What Do You Seek?

Take your Bible and turn with me to John chapter 1. Believe it or not, we have just two sermons left in John chapter 1. We have been in this chapter for over a half a year, looking at what the Bible says concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. And our narrative begins in verse number 35.

And if you've been with us, you're going to ask why we were just in verse number 18 last week. That's because we covered verses 19 to 34 when we covered verse number 6. Remember that? There came a man sent from God. We spent four weeks on the phrase there came a man. What kind of man was he? Well this is a man sent from God.

And so we looked at the identity of John the Baptist. And then we looked at the ministry of John the Baptist. And then the testimony of John the Baptist.

And then the legacy of John the Baptist. And all that was found in verses 6, 7, and 8 along with verses 19 to 34. So we've already covered these in great detail.

So now we find ourselves in verse number 35. And when you find yourself in verse number 35, you find that it's the third day on the next day. Day 1 is in verse 19 when the Pharisees had sent a delegation of religious leaders to ask who John was.

Or who he thought he was. And John would explain his identity. And then he would give his overall ministry.

And then the next day he would point to the Messiah and say, behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. And now when you come to verse number 35 you have the next day. So this is the third day. They're all sequential.

Listen to what it says. Again the next day John was standing with two of his disciples. And he looked at Jesus as he walked and said, behold the Lamb of God. The two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus. And Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, what do you seek? They said to him, Rabbi, which translated means teacher, where are you staying? He said to them, come and you will see.

So they came and saw where he was staying. And they stayed with him that day. For it was about the tenth hour.

One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He found first his own brother, Simon and said to him, we have found the Messiah. Which translated means Christ.

He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, you are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas. Which is translated Peter.

The title for the sermon is What Do You Seek? It's divided up into five very simple words. And that is we're going to look at the declaration which simply is, behold the Lamb of God.

From the declaration we're going to move to the question what do you seek? From the question we move to the invitation come and see. From the invitation we move to the revelation we have found the Messiah. Which will lead us to our application which is simply what now? So what? Once you see the Lamb of God answer the question what do you seek? And you know he's the Messiah what now? That's our outline.

It's very simple. We begin with the declaration that John makes. When he says in verse 35 the next day John was standing with two of his disciples.

Which two? Well we know that one is named his name is Andrew. The brother of Simon Peter. The other one? Well the other one's John.

John B. John A. Excuse me not John B. John A. John the Apostle. Okay how do we know that? Because John nowhere mentions his name in the gospel. So you deduce the fact that it's John who is the other disciple with Andrew.

And so it says the next day John was standing with two of his disciples. So Andrew and John the Apostle were disciples of John the Baptist. In other words they were learners.

They were followers of John the Baptizer. In other words they had confessed their sins. They had been baptized by John in the Jordan River.

They had heard the message of John and were convinced that John was telling the truth, and when John would say repent and be baptized for the kingdom of heaven is at hand, they recognized that the king was coming and the kingdom was at hand. And so they quickly became disciples of John the Baptist. And they were awaiting the arrival of the Messiah.

And on this day, the third day after John has already introduced the Messiah he says behold the Lamb of God. In context John has already baptized Jesus. We know that from the earlier verses that he had seen and testified to the fact that God had spoken and the Spirit of God had descended upon him.

So Jesus has already been baptized the Bible tells us that after he was baptized, he was driven by the Spirit of God into the wilderness to be tempted for 40 days. That's in the Judean wilderness. That's where John the Baptist is.

1300 feet below sea level. Very hot. And so after those 40 days of temptation Jesus is back on the scene and that's how John introduces him as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

No one knew that Jesus was there. He was in the crowd while John was preaching and teaching but no one knew who Jesus was. So John points him out.

This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. On the next day two disciples, John and Andrew were with John the Baptist. So John points again to Christ and says, behold the Lamb of God.

And Andrew and John immediately begin to follow the Christ. They begin to follow him. And John would really accentuate this whole aspect of the Lamb of God.

