Hello saints,
Today, let’s look at another apostle of interest, Philip.
and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot;
— Mark 3:18
Mark introduces us to Philip, a disciple of Jesus. Unlike Andrew, Philip was present at some significant moments in the New Testament.
We first encounter Philip and Bartholomew in the Gospel of John:
Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.
— John 1:44
John tells us that Philip was from the same city as Andrew and Peter. Later, we learn that Philip must have been close to Bartholomew (also known as Nathanael), because just as Andrew went to tell his brother Simon Peter about Jesus, Philip went to tell Bartholomew.
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.”
— John 1:45
Unlike Andrew’s brief introduction, Philip gives a detailed description of who Jesus is. Philip had extensive knowledge of the Messiah, likely because the Jews were taught in the synagogue about the prophesied Messiah. While the Pharisees were blind to Jesus’ true identity, Philip had absolute certainty that Jesus was the Messiah.
When introducing Jesus to Bartholomew (Nathanael), Philip referenced the Old Testament, from the Pentateuch of Moses to the prophetic books, identifying Jesus by His hometown and as the son of Joseph, the carpenter. This detailed introduction shows Philip’s excitement and hope, revealing his deep understanding of Old Testament prophecies.
However, Nathanael responded with doubt:
And Nathanael said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
— John 1:46
Nazareth was not a well-regarded place. Located in Galilee, a small region, it lacked the significance of Judea, where the temple was in Jerusalem. People expected the Messiah to be born in Bethlehem, not Nazareth. So, Nathanael’s skepticism was common—no one anticipated the Messiah would come from Nazareth.
As believers, we might sometimes find ourselves asking the same questions Nathanael did. Influenced by how the public views Christianity and religion, we may conform to society’s expectations.
In Nathanael’s case, his doubt stemmed from cultural expectations about the coming Messiah. Similarly, we may conform to society’s view of Jesus, rather than submitting to the biblical Christ. This is a challenge many Christians face today. Instead of following the Jesus of the Bible, some create a version of Jesus shaped by culture—“a genie wish-granting Jesus,” “prosperity Jesus,” “social justice Jesus,” “cool pop-culture Jesus,” “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Jesus,” “sin-tolerant Jesus,” and so on.
Like Nathanael, we might ask, “Can anything good come from the Jesus of the Bible?”
In response, Philip’s answer is significant: he simply says, “Come and see.” This should be our response to those who question the authenticity of Jesus. We should invite them to “come and see” the real Jesus—the Jesus of the Bible, the God-man, the Jesus who was present from the beginning and who will judge all without partiality. Philip knew Jesus, and we too need to be people who know the Jesus prophesied in the Law of Moses and the prophets—the Messiah.
This was Philip’s character. We see him in other encounters later, but here we can already see that he was well-informed about the Messiah and eager to share this knowledge with his friends.
I pray this insight into the apostle Philip will encourage us to invite others to come and see Jesus, just as he was a Jesus-sharing believer.
May the God of strength and courage fill you with boldness to share Jesus with the people around you.
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