Where are you Looking?

“The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God!’When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, ‘What do you want?’They said, ‘Rabbi’(which means ‘Teacher’), ‘where are you staying?’ ‘Come,’ he replied, ‘and you will see.”’ John 1:35-39

If there is one thing that I have learned in my 13 years of ministry is people make bad decisions. We all do. For some reason bad decisions seem to come after some sort of hurt has been caused. I have seen students that have decided to cut themselves after a breakup. I have been around parents that had a blow up with a boyfriend or girlfriend and turn to the bottle for comfort. There have been countless amounts of young women that have sacrificed their purity because they had a man treat her poorly, so to get attention she gave up her body. The list can go on and on of people seeking comfort through bad decisions, worse yet, these things that are supposed to bring comfort do not last.

As we walk through this life, we will experience pain. Sometimes it is pain that we do not have control over. However, instead of turning to the Gospel for comfort we choose things that end up causing even more pain. We forget to look to the One that has promised to bring healing and have chosen to follow a false god of destruction. Jesus came to reveal the truth and heal the world of the hurt and brokenness they/we are experiencing. The healing didn’t come by magically whisking us away from the place, but by dwelling in us to bring us hope, peace, and grace to move us through. He is the comforter that we are looking for, but we need to run to Him and follow.

In the scripture reference above, John the Baptist shares with his disciples that Jesus was the Messiah he had been teaching and speaking of for so long. They heard this good news and they followed Him. Check out what Jesus said to them “What do you want?” Imagine the disciples as they heard these words. They heard He was the One they were waiting for, so what else would they want? They wanted freedom! They wanted to be next to the One that was sent to redeem His people! They knew who He was and what He brought.

So, their response to Jesus’ question: “Where are you staying?”  Aren’t we all asking that question, especially those that are wandering in this world looking for something or someone to free them? If only the parents and students I mentioned earlier knew that He is exactly who they are looking for. He is the cure. He is the love that is everlasting. Finally! All He is saying to all of us is “Come, and you will see.” If we look in the right place and we listen to His words we will find Him. He is here! He knows what we want! He is asking us if we know what we want, so we can acknowledge that we need to follow Him to see what He is doing.