Contemplative Bible Reading

John 1:26b (New Living Translation)

John told them, “…right here in the crowd is someone you do not recognize…”

The word “recognize” has at least two meanings that could apply here.

One is, “acknowledge the existence, validity, or legality of.”

John is saying, “You don’t acknowledge that Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ, i.e., the one appointed by God to take away our sins.”

Another definition, “identify (someone or something) from having encountered them before; know again.”

John is saying, “Hey, don’t you know this man? The Son of God is standing right beside you. Open your eyes. Stop looking for something and someone else. He is here.”

There have been plenty of books written about what the Jews in Jesus’ day were expecting in the Christ. I think this verse is one that smacks them in the head with a baseball bat (did they have baseball bats in Judea in that day?).

Hey, the Son of God is standing right in the middle of you! Stop looking for someone or something else.

I guess the same saying holds true today. Hey, the Son of God is sitting on the stool next to you in the coffee shop. What are you looking for? Something with state-of-the-art Hollywood affects? CGI? Video game hoopla? God is here, now. Enjoy the blessing.