CONFESSORS OF THE SON OF GOD (4)
[p. 361] CONFESSORS OF THE SON OF GOD (4)
JT Some further remarks as to John the baptist are needed to complete our subject as seen in him. In chapter 3:26-28 we read, “They came to John and said to him, Rabbi, he who was with thee beyond the Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, he baptises, and all come to him. John answered and said, A man can receive nothing unless it be given him out of heaven. Ye yourselves bear me witness that I said, I am not the Christ, but, that I am sent before him”. John had changed his place of service, being now at Aenon, but the Lord, as rejected by the Jews, in chapter 10:39-42, went back to the place where John baptised at first. “They sought therefore again to take him; and he went away from out of their hand and departed again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptized at the first; and he abode there. And many came to him, and said, John did no sign; but all things which John said of this man were true. And many believed on him there”. The Lord seems to have ignored Aenon in going to the place where John had been baptising at first, and the truth comes out clearly; “John did no sign, but all things which John said of this man were true”. What is said in John 3:25,26 suggests deterioration in the Baptist’s disciples, but chapter 10 shows that his position is perfectly clear. He was a true witness, “And many believed ... there”. It is to show that, in our day, when there is decline in public service, as we return to first principles the testimony becomes clear, and persons believing are of quality; many believed on him there.
RWS So that nothing is really lost.
JT John’s position is clear. In the end of chapter 3, he renders a most striking testimony to Christ. “He must increase, but I must decrease. He who comes [p. 362] from above is above all. He who has his origin in the earth is of the earth, and speaks as of the earth. He who comes out of heaven is above all, and what he has seen and has heard, this he testifies; and no one receives his testimony. He that has received his testimony has set to his seal that God is true; for he whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives not the Spirit by measure” (verses 30-34). John there is on the platform of christianity, and sees the Spirit given without measure. He had seen the Spirit coming on Christ in the form of a dove: it was the Spirit, not in part, but wholly. It was by this sign that he was to apprehend the Lord’s Person (chapter 1:33).
ANW Verses 35 and 36 of John 3 would be said by John the evangelist himself.
JT I think so. The verses state what is infinitely suitable at this point. They present the blessed economy into which the divine Persons have come in this wonderful dispensation.
RWS In spite of deterioration in John’s disciples, when Paul came to Ephesus there were some there who had been affected by John’s words, even though a long time had elapsed (Acts 19).
JT John’s baptism continued, but it became a source of weakness, I think. These men believed in the baptism of John, but then they did not have the Holy Spirit. How can we get on in christianity without the Holy Spirit? One great feature of John’s ministry was that there is One who baptises with the Holy Spirit. John saw the Spirit come on Jesus, and he had been divinely told beforehand that the One on whom the Spirit descended and abode is the One who baptises with the Holy Spirit. Thus the men at Ephesus were defective even as to John’s testimony.
WGT The baptism with the Holy Spirit seems to be loosely allied with the Spirit descending upon Christ as a dove, “he it is who baptises with the Holy Spirit”.
JT The Spirit came upon Him in Its own distinctiveness, but seen as a dove. The baptism of believers is not by the Spirit seen as a dove, but according to Acts 2 there appeared cloven tongues of fire, and the Spirit sat on each of them; there is fire connected with it. The twelve men at Ephesus had not gone the whole length of John’s baptism, because John spoke of One who would not only take away the sin of the world, but who baptises with the Holy Spirit. There is no christianity without the Holy Spirit, and in full measure. The Spirit is given without measure, He is here. No one should be without Him. If one is a follower of John, he should go that length.
AR The Holy Spirit is received in view of our being merged into the body of Christ.
JT That would be the thing nearest the heart of Christ — the bride. John was the friend of the Bridegroom; his ministry was not to secure her for Christ, but he certainly would not come short in entering into the Lord’s desire as to the bride. Paul took this up, and he had it in mind when speaking to the twelve men, in that very place where the truth of the assembly in a special way was to be developed — Ephesus. Paul asked them, “Did ye receive the Holy Spirit when ye had believed?” (Acts 19:2) That was a needed question. The possession of the Spirit is absolutely essential to the truth of christianity and of the assembly.
JH Did John’s baptism have something to do with the quality of the work there at Ephesus?
