The gospel of John gives a different account from the Synoptic gospels about the calling of Jesus’ first disciples. It is accepted by all of the gospels that Peter and Andrew were the first disciples but the circumstance around their call is different in John compared to the other gospels. What is most important here to note is that the calling of the first disciples signal a transition from the ministry of John the Baptist to Jesus. In fact, our text for today points out that the first two disciples were first disciples of John who later followed Jesus as they believed him to be the long-expected Messiah. This transition text, as I would like to call it, has great significance because it marks the end of one ministry and the beginning of another, but for today’s message I would like us to focus our minds on one important thing that took place that could easily go unnoticed as we read the text. In verse 41 we read about the first act of evangelism which I would like us to reflect on and learn from today. This is why the message is entitled, ‘Bringing Others to Jesus’.
In St. John 1:41, we read, “The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah…” and he brought him to Jesus.” (St. John 1:41-42 NIV)
What has happened here? First of all, we must note that John the Baptist, for his part, was an evangelist as well. When he declared that Jesus was indeed the Lamb of God, two of his disciples followed Jesus. It was John’s evangelism that started everything. John was no competitor of Jesus, and he certainly did not try to be one. From the start he recognized that Jeus was indeed the one whose sandals he, John was not worthy to untie. (See St. John 1:26) He was even hesitant to baptize Jesus thinking naturally that Jesus should be baptizing him instead. It was not a surprising thing then that these two of John’s disciples chose to leave John and follow Jesus instead. Neither was it an insult or offence to John because he certainly would have wanted them to do so given who Jesus was. One of the two disciples remains unidentified in the text but the other we read is Andrew whose brother is Simon later known as Simon Peter.
The first thing Andrew does after deciding to follow Jesus is to go and tell his brother. If that was not enough, he took it even further. He brought him to Jesus. This, my friends, is the essence of true evangelism. This briefly is what we are all expected to do when we become converted believers in the Lord Jesus. Let’s look at the text more deeply. You will notice a few things that are important to reflect on.
1. We should begin sharing our faith with those closest to us, our family and friends.
I am sure that Andrew could have chosen many other persons to tell about Jesus and he most likely did this too. Andrew’s top priority was his brother. One would expect that one’s parent or sibling or spouse, if you have one, is the closest person to you on this earth. The relationship is bound by love and a deep sense of care for the person who is closest to you. In addition, most people would have naturally honest communication with their close relatives. It is generally agreed that of all the people we may know in this world, the person or people in the world you should be able to share the most important thing in your life with is/are your relative/s or even close friends. You will naturally care about them more than you do others who you don’t know well and equally important, they know you well too. They experience life with you more than any stranger can and so they know how sincere you are about your faith. You can’t deceive them easily, especially family members who live with you. Our reaching out with the gospel must begin with those who are closest and dearest to us, our close family members and our closest friends. Many people feel that it is easier to go away to distant places to be evangelists and missionaries, and I am not here saying anything is wrong with that in principle. Such calling indeed has its place, but it is equally important to practice your acts of evangelism among those who see you and know you well and who know you equally well. The example of your life, not just your words will have the greatest effect in winning them for the Lord Jesus in comparison to a stranger who will only be relying on what you say to them. This is because the essence of evangelism is trust and example. Many people will find it easier to share the gospel with people far away even in distant countries who they can act differently towards because strangers don’t really know their background and know their intentions. In contrast, you can’t easily pretend or be hypocritical among the people who you know well and who know you intimately. They can compare what you say with who you are and know whether you are a credible witness to the gospel or not. The legitimacy of your evangelism is seen in the life you live by those who know you best. Are you among those people who are afraid or hesitant to share with their friends and family and coworkers because they know who you really are?
2. Evangelism is an important responsibility that should remain the primary focus for Christians.
The next thing we note is that the first thing Andrew did was to call his brother. Think about that for a minute or two. The first thing he did was to call his brother. Here we get the clear impression that Andrew felt that this thing was too important for him to sit upon. It was vital that his brother know about Jesus immediately. Andrew did not think that this was something to be postponed to a later time or when it was more convenient. It was important that his brother hear about Jesus immediately. The urgency of the gospel must spur us individually and as a body of believers to do more than what we are doing now and with greater alacrity. If we are truthful, most of us who say we are Christians do not share the gospel with any urgency with those whom we meet and interact with day by day. Some of us are uncomfortable sharing it. We discuss every other life event and individual experiences but rarely find the time to tell someone else how good God has been to you at a particular point of your life. We perhaps talk more about Donald Trump than we talk about Jesus, and we certainly talk more about the cost of living and what is happening in our family situation than we talk about Jesus and his love for us. Even as the world becomes more chaotic and secular it seems that too many of us find the topic of Jesus to be an uncomfortable conversation to have with our friends and family. Remember that our Lord did say to some disciples and is warning us today that, “…whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.” (St. Matthew 10:33 NIV) What is the most important conversation you have with your family and friends on a regular basis? Is Jesus’ saving love a regular topic of conversation in your home or anywhere else that you meet your friends and family?
