- June 6, 2010

“Where Are You From?” (John 1:35-51)

Dr. Dan Ivins, preaching

Next to the ol’ “How many members do ya’ll have” question, running a close 2nd is: “Where do you come from?” Much has been made of Tennessee’s former football coach being from So. Calif. A loooonng way from East Tennessee. But the new coach Derek Dooley is a Georgia boy, and understands the “ways of the mountains.” And also his players. He said at a recent gathering of the “Big Orange Caravan” making its way around the state. “When you’re 17-21 I don’t care where you came from. You have a big hole in your head and you do dumb things!” His emphasis is rightly on character as well as talent. But where somebody comes from is one of our favorite ways of pidgeonholing them. Of course there are exceptions, but generally speaking. Southerners are rednecks, yankees are elitists, midwesterners are conservative, the West coast folks are liberals; and the Beach Boys sing, “I wish they all could be California girls!”

Next in rank to “where somebody came from,” is dialect or what you sound like when you (to-walk). This one is really wild in today’s multiculture. But it’s another way to categorize each other. Visitors here have an initial shock when they hear the preacher speak. When it comes to accents, it allows you to “put on airs.” But there’s something to be said for being natural. I’m proud of my southern heritage, but I’ve lived all over the U.S. and never lost my dialect. Everywhere I go around here in New England it’s a conversation opener. People try to guess “where I’m from,” and usually put me from Texas someplace. Then I get to tell ‘em “There wouldn’t even BE a Texas if it weren’t for Tennessee!” And that leads to an argument on history and immigration!

I expect our founder had a broad British accent, but I doubt anybody asked Roger Williams “Where are you from?” Does it matter? For political superiority, people are castigated as “birthers” because they wonder where our President is from. Is it Kenya, Indonesia, Hawaii, Chicago? But that only matters for Constitutional purposes. Derek Jeter is from Michigan, but he’s a big hit in New York. Peyton Manning hails from Louisiana, but he’s darn near worshiped in Tennessee. Pat Summit is from Tennessee and she is worshiped, if what we mean by that is awesome respect. We have a couple of gals in our church who speak “the King’s English.” We claim Edgar Thyret as our favorite Canadian, but so what? Performance trumps geography, always. That we become responsible contributors, no matter where we are, matters more than “where we’re from.” Heck, my Libby is from a little speck of a town called “Calhoun,” but wherever we’ve lived, nobody cared about where she came from, because what she is speaks for itself.

Our Lord had to deal with the “Where are you from” bias. When Philip was excited about having seen the messiah, Nathaniel poured water on his enthusiasm with his skeptical question. When he discovered Jesus was a Nazarene, Nathaniel, one in whom there was “no guile,” but there sure was regional prejudice, uttered this put-down of Jesus’ roots: “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” (John 1:46). Nate’s preconceived assumption wouldn’t allow him to ask “what’s he like Philip?” He just wrote Jesus off because of where he’s from. It really is unfair, especially before we give somebody a chance to prove they’re more than where they’re from.

How cautiously should we guard against popular prejudice? When it had once possessed so candid a heart as Nathaniel’s, it led him to suspect Jesus himself was an impostor, because he’s from the hill country. But his integrity prevailed over his foolish intolerance, because it laid him open to the force of evidence, which a sincere inquirer will always be glad to admit -- even when it brings unexpected discoveries.

Can any eminent prophet from Nazareth? Philip just did his job. There was no rebuttal and invited his friend on a journey. “Come and see;” the same answer which he received himself from our Lord the day before. It is a favorite phrase of the Gospel of John, occurring frequently. “Come and see” are such gracious words of invitation, that serve as a noble remedy against prejudiced opinions. Philip didn’t try to fix Nathaniel’s narrow mindedness. He just showed him how to rise above it.

In a world like ours, where suspicion of others is epidemic, we must beware of prejudices against places, or denominations of men. Like Philip, we should allow them to examine for themselves, and they will sometimes find good where they looked for none. And may God give us more like Philip. Which is why I thank God for our congregation at First Baptist. Our invitation is simple: “Come and see for yourself.” It’s almost like daring you to try it. But you have to be careful, because this place will make a believer out of you! “Come and see” what these people are like, who serve a God who meets us in unexpected people, and finds us in unexpected places.

I love this piece of scripture, because everybody is represented in it. You can find who you are, who you wanna be, or even who you wish you weren’t right here. There’s Jesus’ gracious invitation to “come and see for yourself.” Then we have Philip, the Bible’s foremost expert on church growth. But there’s also crabby ol’ Nathaniel. Or could it be “having-been burned-one-time-too-many, Nathaniel?” He’s the first century counter-part to today’s “birthers!”

Maybe you hesitate to see yourself in Nathaniel. But I see some of him in me, and in a whole lot of others who won’t admit it. We can all learn something from him, because we never rise above our “tribalism.” Like folks from Missouri, the “show-me” state, Nathaniel is the typical cynic. He serves as John’s Gospel parallel to “Doubting Thomas,” who declared, “I won’t believe unless I see it for myself!” Nathaniel’s arrogance comes out in his question: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” It was every-bit a put-down. “That little one horse town? Nothing but uneducated-hicks live there. How can our glorious Messiah be from a place like Nazareth?”