JT I should say so. John’s baptism bore in the right direction. The men were good material, as not sectarian, and they were ready for the whole truth, and came into it as presented to them by Paul. They became part of the assembly, the bride of Christ. Apollos did not seem to miss the Holy Spirit. He was able to speak in great power to the Jews, but there was something in what he was saying that was not just accurate. Aquila and Priscilla saw that. There is no question raised as [p. 364] to Apollos having the Holy Spirit, because he represents an independent work of God, not simply John’s ministry. It was a work in which Paul had no part, and yet Apollos was a great contribution to the ministry. John’s baptism certainly worked well there, but, as remarked, Apollos had gone further.
Now what is to be observed in regard of Nathanael in John 1, is that in this section the Lord introduces the request, “Come and see”. He says first, “What seek ye?” and they say, “Rabbi, where abidest thou?” He says, “Come and see”. Later when Nathanael says, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth, Philip says to him, Come and see”. This feature in John raises the question, from a practical point of view, as to what there is in each of us to see, and in the localities in which we are. It is what is to be seen that leads to this confession of Nathanael.
AEH What you have been saying implies a sort of environment into which Nathanael and Martha come. It is very apparent if we look at the world as it is, that we must have a new world in the Son of God, involving an environment provided for us.
JT Yes. The new world is in the baptism of the Holy Spirit and in Jesus walking still sacrificially. His sacrificial service is now considered. “Again, on the morrow, there stood John and two of his disciples. And, looking at Jesus as he walked, he says, Behold the Lamb of God” (verses 35,36). The Lord has the assembly in mind, and He is walking without saying where He is going, but He is very attractive. The two disciples heard John speak of Him evidently with admiration.
AR We are able to understand a brother’s ministry more readily if he admires Christ.
JT It comes out in the way he speaks of the Lord. John must have been full when he said, “Behold the Lamb of God. And the two disciples heard him speaking, and followed Jesus”. A new world had opened up, and the Person who is the centre of it is very attractive.
[p. 365] The person who calls attention to Him is not following; he is standing in his own position, not intended for christianity. The Lord is walking; John is standing; and these two disciples move, and they say to the Lord, “Rabbi”, and the Spirit of God says, that means teacher. It is not merely a term of respect, it means teacher. It means that in this new world we need to be taught. Christians generally are suffering from want of teaching.
WGT These persons followed the Lord instinctively. They were not told by the Lord to follow Him.
JT The word of John directed them to Him and they moved toward Him. The gathering of the assembly is indicated in what immediately follows; and then the gathering of the Jewish remnant in the section we read; but the same principle governs: it is not only that Christ is attractive, but He has people directing others to Him.
SMcC As to those forming the assembly is not the Lord’s attitude testing? “Jesus looking at him” — the word literally meaning “looking carefully”.
JT It is searching, because He looks at each of us. I suppose He would look at Peter affectionately. Peter alludes to this later, using the word for objective knowledge in John 21:17, thus indicating that there was something in him manifestly that showed he loved the Lord. Here the Lord names him as looking carefully at him. “Thou shalt be called Cephas”. He does not call him that, but says, “Thou shalt be called”. It is prophetic, but evidently based on what the Lord saw. The stone or stable character would be fully seen later.
CHH These circumstances and persons in John 1 serve to bring out the various glories of Christ. There are thirteen titles of Christ in this chapter. I wondered if these would form a basis for developments in the subsequent part of John.
JT They do. There is no chapter so rich in titles of Christ as John 1. The Lord is seen working by the [p. 366] day, and we may say the greatest result of this day was Cephas. The first two were directed to Him by John’s word; Andrew finds Simon and led him to Jesus, and the Lord names him Cephas, meaning that the assembly is in His mind.
CAM Do the results of the Lord’s movements here go on to chapter 11, and after that you have an objective reached?
JT Chapter 12 is the result. The “sons of light” are in mind throughout the book. “While ye have the light, believe in the light, that ye may become sons of light” (John 12:36). That finishes one section of the book. The allusion would be to the stars, and in the beginning of chapter 12 we have in Bethany a constellation; from there we go on to chapter 20, which is the full heavenly position. Bethany does not go on to the heavenly side, it is what is effected down here in the way of light. It was a practical testimony in Israel. This paragraph in John 1, verses 35-42, brings out Cephas, implying that the assembly is in the Lord’s mind, as I said. The invitation, “Come and see”, enters into it.
