The Ripple Effect
The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was staying, and spent that day with him. It was about the tenth hour. Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter. The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.” Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. Philip found Nathaniel and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote - Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathaniel asked. “Come and see,” said Philip. (John 1: 43-46)
At 5:16 PM on November 9, 1965 events were set in motion that brought one of the riches, most industrialized, and highly populated areas of the western world to a complete standstill A back-up electrical relay switch was tripped at the Sir Adam Beck Power Station in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. This small failure triggered a sequence of escalating line overloads that quickly raced down the main trunk lines of the electrical grid with a rippling effect. The switch had not been updated to keep pace with the increasing power transmission, and in less than three seconds the entire northeastern power grid, affecting both Canada and the United States went down. The results were unimaginable. There was no electrical energy to heat, to light, to communicate, to power any kind of machine, to operate pumps that move sewage, water and gas, or to run life-support systems at many hospitals. An estimated ten thousand commuters were stuck on subway cars, unable to escape the darkened tunnels. In the 80,000 square miles affected by the outage only half of the 150 hospitals had emergency power systems available. Over 250 flights arriving at JFK Airport had to be diverted – some planes were landing right as the runway lights went out! Without any light, heat, or phone systems, (pre-cell phone days) 30 million people suddenly found themselves in a dark, silent, and frightening world. All because a spindle on a little metal cup touched a metal contact. Isn’t it amazing how the smallest incident can set off a ripple effect far beyond expectations!
Fortunately, not all ripples are negative. If fact God has designed the Church in such a way that this phenomenon continues even in our lives. It is the ripple effect that has energized the spread the Gospel throughout the world. Think for a moment about the greatest ripple effect in history – the impact of Jesus on this world: “Here was a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of an unknown peasant woman. He never owned a home. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never went to college. He never traveled more than 200 miles from the place he was born. He never did one of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but Himself. While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves. While He was dying His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on earth – His coat. He never accumulated any wealth – in fact when he was dead, he was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend. And yet after nearly 2000 years have come and gone- He still is the center piece of the human race. Of all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that were ever built, all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned – put them all together – and they will not have affected the life of mankind as powerfully as the one solitary life of Jesus Christ.” (adapted from a sermon by Dr James Allan Francis in “The Real Jesus and Other Sermons” © 1926. Judson Press of Philadelphia) The ripple effect Jesus has had on the earth is more than amazing!
In the verses above we see Jesus beginning to set in motion an ever-expanding circle of influence. It starts first with John the Baptist – it radiates outward as Andrew and an unnamed apostle (probably John the Apostle) begin following Jesus. The first thing that Andrew does is find his brother Peter-and Peter becomes a follower. Jesus then calls Phillip and the first thing that Phillip does is introduce his brother Nathaniel to Jesus. >From there it grows to a circle of 12 apostles, who then form the first core group of the Church. After the arrival of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, Peter preaches his first sermon and the wave of the Spirit washes over 3000 souls. That number quickly grows to 5000 and the rest is “His-story” as they say, and the ripple effect continues. The Good News continued outward from Jerusalem and washed over Judea and Samaria - then on to Damascus and Antioch (modern Syria)– Galatia (Asia Minor), Macedonia (Greece), Rome (Italy) and from there to all of Europe and around the entire world.
But imagine how different history might be if an ordinary man named Andrew had not gone to find his brother Simon Peter and said, “We have found the Messiah.” What if another ordinary man named Phillip had not sought out Nathaniel and told him, “We have found Him who Moses and the Prophets wrote – Jesus of Nazareth”? What if the 12 had not responded by faithfully submitting to the Master’s call upon their lives to share the Good News with others? The world in which we live would be a very different place. Like the failure of the power grid in 1965 – we would live in a dark and frightening world. But thanks be to God that the Gospel of Christ is still advancing as His followers are empowered by His Spirit and led by His Word!
You and I are beneficiaries of the spiritual ripple effect of the gospel. For the past 2000 years the radiating waves of God’s grace have continued to wash over lost souls bringing forgiveness and new hope. By God’s grace and through our obedience you and I will continue to see those ripples expand as we share the Gospel and point others to the Messiah.
