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The term "apostle" literally means "one who is sent" and in its most basic definition refers to someone sent by God to a particular place or for a particular purpose. In that most general sense, there are still apostles today, people who are sent forth by God on very specific missions and with distinct commissions.

In scripture, the word is sometimes used in a higher sense to denote men who were chosen by God to be at the highest leadership level of the worldwide Christian church,

not as a pope or a king, but as an example in word and deed of what a true follower of Christ should be. Jesus chose twelve disciples to become the "inner core" and the future leadership of His church in the Book of Acts, and throughout the Gospels and Acts, these twelve men are referred to as "the twelve apostles." They were the men sent by Jesus to proclaim His Word and establish His church and kingdom upon the earth. Jesus would only briefly leave Israel in His ministry; it would be the apostles who would travel throughout the civilized world as missionaries. Jesus would never write a book in His lifetime with His physical hand; it would be the apostles who would write down His teachings and life and preach them to the world. Jesus would never settle permanently among a group of people besides the disciples and establish a local church; it would be the apostles who would shepherd the flocks and appoint overseers and pastors to keep them. And so while fulfilling the general meaning of the word "apostle" the twelve also raised its meaning in reference to themselves because these were special men -- not because of where they came from or who they were before Christ -- but special because they were handpicked by the Savior and chosen to perform a vital and powerful function in the kingdom of God; special because of their close proximity with the Savior in everyday life; special because despite their ordinariness they achieved great things. Jesus was extraordinary and unique, the disciples were not at first, but they became extraordinary and unique as Jesus transformed them!

In the scriptures and in history we are given but brief glimpses of these men, and yet what we do know about them teaches us much. In this series, we want to examine them one by one and apply the lessons gleaned from their lives to our own! We who are disciples of Christ today, must be transformed by His power to be what He has called us to be, and there is no better way to learn of His ways by studying His working in the original men whom He sent.

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A few of the twelve apostles, we know much about: Peter, James, John, and Judas Iscariot come to mind. For most we are given but a brief portrait and yet in those brief verses, we can learn much. We will begin our series with a disciple that probably would not be the first to come to your mind if asked to name the group. We will begin with Bartholomew.

As is common today, in Biblical times people often had multiple names and even nicknames. For example, "Peter" is a nickname given to the man named Simon Barjona by Jesus which means "small stone." "Bar" is Hebrew for "son of" and it was an often used title to distinguish and identify people in Biblical times. Simon Barjona meant "Simon the son of Jonas." Barabbas simply meant "the son of abbas." Bartholomew is literally in the Hebrew Bar-Tolmai or Son of Tolmai.

Almost all Bible scholars agree that Bartholomew and Nathanael in our text in the Gospel of John are the same person. The Bible does not say this directly but it can be figured out through deductive logic: in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, a "Bartholomew" is spoken of in the band of the twelve and never a Nathanael. In the Gospel of John, a Nathanael is spoken of in the band of the twelve and never a Bartholomew. All of the other names overlap and are accounted for, thus Batholomew is Nathanael is the same person.

The name "Nathanael" means "gift of God" and as we have mentioned Bartholomew is literally "the son of Tolmai." This could mean nothing because "the son of Tolmai" was a very common name in Jesus' time in the sense that "Johnson" meaning "son of John" is a common name today. Tolmai was probably not Nathanael's paternal father, but was the name of a well known ancient Hebrew master teacher which was famous for his focus on the Old Testament scriptures and applying them through reflection and thought to then modern times. As this is exactly what Nathanael was doing when Jesus found him, it is likely that he was a pupil of this way of thought. One thing is certain, Nathanael Bartholomew applied himself regularly to the study of Old Testament scripture even though he was not a religious professor or professional student in a seminary.

The Apostle Paul stands out among the Apostles as a disciple that was converted after a thorough high education in scriptures. And yet it took flashing lights, a period of blindness, and extreme measures on the road to Damascus to get Paul to "see the light" as to the truth of Jesus' identity. It only took one glance at Jesus for Bartholomew to know exactly who Jesus was! The first lesson of Bartholomew's life then is that we should learn to not be intimidated by those who purport degrees and higher levels of education when it comes to the truth of who Jesus Christ is. The Apostle Paul proves that there is nothing wrong with gaining higher education and masters degree and doctorate of divinities and thank God for those who apply themselves that way, but never forget that in the kingdom of God there are men and women who have diligently applied themselves to the study of scriptures who are closer to Jesus and have more easily grasped the deepest concepts simply because they believe what they have studied. From Bartholomew's life we understand a principle that just studying scripture for the sake of studying scripture will not necessarily lead to the revelation of Jesus Christ in your life, or even meeting Him! But if you, like Bartholomew, study scriptures in order to seek God and understand God and know God, then God will be sure to find you! Before Phillip ever came seeking Bartholomew to tell him about Christ, Bartholomew was seeking Jesus. If you will hunger for God and search for Him in the written Word, then He will show up to you in the Living Word!

