John 1:35-51 | What's the lesson for me today?

When I see repetition of themes or statements in Scripture, they really stand out. And they should! When I see a repetition of, "Come and see," I find that being a draw for me as the reader. It is indeed an invitation for me to look upon this mystery myself. It is an amazing thing that we are simply to take someone else's word for who Jesus is. Rather, we are invited and encouraged to seek these matters out ourselves. We have the whole Old Testament where we can see the prophecies concerning who the Messiah is. We can go back and validate what is said. We can look into the historical accounts. We can view the archeological findings and visit the historical sites. Even more than that, we can come before Jesus and ask for Him to reveal Himself to us and He does.

I would not be surprised if these invitations are what motivates John's use of the Greek word ginosko in his epistle (1 John). The word there is often translated as "know" or "knowledge". But it is not an intellectual knowledge. It is a knowledge by experience. It is used to describe intercourse between a male and female. They "know" each other through that. We are to be those who have experienced who God is and know Him by way of that experience. The invitation to come and see who Jesus is is an invitation to know Him.

I certainly have a lot of information concerning who Jesus is. I think the divide for me for a long time was that I never took the time to just sit and be with Him. I did not sit in solitude and silence before Him and dwell in His presence. Instead I found myself gathering more information. But Jesus did not just come and give information. Jesus met with His disciples. As they sat with Him, that is where they saw who Jesus truly was.

What lessons are you taking for yourself today?