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.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” John 1:45-46
Like most of us, Nathanael was skeptical of Jesus at one point in his life. He had a certain perspective of Jesus and he was not impressed. We too are likely familiar with skepticism. We have wondered, is God real? Is Jesus really God? Is He worth following? Is His word trustworthy?
Philip offers such a simple and profound answer to Philip’s skepticism: “come and see”. In this case, he doesn’t try to reason with or debate Nathanael, he simply invites him to come and see Jesus for himself.
Nathanael took Philip up on his suggestion to come to Jesus. Just a few short verses later Nathaniel meets Jesus and exclaims, “Rabi, You are the Son of God! You Are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” (John 1:49-50). Nathanael begins underwhelmed and becomes overwhelmed by who Jesus is. It is a 180-degree transformation that results from the simple invitation of “come and see” followed by an encounter with Jesus Christ.
Sometimes we may feel inadequate to tell others about Jesus. We might feel like we aren’t good enough, don’t know enough, or aren’t confident enough. Yet like Philip, sometimes all we need to say to a friend is “come and see” and let Jesus do the rest. A simple invitation to explore faith in Jesus is all it takes sometimes. And ultimately, what people need is not our arguments, debates, or experience, but to connect with the Savior Himself. Maybe you have a friend, co-worker, or a family member that is skeptical of Jesus. Pray that they would have the courage and open-mindedness to ‘come and see’ Jesus for themself. Perhaps God will use you to extend the invitation.
Maybe, just like Nathanael, you find yourself skeptical of Jesus. If so, why not take up the invitation to ‘come and see’? Call out to Jesus in prayer, come to church, and explore His life and teachings in the Bible. He still produces the same type of perspective changing transformation that we see in Nathanael’s life. We just need to come and see.