A Sermon Delivered by the Rev. Dr. Patrick H. Wrisley on January 18, 2026.

What is your favorite passage of Scripture?  Many people gravitate toward Psalm 23, where we are reminded that the Lord is our shepherd. Others mention 1 Corinthians 13, where we learn that the greatest of all gifts is love. Still others point to John 3:16, where Jesus tells Nicodemus that God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but have eternal life.

This morning, our text is from the Gospel of John and is one of my favorites; not because it contains the most beautiful poetry or the most profound theology, but because it takes something we perceive as difficult and complicated and reveals it to be wonderfully simple. It takes a task that strikes fear in the hearts of many Christians and shows us it can be as natural as a conversation. If we could truly embrace what this passage teaches, I believe it would transform not just our congregation, but the world around us. Listen to the Word of God as we pick up at the very beginning of Jesus’ work.

John 1:35-42

The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, Look, here is the Lamb of God! The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, What are you looking for? They said to him, Rabbi (which translated means Teacher), where are you staying? He said to them, Come and see. They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon. One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’sbrother. He first found his brother Simon and said to him, We have found the Messiah (which is translated Anointed). He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas (which is translated Peter).^[1]

Can you figure out yet what makes this passage so significant? I am talking about instructions for growing the church of Jesus Christ. I am talking about evangelism. Today’s text dives into the deep end regarding the dreaded E-word, evangelism. 

Now, I know what you’re thinking. The very word evangelism likely triggers one of several reactions. Perhaps you recoil slightly, thinking of someone who corners strangers and asks, “Are YOU saved?”  with thinly veiled judgment. Or maybe you immediately think evangelism means converting someone to Christianity, and you’re thinking, “I can’t convert anyone!” And you’re absolutely right; you can’t. Only the Spirit of God can do that work.

Still others hear evangelism and think it’s someone else’s job, maybe the pastor’s job, perhaps.  “It’s too hard,” they say.  “It’s best left to the professionals.” The sad reality is that most pastors don t know how to do evangelism either. And when we place the responsibility for church growth solely on the shoulders of pastoral staff, we miss a fundamental truth: sharing the faith is everyone’s calling and everyone’s gift to offer.

We’ve made evangelism far more difficult than it needs to be. It reminds me of an article I once read titled, “How Building IKEA Furniture Nearly Destroyed My Marriage.” The author, Steve Tate, writes about how something that should be straightforward like following simple instructions became unnecessarily complicated and stressful. He joked that IKEA was responsible for 28 percent of all divorces during the previous year. Of course, he made that statistic up, but as he said, “It wouldn’t surprise me if it were true.”^[2]

This, my friends, is what the church has done with evangelism. We’ve complicated it. We’ve painted it as something only certain people can do and most of them, in our minds, are zealous religious types we’d rather not emulate or hang out with in the first place. But our text this morning cuts through all that complexity. It shows us what evangelism is, the spirit in which we practice it, and where we begin.

So how does our text define evangelism? We have a simple story: two of John the Baptist’s disciples are standing there when Jesus walks by. John points him out:  Look, here is the Lamb of God! Andrew and another disciple, who many scholars believe was John the apostle, begin following Jesus. Sensing their presence, Jesus stops, turns around, and asks them a penetrating question (a question each of us should wrestle with as well, I might add):  What are you looking for?  

Notice what Jesus didn’t say. He didn’t ask, “If you died today, would you go to heaven or hell?” He didn’t say, “Go away I don’t have time for you.” He didn’t demand, “Are you saved?” Jesus didn’t launch into a sermon about what Andrew needed to believe or how he should live his life.

Instead, Jesus asked a question. Why? Because questions invite relationship. Jesus didn’t declare what Andrew needed to believe; he asked Andrew an honest, open-ended, existential question about his deepest need. “What are you looking for?” It was a question designed to help Andrew articulate his own spiritual hunger and need. Jesus genuinely wanted to know, and in asking, he opened the door to deeper connection.

This is the heart of evangelism: it’s about relationships. It’s not about conversion statistics. It’s not about adding names to our church membership rolls. Evangelism is simply building relationships so that we earn the right to share what Jesus has done for us.

