Aug 16 2012
The Prophetic Key
John 1:43-51
“Follow me!” Jesus was calling out disciples as the Father guided him. Suddenly Philip dashes off to find Nathanael; I suspect Jesus told him to. Philip tells Nathanael they have found the Messiah – Jesus from Nazareth. Nathanael is sceptical; “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” But Nathanael agrees to take a look. On his arrival Jesus says “Here is a true Israelite in whom there is nothing false.” Surprised, Nathanael asks, “How do you know me?” Jesus said, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael is shocked, there was no way Jesus could have seen that; this had to be a work of God. He declares “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” Jesus replies “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” Interesting; Jesus saw things … do you? More
Jun 25 2015
The Need to Be Real
John 1: 43-50 Jesus appreciates the realness in Nathanael
“Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false.” This is what Jesus said the first time he met Nathanael (John 1:47). I can imagine Peter, Phillip and Andrew nodding in affirmation. They knew Nathanael well and did not contest the statement. Nor did Nathanael, in fact he acknowledged it by asking “How do you know me?” Of course Jesus knew by supernatural insight. But I don’t want to focus on how Jesus knew; I want to focus on what Jesus actually said. It’s huge! If you know Jesus’ history you will know that he often accused the Jews, especially their leaders, of being false. He called them ‘whitewashed tombs’ (beautiful on the outside – dead on the inside), ‘hypocrites,’ ‘a brood of vipers.’ So to describe Nathanael as “a true Israelite in whom there is nothing false” was no small thing! More