As you recall that the Messiah is referred to as the Lamb one time in the Old Testament. Isaiah 53 verse number 7 he was led as a lamb before the slaughter. Of the Gospel writers only John refers to Christ as the Lamb of God twice. Both in John chapter 1.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke do not refer to Christ as the Lamb. The next time he's referred to as the Lamb is in Acts chapter 8 when Philip explains to the Ethiopian eunuch what Isaiah 53 is talking about, and there he expounds on the Lamb that was led to be slaughtered.

The next time Christ is referred to as the Lamb is 1 Peter chapter 1 verses 18 and 19. It's through the precious blood of the Lamb that was slain that we are redeemed.

So there are five times in the Bible, once in the Old Testament and four times in the New Testament that Christ is referred to as the Lamb until you come to the book of Revelation. And of course John the Apostle is the author of the book of Revelation and there John refers to Christ as the Lamb 28 different times.

Because the Lamb that came redeeming was the Lamb that was rejected. And the Lamb that was rejected is one day going to return. And so John is going to explain the return of the Lamb.

And then he's going to explain the retribution of that Lamb all throughout the book of Revelation. And then he'll speak about the reigning of that Lamb upon the earth. And then he'll speak of the reverence that Lamb deserves all throughout eternity.

So John the Apostle understands the Lamb of God. John the Apostle wants to accentuate the Lamb's presence. And so that's what he does.

And so on this day, the third day in the narrative, Christ is back on the scene. And John the Baptist says behold, stand amazed the Lamb of God. And Andrew and John begin to follow this Lamb.

Which leads to the question. Look what it says.

The two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus. And Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them what do you seek? Not who do you seek? But what do you seek?

Those four words are extremely important. I think it would be good that if all of our greeters got together and when you walked through the door on Sunday morning, they would ask you this question. What do you seek? Why are you here? What are you looking for? That's a great question to ask.

How would you respond to that? If you were greeted every Sunday morning, it's good to have you, what do you seek? What would you say? It's a great question. It's a very important question. Because Christ is challenging their motives.

Now remember Christ knows what's in the heart of every man. We'll see that in John 2 as he understands exactly what's in the heart of man because there were many who believed in him but he did not commit himself to them because he knew what was in their hearts. They believed in him for his miracles.

They believed in him because of his presence but they did not believe in his message or his preaching. And so Christ knew their motives and so he did not commit himself to them.

Christ knows what's in Andrew's heart. Christ knows what's in John's heart. So he wants them to articulate what they're looking for. What are you looking for? What do you want? Why are you following me?

You follow John. But why are you following me? What do you want? That's a great question.

How would you answer that today? What are you seeking today? And so as you read through the text they say to him rabbi, or rabbi depending upon your interpretation which means teacher, we want to know where you are staying. What do you seek? Well where are you staying? Meaning that we want to be where you are. We want to learn about you.

A disciple is a follower. A follower is a learner. Right? So the word for disciple just means simply learner. We want to commune with you. We want to learn from you.

Now I can't imagine what that must be like to sit down with Jesus for the day and have him talk to you. But we want to know where you're staying. Are they asking look are you staying in a very plush hotel in Jericho because Jericho is down in the wilderness and so they're wondering are you in Jericho? Are you in a 5-star hotel or a 1-star hotel? Are you in a Motel 6? Are you in Ritz Carlton here in Jericho? Where are you staying? That's not necessarily what they're looking for.

But you know exactly where you're staying. Don't you? Of course you do. Because when asked Jesus said that foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests but the son of man has no place to lay his head.

Where is he staying? Under some tree. Some makeshift kind of tent to stay under the hot sun. That's where he's staying.

Didn't have a friend necessarily down in Jericho or in the Judean wilderness. It's hot. And so he probably has this makeshift kind of tent where he is staying and he's going to invite them to be a part of that with him on that day.

And so they say we want to be where you are because they want to learn from him. Every follower, every disciple can't wait to learn about the Christ. They can't wait to hear about the Christ.

In fact you never get enough of the Christ. That's the point. For most of us we get too much of the Christ.

So we think. But you can never get too much of Christ because you want to be a learner, a disciple, a follower of the Christ. And so they just simply say we want to know where you're staying because we want to be where you are.

