In the beginning of the gospel of John, four disciples had come to follow Jesus. Near the end of the gospel, verses 43-51 that conclude John 1, two more are gathered into the fold. They are all different individuals, yet they are bound through Jesus into one glorious salvation.
I want to look at these two callings of this passage.
1) The Calling of Philip:
“Follow Me”
In John 1:43, Philip is added to the number of those following Jesus. Jesus “decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, ‘Follow me.’”
Philip’s calling was a bit different from those before him. Andrew and John learned about Jesus from John the Baptist’s biblical proclamation: “Behold, the Lamb of God” (Jn. 1:36).
Simon was led to Christ by his brother’s personal testimony: “We have found the Messiah” (Jn. 1:41).
This shows us a few things.
a) That we should not expect every conversion to look the same.
b) That we can come to Christ and follow him at any moment, no matter what we are doing at the time.
c) That our evangelism will be greatly strengthened if we get to know people.
We often say salvation is a personal relationship with Christ and it is. I want you to see that it is Christ who develops the intimate relationship.
Isn’t this an encouragement? It is to me. Today we live is a world of one size fits all. Our salvation is tailor made for us. Is that not great to think about?
Jesus knows you intimately, and if you come to him you will find a Good Shepherd who will lead your soul as if you were the only person under his care. His Word will speak to you according to your real and personal need, and by God’s Spirit Christ will give individual attention to you.
Yet salvation is the same…
We have but one Christ. We have but one cross. We have but one atonement. We have but one salvation.
While it is true that every individual’s experience with Jesus is unique, it is also true that every salvation has the same elements. I have talked about the 3 aspects of God you must know in order for salvation to happen. Those are:
1) The fact of a holy God.
2) The fact that God will Judge all of mankind.
3) The fact that Christ came to redeem sinners. Those aspects are ESSENTIAL.
Likewise, and for this reason, everything found in these calling accounts apply to us.
Jesus said to Philip, “Follow me,” and he says the same to every one of us.
There is no Christianity without personal discipleship with Jesus. Far too many people today who give no evidence of following Jesus believe that they are Christians because they had an experience or responded to an altar call or maybe signed a prayer card long ago.
To be a Christian is to follow Jesus Christ. If you are NOT following Jesus, then you should not consider yourself a Christian.
All of these men became disciples this way: by following Jesus. They called Jesus “Rabbi” and committed themselves to learn from him. We must do the same and when we gather for worship, we must be taught by God’s Word. Too many professing Christians make little or no attempt to increase their biblical understanding, and resist having their worldly ideas challenged by Christ’s teaching.
The result is a weak and ineffective church.
Also notice this. To be a Christian is to follow Jesus’ example.
When he says, “Follow me,” Jesus means we are to follow his manner of life, his attitude toward others, and his submission to the will of the Father. To follow Jesus is to go where he went, to the cross where he died to the world and where we die to sin.
Luke 9:23
If anyone would come after me,” Jesus said, “let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
Are you willing to have your lifestyle changed and your priorities turned upside-down?
If not, then you cannot be a Christian.
Protestant theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously said, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”
For Bonhoeffer, that meant standing up to the Nazi regime in the Germany of his day, for which he was put to death. For the Jewish believer, it may mean risking the loss of your family by believing in Jesus as the Messiah. For believers in the Arab world today it means the prospect of violent death.
Most of all, following Jesus means relying on him for our salvation. Jesus used the image of a shepherd leading his sheep. Sheep depend on the shepherd, and we totally depend on Jesus. We rely on his blood to wash away our sins, and on his righteousness to clothe us for glory. We rely on his Word for truth and his Spirit for power. We rely on his favor with the Father to make us beloved children.
That is why the cross, though an instrument of death, is in fact a doorway to life.
Luke 9:24
Jesus said, “Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it”.
2) Nathanael was called.
John 1: 45-46
45 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.
46 And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?
Just as Jesus found Philip, Philip found Nathanael. When Philip told him that Jesus was from Nazareth, Nathanael replied with scorn: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (John. 1:46).
Nazareth would have been a rival town. So telling Nathanael that “him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote” was from Nazareth, would be like telling someone today that the Savior was a graduate of a rival high school or college. It was a stumbling block to his faith, and all Philip could say in reply was, “Come and see.”
"Come and see", that was good advice.
Many may wish to debate you, which in most cases does little good or no good. Hardly any one leaves the debate a changed man. On the other hand, God can change a man. His holy Word has that power. To tell others to investigate the truth of God on their own, is wise. I often give non-believers reading assignments. If they are serious they will take me up on the assignment and read. If not they only show their heart of strife.
As Nathanael approached Jesus, the Lord said, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no guile!” (John. 1:47).
I want you to notice that by saying this about Nathanael, it opens up the thought process in Nathanael. This chapter has told us who Jesus is over and over again. Title upon title. Jesus in saying this to Nathanael will cause him to ask, “Just who are you? “
“How do you know me?” he asked. Or…who are you that you know me?
Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.Nathanael’s reply shows that Jesus had done what he set out to do. To bring Nathanael to an understanding of who he was.
Verse 49 Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.
Nathanael’s heart was change my the words of Christ.
The same thing happens to us when we come to Christ through his Word.
Hebrews 4:12 says,
12For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
That is the very thing Jesus did to Nathanael. If you bring your heart to Jesus in the manner that Nathanael came – sincerely, without deceit – his Word will persuade you, too, that he is the very Son of God.
Jesus’ words to Nathanael show that when we think we have found Jesus, it really is Jesus who has found us.
Jesus later explained, “You did not choose me, but I chose you”.
The same is true of every believer. In a set of parables, Jesus compared himself to a shepherd who goes out seeking the one sheep who had wandered away, then to a woman who searches a house for a valuable coin that had been lost, and finally to a father who rejoices at the return of a lost child.
It is for this reason that Jesus came into the world. He says over every new disciple, "Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.”