Repent and Prepare
Reading for Thursday, February 18
John 1:29-34
John the Baptist has been preaching and baptizing, urging the Israelites to repent and prepare for the coming of the Messiah. And then, on a day like any other, Jesus appears. As John sees him, he proclaims, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” This is the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. John the Baptist declares Jesus to be the Messiah or “God’s Chosen One”.
I imagine people gathering around Jesus at this point, some falling to their knees, others trying simply to touch Him, perhaps even a few brave souls sticking out their hands and introducing themselves! Whatever the response, one thing was clear. Israel, and the World, would never again be the same.
What was your response when you first met “God’s Chosen One”? More importantly, what did you do next? Let’s look at that crowd again. Certainly some decided to hang around for a while. Others probably ran home to share the news. A select few chose to follow him.
These are still the options given to us:
Reading for Thursday, February 18
John 1:29-34
John the Baptist has been preaching and baptizing, urging the Israelites to repent and prepare for the coming of the Messiah. And then, on a day like any other, Jesus appears. As John sees him, he proclaims, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” This is the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. John the Baptist declares Jesus to be the Messiah or “God’s Chosen One”.
I imagine people gathering around Jesus at this point, some falling to their knees, others trying simply to touch Him, perhaps even a few brave souls sticking out their hands and introducing themselves! Whatever the response, one thing was clear. Israel, and the World, would never again be the same.
What was your response when you first met “God’s Chosen One”? More importantly, what did you do next? Let’s look at that crowd again. Certainly some decided to hang around for a while. Others probably ran home to share the news. A select few chose to follow him.
These are still the options given to us:
- Join the church and hang around
- Be introduced to Jesus, then leave
- Follow Him, go where He goes, do what He does, speak as He spoke
In which part of the crowd do you find yourself? Is this where you want to be? What will you do about it?
Jon Hoskins