In the verses before ours, John tells us that Andrew was one of two men who had been John the Baptist's disciples. They had the same background, the same experiences in following our Lord. The Synoptics describe the actual calling of these men to . That would have been left to the more academically gifted students at the time. What have you found that you can tell others about? The good. Phillip told Nathaniel about the messiah from the standpoint of the Old Testament prophecy. Phillips closest companion is Nathaniel. Jesus called Philip, who had been a disciple of John the Baptist's ( John 1:43 ), and then Philip went and found Nathanael and told him about Jesus. Like Andrew, Philip was ready in his heart to receive Jesus as his Master. The following day Jesus wanted to go to Galilee and He found Philip and said to him, Follow Me. Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Christ came down from heaven, for us men and for our salvation. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. Nathanael (Hebrew , Greek: , "God has given"), also known as Nathaniel [1] of Cana was a disciple of Jesus, mentioned only in chapters 1 and 21 of the Gospel of John . That being said, we know Nathanael went on to play an important role in the formation of the early church, taking the gospel to the ends of the earth, as Jesus had commissioned His disciples to do before His ascension (Matthew 28:19-20). He did things by the book, and was practical minded. Hes one of four people named Philip in the Bible, and hes often confused with Philip the Evangelist, who plays a minor role in Acts. We anticipate our whole lives standing before the judgment seat of God and long to hear those words well done thy good and faithful servant. And what did Philip do? Others hint of the apostle being tied up in a sack and thrown into the sea. I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.. How can you say, Show us the Father? Some people won't listen to a female minister. How he really died, we dont know. All four of these disciples of Jesus were from the town of Bethsaida. Instead he told Jesus that I couldn't be done. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wroteJesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. And Nathanael said to him, Can anything good come out of Nazareth? Philip said to him, Come and see. John 1:43-46, He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life., Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known me, Philip? What you saw was what you got. Philip died sometime in the first century, possibly around 80 AD. What did Andrew do? Polycrates seems to have clearly blurred the two Philips, and Eusebius never caught the mistake. The New Testament lists all twelve apostles four timesMatthew 10:2-4, Mark 3:14-19, Luke 6:13-16, and Acts 1:13-16. [2] The first disciples who follow Jesus are portrayed as reaching out immediately to family or friends: thus, 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.[3]. Phillip was the first one to hear those words and obey them. Phillip was already in the presence of the living and eternal God. It wouldnt taken long for him to get past his prejudice and acknowledge Jesus for who He really was. 47When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, Here truly is an Israelite(J) in whom there is no deceit.(K). They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. How dare he tell them what to do? After all Andrew could introduce anyone to Jesus. At this point Phillip speaks up and says, 8 Philip said, Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us., How could Phillip say such a thing immediately after Jesus had just told them that he and the father were one? What Do We Know about Nathanael the Disciple without Deceit. Or crucified upside down. Isn't that just like us? Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Finding Philip,(A) he said to him, Follow me.(B), 44Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. The trees grow about the height of about 15 feet they have short, gnarled trunks. Clement of Alexandria, who lived in the second and third century, claimed that this unnamed disciple was Philip: If they quote the Lords words to Philip, Let dead bury their dead, but do thou follow me . Did the citizens of Nazareth hold the same view of those from Cana? You are headed toward heaven and eternal life with your Lord and with all his saints. . Some traditions tell of Nathanael being flayed alive in Armenia. The Gospel of John recounts Philip's calling as a disciple of Jesus. After Jesus calls Peter, Andrew, James, and John, he finds Philip: The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. First is verse 3: "Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector.". Those are the great things that Nathanael will see in Jesus ministry. Well, thats all right. They were companions and had probably known each other for years. I have found the one who forgives my sins. All four of these disciples of Jesus were from the town of Bethsaida. Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel!