Verse of the Day 5/19

John 1:48 (NIV) "How do you know me?" Nathanael asked.

Jesus answered, "I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you."

 

Yesterday we considered Ephesians 5:18 and praying to be filled with the Spirit.  Such a prayer comes from the heart of one who is willing to spend the time seeking to know, seeking to serve Him.

 

The words that jump out of this verse for me this morning are "I saw you".  It was a supernatural "seeing", not physically being in Nathanael's presence.  Most scholars believe that he was studying the scriptures under the shade of that tree.

Jesus' words startled him.  John MacArthur writes, "He was shocked when Jesus described him as "an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile because they had never met before.  He was equally shocked when Jesus said he saw him under a fig tree because Jesus was nowhere near that tree.  Nathanael realized that Jesus was omniscient - He knew everything.  That's why he exclaimed, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.  He found the Messiah for whom he had searched so long."

 

Chances are as you are reading this that you have already spent some time in God's Word and in prayer this morning.  It may be at your kitchen table, your favorite chair in the living room, or sitting under the shade of a tree.  Wherever it is know this.  Jesus sees you.  As you spend time in His Word and prayer He will speak to you and guide you.  If your heart sings out like Nathanael's "You are the Son of God, You are the King!" it will be filled and that living water that we've considered the past few days will flow through you.

 

Psalm 53:2 (ESV) God looks down from heaven on the children of man to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.

 

In Christ,
Mike

 

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Eph 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace  NIV

John 1:44-49 The Message (MSG)

 ^43-44The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. When he got there, he ran across Philip and said, "Come, follow me." (Philip's hometown was Bethsaida, the same as Andrew and Peter.)

 ^45-46Philip went and found Nathanael and told him, "We've found the One Moses wrote of in the Law, the One preached by the prophets. It's Jesus, Joseph's son, the one from Nazareth!" Nathanael said, "Nazareth? You've got to be kidding."

   But Philip said, "Come, see for yourself."

 ⁴⁷When Jesus saw him coming he said, "There's a real Israelite, not a false bone in his body."

 ⁴⁸Nathanael said, "Where did you get that idea? You don't know me."

   Jesus answered, "One day, long before Philip called you here, I saw you under the fig tree."

 ⁴⁹Nathanael exclaimed, "Rabbi! You are the Son of God, the King of Israel!"