Then again in verse 43, we have, “On the morrow he would go forth into Galilee, and Jesus finds Philip, and says to him, Follow me”. The Lord finds him, and Philip finds Nathanael, so that movement is on. Firstly, gathering for the assembly; secondly, the Jewish position in Nathanael.
FC There are two sections to the first day, “On the morrow” (verse 29), and “again, on the morrow” (verse 35). On the second day and the third day, there is only one incident recorded on each.
JT “Again, on the morrow” (verse 35), would link John the baptist sympathetically with the new thing, the assembly, which is also seen at the end of chapter 3, to which we have referred. Verses 35-42 are very full. You can understand how much glory enters into the assembly position; the time being lengthened out for [p. 367] 1900 years. As to the days here, they run on to “the third day” (chapter 2:1). The first, the assembly — Cephas; the second, Israel seen in the Jewish remnant; the third, the millennium. The record from verse 35 to verse 42 is regarded as a second part of the first day. John in a sense had a day of his own, but it entered into Christ’s day. Verse 35 seems to begin the three days viewed in relation to testimony and gathering. Verses 29 to 34 are preliminary and foundational to all this, hence the record is separate.
JB In Luke’s gospel, he appeared to Simon (chapter 24:34), but Paul says He appeared to Cephas (1 Corinthians 15:5).
JT Luke in that instance has reference to grace; Peter had recently denied the Lord. Paul is not thinking of that in referring to Cephas; he is not referring to grace, it is simply the number of appearings. The fact that He appeared to Cephas, meaning stone, in Paul’s mind, would mean that the Lord was thinking of the assembly.
Now we must go on to Nathanael; he is our subject. Philip finds him and says to him, “We have found him of whom Moses wrote in the law, and the prophets, Jesus, the son of Joseph, who is from Nazareth”. Who are the “we”? Nathanael does not enquire; he is not yet interested enough to do so. He says, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” He was a neighbour, he must have had some local feeling about Nazareth; Cana of Galilee was not far away.
WGT Philip linked on with the others the Lord had already secured, in using the plural pronoun, “we”.
JT No doubt. He says, “We have found him”. The Lord found him; he must have turned the matter around and said, It is wonderful, the Lord found me, but I have found Him.
SWP Have we to find Him, before we can find a [p. 368] brother?
JT I think so. If you do not find the Lord first, what have you to call attention to? That is the point, “Come and see” — what have I in myself, in my house, in the meeting I attend? That is how the truth works out.
WR How do you account for the qualities already in Nathanael; qualities such as were found in the Lord Jesus Himself? “Behold one truly an Israelite, in whom there is no guile”.
JT The Lord does not say that until He sees him coming to Him. He says later, “Before ... when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee”. There was no movement then, but now there is movement toward Christ; that attests the work, and gives distinction. As moving spiritually, one is divinely designated.
RWS In our own case, does it work out as informally as this? Does it involve inviting persons to the reading meetings or the preachings?
JT Well, quite: All that is a test for us. What is there to see in oneself, in one’s family, or in the local meeting?
RWS Sometimes we hesitate to invite strangers when a certain brother preaches. The incentive to ask your neighbours and friends is when there is a good preacher.
JT It is not only the preacher, but the people there listening — the saints of the place; whatever results there may be present of the work of God. Philip’s use of the word found is to be noted: “We have found”, he said; whereas, really, the Lord found him; but he is using the word found from his own side, which means that he had found something in Christ worth looking at.
CAM Every true Israelite is looking for something of Christ.
JT God had been working with him; although he was but little exercised at first, the germ of the thing was there. The Lord had seen him before Philip [p. 369] called him.
CAM It almost looks as if he had been reading Psalm 2.
JT It is evident that he had read it.
AR Coming to a meeting like this, it is not only what you hear, but what you see in the faces of those present.
JT If the Lord has His place, you see something of profound interest — the results of the work of God.
AR That helps you to understand what you hear.
Rem Nathanael does not respond to what Philip said at first: “Of whom Moses wrote in the law, and the prophets”; but later he says, “Thou art the Son of God, thou art the King of Israel”.