(John 1:49) Nathanael responded. John 1:35-46 "Come and See"Real Discipleship The Acts of Philip provides the earliest, most detailed account of his martyrdom, but again, its hard to say how much we can trust it. No one comes to the Father except through me. "It can't be done.". Philip and Nathanael were brothers as were Andrew and Peter. So When Jesus tested his faith, Phillip responded with unbelief. He simply says, Come and see. Thats it. That's group two. And he introduced the Jews to Jesus. Follow me, learn from me, as my disciples. He knew his prejudice. He was not a hypocrite. Cana itself is located only a few miles north of Jesus hometown in Nazareth and just a few miles west of Bethsaida, where Nathanaels good friend Philip was from (John 1:44). You would be lost and helpless and hopeless, headed to hell. By his death on the cross, Jesus bridges the gap between us and God. You are a dear child of your heavenly Father. Bartholomew would have been Nathanaels Hebrew surname, meaning son of Tolmai. Nathanael, his first name, means God has given. Nathanael, therefore, would have been known formally as Nathanael, son of Tolmai, or Nathanael Bar-Tolmai. Another says he was beheaded. Like Andrew, Philips first reaction after meeting Jesus was to go tell someone about him. In Church History Eusebius quotes Papias of Hierapolisa contemporary of the apostlesas saying that Philip was living in Hierapolis with his daughters. Grow in your knowledge and faith. Jesus calls us to keep on following him, in a lifelong journey of faith. And he did. As John relates how the disciples were called, Philip and Nathanael were the 3 rd and 4 th men named as disciples. The Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost. Thats where we werelost, wandering aimlessly, not looking for God. They are apparently close friends. If you remember back to our study of Peter, Jesus didn't actually say follow me to Peter until the end of his earthly ministry (John 21:19) after his failure on the night of Jesus the trail. How can you say, Show us the Father? Most accounts say that he was put to death by stoning in Asia Minor eight years after the martyrdom of James. Yes, the Lord just may use our mouth to do the inviting! Phillip had to get beyond human limitation. Does the Bible Condemn Using Tarot Cards? Then Philip identifies this Messiah by name, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. But notice Nathanaels response: Can anything good come out of Nazareth? Apparently Nathanael, as one well-versed in the Scriptures, knew that there was no particular prophecy linking the Messiah to the city of Nazareth. As the Son of God, he is the only one able to save us from our lost condition. Now remember I just told you Jesus went to Phillip and said follow me, and then Phillip turns around and tells his buddy we found him. After all Nazareth was full of uncultured people. Prejudice effectively causes people to remain cut off from the gospel. 45 Philip found Nathaniel and told him, We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wroteJesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.. By now it should have been clear that he was going to his father in heaven and the only way for them to get there was through faith in Christ. We create research-based articles and handy infographics to help people understand the Bible. Imagine the amazement of the disciples as they participated in this miracle and saw the crowd fed, with a dozen baskets left over from the overflow.Philip was good about bringing people to Jesus. Philips personality, led him to say, I don't think we can do that., 7 Philip answered him, Eight months wages would not buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!. Geneva Study Bible Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES) Meyer's NT Commentary Luke 6:14-16. Sir, they said, we would like to see Jesus. Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus. John 12:2022. Their tomb is there, and that, too, of their father.. Nathanael would be an Apostle, too. "Son of Man" was one of our . Apparently Philip was also in the wilderness with John the Baptist. Well, thats what happens now in Jesus. Nathanael appears.) Not just that Jesus could see him under a fig tree. Church tradition identifies Philip as the missionary to Greece, Syria, and Phrygia, but even early on, Philip the Apostle was frequently confused with Philip the Evangelist (also known as Philip the Deacon), which makes it hard to distinguish which details describe which Philip. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. But ultimately, above all, when we talk about our church, we want to talk about the one who is the very heart and center of our church, the churchs whole reason for existence. According to John, Nathaniel came from the small town of Cana in Galilee, the place where Jesus did his first miracle. Barley is cheaper, so with one denari we could buy 20 barley biscuits, and if we get the small ones, and break them in half no it simply cannot be done. And like the other apostles, Nathaniel stands to prove that God can use anyone, from any place, provided he has an open heart to build his kingdom. Your changed life, your verbal witness, your faith evident in your lifethis becomes a witness to others. Philip answered him, It would take more than half a years wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite! John 6:57, Jesus already knew exactly what he was going to do, but he asked Philip what it would take to feed these peopleperhaps as a joke, or possibly, to illustrate that it would take a miracle to feed this many. We know this because when each of the Gospels lists the apostles they list Phillip and Nathaniel (or Bartholomew) together. To challenge his friends blind bigotry, Philip responded with a simple invitation. Though Cana itself was not a particularly remarkable village, Nathanaels disdain for Nazareth indicates a certain civic pride and pretension on the part of the Nathanael. Whether Philips statement was foolish or simply bold, it gave Jesus another opportunity to directly assert his divinity, and help us understand his relationship to the Father. 