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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." 35 The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and 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 ). (John 1:29-42 NRSV)
A blessed and bountiful Monday for you dear Friend and those who matter to you in love and life. Did you know that "back in the day," the Methodist Church would have Quarterly Conferences, which was like having four charge conferences a year! As a pastor, and even now as a retired one, I thank God and Baby Jesus, that we did not have them when I was in active ministry. The preparation leading up to one charge conference is very time consuming, and to have four of them in one year, well, you get the picture. As a retired district superintendent I can also say, "Thank the Lord" that we did not have quarterly conferences as well. The reading of the materials from one annual charge/church conference takes from two to three weeks to complete, imagine the work from four per year! Well, I took a bit longer there than I wanted; what I wanted to say is that in those reports was a question that was taken out; "How many people did you bring to Jesus since the last conferences?" was asked of the pastor and of the church. And while the church may no longer ask it in that way, Jesus may ask us that question very directly when we stand before Him. Will it be an "ouch" question? Or, a very solemn moment when we, with great humility respond, "Lord, thanks to Your help and guidance, I was able to bring X number of new believers to You." Of course, the Lord already knew that because as Luke 15:7,10 shares, every time a sinner repents of his or her sin, and comes home to Jesus, there is a party in Heaven of great rejoicing. And dear friend, it is a touching and powerful moment when we share Jesus' love and desire with a person who says, "I want that for myself." And they say yes to Jesus; and we get the victory for Jesus. We have just led them into eternal life.
Here's a powerful clue; it's not just the pastor's job to make disciples; it is the job of all believers. In this awesome passage of today, we see how Andrew, who was a disciple of John the Baptist's, leads his brother Simon to the feet of Jesus. In that action step, Andrew led to the Savior, he would who be the leader among the disciples. The Roman Catholic Church so recognized Simon's actions that he is recognized as the first Vicar of Christ; the first Pope of the Church. And, as the passage ends, we see Jesus changing Simon's name to Cephas, "rock" aka Petros or Peter. Later, Jesus would say, "Upon this rock I will build my church." And in the same way, Jesus is either building or waiting for us to do our part in bringing new people to Jesus.
"Come and see" was all Andrew had to say to bring Simon to Christ. And we, can with our actions, witness, and testimony also say, "Come and see Jesus in me." It may just be that some soul has been waiting all his or her life for this moment to accept life for him or herself. May it be so and quickly.
PRAYER: Loving Father, because of Your love, You desire of us faithfulness and fruitfulness. May we be led to those opportunities where we can share openly, boldly, and lovingly the truth of Your grace. Help us grow the Kingdom; this we pray in Jesus' name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Show someone the Way, the Truth and the Life!
Receive my blessings of love and peace,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
PRAYER REQUEST: Dear friends, I ask prayers for a church brother whom I have known most of my life. Mr. Arturo Molina was a Methodist who worked on his master's degree at A&I when we lived in Kingsville. He and his family would spend the summers in Kingsville until he finished his degrees. He and my Dad were long time friends until my Dad's death. I was Mr. Molina's pastor for eleven years and now that he is in hospice I ask for prayers for him. May God give him comfort and peace and to his family as well. Mr. Molina is a widower and the father of a blended family, including a stepson who is a UMC pastor and Naval Chaplain. I give thanks for his service to the Lord in El Mesias UMC and El Divino Redentor UMC of McAllen. He lives in McAllen, Texas.
