"Come and see."

This Sunday's gospel reading is from John's gospel and is found at John 1:43-51.
Go ahead, click the link, read the passage, and then come back here.

The former evangelist in me loves this simple passage. I'm sure there are plenty of good, deep, sound theological lessons to be explored in this passage, but the one that stands out to me is Philip's statement at the end of the 46th verse. He says to his skeptical friend Nathanael, "Come and see."

The same call is used in the fourth chapter of John's gospel when Jesus stops at a well in Samaria. The woman that encountered Jesus at the well goes into town and declares, "Come and see a man that told me all about myself. Could this be the Messiah?"

Today's evangelicals are more likely to help you find Jesus by shoving a Bible down your throat and expecting the ingestion of the Word will make you a Christian. It turns out that there is a sizable difference between professing to be a Christian and actually acting Christlike.

I get that the whole "Come and see" approach to evangelism was very different for Philip and the woman at the well when they could actually bring their friends to Jesus. But we can still show our friends Jesus by acting in a Christ-like manner. 
I know it's not easy, but I think the "Come and see" approach is pretty effective if we can show them what Jesus is like.

"Come and see" is a good invitation to discuss Jesus, God, philosophy, faith, or whatever. It can be a discussion with you, your pastor, or others that might shed some light on the character and teaching of Jesus. Teaching what Jesus taught isn't as tough as you might think. Start with the love God, love your neighbor bit and never get too far from that.
I mean if you're going to use the "Come and see" approach to introduce people to Jesus, you are going to have to produce a Jesus at some point. Just make sure it is God's son Jesus and not some Jesus of your own design.

What are the things you think about when you read this passage?

John