Revealed and Recognized Part 1

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What are you truly seeking? This question—the first words Jesus speaks in John's gospel—cuts straight to the heart of our faith journey and forms the centerpiece of our exploration in "Revealed and Recognized."

Pastor Harry Behrens guides us through John 1:29-42, where we witness two profound revelations of Jesus Christ. First comes the public declaration by John the Baptist: "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" With these words, John immediately establishes Jesus' divine mission—not merely as teacher or prophet, but as sacrificial Savior. Drawing on rich imagery from Passover and Isaiah's prophecies, John identifies Jesus as the one who will bear humanity's sin through his own sacrifice.

The narrative then shifts to a deeply personal encounter as Jesus meets his first disciples. When they begin following him, Jesus turns with the penetrating question that echoes through centuries: "What are you seeking?" Their answer reveals a simple yet profound desire—to be with him. Jesus responds with an invitation that still stands today: "Come and you will see." This moment transforms them, particularly Andrew, who immediately finds his brother Simon Peter with the joyful declaration: "We have found the Messiah!"

This passage challenges us to examine our own motives in approaching Jesus. Do we seek him for blessings or for who he truly is? Are we looking for comfort without transformation, benefits without lordship? The truth is, when we seek Jesus himself rather than what he can provide, we discover far more than answers—we find new identity, purpose, and joy.

Join us next week for part two of this series as we explore how scripture itself reveals Jesus and why the preaching of the Word remains essential for salvation. Have questions about today's message? Text us using the link in the episode description—your input helps shape future episodes that speak directly to your spiritual journey.

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Please visit www.chosenbydesign.net for more information on Pastor Harry’s new book, "Chosen By Design - God’s Purpose for Your Life."

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:10):
In this first message of our two-part series,
revealed and Recognized, pastorHarry Behrens invites us to
behold Jesus as he is revealedpublicly and personally in John
1, verses 29-42.
Here we see the Lamb of Goddeclared by John and then the
Sigh encountered by his firstdisciples.
The gospel does not ask us toimagine Jesus for ourselves.

(00:32):
It calls us to see him as he isthe Savior who takes away sin,
and then the Sigh who invites usto come and see.
Today's episode builds toward asimple yet searching question
from Jesus himself what are youseeking, here's Pastor Harry
Behrens, with today's teaching?

Speaker 2 (00:57):
Hello, welcome again to the Takeaway.
I'm your host, pastor HarryBehrens, and today we begin a
two-part series called Revealedand Recognized.
In part one we're going tofocus on the public revealing of
Jesus through John theBaptist's testimony and the
personal encounter of thosefirst disciples, and next week
we'll look at the scripturalrevealing and the confessions

(01:19):
that come from those who meethim Now.
In our last episode, john theBaptist was questioned by the
religious leaders.
They pressed him.
That voice was meant to preparehearts, and now it does what it

(01:45):
was meant to do it pointsdirectly to Jesus.
So John begins with these words.
The next day he saw Jesuscoming toward him and said
Behold the Lamb of God who takesaway the sin of the world.
This is he of whom I said Afterme comes a man who ranks before
me, because he was before me.

(02:05):
I myself did not know him, butfor this purpose I came
baptizing with water that hemight be revealed to Israel, and
John bore witness.
I saw the Spirit descend fromheaven like a dove and it
remained on him.
I myself did not know him, buthe who sent me to baptize with

(02:33):
water said to me Now John beginshere with the words the next
day.
The simple phrase opens asequence that will carry us
through the first chapter ofJohn.
It marks out significantmoments, days that together
build a picture of Jesus' beingrevealed step by step.
We'll trace the sequence inmore detail later in this series

(02:59):
, but for now it's important tonotice.
This day follows Jesus' baptismand his temptation in the
wilderness.
The Synoptic Gospels help ushere Matthew, mark and Luke all
point and tell us of Jesus'baptism, where the Spirit
descends and the Father's voicedeclares this is my beloved Son,
with whom I am well pleased.
Immediately after Matthew,chapter 4, and Luke, chapter 4,
verses 1 and 2 and both of themtell us that Jesus was led into

(03:22):
the wilderness for 40 days oftesting.
And John, chapter 1, verse 29,takes place after that period.
By the time, john points andsays behold the Lamb of God.
Jesus has already faced thetemptation, resisted the devil
and stepped forward ready tobegin his public ministry.
And here's John's proclamationthe Lamb of God who takes away

(03:44):
the sin of the world.
Now, what a declaration.
This is not just anannouncement, it's a revelation.
John is identifying Jesus'mission right at the start.
He is the Lamb, not a lambchosen by people, but the Lamb
chosen by God.
Now, why a lamb?
Because God had alreadyprepared his people with this

(04:06):
imagery.
In Exodus 12, the blood of thePassover lamb protected God's
people from judgment, and inIsaiah 53, 7, the servant is
described as like a lamb that isled to the slaughter.
Now, a lamb is gentle, pure,spotless.
A lamb gives its life so thatthe others might live.
And John says this is who Jesusis.

