Firsthand Experience

Scripture Texts: John 1:35-51; Psalms 25

If we visit a restaurant and enjoy a fantastic meal we are likely to tell others about it. Given the opportunity we would go beyond just telling someone about it, we would invite them to join us at the restaurant sometime.

The earliest disciples of Jesus are engaged in a similar practice. They are not stopping at telling others about Jesus, there is an invitation to experience Jesus firsthand. We see how helpful and fruitful this is when there are objections. No elaborate arguments are made. There is not back and forth, simply an invitation to come and see.

There was enough confidence by these early disciples to simply introduce others to Jesus. Do we have the same level of confidence? Do we believe there is something worth coming to see when we invite others to experience Jesus firsthand?

When we look at our marriage, more importantly when others look at our marriage, do they experience Jesus firsthand? Put another way, are we living in our marriage in such as way as to help the people around us encounter Christ?

For several years we have lifted a simple prayer to God, that God would help us to live a marriage that could be used to show others Christ and a Christ-centered marriage. There are several things that go into that prayer becoming reality, however it starts with us having an experience of Christ that compels us to invite others to come and see. Second, we must strive to keep Christ at the center of our marriage. When it comes to what others experience in our marriage, that is up to God. We will do our best to do our part, and we will trust God to do God's part.