North Anderson Baptist Church
What is our purpose for the year long theme of “Who’s Your One?”
Is this just a theme for the convention?
Or, is this something that can truly make a difference in the life of this fellowship at NABC and every individual who is a follower of Christ?
Let’s begin with the Scripture that will set the tone for the message.
John 1:43-51 NIV
Come and See
The Scripture tells us that Philip had the right idea, he wanted to go after his “ONE.” The Bible doesn’t tell us, but Philip must have known Nathanael pretty well and they must have talked at sometime in their lives about this Messiah, the one of which Moses spoke. They would have known the Scripture that refers to Moses’ statement of another prophet coming. Hear what the Bible says in Deuteronomy 18:15-19,
Deuteronomy 18:15-19 NIV
Nathanael, like many other people, had prejudices against others. When Philip told him that this man was from Nazareth, Nathanael showed that prejudice by saying “Can anything good come from there?” You see, many people were prejudiced about folks from Nazareth, because it was known to be a wicked place. Instead of arguing with Nathanael, Philip decided to challenge him to “come and see” this man. (When someone, whom you are seeking to reach for Christ, shares what they have heard about Christianity and that they have a preconceived idea of Jesus because of the day in which we live, we must not try to argue with them but to do what we can to have them personally try to evaluate this Man, Jesus, for the sake of the truth and if they will “come and hear the truth” for themselves, there is a chance that they will see and hear the convincing argument that Jesus is the Son of the Living God and respond to God’s Holy Spirit.) Because of the challenge Philip gave to Nathanael, he was willing to go with Philip to see this Man that he was talking about. (A word to those listening to me today that have not yet trusted Christ as Lord and Savior. Don’t let your own bias’ keep you from Jesus. Make an honest effort to search Him out, find out who He is, what He wants from you, how He can forgive anything you have ever done.)
In verses 47-49 we see the transformation of a man into someone who would follow Jesus. What convinced Nathanael that Jesus was the prophet of which Moses spoke? Jesus told Nathanael several things about him and it convinced Nathanael that Jesus was who Philip said He was. Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.” Jesus knew the real Nathanael and wasn’t afraid of his misunderstanding of Him, but loved him still. I believe God wants all of us to reach out to others like Philip did, and tell them that we have found, for ourselves, this one of whom the Word of God has spoken and that He is our personal Savior and Lord. We can tell them our story and how Jesus has touched our life. In a way, that is what Philip did. But then notice, Philip did not stop there. He not only told Nathanael the truth about Jesus but he invited Nathanael to actually come with him to see Jesus.
Listen, Philip told his friend that he had found the man they had been looking for and then he took Nathanael to see Jesus. (You and I can’t make someone personally receive Jesus, but you can take them to hear for themselves the story of Jesus from someone else who knows Him well and can explain some things that will help change their life.) Why not invite someone to “come and see?”
(Johnny Hunt says, “96% of the people that will ever come to faith in Jesus Christ will be people….are you listening?...that are invited to “come and see.” Our friends, our relatives, our co-workers, our neighbors, they will come, simply because someone invited them and said, “come and see.” “Here is a statistic that will blow you away, 20% of believers will invite another believer to church. A believer will invite another believer to church, but only 20% - only 1 in 5 - would do that? Only 2% of believers, Christ followers, will ever invite an unchurched or an unsaved person to church.” If someone moved in next door to you and they said, “Where is a good Baptist church?” Only 1 in 5 would be willing to tell them “come and see,” come and go with me. But, if they were unchurched or lost, only 2%of Christians would invite them to “come and see, or 98% would not invite them.”)
Are you part of the 2% or the 20%; or maybe you are of part of the 98% and the 80%?
Going back to our Scripture, we know God had a plan for Nathanael’s life and it first was to find a personal relationship with His Son and then for Nathanael to follow Him as a disciple. Let me say to you today, just like Nathanael, God wants us to discover and commit our life to Jesus as Lord and Savior and become His disciple. When that happens then God will open our heart up to His plan for our life. Jeremiah 29:11 says,
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
Jesus had a special plan for Nathanael’s life and God has one for you and me too and for all whom you bring to Jesus.
Tell the One About Calvary
Johnny Hunt did not have any idea what God had in mind for his life when he gave his heart to Jesus Christ. Johnny’s life was one of separation from his father and his mother was on welfare. He was poor. He managed a pool room and was a gambler making money playing pool. One day, a man named N.W. Pridgen invited Johnny Hunt to “come and see.” After Johnny was saved he began right away sharing the Gospel. After 40 years of being a Christian, Johnny has become one of the most prolific evangelists of our time and preaches to thousands and yet millions by way of TV and his trips overseas. Did Mr. Pridgen know that when he invited Johnny to Christ, the pool hall manager, who gambled his way through life, and by the way was a Cherokee Indian, that he was inviting a man who would be used by God to change the lives of many through God’s power? Of course he didn’t. You and I have no idea what God will do with those we share Christ with and are willing to invite to “come and see.” But we have to do our part and tell ONE. Johnny said in a recent message he preached on this subject , “Thanks to Calvary, I don’t live there anymore.” He was speaking about the life of that lost, gambling pool hall manager.
My friend, we need to be like Philip and N.W. Pridgen and go and tell those we know about the One whom we met at Calvary, the Jesus who changed our lives forever, for they too, need their lives changed by God!
The Challenge
Can you name one, just one person who will be in heaven because you shared Jesus with them and they accepted Him as their personal Savior and Lord?
Romans 1:16 NIV
If we have no one’s name to call out, is the reason because we are ashamed to tell others of what happened to us at Calvary?
Let me ask you this. Today is the Super Bowl. Do you know anything about the teams, the players, the sport at all? Maybe not this one, then, how about Clemson? Know anything about them, their players and their school? Maybe we just need to change the name of the school. Let’s say, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee or any other team or sport? What I am saying is, that we are willing to, and most often become, very excited talking about sports of any kind but what about Jesus? Has any of us been saved by Dabo, or a college team or a sport in the Olympics?
Where has your eternal life come from? To whom do you owe your allegiance? “Those who accept Christ’s identity, who He is, will also embrace His passion, sharing the Good News with others.” For us, sharing the person of Jesus Christ, who forgave our sin and has given us a home in heaven when we die, is supposed to be the Passion of our life!
God knows the real you! But, if you are not following Him and sharing who He is with others, He desires that from you for He commanded us to do just that.
Charles H. Spurgeon once said, “Great numbers of persons have no concern about eternal things. They care more about their cats and dogs than about their souls.” I wonder, is that true? Do we care more about the animals we have than the people around us who will never make it to heaven because we failed to say to them, “Come and See?”
What is our purpose for the year long theme of “Who’s Your One?”
Now, to come back to the statements at the beginning. Our purpose is to have you and me to intentionally share the Gospel with at least One person this year. You might say that is such a small goal. But think of the statistics, most of the Christians you know have never shared their faith with anyone nor have they asked anyone to come to church with them. If all of us will intentionally choose to commit to share with your One, then things will not only change for you but for the church too. (This year long emphasis is something that can truly make a difference in the life of this fellowship at NABC and every individual who is a follower of Christ?)
Here is the question for you and me, “Will it make a difference for us at NABC and your life too?”