Sunday, March 20, 2005 Lenten Fast Tone 1
The Sunday of Orthodoxy
Kellia: Exodus 3:1-8 Epistle: Hebrews 11:24-26, 32-12:2 Gospel: St. John 1:43-51
St. John 1:43-51, especially vs. 46: "...Philip said to him, 'Come and see.'" Philip invited
Nathanael, a neighbor from his home town, to "Come and see." This invitation "to see" is one of nine times that the verb
"to see" appears in this single passage. However, be sure to note how the verb "to see" changes its meaning as the passage
develops. At first, "see" refers to sight with the physical eye, but at the end "seeing" means "knowing." The change
begins with Philip's offer to Nathanael. The offer might be paraphrased thus: "Come, observe, learn, and get to 'know' this
Man for yourself." As the account progresses, "seeing" more and more often acquires the sense of "knowing."
Furthermore, do not miss the point that the "knowing" implied in the verb "to see" becomes increasingly complex and
profound. The Evangelist John shows us that to "see" Jesus is to cross the threshold into a saving knowledge, a powerful
knowing that far exceeds the mundane acquisition of information.
After Philip's invitation, the next uses of the verb "to see" occur in verse 47, appearing twice. The first occasion is in a
statement of fact, "Jesus 'saw' Nathanael coming toward Him." The second use occurs when the verb "to see" is translated
as "behold," being, in this instance, a "command" form of the verb. In the command, the Lord discloses that He "knew"
clairvoyantly something of the character of Nathanael. With a capacity to "see" men's hearts, the Lord knew Nathaniel was
guileless, without deceit. Nathanael did not miss the point in this "Behold." He was impressed with the knowledge of this
Man who "saw" into his soul. He asked, "How do You know me?" (vs. 48). Beloved, let us remember that the Lord sees
clearly into our hearts and minds. He sees and knows our deepest values. Thus, the Lord Jesus selected men whom He saw
as potential Apostles. In the Church's history, the capacity for sight into men's inner thoughts and values was given to
many of the Saints by the Holy Spirit, to those worthy of such "sight."
Next, Jesus tells Nathanael, "I saw you when you were under the fig tree." This statement of "seeing and knowing" is a
clear example of what the Holy Fathers call "diorasis," the ability to see into obscure circumstances, to enter the psychic
world of others, to see or know facts or happenings not visible to others. Once a peasant came to St. Seraphim of Sarov in
despair because his horse had been stolen: "I do not know how I shall feed my family." The Saint told him, "Wrap
yourself in silence and hasten to the village of (he named it). When you come to it, turn off the road to the right and pass
along the back-yards of four houses. There you will see a small wicket-gate. Go in, untie your horse from the log and lead
it out without a word." And it happened exactly in that manner. Such "sight as knowledge" clearly is a gift of the Holy
Spirit, and is strictly limited to those who are purified through long and deep askesis.
The final kind of "sight as knowledge" is mentioned by the Lord in His last statement in today's passage: "you shall see the
heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man" (vs. 51). Here the Lord Jesus refers
to pure revelation. God discloses Himself to those who trust in Him, who commit their lives to Him.
At one level, the Lord is referring to the ability to discern that He is the Ladder or the Way from this life to the heavenly
realm. The Lord reveals this truth to the hearts of all the Faithful so that without hesitation or restraint we commit to
following Christ as God and King in our daily lives and decisions. Of course, on another level also, there shall be a time, in
the age to come, when the Faithful shall see Him, and "not through a glass darkly" (1 Cor. 13:12).
Illumine us, O Lord, by the light of understanding and piety, by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, that we may behold Thee,
O King of all, in Thy royal beauty.
