Again the
next day John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as
He walked, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God!" The two
disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. And
Jesus turned and saw them following, and said to them, "What do you
seek?" They said to Him, "Rabbi (which translated means Teacher),
where are You staying?" He said to them, "Come, and you will
see." So they came and saw where He was staying; and they stayed with Him
that day, for it was about the tenth hour. One of
the two who heard John speak and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's
brother. He found first his own brother Simon and said
to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which translated means Christ). He
brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, "You are Simon the son
of John; you shall be called Cephas" (which is translated Peter). The
next day He purposed to go into Galilee, and He found Philip. And Jesus said to
him, "Follow Me." Now Philip was from Bethsaida, of the city of
Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We
have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the Prophets wrote -- Jesus of
Nazareth, the son of Joseph." Nathanael said to him, "Can any good
thing come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see."
Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him, and said of
him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!" Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know
me?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when
you were under the fig tree, I saw you." Nathanael answered Him, "Rabbi, You are
the Son of God; You are the King of Israel." Jesus
answered and said to him, "Because I said to you that I saw you under the
fig tree, do you believe? You will see greater things than these." And He
said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see the heavens opened
and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man." (John
1:35-51 NASB)
At the end
of Chapter 1, John actually begins his narrative, having left behind his
introductory prologue. I’m picking the
beginning of the narrative here instead of previously with John because of a
literary device employed here missing in the earlier sections, and employed at
various times throughout the rest of the book.
John uses Aramaic words and translates for Greek speaking
audiences. He even translates a word
used previously by John the Baptist, but not translated for his listeners. It’s a subjective reason to choose this
section over one of the previous ones, but I believe John is finished with the
Baptizer in his ministry as forerunner and now focuses on Jesus’ ministry as
Savior.
Jesus
collects disciples, two from His cousin, another by referral, then one along
the way, and yet another by referral. He
has five by the end of the chapter. Most
of them we know; named are Andrew, Peter, Philip, and Nathanael. The unnamed one is usually assumed to be John
the Apostle himself. Jesus deals with
each one differently. With the first two
He invites them to His house. He renames
Simon to Peter. Philip is simply invited
to follow Him by Jesus. Finally
Nathanael is given a character assessment and Jesus’ extra knowledge is
revealed to him. At the end Jesus makes
a prediction that we are never shown actually happening.
A few things
I see reveal more of the character of my Master. First, He is open to being pursued. The two who followed from His cousin He
invited to where He was staying. Second,
He speaks for Himself. Those who
referred others, Andrew and Philip didn’t debate who He was, they just said, “come
and see”. When these saw Jesus, or vice
versa, Jesus then takes initiative and engages them. So the third thing I see of my Master is that
He engages specifically. Simon needed
something in the name Peter, and Nathanael needed the affirmation of his
character and to know that Jesus saw him even before he “saw” him face to face.
Philip has
the least detail, yet Jesus sees something in him. There are few that Jesus invites to follow
Him. In John, it is only Philip. Philip does, but then runs off to get
Nathanael. Philip cannot keep his
discovery of Jesus to himself, and he thinks of Nathanael, probably because
Nathanael has the character, and is looking for the Messiah, the King of
Israel. Yet Nathanael also refers to
Jesus as the Son of God, an unusual term for a Jew to use for the Messiah. Only John uses it for Him prior, and it’s
fairly rare for others to use it for Jesus in any of the gospels. Philip has brought someone with keen insight
into the Messiah even before he meets Jesus.
Jesus’
dealing with each of these people somewhat differently is important to me. As I am part of the whole of the Children of
God, my Father is aware of me as an individual as well. But I also learn about my Master from what
these He has found say about Him. Andrew
says Jesus is the Messiah, and that holds enough meaning for Peter that he
comes. Philip gives Nathanael Jesus’
pedigree in addition to references of who He is. He ties Jesus to prophecies from Moses and
the Prophets, and gives Jesus’ origins.
Yet Nathanael refers to Jesus as the Son of God, something not in the
pedigree Philip provided. While Philip
refers to the “Prophet Like Moses,” Nathanael refers to Jesus as the “King of
Israel.” Jesus refers to Himself as the Son of Man, like Ezekiel. All that’s missing is a
reference to Jesus as the “Great High Priest.”
John writes
in these encounters about details his readers need to know going into the rest
of his account. Right up front it is
necessary that I know that Jesus is the Word, the Light, the Son of God, the
Messiah, and the King of Israel. Knowing
that, I am armed to deal with the accounts of His work and words that
follow. Without that knowledge I can’t
process what Jesus does and says with any degree of accuracy. It all sound disjointed and crazy. Knowing that Jesus is all those things helps
me frame what He does and says in a way that provides a glimpse of the “Face of
God” through His Son, Jesus. The scene
is set, the prologue complete, the characters have entered right and left, and
now the play begins. I am prepared to be
amazed.
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