Everything we know about Bartholomew Nathanael is found in seven verses in the first chapter of John. We will take them verse by verse and see what we turn up:

Philip was a close friend or relative of Bartholomew and had just found Jesus himself. Philip, Andrew, and John were the first three disciples of Jesus Christ and they all immediately led others to Christ. Andrew led Peter, John influenced James, and Phillip went and found his friend Nathanael Bartholomew. In reading this verse, you immediately get the impression that Philip and Nathanael Bartholomew had spoke of these things before. When Philip realized who Jesus Christ was, the first person that he wanted to tell was Bartholomew. No doubt they had many times discussed scripture and even searched them together and spoke of the Christ and how wonderful it would be when the Messiah would come. From Philip's words it is obvious that they had studied and discussed the prophecies throughout the Old Testament and how they would know that the Messiah was who He said that He was. And so Philip today is not coming with another scripture or promise that he has found, but today he comes with a positive identification: "we have found Him!" "His name is Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."

From this verse springs the obvious and yet startling conclusion that had Philip not been willing to go back and announce his finding to Nathanael Bartholomew, that this studious disciple, sincere and diligent, may have never found the One of whom He studied! This world is full of people who are searching the scriptures looking for the truth of a real God and a real experience and a real presence, and yet if those of us who have actually experienced what they are looking for, are too afraid to proclaim to them "we have found it," then it is possible that hungry souls search would be delayed. The key for Nathanael Bartholomew getting beyond just reading about what God was going to do and seeing God do it in his life was someone proclaiming to him "we have found it!" If you have found something that is real and is true, then you ought to go back to those with whom you had "spiritual" conversations before and say "I've found what we were wondering about and it is real!" It could be that God is waiting on you to activate His reality in their life.

Nathanael's reply has become a familiar phrase in modern times when we express disbelief and prejudice against a certain place. Nathanael Bartholomew's biggest fault was prejudice, but a type of subtle prejudice in the most common form that we see it today. Let me explain. The only other glimpse of information we have in scripture about Nathanael Bartholomew is found in John 21 when he was among those disciple who went fishing with Peter:

From this we learn that Nathanael was from the Galilean town of Cana which was just up the road from Nazareth. Nathanael was not racist in that he was discriminating or stereotyping people from another culture or region, but he was prejudiced by his own environment. Nathanael Bartholomew had been raised in Galilee in the same general cultural environment as Jesus. He had visited Nazareth on many occasions. He had been looking for the Messiah to show up, and in his mind's eye had already discounted any hope of the Messiah showing up from the circumstances that he had grown up within. By Him saying "can any good thing come out of Nazareth" he was saying "can anything good come out of my background and my upbringing?"

We are most prejudice against those with whom we are the most familiar. If you were raised in South Louisiana on the Mississippi border like me, then you are most skeptical of what God can do in people from similar background. Our upbringing prejudices us into doubting God's ability to do a good thing in similar circumstances. If you were raised as a northerner with little or only very formal religious background, then you are very skeptical about God's ability to do great things in that setting. If you have grown up in a poor Hispanic cultural environment, then know that you are naturally doubtful of God's ability to do mighty things among those raised similarly. If you were raised around the old influence of Castroville, then you are prejudiced against the possibility of God doing a great work within this city. Like Nathanael Bartholomew, we tend to think of God being able to work over there, but it will be hard for Him to do anything good here. And so if we are not careful, then church-going Castrovillians will believe the lie that God can move in San Antonio, but it's going to be hard for Him to move here. And the devil wants the San Antonio people to say "God can move out in Castroville, but it's hard for Him to move in the big city." And if everybody is expecting God to move elsewhere and everybody is doubting that God can move here, then God will not be able to move at all!

But it's time that we kill that prejudice attitude that brings doubt about God moving in what we are most familiar! Can anything good come out of South Louisiana/ South Mississippi? I used to think not until God sent Daniel Whaley to me to teach me a lesson! The lesson is this: with God involved good can come out of anywhere! Our personal feelings have very little to do with it! Not only a good thing came out of Nazareth, but the best thing that ever came from anywhere came out of Nazareth! With God involved, the best can come from any situation and any circumstance. Don't limit God with your prejudices and cultural ideals of what God can and can't do!

