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Sermon

Come and See

Speaker
David Capoccia
Scripture
John 1:35-51

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In this sermon, Pastor Dave Capoccia examines John 1:35-51 and John the apostle’s report of Jesus’ first disciples’ first experiences with Jesus. To be more specific, John presents two come-and-see experiences of Jesus’ first disciples so that you also might come, see, and believe.

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Note: This transcript and summary was autogenerated. It has not yet been proofread or edited by a human.

Summary

This passage from John 1:35-51 teaches us that encountering Jesus transforms lives and compels believers to share him with others. The Apostle John presents two parallel “come and see” experiences of Jesus’ earliest disciples—Andrew, John, and Peter in the first group, and Philip and Nathaniel in the second—to invite us into the same transformative encounter. We are reminded that Jesus not only accepts those who seek him but also sees into every heart with divine omniscience, and that his glory only deepens the more we behold him.

Key Lessons:

  1. Seeing Jesus personally and spending time with him transforms our understanding of who he is—moving us from curiosity to confident testimony that he is the Messiah.
  2. Jesus demonstrates divine omniscience by knowing people before they come to him, revealing that he sees into every human heart.
  3. True disciples don’t stop at their own encounter with Jesus—they immediately go find others and invite them to come and see for themselves.
  4. Jesus is the fulfillment of all God’s promises, the new staircase between heaven and earth, through whom the glory and work of God are displayed.

Application: We are called to examine whether Jesus truly commands the attention of our lives or whether idols and sin have obstructed our view. We must continue seeking Jesus, growing as his disciples, putting his words into practice, and bringing others to him so they too might come, see, and believe.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What was it that first convinced you that Jesus is the Messiah, and how has your understanding of him deepened since that initial encounter?
  2. Is there anything in your life right now that is obstructing your view of Jesus and commanding your attention instead of him? What would it look like to remove that obstruction?
  3. Who in your life needs an invitation to “come and see” Jesus, and what is holding you back from bringing them?

Scripture Focus: John 1:35-51 records the calling of Jesus’ first disciples and their testimonies. John 1:14 is echoed as Jesus dwells among his followers full of grace and truth. Genesis 28:10-22 (Jacob’s staircase vision) is referenced by Jesus in John 1:51, where he declares himself the new staircase connecting heaven and earth. Psalm 32:1-2 is alluded to in Jesus’ commendation of Nathaniel as an Israelite without deceit.

Outline

Introduction

Well, I am happy to be back preaching verse by verse through the Gospel of John with you. We did a little miniseries to start the year, but we are back in John today. Let’s pray before we dive in.

Holy Lord, you are so beautiful in your glory. We want to know you more and you’ve given us your word so that we may do that. Open our eyes to it today. Open my mouth to declare it. Show us yourself, Lord Jesus, so that we may come to you.

We may see you and we may never leave you in Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Glory That Arrests the Heart

Back when I was in seminary, my wife and I were privileged to be able to do a vacation in Japan.

We had a great time there. But there was one experience in Japan that very much stood out to me. We had stopped in a little mountain town called Hakone and we were exploring its nearby volcanic national park.

One of the features of the park was a tram ride in which you would get a clear view of neighboring Mount Fuji.

Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan, standing at about 12,400 feet. It is a mountain beloved by the Japanese people for its majesty and its beauty.

They even referred to the mountain with an honorific title, calling it Fujisan, which means something like Mr. Fuji. The snowcapped mountain has become a cultural icon of Japan and is frequently featured in art and media.

Though we were cautioned that there was a chance the mountain would be obscured by clouds on the day of our visit, we still wanted to find out if we might be able to get a good look at this mountain.

There we were in the tram ride slowly rising above the park, and we couldn’t see Mount Fuji at all from the bottom of the ride because there were a series of rocky outcroppings blocking the view. But we slowly rose above these, and our anticipation only built more and more as we passed each ridge, not knowing if this was the one that would finally reveal Mount Fuji.

You pass it and you say, “Oh, it’s not that one. Okay, maybe this one. No, it’s not that one.” Well, quite unexpectedly, we passed the final ridge and there it was, Mount Fuji.

The word that best describes my emotional reaction at that moment is the word arrested. I immediately felt my heart squeezed and chills running down my body. I was captured by the glory of the mountain before me.

“I immediately felt my heart squeezed and chills running down my body. I was captured by the glory of the mountain.”

It commanded all of my attention and the attention of everybody else in the tram.

I had known previously that the mountain was majestic. But it wasn’t until I saw it with my own eyes that I realized just how much this mountain dominates the landscape with its size and its beauty.

Unlike some other mountains, there’s nothing tall near Mount Fuji to compete with it. It stands alone, and the shape of the mountain is almost totally symmetrical. From a distance, it looks like the slopes are rising gently to a snowcapped volcanic cone of pure white.

There were a few clouds in the sky on the day of our viewing, but they had all providentially moved aside so that there was no obstruction to seeing the mountain.

I didn’t want to turn away from the view. I could hardly believe that I was being granted the sight of something so amazing.

Come and See Jesus in God’s Word

And yet, as wonderful as viewing Mount Fuji was, or as wonderful it is to view other parts of God’s magnificent creation, there is something else, or rather someone else, who is much more marvelous.