And today this gets said in a myriad of ways. If you don’t like something, just yell “racism!” “How can anything good come from ....Arizona, or Yankee Stadium, or Alaska?” How can anything good come from -- wherever I’m NOT? Wherever people hold views counter to mine? Believe it or not there are people who say that about the church? “How can anything good come from that church? It’s nothing but a museum! Besides, all the church is interested in is money.” To this post-modern age, church is irrelevant at best, hypocritical at worst. But we try...

If we can see our own prejudices in this interaction; if we can take anything from it, it’s how Philip, who just started following Jesus moments ago, handles Nathaniel’s objection. “I can’t see how anything good can come out of Nazareth?” So there must not BE anything good! Anybody whose familiar with the scriptures might argue the prophets said the Messiah shall come from Nazareth. But Philip didn’t pull that one on him; beat him over the head with a Bible. We’d expect a new convert, and all the enthusiasm that goes with it, to react defensively, “How dare you question the credentials of the Messiah?” But Philip didn’t do that either. Philip’s Mr. Easy.

We’ve seen the “talking heads” try to turn it around on their guests, “Well what the heck do YOU know?” But Philip didn’t do that. There are those who just give-up when they’re around bigoted individuals. Not Philip. He just encouraged Nathaniel to “Come and see.” No pressure. No promises. Just a gracious invitation and left it up to Nathaniel to decide. That is what I call an effective witness. He wasn’t so up-tight about somebody’s prejudice that he resorted to “name-calling.”

“Come and see” are words we use when we have something very important to share with someone. They can’t really know, believe, or experience something until they come and see for themselves. Some things can’t be described in words, they have to be experienced. Like going on a “blind date.” Well what does she look like? Oh you’re gonna love her! But you have to see her first to determine if that’s true or just a hook, to get you to go.

There had been another “come and see” moment just a few verses before. A day earlier, Andrew and another follower of John, left the Baptizer to follow Jesus. Jesus asked them what they were looking for, and when they inquired where Jesus was staying, he responded with the exact same invitation: “Come and see.” (John 1:39) They didn’t wanta know where Jesus was from, but where he lived. If you can see where people live, you get to know them.

Later, when Jesus meets the Samaritan woman at the well, after that life-changing encounter she went back to town and told everybody, “Come and see” ... this guy who told me everything I ever did” (John. 4:29). And not only in John’s Gospel. After the crucifixion in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus’ body has been laid in the tomb. Early on Sunday morning the women came to the tomb, only to find it empty. Jesus isn’t there. The stone has been rolled away. Matthew has an angel is sitting on the stone that had once sealed the tomb saying, “He’s not here. “Come and see” the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead’’ (Matt. 28:6-7). “Come and see …… go and tell.”

That’s still the mission of the church; and it’s how the first disciples were made. Advertising will get you only so far. Not as many will respond to a “general invitation” in a newspaper ad or on TV, as we will to an invitation from a friend, a neighbor, a classmate, a co-worker –– someone we know and trust. Nothing beats the power of personal invitation because Christianity is a personal faith. So Philip gave a personal invitation to Nathaniel and he doesn’t immediately sign-up as a follower. He can’t just take Philip’s word for it. He’s from Cana up in the Galilee. Cana and Nazareth were just a few miles apart. He can’t believe that someone as important as the Messiah could come from a little “jerkwater” town like Nazareth.

Just give me a chance for us to get to know each other. That’s all Jesus asks for from any of us: that we “come and check him out” for ourselves who he is. Come and see if you have more peace, more joy, more love. Come and see if you have less worry, less anger, less guilt. Come and see if your life takes on a sense of meaning and purpose. Come and see if life is better with Jesus or without him.

That gracious invitation was all it took to turn an agnostic into a believer. To Nathanael he said, “You believe because I saw you under a fig tree. But you will see greater things than that. I tell you the truth, you’ll see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man." Nathaniel is so impressed that Jesus seems to already know him that immediately he confesses him as the Son of God, like Thomas in the Upper Room. And Jesus said, if you’re impressed with that invitation to “come and see” -- just you wait -- you haven’t seen anything yet!

Providence Prayers: (6-6-2010)

God of Andrew, brother of St. Peter, disciple of John, who was so hungry for truth that he turned from the Baptist to follow the unknown Jesus, hear our prayer. Thy gracious invitations are clear but not overly directive, leaving us room to respond as we will. Grant us the courage to follow Thy light, in matters not worked-out ahead of time. Grant us the grace to be open to the future and that following Christ is the best we can do in this world.

We invite Thy healing presence to “come and see” all who live in the prison of limited loyalties, who have a hard time seeing beyond their narrow experience. “Come and see” those who have misplaced their trust in things that seem to please them, but end up hurt them somehow. “Come and see” all who are enslaved to lesser things that are unworthy of our allegiance.

Come, O Lord, to where each of us is staying, “come and see” our homes and our hearts and make Thy gracious presence felt among us, driving away all that distorts our ability to see reality. As we make our own journeys into tomorrow, remind us that we too have “found the Messiah.”

Jesus invited his initial followers to develop a durable faith that dares to doubt, a sustaining faith that seeks to serve, and a bountiful faith that dares to believe, not prove, so that our companionship with Christ and with one another will be primary resources of our own good and growing faith. Let it mean something to us, so that our lips utter no desire that does not proceed from a committed heart; let our mouths express no thought that does not spring from a faithful spirit, and let our actions take no path that does not follow the uphill steps of the risen Lord. Amen.