Jesus Praises Nathaniel for his Honesty

Have you ever thought about Jesus being the “kind of person” that praises other people or compliments them? I never did. My image of Jesus and God were… broken. I only thought of God finding fault with people. Or telling them to “do more.” Until I ran into several passages that helped “develop” my image of God through Jesus.

In John 1:43-51 Jesus is introduced to Nathaniel. When Jesus meets Nathaniel He speaks knowing the inner heart of the man without ever meeting him, declaring, “Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false.” Now, when you think about that for a few minutes that is a pretty high compliment! The God-man says that Nathaniel is honest… to the core. Jesus has the highest standards known to human kind but He is the “kind of person” that can complement a regular human being. And remember, Nathaniel is not perfect. No one is. So He is able to find good in a flawed human. Pretty impressive.

Now, if Jesus can find good in flawed, imperfect humans… so can God. Jesus is the exact representation of God. (Foundation Verse Hebrews 1:3). That means God can find things to compliment in non-perfect human beings.

A good friend of mine said, “Chris, why are you writing these emails? I don’t get it.” That was honest feedback.

Consider the Parable of the 5, 2 and 1 Talents in Matthew 25:14. The single problem with the 1 Talent guy is that his IMAGE of God was a complete wreck and filled with lies. First, He saw God as a “hard man.” Secondly, He saw God as demanding a harvest when God refused to provide seed. He is accusing God of wickedness. Reminds me of the statement “Damned if you do and damned if you don’t.” This was the image the 1 Talent guy had of God. (It is actually a better picture of Satan than God.) God does not agree with the man’s assessment of His Character. In verse 26 in the NIV text God says, “So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed?” The QUESTION mark is huge here. God is NOT agreeing with the man. Secondly, God did provide seed. What are the Talents if they are not seed or money to plant with?

Here is why I am writing: If you want to trust God… you MUST have a clear &  healed picture of God. The image of God you have inside determines if you think God is worthy of your 1) delight/worship and 2) obedience.

So what is your picture of God?

Prayer: Wow, can you really be the “kind of person” that can find something good to compliment in imperfect humans? Perhaps you are “better” than I feared you are. It is pretty amazing to me that you compliment Nathaniel given how high or perfect your standard for truth is! I love the fact that you were NOT agreeing with the 1 Talent man. I love the fact that you did give him seed or money to plant with. Heal and form my picture of You – so that I can more deeply trust you! Show me your goodness so that I can open myself to you fully!