When Jesus saw Nathanael coming, he said, “Here is an Israelite worthy of the name: there is nothing false in him.” John 1:47, N.E.B.
Nathanael heard John as he pointed to the Saviour and said, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29)! Nathanael looked at Jesus, but he was disappointed in the appearance of the world’s Redeemer. Could He who bore the marks of toil and poverty be the Messiah? Jesus was a worker; He had toiled with humble workingmen, and Nathanael went away. But he did not form his opinion decidedly as to what the character of Jesus was. He knelt down under a fig tree, inquiring of God if indeed this man was the Messiah. While he was there, Philip came and said, “We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” But the word “Nazareth” again aroused his unbelief, and he said, “Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?” He was full of prejudice, but Philip did not seek to combat his prejudice; he simply said, “Come and see.” …
Would it not be well for us to go under the fig tree to plead with God as to what is truth? Would not the eye of God be upon us as it was upon Nathanael? Nathanael believed on the Lord, and exclaimed, “Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.”
His unbelief was swept away, and faith, firm, strong, and abiding, took possession of his soul. Jesus commended the trusting faith of Nathanael.
There are many in the same condition as was Nathanael. They are prejudiced and unbelieving because they have never come in contact with the special truths for these last days or with the people who hold them, and it will require but attendance upon a meeting full of the Spirit of Christ to sweep away their unbelief. No matter what we have to meet, what opposition, what effort to turn souls away from the truth of heavenly origin, we must give publicity to our faith, that honest souls may see and hear and be convinced for themselves. Our work is to say, as did Philip: “Come and see.” We hold no doctrine that we wish to hide.
Conflict and Courage p. 281
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Prayer Requests
—–Please keep my husband Stephen & myself in your thoughts and in your prayers. Valerie
——Prayers for my daughter. That she gets another job. For her safety from workplace violence For her peace of mind. There are very few Christians at her job. The majority of co-workers are self proclaimed witches who hold supervisor positions. It is very difficult for the Christians there. Ann
—– I’m asking for prayers for my son’s friend’s mom. She’s a young single mother of four. She’s been in the hospital for over a week. She’s been having seizures due to lupus. Please pray for her healing so that she may return home to her children. Also please pray for her children and family that they may have peace and comfort during this time. Sara
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Dear Friends,
When my three children were little, we moved about 2000 miles from North Carolina to Utah. Ron had always wanted to move out west, and when he got a job offer to be avionics manager at this large avionics shop in Salt Lake City, it seemed his moment of opportunity.
He took our white car and drove all those many miles leaving me to pack up everything and come about a month later. His idea was to find us a place to live and then fly back and help drive us that great distance. He knew I would need his help because I would be driving a moving truck and towing our other car. I would have our three children and our pets to care for as well. He knew it would be too much for me.
I, on the other hand, didn’t see why he had to take all that money to fly back to help me. I felt completely capable of doing it myself. We had moved many times before, and I knew what to do. I started packing all our belongings in boxes that I had gathered from local stores.
The first problem I encountered was one morning Esther Marie woke up with a high fever. I called the doctor and she said not to bother bringing her in. It was something that was going around and that it would last ten days. She was right. So I packed with one hand and cared for a very sick little girl with the other.
The week before it was time to leave, Ron called me and again asked if I was sure I did not want him to fly out and help me. He was worried. I assured him that I loved to drive and would have no problem at all.
Finally it was time to rent the big yellow moving truck. My brother-in-law, Dennis, helped me get used to driving it, but I was afraid to drive a stick-shift in the mountains that I knew I would have to cross. The very thought terrified me. Deep down inside I wished that Ron were there to help me, but I stubbornly refused to call him. Instead I called the rental company and got another truck. There were two problems. It was smaller and the only one available was about an hour’s drive away. Dennis took me.
Having this smaller truck caused problems. I had only a vague idea how to load a truck anyway, so Dennis again came to my rescue. But, try as he might, not everything would fit inside. He did the best he could, but still there were some things that had to be left behind.
The next morning the children, our pets, and I began our adventure. Ron called just before we left, but again I assured him that I could do this by myself. However, after several hundred miles of driving, I was not so confident. Our dog was in the towed vehicle and decided to lean on the steering wheel and bark at all the cars that went by. This caused the little Chevette to swing from side to side behind the truck. It made the whole thing very unstable. I had to slow down.
During the five day, thirteen hours a day, adventure we were stranded with truck trouble twice and had other mishaps too numerous to mention. By the time I was near Denver, I was completely exhausted. I determined to drive from 55 miles east of Denver to my destination, a little town about 50 miles south of Salt Lake City, in one day. That included crossing the mountains. I did it in 16 hours, but there were consequences. The last two hours, I was so tired that my eyes didn’t want to focus. I could barely read the road signs. This is not good in unfamiliar territory. I was sick for the next month with bronchitis. I was so exhausted that my body just could not fight the germs like it usually does. Many times on the trip and afterward, I wished that I had let Ron come out and help me, but it was too late.
Just as I was too stubborn and self-reliant for my own good when I needed to move such a long distance, so we often do the same in our spiritual lives. Too often we rely upon self, upon our own goodness that we think we have. But in reality what good that is in us, is really from the Holy Spirit working upon our heart. Of ourselves we are as Isaiah describes, “we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.” Isa 64:6 Jesus describes our condition as, “wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” Rev 3:17
How much we need a Saviour! How much we need to be changed into His image! How much we need His cleansing power! He pleads with us, “turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways, for why will ye die?” Eze 33:11 “I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich, and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear, and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.” Rev 3:18,19 “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Matt 11:28,29
David sang, “The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. He hath not dealt with us after our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.
Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame, he remembereth that we are dust. As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone, and the place thereof shall know it no more. But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children, To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.” Ps 103:8-18
Let us come to our Dear Saviour now. Let us kneel before our Maker. Let us ask for His forgiveness and cleansing that He so freely offers.
Rose
Under the Fig Tree