Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see." --John 1:46
When Nathanael doubted that anything good could come out of Nazareth, Philip's response was simply, "Come and see."
Nathanael's question remains: "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Have two thousand years of Christianity changed this world? Is the life of the young Nazarene carpenter really worth considering?
The question still lingers.
And the answer of Philip still suffices. Come and see.
Come and see the rock that has withstood the winds of time. Hear His voice. The truth undaunted, grace unspotted, loyalty undeterred.
Come and see the flame that tyrants and despots have not extinguished.
Come and see the passion that oppression has not squelched.
Come and see the hospitals and orphanages rising beside the crumbling ruins of humanism and atheism.
Come and see what Christ has done.
Come and see the great drama threading through the twenty centuries of history and art.
Handel weeping as he composed The Messiah.
Da Vinci sighing as he portrays the Last Supper.
Michaelangelo stepping back from the rock-carved David and bidding the stone to speak.
Can anything good come out of Nazareth? Come and see.
See Wilberforce fighting to free slaves in England -because he believed.
See Washington at prayer in Valley Forge -because he believed.
See Lincoln alone with a dog-eared Bible -because he believed.
Can anything good come out of Nazareth? Come and see. Come and see the changed lives:
the alcoholic now dry,
the embittered now joyful,
the shamed now forgiven.
Come and see the marriages now rebuilt, the orphans now embraced, the imprisoned now inspired.
Journey into the jungles and hear the drums beating in praise.
Sneak into the corners of communism and find believers worshiping under threat of death.
Walk on death row and witness the prisoner condemned by man yet liberated by God.
Venture into the gulags and dungeons of the world and hear the songs of the saved refusing to be silent.
Can anything good come out of Nazareth?
Come and see the pierced hand of God touch the most common heart, wipe the tear from the wrinkled face, and forgive the ugliest sin.
Come and see.
Come and see the tomb. The tomb once occupied, now vacant; the grave once sealed, now empty. Cynics have raised their theories, doubters have raised their questions. But their musings continue to melt in the bright light of Easter morning.
Come and see. He avoids no seeker. He ignores no probe. He fears no search.
Come and see.
Nathanael came. And Nathanael saw.
And Nathanael discovered, "Teacher, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel."
Max Lucado, "A Gentle Thunder"
Methinks thats a really good thought to begin a new year on.
