Seeking the Lost

Posted on February 13, 2017 by .....

SEEKING THE LOST (John 1:35-42)

John 1:40-42a – “One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ. And he brought him to Jesus.”

The Apostle Andrew was always bringing people to Jesus. Andrew was not loud, boisterous and impulsive like his brother Peter, but something that seems to define Andrew was that he was always focusing on bringing people to Jesus.

INTRODUCTION: The Apostle Andrew’s name means “manly”. Many preachers and commentators call Andrew a man’s man. The most masculine and mature thing you could do as a man is love Jesus with all your heart, follow Him with all your might and bring others to Him as often as you can. Andrew was the very first of the Apostles to follow Jesus. He is often referred to as Simon Peter’s brother, but Andrew was his own man. He was the first of the twelve Apostles’ to acknowledge Jesus was the Christ. Andrew’s personality was basically the opposites of Peters. Andrew was calm and considerate and naturally helpful; his brother Peter was impulsive, bold and brash. Peter was a leader and took charge of men, Andrew was a man that supported leaders, looked out for leaders and followed leaders. We can all learn something from the Apostle Andrew. Andrew seemed to always play second fiddle to his brother Peter and never was upset or jealous about it. Andrew did not consider it beneath him to be an assistant to a leader; in fact he thrived in this position. Andrew had the right perspective of himself and his situations. It was not about him, and it is not about us; it should be all about God and His son Christ Jesus. (Colossians 3:2 – Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.)

BIOGRAPHICAL OVERVIEW OF THE APOSTLE ANDREW

Andrew was first a disciple of John the Baptist. Andrew was saved under the ministry of John the Baptist. (John 1:35 & 40 – Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples; One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.) So Andrew was a disciple of John the Baptist. Then one day he heard John preach “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me” Andrew turned and saw Jesus and Andrew never looked back. That one look at Jesus was enough to change Andrew’s life forever. We need to look unto Jesus the Son of God, He has “all power”, He can change our life forever, for the good, if we just surrender to Him and let Him work in our life. Andrew was Simon Peter’s brother and partnered with Peter and James and John in a fishing business. Andrew’s fathers name was Jona or John and Andrew lived in Bethsaida.
The account of Andrew becoming an Apostle is found in Luke 6:13-14 – “And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles; Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,”

CHARACTER LESSONS FROM THE APOSTLE ANDREW

Andrew was concerned with bringing others to Jesus. He first prepared himself to bring others to Jesus. How did he do that? The same way we can do it today by spending time with Jesus. How do you spend time with Jesus? By prayer, by Bible study, by going to church every time the doors are open. Andrew prepared himself to bring others to Jesus. (John 1:39 – He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.)
Andrew made it a priority to find others so he could bring them to Jesus. How much of a priority do you make it to find friends or family members you could bring to church or point to Jesus? (John 1:41a – He first findeth his own brother Simon,) – Notice Andrew started with his family members first in his quest to find people to bring to Jesus. There is a saying that goes “They will not come – they must be brought, they will not seek – they must be sought, they will not learn – they must be taught.” Winning souls to Christ involves effort it usually doesn’t just happen.
Andrew made a proclamation to his brother “We have found the Messias”! Andrew did not hesitate to boldly proclaim Jesus to his brother.
Andrew had a purpose. People need Christ in their life. Andrew purposed to help as many people as possible to get Christ in their life. How are you doing in this regard? (John 1:42 – And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.)
Andrew was people orientated. You will not get the job done Christ wants you to do unless you get among people, and interact, talk and get to know them. In John chapter six the multitude needed to be fed. Christ asked Phillip where they could buy loaves of bread to feed the multitude. Phillip basically said it can’t be done we can’t feed these people, but Andrew had been among the people and he knew of a lad who had some bread and some fishes; and in Andrew’s fashion he brought him to Jesus. Andrew took enough time to spend with this lad to know he had the bread and the fishes. (John 6:8-9a – One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, saith unto him, There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes:)
Andrew was also dependent on Jesus. Andrew did not try to solve his problems by himself. He did not first exhaust himself trying to solve problems in his own effort like many of us do; he first took his problems and concerns straight to Jesus and was dependent on Him to help him solve the problem. John 6:9 says “There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?” Notice the last part of the verse “but what are they among so many?” Andrew immediately stated the concern and brought it straight to Jesus. Are you dependent on Jesus for your problems, concerns and decisions?
Andrew was devoted to Jesus. He devoted his whole life to Jesus, to serving Him and doing His will. Andrew invited Jesus into his home. Some people let Jesus in their heart but never really make Him welcome in their home! Is Jesus welcome in your home? Would he feel welcome in your home? Do you have movies, books, or video games in your room or internet sites you visit that Jesus would not approve of? (Mark 1:29 – And forthwith, when they were come out of the synagogue, they entered into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. & Colossians 2:6 – As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him)
Andrew was a trusted problem solver. When a fellow Apostle was not sure of the best course of action, he consulted with Andrew for direction on how best to handle the situation; and Andrew handled it in his usual fashion, he took it to Jesus as soon as possible. (John 12:20-22 – 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. Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus.)
We need to be “Andrews”. We need to be concerned with bringing others to Jesus. Over and over again we see examples of Andrew bringing people to Jesus. How many people have you brought to Jesus? We need to be people oriented like Andrew. He made it a priority to get to know people. Andrew was dependent on Jesus in all parts of his life. Is Jesus first in all areas of your life? Do you bring your problems to Jesus right away or do you try to solve them yourself first? Andrew devoted his life to serving and ministering for Christ. What are you doing as service to the Lord? Andrew was a trusted problem solver. When people came to him with a problem he pointed them toward Christ and took the problem to Jesus. If people come to you for advice do you always point them toward Christ with your advice or do you try to help them in your own power? In all areas of Andrew’s life, Christ had the preeminence. Is Jesus preeminent in all areas of your life? (Colossians 1:18 – And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.)

IN CONCLUSION: Statistically about 2% of believers were first reached through a Gospel tract or advertising, 6% through a pastoral visit, 6% through a visitation contact and 85% were first reached through a family or friend contact. You see the importance of the example Andrew set for us with bringing others to Christ (John 1:41-42a – He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ. And he brought him to Jesus). We need to be bringing people to Christ. We need to be reaching unsaved loved ones for Christ. We need to be bringing friends to Christ. We need to be doing the work of The Great Commission as found in Matthew 28:18-20 – “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

Andrew demonstrated with his life the priority in evangelizing others for Christ. In Acts 1:8 Jesus tells us “ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” For Andrew, Peter was his Jerusalem, the lad at the multitude was his Judaea, the Grecian’s were his Samaria and he personally fulfilled the “uttermost part of the earth” by his later ministry. We need to model Andrew and be seeking ways to bring others to Christ, to always point others to Christ and to make Christ the priority in our life.