Unlike a mountain, this marvelous one’s greatness cannot really be appreciated until you see him yourself.

And unlike viewing a mountain, which only grants temporary awe, viewing this one leads to eternal life.

The one I am speaking of is the Lord Jesus Christ.

As we know, Jesus is no longer on the earth in a physical way. After he was crucified, he rose again and ascended into heaven, where he waits until he comes back to set up his kingdom.

But that doesn’t mean we can no longer see Jesus now.

Jesus has been put on display in the God-breathed words of the Bible that has been passed down to us.

“Jesus has been put on display in the God-breathed words of the Bible that has been passed down to us.”

We can see him. As we move on in the next passage in the Gospel of John, the Apostle John is going to invite us to come and see Jesus.

He’s going to do that by showing us the experiences of Jesus’s earliest disciples when they first beheld Jesus’s glory and believed in him as the Messiah. Please open your Bibles to John 1:35-51.

The title of the message today is simply “Come and See.”

Last time we were in this gospel, we were listening to John the Baptist proclaim in John 1:19-34 that he is not the Christ, but instead Jesus is the Christ, even the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Remember, our author John the Apostle presents John the Baptist’s testimony as part of his gospel’s main purpose: to show Hellenistic Jews—that is, Greek-speaking Jews who don’t live in Palestine—that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing in him they have life in his name.

Now our new section picks up right after the baptizer gives his testimony. John the Baptist begins to fade from the scene and Jesus’s official ministry begins.

Let’s hear the word of God. 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 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, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathaniel and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses and the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” Nathaniel said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”

Jesus saw Nathaniel coming to him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit.” Nathaniel 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.” Nathaniel 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.”

In this passage, we see the earliest followers of Jesus take their first step of discipleship.

According to Matthew 4, Mark 1, and Luke 5, these disciples would later respond in another step of discipleship where they became official and full-time disciples of Jesus. They respond to an official call from him by the Sea of Galilee. This is before that. Here is the earliest testimony of Jesus’s own disciples about him.

Two Come and See Experiences

Now, our text divides into two parallel sections which have three main features.

There’s going to be someone who sees Jesus and becomes transformed as a disciple. Then that disciple is going to find someone else so that person can come and see Jesus. Then finally Jesus will demonstrate his own divine sight to his new disciples. Lots of seeing is going on in this passage.

Now this passage is historical narrative. It does report what actually took place with the man Jesus and with the men who were his disciples. But it’s been included for us purposefully by our author John.

Really the reason is so that we might experience what the people of this passage are experiencing with Jesus. To say that another way and to give you the main idea of this text, the apostle John, our author, presents two come and see experiences of Jesus’s first disciples so that you also might come, see, and believe.

Say that again. John presents two come and see experiences of Jesus for his disciples so that you also might come, see, and believe.

“John presents two come and see experiences so that you also might come, see, and believe.”

The Experience of Andrew, John, and Peter

Now let’s take a closer look at these two experiences starting with the first one, which comprises verses 35 to 42. That is number one: the experience of Andrew, John, and Peter.

Verse 35 again: “The next day John was standing with two of his disciples.”

Now this verse connects our new passage with the previous one. Remember, the narrative of John’s gospel officially began in verse 19 with John the Baptist ministering in Bethany beyond the Jordan. So beyond the Jordan River in a place called Bethany. And on the first day there, some Jewish visitors arrived from Jerusalem to question John the Baptist about whether he was claiming to be Messiah or something like that.

On the second day, John the Baptist saw Jesus and proclaimed him to be the Lamb of God.

Now it’s the third day. John the Baptist is in the same location, except now we’re told in verse 35 that he’s standing with two particular disciples—that is, his disciples, two follower learners of John the Baptist.

Now, who are these two disciples?

The identities are not given right away. We learn in verse 40 that one of them is Andrew, the brother of Philip. The other disciple is never identified for us in the passage, which is curious considering that the other four disciples are all identified by name.

Did our author simply not know the name of this other disciple? Could he not find it out from Andrew or anybody else who was there?

Most likely, the answer is much simpler. This other disciple is the author choosing to mention himself without drawing attention to himself. That is to say, the other disciple is John, the son of Zebedee, our author.

I told you in the book introduction sermon that John the Apostle never mentions himself by name in this book. He only refers to himself obliquely with phrases like “the other disciple” or “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” So we’re seeing the first of such instances here right in verse 35.

So what that means is that before meeting Jesus, John and Andrew were disciples of John the Baptist. They’re already looking for the kingdom of God following John the Baptist’s message.

“Before meeting Jesus, John and Andrew were disciples of John the Baptist, already looking for the kingdom of God.”

And by the way, John the Apostle’s presence in this scene explains some of the very specific time details that we get in these first passages of John—when things happen on particular days and even what hour of the day. That’s consistent with somebody who was there as an eyewitness.

So on the third day, John and Andrew are standing there with John the Baptist.

John the Baptist Points to the Lamb of God

And what happens? Look at verse 36.

He—that’s John the Baptist—looked at Jesus as he walked and said, “Behold the lamb of God.” Notice here, like in the previous passage, Jesus appears again walking. Apparently this time he’s not walking to John the Baptist but just walking in the vicinity of John the Baptist.

