The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?” They said to Him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), “where are You staying?” He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour). One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus. John 1:37-42 NKJV
Andrew got it right. He found the Lord, and he immediately brought his brother before Him. What a great example for all of us who follow Christ. We must consistently introduce those around us to Jesus.
Notice what Philip does after meeting Jesus, and how quickly the good news spreads when the followers of Jesus are excited to tell their friends about Him.
The following day Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, “Follow Me.” Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” And Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” John 1:43-46 NKJV
Jesus should inspire us all to introduce others to Him. He is worthy!
Let’s see what Andrew does next. Once again Andrew takes action, as it is written:
When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do. Philip answered him, “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” John 6:5-9 NIV
Jesus has given us a great commission, to continually introduce others to Him. We all realize how important this is to Jesus, but are we doing it? How many people have you introduced to Jesus this week? This month? This year?
Andrew continues to bring not only those he knows, but others he does not, before the Lord. It is written:
Now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast. Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus. John 12:20-22 NKJV
Both Philip and Andrew knew exactly what to do when someone was seeking Jesus. Talk to the Lord about it! We can do the same thing in prayer. When someone is asking about Jesus, share what you know and start praying for them! Don’t let your relationship with Jesus be a well kept secret. Consider the examples laid out by Philip and Andrew.
Love one another always.
Barnabas
Special thanks to Barnabas for this guest submission.