In comparison with His first meeting with all the other disciples, the first meeting of Nathanael and Jesus is the most unusual.
It is very rich in some of the details, but also says very little about other things.
Here is how John recorded it:
John 1:43-50: The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.”44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip. 47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.” 48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”50 Jesus said, “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” 51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”
I want us to grasp three things today.
1. His Words!
No Words that Jesus speaks over you is wasted!
The Lord Jesus did not dish out complements or rebukes without good reason. His words were always measured to address an issue.
When the Lord Jesus called the church in Sardis “dead”, it was because they had a name that they were alive. When the Lord Jesus called the church in Smyrna “rich”, it was because they were materially poor. Revelation 2-3.
When the Lord Jesus renamed Simon, son of Jonah, as Cephas or Peter, (the names Cephas (from Aramaic) and Peter (from Greek) both mean “rock.”), Peter was anything but a rock. Simon meant reed, swayed by every opinion. Peter was not dependable. Matthew 16:18.
When Jesus asked the Samaritan woman for a drink, he blew her away; a Jew treating her as if she was a clean Jewess! Knowing how she lived, no other Jew would ask her for a drink even if she was a Jewess. But Jesus did, even though she did not, apparently, actually get around giving him a drink of water. John 4.
Every time the Lord Jesus said to his disciples, “Do not be afraid” it was because they were very afraid. Matthew 10:26-28.
So why would Jesus call him “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”
It must be that Nathanael felt anything but a ‘true-blue’ Israelite.
If I knew nothing about Nathanael, and was then told that Jesus said of him that he is “an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!" I would be certain Nathanael did not feel he was an Israelite at all.
The Lord Jesus never lavishly bestowed complements or a rebukes on any one for no serious reason. Obviously there are many words of Jesus that were not recorded in the Bible, many acts and miracles too (John 21:25). So what we have is really important.
What have you believed about yourself that is not true? What has Jesus spoken over your life that changes everything?
Take His words and live in them!
2. Our Worth
Our worth is found in Him, not in Ourselves
Back then, and until very recently, a man’s worth was derived from his ethnic and religious roots.
Paul could boast of his “dual citizenship”: “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people.” Acts 21:39
Notice Paul puts his Jewish citizenship first, then his Roman citizenship.
On another occasion Paul boasted of his Jewish credentials according to the flesh when said that he is “circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee” (Phil 3:5)
Nathanael could not say that. There was something stopping Nathanael from boasting like Paul.
What was it?
Nathanael Is Bartholomew - this is not unusual to find that a disciple is known by two names.
We know for certain that Nathanael is one of the disciples.
The Lord Jesus had twelve disciples. Their names are mentioned in Matthew 10:2-4, Mark 3:16-19 and Luke 6:13-16. For example here is the list from Matthew:
Matthew 10: 2-4: Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the [son] of Zebec, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the [son] of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.
Nathanael had to be one of these people. He is not Peter. He is not Andrew. He is not James. He is not Philip. He is not Thomas. He is not Matthew. He is not James son of Alphaeus. He is not Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus. He is not He is not Simon the Cananite. He is not Judas. All these people have been “defined” for us.
The only candidate left is Bartholomew.
Bible Gateway says: ‘Bartholomew son of Tolmai, one of the twelve apostles (Matt. 10:3; Acts 1:13); [is] generally supposed to have been the same as Nathanael. In the synoptic gospels Philip and Bartholomew are always mentioned together, while Nathanael is never mentioned; in the fourth gospel, on the other hand, Philip and Nathanael are similarly mentioned together, but nothing is said of Bartholomew’.
So Nathanael is Bartholomew. It is the one person with two names.
Nathanael is a Jewish name.
Bartholomew is a Gentile name that means ‘the son of Tolmai’.
Nathanael, at best, had a Jewish mother and a Greek father, like Timothy, the one to whom Paul wrote. So he is 50% Jew. He’s of dual heritage. He does not feel he belongs in either place.
But notice he is either Nathanael or Bartholomew. The two names are never combined. He is never mentioned as Nathanael-Bartholomew.
What Is In A Name?
Why was Nathanael given ONLY the name “son of Tolmai”? (Bartholomew). Why he was not called say, “Bill son of Tolmai, or Fred son of Tolmai?"
People in the Bible are called Joshua the son of Nun, or John the son of Zacharias, or Simon the son of Jonah, or James the son of Alphaeus.Why is the first name missing? Why was he just “son of Tolmai?"
In the Middle East when a person’s first name is not mentioned, it is a form of insult or a sign of insignificance.
Mark 10:46: Notice how Bartimaeus was described: Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging.
Nobody bothered to find out what was Bartimaeus’ first name. He is just a blind beggar, Bar Timaeus (son of Timaeus)
Mark 6:3 notice how the Jews described Jesus, when they wanted to put Him down: Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offence at him.
Nathanael was just the “son of Tolmai". This was more of an insult than a name. And it stuck.
Someone must have named him Nathanael (which means gift of God), but others called him “son of Tolmai”.
Did Tolmai give his son a name?
Nathanael was carrying a huge burden.
As soon as Jesus met Nathanael, He wanted to roll this burden away. Jesus did not only say of Nathanael that he is a “true blue Jew”, He added that there was even no deceit or guile in him.
For Jesus to go to the length of saying there is even “no deceit in him” is extraordinary.
Jesus wanted to make sure that Nathaniel’s identity was fixed on the outside but also that Nathaniel was fixed on the inside!
Jesus is in the business of fixing identities!
3. Worship Connects Us
What Happened Under The Fig Tree?
We are not told because the readers of the gospel would have understood what Nathanael was doing under the fig tree.
It was common in those times that if you couldn’t get to a synagogue for any reason that you’d find a quiet place to go and pray and worship. Normally this was under tress for shade or by rivers (Acts 16:13 - note Paul expected to find a place of prayer).
This is even more significant for Nathanael for he felt incomplete. He doesn't feel Jewish enough. It is possible that he never went to the synagogue but rather prayed and worshipped in solitude.
Note the following conversation:
48“How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”50 Jesus said, “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” 51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”
A few things to notice here:
Jesus sees him before Philip did. He is saying: “You remember what you praying? I was there with you! prayers are answered!”
What else would get the reaction, “You are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel!”
Nathanael is expecting the Messiah - perhaps this is the prayer he is praying when he’s under the fig tree.
Philip goes to get him. Why? because he knows that Nathanael, with all his insecurities, is eagerly awaiting the Messiah!
Nathanael is painted as a sceptic but he isn’t.
He says, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” probably a common joke amongst the people. Jokes would be told, “did you hear about the guy from Nazareth ...”
What Jesus says about him has two meanings. It restores him, there’s no deceit in him, he’s no liar! If Jesus saw him, he heard him too! You’re not wrong Nathanael, Nazareth is rough!
Wrapping this up
Our worth is always found in what Jesus says about us, not what others may believe or say about us.
We have to believe what he says about us. When Nathanael hears this word over his life he is transformed.
The other Gospels, being Jewish works, tend towards using Bartholomew but John sticks with the new name.
Although we’re not told this I like to think it was Jesus who gave Bartholomew this new name.
Changed from an insult to Gift of God.
This is the transforming power of meeting Jesus personally!
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