# 26 Evangelism 101

Joh 1:45 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."

Jesus found Phillip, now Phillip sets out to find Nathaniel and excitedly tells him of Jesus. But what’s this? Nathaniel throws a little cold water on the fired-up Phillip! “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” “How can anything good come out of that place, much less the Messiah?”

The town of Nazareth was synonymous with “despised” in the days of Jesus, and Nathaniel’s question wasn’t meant to be disrespectful, flippant, or judgmental! This place just had a bad reputation! We’ve all been there! We all know of such places in our own environs, and typically steer clear of them. You can be sure that Nathaniel was not the only one with a low opinion concerning Nazareth! This was a general consensus!

The fact that Jesus was from Nazareth fits in with the prophecy found in  Isa 53:3 He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

Okay Phillip, how are you going to handle Nathaniel’s concern? Well, he didn’t get into a debate about the character of the citizens of Nazareth. He didn’t get into a theological discussion about prophets or a Messiah coming out of Nazareth. He simply extends the invitation to check it out for himself….”Come and see!”

Sometimes we make evangelism a lot harder than it really is. Sometimes we think we are the ones who have to do the convincing. When you really think about it, that’s very arrogant on our part. It is God who does the convincing, our part is to go, proclaim, and invite.

Observe Phillip’s method again: He (1) went and found Nathaniel, (that’s the go part) He (2) proclaimed, (We have found Him of whom Moses in the law and prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of Joseph) and he (3) invited, (“Come and see!)

You can use this same method wherever God has planted you! Go to your family! Go to your friends! Go to your neighbors! Go to your co-workers! Proclaim to them that you have found Jesus, or more correctly, that Jesus has found you! Then invite them to come and see for themselves!

Invite them to your Bible believing and Word of God proclaiming church! Invite them to your Bible study! Invite them to any place where they may go and hear His claims! Then let God do the rest!

# 25 Following Jesus

# 25 Following Jesus

Joh 1:43 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.

Jesus continues to gather disciples. He had picked up three the day before and now he adds Phillip. Phillip was from the same city as Andrew and Peter, and notice that in this case Jesus came to him. He purposely sought out Phillip and said to him, “Follow Me!”

Now, I’m going to take a little license here, because I am not a Greek grammarian, so bear with me. According to my study Bible this command in the Greek language is given in what is called the “present imperative.” It’s a command to do something in the future and involves continuous or repeated action.

Think about that.

We call ourselves “followers of Christ,” but what do we really mean by that? Do we assert that we follow Him and then occasionally show up at church, sing some songs and then return to the world and its ways for another week, or does our following of Christ involve “continued and repeated” walking with Him?

If Jesus would appear where you are right now, as He did with Phillip, and say, “Follow Me!” What would that mean to you? I hope it would mean what it did to Phillip and the other disciples. “From now on, (future) Follow Me!” (Imperative or command)

Those who hear the Shepherd’s voice in the “present imperative,” go all in with Jesus! He said in Joh 10:27"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me”

To follow Jesus is to let go of your worldly ways and serve Him! Joh 12:25,26, says, "He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.  26 "If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.

The idea behind serving is waiting on tables. It is to care for the needs of others. As we care for the needs of others in the name of Jesus, He promises to be right along side us, (where I am, there My servant will be also. ”and we find ourselves obeying His “present imperative.” We find ourselves following Him!

# 24 Peter Gets A New Name

Joh 1:40 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).

Most everyone is familiar with Peter! His brother Andrew was the one who introduced him to Jesus. Andrew, after hearing the declaration of John the Baptist, and spending some time with Jesus, is convinced that Jesus is the Messiah. He then seeks out his brother to tell him the good news!

As he brings Peter to Jesus, we get a little more proof concerning Jesus as the Son of God. There is no recorded introduction by Andrew. He doesn’t say, “Jesus, I’d like you to meet my brother Peter” Rather, the all knowing Jesus says “ I know your name, and I know your father’s name. You are Simon, the son of Jonah!”

He goes on to say, “But I am bestowing a new name on you, you shall be called Cephas.” (Translated A Stone)

What a strange name for someone as volatile as Peter. My NIV Study Bible notes that Peter was anything but a rock! He was impulsive and unstable, but after Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, Peter became a pillar of the early church. Jesus named him not for who he was, but for what, by God’s grace, he would become!

This is not without biblical precedence. Abram’s name was changed by God for the same reason.  Abram became Abraham which means “father of many,” and that’s what he, by God’s grace, would become!

