The Journey of Grace Message 1: Beginnings
John 1:35-42, NIV
By Dr. Jon Fillipi
Turn with me in your Bibles this morning to John 1:35-42. I’ll be reading from the New International Version…
35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples.
36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, "Look, the Lamb of God!"
37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus.
38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, "What do you want?" They said, "Rabbi" (which means "Teacher"), "where are you staying?"
39 "Come," he replied, "and you will see." So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.
40 Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus.
41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, "We have found the Messiah" (that is, the Christ).
42 And 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).
This morning we begin a new series of messages on one of the most important topics of the Christian life, Grace.
Grace is one of those things that is truly hard to understand, but absolutely essential to our experience and walk with the Lord.
So what is it?
Grace is the basis and foundation of our Christian faith
Grace is most often called unmerited favor or undeserved love
Grace is unmerited favor when we deserve the exact opposite
Grace is called the kindness or help of God
It is a virtue coming from the heart of God to us
Grace is a free gift — it cannot be earned and it certainly is not deserved
Grace is a gift from God
Grace is the gift given that insures the promise of Philippians 4:19 which says, And my God will fully satisfy every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
Grace is the key to forgiveness, the foundation of salvation, the continuing hope of sanctification, and the assurance of eternity
Grace is what we need the most on this journey called life, and what God is certain to give when we simply repent and call on His name
Why is grace so important?
The answer is simple — without grace we have no hope — no hope of being forgiven or saved or sanctified or given the promise of eternity
Without grace we cannot enter into relationship with the Lord; our sins cannot be forgiven and our hearts cannot be made clean
Grace is free gift of God that makes all of the Christian life possible
It begins before we are even aware of it and will sustain and continue to woo us and draw us closer and closer to the Lord as we journey through life — and when we respond to the overtures of His grace, it will transform our lives and make true living possible
Grace is what we truly need
In the weeks ahead, we are going to embark on a journey about grace — the grace that is personal, and costly, and amazing. It is the grace that invites us embark on a journey that will help us to understand what Jesus meant when He said, I am the way, and the truth, and the life. This grace will be a journey that reveals to us all that we need and helps us to accept the invitation to come and see and enter into a lifelong journey and relationship with Him.
Let’s begin with the passage I read earlier.
John the Baptist had been baptizing in the Jordan River when Jesus came on the scene.
Immediately on seeing Jesus, John declares that He is the Lamb of God. In verse 34, John had called Him the Son of God. His messianic identity was grounded in the fact that He was and is the Son of God. But in this new title — Lamb of God, we begin to see the reality of His mission through the eyes of the sacrificial system of the Old Testament. As John had said in vs. 29, Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. In the Christ we see not only his Messianic identity as the Son of God, but His mission as well, as the Lamb of God He would make the final sacrifice for the sins of all mankind.
John’s disciples, upon hearing him say who Jesus was, began to follow Jesus.
And so begins the journey of grace…
Notice first, the most important question…vs. 38, What do you seek?
In this question we learn the most important thing about grace…God always takes the initiative; He always takes the first step.
William Barclay wrote, God does not leave us to search and search until we come to him; God comes out to meet us. When we go to God, we do not go to one who hides himself and keeps us at a distance; we go to one who stands waiting for us, and who even takes the initiative by coming to meet us on the road.
These two soon to be disciples of Jesus begin their journey by being asked the most fundamental question in all of life — What do you seek?
Their response reveals their true intentions — by calling Him Rabbi they expressed a desire to learn for in the first century the word Rabbi was a polite term for teacher; and by asking where are You staying, they indicated a desire to enter into relationship and follow.
Notice second this morning, the desire to share…vs. 40-41, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, "We have found the Messiah" (that is, the Christ).
What is powerful to see here is the two who initially encountered Jesus included Andrew, who even before he went to be with Jesus where he was staying, went to find his brother to share the glad tidings…vs. 41, We have found the Messiah!
In this one statement we realize one of the greatest truths of a true encounter with this gospel, that it is news too good to keep — it has to be shared.
From the outset of the prophetic message to this fresh encounter with the Christ, there was always a budding anticipation of the coming of the Christ, and once He was present, those who had an encounter with Him were compelled to share what they had discovered — it is part of the grace journey — this is news too good to keep.
And so we see why Jesus would teach throughout the gospel of John the importance of bearing fruit — sharing the story and bringing others into relationship with Him so that all might have the opportunity to come to Christ.
Today, we live with the great commandment compelling us to love God and others which is followed by the great commission compelling us to go into all the world and make disciples. This is at the heart of the grace story. This is what is produced in the grace encounter. When you come to know the Christ, you are compelled to share Him with others.
Which brings us to the final truth this morning, that is that grace produces a transformation to new life in Christ…vs. 42, Andrew brought Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John; you shall be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter, or the rock).
Note with me these things…
When Andrew brought Simon to Jesus, Jesus looked at him. The word here translated look, describes a concentrated, intent gaze, the gaze which does not see only the superficial things that lie on the surface, but which reads a person’s heart. When Jesus saw Simon, as he was then called, he said to him: ‘Your name is Simon; but you are going to be called Cephas, which means a rock.’
Barclay writes, In the Old Testament, a change of name often denoted a new relationship with God. For instance, Jacob became Israel (Genesis 32:28), and Abram became Abraham (Genesis 17:5) when they entered into a new relationship with God. When a person entered into a new relationship with God, it was as if life began all over again and that person became new, so that a new name was needed. But the great thing about this story is that it tells us how Jesus looks at us. He does not only see what we are; he also sees what we can become. He sees not only the actualities in us; he also sees the possibilities. Jesus looked at Peter and saw in him not only a Galilaean fisherman but one who had it in him to become the rock on which his Church would be built. Jesus sees us not only as we are, but as we can be; and he says: ‘Give your life to me, and I will make you what you have it in you to be.’
This change of name reflected a transformation of character. Only Jesus could do what was done in the heart of Simon, now called Peter. Jesus alone is the only one who can see what could be and release through His grace the power needed to bring that possibility and hidden potential out in us.
Joseph Dongell states that, It should not be doubted that this transformation was real, though Peter’s case demonstrates that the road to a new character may lead through bitter failure.
Peter would have many ups and downs, but in the end, it would be this man, transformed by God’s grace, who would speak the words that birthed the church at Pentecost and led it forward to become what it is today.
And so this journey of grace begins with a question that leads to a desire to share that produces in us by grace a life transformation that enables us to become the individuals that God created us to be.
Grace is the key to both experiencing and to knowing this One who is to us the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
Have you truly chosen to this journey of grace and begun to follow Him?
