What Are You Seeking?

The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as He walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to Him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are You staying?” He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where He was staying, and they stayed with Him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter).

The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow Me.” Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” Nathanael answered Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And He said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

John 1:35-51

At the start of every new year, my family has a tradition of picking a “word for the year.” We all gather and share with one another what word we’ve picked and why, and then at the end of the year, we reflect on how God used that word in each of our lives. Regardless of what word is picked, the one question we seek to answer is “What are you seeking?” What do you desire out of another year of life that God has given you?

This year, I have chosen for my word to be “behold.” This one is different than any of the others I have picked in the past. This year, I want to focus on remaining fixed on Christ in every single aspect of my life and to rest in the promise that He alone sustains me. It is so easy to get caught up in placing our worth in fleeting things, worrying about what tomorrow holds, letting fear drive us, or dwelling on the thoughts and opinions of others. My hope in “beholding” this year is that I will slow down and seek Christ alone in every aspect of my life. I pray this will mark the rest of my years. When behold is mentioned in the Bible, it is saying, “Be sure to see.” I want to behold the Lamb of God and fall deeper in love with my Heavenly Father more and more each day that He gives.

In John 1:35-51, we see Jesus calling His disciples. When He does this, what does He ask them? “What are you seeking?” John’s gospel refers to seeking thirty-eight times. God knew we would need to be reminded over and over again. What stands out to me in this passage is that Jesus specifically called these men to come and walk alongside Him, and they not only believed that He was who He said He was, but they simply stopped their lives to follow Him.

If someone were to look at my life, or yours, would they be able to say the same? Looking at your life, what would they see? Would they see someone who is willing to have their plans disrupted by the things of God? Would they see someone who has been radically changed by the grace and love of our God? This world is constantly throwing things at us to seek, whether it's affirmation through others, scrolling through social media, finding worth in how well we perform or how much we make in our jobs, basing our value on our relationship status, or finding praise through what we look like. There are so many things that could fall on this list. We all have them. Take a moment to think about the things that you are finding yourself seeking outside of Christ. Look at that list, and think, have these ever fully satisfied me forever and ever? The answer? No.

But, we are not without hope. We have an eternal and secure hope. Thanks be to God.

What His word tells us is this: “But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14). In Rankin Wilbourne’s book, Union of Christ, he says:

“Apart from Him you can do nothing (John 15:5).” But united to Him, you can drink the sweet waters of the far country, even as you wander in a dry and thirsty land. For Christ will “make it a place of springs” (Psalm 84:6), even rivers of living water.

God is actually giving us beyond what we could ever dream of. I wish that I could have told my younger self that the fullness of joy that I was so desperately seeking was not found in Jesus + _____. Fullness of joy is found in Christ alone. Would this be true of us, that we would behold the Lamb, and spend the rest of our days seeking first His Kingdom and His righteousness.