You shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man. — John 1:51

It is unlikely that our Lord would ever have made this declaration — telling one of his disciples that he would witness a heavenly scene of infinite proportions! It was odd circumstances that brought it about.

   In gathering his twelve apostles Jesus "found Philip" and invited him to "Follow me." Philip in turn found one Nathaniel, and told him that "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote — Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." Nathaniel responded cryptically, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Little Nazareth was no Athens or Rome, but there was no reason why something important could not happen there.

   Philip, apparently wise in disputation, did not argue the point, and we can question whether anyone is ever really persuaded by argument. He simply said, "Come and see."

   When Jesus saw Nathaniel coming to him he sized him up in an interesting way, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit." This not only shows that our Lord highly esteemed sincerity of heart and deplored deceit or guile as a serious character flaw, but it may also  infer that Jesus was thinking of Jacob, a master of deceit. Jacob's name was changed to Israel, and he should have been an exemplary person, wearing that name. He was no "Israelite indeed," but Nathaniel was. The difference was sincerity, the queen of the virtues. Once face-to-face with Jesus, the Lord said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."

   Nathaniel must have seen Jesus' insight as far more than premonition. The fig tree was flush with leaves and made for ample shade for rest and meditation. Nathaniel was probably in mediation under the fig tree, and the Lord read his heart from afar! That explains his exuberant outburst: "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!"

   Jesus responded to this as if surprised that Nathaniel would express such faith only because he had told him he had seen him under the fig tree. Then comes the glorious exclamation: "You will see greater things than these. . . You shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man." If you have a reference Bible you will at this point find a reference to Genesis 28:12, the story of Jacob's ladder. Scholars agree that Jesus is thinking of the Genesis story in making this statement.

   If so, that means that Jesus sees himself as the ladder in Jacob's dream that reaches from earth to heaven. He, as the risen Messiah, would be the access to heaven for all mankind. It is one more instance of the Old Testament anticipating the future Messiah, as with the "Son of God" in the fiery furnace with the three Hebrew children in Daniel 3, and "the angel of Yahweh" who spoke to Moses out of the Burning Bush in Exodus 3.

   We could not expect Jacob to see a future Messiah in his dream of the ladder. Being a deceitful man, he did well to conclude, "God is in this place and I did not know it." But to guileless Nathaniel, after his experience with Jesus, the Genesis story would take on a glorious new meaning. He could have said to his friend Philip, "The ladder that Jacob saw in his dream pointed to the One you just introduced me to. I will one day see heaven open and angels ascending and descending upon Him as the Son of Man. He is the ladder to heaven! Nazareth is not all that bad after all!"

News and Notes

On these hot summer days I do my walking (with a walker) in early a.m. Occasionally I meet up with another Vintage resident who is also circling our large parking lot. When we meet we pause to greet each other. Recently she said, "We may have to quit doing this or people will start talking!" Elegant humor! Another resident said to me, "I was having a good day, but I got over it." I think among the aged humor is sometimes a tool for survival.

Robin Williams' death may make us more aware of how devastating depression can be. Some years go I was a guest in the home of a psychiatrist who talked about depression, noting that the key to dealing with it was "ventilation," his word. "Talk about what troubles you to someone you trust," he said. "Get it out, air it." It may be that Robin Williams had no one to talk to, and that may be behind most suicides. No one to talk to, the ultimate tragedy. To a believer, who may also suffer from depression, prayer is ventilation.

These essays are all online, along with other of my writings, at www.leroygarrett.org; for the essays click on Soldier On. We add new names to our mailing list upon request.