Come and See: Observing something yourself can be the most powerful testimony there is. After all, when you are an eyewitness, you can draw your own conclusions. As we discussed yesterday, it was the advice Jesus gave to John’s disciples, who were checking Jesus out based on John’s recommendation. It’s easy to be skeptical of sales pitches and belief systems, but we are more readily swayed by evidence. (Except for magic shows, seeing is believing, right?)

Backwater Towns Never Make History

Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida (located on the NE shore of the Sea of Galilee). Undoubtedly Philip was familiar with the two brothers; perhaps he fished with them or knew them because they grew up together in a small town. After Philip was introduced to Jesus, he went to tell one of his good friends about it: “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.” “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip. (John 1:44-46 NIV)

Nazareth was the backwoods part of Galilee, not really noteworthy of anything and certainly not part of the prophetic story that heralded the Messiah. (Part of why not only Nathanael but the Pharisees disregarded Jesus in John 7:52, since their “superior” grasp of scripture enabled them to know that Galilee was not mentioned as the Messiah’s place of origin…)  By assuming they already knew all the answers, the Pharisees looked condescendingly on others and on current events. They were locked into a religious bigotry that excluded others.

Most of the Pharisees never got over their prejudice, and continued to see Jesus as a rube from the country whose credentials were suspect; Nathanael at least went and met Jesus himself to find out what Philip was talking about. Philip’s eyewitness testimony was simple, and very similar to what Jesus said to John’s disciples: “Come and see”. It’s also what Thomas did when he had doubts…

Quick Knowledge Test

Two things stand out about this. One, don’t be so sure you know something that you miss the truth. John Wooden said, “It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.” Go to the source, oh readers of questionable social media and network news! You’ll be surprised how often something is misrepresented in second-hand accounts, or distorted by your presuppositions and assumptions.

If you think you know Jesus of Nazareth based on what others (like me) have said about him, then you probably don’t. Quick: What were his three best parables? What three conversations did he have that broke all barriers down and revolutionized religion? What would you say are the top three commandments he laid down? If you don’t know what HE said about these things, you probably don’t. Know. Him.  Come; see for yourself.

Second, Philip described Jesus as “the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote”. Philip knew the Scriptures, and he connected the dots. He had looked into the Scriptures to see EVIDENCE of prophecy and the references about who the Messiah would be. Even when Nathanael objected, Philip encouraged him to come and see for himself. He saw something in Jesus that prompted him to tell his friends about him, and to persist over their objections. Whom do you know that would benefit from an introduction to the man from Galilee? Help them connect the dots this year. Invite them to come and see. And by the way, I’m inviting you.

Come For Yourself; See For Yourself

Everyone is skeptical when salesmen try to sell,
Pushing just a little as they try to weave a spell;
They will overcome objections, use a trial close,
Until we finally tell them, “NO. I don’t want one of those.”
It can be the same with Jesus: people try to tell us,
But we already “know” the things we think they’re trying to sell us;
So here’s the deal: Go take your Bible down from off that shelf,
And Read the book of John. Go spend some time with him yourself.

Walk down a dusty Galilean road with him awhile;
Read a parable or two, and try to see his smile.
See him bless the children as they played around his knees,
Listen to his words as he confronts the Pharisees:
If you don’t like the stuff he taught, then you can disregard him;
Just please don’t let a bad sales pitch allow you to discard him!
Instead of preachers, books, or movies, or even guys like me:
I challenge you to read it for yourself, to Come and See.

To buy my latest book, Real People, Real Christmas: Thirty-one Days Discovering the Hidden Treasures of the Christmas Story, go here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1729034918/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
For Slaying Giants: Thirty Days with David, go here: https://www.amazon.com/Slaying-Giants-Thirty-Devotions-Ordinary/dp/172568327X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535814431&sr=8-1&keywords=Slaying+Giants%3A+Thirty+Days+With+David
To buy my book, Beggar’s Bread, go here: https://www.amazon.com/Beggars-Bread-Devotions-Ordinary-Guy/dp/1535457392/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1473336800&sr=8-1&keywords=Beggar%27s+Bread