I once was lost but now am found, was blind but now I see!. Nathanael: Well, Philip went on to tell me that the "Messiah" he had found was from a little town called Nazareth. It was then that Jesus made a statement concerning his own death, using the grain of wheat dying in order to spring forth to bear much more grain: He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. (John 12:25).Philips request, Show us the Father brought forth a mild rebuke: Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known me, Philip? And this business about the angels of God ascending and descending? 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. Nathanael was from Cana in Galilee ( John 21:2) and was brought to Jesus by his friend, Philip, who also became one of Jesus' disciples. John 1:43-51 NIV - Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael - BibleGateway 46 Nazareth! This suggests that both Phillip and Nathaniel knew the Old Testament prophecy. (C) 45Philip found Nathanael(D) and told him, We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law,(E) and about whom the prophets also wrote(F)Jesus of Nazareth,(G) the son of Joseph.(H). He leads the way, every step of the way, all the days of our life. By all accounts he was martyred like the rest of the apostle's, except John. And so the church then is our Bethel, the house of God where we find Christ, where heaven is opened to us. Just seeing the Father will be enough for us.. Now what does Philip do next? 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. Was it the right thing to do? 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. And here's Nathaniel meeting Jesus for the first time and Jesus says this about him. Blog at WordPress.com.RSS 2.0Comments RSS 2.0, Philip and Nathanael: A Story of Witnessing (John1:43-51). He found Philip and said to him, "Follow me." 44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 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. Philip the Apostle - Wikipedia In John 1:46-50, Nathanael is introduced to Jesus for the first time. And regardless of the fact that Jesus came from Nazareth, he was omniscient. (Funny sound is heard to indicate traveling in time. Try Bible Gateway Plus free today! Nathanael: It is believed that Bartholomew had ministered in Armenia and was flayed to death with knives in . Why do you think the Greeks would seek out Phillip? We know this because after the resurrection these apostles returned to Galilee with Peter and resumed their fishing trade (John 21 ). Finding Philip,(A) he said to him, Follow me.(B), 44Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. While there are some variations in the order the apostles appear and even the names they went by, Philip is listed in all of them. John seems more interested in telling us who said what, and using Philips answer to set up Jesus miracle. What have you found that you can tell others about? Jesus is telling them in this clearest possible language that he is God and to know him is to know the father. No hope to sustain you. But even a Galileans looked down on the Nazarene's. We dont know. Jesus is calling you to be his disciple. Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man. In Christ, the kingdom of heaven comes down to earth. His Greek name is Bartholomew. They were companions and had probably known each other for years. The Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost. Thats where we werelost, wandering aimlessly, not looking for God. This comment has been removed by the author. 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. Trees were planted around houses to keep them cool and shaded. Sign up now for the latest news and deals from Bible Gateway! Heaven and earth meet in him. The Gospel of John recounts Philip's calling as a disciple of Jesus. While it's easy to gloss over this quick interaction, a few key insights into Nathanael's character can be gleaned from this verse. The three Gospel-writers who make record of the organization of the Twelve place Simon Peter first and Judas Iscariot last in the category; they agree also in the relative position of some but not of all . Simon and, probably, James were brought to Jesus by their brothers. Follow me. Hear the authority in his voice. If you are traveling from the Mediterranean to Galilee you would pass through Nazareth. What we do know is this: as one of the Twelve, Philip certainly held an important role in the early church, and he likely played a key part in spreading the gospel somewhere in ancient Eurasia. Philip, Nathanael, & Matthew: Exploring The Chosen Season 2 Episode 2 Our Lord uses us as his instruments to invite others, so that they can hear Christs call to faith and discipleship. Church tradition holds that Philip preached the gospel in Scythia (a region in central Eurasia), Syria, and Phrygia (Turkey). Nathaniel lived in a society that was prejudice by temperament. Most accounts say that he was put to death by stoning in Asia Minor eight years after the martyrdom of James. Of course. Nathanael (Bartholomew) was called after Philip told him about the Lord. Allegedly, he converted a proconsuls wife, which angered the proconsul enough to have him and Bartholomew crucified upside down. 2 In my Fathers house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. That's all we know about Nathaniel. Cana is very close to Jesus hometown of Nazareth. Here we receive a foretaste of the feast to come. 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. Prejudice cuts a lot of people off from the truth. 6 He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do. Follow me, Jesus says to each one of us. Many believers came to Christ under his preaching. Well, Phillip has my job. 22 Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus. Teaching the Twelve Apostles: Bartholomew - Concordia Publishing House That is our starting point, and it is a dead end. We do know that Nathaniel was to faithful to the end, because he was faithful from the start. Blind and dead in our sins, enemies of Godthat is our natural state. He gives me meaning and purpose and hope in life. I would like to have a deeper walk with God through the study of the Bible. Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel!(John 1:49) Nathanael responded. But maybe youll put it a different way, perhaps like this: I have found my Savior, and hes your Savior too. Now was late in the day, and there were no fast food franchises. . After all Andrew could introduce anyone to Jesus. It bears wonderful fruit and gives good shade. The words I say to you are not just my own. You may unsubscribe from Bible Gateways emails at any time. Well, thats all right. Nathanael would be an Apostle, too.