Philip didn't argue with Bartholomew, but just said "come and see." What a powerful lesson is found in that response! Philip didn't argue with doubt but simply told it "come and see for yourself!" When people are doubting God's Word, there is no use to debate scripture with them and quote texts and go on and on and on talking, but rather we should just invite them to come taste and see that the Lord is good! If they are really hungry, then they will come to see if Jesus is as He says He is! And if they truly come hungry, they shall be filled! Instead of arguing about whether or not the Holy Ghost is still given, our response ought to be "why don't you come receive it for yourself?" Our best testimony is simply "come and see that our church is different." "Come and see that the Bible says this." "Come and see that God's presence shows up regularly where we worship!" "Come and see that God has more for you than you have experienced." Come and see! If they are truly hungry, then they will take you up on your invitation. If they are not, then they won't respond. It's not your job to force them into action, but rather to give the invite "come and see!"

Upon seeing him, before anyone else can even introduce them, Jesus speaks and pronounces Nathanael Bartholomew as "an Israelite in whom there is no deceit." The KJV translates "there is no guile." The Greek word here means "craftiness and underhandedness" and implies having an agenda other than what you present. In other words, "false sincerity." Guilelessness is a lost trait in our world today. When you go to the car dealership, the smile and the handshake and the friendliness and the balloons are all a front that hides the real reason: they want to make money off of you. If they had seen you in the street under certain circumstances, they would not be as friendly. They have a "false sincerity." There is a lady that has been calling us repeatedly trying to sign us up for a "free vacation." She is super friendly and helpful and nice and wants to be our friend, but she is also wanting to sell us timeshares for her condo company. She is full of guile and deceit! She is the epitome of false sincerity. And there is something about false sincerity that turns people off.

As Christians, we must be guileless. There should be no other agendas that drive our actions but the Word of God and the Will of God in our life. We should be all about Jesus and that be our main agenda. You've met preachers who were super friendly and nice and yet had the hidden agenda of wanting your money. You've met people who were super nice because they needed something. But Nathanael Bartholomew was sincere to a fault. He was who He was and his only agenda was to find the Messiah! He no doubt worked a job, but his driving motive was to find the Christ. He no doubt took time off and had friends over and chilled out doing whatever Hebrew men did back then for leisure, yet the only thing that consumed him was to find his Savior! And friends and good times and pleasures and even career moves all took a second seat to an opportunity to possibly have the Messiah active in His life!

How many Christians would have to have the opposite said about them by Jesus? How many people have "false sincerity" as their life motto? They are religious at church and respond to the preaching and pray and read their Bible and speak and look and live like a Christian should. Yet, the driving force in their life and their ultimate goals in life has nothing to do with Christ, but has rather to do with money or fame or fortune or leisure or ease. Sincerity is defined by priority. What is it that is priority in your life everyday that you live? What is it that you live for? Why do you do the things that you do? What is it that you are spending your precious life with a goal in mind? Do you live each day trying to get to the weekend so that you can have off time and do something fun? Do you live each day trying to make more money so that you can have more things? Do you live each day searching for fulfillment in relationships and acquaintances? Or despite making a living and having fun and living a normal life, is a desire for Jesus to move and act in your life the real driving force and priority in your life!? When we act sincere in living for God, is it real sincerity, or is it false sincerity. Is it a genuine love or is it guile within us?

In our other text, we read the Psalm that said about God in the NASBU:

God will treat you in like manner to how you treat Him! He will approach you in similar response to how you approach Him! If you are pure motives and straightforward, then He will present Himself to you in a straightforward manner. Nathanael was not playing games with Jesus. He was not hiding some things and trying to find Him driven by a hidden agenda, but sincerely wanted to know Him! And so in like manner, Jesus was direct and straight with Him. No waiting around to find out where He stood with Jesus, but Jesus just told Him!

Our actions toward God determine God's reaction toward us. If you come trying to hide your sin and your fault then God will hide His mercy and help from you. If you come trying to disguise your problem, then God will disguise His answer. But if you will come open into His presence and not with a false sincerity, then He will not hide anything from you but will reveal Himself to you in whatever way you need Him to be! Some people never receive anything good from God because they never really reveal themselves truthfully to Him! They get no honest answers because they never give Him an honest presentation of themselves!

This particular fig tree must have been a common "secret getaway" for Nathanael Bartholomew to go and spend time alone reading scripture and expressing his most private self to God. From other scriptures we know that this was a common practice in Israel. The fig tree was the national symbol of Israel and so the Jews often reserved a spot as their place of spiritual activity and meditation (1 Kings 4:25; Micah 4:1-6; Zechariah 3:10). When Philip wanted to find him in a hurry, Philip knew where Nathanael would be if he wasn't at work and wasn't at home: under the fig tree.

