Mike Edmisten Follower of Jesus. Husband of Nicki. Father of Ryan & Brock. Communicator of the Word.

What Do You Want?

The New Testament book of John is one of the four gospels that give us the record of Jesus' life on earth.  John gives us no record of Jesus' birth or anything regarding His childhood.  John's account begins when Jesus is beginning His ministry.

Here are the first words of Jesus that John recorded in his gospel:

"What do you want?" (John 1:38)

If I were writing a book that tells the story of Jesus, I don't think I would choose these words to be the first words of Jesus that I wrote down. I would have sought out something loftier…something deeper…something to really capture my reader's attention.

But the first words from Jesus that John chose to record are, "What do you want?"

Jesus was walking along when two men began to follow him.  That's when Jesus turned around and asked them, "What do you want?"

That's kind of a harsh, abrasive phrase to use as your opener.

But the more I thought about it, I think John has hit on something.  Jesus had an unbelievable way of cutting through the fog and asking very hard, but very clarifying, questions.

If we decide to follow Jesus, we can have a myriad of motivations behind that decision.  Jesus won't settle for that. He demands to know our heart. He demands to know why we are choosing to follow Him.

Some people proclaim to follow Jesus because they see something in it for them.  Others follow Him, recklessly abandoning their will in favor of His will.

If you want to follow Jesus, then you need to honestly and thoroughly wrestle with this question:

"What do you want?"

And you need to know that Jesus demands an answer.