What Are You Looking For?
In the first chapter of the Gospel of John, the reader is introduced to a man named John (not the author, but a Baptist). John the Baptist, (Jesus’ cousin) is out in the wilderness telling people about “The Christ” who is described as the “word”, “life”, and “light” for all mankind.
People keep thinking this John guy is Christ, but John keeps saying: “No, no… I’m not him. I’m just the opening act. The person you’re really here to see is on his way.”
There’s all this buildup before Jesus Christ comes on the scene… and then finally 34 verses in, John the Baptist points at Jesus and says, “Look, the Lamb of God!”
At that moment two people start to follow Jesus, and the next verse reads…
Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What are you looking for?” (John 1:38)
Or, in other translations, “What do you want?” or “What are you seeking?”
The two men don’t answer the question, they instead ask Jesus, “Where are you staying?” … and Jesus says, “Come and see.”
I love how the first thing Jesus says in John’s Gospel is “What are you looking for?” He doesn’t break out into a sermon, perform a miracle, or try to prove he’s the Messiah. He doesn’t do anything showy, instead he asks a question.
It’s also interesting to me how the two men don’t answer. Either this is exactly how the conversation went down, or the author intentionally left out some details. Perhaps we’re supposed to fill in the blank for ourselves. Maybe the dialog looks something like this…
Jesus: What are you looking for?
Me: ____________
Jesus: Follow me.
I believe we’re all looking for something. Love. Healing. Purpose. Answers… the list goes on.
We’re told to: “Ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7) … but I’ve found that when I ask, seek, or knock looking for one thing, I often walk away with something else.
Jesus doesn’t always offer better circumstances or easy solutions - he just says “follow me.”
So while we might be looking for ______ (which may not be promised), I believe we’ll always find:
Wisdom, if we ask for it. (James 1:5)
Rest for our mind, body, and soul (Matthew 11:28)
Divine presence through the Spirit (John 14:16-17)
These are just a few things I believe we always have access to that we can’t get anywhere else.
What is your “fill in the blank” right now? What are you looking for? What do you want? What are you seeking? I’ll leave those questions for you to ponder, and trust that no matter what - God is listening.