John the Baptist stares at Jesus as he walks by and then repeats in shorter form what he had said earlier in verse 29: “Behold the lamb of God.” Everyone, look at the one who’s been provided by God to be our savior from sin.

This is not an idle declaration because notice how the two disciples, John and Andrew, respond. Verse 37: “The two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus.”

Now notice John never tells his two disciples explicitly to leave him. He doesn’t say, “Follow Jesus. Guys, what are you doing around me? Go follow him.”

He doesn’t say that specifically. But John the Baptist’s whole ministry has been designed to prepare the people for the coming of Messiah and then point people to that Messiah once he arrives.

So John has always been wanting to get people to follow Jesus. That’s what his ministry’s been all about.

“John the Baptist’s whole ministry has been designed to prepare the people for Messiah and then point people to that Messiah.”

He makes this renewed, pointed declaration of Jesus as the lamb of God.

John and Andrew get the message and they literally turn to follow Jesus. They get behind Jesus and start walking behind him.

But by this point, we know who Jesus is. He’s not only been identified by John the Baptist, but even earlier in the prologue of John, we know he’s the word of God made flesh, the eternal God who was with God.

Will such a one accept John and Andrew as disciples?

Jesus Invites: Come and You Will See

Well, let’s look at the first part of verse 38. Verse 38a.

And Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What do you seek?” This response from Jesus is quite a natural one. If you were just walking around and suddenly noticed two people following you, you’d probably ask a version of this same question. What do you want? What are you looking for? What can I do for you? Why are you following me?

It’s a simple question, and it could have a simple reply.

What will John and Andrew say? Look at the second part of verse 38.

They said to him, “Rabbi,” which translated means teacher, “Where are you staying?” The term rabbi here comes from Aramaic and literally means my great one.

By this time, among the Jews, rabbi had come to be a title of respect for a teacher. So people weren’t really thinking about what it means literally. It more or less just means teacher, which is why our author, speaking to Hellenistic Jews who don’t speak Aramaic, translates the word rabbi for them simply as teacher—dascalos.

Already in this address to Jesus, we see that John and Andrew are confessing Jesus to be a teacher worthy of respect.

But there’s still much they don’t know about him. There’s still much they want to ask him and learn from him. How do you put that desire and all the things you desire from Jesus into a simple reply to Jesus’ question?

Well, they elect to answer the question with a question, which is always a clever tactic.

They ask, “Rabbi, where are you staying?” Now, that’s a question with an implication, isn’t it? What are they really asking Jesus?

Rabbi, can you tell us where you’re staying so that we can stay with you, so we can talk to you and learn from you, so that we might even become your disciples. Really, their question is a request for extended time with Jesus.

But Jesus is God. How will he respond?

Verse 39a.

He said to them, “Come and you will see.” Again, on the surface, a very simple response. Want to know where I’m staying? Come with me. I’ll show you.

But in this reply, Jesus, the eternal word, the only begotten God who dwells forever in the bosom of the father, grants that sinful, no account people like John and Andrew may spend time with him, can stay with him, can be taught by him, can see him, can get to know him.

Thus, in this simple reply from Jesus, we are beginning to see illustrated what John said in John 1:14. “And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we saw his glory, glory as of the only begotten from the father, full of grace and truth.”

John 1:14: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we saw his glory, full of grace and truth.”

He dwelt among us. John and Andrew immediately take up Jesus on his offer. Rest of verse 39. So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the 10th hour.

Remember, we’re still near Bethany on the other side of the Jordan River, which is pretty far from Galilee.

But Jesus has accommodations of some kind. It’s not clear what kind or where. Nothing grand, no doubt, but they go with Jesus. They find out where he’s staying, and they stay with him the rest of the day and probably the night as well.

You see here that it says it was about the 10th hour. That could mean 10:00 a.m. More likely, it means 4:00 p.m., since most people at this time counted the hours of the day starting at sunrise, or about 6:00 a.m., rather than midnight. So probably this is already late in the day.

Now, we don’t hear exactly what kind of talk passed between Jesus and his disciples as they traveled to wherever Jesus was staying or what they talked about once they got to the house.

Andrew Declares: We Have Found the Messiah

But it must have been poignant. It must have been powerful. It must have been transformational because look at what we see happening next in verses 40 and 41.

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.

In verse 41, we’re told Andrew first went to find his own brother. Now, that could be taken to mean that both Andrew and John went to go find their brothers.

Andrew went first to find Peter, and John went later to find his brother, James.

But the Greek is probably better translated: Andrew first found his brother, Simon. That is to say, before Andrew did anything else, he went to go find his brother.

Andrew goes with Jesus to find out where Jesus is staying and then probably on that same day he goes to find his brother so that he can bring his brother to Jesus and he can stay with Jesus too.

Simon must have been in the area, which means Simon was very much probably also a disciple of John the Baptist because otherwise what are you doing at Bethany beyond the Jordan? John the Baptist is the only attraction over there. Simon Peter was probably a disciple of John the Baptist as well.

Well, Andrew goes to find Simon and notice what he says to him. He says, “We have found the Messiah.” Now, you see another translation note from our author. He says, “Messiah, it means Christ.” Messiah is Aramaic.

Christos is Greek. They’re both terms that mean the same thing: anointed one.

