Sir, We Would See Jesus

Text: John 12:20,21

Prop: a poster of Jesus

Summary: We should live in a manner so that others can see Jesus in us.

A week before his crucifixion, Jesus entered Jerusalem in a manner that fulfilled the words of the prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 9:9) Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. The whole country knew who Jesus was and they wanted to see if he would come to the feast of Passover. The Pharisees had sought to kill him because he made himself equal to God. He was a wanted man: both by those that hated him, and those that believed on Him.

(Read Text) And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast: The same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus.
I grew up in a small town in Alabama. My parents took me to church regularly. It was an Episcopal parish with a small congregation of about 100 people. The wonderful pastor, Colonel Ray, was a genteel man, retired from the Air Force, but still serving the Lord. On one occasion he was teaching the youth about church traditions and giving us a tour of the church. He explained the nave and the sanctuary. Then he explained the pulpit. It was a large pulpit, and being short as I am, I could barely see over it from where he stood on Sundays. It had a small reading light, and taped neatly behind it was a small piece of paper that simply said: Sir, we would see Jesus. I asked him what it meant. He referred to this scripture and said whenever he preached it was his reminder that the whole world was searching for Jesus, and it was his job to show Jesus to them. I thought that was neat. Every time I see this scripture I remember that.

Some people have never seen a Bible. Some people have tried to read it and didn’t understand it. Jesus said to the unbelieving Pharisees that made it their work to understand the scriptures (John 5:39), Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. If you want to understand God’s Word you ought to meet the Author: Jesus. The Bible is the inspired, inerrant, infallible, Word of God. My dear Aunt Jessie wrote this in a Bible she gave to me when I was young: “The Bible is God’s Word. And I mean from Genesis right through Revelation. And as God’s Word it’s true. Whether you believe it or not doesn’t hurt it one bit. That’s true of any truth. But like any truth it’s absolutely worthless unless you believe and act accordingly.”

I’ve heard people question the truth of the Bible. They would ask, “Do you really believe God created the world the way it is described in Genesis? Yes, I do. Jesus believed it. In John 17:5,17,24 he said And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth… for thou lovest me before the foundation of the world. In Psalm 33:6,9 David wrote: By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast. I haven’t found any place in the Bible for evolution. In Romans 1:20,25 the Bible says that some will deny the Creator: For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

Sir, we would see Jesus. Jesus is our Creator. If you would see him today, you must understand He created us. It says so in Colossians 1:16,17: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. If we want to understand and see Jesus, we must read his Word and believe it is true. In Romans 10:17 it says So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. We can show others Jesus and his love by the way we treat them and how we live our lives. The whole world is still searching for Jesus. When they look at us, will they see Jesus in us? Sir, we would see Jesus. Let’s be the light of the world to tell others that Jesus is alive forever and that he loves them.

©1997 by Jim Kerlin. All rights reserved.

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