You're the Lamb of God. You're the Messiah. We want to understand who you are.

So from that question comes an invitation. What's he saying? Come. Come and you will see.

What a beautiful, warm, welcoming, affectionate, admirable kind of invitation. Come. Come and you will see.

Because he knows they are seekers. He knows their motive. And so he invites them to come and see.

Christ would say in Matthew 11, come all you that labor and heavy laden. I will give you rest. But you got to come.

John, Andrew, you have to come. Christ says in John 6, verse 35, he who comes to me will never be hungry. John 7:37, if any man thirst, let him come.

Come to me and drink. John 6:37, all that the Father gives me shall come to me and he who comes I will never cast out. But you got to come.

John 14:6, Christ said I am the way, the truth, and the life and no one comes to the Father but by me. This is what they were hoping for. An invitation to come and see.

The heart that seeks will always find. That's what it says all the way back in the book of Deuteronomy. 4th chapter, you will seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you search for him with all your heart and all your soul.

What do you seek? Are you seeking me? Are you seeking me with all of your heart and all of your soul? Because if you are, you'll find me. And then he says over in the book of 1 Chronicles 29, David says to his son Solomon, as for you my son, Solomon, know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and a willing mind for the Lord searches all hearts and understands every intent of the thoughts. If you seek him, he will let you find him.

But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. God knows your heart. And if you're seeking him with all of your heart, you're going to find him because he promises that.

And then of course you have those familiar words in Jeremiah 29 that after the captivity in Babylon Israel will call upon me and they will pray to me and will listen to you and you will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and will gather you from all the nations from all and from all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord. I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.

God promises the seeker that he will find him. But no, the Bible says no man seeks after God. Romans 3, verse 11, quoted from Psalm 14 so no man seeks after God.

Why? Because man is a fugitive. Man flees God. All you have to do is go back to the book of Genesis.

Genesis chapter 3 the sin of Adam and Eve when they sinned against the Lord what did they do? Did they seek the Lord? No, they went and hid. Who sought Adam and Eve? The Lord did. Where are you, Adam?

Not that the Lord did not know where he was. Of course he did. But you see fallen man is a fugitive. He runs from God.

He didn't seek after God. God seeks you. In other words natural man is unwilling and unable to seek after God, because he's dead in his trespasses and sin.

So there is no such thing as an unbelieving seeker unless God has sought you first. And if God has sought you first then you will seek him. But you cannot and you will not seek him on your own.

Why? Because you love your sin. He's a savior from sin. And you love your sin so much you don't want to be saved from your sin.

That's what Christ does. He's a savior. And those who come to him he will in no wise cast out because he has drawn them to himself.

So he says to Andrew and he says to John come. Come and you will see. And so with diligence with devotion they come to the Lord.

And it says and they stayed with him that day for it was about the tenth hour. What hour is that? Well you have a little margin that has notes in it in your Bible. You will read 4 p.m. Because they would go by Jewish time.

But I don't believe it's 4 p.m. I believe it's 10 a.m. Because it's Roman time. And John is writing to Gentiles. He's writing to Romans.

Jews as well but Romans as well because Rome has taken over Israel by the time that John writes. The point is that they've been with him all day. Can you imagine being with Christ all day? Hearing him speak.

Remember on the road to Emmaus after the resurrection of Christ? There were two disciples. They were walking by the way and they were dejected. And Christ comes up to them but they didn't recognize the Christ because he did not let them recognize him in his glorified state.

And he asked them what they were talking about. And he said where have you been? Don't you know about the happenings in Jerusalem these last few days? And Christ says what things? And they begin to explain things as to what took place. But Jesus begins to talk to them.

And he talks to them all the way to Emmaus which is about 7 miles from Jerusalem. And they ask him to stay. They still don't know this is Jesus.

They have no idea this is the glorified son of God. This is just some stranger in their mind. But he is explaining to them the scriptures.

And that night when they begin to break bread, they're able to see the nail scars in his hand and they recognize it's Jesus and he immediately vanishes away. And what did they say? Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the way? Their hearts were burning. Not because they knew it was Jesus speaking.