And we’ve already seen this term back in John 1:21. We talked about it. Remember, God did designate certain persons in the Old Testament as anointed ones—Israelite kings, Israelite prophets, Israelite priests. But that term came to refer more and more to a specially anointed one who is going to be Israel’s ultimate savior and king. That’s what people were looking for.

Many in Israel are anxiously awaiting the arrival of this Messiah, not least John the Baptist’s disciples. Remember, John the Baptist is the forerunner. He prepares the way for the Messiah.

So Andrew, John, and Simon, they’re all waiting for this Messiah. Andrew gets to deliver the happy news to his brother.

Simon, we found him. The one we’ve been looking for. The one we’ve been waiting for, the Messiah, the Christ. He’s here.

John and I found him.

Now, notice what change has taken place in Andrew since verse 38.

In verse 38, Andrew wanted to find out where Jesus was staying so he could spend time with him. But now Andrew is declaring with certainty to his brother and to John’s original Hellenistic Jewish audience and to us today, guys.

Jesus is the Messiah.

“Andrew is declaring with certainty: Jesus is the Messiah.”

I’m a Jew. I’ve been looking for him.

I’ve been following John the Baptist and I found him. We found him. You’re looking for him. It’s Jesus.

What happened to make Andrew so sure?

He had the words of John the Baptist.

That’s true. But did Jesus tell him more that convinced him? What did Jesus say? What did Jesus do?

We’re not told specifically, but we know whatever happened, it was a result of Andrew seeing and spending time with Jesus.

So Andrew tells Simon the good news. And as a fellow disciple of John the Baptist, Simon was probably ready for news like this. So he immediately goes with his brother to where Jesus is.

Jesus Sees into Simon Peter’s Heart

But then something unexpected happens when Jesus sees Simon. Look at verse 42.

And 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.

In verse 42, we see that Jesus renames Simon, which as we’ve been talking about in Sunday school today, is a mark of authority. Jesus is asserting his authority over Simon. When you name somebody or rename somebody, it’s like you’re identifying with that person and showing your authority over that person, which implicitly means that Jesus was accepting Simon as a disciple. You belong to me now. I’m giving you a new name.

But there’s something else there because notice it says Jesus looked at Simon.

The Greek word translated “looked” is one that means to look at something directly and intently. It’s to stare at. It’s to gaze, even to study.

So this means that Jesus didn’t pull one of his favorite names out of the air when he just happened to look at Simon. Jesus steadied Simon, not just looking at him, but looking into him.

For notice what Jesus says: “You are Simon, the son of John.”

How did Jesus know that? Did Andrew tell him? Did John tell him? Did Simon say it first? Perhaps that was not mentioned in our passage.

Regardless of whether someone told him or not, Jesus knew. I know exactly who you are. You are Simon, the son of John.

And Jesus knew something else. He continues, “You shall be called Cephas,” or Kepha in Aramaic. This is another word that gets originally translated. Kepha means rock, but John’s original audience doesn’t know Aramaic. So he translated immediately to the Greek equivalent, Petros, or Peter, which also means rock.

Well, why that name for Simon? Why did Jesus decide to call him Rock and not something else?

Again, it’s because Jesus saw who Simon really was and more importantly who Jesus would transform him to be.

Simon surely at this point has a lot of faults. He will have much growing to do.

Yet Jesus could also see that Peter is already an earnest seeker of Yahweh and one who eventually, because of Jesus’s work in him, would become a rock solid witness for Jesus, even being crucified for Jesus’s sake. That’s how the book of John is going to end with a reference to that.

“Jesus saw who Simon really was and more importantly who Jesus would transform him to be.”

Thus, Peter is one who fulfills something we’re going to see just a little bit later in the book of John: John 3:21.

John 3:21 says, “But he who practices the truth comes to the light so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” If you’re somebody who’s truly seeking God, if you’re someone who truly loves God and you’re a Jew, you come to Jesus.

That’s what Peter does. And Jesus acknowledges that.

Jesus’ Sight Is Powerful

In the first experience of Andrew, John, and Peter, we not only see that seeing Jesus is transformational, but also that Jesus’s own sight is powerful.

He is able to see into every man’s heart, including yours.

“Jesus’ own sight is powerful. He is able to see into every man’s heart, including yours.”

The question now is how will we respond? Will we come and behold Jesus ourselves so that like these three disciples we also might see and believe.

The Experience of Philip and Nathaniel

But theirs wasn’t the only “come and see” experience. We hear about another one in verses 43 to 51. Number two, the experience of Philip and Nathaniel.

Let’s look at verses 43 to 44 together.

Jesus Calls Philip to Follow Him

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, the city of Andrew and Peter.

Notice another time detail here. We’ve arrived at day four. The beginning of the verse tells us that Jesus decides to travel away from the Jordan area where John the Baptist is and go back to Jesus’s home area, which is also the home area of his disciples. That’s Galilee in the northern part of Palestine.

But somewhere before or along this route of travel, Jesus does something a little unexpected. He finds a man named Philip and he says to him, “Follow me.” I say this is unexpected because as we saw, Jesus didn’t search out the other three disciples. They were directed or brought to him by others.

“Jesus does something unexpected. He finds Philip and says, ‘Follow me.’”

Moreover, Jesus explicitly calls Philip to discipleship with that simple phrase: follow me.