Live the Victorious Life,
PT
At 5:16 PM on November 9, 1965 events were set in motion that brought one of the riches, most industrialized, and highly populated areas of the western world to a complete standstill A back-up electrical relay switch was tripped at the Sir Adam Beck Power Station in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. This small failure triggered a sequence of escalating line overloads that quickly raced down the main trunk lines of the electrical grid with a rippling effect. The switch had not been updated to keep pace with the increasing power transmission, and in less than three seconds the entire northeastern power grid, affecting both Canada and the United States went down. The results were unimaginable. There was no electrical energy to heat, to light, to communicate, to power any kind of machine, to operate pumps that move sewage, water and gas, or to run life-support systems at many hospitals. An estimated ten thousand commuters were stuck on subway cars, unable to escape the darkened tunnels. In the 80,000 square miles affected by the outage only half of the 150 hospitals had emergency power systems available. Over 250 flights arriving at JFK Airport had to be diverted – some planes were landing right as the runway lights went out! Without any light, heat, or phone systems, (pre-cell phone days) 30 million people suddenly found themselves in a dark, silent, and frightening world. All because a spindle on a little metal cup touched a metal contact. Isn’t it amazing how the smallest incident can set off a ripple effect far beyond expectations!
Fortunately, not all ripples are negative. If fact God has designed the Church in such a way that this phenomenon continues even in our lives. It is the ripple effect that has energized the spread the Gospel throughout the world. Think for a moment about the greatest ripple effect in history – the impact of Jesus on this world: “Here was a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of an unknown peasant woman. He never owned a home. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never went to college. He never traveled more than 200 miles from the place he was born. He never did one of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but Himself. While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves. While He was dying His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on earth – His coat. He never accumulated any wealth – in fact when he was dead, he was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend. And yet after nearly 2000 years have come and gone- He still is the center piece of the human race. Of all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that were ever built, all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned – put them all together – and they will not have affected the life of mankind as powerfully as the one solitary life of Jesus Christ.” (adapted from a sermon by Dr James Allan Francis in “The Real Jesus and Other Sermons” © 1926. Judson Press of Philadelphia) The ripple effect Jesus has had on the earth is more than amazing!
In the verses above we see Jesus beginning to set in motion an ever-expanding circle of influence. It starts first with John the Baptist – it radiates outward as Andrew and an unnamed apostle (probably John the Apostle) begin following Jesus. The first thing that Andrew does is find his brother Peter-and Peter becomes a follower. Jesus then calls Phillip and the first thing that Phillip does is introduce his brother Nathaniel to Jesus. >From there it grows to a circle of 12 apostles, who then form the first core group of the Church. After the arrival of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, Peter preaches his first sermon and the wave of the Spirit washes over 3000 souls. That number quickly grows to 5000 and the rest is “His-story” as they say, and the ripple effect continues. The Good News continued outward from Jerusalem and washed over Judea and Samaria - then on to Damascus and Antioch (modern Syria)– Galatia (Asia Minor), Macedonia (Greece), Rome (Italy) and from there to all of Europe and around the entire world.
But imagine how different history might be if an ordinary man named Andrew had not gone to find his brother Simon Peter and said, “We have found the Messiah.” What if another ordinary man named Phillip had not sought out Nathaniel and told him, “We have found Him who Moses and the Prophets wrote – Jesus of Nazareth”? What if the 12 had not responded by faithfully submitting to the Master’s call upon their lives to share the Good News with others? The world in which we live would be a very different place. Like the failure of the power grid in 1965 – we would live in a dark and frightening world. But thanks be to God that the Gospel of Christ is still advancing as His followers are empowered by His Spirit and led by His Word!
You and I are beneficiaries of the spiritual ripple effect of the gospel. For the past 2000 years the radiating waves of God’s grace have continued to wash over lost souls bringing forgiveness and new hope. By God’s grace and through our obedience you and I will continue to see those ripples expand as we share the Gospel and point others to the Messiah.
Live the Victorious Life,
PT
posted by Larry | 1:51 PM
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