When We Recognise Jesus, There Should Be a Reaction

There is a remarkable little passage at the end of Matthew 14 that could easily be overlooked.

It comes after some of the biggest moments in the chapter. Jesus has fed the five thousand – and Matthew tells us that was five thousand men, besides women and children. The disciples have crossed the Sea of Galilee in the middle of a storm. Jesus has walked on the water. Peter has stepped out of the boat, only to begin sinking when he takes his eyes off Jesus. Then Jesus climbs into the boat, the wind dies down, and the disciples worship Him, saying:

“Truly you are the Son of God.”Matthew 14:33

After all that drama, Matthew gives us just three verses:

“When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret. And when the men of that place recognised Jesus, they sent word to all the surrounding country. People brought all their sick to him and begged him to let the sick just touch the edge of his cloak, and all who touched it were healed.”Matthew 14:34–36

There is a simple phrase in the middle of those verses that is worth stopping over:

They recognised Jesus.

And when they recognised Him, there was a reaction.

How Well Do We Know Jesus?

There are different levels of knowing somebody.

It is possible to recognise someone, perhaps even to speak to them regularly, without really knowing them. Their face might be familiar, but their name, their story and who they really are remain unknown.

Then there are friends who have shared decades of life together. Holidays, meals, conversations, celebrations and difficult seasons create a much deeper relationship.

Marriage takes that further still. After nearly five decades spent together, a husband and wife naturally know one another in a way that a passing acquaintance never could.

The difference is simple:

Time spent together.

The same principle applies to a relationship with Jesus.

It is possible to know about Jesus without knowing Him particularly well. Someone can know the Bible stories, attend church and recognise Christian language without developing a deep relationship with Christ.

Relationships deepen through time spent together.

Paul had been following Jesus for decades when he wrote:

“I want to know Christ…”Philippians 3:10

Paul already knew Jesus. He had encountered Him and his entire life had been transformed as a result. Yet his desire was still to know Him more.

That should remain the desire of every Christian: to know Jesus more deeply.

And the more Jesus is known, the more there should be a reaction.

Knowing Jesus Changes What We Do

Look again at the people of Gennesaret.

Once they recognised Jesus, they did not simply acknowledge that He had arrived and then carry on with their day.

They went out.

They told the surrounding area.

They brought people to Him.

And then they begged Jesus to help them.

Recognition produced action.

That same pattern should be visible in the Christian life. When someone has truly encountered Jesus – when they know His forgiveness, have experienced His grace and discovered the peace that He gives – there should be a growing desire for other people to know Him too.

Not everybody is called to be a preacher or a church leader.

But every Christian is called to be a witness.

A witness simply speaks about something they know to be true because they have experienced it for themselves.

That does not mean walking around hitting people over the head with a Bible. Nor does it mean looking for opportunities to win arguments about Christianity.

Often, witnessing begins much more simply:

Love the Lord. Love people.

Take an interest in people. Listen to them. Care about their lives. Build genuine relationships.

And when God provides an opportunity, point them towards Jesus.

Just One Link in the Chain

There is a remarkable story about a man named Mr Jenner who lived in Sydney, Australia.

For around 25 years, he would approach people on George Street and ask them a simple question about where they would spend eternity. Day after day, he spoke to people about their need for Christ.

As far as he knew, he had never led anybody to Jesus.

Thousands of conversations.

Years of witnessing.

And apparently no results.

Yet, many miles away and years later, Christian minister Francis Dixon began encountering people whose stories had something remarkable in common.

One man recalled serving in the Royal Navy and walking along George Street in Sydney when a stranger approached him and challenged him to consider eternity. That encounter became part of his journey towards Christ.

Then another person told almost exactly the same story.

And another.

And another.

Eventually, Dixon traced the story back to Mr Jenner.

When he told him about the people whose lives had been affected by those brief conversations, Jenner's response was wonderfully humble.

He hoped he had simply been a link in the chain.

There is an important lesson in that story.

It is natural to want to see results. After sharing faith with somebody, there can be a desire to know that the conversation mattered. After extending an invitation, there is a hope that the person will come to church. After planting a seed, there is a longing to watch it grow.

But that may not always happen.

One conversation might be remembered ten years later.

An invitation might initially be declined but remembered when circumstances change.

A prayer might be prayed faithfully for years without any apparent answer.

Sometimes a Christian may simply be one link in a chain that God is using to draw somebody towards Himself.

The responsibility is faithfulness.

The result belongs to God.

Only Jesus Can Save

There is also something wonderfully freeing in Matthew's account.

The people brought the sick to Jesus because they knew something very important:

They could not heal them themselves.

In the same way, no Christian can save another person.

No church leader can save somebody. No pastor can. No evangelist can. No brilliant sermon, clever programme or perfectly organised church can bring salvation.

But Jesus can.

That is why prayer must be at the heart of Christian witness.

Jesus looked at the crowds and said:

“The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”Matthew 9:37–38

Notice where Jesus begins.

Pray.

People can be brought to Jesus in prayer long before they are willing to walk through the doors of a church.

There may be friends, relatives, neighbours and colleagues who have been prayed for over many years. When nothing appears to change, it can become tempting to assume that nothing is happening.

But nobody knows everything God is doing in another person's heart.

So keep praying.

Servants, Not Managing Directors

There is another danger in Christian ministry: beginning to behave as though the work belongs to the people doing it.

It doesn't.

Church leaders are not called to be managing directors of churches. They are called to be servants of Jesus Christ.

And there is enormous freedom in remembering that.

If the work belonged entirely to human beings, then everything would depend upon them. Every decision, every success and every failure would ultimately rest on their shoulders.

But the Church belongs to Jesus.

It is His work.

The responsibility of those who serve Him is to remain close to Jesus, listen to Him, obey Him and trust Him.

That requires humility, but it also gives tremendous confidence.

God knows what He is doing.

“They Showed Me the Way In”

Many years ago, a Christian lady named Miss Wakefield McGill was queuing to enter an art exhibition in Manchester when two young lads approached her.

Rather cheekily, they asked whether she would pay for them to go inside.

She agreed.

Once they were through the doors, the boys disappeared into the exhibition.

About half an hour later, she heard them behind her. One pointed towards her and said to the other:

“There she is, George. She’s the one who showed us the way in.”

She later reflected on those words.

How wonderful would it be to reach heaven and discover that somebody was there because God had used an invitation, a conversation, a prayer, an act of kindness or a simple word of witness to help show them the way?

Christians cannot save people.

But they can point.

They can invite.

They can pray.

They can love.

They can speak.

They can bring people towards Jesus.

There may even be people in eternity whose stories were never known on earth, but for whom God used something seemingly small as one link in the chain that eventually led them to Christ.

Who Might God Be Asking You to Show the Way?

When the people of Gennesaret recognised Jesus, there was a reaction.

They went out.

They brought people to Him.

They begged Him to act.

That leaves a simple challenge.

Is Jesus merely recognised, or is He truly known?

Is that relationship with Him continuing to deepen?

And is knowing Him producing a desire for other people to know Him too?

The need for Jesus is all around. It can be seen in communities, workplaces, schools, neighbourhoods, friendship groups and families.

And God's power has not diminished.

The same Jesus who saved before still saves today.

So perhaps the prayer is simply this:

Lord, help Your people to know You more. Lead them to those in whom You are already at work. Give them courage to point others towards Jesus. And use them, even if they are only one small link in the chain.

Because there can be few things more wonderful than discovering that God used an ordinary Christian life to help somebody else find their way to Jesus.