Found

“He found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah””  John 1:41

Found – The urgency got left out.  This verse puts emphasis on the first thing that Andrew did when he met Jesus.  But this translation (NASB) leaves out the word first (Greek  protos).  Andrew didn’t hesitate.  He immediately went in search of his brother, Simon. 

Heurisko is the Greek verb that means “to find by inquiry or search” or “to come upon without seeking”.  The context tells us the meaning.  In this case, we see that Andrew makes an effort to hunt out his brother.  He has news to share that cannot wait.  After he met Jesus, there was only one thing on his mind.  Go tell his brother.

Andrew is a lot like many of us.  We are not the “limelight” people.  We are not the great preachers or the would-be leaders like Andrew’s brother, Simon.  We are the ones who make the connections for others.  Andrew introduces Simon to Jesus.  Andrew fades into the background.  He doesn’t play a big role in the New Testament stories.  In fact, he is almost always referred to as Simon’s brother.  His identity is tied to someone else. 

When that happens in our lives, we sometimes react negatively.  “I want to be known for who I am, not for who I happen to be connected to”, we exclaim.  Andrew doesn’t seem to need that sort of notoriety.  He is quite content to be Simon’s brother.  Do you suppose that he realized that it was the message he carried that mattered, not who got the credit for carrying it?  “We have found the Messiah” was the focus, not “Look what I discovered”.  Andrew wanted only one thing – to bring the one closest to him into the company of the King of kings.  Are you more concerned about communicating this message than you are about getting the recognition? 

Andrew did get all the credit he should have.  But he got the credit from the only one who counted – God.  Imagine what would have happened if Andrew wasn’t ready to do whatever he had to in order to get his brother to Jesus?  Aren’t you glad that Andrew made it his priority?  Peter found the Christ because of his brother.