Do you have someone in your life that if they gave you a recommendation (whether for a place to eat or a place to visit or a vacuum to buy) you would trust that recommendation without question? Perhaps they are a friend or family member. For some it might be someone famous who they deeply idolize. As you think about who that is in your life, why is it that you trust their opinion so much? What is it about them that makes you value their opinion so highly? When I first felt a call to ministry, I had some doubt because I wasn’t sure I really had the needed skill set to pastor a church. But I remembered a friend once telling me that if three people I trusted confirm a big decision I was making, that I could trust it was the right decision. So, I called my best friend and my mom. Both of them told me they thought I could do it and that going to seminary would be a good choice for me. Then shortly thereafter, I met April. And as we got to know each other, I told her that I felt called to seminary to become a pastor. She too supported that plan. So what was it that made me think I could trust those three voices in my life? And I think the answer for me is love.

In the story we read from the gospel of John for this morning, we see Jesus coming to John the Baptist. In last week’s story, Jesus was baptized by John. This week, John tells his disciples who he believes Jesus is. Hear what John said again: “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.” Then he added, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. 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.’ And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.” And then when John sees Jesus the next day, he again says, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!”

Upon that second declaration, two of John’s disciples leave John to follow Jesus, seemingly no questions asked. Now, we don’t know how long these two had been followers of John the Baptist, but we can assume that they were pretty devoted to their teacher and his mission. So, why would they just up and leave to follow someone else? I would suggest that there were probably a couple of reasons. First, John’s whole ministry was leading to this. Just before this encounter with Jesus, John was asked about who he was. Some priests and Levites came from Jerusalem and asked John if he was the Messiah or a prophet or what? And John replied with a quote from Isaiah:  “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord.’” John believed his mission was to point people in the right direction. And that direction was toward Jesus.

The other reason that I think these two disciples would leave John to follow Jesus so easily is that they trusted John. John was someone that they believed would not steer them wrong. Tim Hansel, in his book Holy Sweat, told this story: “One day, while my son Zac and I were out in the country, climbing around on some cliffs, I heard a voice from above me yell, “Hey Dad! Catch me!” I turned around to see Zac joyfully jumping off a rock straight at me. He had jumped and then yelled ‘Hey Dad!’ I became an instant circus act, catching him. We both fell to the ground. For a moment after I caught him I could hardly talk. When I found my voice again I gasped in exasperation: ‘Zac! Can you give me one good reason why you did that???’

He responded with remarkable calmness: “Sure…because you’re my Dad.” His whole assurance was based on the fact that his father was trustworthy. He could live life to the hilt because I could be trusted.” John’s disciples could take the risk to leave John and follow Jesus because John could be trusted and John told them that Jesus was the Son of God.

That’s not the end of the story though. These two disciples follow Jesus and Jesus, of course, notices. He turns to them and says, “What are you looking for?” Basically, Jesus was saying, “What do you want?” That makes me wonder: were these two men just following silently? Were they whispering to each other about Jesus? Were they asking him questions? We don’t know. But Jesus wants to know their motive for following him. Their answer comes in the form of a question for Jesus. “Rabbi, where are you staying?” On the surface, this seems a simple and unusual question to ask Jesus. But looking closer at the original Greek we can see that the word translated as ‘staying’ means ‘to abide.’ Where does Jesus abide? The disciples are not asking about the physical location where Jesus is staying. They want to know where Jesus abides, where they can find him, where they can be in his presence.

And Jesus responds, “Come and see.” The word translated here as ‘see’ could be translated as ‘behold.’ In fact, there are four different Greek words in these 13 verses that could be translated as ‘behold.’ The one used here by Jesus is the word horao and has a spiritual component. It is a sort of “inward spiritual perception.” The two disciples of John ask Jesus where he abides and he tells them to come and discover who he is, to come and perceive his spirit. And so they follow and they remain with him that day. And they listened to him speak and they began to behold who Jesus was, what was important to him, what his mission was. And at least one of them was convinced that John the Baptist’s proclamation was true.

At the very end of our reading, the author writes, “One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.  He first found his brother Simon and said to him, ‘We have found the Messiah.’” And then the text adds, “He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him.” The word translated as “looked at him” could also be translated as “beheld him.” This is yet again a different word for “behold.” This particular Greek word is emblepo, from en meaning ‘in’ and blepo meaning ‘to look.’ Jesus looked inside of Simon. He considered him with a special interest. And he gave Simon a new name, a new identity. He says to Simon, “‘You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas’ (which is translated Peter)”

For the Greek people, and for the Hebrew people before them, names had meaning. Names were important and often spoke to the desires of the parents for their child. And all throughout the Old Testament we saw God changing people’s names to represent a new direction for that person’s life. Abram had his name changed to Abraham. Jakob had his name changed to Israel. And in the New Testament, we see Saul’s name changed to Paul. And here we have Simon’s name changed to Peter, which means ‘rock.’ The gospel of Matthew presents the renaming of Simo in response to Simon’s declaration that Jesus is the Messiah. Matthew writes this: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.” Simon becomes Peter, the rock on which Jesus plans to build his church. Peter beholds Jesus for who he is and Jesus gives Peter a new purpose, to be the foundation of the church, those called to spread Jesus’ message.

“Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” Let us look upon Jesus, recognize who he is and what he came to offer the world. And we will most certainly be changed. Who can we trust to show us who Jesus is? And who trusts us with that same truth? A couple of weeks ago, as we ended our previous sermon series and transitioned into our new series Chosen|Choosing, we looked at Anna and her proclamation in the temple of who Jesus was. Today we behold the proclamation of John the Baptist as he points us to Jesus, the Lamb of God. May we be like those two disciples and choose to abide with Jesus and behold who he really is and try to be like him. And may our lives be changed as we are given a new purpose and a new calling, a way of love and hope and healing and welcoming, a way of peace and joy. “Behold! The Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.” Amen!