I remember, as a child, finding something interesting, and I would run to ask my mom or my sister to come and see. Sometimes it was something they had no interest in, but it was noteworthy to me. Can you remember a time when someone extended this invitation to you, but you saw no urgency and passed it up?
In the Bible, we see several instances where someone invites others to come and see. In John chapter 4, Jesus goes to a well while His disciples go into town to buy food. He had an appointment with a woman who had no idea what was about to happen. It was midday, and she was going to the well to get water. This was not the customary time for women to get water for their household, but she was a woman who was talked about and avoided by other women. Jesus starts a conversation with her, which would not have been proper for a respectable man to do with a woman of her character. He tells her he knows she had 5 husbands, and the one she was living with was not her husband. She is intrigued and questions how he knows these things. As they say, the long story short is that she accepts Jesus as her Savior. She is so excited about her salvation that she leaves her water pot and goes into the city to tell the men whom she had met. Her enthusiasm overrides her fear of gossip. She invites these men to come and see! She was not inviting them to see just any man, but to see the Christ. She had discovered the greatest thing that could ever happen to her, and she wanted to share.
John 4:28-29 “The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?”
She must have been very persuasive because in John 4:30, these men followed her to find Jesus. “Then they went out of the city, and came unto him.”
In John 1:39, Jesus gives this invitation to some of His disciples. He had just called Andrew, and most think the other disciple was John. They wanted to know where he was staying. He invites them to come and see. These disciples wanted to spend time with Him. John had baptized Him the day before and announced Him as the Son of God. Jesus did not turn them away because He was tired or had things to do. He welcomes them and is ready to spend time with them.
John 1:39 “He 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.”
The next day, Jesus goes into Galilee and finds Philip. Jesus invites Philip to follow Him, and He does. Now, in verse 45, Philip finds Nathanael. Nathanael questions who this man is and how He could be a good man from the city of Nazareth. Here we have an example of how we can get the skeptic to see our Savior. Philip simply invites him to come and see.
John 1:43-46 “The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and finds Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me. Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip finds Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.”
Three times in Revelation chapter 6, the Apostle John is summoned to come and see. The Lamb of God, Jesus, was opening the seals of the scroll, and as He broke the seals, He asked John to come and witness this great event with his own eyes. This was done so John, as an eyewitness, could record these things for us to read. As we read, we are invited to come and see all that God has prepared for us. But first, our commission is to go and tell others and invite them to come and see the risen Savior.
When was the last time you invited someone to come and see? The woman at the well immediately went to find others to tell them about Jesus. She knew she was coming back and that what she would share could change their lives. We know this because she left her waterpot! Jesus invites Andrew and John, but He did not rush them. He spent time with them. Who have you invited to come and see? Are you willing to spend time with them to help them see the truth? Are you living a life before them that will intrigue them to want to see what gives you the peace, love, and joy that is within you? Maybe it is time for you to return and take another look at what an awesome Savior you have. If your life is not revealing to others who Jesus is to you, then you need to take another long look at all that God has for you.
Revelation 6:1 “And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.”
Revelation 6:3 “And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.”
Revelation 6:7 “And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.”
One day, those who are saved will be invited to see all that God has in store for us eternally, but for now, we need to fulfill the great commission so that others will have the same opportunity. Jesus is still inviting people to come and see, but we must be His feet and hands to go and tell.
