John 1:43-51
The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.” Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
“Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked.
“Come and see,” said Philip.
When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”
“How do you know me?” Nathanael asked.
Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”
Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”
Jesus said, “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”
He sees me…
(Hagar: “13She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: ‘You are the God who sees me,’ for she said, ‘I have now seen the One who sees me.”’ Genesis 16:13
He knows me… (Pslam 139)
He calls me…
Romans 8:28-30
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.”
He made me. He makes me, He created and creates me… and calls me by my name.
We will see and do greater things…
“Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” John 14:11-13
So, what does this mean for me? What of these greater things? How can this be?
Jesus' work was to restore us to our Father’s gracious intentions - that through Jesus’ redemptive work we would be restored to working with Him for the care of His creation and making. With that restoration, God has in essence, re-established in me, in us, our once God-given, dominion. In Jesus, we have been granted dominion in one world, my world, that world in and for which I am responsible.
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:8-10
Good - that which originates from and is empowered by God - by him in their lives by or through faith
Dominion!!
Getting to be righteous and good, that I might do what is righteous and good - and - it’s up to me! Will I let my righteousness rule (by His Spirit and nature)? That first act of true dominion - was the naming of the animals… God’s handing Adam the privilege of ruling, caring, familiarizing…
Though God HImself would name Adam, all other creatures were named by mankind - including, children - each name having significance, meaning
Yes!
In Jesus, we have been reconciled to our Father - and (to our renewed) responsibility in and for the kingdom! First, by having been made in the image and likeness of God, as God gave mankind the gift of overseer and caregiver of this world, His world, and with Him, our world - and that, under the umbrella of His sovereignty, mankind was to rule. But sin tangled all of that up - until, Jesus. THIS IS SOOOO GOOD!!
STOP!!
Wait a minute! What do you mean by “given dominion”? What IS dominion and why would God “trust us” with it? -
Love and privilege, delight in what He delights in, partnership of sorts - a Father with His children, following in His footsteps… and now, by the Holy Spirit, He has done the same thing with His kingdom (see Matt 25:14-30 the responsibility of the kingdom given to the servants and the hearts of the servants who responded with eagerness, joy, enthusiasm, responsibility, respect, and honor - knowing the true nature of the Master and the Kingdom in contrast with the one servant who did not rightly see (see also Proverbs “fear (reverent awe) of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge… but fools despise wisdom”. Or, the following parable of the sheep and their astonishment in response to God’s praise of their having loved as they were loved “when did we see you and…?” “when you did it for the least of these…”. In other words, God knows His and has chosen to work in, through, and with us to accomplish His ends and it “will be done… on earth as it is in heaven”. This is regeneration - being made in His image, born again by His Spirit, new creatures in Christ, having HIs righteousness, being created in Christ Jesus to do…, being guided on a path of righteousness for His names’ sake - as the people of the Spirit move in ways that cannot be seen by this world… - Romans 8&12; 1John
“God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Genesis 1:28
“The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” Genesis 2:15
But, there arose a problem - sin: expressed as a desire to go beyond dominion with God, but in fact, a rebellious attempt to usurp God, and replace His gracious sovereignty in and over our lives, with our own self-rule, or self-sovereignty - me, my, mine, in place of God - ruling oneself without God’s intervention… after God had given them everything that was good and life-giving…
“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” Genesis 3:6
...even wanting sovereignty, to be able to rule one’s self, alone, the man and woman even wanted to rule over their own care and covering… their, our, inadequate attempt to try and save - self. “I got this… no, really, I got this”
“ Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.” Genesis 3:7
So, what’s changed?! God, rebelled against, aching in the loss, did not extinguish His beloved, but instead granted mercy, clemency of sorts… and set a plan in motion to come and get us and restore us…
So, second, being created… In Jesus, having received his offer of life in Him and surrendering to His sovereignty, His Lordship, I have, by His grace, been restored to dominion - which is accompanied by true and real free will. So, now, in Christ, I have a true and actual choice: righteous or not righteous. As this is the only choice that truly matters. (illustration)
As I have come to Jesus, freed by His mercy and grace, He has given me rule, or dominion, over my life, my choices, whether I will act on the love, the righteousness, the very goodness, He, and His Spirit in me has made me to be able to act on.