(04:29):
He will not only teach us, hewill bear our sin, he will take
it away.
And John goes on.
After me comes a man who ranksbefore me because he was before
me.
John acknowledges that Jesusexisted before him, even though
John was born.
First he is saying this one iseternal.
Then he explains I myself didnot know him, but for this

(04:53):
purpose I came baptizing withwater that he might be revealed
to Israel.
Now, john's whole mission was tomake Jesus known.
His baptizing was not aboutJohn, it was about preparing
hearts to recognize the Messiah.
And then John bears witness Isaw the Spirit descend from
heaven like a dove and itremained on him.

(05:13):
And the word remained isimportant.
The Spirit didn't just visitJesus, he abided with him.
This was the confirmation Johnhad been told to look for the
one on whom you see the Spiritremained would be the one who
baptizes with the Holy Spirit.
John concludes with absoluteclarity I have seen and have

(05:34):
borne witness that this is theSon of God.
Think of John's role here likethat of a herald in the ancient
world.
When a king was about to arrivein a city, a herald was sent
ahead to prepare the way, tomake sure the roads were clear,
the people were gathered andeveryone knew royalty was coming
.
John's baptism and hispreaching were not random.

(05:56):
They were the culturalequivalent of rolling out the
carpet and sounding the trumpet.
In that culture, peopleunderstood exactly what he was
doing.
He wasn't drawing attention tohimself, he was announcing the
king is about to enter.
John's ministry was entirelyabout preparing hearts and minds
so that when Jesus appearedthey would recognize him as the

(06:18):
Messiah.
The Lamb is revealed, the Sonis identified, the Spirit has
confirmed him, heaven has spokenand John is faithful to point
not to himself but to Jesus.
Now he continues and he saysthe next day again, john was
standing with two of hisdisciples and he looked.
And he says the next day again,john was standing with two of

(06:39):
his disciples and he looked, andJesus as he walked by and said
Behold the Lamb of God.
The two disciples heard him saythis and they followed Jesus.
Jesus turned and saw themfollowing and said to them what
are you seeking?
And they said to him Rabbi,which means teacher, where are
you staying?
He said to them Come and youwill see.
So they came and saw where hewas staying and they stayed with

(07:03):
him that day, for it was aboutthe tenth hour.
One of the two who heard Johnspeak and follow Jesus was
Andrew, simon, peter's brother.
He first found his brother,simon, and said to him we have,
says the next day.

(07:32):
Now John is building a sequenceand we'll explore the full
symbolism of these days in afuture episode, once we've seen
them all unfold.
But for right now the spotlightturns from John's public
witness to Jesus' personalencounter with his first
disciples.
John points again behold theLamb of God.
And two of his disciplesrespond immediately.

(07:52):
They leave John and followJesus.
That's what true witness does.
It does not draw people toourselves, but directs them to
Christ.
And then comes one of the mostpowerful questions in scripture.
Jesus turns to them and askswhat are you seeking?
These are his first recordedwords in John's gospel.
Not who are you?

(08:13):
Not what do you believe, butwhat are you seeking?
Not what do you believe, butwhat are you seeking.
It's a question that cuts tothe heart.
What do you truly want?
What are you longing for?
Why are you here?
Their answer seems simple Rabbi, where are you staying?

(08:33):
But underneath it, they'resaying we just want to be with
you.
And Jesus' response is aninvitation Come and you will see
.
Don't just hear about me, don'tjust watch from a distance.
Come closer, abide with me,experience who I am.
And they do.
They go with him, they staywith him and their lives are

(08:56):
forever changed.
Now Andrew, full of joy,immediately finds his brother,
simon.
He doesn't debate or argue, hesimply declares we have found
the Messiah.
Notice the language found.
They were searching, longing,waiting, and now, in Jesus, they
find what their hearts havebeen seeking.
Andrew brings Simon to Jesusand Jesus looks at him and says