We also learn from this text about the spirit in which evangelism happens. Jesus enters this relationship with Andrew and the other disciple without any agenda other than genuine interest in what they are searching for. He takes them as they are and right where they were and lets the relationship develop naturally. His attitude is humble, simple, and completely non-judgmental.

Jesus doesn’t impose conditions. He doesn’t say, “If you’re going to follow me, you must do this and you must not do that.” He simply opens the door and allows Andrew and his companion to determine where the relationship will go from there. There is no manipulation, no pressure, no hidden agenda just authentic invitation.

This is crucial for us to understand. When we practice evangelism in the spirit of Jesus, we approach people with genuine curiosity and care, not with a predetermined script or an ulterior motive to “save them.” We trust the Holy Spirit to do the work of transformation while we simply offer the gift of authentic relationship.

Finally, our text reminds us where to begin our evangelistic work: with people in our own circle of influence. Look at Andrew. He spends the day with Jesus, and what does he do next? He goes straight to his brother Simon. He goes to someone with whom he already has an established relationship, where a modicum of trust is already present.

Andrew doesn’t tell Simon what he must believe. He doesn’t hand him a tract or deliver a theological lecture. He simply shares his own experience:  We have found the Messiah. Then Andrew does something beautiful and wise: he makes a simple introduction.  “Jesus, this is my brother Simon. Simon, this is the one I told you about.” And then, Andrew steps back and lets things work out on their own. He lets Simon and Jesus develop their own relationship.

Beloved, why have we made evangelism so difficult? Evangelism is simply this: creating relationships with people we already know and share with them what Jesus has done for us. We don’t harp on what Jesus will do for them; that comes across as preachy and turns people off. They must discover their own treasure with Jesus. No, we only share what Jesus has done for us – nothing more. That’s it. Nothing more.

Before we close, I want to give you a practical tool drawn directly from our scripture. Did you notice Andrew’s unusual response to Jesus question? Jesus asks, “What are you looking for?” and Andrew could have asked anything. He could have asked about the meaning of life. He could have asked about heaven or hell. He could have asked about the Messiah’s mission.

But what does Andrew ask?  “Where are you staying?” We might say today, “What hotel are you in?” To us, it might seem like an odd question or even a missed opportunity. But Jesus takes Andrew’s question seriously. He doesn’t mock it or dismiss it. He simply says, “Come and see.”

Here’s what I want you to do this week: Find someone you already have a relationship with a friend, a family member, a colleague, a neighbor. In the natural flow of conversation, simply ask them this question: If you could ask Jesus one question face to face, what would it be? And if that sounds too hard to do, then simply as them, “Do you believe in spiritual things?”^[3]

Then, and this is crucial, just be quiet. Don’t rush to fill the silence. Let them answer. And then observe how the Holy Spirit takes the conversation from there. You will discover something profound: people love to talk about spiritual things. They’re hungry for conversations that matter. They’re searching for meaning. And when we create space for those conversations through genuine questions and authentic relationship, we participate in the work of the Epiphany revealing Christ to the world.

This week, you are going to be an evangelist. Not in the scary, complicated way we’ve imagined. But in the way Jesus modeled: through relationship, through genuine curiosity, through the authentic sharing of your own experience. “Come and see.” It’s that simple. Amen.

© 2026 Patrick H. Wrisley, Pastor, First Presbyterian Church, 8 West Notre Dame Street, Glens Falls, NY 12801.  Sermon manuscripts are available for the edification of members and friends of First Presbyterian Church of Glens Falls and may not be altered, re-purposed, published or preached without permission. All rights reserved.

^[1] New Revised Standard Version (NRSV). New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

^[2] Steve Tate, How Building Ikea Furniture Nearly Destroyed My Marriage, PopSugar, January 26, 2018. Accessed on 1/15/2023 at https://www.popsugar.com/family/Funny-Story-About-Building-Ikea-Furniture-44714768.

^[3] Three-quarters of Americans believe in some Higher Power. Reddit user r/Christianity, accessed on January 14, 2026 at https://www.reddit.com/r/Christianity/comments/13k2v22/rising_spiritual_openness_in_america/.