To whom will I give my affection, my allegiance, my attention…
And because I now have a choice, I must decide who and what I will entertain and indulge, who and what it is I will follow, emulate, align myself with, and give my allegiance and affection to. This is what Paul is referring to when he admonishes us in regard to who and whose we are and instructs on the choosing of the course of our lives - here - in this world, with the dominion, I am granted (having had it restored in Jesus) in “my” part of it.
This dominion necessitates something for it to not become a repeat of the Garden’s sin of self-sovereignty - and that is co-operation. That is what God granted in the beginning, and now, restores to us in Jesus. Our choice looks like this:
Walk with God, the Spirit and eat from the tree of life - Jesus - bearing the fruit of that spirit (Gal 5:22-23)
Walk in the way of the flesh according to the ways of this world, forgoing the Spirit, and eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil - the desires of the flesh, or, our humanity. (Gal 5:16-21)
It is in this world, the world given to me, and for which I am responsible, that in order for me to “love AS” and do so sincerely, I must co-operate with the Holy Spirit to govern me and my responses. This is not only true in how I act in and toward the world itself but even more importantly, how I act with and toward the “worlds” of others who intersect with mine - remembering that world that is mine, is not just mine, but God’s and mine - together. To cooperate I must recognize these truths - As...
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Gal 2:20
...and,“...it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” Phil 2:13 ...and,
I can do all this through him who gives me strength. Phil 4:13
...all...“...because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” Rom 5:5
Now I can, and must, in order to “walk in the way of love”, walk with, or, entertain and indulge, or, co-operate with, the Holy Spirit
This co-operation, that enables me to love AS Jesus has loved me and to do this with a sincere love is a matter of the furthering and repeated surrendering of my life, my world, my dominion, to Jesus’ sovereignty as King, or, Lord.
This choice is the choice, first and foremost, to love God with a humbled and astonished heart of gratefulness. To not obey the commands of God, to not bow to his sovereignty, to choose to not sincerely love AS is to undervalue or underappreciate His love - for me, and them. It is to forget that we have been loved, and how. It is to take for granted being loved and go on as if… (Luke 7:36-50, 1John 2:53-11; 4:7-12,16-21)
In being granted dominion, I have been given choice, the freedom to choose to indulge my flesh or the Spirit. This all has to do with… my love and love’s affection
Who or what I choose to love, to indulge - my flesh or the Holy Spirit and the righteous goodness I have been made to be
You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ...Love your neighbor AS you yourself” (Galatians 5:13-14)
...or, will I walk with the Spirit and work under His power and guiding to take dominion over, as to dominate or subdue my flesh… not let it rule over me, to cause me to worship it - but rule over it - with privilege and responsibility, enjoyment
Why these words are hard for us to see as positive or pleasing - because we are in constant rebellion. We see these, first and foremost, as oppressive and negative, even potentially mean…
When in fact, in God’s economy, these are the terms He uses to express His loving care and rule - His responsibility to care for and govern righteously for its good (Job 38-42; Psalm 19; 139; Col 1)
So we must be careful how we interpret and apply such words - even the naming of the creatures, and in particular, “woman”, under our sin-stained condition, through the lens of contempt, with the curse still nursed at the breast of anger and resentment, we this act as being chauvinist or patronizing, when in fact it was an act of enthusiastic love and admiration, passion and excitement released in an exclamation of joy and ecstasy
Whenever we recoil at a word or phrase God uses we must go back to our nature, or the nature of our flesh and examine our response relative to our fleshes’ struggle with truth and righteousness, its propensity to be (easily or quickly) offended and assume the worst - especially from God (as the flesh is always in conflict with and contrary to the Spirit)
Given the choice, our flesh will always choose to rebel, to revolt against anything that would seek to subdue it, or make it subject (the reason for Romans 13; Eph 4; 1Peter 2) - which is why we’re given dominion with God over creation, but, it seems, Adam and Eve confused “subdue” and not being subdued by the earth, as a
Satan is able to entice being subject to him, and mankind will gladly submit, by appealing the (rebellious) desires of the flesh - that impulse in us to not be subdued, but subdue, that aspect of the curse that causes us to doubt God’s love and accuse Him of being domineering, unfair, and unjust - even cruel as we rail against the effects of the curse, sin, and death - standing in defiance of God, mistrusting, even opposing.