This is unique to Philip. We don’t see it happening with the others in this passage. Why did Jesus seek out Philip in this way?

Did the other disciples tell Jesus about Philip and ask Jesus to pick him up? Maybe it’s not mentioned though.

It may be that Philip also was a disciple of John the Baptist, which would explain his quick acquiescence to Jesus’s command just like the other three. But we can’t say for sure. One thing we can say though is that based on this and the ones we’ve already seen, not everyone meets Jesus the same way.

Yet all end up in the same place being called to a fundamental response: follow me. Follow me. Jesus says, learn from me. Get to know me. Trust me, obey me. Become like me. Become my disciple.

Philip Finds Nathaniel

Philip begins to talk and spend time with Jesus as a new disciple, and it has a similarly transformative effect on him as with the previous group. Look at what we see Philip doing in verse 45.

Verse 45: “Philip found Nathaniel 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.’”

Bit of déjà vu, isn’t it?

Here’s another person who has met Jesus and become his disciple, immediately seeking out someone else and declaring to him with certainty: we have found the Messiah. Notice the “we” there, indicating Philip has joined the group of disciples around Jesus. We, not just me, we have found the Messiah.

“Another person who has met Jesus immediately seeks out someone else, declaring with certainty: we have found the Messiah.”

But this time, it’s Philip going to find Nathaniel.

Now, who exactly is Nathaniel?

Nathaniel was probably Philip’s brother or good friend. Interestingly, while we do see Philip mentioned elsewhere in the Gospels—he’s included in the list of the twelve apostles—we never see the name Nathaniel anywhere else in the Gospels except at the very end of the Gospel of John.

Nathaniel appears in John 21:2 when the apostles are waiting in Galilee for Jesus to show up and they go fishing. Nathaniel is there. We also learn from that verse that Nathaniel is originally from Cana, another small town in Galilee.

So why is Nathaniel nowhere mentioned anywhere else?

Well, it’s possible Nathaniel was a disciple of Jesus who did not become an apostle. He was just one of those other disciples. But more likely, Nathaniel is another name for an apostle that we do know: Bartholomew.

Why do I say that? Well, Bartholomew is a name that is really just a patronymic, which means it’s a name that indicates who the man’s father was. Bartholomew is Bartholomaeus, or “son of Tholmaeus.” That’s not much of a name. Surely he had another name besides “son of this guy.”

He probably did, and that name was Nathaniel.

Notably, in the listing of the twelve apostles that we see in the Gospels, Philip and Bartholomew are always listed together, which suggests they have a close relationship. That’s what we see with other names on the list. Philip and Nathaniel apparently have a close relationship here, which makes sense if Nathaniel is just another name for Bartholomew.

Philip goes to find Nathaniel and tell him about Jesus. Notice the way that he describes Jesus as the Messiah. It’s a little different from before, but it’s essentially the same. He doesn’t use the word “Messiah,” but he gives a description of the one who has to be the Messiah.

The one whom Moses and the prophets wrote about in various places—that’s the one the Jews had come to know and expect to be the Messiah. They called him Christ. They called him Messiah. This is the one Philip’s talking about. Philip confidently declares to Nathaniel, “It’s Jesus of Nazareth. We found the Messiah. We found the one who’s been foretold in the law and the prophets. It’s Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

Can Any Good Thing Come from Nazareth?

But that declaration leads to a problem because notice Nathaniel’s response in the first part of verse 46.

Nathaniel said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”

Nathaniel seizes on Jesus’s identification with Nazareth as a reason to question Philip’s claim. You’re telling me that you found a Messiah who comes from Nazareth? Come on. Can any good thing come from Nazareth, much less the Messiah that we’ve been waiting for all these years?

In those days, Nazareth was a Galilean town without an impressive reputation. Emma and I actually got to visit it on our trip to Israel.

Ancient Nazareth was very small, tucked away in the side of a hill, not connected to any main roads. Most people would have never had a reason to visit it or to pass through it. It really was Nowheresville.

Not that Cana, the town from which Nathaniel is from, is much more impressive. It also was a small town that was tucked away and people didn’t have to go there. So what’s his beef with Nazareth? Well, maybe it’s one of those things where small towns that are near each other have a little rivalry. He says, “Oh, Nazareth. I feel nothing but contempt for Nazareth.”

What’s good about Nazareth? Or maybe it’s not a rivalry thing. It’s just a simple recognition of the fact that Nazareth is nothing special. Hey, my town’s not special either, but you’re telling me the Messiah has come from Nazareth and you found him?

Nazareth doesn’t have anything to recommend itself as the place of the Messiah.

“Nazareth doesn’t have anything to recommend itself as the place of the Messiah.”

So he questions Philip’s claim.

What’s Philip going to say to that? How’s Philip going to shoot down Nathaniel’s objection?

Come and See for Yourself

Well, the reply he makes is probably the best one he could have made. Verse 46, second part, Philip said to him, “Come and see.” And more literally, “Come and behold.” Philip may not have known how to deal with Nathaniel’s specific objection.

Maybe he hadn’t learned at that point that Jesus wasn’t really from Nazareth. He’s from Bethlehem, and that’s consistent with messianic expectation. Maybe he hadn’t learned that yet.