3. We cannot be true evangelists if we do not spend time with Jesus.
You will notice that after deciding to leave John, the two disciples went and stayed with Jesus. Why did they do this? Did they not have anything better to do with their time? They did this because they knew that it was important to get to know Jesus and for Jesus to know them as well. Nobody can build a relationship without taking the time to know the person or people that you are building that relationship with. There is simply no alternative to getting to know people if you want to have any meaningful relationship with them. This takes deliberate time and effort. When those two disciples went to spend the day with Jesus it would mark the beginning of many hours and days of time spent together as they learnt at the feet of their teacher. When Jesus invited himself to the house of Zacchaeus it was not just a friendly visit but to get to know Zacchaeus and for Zacchaeus to know him too and the same can be said of Lazarus and Nicodemus and all who ever took the time to spend time with Jesus. How do you spend time with Jesus? Do you spend time in prayer? Do you spend time studying the word? Do you spend time in fellowship with other believers? Do you spend time with him as you would with a friend or family member? Have you become estranged from Jesus? Think about it. Maybe life has become so busy and complicated for you that slowly but surely you have been finding les and less time to commune with Jesus. Very soon you find that you become estranged in your relationship with Jesus. Is it possible that some of us are already estranged from Jesus? Is it possible that some of us are already strangers in our relationship with Jesus? If we don’t make our relationship with Jesus the priority that it deserves we should not be surprised that when we go through great trials and challenges of life, we feel confused and lost and without a firm foundation because our relationship with Jesus has essentially run out of oxygen. We are like that plant that has no root or the branches that are detached from the vine. Even if we feel that our relationship with Jesus is estranged, remember that there is hope because Jesus will never leave us nor forsake us when we reach out to him.
4. The ultimate purpose of sharing the gospel is to bring others to Jesus.
Lastly, we note that Andrew went further than just telling his brother about Jesus. He brought him to Jesus. What a deliberate and determined action this was? He was not prepared to leave anything half done. This was too important a mission to start and not finish. He was determined to ensure that Simon experienced Jesus for himself. If only we had more siblings and by extension family and friends like that, what a much better place this world would be. Andrew did not need to take his brother to Jesus. Surely Simon who was later named Peter by Jesus was a grown man and could very much meet Jesus in his own time. Most of us would see it quite reasonable to simply tell someone about Jesus and leave it at that. Let them take it from there on their terms. What this act by Andrew proved was his love for his brother. He did not want his brother to miss the opportunity to know the Messiah. After all, this was exactly who they had longed for as a people for centuries. Seeing him among them was the only important thing. He was determined not to have his brother miss this opportunity. How many times have we introduced someone to the Lord but never took the time to follow up with them to see how they were doing? This is what a church community should be doing as a matter of urgency. There are many people out there who we have lost because we never made enough effort to keep in touch with them. We are not saying that we should be nagging people but finding the right time to occasionally see how they are doing and remind them of God’s love for them and their families. We should also be inviting them to church and encouraging them to share in special events of the church. This is how as a church and as Christians we constantly remind people that we do care about their well-being and most importantly their personal relationship with God. When was the last time you invited someone to join you at church? How often do you find out how your neighbour is doing spiritually? What opportunities do we have as a church so that we can invite others who are not in church to share with us? The whole point of all this is to deliberately interact with persons in such a way that they feel welcomed among us and will eventually commit themselves to the Lord Jesus. That’s the goal of our efforts at bringing people to Jesus. We must as a church provide the environment that is welcoming and nurturing that will make persons who are wary of religion and church know that we are sincere believers who practice an inviting and loving outreach to all because we know that God is standing ready and eager to welcome all who come to Him. Remember Jesus’ own words from Revelation 3:20 which says, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person and they with me.” This is the whole purpose of our Christian outreach. We want persons to open the door and invite the Lord in to eat with them and welcome the Saviour into their hearts and into their homes or perhaps into their homes then into their hearts.
None of us can feel overly confident with our own relationship with Jesus right now. All of us have to keep nurturing and building that relationship day by day just like any other relationship that is important to us. After all, this must be the most important relationship we have. If we take the time and effort to build and nurture human relationships, how much more should we take the time and effort to build our relationship with Jesus.
We are being challenged today not only to build our own relationship with Jesus, but to bring others to the Lord today. This we do by our testimony to the Lord’s hand in our own lives but even more so by the example of faith and love that we set through our everyday living.
May we go from here today friends, recommitting ourselves to be true evangelists, to be true and passionate sharers of the good news of salvation in Jesus in all that we do and say. Amen.