Volume 152: Rest in "Come and See!"

Nathanael, hesitant to believe the news Philip just announced, asked, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" 

Philip responded, "Come and see!" 

Oooh this ought to be good!

What will Nathanael see? Why is Philip so confident that Nathanael will be convinced that this man, Jesus, really was "whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote." 

A man turning water into wine???
A man healing an official's son with just a word???
A man feeding 5,000 people with only 5 loaves and 2 fish???
A man walking on water???
A man giving sight to the blind???

Are these the things that Nathanael will see if he accepts Philip's invitation to "Come and see."???

Well, not yet... 

Initially, their first interaction goes like this: 

"Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, and said of him, 'Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!'

Nathanael answered him, 'how do you know me?'

Jesus answered him, 'Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.'

Nathanael answered, 'Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!'

Jesus answered him, 'Because I said to you, '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 heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.'"

Nathanael accepted Philip's invitation, "come and see!"
And he met Jesus and saw the Son of Man in the flesh. 

But Jesus saw him first!

What great rest we can find in the truth that our God sees us. 

He saw us before we saw him.
He sees us at our best. And at our worst.
He sees us when we feel like we are alone.
He sees all of us and yet still loves us unconditionally. 

And then it doesn't stop there! 

Jesus tells Nathanael, "You will see greater things than these!"

He does eventually see water turned into wine, miraculous healings, feeding 5,000, walking on water, blind men gaining sight, and so much more. 

Ultimately, he sees Jesus on a cross, fulfilling the prophecies of God's greater plan for His people. 

"Come and see!" 

An invitation that we don't want to miss! 
An invitation that we want to extend to as many people as possible!

Because God is never going to disappoint. May we be willing to open our eyes and see Him for who He is. 

Later in John's gospel, we see the same invitation being proclaimed. 

In chapter 4, Jesus meets a Samaritan woman at the well. He calls out her five husbands, yet also offers her living water.

At the end of this exchange, she concludes that he must be a prophet, but then Jesus tells her that He is the Messiah. 

"So the woman left her water jar and went away into town and said to the people, 'Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did!'"

I love imagining this scene, as she leaves her things and runs into town, full of joy and good news!

Scripture later states, "Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony."

"Come, see!" 

When we have met Jesus and know his character, we shouldn't be able to help it... our lives should be a living message board that screams, "Come and see!" 

Just like the Samaritan woman, we all have our own personal testimony to share. One that is similar to the man in chapter 9. While we may not be physically blind, we can definitely relate. 

In this chapter, Jesus heals a man that had been born blind. He heals him by spitting on the ground, stirring up mud, wiping it on his face and then instructing him to go and wash. He came back seeing and everyone began to question him about who healed him. 

After a lot of back and forth, the formerly blind man states, "Whether he is a sinner, I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see." 

Though I was blind, now I see!

Come and see!
A God who first sees you!
A God who gives you sight! 

Our eyes become open to God all around us. 

This week, the one and only, Camp Mom Hillary, posted a picture of random acorns and things (limited selection in Houston, TX ok) she picked up off the ground and held in her palm. She posted it with a very simple and short reminder to slow down and notice God's creation around us. 

The next morning, I found myself noticing different kind of birds - a black coat with crazy spots all over, a red cardinal, and a navy bird. As I studied them at separate times, I was in awe of the tiny details I observed. 

I texted Hillary of my sightings, and she responded:

"His creation is stunning and when we notice it brings us closer to Him. Things are hard in this world right now - noticing the little things will protect our hearts from going numb."

So, here's to slowing down. To stopping. So that we can notice and see! 

See God's goodness and miracles and works all around us. 
And invite others to see them, too!