Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!

 The following day Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, "Follow Me."  Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.  Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote -- Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."  And Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"  Philip said to him, "Come and see."  Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!"  Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know me?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."  Nathanael answered and said to Him, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God!  You are the King of Israel!"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' do you believe?  You will see greater things than these."  And He said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."

- John 1:43-51

Yesterday, we read about the third day in the story of Jesus' ministry:  John stood with two of his disciples.  And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, "Behold, the Lamb of God!"  The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.  Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, "What do you seek?"  They said to Him, "Rabbi" (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), "where are You staying?"  He said to them, "Come and see."  They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour).  One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.  He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated, the Christ).  And he brought him to Jesus.  Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, "You are Simon the son of Jonah.  You shall be called Cephas" (which is translated, A Stone).

The following day Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, "Follow Me."  Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.  Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote -- Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."  And Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"  Philip said to him, "Come and see."  Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!"  No deceit, says my study bible, means both having a pure heart and being straightforward with others.   Nathanael's statement may be understood in various ways, but one aspect of the comment is the idea that the Messiah was not thought to come from Nazareth.  He cannot know that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, from which it was prophesied would come the Messiah.  One thing is clear:  Nathanael is no false flatterer.  In the Greek the word for deceit implies trickery akin to con artistry, using bait or decoy to trap another.  Several disciples had two names; Nathanael is also known as Bartholomew.

Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know me?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."  Nathanael answered and said to Him, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God!  You are the King of Israel!"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' do you believe?  You will see greater things than these."   The text doesn't tell us everything that happened under the fig tree.  My study bible cites St. Chrysostom as teaching that this was the meeting place of Philip and Nathanael, and that Jesus was praising Nathanael for being so diligent and careful in His search for the Messiah.  Christ's foreknowledge and His ability to see into Nathanael's heart bring him to this confession of faith.  It's yet another indication, among many in the Gospels, that Christ is the "heart-knower."  He seems to have recognized His disciple before His disciple even knew who He was.

 And He said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."  My study bible tells us that the title Son of Man is a title of the Messiah that had a level of mystery in its meaning.  It indicates a man of heavenly origin who would usher in the Kingdom of God (Daniel 7:13-14).  Jesus' words allude to the vision of Jacob, in which he dreamed of a ladder connecting earth to heaven, upon which the angels of God were ascending and descending (Genesis 28:12-15).  Jesus is understood as this "ladder," who unites earth to heaven.  He's therefore the Son of Man.   Both times the word you is used in this verse it's in the plural, indicating that Jesus addresses all the disciples.

Jesus begins His ministry by gathering His disciples.  It gives us a clue about the unfolding of the ministry that Jesus recognized Nathanael while he was under the fig tree, even before Philip called him.  In an earlier reading this week, we cited the passage in the book of the Prophet Samuel, when Samuel was told to find a new king after the rejection of Saul.  The Lord says to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."  For those to whom this Gospel would go, the Jesus as Son of Man is the Incarnation of the Lord of the Old Testament.  Here Jesus fulfills the words the Lord says about Himself.  He looks at the heart.  He thereby knew Nathanael even before Philip called him.  He knew His disciple.  This speaks to us about trust and faith.  Jesus knows in whom to put His own trust.  He knows the one capable of faith in Him.  With such understanding in mind, we are called to think again about Jesus' words to Nathanael:  "An Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit."  This is the sort of heart He looks for and recognizes, one capable of faith in the truth He offers, and more than faith.  That is, an endurance in the faith, what it takes to be a disciple.  Nathanael isn't skilled in flattery.  He clearly does nothing in order to impress Jesus!  And there is a little clue of something in common among the disciples we've read about so far.  In yesterday's reading, two disciples of John the Baptist (presumably Andrew and the author of this Gospel) hear him speaking about Jesus as the Lamb of God.  They ask Jesus, "Where are You staying?"  Jesus invites them to "Come and see."  In today's reading, after Nathanael asks, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip invites him to "Come and see."  To come and see also teaches us about discipleship, because it indicates an experiential faith.  Our faith includes beautiful and extraordinary concepts, but it's not based merely in "concepts" and "ideas."  It's based in the realities of the kingdom of heaven.  It's based in the experience of faith, of love, of truth.  This comes from walking the path of discipleship, from our own choice to "come and see."  These disciples will live with Christ and come to know Him.  This is the one way of our discipleship to come to be like Him.  It is a Person-to-person relationship with the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  It is a heart-to-Heart relationship, with our Father who is in the secret place and who sees in secret.  For this, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no guile, is the perfect choice.  We remember that the word Israel was the name given to Jacob (who dreamed about the ladder) and means one who struggles with God (Genesis 32:22-32).  Christ needs those who are not standoffish nor separated by false fronts and flattery, but those who will meet Him with the whole heart, nothing held back, even those things we need to bring to His light for our own correction.  This is real discipleship, and it's worked out day to day and minute by minute in a relationship that calls on the depths within us.  Today's reading gives us the fourth day in Jesus' ministry, corresponding to the fourth day of creation in Genesis.  Jesus is revealed to Nathanael and Philip as the true Light, says my study bible; that is, He is the One who was revealed in the Old Testament, a lesser light.  It parallels the establishment of the lesser and greater lights governing the night and the day respectively on the fourth day in Genesis 1:14-19.