The next day after, John stood, and two of his disciples; and looking upon Jesus as He walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God! And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto Him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest Thou? He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where He dwelt, and abode with Him that day. John 1:35-3935Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples; 36And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God! 37And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. 38Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou? 39He 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. (John 1:35‑39).
“Come and see." What simple words, and yet what depth there is in them. And how like the One who spoke them: God's perfect, sinless, spotless Lamb. But what was the question that called forth that loving invitation, "Master where dwellest Thou?" Those two disciples of John were attracted to the blessed Person of the Lord Jesus. As they heard from the lips of their master those words, "Behold the Lamb of God," they immediately left John and followed Jesus.
We then read, "Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye?" Yes, He knows if any of us seek to follow Him, and if that is our desire He will surely lead us into a closer knowledge of Himself. We are not permitted to know what passed between Him and those two disciples as they responded to His invitation, and came and saw where He dwelt and abode with Him that day. We may be sure that each moment spent in His presence revealed to their wondering gaze some perfection of His blessed Person.
Do these words not speak to us? Is He not saying to us, "Come and see?" Yes, surely it is so, and where is His dwelling place now? In John 1:1818No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. (John 1:18) we read, "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him." The bosom of the Father was His dwelling place from all eternity, and even when here on earth He could speak of Himself as "the Son of man which is in heaven." He still occupies the same place, but having been to Calvary's cross and now gone back to the Father, He brings us who once had "no hope" and were "without God in the world" into association with Himself and relationship with God His Father. He would have us enjoy with Himself the Father's love, and enter into His purposes of grace for us.
Let us now see what effect that time spent in the Lord's presence had upon those disciples. We read of Andrew: "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." That little time spent with the Lord Jesus made Andrew a soul winner. The Lord Jesus had become so precious to him that he thought he must find someone else with whom he could share this joy, so he went right away and brought Peter to Jesus. In later years when Peter was so wonderfully used to the salvation of souls, how glad Andrew must have been that the Lord had allowed him to be the vessel used for his brother's blessing.
The more we respond to the invitation, "Come and see," and seek to enter into something of God's heart of love, the more anxious we shall be that those around us should be brought to the knowledge of the Lord Jesus as their Savior. And they, too, can enjoy all the blessings that are to be found in Him. May we be kept so near to our blessed Master that we, like Andrew, may be the means of bringing others to Jesus.