Peter would go on to become known as the father of the church. His declaration to Jesus in Mt 16:16, “You are the Christ,” is the foundational confession of the church!

This whole change in Peter was brought about by his following Jesus. It was a process, with every event in Peter’s life leading up to what he would become!

As a devoted follower of Jesus Christ, you too, are involved in a process of crafting your new name which will be bestowed on you in heaven. Everything that is happening to you and will happen to you is preparing you for your new (perfectly descriptive) name in heaven. Re 3:12 says, “He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. And I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name.

You, like Peter, will not be named by what you were, but rather what you will become as a devoted follower of Jesus!

# 23 The Cry of Your Soul

Joh 1:35 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).

We don’t know how long John had been at his ministry of preaching, baptizing, and preparing the way for Jesus, but suddenly things are really beginning to pop!

The day after the Pharisees grilled John, Jesus shows up! The very next day He shows up again, and the very next day, Jesus begins to add to His followers! (Verse 43)

The snowball of grace is starting to roll! Please note that the Baptist STOOD, but Jesus WALKED! The Law stands firm, immovable, but grace flows and it’s beginning to flow toward the consummation of all things!

God’s timing is perfect and as John preaches to the crowd, Jesus “just happens” to walk by, and John repeats what he had said yesterday about Jesus. “Behold, the Lamb of God!” There He is! I told you yesterday that He is the Messiah!” Well, he didn’t have to say it twice to two of his disciples! They immediately leave John and fall in step with the Messiah!

Look what happens next! Grace personified turns to them and asks, “What do you seek?” They reply, “Rabbi, where are you staying?”  This acknowledgment of Jesus as Rabbi” indicates that Jesus is viewed by these disciples as a great teacher and master.

Understand this about the culture of the day. The terms “teacher” and “master” are interchangeable because in Jewish culture, rabbis were men skilled in the knowledge of law and traditions. They had their own schools and disciples. The disciples would sit at the feet of their rabbi and learn from their school master.

So the disciples ask, “Where are you staying?” In other words, “Where do you hold your schooling sessions?  We want you to be our teacher and Master“ Jesus says, “Come and see. (Just another way of saying, “Follow Me.”

Back up a bit and think about this; The first words of Jesus recorded for us in the Gospel of John are “What do you seek?” Grace personified, (Jesus) asks us all the same question. “What are you looking for? Forgiveness? Peace? Rest? Fulfillment? Whatever it may be, follow Jesus and grace will bring it to you!

Whereas the Law demands that we do things, grace simply invites us to receive what God has already done! Follow Jesus and the cry of your empty soul, the yearning for what is missing in your soul will be satisfied, and you will spend eternity in Paradise!

# 22 What A Moment

Joh 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 "This is He of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.' 31 "I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water." 32 And John bore witness, saying, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. 33 "I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' 34 "And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God."

What a moment this is in the redemption history of mankind! John had been going about his business of performing the purification rite of baptism, which is among other things, an actual and effectual cleansing from sin.

That baptism was, and is, the necessary God-given punch to wash away sins, and is evident even later on in the  New Testament church as we read in Ac 22:16. Ananias is speaking to the Paul and he says, “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.”

The preaching and baptism of John was his preparatory work that would precede the arrival of the Messiah in accordance with the prophecy of Isaiah found in  Isa 40:3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness: "Prepare the way of the LORD; Make straight in the desert A highway for our God”.

We aren’t told when John received his instructions to preach and baptize, only that something very special would happen during his ministry. At some point the Messiah would come to him, and John would actually see the Holy Spirit descend on Him and remain on Him.

This incredible event would look like a dove landing on something. If you’ve ever observed a dove landing on something, you know it is like a gentle fluttering that eventually settles down into a solid landing.

John doesn’t describe the physical appearance of the Holy Spirit for us, only the descent and landing. Personally, I’m inclined to believe this manifestation of the Spirit was more connected to fire than a dove. I say that because of what was said in  Mt 3:11 "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”

And then there’s the  manifestation of the Spirit to the church on that first Pentecost in the New Testament era, and the burning bush incident with Moses. Fire is a common occurrence with the presence of the Spirit of God in the Bible.

Well, let’s not get too caught up in the symbol, rather let’s heed the words of the Baptist to Israel, and to us, found in verse 34: "And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God."

Jesus is the Son of God! The Messiah! This is what we really need to know and believe about Jesus. The Messiahship of Jesus was revealed to John and he reveals it to us! It is this revelation that is the foundation of the church. It is the confession of all believers and repeated for us in  Mt 16:16 Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  17 Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

Believe this and be baptized and you shall be saved! Mr 16:16 "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.