But Philip knew one thing: Jesus is the Messiah. And therefore, Nathaniel needs to encounter Jesus for himself. That was the same for John’s original Jewish readers. It’s the same for us today.

We may have different prejudices and different objections when it comes to Christianity that make us skeptical, but we ultimately need to do the same thing that Philip is encouraging here. Come and see. Come and behold. Come see Jesus for yourself.

Get to know him. Behold his glory on display in the words and works he did as recorded in the Bible.

“We may have different objections, but we ultimately need to come and see Jesus for ourselves.”

Even in the book of John, behold Jesus this way and come and see if you don’t come to the same conclusion as these early disciples.

Well, did that response work for Nathaniel? It at least made Nathaniel willing to come visit Jesus. Let’s see what happens next. Verse 47.

Jesus Knows Nathaniel Before They Meet

Jesus saw Nathaniel coming to him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed in whom there is no deceit.” Are you getting déjà vu all over again?

As before with Simon Peter, notice Jesus just looks at Nathaniel and before Nathaniel has even said anything, Jesus declares to everyone who Nathaniel really is on the inside.

Look, here is indeed an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.

That statement from Jesus is not a criticism. That’s a commendation.

I mean, wouldn’t you want Jesus to look at you and say that? Hey, there’s somebody who doesn’t have a bit of lying or deception in his heart. I’d like Jesus to say that of me.

And in your Psalms, you may recognize that Jesus’s phrasing is an allusion to a certain verse in the Psalms.

Psalm 32:1-2, which says, “How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. How blessed is the man to whom the Lord, that is Yahweh, does not impute iniquity and in whose spirit there is no deceit.”

Now Psalm 32:1-2 describes a saved person, not a perfect person, but a forgiven person, a person saved by the mercy of God, who has been transformed to live a new life of holiness, even honesty.

And what Jesus says? That description fits Nathaniel.

What he is essentially declaring when he sees Nathaniel is here is another true worshipper of Yahweh that I am willing to accept as a disciple.

“What Jesus is declaring is: here is another true worshipper of Yahweh that I am willing to accept as a disciple.”

And notice Nathaniel’s poignant reply.

He doesn’t give any false modesty by saying something like, “Oh, you’re too kind, Jesus. I’m not that great. Oh, come on.” No. Instead, he says in verse 48a, “Nathaniel said to him, ‘How do you know me?’”

How do you know who I am? Yes, I do love Yahweh. I do strive to live honestly. But how do you know what’s in my heart?

Verse 48b: “Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.’”

In this reply, Jesus reveals something again, both wondrous and sobering.

He already knew Nathaniel before Philip brought him.

In fact, Jesus says, “When you were under the fig tree,” which must have been where Nathaniel was before Philip picked him up. Jesus says, “When you were under the fig tree, I saw you. I was already seeing you and taking note of you.”

Now, we must understand that Jesus is not referring to any kind of physical sight. There’s no indication that Jesus had met Nathaniel before or had been spying on him. And it’s not as if Jesus had a high vantage point in the area and saw Nathaniel from a distance.

He’s like, “Oh, he’s under a fig tree.” And it’s not as if the whole fig tree thing is just a lucky guess. I mean, there were a lot of fig trees in Israel at this time, and people would sometimes sit under them.

But it’s the fact that Jesus knew that Nathaniel was under the fig tree before Philip came to him that arrests Nathaniel.

He knew that there wasn’t a way that Jesus could know this otherwise because look at the way that Nathaniel responds in verse 49.

Nathaniel’s Confession: Son of God and King of Israel

Nathaniel answered him, “Rabbi, you are the son of God. You are the king of Israel.” Again, notice how Nathaniel’s whole attitude has changed in response to seeing Jesus and witnessing his power. He’s no longer skeptical. He’s no longer questioning, but he instead says, “Rabbi, my respected teacher, you yourself”—it’s the you that is emphatic in both these phrases in Greek—”You yourself are the son of God. You yourself are the king of Israel.”

Nathaniel doubly affirms Jesus to be the long-awaited Christ. Then he uses two titles from the Old Testament, both associated with the Messiah, the coming Davidic King, and that even express the divine nature of this promised savior.

“Nathaniel doubly affirms Jesus with two Old Testament titles associated with the Messiah and expressing his divine nature.”

It’s hard for Nathaniel to be more emphatic in his testimony that Jesus is the Christ.

Now, these are to be sure correct identifications of who Jesus is. But does Nathaniel grasp them in their full implications?

Probably not.

He’s right. He fundamentally understands, but he’s going to grow. He’s going to grow in his understanding of what it means for Jesus to be the son of God and the king of Israel along with the rest of the disciples.

Remember, I told you this is a theme in the book of John. People get that Jesus is the Messiah. They believe in him. But then they realize what that really means. They mature in their understanding. They deepen in it. And they see even how more glorious Jesus is than they thought.

That’s going to be Nathaniel’s experience. Nevertheless, fundamentally, just seeing Jesus for the first time, meeting Jesus, witnessing his divine power is enough to convince Nathaniel that Jesus of Nazareth, even from Nazareth, this one is Israel’s Christ.

And he testifies not just to those who were in the circle around Jesus that one day, but he testifies to the Hellenistic Jews of John’s day. And he testifies to us. Here’s another witness of somebody who was even more skeptical than the other four.

