“Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”

John 1.43-51

Pastor Tom Johnson, January 15, 2012

 

Philip boldly proclaims that they have found the Messiah—the one Moses and the prophets foretold. He is Jesus, son of Joseph from Nazareth. Nathaniel seems to have tuned out everything except Jesus’ hometown—Nazareth. “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” he asks. “—Nazareth, that puny border town off the beaten path in the hill country? Nazareth, that place that was barely declared clean by the priests because of its proximity to foreigners? Nazareth, that place where people talk funny?” Nathaniel’s regional bigotry keeps him from believing that the Messiah could come from such a place. He says cannot envision anything good coming from Nazareth.

When Jesus sees Nathaniel approaching him, Jesus uses humor to dispel the situation. Jesus says sarcastically, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Or, as the old KJV says, “in whom there is no guile.” This is a brilliant way to greet Nathaniel. With one sentence, Jesus not only cracks a joke but also cracks Nathaniel's heart open as well. “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Jesus’ question is, “Can anything good come out of our common ancestor, Israel?” “Can anything good come out of our great-grandfather Jacob whose name means, “Deceiver”? Jacob literally means, “to grab the heel—to pull one’s leg.” And the name Israel means “to wrestle with God.” Can anything good come out of a long, ancestral line of scoundrels? And, of course, that is the beauty and genius of Jesus’ comment—to point to a common ancestor Israel in whom there was much guile and deceit—who, despite his imperfections and sin, was still chosen, accepted, and loved by God—the father of all Israelites in whose lives God did great things.

Today is the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. “M.L.,” as his family called him, was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. His parents named him Martin Luther because of the profound experience they had on a trip to Germany. M.L.’s bestfriend as a young child was a white boy who lived down the street. They played together frequently. But when they became old enough to go to school, M.L could no long play with his white friend. Someone may have asked the question, “Can anything good come out of that house?” “Can anything good come out of playing with a black boy?” This so deeply hurt Martin Luther King that many suspect it is the root of part of his vision in his “I Have a Dream” speech when he says, “I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama...right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.” Martin Luther King, Jr. believed that good could come out of Alabama—even from a place plagued by generational racism. Martin Luther King believed that all humanity has a common ancestor. The Bible and genetics are united in their message—we are part of the same human family. We don’t have to look very far back to see the sin and brokeness of our common history. We may even ask ourselves “Can anything good come of the human race?”

Can anything good come out of generations of physical abuse, poverty, and addiction? Can anything good come out of a people who have pride in their own lineage and accomplishments—that because I am not from your house I am better, smarter, and more loved by God? “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” The answer Jesus gives is “Yes!” Good comes out of the most humble and shameful of places. God loved Israel despite his brokenness and deceitfulness. What is impossible for humans is possible with God. Good can and will come out of humble and messy lives. Jesus invites us into a worldview where we believe that good things will happen in one another’s lives. God is in the business of making good things happen in all of our lives. God can make good out of a fisherman who falls into the water and is wonderfully saved. God can make good even out of those times when physical lives are not saved. There is no one outside of the reach of God. No person’s origin is too humble and below God’s reach. There is no family that is too dysfunctional. There is no place that is too insignificant. There is no person who has the wrong DNA. Good will come out of the hills of Nazareth. Good will even come out of the hill of Calvary. Even in the death of this Nazarene, God makes good out of a tragic and and seemingly hopeless situation. God gives us the goodness of forgiveness and the assurance of eternal life.

When Nathanael wonders how Jesus could know so much about him without ever having met before, by telling him that he saw him under the fig tree, Jesus reveals his divine ability to see from a perspective outside time and space. To this Nathanael cries out, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” And Jesus tells him that he will experience not only some good out of this fellow from Nazareth—but even greater things than he could imagine—he is not just a teacher and a king—but the true and living God. “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Yes! Great things have come out of Nazareth with Jesus. And great things will come out of our lives with Jesus as well.