Messages, Meditations, and Musings on the Life of Faith by Rev. Dr. Scott E. Olson, Interim Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Preston, MN

Sunday, January 5, 2014

"Come and See" - Sermon for the Second Sunday of Christmas

Come and See
Christmas 2 – Narrative Lectionary 4
January 5, 2013
Grace, Mankato, MN
John 1.19-51

“What are you looking for? … Come and see.” John 1.38-39

We began the Jesus story in John’s gospel just before Christmas, and what a beginning it was! It’s not like Luke’s with the familiar angels and shepherds, or like Matthew’s with Joseph and Mary, nor like Mark’s, which skips the birth altogether, and launches right into John the Baptist paving the way for Jesus. No, John’s story of Jesus is reminiscent of the creation story in Genesis. It starts before the beginning and tells of how the Word was God and with God, through whom everything came into being. This Word took on human flesh and lived among us, bringing light into our darkness.

So, right from the beginning we sense that John’s version of the Jesus story is different, and today’s reading reinforces that suspicion. John the Baptist goes to great lengths to divert attention from himself to Jesus, including his narration of Jesus’ baptism and a fond farewell to two of his disciples who are interested in Jesus. In John’s telling, these disciples are gathered more than called, much like accumulating stray cats or dogs. It is this gathering that I’d like to spend time on, especially as Jesus says to the two who came after him, “What are you looking for?” and his invitation, “Come and see.”

As we will discover throughout John’s gospel, Jesus loads more than one meaning in his words. When he asks the two disciples what they want, he does so on at least one more level. Though they may be curious about this Jesus character, Jesus knows they are hungry for more. Two important things happen here: first, Jesus tells them that their deepest questions about life and God are important and validated; second, Jesus invites them to a space where they can ask these questions. Jesus invites them into a journey of growth in the life of faith, not a destination by saying, “Come and see.”

I have mentioned before my faith struggles, especially following Confirmation in ninth grade, when I left the church. I have also mentioned that I returned to the church shortly after college, realizing that the questions I had about God were more likely to be found inside the church rather than out. What I may not have mentioned is that I had a “Philip” help me, someone who took seriously Jesus’ example to say to me, “Come and see.” Only, her name was LuAnn, and she understood may need for a place to wrestle with the hard questions about God, the world, and my place in it.

LuAnn didn’t ask me if I knew the four spiritual laws, nor did she ask me if I was born again or knew Jesus as my personal savior, nor did she question if I knew where I’d spend eternity. Rather, she simply recognized a hunger in me and invited me to “come and see” her young adults group at church. She didn’t try to convince me there was a God or anything about that God. She simply said, “Come and see.” Our own Walter Johnson knows how to do this with Rotary (and no doubt with church, too). Walter invited me three times, picked me up each time, and had me “come and see” what it was about. He invited me to belong and experience Rotary.

Our text does two things to us today: it issues an invitation to come and see, and pushes us to do the same for other people. Who has been the best kind of Philip (or LuAnn or Walter) to you in your life? Who can you be a Philip to, who hungers for a life of meaning? The text also pushes us to reflect on what people would see if they came to Grace. Here’s what I’d like them to see: I’d like people to come and see a place where it is not only okay to ask questions but mandatory to do so. I’d like them to see other broken, vulnerable people whose lives are being changed through a relationship and experience with the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ. I’d like them to be a part of a people who are open to God’s vision for their lives and take a risk living into that vision.

What are you looking for? I think we are well on our way to being a place where people can come and see, but as I said earlier, this is a journey into God’s future, not a destination. I close with a quote from one of my favorite writers, Frederick Buechner: “Have faith enough, hope enough, despair enough, foolishness enough at least to draw near to see for yourselves.” What are you looking for? Come and see the Word made flesh, Jesus. Amen.

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