Discovering Who Jesus Is

Scripture – John 7:37-44: On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. On hearing his words, some of the people said, “Surely this man is the Prophet.” Others said, “He is the Christ.” Still others asked, “How can the Christ come from Galilee? Does not the Scripture say that the Christ will come from David’s family and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?” Thus the people were divided because of Jesus. Some wanted to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him.

Observation – (Write down what you see in the scripture) This is the way Jesus is known – people discover Him for themselves. This is our goal in the so-called “outreach” of the church. I can let people know who He is in my experience. I can point them to signs of His presence and power. I can lift up His words and claims about Himself. The question in all of this is, how do we invite people to consider who Jesus Christ is for them? It’s not really something we can tell them. How do we invite them in a way that’s truly grace-full?

Application – (Write how you will be different today because of what you have just read) I will focus on this throughout this season of Advent. In my preaching and conversation I will invite people to consider Jesus Christ.

Prayer – (Write out a brief prayer) Lord, you know I’m not sure how to go about doing any of this. You have been nothing but good for me. Teach me how to share that experience. Please keep revealing yourself to me and through me.