He says, “Guys, Jews, all of you religious persons looking for the saving provision of God, I’m telling you, it’s Jesus. I’ve seen. I want you to see it’s Jesus.”

You Will See Greater Things

It’s a beautiful testimony. It’s a powerful testimony. But Jesus gives a response to it that perhaps surprises us. Look at verse 50.

Verse 50: “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.’”

Jesus first notes here that Nathaniel believes Jesus to be the Messiah because Jesus demonstrated his omniscience by seeing Nathaniel under the fig tree. Nothing necessarily wrong with that. That is a true clue.

But Jesus quickly adds, “You will see greater things than these.” That is to say, “If you’re looking for proof that I really am the Messiah so that you can believe, you ain’t seen nothing yet.”

In fact, he goes on in verse 51: “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.”

Now, in this last verse, we see some favorite phrases from Jesus that are used throughout this gospel. One is the beginning part: “Truly, truly I say to you.” You’re going to hear this a lot of times in John. Amen. Amen. It’s true. It’s true. Believe it.

Jesus often uses this phrase when he’s about to say something really marvelous, even something that people will be slow to believe because it’s so wonderful.

“If you’re looking for proof that I really am the Messiah, you ain’t seen nothing yet.”

Note something else interesting here. You see the words “truly, truly I say to you.” There’s been a shift. This is hard to detect in English, but Jesus has switched from the second person singular version of “you” to the second person plural. So he’s no longer just addressing Nathaniel, but he’s addressing all those listening, which includes all his early disciples, John’s original readers, and us.

He’s going to make a declaration that’s going to wow us. But he says, “Believe it.”

Now, the latter part of this verse—this whole thing about heavens, angels, and ascending and descending—that’s probably going to be really confusing if you do not recognize the allusion to Genesis 28:10-22, which is the passage we read earlier in the service.

Recall that in Genesis 28:10-22, the patriarch Jacob, after stealing his brother Esau’s birthright and his brother’s blessing, flees to Haran to find a wife. Since he’s all by himself with a murderous brother back home, he’s making this long journey. He’s probably wondering how things are going to work out. Am I going to survive?

But then he goes to sleep. God grants Jacob a vision in the night of a staircase. It’s translated as “ladder” in many Bible translations, but staircase is better. He sees a staircase reaching from earth to heaven with angels going up and down on it and God himself standing at the top.

God then, from the top of the stairs, affirms to Jacob that the Abrahamic covenant—the promises of land, seed, and blessing to the whole earth—will be fulfilled in Jacob and in Jacob’s descendants. God will protect Jacob and bring to pass everything that he has promised to him.

The staircase and the angels are actually visible testimony to God’s words to Jacob. Though Jacob normally couldn’t see what God was doing, God pulls back the spiritual curtain, so to speak, to let Jacob know: “Look, my servants are at work. They’re going up and down. They’re constantly delivering my messages. They’re doing my will. You can be sure my promises are going to be fulfilled. I’m at work.”

That would have been a great encouragement to Jacob. It was part of how God was turning Jacob to seek God in faith.

Jesus the New Staircase to Heaven

But notice how here in John 1:51, Jesus has updated this vision. He’s tweaked it from what was originally given to Jacob.

Now Jesus says, “The disciples will see heaven opening and remaining open.” This is hard. You don’t see this in the English translation, but in the Greek it’s perfect tense, which means that something takes place and it remains that way.

Heaven will be having opened and the disciples will see the angels of God ascending and descending not on a staircase but on the son of man, which is the way that Jesus identifies himself. He thus becomes a new kind of staircase.

Now son of man is Jesus’s favorite title for himself. We’re going to see it a lot in the book of John. You see it in the other gospels. It’s a title with which many Jews in Jesus’s day weren’t super familiar and didn’t know how to respond to it.

They get the idea: “Oh, son of David, king of Israel, son of God.” They’d heard these titles before and sometimes they apply them to Jesus because they’re like, “Yeah, our political savior is here. He’s going to get rid of the Romans.” Jesus usually didn’t use those titles for himself, though he didn’t deny them. He instead prefers son of man.

Son of man is a title that certainly emphasizes Jesus’s humanity. He is a son of man literally. But it is also a phrase associated with Daniel 7:13, where one like a son of man is going to come from heaven and is going to reign in glory on God’s behalf on the earth.

So son of man is a messianic title that actually emphasizes Jesus’s divinity. I know that’s a little bit confusing. You’re like, “Son of man—doesn’t that emphasize humanity?” Yes, but because of that association in Daniel 7:13, it also emphasizes divinity.

That’s the title that Jesus prefers and that’s the way he refers to himself here. We’re going to see it again.

But what is all this about? You’re saying Jesus, you’re the new staircase, angels descending and ascending on you, heaven opened up. What are you really saying?

Well, in connection with the Genesis passage, I’d say that this is Jesus’s assertion that he will be the one who will open up heaven for his disciples in a lasting way. It will be by him and through him. Also, he will be the means of all God’s promises coming to pass.

Even the ancient promises given to Abraham and to Jacob. It’s going to be by him and through him.

And also the work and the glory of God that was emphasized with the angels ascending and descending to Jacob. Jesus says all of that you’re going to see taking place in me.