(09:20):
you are Simon, son of John, andyou should be called Cephas.
This is more than a name change.
It's a new identity.
Jesus saw not only who Simonwas, but who he would become.
Throughout church history, thisverse has sometimes been
misapplied to suggest that Peterwas given supreme authority
over the church.
But the broader testimony ofscripture makes it clear Christ

(09:43):
is the cornerstone 1 Corinthians3.11 and Ephesians 2.20,.
And all believers are livingstones 1 Peter 2.5.
What Jesus is doing here isshowing Simon and us that
encountering him changeseverything.
He gives us a new name, a newpurpose and a new future.
This passage builds towards aclimax in Jesus's question what

(10:07):
are you seeking?
That question wasn't for thosetwo disciples, it's for us right
now.
What are you looking for inlife?
What are you hoping Jesus willgive you?
Are you seeking him for comfort, for answers, for blessings, or
are you seeking him for who hetruly is?
Here is where we must be honest.

(10:30):
Much of the modern church hasdrifted from the model John the
Baptist gave us.
John pointed away from himselfand said behold the Lamb of God.
But so often today, churchespoint to their programs, their
personalities, their music,their brand, and instead of
preparing people to beholdChrist, they attract people to
themselves.
Many pulpits no longer proclaimthe Lamb who takes away sin,

(10:50):
but a message that tickles earsand promises prosperity.
Many seek Jesus not to betransformed but to be confronted
.
Many seek Jesus not to betransformed but to be confronted
.
They want the Jesus whomultiplied fish and bread, but
not the Jesus who calls them todeny themselves and take up
their cross.
This is a hard word, but itmust pierce us.
If we seek Jesus only forblessings, we miss him entirely.

(11:12):
He did not come to be a vendingmachine for our desires.
He came to be Lord and Savior.
He came to transform us into apeople who live for the purposes
we were created for to glorifyGod and enjoy Him forever.
Only when we seek Him for whohe is will we truly know what it
is to have life, and lifeabundantly.
The truth is, many seek Jesusfor the wrong reasons.

(11:36):
Some want Him to fix theirproblems, but not their hearts.
Some want His blessings withoutHis lordship.
Some want a moral teacher, nota savior, who demands repentance
.
But Jesus' question calls usdeeper what are you seeking?
Are you seeking truth, peace,forgiveness, eternal life?

(11:56):
All of those are found in him,but only when you seek him
himself.
He doesn't just give us things,he gives us of himself.
And here's his invitation Comeand you will see.
If you will draw near, if youwill abide with him, if you will

(12:17):
trust him, you will see who hetruly is.
You will find that he is notonly the lamb who takes away sin
, but the Messiah who fulfillsyour deepest longings.
John's testimony was publicBehold the Lamb of God.
The disciples' response waspersonal we have found the

(12:40):
Messiah, and Jesus' invitationis still open.
Come and you will see.
The question for us today isthis what are you seeking?
Are you looking for the rightreasons?
Are you seeking Jesus himself?
Because when you truly seek him, you'll find more than answers.
You'll find a new name, a newidentity and a new joy.

(13:02):
Let's pray, father.
God, thank you so much for yourword today.
I thank you for the truth thatyou are calling us to yourself
to give us a new identity, a newpurpose, a new life, to help us
to find joy in you thatglorifies you.
I pray that you would open oureyes and our ears to help us to

(13:23):
be the seekers you want us to bethat not only in the drawing,
but that we would be open to theseeking, that you would give us
the faith that we need topursue you, to desire you, to
hunger for you, god, not thedesire to fill our flesh but the
desire to glorify you above allelse, that we may have that joy

(13:44):
that you promised us we canhave.
I pray this in your name, jesus,amen.
Now in our next episode of theTakeaway, we'll continue in John
, chapter one, and see howscripture itself reveals Jesus.
We'll discover how the witnessof the word enhances the public,
revealing we've seen today andwhy scripture never works apart

(14:05):
from proclamation.
It is through the preaching ofthe word that people are saved.
So don't miss part two ofRevealed and Recognized.
And as always, I want to thankyou for joining us today, and I
hope this episode has helped youtake a step closer in your
relationship with Jesus and thatyou now have a deeper
understanding of just how muchGod loves you and wants you to
know him.
And before we go, I want toencourage you to send us any

(14:28):
questions or comments you mayhave using the text us link in
the episode description.
Your inputs help us shapefuture episodes that speak
directly to your needs and helpyou grow in your faith.
It's our desire that thisministry be a tool to reach the
lost and equip the saints for alife that brings glory to God.
God bless, and we'll see younext time on the Takeaway.