John Directs His Followers to Jesus

On the following day, while two disciples were near, John again saw Jesus. Again the face of the prophet was lighted up as he cried, “Behold the Lamb of God!” The disciples did not fully understand. What meant the name that John had given Him—“the Lamb of God”?HLv 85.5

Leaving John they went to seek Jesus. One was Andrew, brother of Simon; the other was John the evangelist. These were Christ’s first disciples. They followed Jesus—anxious to speak with Him, yet awed and silent, lost in the thought, “Is this the Messiah?”HLv 85.6

Jesus knew that the two were following Him. They were the first fruits of His ministry, and there was joy in the heart of the divine Teacher as these souls responded to His grace. Yet turning, He asked only, “What seek ye?”HLv 86.1

They exclaimed, “Rabbi [Teacher], ... where dwellest Thou?” In a brief interview by the wayside they could not receive what they longed for. They desired to be alone with Jesus and hear His words.HLv 86.2

“He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where He dwelt, and abode with Him that day.”HLv 86.3

If John and Andrew had possessed the unbelieving spirit of the priests and rulers, they would not have been learners but critics, to judge His words. But having responded to the Holy Spirit’s call in the preaching of John the Baptist, they now recognized the heavenly Teacher. To them the words of Jesus were full of freshness and beauty. A divine illumination was shed upon the Old Testament Scriptures. Truth stood out in new light.HLv 86.4

The disciple John was a man of earnest and deep affection, ardent yet contemplative. He had begun to discern “the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14.HLv 86.5

Andrew sought to impart the joy that filled his heart. Going in search of his brother Simon, he cried, “We have found the Messias.” Simon also had heard the preaching of John the Baptist, and he hastened to the Saviour. The eye of Christ read his character and life history. His impulsive nature, his loving, sympathetic heart, his ambition and self-confidence, his fall, his repentance, his labors, and his martyr death—the Saviour read it all. He said, “Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.”HLv 86.6

“The next day ... Jesus ... findeth Philip and saith to him, Follow Me.” Philip obeyed the command, and he also became a worker for Christ.HLv 86.7

Philip called Nathanael, who had been among the throng when the Baptist pointed to Jesus as the Lamb of God. As Nathanael looked upon Jesus, he was disappointed. Could this man, who bore the marks of toil and poverty, be the Messiah? Yet the message of John had brought conviction to Nathanael’s heart.HLv 87.1