Come and See: The Transformative Call of Following Jesus

In the hustle of the holiday season, it's easy to lose sight of the profound miracle we celebrate at Christmas. Beyond the wrapped gifts and twinkling lights lies a truth that has the power to transform every aspect of our lives: God pursued us first. He found us in our brokenness and extended an invitation that changes everything.
The Divine Pursuit
There's a beautiful misconception many of us carry about our faith journey. We often say, "I found the Lord," as if our spiritual awakening was the result of our own searching. But Scripture paints a different picture entirely. When Jesus called Philip to follow Him, the text is clear: "He found Philip." Jesus was the one doing the searching. He was the one extending the invitation.
This reality should stop us in our tracks. The Creator of the universe, the King of Kings, actively pursued us. He didn't wait for us to clean ourselves up or figure everything out. He came looking for us while we were still lost, still wandering, still trapped in our sin and shame. And when He found us, He extended the simplest yet most profound invitation: "Follow me."
This is the heart of the Gospel. Salvation isn't a trophy we've earned through our religious efforts or moral achievements. It's a gift of grace, freely given to those who don't deserve it. The Good Shepherd leaves the ninety-nine to search for the one lost sheep. That's the kind of love we're dealing with—relentless, pursuing, transformative love.
The Immediate Response: Sharing What We've Found
When Philip encountered Jesus and accepted His call to follow, something remarkable happened almost immediately. He found his friend Nathanael and declared, "We have found him of whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth."
This pattern reveals a fundamental truth about authentic encounters with Christ: when Jesus transforms your life, you can't help but tell others. The Christian life isn't meant to be a private spiritual experience we keep to ourselves. It's meant to be shared, proclaimed, and lived out in community.
Philip's witness wasn't elaborate or polished. He simply pointed to Jesus and invited his friend to investigate for himself. There's profound wisdom in this approach. We don't need to have all the answers to share our faith. We don't need advanced theological degrees or the ability to win every debate. We simply need to point people to Jesus and say, "Come and see."
Confronting Our Prejudices
Nathanael's initial response to Philip's announcement reveals how easily our preconceptions can cloud our judgment. "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" he asked skeptically. Nazareth wasn't exactly the cultural or religious center of Israel. It was looked down upon, dismissed, underestimated.
How often do we make similar mistakes? We write people off based on where they're from, what they look like, or what we assume about them. We limit God's work to the places and people we deem acceptable or likely. But God specializes in working through the unexpected, the overlooked, and the underestimated.
The Messiah didn't come from the religious elite in Jerusalem. He came from humble Nazareth, born in a stable, raised by a carpenter. This should remind us that God's ways are not our ways, and His thoughts are not our thoughts. He delights in confounding our expectations and working through the most unlikely circumstances.
The God Who Knows Us Completely
When Nathanael approached Jesus, he encountered something that shook him to his core. Jesus looked at him and said, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit." Nathanael's response was immediate: "How do you know me?"
Jesus's answer revealed His divine nature: "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."
The fig tree was traditionally a place of meditation and prayer in Jewish culture. Nathanael had been in a private moment with God, and Jesus knew about it. This wasn't lucky guessing or good intuition. This was the omniscience of God on display.
Consider what this means for your life. The God of the universe knows you intimately. He knows your private prayers, your hidden struggles, your secret hopes and fears. He knows the worst parts of you—and He loves you anyway. He knows every failure, every shortcoming, every moment of weakness—and He still pursued you. He still called you. He still died for you.
This reality should simultaneously humble us and fill us with worship. We serve a God who is not distant or disconnected from our daily lives. He sees us. He knows us. He cares about the details of our existence.
Greater Things to Come
Nathanael's response to Jesus's revelation was immediate and powerful: "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" He recognized both Jesus's deity and His destiny. But Jesus's response points to something even more amazing: "You will see greater things than these."
Following Jesus isn't a one-time experience. It's a journey of continual discovery and wonder. Every day with Christ brings new revelations of His character, new demonstrations of His power, new expressions of His love. The Christian life is meant to be an adventure of faith, where we constantly see God at work in and around us.
Jesus went on to tell Nathanael that he would see heaven opened and angels ascending and descending on the Son of Man. This reference to Jacob's ladder reminds us that Jesus is the connection between heaven and earth. Every spiritual blessing, every heavenly gift, every divine provision comes to us through Christ. He is the mediator, the bridge, the way.
An Invitation for Today
As we celebrate this Christmas season, we're not just remembering a historical event. We're celebrating the ongoing reality that God has come near. Emmanuel—God with us—isn't just a Christmas slogan. It's the defining truth of the Christian life.
Perhaps you've been skeptical, like Nathanael. Perhaps you've had doubts or questions or preconceptions that have kept you from truly encountering Jesus. The invitation still stands: "Come and see." Investigate for yourself. Read the Gospels. Examine the claims of Christ. Meet Him personally.
Or perhaps you're already a follower of Jesus, but you've been hesitant to share your faith with others. Remember Philip's simple approach: point people to Jesus and invite them to come and see for themselves. You don't need all the answers. You just need to be willing to share what Christ has done in your life.
The God who found Philip, who knew Nathanael under the fig tree, who pursued lost humanity through the incarnation—He's still at work today. He's still calling. He's still transforming lives. He's still inviting people to follow Him.
Will you answer the call? Will you come and see? Will you invite others to do the same?
The greatest gift of Christmas isn't found under a tree. It's found in a person—Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the King of Kings, the one who loved us enough to leave heaven and pursue us, even to the cross.
Come and see.