Devotional: Greater Things

When looking back, it is impossible not to marvel at the faithfulness and the power of God. Even when we do not look for Jesus’ miraculous works, He comes looking for us to show us who He is and what He can do. That is what John 1:43-51 shows us. Up until this point in Jesus’ ministry on earth, He has been showing how He was present in every moment of history throughout the Old Testament. But here, in this dialogue with Nathanael, Jesus is in the process of unfolding the future plan of God, which will be even greater and more marvelous than anything before. Today, on the 20-Year Anniversary, we reached a similar moment in Chicago Tabernacle’s history. We cannot help but marvel at God’s faithfulness and power in the past. But we are being ushered into a new chapter of becoming towards greater things as a body of Christ. Just as Jesus promised Nathanael, we are preparing for greater things. What role will you play?

Questions for Meditation

1. Read John 1:48. Did Nathanael go looking for Jesus or was it the other way around? What does this say about how we come to know Christ?
2. Read John 1:48-49. What made Nathanael acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God? Is it a great thing when someone turns to Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sin and acknowledges him as redeemer?
3. Read John 1:50-51. What happened after Nathanael acknowledged Jesus as the Son of God? Why does the promise of “greater things” flow from opening your heart and acknowledging Jesus Christ as the savior and redeemer?
4. What does Jesus mean when He refers to seeing “heaven opening”? Who are the angels going to to and from heaven by way of Jesus?
5. Has Jesus looked for you and invited you to the doorway of heaven like He did for Nathanael? Having been invited into the Kingdom, are we all participants in greater things and seeing heaven opening to new souls that come to Jesus?
6. Have you prayed for God for a vision beyond your self by bringing others into the journey of becoming? Whether serving, praying, or giving, what will you commit to doing for the Kingdom of Heaven in this next phase of becoming?