The work and the glory of God will be put on display in me, myself, and in my life.

“Jesus will be the one who opens heaven in a lasting way. The work and glory of God will be put on display in him.”

Now that’s a pretty mighty assertion.

And the question any reader or listener should have after hearing that, especially if they don’t yet believe in Jesus, is: What are you going to do? How are you going to show that you indeed are the new staircase bringing to pass all of God’s promises in what you yourself do?

What’s the answer to that?

Come and see.

It’s no accident that John’s gospel, right after this statement is made from Jesus, presents the first sign miracle of Jesus at the wedding of Cana.

Remember, John picked these signs out specifically to say these prove Jesus is the Messiah.

It’s just the beginning, though. It’s not one event that’s going to be all of this that Jesus just talked about in verse 51. It’s everything that’s going to happen in his life. Everything that he says, everything that he does—it’s going to put the glorious work of God and his own identity on display. And it’s going to culminate with Jesus’s work on the cross and his resurrection.

You want to see the angels ascending and descending on the son of God? You got to come and see Jesus’s life. You got to listen to him speak. You got to see what he does.

It’s like Jesus says to us and to the original readers of this book: “You think it’s impressive that I’ve elicited the testimony of these five disciples that I am the Messiah? You think it’s impressive that I can see and know men before they even came to me, before I’d met them?” Yes, that is impressive and that does point to me being Messiah. But what? You ain’t seen nothing yet.

Don’t stop reading this gospel. Don’t stop reading this Bible. Come and see who I really am. Jesus says, so that you may believe and find eternal life.

Come and See and Remain

Brethren, those of you listening today, have you done that? Have you come and seen that Jesus really is the Messiah, son of God?

And if you have, are you still seeking Jesus? Are you still getting to know him? Once you see Jesus, it’s not like, “Okay, that’s nice. What else can I look at now?” No. This is a mountain of majesty that you can’t turn away from.

Jesus demands. He commands. By his own glory, he commands all your attention.

Or at least he ought to. Are you continuing to seek Jesus? Are you continuing to get to know him?

Are you seeking to become more like him? Are you seeking to put his words into practice as a true disciple? And are you even bringing others to him so that they might see and believe?

That’s what it means to be a true follower of Jesus. Once you start, you don’t stop. Once you’ve come to see him, you’re transformed and you can’t go back to the way you were.

Does Jesus command the attention of your life truly? Or has something else gotten in the way, obstructed the view, and is commanding your attention instead?

That’s what an idol does. That’s what sin does. If that’s the case with you, then what you must do is repent. You must get rid of that idol. You must leave it behind. You must turn away from it and say, “I want to go seek Jesus again. I want to see him again. I want to remember all the things that are so wonderful and beautiful and saving about him.”

Come and see is the main exhortation of this passage. Come and see and remain. Don’t go away from Jesus.

Everything that you’re really looking for, everything that’s worth looking for is found in him. There’s nowhere else to go. There’s nowhere else you need to go.

“Come and see and remain. Everything worth looking for is found in Jesus. There’s nowhere else you need to go.”

Come and see. Come and remain with Jesus.

By this point, John the Baptist has testified that Jesus is the glorious Christ, and so have Jesus’s first disciples.

The question to leave you with then is: Do you believe their witness? They came and saw and they believed. Do you believe based on their witness that Jesus really is worth coming and seeing and remaining?

And does your life prove that?

Let’s close in prayer.

Closing Prayer

Lord Jesus, we are beginning to get a glimpse of who you are in your words and works. And it’s wonderful. It’s amazing.

You take these disciples, Lord, who hardly know anything, who are imperfect, and you say, “Come and remain with me. Come be my disciple. Come learn from me, Lord.”

This is your grace and truth on display. This is your dwelling among us, the word made flesh. What a wonderful reality.

Yet, Lord Jesus, you also display your sobering power that you really know what’s going on in our hearts. Oh, how many people, Lord Jesus, have come to you and said, “Yes, I love Jesus. Yes, I’ll follow Jesus.” But their hearts—and you say, “Nope, you’re not my disciple. You don’t really want me. You just want to pretend to want me.”

It’s not going to be very long in our passage that we’re going to see that, or in the book of John, that there were many who were believing in Jesus and yet Jesus, you did not entrust yourself to them because you knew what was in their hearts. What’s in the heart of man.

God, if there are any people who are hearing this message today who are false with you, I pray Lord that you would convict them by your spirit. They wouldn’t play the game anymore. That they would come and see you truly and give themselves over to you truly. That they’d say, “Jesus has my intention now and I’m not giving it to anything else.”

Jesus, we need your help because we are weak. You were so patient with your disciples, and we’re so glad about that because we need your patience with us. Yet, God, we know we don’t want to be false with you. We don’t want to be hypocrites before you, pretend that we love you and seek you when we don’t.

God, I pray if there’s any who have not yet come and seen you that they would, and that those who have, Lord, would remain with you and they’d see more and more what a beautiful, glorious God you are. They would grow in you. They would say no to ungodliness, yes to righteousness. They’d become more like you. Put you on display to this world.

Lord, we know there are many people we love who need to come and see you as well. Help us not to be afraid to tell them, to bring them. Open their eyes, God. Transform them by sight of you so that they also might believe and be saved.

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