The Gospel of John is very different from the other gospels.

John has no birth story or genealogy of Jesus.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things come into being through him and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.”

For John, the story of Christ has cosmic significance. It is a story deeply rooted in the spiritual realm rather than one of concrete facts. History is not as important to John’s gospel as the spiritual message of Christ.

I am not saying that the facts don’t matter but John’s gospel is a poetic and symbolic story rather than a “brass tacks” narrative.

The gospel of John searches to answer the question, “What is the cosmological significance of Christ?”

When I think about the cosmos and how it came to be I go to Genesis 1. The beginning of John is similar to the beginning of Genesis, “In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while the wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light”, and there was light.”

In John, alone, we find Jesus turning water into wine, raising Lazarus from the dead, and washing his disciples’ feet. Only in John does Jesus proclaim, “I am the light of the world,” “I am the Bread of Life,” “Before Abraham was, I am,” and “I and the Creator are one.”

Jesus is a mystical figure, with powers from above, and he is not shy about using them to bring about healing, but also, to prove his messianic identity.

Jesus, the Messiah, is seen as the ultimate conveyer of God’s truth. Jesus is the connection between God and humanity, heaven and earth, extraordinary and ordinary.

Some Fundamentalist churches passage out John as a tract stating that “Everything you need to know about Jesus is in John.”

John and his church were Jews who were expelled from the synagogue because they believed in Jesus.

The common references to “the Jews” are actually said by a fellow Jew who had been ousted from the synagogue. John is an example of the fervent intra-Jewish debate about Jesus and whether or not he is the Messiah.

The gospel of John is full of Old Testament references to explain Jesus and, yet, it is one of the most widely used Christian texts used to fuel anti-Jewish sentiment.

An example of the OT referencing in today’s reading in verse 51 Jesus states that

“Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” These words echo Genesis 28:12 in which Jacob dreamt of “a ladder set up on earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.”

The distortions of scripture that happen when we fail to look to both testaments as sources for understanding Christ and his mission disturb me. Jesus was a Jew and to not read or reference the Old Testament is to leave out the scriptures he quoted and interpreted in an exciting new way.

Contemplatives and mystics throughout church history have been drawn to the poetic and mystical language of John.

Poets and writers study John for its masterful use of symbolism and vivid images painted with words.

The gospel of John, the latest of the gospels, appears to be written to explain the interior spiritual journey. We have the facts about Jesus and his birth, life and death from the other gospels.

The Gospel of John has been studied by scholars of other religious backgrounds and used for comparative religious study.

One such work is a book by Ravi Ravindra called Christ as Yogi: A Hindu Reflection on the Gospel of John.

I find the book very interesting because I think that someone from a different religious background offers Christians in a new way of understanding their faith.

Some distance from the story of Christ gives the observer the ability to see things that we cannot see.

I drive to church one of two ways and pass the same buildings every time. When you see something all the time it becomes routine and soon you find that it blends into the background.

If we do not actively work on our spiritual lives, keeping them fresh and new, our faith can fade into us.

Professor Ravindra points to the central theme of today’s scripture passage: Listening to the inner calling to follow the Word made flesh and to participate in his work.

There is a lot of language around seeing: see, look, witness. These words point to an important theme of John’s, the idea of perceiving Jesus as Christ, the anointed Savior of all.

So what does it mean to follow the unknown Christ? To leave behind all that we know and be willing to go wherever Christ bids us to go.

Like Nathaniel, we asked to “come and see.” Nathaniel, probably another name for Bartholomew, had just enough doubt about Philip’s testimony that he had to check it out for himself.

“Can anything good come from Nazareth?” We know the thought pattern. Today, to us, it might be “What difference will Jesus make in my life?” or “Can Christ really love me when my church has told me I am going to hell because of whom I love?”

Nathaniel takes the frightful first steps of freedom when he follows Philip. What is it that makes him go to see? I think that curiosity, hope, intrigue, and perhaps, the ever so gentle nudge from God made him follow Philip to see the unknown Christ.

What made Nathaniel follow? What made you come to see Jesus today? Maybe it was past experiences of his power and presence in your life. Maybe it was an indescribable emptiness too great to bear and a glimmer of hope that God might be able to fill it.

Whatever brought you here today, rest assured that God alone, woke you up this morning. God brought you here safely so that you might be blessed.

It is often, only in retrospect, that we realize how blessed we are. We recognize the difference that someone has made in our lives, or the power to overcome stumbling blocks that God has freely given us.

Jesus boldly speaks up as soon as Nathaniel approaches, “Here is an Israelite without deceit!” Jesus recognizes immediately the sincere and earnest wish of Nathaniel to know God. He knows that Nathaniel stood under the fig tree praying for the truth of God to touch his life and then, Philip approached him to tell him about Jesus.

Jesus knows our hearts before we do. Jesus dwells deep within each of us, the divine spark, the true light of each life. No desire, no commitment, no longing is out of the sight of Christ. Our most intimate selves are known and CELEBRATED by Christ. This is the amazing and wondrous love of Jesus.

God placed deep within each of us a desire to be fully known.

I can thank of no greater message than God knows your heart

and God loves you just as you are.

You see just as Jesus looked at Nathaniel and knew his heart, he was under the fig tree praying for the truth about God, Jesus sees you and knows your innermost longings for God.

To follow Christ is to listen to your heart and live out the bold truth of the divine spark present within you.

It amazes me to see how spiritually wounded people heal and grow when they really invite the healing power of Christ to work on their hearts.

We live from our hearts when we realize that all of humanity, and all of creation for that matter, are inextricably connected. What we do for and to each other matters.

Salvation is not just something that happens after we die, salvation is also about now and how we live our lives.

Christian Music Artist, Chris Eaton, says it this way in his song entitled My Highest Honor:

“The sun is rising, the day’s begun and with the morning, the choices come. To live or die, to give or take, to have a vision or lose my faith- to bless my brother, and children too- to be dishonest and to hide the truth – to search for justice or find a way out – to shout or be silent, to trust or doubt – so for my family and for my friends and those whose lives I spend the briefest moments in, and for myself and for my Savior – we all deserve the highest honor.

The moon has risen to close the day – and I remember the choices made – was I humble or was I proud – were my hands open or were they bound – was there compassion inside of me – or just ambition for selfish need – when I was faced with compromise –

Did I stand my ground or fall through the ice – and so tomorrow and then forever - let love pass from me like a peaceful river – so for my family and for my friends, and those whose lives I spend the briefest moment in – and for myself and for my Savior – we all deserve the highest honor.”

The highest honor I can imagine is that when my life is over and people gather to remember me they can honestly say, “Sue came and she saw Christ and she followed wherever he led her.”