As far as they knew it was a stranger speaking to them. But the stranger in their mind was speaking to them about the Messiah. And the fulfillment of prophecy that was given to the Jewish nation.

And as they heard him speak their heart was aflame. Because you see that's what God's word does in the heart of a believer. It doesn't do that in the heart of the unbeliever.

Jeremiah tells us that, is not my word like a fire. It is. There's something that burns in the soul of the believer when God's word is read and God's word is preached. And when you're listening to the truth of the word of God. There's this burning sensation that motivates you to action. That moves you to do what needs to be done.

And here you have Andrew. Here you have John the apostle sitting with Christ listening. Their hearts had to be aflame.

As he began to explain to them the prophecy surrounding the arrival of the Messiah. Who is and was the Lamb of God. And so you move from the declaration to the question to the invitation to the revelation.

It says one of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He found first his own brother Simon and said to him we have found the Messiah. Which translated means the Christ.

This is the revelation. We found the Messiah. The Lamb of God is the Messiah.

He is the Christ. He is the long-awaited Messiah. He listened to Jesus speak.

He listened to the words of the Old Testament as Christ would reiterate them. He would listen to the truth of the Word of God. And the very first thing he did was that he went home to his brother and said we have found the Messiah.

How many of us leave on Sunday saying we found the Messiah. We found the Christ. We know who He is.

And we can't wait to get home to tell our family members I have found the Messiah. I know who the Christ is. And I want you to know like I know Him. And that was Andrew.

Funny that none of the apostles speak about Andrew's actions in Matthew, Mark, or Luke. Only John does.

His name is mentioned but his actions are not mentioned. But John mentions three different times about Andrew. And Andrew is always doing the same thing every single time he is mentioned.

Number one here, he is going to his brother to bring him to the Messiah. In John 6, he is going to a lad with a few fishes and loaves of bread and brings a lad to the Messiah. In John 12, he brings some Greeks because Andrew is Greek.

And he brings the Greeks to the Messiah. Andrew's name means manly.

The definition of a man is simple. A man is one who brings people to the Messiah. That's the definition of a man. That's manhood at its best.

You are always leading people to Jesus. You are always bringing people to Jesus. Because you want to introduce them to Jesus.

And that's what Andrew does. And his name means manly. So that's what a man does.

And he starts with his own family. His own brothers. His own sisters.

And he goes right to Simon. This had to be difficult for Andrew because he is Simon Peter's brother. And you know a lot about Peter.

He becomes the leader of the twelve. He becomes a spokesperson for the twelve. And Andrew would take a back seat to his brother.

But he wanted his brother to know that he had found the Messiah. That's the revelation. And so because he has been or he knows that the Messiah has been revealed to him, he wants to reveal the Messiah to his brother.

So look at what it says. He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him.

Stop right there. Jesus looked at him. You need to circle that phrase.

Because three years from now Peter will deny the Lord. And in the account of the denial in Luke's gospel because Luke's the only one that records it, is that when he denied the Lord it says the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter knew he knew the Lord looked at him.

And here it begins with a look. But it doesn't end with a look. Because in John 21 on the shores of the Sea of Galilee Christ asks Peter, do you love me? Three times.

Remember that? And what does Peter say? Lord you knowest all things. You know that I love you. You know my heart.

You know everything about me. I can't fool you. You know about my love for you.

In Acts chapter three, when Peter's preaching on the day of Pentecost, he says these words: the Lord who knows the hearts of all men. Peter says he knows my heart. He knows your heart.

On this day Jesus looked at Peter. And note what he says. He says you are Simon the son of John you shall be called Cephas. That's Aramaic. Which translated means Peter. That's Greek. Or Petros. You are the son of John. And how does Jesus know that? Because he's on a mission.

He knows everything. He knows that his name is Simon. You are Simon.

But you shall be Peter. That's what salvation is. You are this way but you shall be this way.

Isn't that true? When you become a Christian, you're a new creation. Old things are passed away. You are this but now new things have become new.

