"Following or Faltering?" - John 1:43-51 - January 19, 2003

When my son got married some of his friends had doubts that he had picked the right woman. On the rear window of his car my son has the words, "The Ohio State University." On the back license plate holder of my daughter-in-law’s car the words say, "Go Wolverines." You know of course what they were thinking, "Can anything good come out of Michigan?"

When it comes to the acceptance of our new daughter-in-law into the family that little difference has been joked about but in reality it is a totally non-issue. Besides, she isn’t from Michigan. She didn’t even go to school there. She lived in Ann Arbor for a brief period of time and she just happens to be a fan.

It’s sad when we evaluate potential friends and even relatives because of such petty differences. But, it is our human nature to do exactly that. We judge people based on where they come from, what kind of work they are in, who their friends are, even what kind of car they drive. When I came to Sidney thirteen years ago I was driving a Honda Accord at the time. Someone commented that I didn’t drive an American car. The truth is, the car I was driving was assembled in Marysville, Ohio and the engine was manufactured in Anna, Ohio, right here in Shelby County.

We have a tendency to make judgments about people based on our knowledge of people, places and things. When Philip told Nathaniel about Jesus, Nathaniel said, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" I have visited Nazareth and I could understand why Nathaniel would make that comment. Nazareth is in the middle of nowhere, located in a rocky area of Israel. It is just about impossible to grow crops and the roads there are less than adequate. There is little fresh water and very few natural resources.

Philip is undaunted by Nathaniel’s comment and replies, "Come and see." In other words, he wanted Philip to keep an open mind, put aside his prejudices and meet Jesus straight up, without any preconceived labels. Nathaniel accepts Philip’s invitation and goes. But, before Philip has a chance to say anything, Jesus sees him coming and describes Nathaniel as a faithful Israelite.

Jesus does not discriminate or say anything that would belittle who Nathaniel was. Instead, he affirms his faith and announces what is good about Nathaniel, not what he lacks. Where he is from, what he does for a living or who his relatives are, is not important. Jesus is only concerned with our faith, not our place of origin.

Jesus wanted to build the church and he needed disciples to help him. Those who follow him will not all be the same. They all had different perceptions of who Jesus was. This was based on their needs and their journey of faith. In this paragraph Jesus is described as, "Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph, Rabbi, son of God, King of Israel and Son of man." Earlier in the chapter he was also called, "The Word, the light, the Christ, the lamb of God, and the Messiah."

These multiple names for Jesus suggest that each follower perceived Jesus based on their individual understandings of Jesus’ mission. Since he is known by many names he can’t be put in a box or single stereotype, which unfortunately many people attempt to do.

Why should our understandings of Jesus be limited to a particular point in time? I believe that the people of our time have newer words or images of Jesus which help them in their journey of faith. For me, Jesus is "Peacemaker," "The Great Reconciler," "Giver of Grace," or "Bestower of Affirmation." I am sure that each one of you could come up with one of your own. The point is, each of us is invited to come to Jesus for ourselves. There is no single path or "right" way to know him. It depends on our individual needs and understandings.

Jesus could not be limited and neither can we. The possibilities about who Jesus is are open ended, not limited to a single time. Unfortunately we are judged by our history, connections, "from" someplace for which others have attached negative labels.

A successful beauty product company asked the people in a large city to send pictures along with brief letters about the most beautiful women they knew. Within a few weeks thousands of letters were delivered to the company. One letter in particular caught the attention of the employees. Soon, it was handed over to the company president.

The letter was written by a young boy who lived in a run-down neighborhood. His letter read: "A beautiful woman lives down the street from me. I visit her every day. She makes me feel like the most important kid in the world. We play checkers and she listens to my problems. She understands me and when I leave she always tells me that she’s proud of me." The boy included a picture of her and he said, "I hope I have a wife as pretty as her."

The company president was intrigued by the letter and asked to see the picture. His secretary handed him a photo of a smiling, toothless woman, well-advanced in years, sitting in a wheelchair. Her sparse gray hair was pulled back in a bun and she had deep wrinkles. "We can’t use this woman," explained the company president. "She would show the world that our products aren’t necessary to be beautiful." (From More Stories for the Heart, by Alice Gray)

When we have pre-conceived descriptions of other people we limit their potential. We put boundaries on their ability to relate to us. We stereotype them which is a way of making ourselves superior or better. Instead of judging Nathaniel, Jesus affirmed his faith. He also recognized the fact that he was still searching. Some scholars suggest that his sitting under the fig tree can be interpreted to mean Nathaniel was seeking and searching, striving to be faithful. Nathaniel had faith, but more importantly he had great potential.

Notice that Jesus says to Nathaniel, "You shall see greater things than these." Nathaniel’s faith and commitment to follow Jesus would lead him beyond his wildest dreams. His life would be changed forever for he was now on a journey where the sky was the limit.

Jesus sees everyone of us with great potential. You don’t have to be good-looking, intelligent, or popular to be one of his followers. You only have to "come and see."

Dr. Keith Wagner, St. Paul’s United Church of Christ, Sidney, Ohio