John 1:45-46 --- 45 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.” 46 Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
Philip made his decision to follow Jesus and just like the others he goes out to tell someone he knows. In this case it's Nathaniel. Philip doesn't go stand in the busy street and shout to everyone, he has a specific person he knows, that he must go tell. There's nothing wrong with standing on a busy street telling others about Jesus! We just keep seeing in the Word here when these men first respond to Jesus and finally come follow and see Him, it was deeply personal. As it is with anyone who responds to Jesus, who comes and sees Him. As a deeply personal thing these men were moved to reach to those close to them, those they know, those they just couldn't wait to share Jesus with!
We see in verse forty-six that Nathaniel doesn't exactly respond enthusiastically. He responds in a very judgmental, even prejudiced way. "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?". Have you ever been super excited about something and shared it with someone and they didn't seem as excited… or worse, they oppose or are negative about it? Very quickly your excitement can turn to anger, frustration, sadness, arguing, etc… However, Philip doesn't do that here. He instead imitates Jesus! No long drawn out argument, no attempt to convince him of the pros and cons of Jesus, he simply says:
"Come and see."
With Philip responding this way to his judgmental friend, he left Nathaniel, not with all the logical points of why Jesus, but instead with a choice. The choice became personal because Philip asked Nathaniel to simply come with him and see. This now came down to Nathaniel choosing if he would follow his friend to see what this whole Jesus thing was about or not. Now, yes of course, it's all about Jesus and rightfully should be. However, if a stranger comes up to you and says, hey come and see something, and your friend or brother comes and says the same thing, which one are you more inclined to get up and go with?
Please hear me say, going out and talking to others about Jesus is great, it's beautiful, and we should be sharing Him with strangers, friends, family, everyone! However, there is something powerful and personal about sharing Jesus with those who know us.
So, the next time you hesitate to tell someone about Jesus, or you've shared and they push back, remember to simply imitate Jesus. You don't need every single answer and definitely no need to argue. Simply tell them to come and see. Invite them to church with you, to a Bible study with you, to a home group with you, or even to dinner with you and some family in Christ Jesus. Let them see Jesus in how you love one another and walk through life together!
That's it for today's recap of my quiet time with the Lord. I pray your week starts out well. If you need prayer, to talk or just someone to listen please reach out. You are not alone!
Also don't take my word on these things, be the Berean and get into your Bible. Pray and ask the Lord to show you in His Living Word who He is and what He's got to say! You won't regret it.
Comments