JT The Lord had spoken to him in the meantime. “Nathanael says to him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said to him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee. Nathanael answered and said to him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God, thou art the King of Israel”. On what is he basing his remarks? That the Lord saw him when he was under the fig tree, before Philip called him. What went on in his mind? We have to search that out. What was in his mind when he said to the Lord, “Thou art the Son of God”; it was not very much for the Lord to say, “When thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee”. Did He see him in the distance, or only as a divine Person could see him? Why was he so affected by the Lord seeing him before? Did it imply his inward power of contemplation and thought? Is it not a great matter to be able to take in things and look over them quickly, deducing something from them? Take the present moment, several are speaking in this meeting, something comes into my soul. I come to a conclusion at once; that is, if I am spiritually energetic; and God helps me to lay hold of the truth that is coming out. I do not take a long time to understand [p. 370] a point.
WGT The spiritual would therefore be greater than the historical. Nathanael’s impressions as hearing Christ speak to him were more spiritual than those formed by Philip’s historical references.
JT The Spirit of God is bringing before us his remarkable formation. He could come to a conclusion quickly, and convey what he had arrived at quickly: “Thou art the Son of God, thou art the King of Israel”. Whether he had just read Psalm 2, or some time since, we do not know; perhaps he had read it many times, and was waiting for the Person of whom the Spirit of God spoke; this is to be considered. It is a wonderful psalm, it speaks of personal, rather than moral qualities. “Thou art my Son; I this day have begotten thee: ... Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish in the way, though his anger burn but a little. Blessed are all who have their trust in him” (verses 7,12). The Lord says, “Thou shalt see greater things than these”. “Verily, verily, I say to you, Henceforth ye shall see the heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of man.” It is the first time you get this great characteristic of John, “Verily, verily”. This man is to be assured that these things are so, and there are great things to follow. Our minds are very small, our motives are small. One knows that in oneself, whereas, as having the Spirit, we should be equal for great things. Christians at the outset were speaking “the great things of God” (Acts 2:11).
AR The ye includes not only Nathanael, but others.
JT Yes; he is associated with others now. Philip had said we, now the Lord says ye, as if Nathanael is not to be alone any more. Every lover of Christ does not want to be alone, but sees things with the brethren, he wishes to be with the brethren; that enters into these meetings. We get more in the meetings than in our own private rooms.
JRH Merging with the brethren, Nathanael [p. 371] is thus out of sight.
JT Christianity is a great collective idea.
SWP Why does the Lord speak about the heaven opened. “Henceforth ye shall see the heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of man.”
JT He refers to Genesis 28. It is not Jacob now, it is the Son of man and the angels of God ascending and descending on Him. It is now a great Person and “greater things”.
AR He is the centre really, it is the universal matter.
JT Think of the connection here and compare with Genesis 28! God stood above in the heavens, the ladder reaching thither. The angels were ascending and descending on a ladder in Genesis; now they are ascending and descending on the Son of man. The angels began with Him.
RWS Nathanael in his reference to the Lord Jesus had distinctive features of the Son of God in his mind.
JT The rapidity with which the truth comes into his mind is to be noticed. We are living in strenuous times, how many of us have much time to meditate? Many of us have to learn the great things of God standing up in a crowded underground train. You marvel at some men whose spiritual education and service were great. Take Moses, writing books and governing Israel, sitting all day answering questions! Think of David, a great king, subduer of many nations, who wrote many psalms! Solomon, another great king, ruled an empire, built the temple and many other great structures; he spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs were a thousand and five. And he spoke of all trees, cattle also, fowls, creeping things and fishes. And there came of all peoples of the earth to hear his wisdom. In the light of these great lives, of men of like passions as ourselves, we have no reason [p. 372] to complain of the work we may have to do.
ANW The Lord remarks on Nathanael’s belief: “Because I said to thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou?” His confession was the result of belief.
JT That is the point. The Spirit of God in John’s gospel lays great emphasis on faith, that is, on those marked by it.
JHJr The matter of seeing is much emphasised here. The Lord says, “Thou shalt see greater things”.
JT Then the Lord widens out in His remarks to Nathanael and says, “ye shall see” — it is the plural now. “Henceforth ye shall see the heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of man”. That must enter into christianity as well as the future, as we are to understand it. We must not be too specific as to how this happens; manifestly it is Christ everything and in all. Stephen saw the heavens opened, and the epistle to the Hebrews shows the heavens are open to faith; we see Jesus there (chapter 2:9).