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What's it Like to Become a Disciple - Part 2

Last time, we looked at what it's like to become a disciple and we saw how Philip reacted after his encounter with Jesus.  Here's the story again from John 1:43-51 for you.

One day Jesus decided to go to Galilee.  He found Philip there and said to him, "Follow me."  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."
Nathanael:  "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"
Philip:  "Come and see."
Jesus saw Nathanael coming and said to him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!"
Nathanael:  "How do you know me?"
Jesus:  "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."
Nathanael:  "Rabbi, you are the Son of God!  You are the King of Israel!"
Jesus:  "Because I said to you, I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe?  You will see greater things than these.  Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."

- When Nathanael first hears of Jesus, he doesn't buy in as quickly as Philip did.  He even questions if anything good can come out of Nazareth.  I think this is a lesson for us that we don't have to believe everything we hear, or that our friends tell us.  And that asking good, honest questions can be very productive as we'll see coming up.

- Philip's response to Nathanael is so simple, yet so powerful.  He doesn't argue with his friend, or try to persuade him based on his views, he simple tells Nathanael to "Come and see."  Shouldn't that be how we draw others to Christ?  Just tell them who He is and to come see Him.  It's not up to us to persuade them or hit them with a barrage of points to see who God is.  People experience His presence much more when they come to Him themselves.

- And notice here that Philip didn't wait until he had been in church for a certain amount of time, or knew everything there was to know about the Lord, he was eager and willing to share what he did know with his friend.  If you told a friend, co-worker, family member, or even a stranger about Christ, and they asked, "Who is Jesus?" how would you respond?

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