50 Jesus said, You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. Let's go! What Every Christian Should Know about the Protestant Reformation. He should have said, "Lord, if you want to feed them, feed them." He's not questioning his friend Philip, but a true Bible scholar would be sure to test the spirits. It's no doubt that this is where Nathaniel went to study the scriptures and pray. Nathanael was one of the 12 original apostles of Jesus Christ. He belonged to the town to which Jesus was going (Cana of, Galilee, John 21:2 ). Jesus went to find tentative Philip and Nathanael needed a little miracle to convince him that at least one good thing could come out of Nazareth. In fact much of Israel rejected their messiah because of their prejudice. Phillip should have known better he had lived with Jesus day in and day out, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for over 18 months. In each of the listings of the disciples, the names of Philip and Bartholomew are linked, which could mean they were good friends or even related. Think about it, If minimum wage is $5.50/hr x 40 hours x 33 weeks = $7260. You are the Son of God! Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. But there are several reasons why for centuries, many Christians have believed they were. The disciple named Philip was, along with Peter and Andrew, from Bethsaida in Galilee ( John 1:44; 12:21 ). How can we get there., The disciples think theyre going to the Fathers house soon, and Jesus responds, If you really know me, you will know my Father as well., Philips basically trying to demonstrate his faith by saying, I dont even care about the details. (The other two Philips are both sons of King Herod the Great.). Dont you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? John 14:610. They didn't believe that messiah could come out of Nazareth. January 14, 2018, Philip and Nathanael: A Story of Witnessing (John 1:43-51). [2][6], Although Nathanael is sometimes identified with Bartholomew the Apostle mentioned in the Synoptic Gospels and Acts 1:13. So dont be afraid or ashamed to invite your friends and neighbors, your family membersanyone who needs Jesusinvite them to come and see. Come and meet Jesus here at St. Matthews. I suppose we would be equally surprised if Jesus said, I know what a faithful servant you are because I know that you get up every morning at 6:30 and go into the family room to pray. Besides if Andrew got in trouble that would be Andrew's problem. He wanted to go by the book all the time. Jesus is the very Son of God, come in the flesh. Again let me say that it is probable that they were all friends or co-workers. Same thing today. Jesus questioned Philip about how they would feed the large multitude at the Sea of Galilee. It was. Before Philip invited his brother, already Jesus had an intention of calling the young man. Prior to this eventful day, however, none of the Twelve had been ordained or set apart to their sacred office. In vs. 43 Jesus "found" (EdpltcKeL) Philip. Philip was one of those people who could do math and his head. Here are the facts, you can only drawl one conclusion. of After this Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and he revealed himself in this way. It is Elohim, a portion of Elohim. Nathanael recognizes Jesus as "the Son of God" and "the King of Israel". Remember how the people of his hometown felt about him? Change). (LogOut/ Now what does Philip do next? In other translations, Jesus refers to him as the one in whom there is no guile.. The Holy Gospel for today, from John 1, takes place very early in Jesus ministry, when he was first gathering his disciples. As Jesus predicted in John 1:51, they were present at the ascension of Jesus and saw heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man. They were able to observe first-hand that Jesus is the bridge between earth and heaven. Sure his mind was tainted by prejudice, but his heart was pure. One of the first things we learn about Philip in the Gospel of John is that like Simon Peter and Andrew, he comes from Bethsaida, a town by the Sea of Galilee (John 1:44). We know this because after the resurrection these apostles returned to Galilee with Peter and resumed their fishing trade (John 21 ). Nazareth is the same way. And so we follow, as he guides us out into the highways and byways of life, where we will find people for us to talk towhere we will find our own Nathanaels. He knew his passion. Logos Bible Software 10 review: Do you REALLY need it? So we know that like Philip, Andrew and Simon, Nathanael was from the region of Galilee, and specifically he was from the town of Cana. I would like to have a deeper