- Sermon - Mickey Anders

"Come and See"
By Dr. Mickey Anders
South Elkhorn Christian Church
Lexington, Kentucky
January 18, 2009

Text: John 1:43-51

I love character studies in the Bible, and today's brief passage presents an interesting glimpse of the man Nathanael. We know very little about Nathanael. We know little about what he said. He has only four spoken lines, and even less about what he did. But we do know something about his character. Perhaps that is the most important part of a person.

First, we know that he was a deeply honest person. When Jesus first saw Nathanael coming to him, he said (according to the King James Version), "Behold an Israelite in whom there is no guile." Modern translations say, "Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!" I like the King James on this passage.

Guile means "deceitful, cunning; duplicity; treachery." Jesus says there was none of that in Nathanael. What a compliment! What you see is what you get. He had no secrets, no cover-ups, no disappointments about his character.

Jesus gives him credit for stepping forward in faith, even though Nathanael has expressed doubt and skepticism. "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Jesus pays him this compliment because Nathanael is at least open; he’s at the very least going to check it out — see what Jesus is all about.

When we use the term "guile," there is a Biblical character who fits the term - Jacob. Remember last year when we were studying Genesis, we read about Jacob spending the night at brook. There he wrestled with a man until the break of day. Just before daylight his assailant asks, "What is your name?" And he replies, "Jacob," which means, "I am a trickster, a fraud. I have lived by my wits. I am as slippery as an eel." Jacob was famous for being a deceiver, a trickster, filled with guile

Then the man said, "You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed." Jacob was the opposite of Nathanael.

Jesus greeted Nathanael with genuine appreciation. There is no sin that Jesus seems to have hated with greater intensity than hypocrisy. He hated this evil because the hypocrite injures others. Hypocrites often come to believe their own lies. The Pharisee prayed, "God I thank you that I am not as other men." He believed he was special, but he was a hypocrite.

If Jesus hated those who were insincere, he loved those who, like Nathanael, were honest, simple and straightforward. So he commends Nathanael by saying, "Behold an Israelite in whom there is no guile."

Secondly, we know that Nathanael was a deeply religious man. He asked Jesus, "Where did you come to know me? How do you know that I have no guile?" Jesus replies, "I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you."

No one is sure what Jesus meant by that line. Speculation about Nathanael’s activity under the fig tree abounds. For instance, one suggestion is that Nathanael was studying the Scriptures. A second option is that he was confessing his sin. Others have suggested that “sitting under the fig tree” alludes to the establishment of God’s messianic kingdom. The bottom line is that we simply do not know what Nathanael was doing under the tree. But something in that statement that Jesus saw him under the fig tree is convincing to Nathanael.

That was all it took for Nathanael to become a believer. He immediately declares, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" Here was a man who was quick to affirm who Jesus really was. We can quibble about Nathanael's intent with those terms "Son of God" and "King of Israel." They may have had different meanings then than now, but we know they were terms that were laden with theological importance. Nathanael was expecting the Holy One of God, and it didn't take three long years for him to know who Jesus was.

We should all have that kind of readiness and expectation. Expectation opens the door to God's action. In 1793, William Carey was one of the very first missionaries and subsequently spent his life in India giving witness for Christ. He is known as the pioneer of the modern missions movement. He had a famous phrase the he loved to quote, "Expect great things from God. Attempt great things for God." It was not only his motto; it was true of his life. Nathanael was a man like that. He expected great things from God and was not at all surprised when he recognized in Jesus "the Son of God" and the "King of Israel."

Expectation was a special characteristic of the early Church. There was a word that was constantly upon their lips; that was "Maranatha." The NRSV translates the word as meaning, "Our Lord, come!" It is a word used specifically in 1 Corinthians 16:22, but most believe it was a word commonly used as a greeting between early Christians. When they met in their secret meetings, all one had to say to be admitted was "Maranatha." It was upon their lips as they went forth on their missionary journeys. It made them radiant and courageous. They were filled with expectation. At any moment their victorious Lord might break in upon them.

But along with these fine virtues, Nathanael had one defect. It was a glaring defect. He had read his Bible. He knew the expectations of his people. He was doubtless looking for the Messiah. Therefore, it was a grand moment when Philip said, "We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth." That was the greatest news he had ever heard.

But there was one word in the message that was so jarring that it threw Philip into confusion. Then Nathanael is given one of the most memorable lines in the Gospels: "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"

Some say that Nazareth was a rival to his own hometown of Cana. It’s a small town without power or prestige, and there probably weren’t more than 2,000 residents at the time. Nazareth isn’t mentioned in the Old Testament, or in any of the writings of the Jewish historian Josephus. On top of this, it’s located in Galilee, which comes from the Hebrew word meaning “boundary” or “territory.” Jesus is not coming from an impressive urban center, like Jerusalem; instead, he’s coming from the middle of nowhere.

If it were merely a rival town, it might be the same kind of teasing that we have about the University of Kentucky and the University of Arkansas, where I graduated. You might ask, "Can anything good come out of the University of Arkansas?" And I guess that question remains to be answered.

But I suspect that it was prejudice, pure and simple. Prejudice means:
1. an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason.
2. any preconceived opinion or feeling, either favorable or unfavorable.
3. unreasonable feelings, opinions, or attitudes, esp. of a hostile nature, regarding a racial, religious, or national group.

