Sharing Jesus - A Reflection on John 1:45-51



Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Bartholomew, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus.  Other than being listed as an Apostle, he is not otherwise mentioned in the New Testament, at least not under the name Bartholomew, but many ancient writers have identified Bartholomew as Nathaniel in the Gospel of John (John 1:45-51, and 21:2). I really love this story about him, because it is a story of what happens to every person who finds Jesus. They tell somebody else about Jesus, and their excitement is often so contagious, the other person is inspired to discover what the fuss is all about. And in the process, they find Jesus too. 

This is Evangelism 101. It’s very simple. Step 1: Start talking to the person. Step 2: Arouse the person’s curiosity. Step 3: Invite the person to come and see for themselves. Step 4: Leave the rest to God; your job is done. In today’s passage we find Philip following this method. He starts talking to his friend Nathaniel about Jesus. Nathaniel is curious. He asks, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip says, “Come and see.” Nathaniel finds Jesus. And Jesus does the rest.

The New Testament is filled with similar stories. A notable one is that of a Samaritan woman who one day went to draw water from a well (see John 4). She found Jesus there and discovered who he was. She immediately went to the townspeople, even though she was not very popular with them, and started talking to them about Jesus. “I have met a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” Their curiously was aroused, so she invited them to “come and see.” They made their way to him. And when they met him, Jesus did the rest.

We have opportunities to talk about Jesus to somebody every day. There are so many people we meet. We don’t need grand tales to tell; just simple stories about how we met Jesus and how he impacted our life. People need God, even if they don’t realize it, and even more so in these days of uncertainty. As Augustine declared in one of the most profound statements ever made: "Because God has made us for himself, our hearts are restless until they rest in him." Consequently, they just need somebody to point them towards Jesus.

How can we do this today? Here’s an easy way. Share these reflections, wherever you watch them or read them. “Like” my Facebook Page, not just the posts, and “Follow” it. That’s facebook.com/aneelaranha. I never, ever post anything personal on social media so I’m not promoting myself. All my posts are only about Jesus and Scripture, or something related. And the more you like and share the posts, the more the chances are that somebody who doesn’t know Jesus will be touched by him through them. But if you want to go a step further, record your testimony and post it online. Or start a blog about your faith journey. Or write and record a song about Jesus. 

And see what happens!

Watch a video of this reflection by Aneel Aranha here:  https://youtu.be/BU0qbqgDg-k


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