John 1:45-51

Just from the Scriptures we have read so far, it appears that true followers were ripe with anticipation for the Messiah. Maybe they were taught in the Temple to be on the lookout for Him. Maybe word had gotten out about Jesus’ and John’s miraculous births. Maybe it was John’s proclamations about the coming One who would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire. Whatever the reason, there seemed to be this anticipation in the hearts and minds of the people. They were on the lookout for the Messiah.

Jesus is now inviting people to follow Him. I love how there is nothing forced in the exchanges He has with the various people who would eventually become His disciples. There is simply a gentle invitation: “Come, follow Me.”

In this case, Philip has had an encounter with Jesus and goes to find his friend Nathanael, convinced that he has found the One Moses and the prophets spoke about. Nathanael is clearly more skeptical than Philip, yet Jesus makes a believer out of him in a short time by simply “reading his mail,” as some would say. Jesus tells Nathanael that He saw him under the fig tree before Philip ever found him. Better than any private investigator, Jesus sees everything — yet it can be a bit disarming to realize that even when we think we are alone and unseen, there is always One who sees us. I can almost picture Nathanael thinking, “Wait — how did He know I was there?”

I had a similar moment in college during a Bible study. The man leading felt that God was telling me not to worry about my mom, because He had sent His angels to take care of the situation. I remember thinking this man must have been reading my mind, because no one knew about it. Needless to say, it got my attention. I imagine it may have felt similar for Nathanael.

Jesus’ next words to Nathanael are very telling. He lets him know that he will see even greater things, and then refers to Himself in the third person, saying that Nathanael will see heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man — the One who is the stairway between heaven and earth.

I love that! I’ve heard Jesus referred to as a bridge, and we know He is “the way,” but this mental picture is especially powerful for me.

A simple analogy: have you ever tried to reach something that was too high? There’s a certain hopeless feeling that rises when you stretch as far as you can, stand on tiptoe, maybe even reach for the edge of the shelf — and it’s still just beyond your grasp. No matter how determined you are, effort alone won’t change the fact that you simply cannot reach it.

I was blessed with some height for a woman at 5'10", and there have been many times in a store when I’ve seen someone struggling to reach something on the top shelf. Often, I’m able to help, and there’s this sweet moment of relief when what seemed out of reach is suddenly placed in their hands. But there are also times when even I can’t reach. I stretch, try, adjust my angle, and eventually realize I need someone taller. I have to humble myself, ask for help, and trust someone else to do what I cannot do.

That is such a picture of our spiritual lives. No matter how moral, disciplined, sincere, or “good” we try to be, heaven is still higher than our reach.

Forgiveness, righteousness, salvation — they are not things we climb up to or achieve by effort. Eventually, every honest heart has to admit, “I can’t get there from here.”

And that is where Jesus steps in. He doesn’t simply give us a boost or help us reach a little higher. He becomes the way altogether — the true stairway between heaven and earth. Our hope is not found in stretching harder, but in trusting Him completely.

We can’t reach heaven on our own. It is too high for us. Thank God for Jesus! He is the stairway between heaven and earth.