walk with God through the study of the Bible. But rather than just being casual readers, Philip and Nathanael had become passionate about the Word of God, even developing an interest in the prophecies of the promised Messiah. Second Sunday after the Epiphany John relates the first, introductory meeting of Jesus with Andrew, John, Peter, Philip, and Nathanael. Im guessing that unless youre talking to an orthodox Jew, you probably wont start out by saying, We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote. Thats going to go over most peoples heads. Yeshua in its Aramaic form. No, he probably ran through a list of rules of regulation in his mind and tried to figure out whether Jesus should talk to these Gentiles. Some scholars speculate that Philip may have also been a disciple of John the Baptist, since: Before Jesus famously fed the crowd of more than 5,000 people, he decided to test Philip: When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat? He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do. Jesus was a common name. Of Nathanael, Jesus said, behold, an Israelite, indeed, in whom there is no deceit! (John 1:47). Of course, no reliable record exists of how Nathanael died. The Nathaniel was a true spiritual offspring of Abraham. Their association with the Lord made them disciples who learned from Him, but their faithfulness and commitment sent them forth as apostles to proclaim the good news that Jesus is Lord. Because this is where he has promised to be present. by Ryan Nelson | Jun 10, 2019 | Bible characters | 2 comments, Philip the Apostle was one of the 12 main disciples of Jesus Christ. Philip then probably went with Jesus and found Nathanael at or near Cana ( John 1:48 ). By submitting your email address, you understand that you will receive email communications from Bible Gateway, a division of The Zondervan Corporation, 3900 Sparks Drive SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546 USA, including commercial communications and messages from partners of Bible Gateway. James and John: the two sons of Zebedee, who were called next: Philip and Bartholomew; the latter of these is by some thought to be Nathanael. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. It bears wonderful fruit and gives good shade. Meaning:God has given. That is the most important thing in your life. You have the word of God as your anchor and stay. And at the same time, our Lord calls us to follow him in faith. Bartholomew = son of Tolmai, probably to be identified with Nathanael. What is known is that Nathanael was almost certainly martyred for his faith like the rest of the apostles, with the exception of John. But even a Galileans looked down on the Nazarene's. In Luke and Matthew, an unnamed disciple asks Jesus if he can bury his father before following him. Come and see is subjective. Nathanaels name is never directly mentioned again in the New Testament. Rabbit trail: 1 denari is equal to one day's wages. Add to that the legendary accounts from the Acts of Philip and Letter from Peter to Philip, and it becomes difficult to separate fact from fiction, too. When you know the Lord, it affects the way you speak and act and live. (Funny sound is heard to indicate traveling in time. And presumably, if he did not use distinguishing details, the early church wouldve assumed he meant Philip the Apostlethe most well-known Philip. Jesus proved that in His interactions with these men. Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. What am I talking about? Similar to the way Andrew immediately went and found his brother Peter to tell him about Jesus, Philip swiftly approached his friend Nathanael with the good news. I dont believe in organized religion. See, these are the modern version of Can anything good come out of Nazareth? Can anything good come out of St. Matthew Lutheran Church? People will raise objections, and quite often its because they want to keep Gods word at arms length. Phillip is the administrator -- the bean counter. If anything will put some excitement and joy into your life, this will. 5 When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?. He went and found someone he could share his joy with. . However Nathaniel was not impressed at first glance with Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. Well, Phillip has my job. The words I say to you are not just my own. This is where he can be found. And this business about the angels of God ascending and descending? Prejudice is feeling base. Cana, Nathaniels home town was a side trip from everything. The principal obstacle to the identification of Philip as the Baptist's disciple is the failure of the Gospel to supply that identification. He is here to open heaven for us. We know Jesus called them all before the foundations of the world. John, however, refers to the apostle almost exclusively as Nathanael in his gospel. In fact, its possible that Philip the Apostle was confused with Philip the Evangelist as early as the first or second century. These men were called the 12 Disciples. Why do you think the Greeks would seek out Phillip? If you are going from Chicago to Indianapolis, you might travel through Merrillville. Obviously Phillip knew that scripture was important to Nathaniel.
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