John 1: 29-51

(John 1: 29-51)

The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.  This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me. And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.  And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.  And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.  And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.  Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples;  And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!  And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.  Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou?  He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.  One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.  He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.  And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone. The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me.  Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.  Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.  And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.  Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!  Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.  Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.  Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these.  And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.

John the Baptist stands with two disciples. The two disciples were Simon Peter's brother Andrew and the apostle John who was writing this article. At the time the Gospel of John was written, Andrew and the apostle John may have considered Jesus as one of the rabbis without the testimony of John the Baptist. John the Baptist once again testified that Jesus was the Lamb of God. Andrew and John asked where Jesus was. This may correspond to the positional meaning of Jesus, who he is with, and the part of his affiliation from where the source is. However, Jesus did not explain and let him come and see. Thus, more and more people left his own life and joined the life of Jesus. He came to be taught by the rabbi, but eventually he began to follow Jesus. Those who follow Jesus follow Jesus' calling.

Andre found his brother and delivered the Messiah. Philip also brings Nathanael. Andrew describes Jesus as the Messiah, and Philip describes him as the fulfillment of the writings of Moses and the prophet, but the conclusion is the same. He inherits Jesus' call to come and see. John's son Simon, who stands before Jesus by Andrew, is named Cephas. From 300 B.C. to 200 A.D., the name Simon, the most frequently used male name by Palestinian Jews, is changed to Geva, a name no one could have imagined. The average person is restored to the image of God, and the fisherman who fished on the shaking water every day becomes a solid rock.

In other Gospels, the one Philip brought is called Bartholomew, meaning the son of Dolomew. By the way, in the Gospel of John, it was called Nathanael, meaning God's gift. Life that was called someone's son turns into something like a gift from God. In the beginning, the Word that gave the identity of the heavens and the earth revealed the image of God that was hidden from those who were called to name it. Nathanael, from Nazareth, judged without seeing Jesus. Not only was it rural, but because he knew that the Messiah would be born of Bethlehem. However, he confesses that he was the Messiah, whom he ignored, and walks together. In addition, in the calling and following, the fig tree becomes the secret realm of only Jesus and Nathanael.

Jesus promised Nathanael that he would show a greater work to the believers. "The heavens open and the messengers of God rise and fall over Jesus." The spirits who sinned in the kingdom of God because of the first man, Adam, go down to the world, and because of the last Adam, they return to the kingdom of God. This is consistent with what Jacob dreamed of at Bethel

In Genesis 28:12, 『And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. 』Jacob slept on a pillow in a place called Bethel, but in a dream a ladder stood on the ground. He saw the messengers of God go up and down. Jesus said to Nathanael, "Before Philip called you, I saw you while you were under the fig tree." And Nathanael quickly confessed that Jesus was the Messiah.

The disciples of John the Baptist were following John the Baptist, and when John the Baptist died, they became disciples of Jesus. Andrew, Peter's younger brother, was one of them, and Philip and Nathanael were all from the community. Andrew told his brother Peter that he had met the Messiah, and Philip went to Nathanael and said he had met the Messiah: ``Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. 』

 I was disappointed that Nathanael was Nazareth. He made a demeaning statement of Nazareth: ``And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see. The Israelites knew that the Messiah was born in Bethlehem. So, once Philip comes, he will know that he will take Nathanael to Jesus.

『 Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile! 』 The word true Israeli means the law. Jesus is saying that Nathanael was a man who tried to obey the law with all his body, mind, and mind. That is why he is the one who penetrated the law, found the Messiah (Christ) in it, and was waiting for the Messiah.『 Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee. 』

These words did not focus on simply "seeing", but through these words, Nathanael knew that this person was the one who penetrated everything. The fig tree symbolizes Israel and means the law. The difference between Israel and the Gentiles is whether they have the law or not. In Ephesians 2:11-12, "Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 』
The saying that Nathanael was under the fig tree tells us that he is a grower who tries to keep the law. So, as soon as Nathanael heard Jesus speak, “Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel. '