{"id":30554,"date":"2024-04-04T22:00:59","date_gmt":"2024-04-05T05:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/john-1_29-39-copy\/"},"modified":"2024-03-19T14:45:05","modified_gmt":"2024-03-19T21:45:05","slug":"john-1_40-51","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/john-1_40-51\/","title":{"rendered":"A Greater Vision for Your Life"},"content":{"rendered":"

John 1:40-51 \u00a0 (CLICK HERE FOR\u00a0BIBLE VERSES)<\/a><\/p>\n

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Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

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Today\u2019s passage is John 1:40-51.\u00a0 I encourage you to read the passage yourself first and see what you can glean with the Holy Spirit\u2019s help, then read the GAME sharing below.\u00a0 Let’s go!<\/p>\n

John 1:40-41 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n40\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus.
\n41\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ).<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 40-41:\u00a0 Earlier in John 1:35-37 we read that John the Baptist pointed Jesus out to two of his disciples and said, \u201cLook, the Lamb of God!\u201d\u00a0 \u00a0So those two disciples of John the Baptist start to follow Jesus.\u00a0 We learn here that one of those two disciples is Andrew.\u00a0 The identity of the second disciple is not 100% clear, but I think he might be John himself, the author of this gospel.<\/p>\n

Notice what Andrew does after he starts to follow Jesus (John 1:37, 40).\u00a0 The \u201cfirst thing\u201d (v41) Andrew does is tell his brother Simon about Jesus and bring Simon to meet him.\u00a0 When we experience something good, whether it\u2019s finding a good restaurant, watching a good movie or visiting a place worth seeing, it\u2019s natural to want to tell others about it.\u00a0 Similarly, when we experience the goodness of Jesus, it\u2019s natural to want to tell others about Him.\u00a0 Don\u2019t be afraid or ashamed to do so, but be natural about it.\u00a0 Your experience of Jesus is nothing to be ashamed about, but to be thankful for.\u00a0 Let your light shine.<\/p>\n

John 1:42 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n42\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 42:\u00a0 Jesus gives Simon a new name in the Aramaic language, which is \u201cCephas\u201d, which translates in Greek to \u201cPetrus\u201d (\u201cPeter\u201d) and literally means the \u201cRock\u201d.\u00a0 This new name Jesus gave Simon was not a \u201cnormal\u201d, common name.\u00a0 Back in ancient Israel calling someone Cephas (\u201cRock\u201d) was about as common and normal as you calling someone \u201cRock\u201d in today\u2019s culture.\u00a0 It was more a nickname than something you would expect as a legal name.\u00a0 Yet Jesus gives Simon this new name, and in so doing gives Simon a new identity and a new purpose. For Jesus would build his church on this \u201crock\u201d.\u00a0 Likewise,\u00a0when we come to Jesus, we get a new identity and a new purpose in life.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>And whatever your nickname is, remember that\u00a0you are a rock on which Jesus builds his church.<\/strong><\/p>\n

John 1:43-45 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n43\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.”
\n44\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida.
\n45\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Philip 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.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 43-45:\u00a0 Jesus calls Philip to follow him, and soon Philip is leading others like Nathanael to Jesus.\u00a0 Philip tells Nathanael, \u201cWe have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote \u2013 Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph\u201d.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0First,<\/strong>\u00a0as Philip says in verse 45,\u00a0Jesus is the one that the Old Testament \u2013 both the Law and the Prophets \u2013 point to<\/strong>.\u00a0 For centuries the Old Testament was pointing forward to the day that God would send a Saviour, a Messiah.<\/p>\n

Second, you are never too young in your faith to lead others to Jesus.<\/strong>\u00a0 Just as Philip was just learning about Jesus but was still bold in reaching people for Jesus, so you can be a baby Christian, super new in the faith, and God can use you to reach others for Jesus.\u00a0 You don\u2019t need to have all the answers or wait until you have no more questions.\u00a0 All you need to do is not be afraid to invite people to come see Jesus for themselves.<\/p>\n

