Image from angusday.org
Is Jesus All That is Said About Him?
From John 1:29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, "Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, "After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.' 31 I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel." 32 And John testified, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. 33 I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, "He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' 34 And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God." Anchor35 The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, 36and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, "Look, here is the Lamb of God!" 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38 When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, "What are you looking for?" They said to him, "Rabbi" (which translated means Teacher), "where are you staying?" 39 He said to them, "Come and see." They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o'clock in the afternoon. 40 One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. 41 He first found his brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated Anointed ). 42 He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, "You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas" (which is translated Peter ).
I went to seminary during the time the main things the professors were trying to teach were German ideas of taking the supernatural out of the Gospel. They wanted to show the historical Jesus more than the Jesus of faith. Ultimately, I decided that it was as Jesus had asked of Peter and the other disciples, "Who do you say that I am?" I had been taught the supernatural aspects of Jesus and through my childhood and adolescent periods of my life I had experienced and came to believe the supernatural power of Jesus. Jesus was not just a good man with good things to say; Jesus was and is, in my opinion and life, the Messiah, the Savior of my life.
Take the teachings of this story. John the Baptist points at Jesus and tells those who would hear, "Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" That's pretty supernatural, that a human being is compared to THE sacrificial Lamb of God, whose death would take away the sins of the world. John knew the role he would play in Jesus' life and never tries to show any glory or honor towards himself; he ranks Jesus "ahead of me because he was before me." He is coming to realize and claim Jesus for Who Jesus is, in his life and in the life of the world. John's testimony was all about what God had, was, and would b doing through Jesus Christ, and it is all supernatural. It defies explanation, and many label Jesus' ministry as a mystery, because a lot of what Jesus did cannot be explained scientifically. It goes beyond what we would label "natural," thus the supernatural.
John elevated Jesus so much that he lost two of his disciples to Jesus. They left the ranks of John's disciples to become Jesus' disciples. They went to make their home with Him and to live out their lives following Him. As they heard Jesus preach they were convinced to the point that one of them went and told his brother and said, "Hey, man, you'd better come and see this that I'm seeing and hear what I'm hearing!" That was Andrew and he went and called his brother, Simon Peter to come. Andrew declares, "We've found the Messiah or Anointed of God." As he is introduced to Jesus, Jesus changes Simon's name to Cephas, which is Peter or "Rock."
Who is the Jesus in whom you trust? Is it from the pages of your Sunday school material or the words of your pastor's sermons? Or, have you experienced the Jesus that is living and real and offers blessings to our lives that go beyond explanation? Our denomination believes that the disciples of Jesus will be involved in the transformation of the world, so we have to ask, has Jesus transformed your life? Has Jesus removed the sin from you life? Has Jesus allowed you to go beyond existence to a life lived in abundance? Has Jesus given you boldness and faith that goes beyond human explanation? Has Jesus given you a hope that is out of this world? If so, you've been transformed! If not, you're living in the shadow of the supernatural and you must move over to the fullness of the light that is supernatural and life-giving.
PRAYER: Loving God, move me closer to the supernatural and away from the weight of the natural. Set me free to soar in faith to win others to You. Let my life be a testimony of one who have come out of the shadows of the supernatural into the fullness of faith that defies explanation. This I ask in the name of He who offers it to me, Jesus my Lord, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!
Eradio Valverde
