27 AMP
First a definition of preeminent. Simply put it means surpassing all others. Jesus was preeminent – no one even came close. John wasn’t put off by the fact but made it very plain where he stood in relation to Jesus.
An Amplified Bible note had this to say regarding John’s statement about the sandal strap.
During this era it was customary for a household servant to remove a guest’s sandals and wash the dust from his feet. John is saying that he is not worthy even to remove Christ’s sandal, let alone to touch His feet.
Humility…isn’t it refreshing? You would think that pride would be a rarity at least in the church! …you would think…but it is not. There are most definitely gentlemen in the church but there are more than a few who are full of themselves.
The bane of the Church is pride. Another word for bane would be ruination. Nothing so readily tears down the Church as pride does. I have seen far too many “followers of me, myself, and I” in my life. They are the ones in charge. They are the ones who make the necessary decisions. Nothing can be done without their fingerprints on it.
How many lives have been shattered because people have followed the creation instead of the Creator?
Lord Jesus, may we follow the example of John. You alone are worthy. You are preeminent. May humility infuse all we say and do. Amen!
Mar 3rd, 2021, Wed, 7:01 pm