come, again

So Jesus, newly baptized, starts collecting followers.

Along the way a good story: After Jesus tells Philip, “Follow me,” Philip goes and finds his friend Nathanael and tells him he has found the promised one of scripture, Jesus of Nazareth. When Nathanael scoffs, “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Philip says, simply, “Come and see” (John 1:43-46, my mashup).

That right there is the church, in its essence, I think. Not wanting your friends to be left out. Telling them, “Come and see.”

So, Nathanael goes with Philip, and Jesus tells him he saw him standing under a fig tree, before Philip ever spoke to him, and Nathanael, of course, believes. Who wouldn’t?

I think my favorite word in all of scripture is come. I'm always wanting to write about it. All the best stories emanate from it.

“Come out of the ark,” God tells Noah.

“Come to bed with me,” Potiphar’s wife entices.

“Come see a man who told me everything I ever did,” the woman at the well will say.

“Come out of him,” Jesus will command. And he will promise, “Come to me all you who are weary."

So much there. In that one little word.