You shall be this. That's why Paul said being confident of this very thing that he who began a good work in you will complete it. You were this but now you are going to be this.

That's why Philippians 2, verse number 13, he says it's God who is at work in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. God's at work. That's why in Ephesians 2, verse number 10, it says that we are his workmanship.

We are his literary masterpiece. We've been created to do good works. You are this.

You shall be this. That's salvation. You were one way but now you'll be this way.

That's the revelation. So what? What's the application? Well the question comes to you and me as it came to Andrew and John. What are you doing here? What are you seeking? You see every man is a seeker.

Every man pursues something. And most of us pursue some kind of significance, some kind of meaning, right? Or some kind of security or some kind of stability in life. But all of us as human beings are seekers.

There's something that we want. There's something that we desire. There's something that we are driven to do and we go after it.

So the question comes when you arrive at church why are you here? What do you seek? Some would say well I seek a friend. Well the Bible says that Christ is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother. Abraham was a friend of God.

Christ said to the disciples I no longer call you slaves, I call you friends. Looking for a friend? Christ is the friend. I need something tangible.

Oh so Jesus isn't enough to be your friend. Some human is enough to be your friend. Some would say well I am here because I am seeking fulfillment.

Jesus said I've come that you might have joy and that joy would make your life full. But yeah, I need something more tangible than that. And Jesus came in Matthew chapter 5 which we're studying on Wednesday nights.

He came seeking those people who were looking for happiness. Thinking that their physical healing would make them happy. Because in Matthew 4 he heals everybody who came to him.

But he sets them all down and says this is a temporary reprieve from your illness or your loss of a leg or your eyesight. You're still going to die. I'm going to offer you true blessedness.

True happiness. True contentment. True joy.

So he begins that great sermon. Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn over the sin for they shall be comforted.

Christ begins to give the blessing to those who come to him. Some would say well I'm seeking rest. Christ said come unto me all you that labor. I will give you rest.

Others would say I'm just looking for peace. Christ says my peace I give unto you. Not as the world gives give I unto you, but my peace I give unto you. And someone would say well you don't understand the conflict in my home. There is no rest. There is no peace.

But Christ is your peace. And when Christ is your peace, no matter what the conflict is in the home, you're at rest in your heart.

Is that not enough? And then some would say well I'm seeking freedom. Christ said once you know the truth it will set you free. Others say I'm seeking forgiveness.

Christ says if you confess your sins, I'm faithful and just to forgive you your sins and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.

Others will say I just want to be loved. That's good because God is love. And no one will love you like the Lord Jesus will. Others will say I'm just lonely. And Christ says I will never leave you nor will I forsake you.

What do you seek? Christ knows your heart. He knows why you're here. He knows what you're looking for.

He knows. We want the benefits that God gives but we want them without God. We want the blessing that God gives but we want them without God.

We just want it our way. We don't want it God's way. Not realizing that all that brings is pain and heartache over and over again.

Only Christ is the fulfiller of man's needs. So what do you seek? That's the question that Jesus asks. Those are the very first words of Jesus as He begins His ministry. Very first words and John records them.

What do you seek? That should be driven home in all of our hearts because we need to ask and answer that question. Why are we here? What are we doing? What am I seeking? Are you seeking something outside of Christ to fulfill that which is in your soul, the emptiness of your soul? It will never last.

Only Christ does and Christ is more than enough. Let's pray together.

Father we thank You for today and the opportunity You give us to spend a brief moment in Your Word.

We are reminded that You are the one who seeks us. You're the one who comforts us. You're the one who strengthens us.

I mean we can go on and on and on, because You know the needs of every man. But the biggest need is forgiveness. The biggest need is a relationship with the living God.

So we ask that if there's somebody here today who does not know You that today would be the day of their salvation. They'd come to Christ. They would say, I am seeking the Lord.

I want to know the Messiah. I want to know the Lord of all. And You make Yourself known to them, Lord.

Through Your Word. For one day You're coming again and You will take Your children home to be with You. May we be prepared for that day.

In Jesus' name. Amen.