John 1:46 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n46\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 46:\u00a0 Nathanael was prejudiced against small towns like Nazareth.\u00a0 He assumed that the Messiah the Jews were waiting for would not come from a small town.\u00a0 But Nathanael was at least willing to challenge his own prejudice, and in so doing, he found his prejudice to be unfounded.\u00a0\u00a0Don\u2019t allow prejudice and preconceived assumptions keep you from checking out who Jesus really is.<\/strong><\/p>\n

John 1:47-49 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n47\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false.”
\n48\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”
\n49\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 47-49:\u00a0 Just as Jesus was able to perceive from afar that Nathanael was sitting under a fig tree before Philip called him (v48), I\u2019m sure Jesus was fully aware of all the sins and sinful habits in Nathanael\u2019s life.\u00a0 Yet when Nathanael first approaches Jesus, notice Jesus\u2019 first words to Nathanael are not condemning and judgmental but rather encouraging and affirming.\u00a0 Jesus says about Nathanael, \u201cHere is a true Israelite, in whom is nothing false.\u201d (v47)\u00a0 Despite Nathanael\u2019s prejudice against people from Nazareth, Jesus won Nathanael\u2019s heart with the encouraging and affirming words he spoke and by understanding Nathanael\u2019s deepest desires.<\/p>\n

Jesus wasn\u2019t denying Nathanael\u2019s sin.\u00a0 Jesus would in fact deal with Nathanael\u2019s sin thoroughly and completely by going to the cross for Nathanael.\u00a0 But what Jesus was doing here was casting a greater vision for Nathanael\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0Even when you are aware of a person\u2019s weakness, flaws and faults, go out of your way to encourage that person and to cast a greater vision for that person\u2019s life.\u00a0 In doing so, like Jesus, you touch their heart and help them reach for a greater version of themselves.<\/strong><\/p>\n

John 1:50-51 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n50\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Jesus said, “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You shall see greater things than that.”
\n51\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0He then added, “I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 50-51:\u00a0 In Genesis 28, Jacob (also known as Israel) has a dream where he sees\u00a0a ladder connecting earth to heaven with the angels ascending and descending on it (Genesis 28:12).\u00a0 Here in John 1:51 Jesus is identifying with that picture in Genesis and is suggesting that he himself is the ladder connecting sinners on earth to God in heaven, with \u201cthe angels of God ascending and descending\u201d on him.\u00a0 Praise God! When we couldn\u2019t reach God on our own, Jesus came to be our ladder to heaven!\u00a0 So let’s climb on Jesus, lean on Him, and hang on to Him.\u00a0 In doing so, we will access all of the mercy, blessings and power from heaven that we need for today.<\/p>\n

Jesus, thank You for being the ladder that connects sinners on earth with the holy God of heaven.\u00a0 Thank You that in You I have a new identity and a new purpose.\u00a0 Like Andrew and Philip, may I be passionate and bold in leading others to You.\u00a0 Like Simon Peter, may I be a rock on which You build Your church.\u00a0\u00a0 Like Nathanael, may I not let my preconceived assumptions keep me from knowing You better.\u00a0 Thank You Jesus for speaking life giving words to me, despite knowing how much of a mess I am.\u00a0 Thank You that Your greater vision for my life leads me forward.\u00a0 In Jesus\u2019 name, AMEN!<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Copyright \u00a9 2021 Justin Lim. All rights reserved.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is John 1:40-51.\u00a0 I encourage you to read the passage yourself first and see what you can glean with the Holy Spirit\u2019s help, then read the GAME sharing below.\u00a0 Let’s go!
\n\u00a0
\nJohn 1:40-41 (NIV)
\n40\u00a0\u00a0Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus.
\n41\u00a0\u00a0The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ).
\n\u00a0
\nOn verses 40-41:\u00a0 Earlier in John 1:35-37 we read that John the Baptist pointed Jesus out to two of his disciples and said, \u201cLook, the Lamb of God!\u201d\u00a0 \u00a0So those two disciples of John the Baptist start to follow Jesus.\u00a0 We learn here that one of those two disciples is Andrew.\u00a0 The identity of the second disciple is not 100% clear, but I think he might be John himself, the author of this gospel.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30556,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30554","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gametime-sharing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30554","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30554"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30554\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30557,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30554\/revisions\/30557"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30556"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30554"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30554"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30554"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}