Scripture: John 1:43-50 (NIV)

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.”

It was almost literally a hole in the wall in a sketchy part of a backwater town. There was no advertising, no bright colors or anything that would catch your eye outside. While we don’t get the most obvious look, there didn’t even seem to be a sign out front. Given the import of the mission, we probably would have had a similar thought to Luke Skywalker had we been on the ground on Tatooine.

“Do you really think we’re going to find a pilot here that’ll take us to Alderaan?”

Luke had never been to the place or, indeed, any place like it. However, whatever else Obi-Wan Kenobi did while in his exile on the desert planet, he either visited it regularly (most likely for news of the wider galaxy) or at least heard enough local gossip to be aware of the reputation. He knew that the cantina was a place that whatever traffic did come to Tatooine would stop in there. Cantinas were a haven for pilots on any planet but there wasn’t a lot of competition here.

If you’d asked Luke right then, judging on the appearance of the cantina, what he would have found inside, I’m not sure what he would have told you. I can guarantee he wouldn’t have told you that he’d find a pair of lifelong friends (one of which would become his brother-in-law) that he would risk his life for often and they would do the same. That bland, sand-blasted exterior belied a treasure hidden within its walls.

In today’s passage, Nathanael also got a surprise when he looked beyond the outside. When he is told about Jesus by his fellow resident of Bethsaida, he focuses on the phrase that tells him where Jesus is from. As a person who lived in a more urban setting, he immediately jumped on the Nazareth portion of the descriptor, conjuring up an image of some backwoods hick in his mind. After all, Nazareth was a tiny village out in the middle of nowhere. Today, we are used to the underdog story and of great people coming from all sorts of places, but even so we would be surprised if this great leader came from a little town of 30 people.

“Can anything good come from there?” All credit to Nathanael, he didn’t make that a rhetorical question. He didn’t just dismiss Philip and say, “There’s no way that’s anything, you are being crazy.” He didn’t stay under the fig tree and let the chance go by. He went to find out for himself. He may not have had much hope of it turning out to be anything but he didn’t completely shut off the possibility. What he found was Jesus, who would completely change his life. The descriptor of Nazareth hid a gem.

Today’s climate seems to be one where we are all too willing to dismiss opportunities based on a look or a description. If someone we disagree with politically thinks A is a good thing, we immediately downgrade A and promote B instead, no matter the value in either spot. We don’t look beyond the surface to try to find what could be hiding. We don’t go into things with an open mind and a heart that asks what God has for us in this situation. If today Nathanael was a blue stater told about “Jesus from Red State”, he probably dismisses Him out of hand as some know-nothing.

Those hidden gems of knowledge and relationship are still out there, though. The key to anything hidden is that you have to try to find it. You have to be willing to talk with those that aren’t of your “tribe” to learn new things and find new pearls. Who knows, maybe your “tribe” will expand! Even when we disagree, we have to realize that God has put worth into everyone. If we can’t find it, the fault may well be on our side, not theirs. Be open to seeing God in someone new today!