“The power of introduction”

By Rev. Michael Stonhouse

Meditation – Wednesday, August 7, 2024

John 1: 29-42 (Forward, p. 9) CEV p. 1101

Today’s passage picks up on a very important theme for Christian believers, namely the power of introduction. While this is undoubtedly important in human relationships, it is even more crucial with regards to people coming to meet the Lord. You see, many people have trouble knowing how to approach Jesus, and certainly don’t have the ‘foggiest clue’ of how to enter into a relationship with Him.

In our reading from John today we see a couple instances of introduction. The first is John the Baptist. He confesses that he did not previously know who the Messiah was but that he was sent expressly by God to reveal Him to the world. This is very interesting, for I would think that John and Jesus, being cousins, would have been aware of each other and even known each other. But, as for the identity of Jesus as the Messiah, that was another matter. It was only the One on whom John saw the Holy Spirit alight, which was surely a one-time event.

Anyway, not only does John testify to this, he also points out Jesus to his disciples as ‘the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world’. Now where John got this title, or this notion, Bible scholars are quite up in the air, quite undecided. They point out that there are numerous instances in the Hebrew Scriptures of animals being presented as sin offerings, but never a human being. Nevertheless, two of John’s disciples immediately hive off to spend time with Jesus—the first of a couple introductions.

One of those two was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, and the first thing he does after his encounter with Jesus was to look up this brother and bring him to Jesus—another decisive encounter and a crucial one for the history of the church and all of humankind.

So, what about us, Jesus and the matter of introductions. It is both easier and more difficult, both at once. It is easier in that we don’t have to take anyone to where Jesus is. He is already here and already freely available. But, on the other hand, He isn’t physically with us, so it’s not a matter of meeting Him face to face, shaking His hand and saying hello. So, how does one relate to one who can’t be seen with our eyes? Obviously then it almost immediately makes it a matter of faith, of trusting what cannot be seen.

What I have advised is simply a decision, an experiment if you will. One simply says to Jesus, just as if He was standing visibly in front of you, “I invite you into my life and ask that you forgive me and make me your own. I ask you to run my life and direct it from this time forward and I promise to do as you say.” And, as for the experiment part, to just watch and wait and see whether anything changes. For myself, there was no flash of lightning or anything quite so dramatic, but a sense of peace and security, a sense of ‘being held’ that I’d never known before.

So, as with John the Baptist and with Andrew, it is a matter of introduction and an opportunity that is available to every one of us. And moreover, just as it was crucial in the above instances, it is still crucial to us and our world today. Amen.

Forward notes: “’You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas’ (which is translated Peter)” (verse 42b).

“A name is not the same as an identity. I have always gone by my given name, Chrys, which has an unusual spelling and, as near as I can tell, has no significance in the English language. My name preceded my identity. In Western culture, giving names with special meaning is not a common practice today.

“A few years ago, I visited Canyon de Chelly in Arizona with an Indigenous guide. She explained that when she was a child, she had been forced to attend a residential school and was given an Anglo name. But in her Diné culture, the children are not named until they take on an identity. Our guide said that because she rode a horse as a child, she was given the name ‘girl who rides a brown horse.’ While she kept her Anglo name, she told us that she used her Diné name among her people, which was her true identity.

“Jesus gave Peter, also translated as the rock, a name that captured his true identity. He was a rock among the disciples and a foundation of the early church, which Jesus knew would come to pass.”

Moving Forward: “What name do you think Jesus would call you?”