Preaching through John has been a lot like drinking from a firehose! So much depth. Such profound revelation of our Savior Jesus. It’s really impossible to take it all in. Oh, but you want to try! What a Savior.
In the midst of John’s grand revelation of the Messiah, (He is eternal. He is God. He is Creator. He is co-equal with the Father. He is Light. He is the Life of men.) we find John’s first recorded words of the Lord Himself. No doubt, Jesus had spoken other words, even in these accounts, but these are the first words John chose to write down. And, if we’re not careful, they might just slip by.
“What do you seek? Come, and you will see” (John 1:38-39).
“What do you seek?” Jesus asks the two disciples of John the Baptist who have now started to trail behind Him. It wasn’t so much what they were seeking, but who. They were looking for the Christ, the Savior for sinners. John had led many, including them, to see their sin and repent, turning from it. John had led many, including these two, to see he was the prophesied forerunner who would usher in God’s promised Deliverer. And, now, they trusted they had found Him.
What were they seeking? Hope, forgiveness, peace. What were they seeking? A purpose that mattered. An answer. The Truth.
Who were they seeking? Jesus.
“Come, and you will see.” What a delightful invitation! In the first chapter of John’s gospel, Jesus had been asked where He might stay for the night. He plainly answered, “Come, and you will see.” Simple enough, were it not stated by the Savior of the world on His way to secure that world’s redemption! Oh! The things they would see!
The lame would walk, and the blind would receive sight. The proud would be humbled, and the poor would be loved. The hopeless would find joy, and castoffs would be welcomed in. Tax collectors, sinners, and masses of brokenhearted would find a Savior of their own. Some would meet at wells; others would literally drop out of trees! And, at the end of it all would stand the resurrected Savior. Their eyes would witness it all.
Yes, come, and you will see.
Many years have passed. Yet, those first words still reflect our Savior’s heart. To people everywhere — all people — He still asks, “What do you seek?”. And, for people still looking for those same things (hope, peace, and the forgiveness of sin), He still bids them: “Come, and you will see.”
Praise the Lord for a gracious Savior. A Savior who sees our plight, knows our hurt, and calls us to walk with Him. And, when we do, it is still promised — Oh, the things we see!