# 21 It's Cousin Jesus!

Joh 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 "This is He of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.' 31 "I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water." 32 And John bore witness, saying, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. 33 "I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' 34 "And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God."

John had just mentioned his calling as a forerunner to the Messiah the day before, and lo and behold today, the Messiah shows up! But isn’t it interesting that twice John bluntly states, “I did not know Him.” What’s THAT all about! This is Jesus his cousin, Auntie Mary’s Son!

Growing up, they likely played tag with each other, or “seek and ye shall find,” How did Mary and Joseph keep this secret concerning Jesus away from the rest of the family? Surely Jesus stood out amongst his playmates as He grew up in Nazareth!

At any rate, what John is proclaiming here, is that he had no idea that Jesus was God’s Anointed One! He did not know Jesus in His divine greatness until this very telling moment. He likely had some thoughts concerning the possibility, but a prophet doesn’t market in personal assumptions. It is always, “Thus saith the Lord!”

All John’s assumptions are brushed aside because “a prophet’s certainty must come from a higher source!” (Lenski) It’s also striking that upon receiving this heaven sent revelation, John doesn’t exclaim something like, “Cousin Jesus! It’s You? Hey everyone, it’s my cousin!”

No! This prophet, like all great prophets sticks to the business at hand. He doesn’t add to or detract from the message God gave him to proclaim!

Seriously, consider the temptation to blurt out his boyhood connection to Jesus, but John does no such thing! Do you think you could  keep such a thing under YOUR hat?  

In my mind, it adds to the veracity of what Jesus would later say about John. He said in  Mt 11:11 "Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist”

Listen to the prophets! They proclaim the words of the Lord meant for our ears, and they are recorded in Scripture for you and I! And there is no greater privileged proclamation than the one given to John!, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

There is only One who can take away your sins. Behold Jesus! Take Him in and receive eternal life!

# 20 By Whose Authority

Joh 1:24 Now those who were sent were from the Pharisees.  25 And they asked him, saying, "Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?"  26 John answered them, saying, "I baptize with water, but there stands One among you whom you do not know.  27 "It is He who, coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose."  28 These things were done in Bethabara beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

The Pharisees. Sticklers for the letter of the Law! Guardians of the sheep of Israel, but blinded by their pre-conceived notions of how Israel would be delivered. To their credit, they will not put up with any charlatan who comes along claiming to speak for God and so they press John for answers.

“If you aren’t Christ, Elijah, or the Prophet, where do you get off baptizing?” In short, “Where are your credentials? By whose authority do you do this?”

The Pharisees were hanging their hat on their interpretation of verses like  Eze 36:25 "Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols.

 26 "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

 27 "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.

 28 "Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God.

Note the pronoun “I” in these verses! This is God speaking and He says “I will do the baptizing!” In their mind, no one but a direct representative from God such as a miraculous re-appearing of Elijah, or the Prophet, or the Messiah Himself would have the credentials to baptize.  

John replies with “Well, I do baptize, and in my baptism, you are cleansed and made fit for the kingdom, but the Power behind baptism is yet to be made known among you. I am merely a herald to the One whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.” Of course he was talking about Jesus, whose perfect life, subsequent death and resurrection gives the clout to baptism.

John merely administers baptism, Jesus is the clout and purpose of baptism, and in it we are buried with Him and raised to new life! Col 2:12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.

The point that John was making is that baptism is of God! It’s not something we do, but rather something God does for us. It’s the same point Jesus was making

In  Lu 20:1-6. (Note the similarity of the questions addressed to John the Baptist and to Jesus, both questions want to know where the authority is coming from? )

Lu 20:1 Now it happened on one of those days, as He taught the people in the temple and preached the gospel, that the chief priests and the scribes, together with the elders, confronted Him

 2 and spoke to Him, saying, "Tell us, by what authority are You doing these things? Or who is he who gave You this authority?"

 3 But He answered and said to them, "I also will ask you one thing, and answer Me:

 4 "The baptism of John--was it from heaven or from men?"

 5 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say, 'Why then did you not believe him?'

 6 "But if we say, 'From men,' all the people will stone us, for they are persuaded that John was a prophet."

 7 So they answered that they did not know where it was from.

What a pity, for the answer was right in front of them and they missed it! There has always been disagreement about water baptism in the church, Disagreement that would melt away if we would just agree that baptism is something God does for us, not something we do for Him.