This is why the proverbs speak of “the fear (reverent awe) of God is the beginning of both wisdom and knowledge” seeing rightly for the first time the true nature and character of God - His love expressed in mercy and grace - His goodness expressed in kindness, marked by patience and tolerance (forbearance) (Rom 2)
With that, I am given the choice. Here are some of the choices we get to make - to love or not love; to love AS Jesus loved me, or to love as I prefer; to love sincerely, or merely put up with and go through the motions, or, to not love at all.
Some of those real-life choices being…
What I will eat and drink - only bread or the word of God; what I want, or what will bless and edify others?
“He humbled you, and in your hunger, He gave you manna to eat, which neither you nor your fathers had known, so that you might understand that man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.” (Luke 4:4 (Deut 8:3); Ephesians 5:26; Heb 6:7; Ex 17:6; Rom 14; 1Cor 10:3-4; 12:7,18,25; 13; 14:26; Eph 4:7,12; Phil 2:3-8)
What I will wear - tattered and stained clothes or a robe of righteousness (Jude 1:23; Rev 3:4; Isa 61:10; Colossians 3)
“I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” Isa 61:10
I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead… Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God… But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you. Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy.” Rev 3:1-4
Your beauty should not come from outward adornments, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight… submitting themselves…” ultimately to God’s will and purposes 1Peter 3:3-5
How I will speak about and to others - unwholesome and disparaging, empty and idle, or edifying and encouraging, loving and gracious (Eph 4; Col 4:6; Rom 14:9; 15:2)
“The good man brings good things out of his good store of treasure, and the evil man brings evil things out of his evil store of treasure. But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken.” Matt 12:35-37
“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” Eph 4:29
“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” Col 4:6
How I will treat others - don’t do to anyone what you would not have them do to you or do unto others… OR “Do to others AS…” Luke 6:31; Col 3; Jude 1:2 Christianity is the only religion that calls us to the blessing. DO UNTO OTHERS as you would have them do. Many religions have a similar philosophy, but its charge is NOT TO do to others as you would not want them to do….
“But to you who are listening, I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.” Luke 6:27-31
With what are we to clothe ourselves?
12Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
15Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Colossians 3:12-17
This love not only loves its enemies but also, sincerely and carefully, takes into consideration the heart and soul of the other - yes, an enemy, but also a brother or sister. This sincere love, chooses, out of a moral preference, to seek to please the one loved, not desiring to hurt or harm. This takes wisdom - the seeking and development of knowledge, insight, discernment, discretion, understanding, and the kind of Godly wisdom that is governed by that consideration - that is prudence - and then lovingly enacted with wisdom, consideration, caring. (Prov 1;2;8) Sincere, love.
“Each of us should please our neighbors for their good, to build them up. For even Christ did not please himself” Romans 15:2-3
It is not enough to “not do bad” or even to “do good”. Even the secular/ pagan do this.
But, it is ours to “do the good work prepared in advance for me to do”, being created in Christ Jesus, filled with His Spirit of Love, I am to strive with Jesus in such a way that produces in and from me the fruit of righteousness - that Spirit - and live a life of Christ’s love - doing unto others - the right thing, in the right way, at the right time, for the right reason, with the right manner. Christ Jesus, may I have eyes to see and a heart to know the good works you have prepared for me to do!
Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God… Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Eph 5:1-2, 15-20