One of the clearest examples of prejudice is found in the book of Titus (1:12) we find this verse: "It was one of them, their very own prophet, who said, 'Cretans are always liars, vicious brutes, lazy gluttons.'" Then verse 13 adds, "That testimony is true."

Prejudice is lumping everyone in a particular group together and judging them by the actions of a few. I don't believe for a moment that every single person from Crete was a liar, vicious brute, lazy glutton, but prejudice says that are all the same. Prejudice is narrow-minded and unreasonable. Prejudice keep us from understanding that someone may well be different from our preconceived notions.

A preacher friend told this story:
"When a car skidded on wet pavement and struck a light pole, several bystanders ran over to help the driver. A woman was the first to reach the victim, but a man rushed in and pushed her aside. "Step aside, lady," he barked. "I've taken a course in first aid." The woman watched him for a few minutes, then tapped his shoulder. "Pardon me," she said. "But when you get to the part about calling a doctor, I'm right here."

I believe Nathanael shows prejudice against anyone from Nazareth. "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Perhaps Nathanael had known men from Nazareth who were rascals. Some of them may have had cheated him. Therefore, he had come to have a prejudice against everyone from Nazareth. So intense was this prejudice that he came very near to rejecting Jesus altogether, because he did not like the town that he came from. "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"

We all have our prejudices. Some of them are harmless; some may have a positive good about them. I may be prejudiced against brussel sprouts, and you may be prejudiced against okra. No harm is done. Or I may be prejudiced against illegal drug use, which turns out to be a positive good for my health.

But while prejudice may be an asset, as a rule it is a liability. It has a tendency so to stop our ears and to blind our eyes so that we refuse to face the facts.

We see another example of prejudice in the Bible in the 22nd chapter of Acts. Paul has been arrested by certain fanatics. Roman soldiers have had to take a hand to keep him from being torn limb from limb. When they bring him to the palace, he asks permission to speak to the crowd. When his request is granted, he begins tactfully, speaking to them in Hebrew. He tells them how he has been brought up in Jerusalem at the feet of Gamaliel. He also tells them how he once persecuted the Church. This is all to their liking; therefore, they listen with rapt attention. But at last he ventures to tell them how God sent him to speak to the Gentiles. At once there is an explosion. They break into an uproar and refuse to hear another word. They listen till the speaker touches the tender nerve of their prejudice. Then they refuse to hear him any more.

What had Nathanael to say against Jesus? Only this: "I have known some bad people from Nazareth; therefore, I won't believe in anybody that comes from that town." Sometimes we feel the same about whole nations or races of people.

Tomorrow is Martin Luther King Day, and many people in our country will celebrate his life and his vision. His famous speech will be quoted often:

And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."2

This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.

With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:

My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.

Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride,

From every mountainside, let freedom ring!

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.

Next Tuesday our country will hold the inauguration of Barrack Obama, the first African American President, and we will all celebrate that very much of Dr. King's dream will have come true. Many of us had hoped that perhaps in our lifetime we would see a woman elected President, but most of us didn't dare to believe that we would live to see a black man elected President. Tuesday will be a great and historic day in America. And we all sense what a profound moment it is in the history of prejudice in America.

Last Wednesday, I was listening to National Public Radio while driving and heard this wonderful story from Melissa Block. She said,

President-elect Barack Obama will be the first black president to live in the White House — but not the first black person. Slaves helped construct the building. Black men and women worked in the White House as servers, cooks and maids, sometimes as property of U.S. presidents.

Until recently, almost all the White House butlers were black. Lynwood Westray, who spent 32 years as a part-time butler in the White House, was part of that tradition. He served eight presidents, starting with John F. Kennedy, before leaving the White House in 1994.

When reflecting on his fondest memory, Westray talks about a time in 1979 when Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip visited the White House. After dinner, Prince Philip went into the Red Room, next to the state dining room. Westray and his buddy were serving liquor. Westray says he was carrying the tray and glasses.

"The prince was in there by himself, which was odd, because everybody else had gone down to the other end of the building," Westray says. "I said, 'Your Majesty, would you care for a cordial?' He says, 'I'll take one if you let me serve it.' What do you do? And he says, 'If you let me pour it, I'll have one with you.'

"... So he poured it, the one he wanted, and we took the same thing that he had. And we had our drink there together and had a little talk while we were there. He told us if we were ever over there in London to stop at Buckingham Palace and see him. Can you imagine the prince serving you? I enjoyed it. You know, we're not supposed to drink and carry on at that time. We're not guests. It was just the three of us in the room, so nobody knew what happened. And I drank my little cordial, we all drank, and had a little conversation. But that was one thing I'll never forget, having been served by royalty." (All Things Considered, January 15, 2009)

When Nathanael met Jesus, in spite of his prejudices, he realized he had met royalty. He immediately declared him to be the "Son of God" and the "King of Israel."

What then did Philip do about Nathanael's prejudice? He took the only sane course open to him. He did not argue as to whether Nazareth was good or bad, decent or indecent. He did not even argue about Jesus. He virtually said, "You are in doubt as to whether Jesus is the Messiah because of the place where he comes from. I cannot prove to you that he is, just as you cannot prove that he is not. But if you are honest in your doubt, you can find out for yourself. If you really wish to know the truth, come and see."

Today, we can hear the same invitation coming to us: "Come and see."