Andrew- I Ran to Tell My Brother Who I Saw

By Mary Vee
John 1

From Andrew's Notes

Photo by Mary Vee - Desert near the Jordan River

My name is Andrew. I have been following John the Baptizer for some time. His words have opened my eyes to the things of God. It's hard to explain, but I feel the validity of the words he speaks in my soul.

I have been a fisherman working in the north, by the Sea of Galilee but have take some time away to listen to more of John's words. 

John had said he had been sent by God to prepare the way for the One. I didn't know exactly what he meant by that but wanted to hear more.  In the middle of a sentence John stopped and pointed at a man walking by and shouted, "Look! The Lamb of God!"

This was the Man John had told us about. I didn't fully understand who this man was and wanted to find out. I ran to him. We talked for a short time then He invited me and another man to join Him. We spent the whole day listening to what He had to say. I 

I was so taken by every word, I don't think I ate the entire time. On the inside I blazed with energy. A hunger to know more. A desire to tell everyone about this man and invite them to come hear what He had to say.

Like a lightening bolt I thought of my brother and how excited he would be to also hear what this Man had to say. 

I left the group sitting with The Man. He didn't call out to me to stop. He didn't ask me to explain why I up and left with out an excuse. Could it be that He knew? I had a feeling He did.

I ran all the way to the shores of the Sea of Galilee where my brother, Simon and I had a fishing business. This was the time of day when he would have been fixing his nets and preparing to go out fishing. 

Sand kicked up as I ran to him. "Simon! Simon!"

"Hold on there, runt. You're kicking sand on my net." He tugged on the net and cleared a space for me.

"Simon, you've got to come with me. You know how we have waited for the one who would come and save our people?"

He didn't look up from his work. "Yeah."

"He's here. I heard Him speak. I've spent the day listening to Him. Simon," he finally looked up at me, "We have found the Messiah."

My brother let go of his nets and stood. He set his huge hands on my shoulders. "Is this so?"

I laughed because I was so happy. "Yes!!! We have found the Messiah."

Simon pushed his nets to the side and stepped onto the sand. "Show me."

I ran, teasing him to keep up. "C'mon. Faster!"

It took him seconds to catch up. He would have passed me if he knew the way. I showed him the place where I had last seen the man. "He's over here."

Peter ran ahead then stopped a few feet away from the Man. He looked at Him and listened to what he said the others gathered there.

The Man stopped speaking and walked to my brother. He said, "You are Simon, son of John."

How did he know? I had told my brother the man didn't know where I went or what I was doing. My brother smiled.

The Man then said, "You will be called Cephas which means, Peter."

And just like that, we became followers of the Man called Jesus, the Lamb of God. We had so much to learn, and wanted to learn everything we could about the living God whom this man clearly knew more than anyone.

I know you can't see me as I am telling you these words, so I will tell you what I am doing. There is a smile on my face such as I've not had in a long time. I have fished for so many years and now I am listening to the Messiah speak!

Come back for the next story.

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sources: 
*A Harmony of the Gospels for Historical Study, An Analytical Synopsis of the Four Gospels by William Arnold Stevens and Ernest DeWitt Burton, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York 1932
*New International Version, New King James Version. 
*My Bible College training.
*My notes and walk through classes I've taught in Children's church. Answers to student questions, etc.
*Pastoral sermons on this time
*Matthew Henry Commentary
*F. LaGard Smith Commentary

* Jewish History.org
*Jewish Virtual Library.org

*My research in Israel.

Andrew: The Man Who Caused John the Baptizer to Stop Mid Sentence

By Mary Vee
John 1

From Andrew's Notes

Photo by Mary Vee - Desert near the Jordan River

My name is Andrew. I have been following John the Baptizer for some time. His words draw me closer to The Living God. It's hard to explain, but I feel the validity of John the Baptizer's words in my soul.

I have been a fisherman working in the north, on the Sea of Galilee. One day I took a break and walked down the Jordan to the wilderness. I saw a crowd gathered around a man and was curious what he was saying. I walked closer and listened. He spoke truths about the living God that hooked me immediately.

I suppose I'd heard these words about the God who chose our people at different times in my past, but they'd never impacted me like they did that day. His message helped me understand God's truth and expectations. That the Almighty God demanded we follow Him, obey His words, keep His words ever present in our heads and tell our children.

John quoted words from the Scriptures that I hadn't heard in a long time. I wanted to hear more, so I came back to listen again and again.

One day, a man came to the shores of the Jordan River where we sat listening to John. He stood among the crowd, listening. Watching. John looked at Him several times. It seemed John was distracted by Him. At first, John stammered then he stopped speaking. He looked at the man.

There was a connection I didn't understand. 

The Man did not say anything, but I sensed something different was going on. What it was? Who was this Man who captured John's attention. John held his gaze on the man as if He knew him, but didn't know who he was. He seemed confused but in awe of this man. I watched the two of them interact without words, intrigued by what was happening. 

The Jordan River, Photo by Mary Vee"

The Man stepped close to the water. John took a deep breath as though the very presence of this Man was so powerful, so great, like a child standing before a great king. 

The Man asked John to baptize Him. John shook his head and said, "I cannot. I am the one who should be baptized by you."

The words surprised me. John hadn't said anything like that in all the days I'd listened to him. Who was this Man who had such an impact on John?

The Man said, "This is the right thing to do. Trust Me. I must be baptized at this time to fulfill all the righteousness."

John nodded as if he understood something much bigger than I could understand. I was so intrigued. I had to learn more. I came back every day, wanting to learn more about what John had to say and about the man who was baptized that day.

Over a month went by since that day. The Man hadn't stopped by. I had no idea what he was doing and had hoped John would tell us more. There was a rumor that the Man went to the wilderness on His own.

THEN, and this is the incredibly exciting part I wanted to tell you, the Man walked near where John spoke. How did I know he did? Because John stopped mid sentence and pointed at him. "Look," he shouted, "The Lamb of God!"

As soon as I heard those words I ran to the Man. I wasn't alone. Another man ran too. We caught up to the stranger. He had to be a rabbi. Why else would John have directed us to him? 

The Man turned around and looked at us. He said, "What do you want?"

I didn't know what to say. I didn't have an answer to the question so I said, "Um, where are you staying?" At least I could find out where to find him again tomorrow.

He said, "Come, and you will see." Such a tender voice. One of a man who wanted to not only teach, but show us what He had to say. In that one day, I understood this Man had something to show me. Something I desperately had to learn more about. Something so big, I couldn't live without knowing it.

I have more to tell you next time.


Come back for the next story.

*********************************************************************************************

sources: 
*A Harmony of the Gospels for Historical Study, An Analytical Synopsis of the Four Gospels by William Arnold Stevens and Ernest DeWitt Burton, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York 1932
*New International Version, New King James Version. 
*My Bible College training.
*My notes and walk through classes I've taught in Children's church. Answers to student questions, etc.
*Pastoral sermons on this time
*Matthew Henry Commentary
*F. LaGard Smith Commentary

* Jewish History.org
*Jewish Virtual Library.org

*My research in Israel.