John 1 - The Swindoll Study Bible

HIS OWN John 1:11 The Master came to His own things—the mountains that had emerged as a result of His power, the lakes that filled the landscape as a result of His work, the universe that He had created and filled with stars—and they followed Him and believed in Him and obeyed Him. He said to the seas, “Be still!” and they were still. He said to the wind, “Stop!” and it stopped (see Matt. 8:26-27; Mark 4:39-41). Nature obeys the Master.

But His own people did not believe, obey, and follow Him. They said, “Now, wait a minute. Who do You think You are? You haven’t been to one of our rabbinical schools. You don’t wash as we have taught everybody to wash. You don’t go through our rituals. You heal people on the Sabbath, and our rules say that You can’t do that.” They called Him a heretic, and they decided to kill Him.

BECOMING MAN John 1:14 Radio commentator Paul Harvey once told a story about a farmer who was a religious skeptic. One cold winter night, the farmer heard a thumping sound at his window. He went to the window and watched a small group of sparrows beat themselves against the glass, attracted to the warmth inside.

Touched, the farmer bundled up and opened the barn for the struggling birds. He turned on the lights, tossed some hay in a corner, and sprinkled a few crackers nearby to lure them inside. But the sparrows hid in the darkness, afraid of him. He tried circling behind the birds to drive them toward the barn. Finally, he retreated to his house to see if they’d flutter into the barn on their own. Nothing worked. He, a huge, alien creature, had terrified them. The birds couldn’t understand that he actually desired to help them.

As he continued to watch the doomed sparrows, a thought hit him: If only I could become a bird—one of them—just for a moment. Then I wouldn’t frighten them. I could lead them to warmth and safety. At the same moment, another thought dawned on the farmer: He had grasped the concept of the Incarnation.

NOT THE MESSIAH John 1:19-28 John the Baptist answered his questioners up front: “First off, before you come to any other conclusions, understand that I’m not the Messiah.” John didn’t string them along in order to get fame or attention. He simply did what he was called to do and didn’t do what he wasn’t called to do. His job was to be the Messiah’s forerunner. That was all. And he did it tremendously.

FOUND John 1:40-41 Andrew says to Simon Peter, “We have found the Messiah.” What does that imply? It implies that they had been looking for Him. If you’ve lost something and have told your family that it’s lost, you also then tell them when you find it. Andrew and Simon Peter had been looking for the promised Messiah—and they had found Him.

I wonder if more people today would find Jesus if they simply began to look for Him.