We should have a special spot that we reserve for spiritual activity. My own is my office. It's not that there is anything holy about a particular room, but I can try to study at home or abroad, and yet I just feel right when I walk into my office at the fellowship hall. Because it has been there that I have most often talked with God and read His Word and so my mind and thoughts associate that place with God's presence. Jesus said in Matthew 5 that "when ye pray, enter into your closet." Not that you have to be where you keep your clothes, but that you need a place that is foremost used as a place to spend time with God. Nathanael Bartholomew had his fig tree where he spent time alone talking to God and reading His Word and expressing his doubts and fears and dreams to an Almighty God. Do you have such a place?

Being under the fig tree came to mean "being in safety" and when God comes back to reign on earth in the future, everyman will be able to "sit beneath his fig tree" symbolizing that they would be able to commune with God freely and intimately. If you want to make it as those who sit such then, then you must make time to sit thus now!

Jesus told Nathanael, "when you were under the fig tree, I saw you." They had never physically met before this day. Nathanael Bartholomew knew the scriptures that the eyes of the Lord roam to and fro on the earth. He knew the Psalms about how God sees all and watches over us and how that there is nowhere we can go and not be in His presence! When you are in your secret place, and all by yourself -- whether it be to sin or to praise -- never forget that there is someone else there watching who is God Almighty! He sees us when we are all alone! That is a comfort to those who are sincere and pure and a discomfort to those who are full of deceit and sin!

Realizing what this meant, Bartholomew immediately bestowed upon Jesus, three of the highest titles that could be uttered:

Rabbi -- in other words, "master." If you are such that you are the God who sees all and knows all, then you are rightfully in charge of my life! How many people there are today that realize that there is a God and yet do not submit themselves as Bartholomew did here to that God. To believe that He is God is one thing, to allow Him to be the Master and Lord of our life is quite another! But Bartholomew said "master" in saying "your word matters most in my life now." "Here I am, Rabbi, teach me what I should know." How many people come to God with the attitude "I already have studied the scriptures and I already know all things that I need to know?" But not Bartholomew!

Son of God -- You are God in Flesh! You are the One whom we have waited for! You are the God of the Old Testament come to save His people! How many people believe in God and yet do not have the revelation of who Jesus truly is?!

King of Israel -- It is my rightful duty to serve You! If you are truly this, then my only response is to do your will and serve your kingdom and give myself up for your cause! Many people today know that He is a king, but refuse to make Him King of their life! Bartholomew was saying "I am an Israelite, and you are my king, so here I am!"

Such a simple proclamation from Jesus had resulted in the greatest expression of faith from Nathanael Bartholomew! For such a faith and response, Jesus had a promise: "you will see greater things than these." How you respond to the smallest revelations of God's Word and plan in your life will determine the level of greatness that you will receive in living for God. I have seen people in life that were like Bartholomew in that the simplest revelation and the slightest touch, almost overwhelmed them and they were so grateful and full of praise. The slightest miracle was a reason to testify. The slightest thing was a reason to thank Him. We like people to appreciate what we have done for them, and when people are such appreciative, God responds with " you liked that? you will see much greater than that, what this. . . !"

On the other hand, I've known people that could have blessings falling on them like rain, feel the mighty hand of God in their life, and have revelations galore and yet yawn and seem oblivious in their taking for granted what God was doing in their lives! One thing is certain about such people: they are destined to see a future decrease of the blessings of God. Get excited about God blessing you and God will get excited about God blessing you!

This is one of the double affirmations found in the Gospel of John. The KJV translates it as "verily, verily" the NASBU as "truly, truly." Only John uses the phrase and only when quoting Jesus Christ. Jesus said the phrase 25 times and it is always to express the importance and profoundness of what He is about to say.

Jesus' words here are a reference to an Old Testament scripture in Jacob's life in the book of Genesis. In the scripture, Jacob is having to face his deceitful past and is having to sleep all alone with a rock as his pillow. God gives him a vision of a ladder or steps descending from heaven to earth and angels walking up and down it which is a way of confirming to Jacob, that God is with him and will help him and that he is being given access to the heavenlies.

I believe that the fact that Jesus brings this up indicates that Nathanael Bartholomew had recently read this passage and tried to apply it his life. And the answer and application that he had been searching for, was given to him by Jesus. I can imagine Bartholomew reading about Jacob's ladder and thinking to himself, "I wish that there were such a flight of stairs or ladder where God could descend to man and man could ascend to God." And there was such a ladder already in existence in the bodily form of Jesus Christ! He was God in flesh, God descending to come to where man is, and through contact with Him and the powerful sacrifice of Calvary, He was also a way for man to eventually ascend and live eternally with God. Jesus is Jacob's ladder -- God allowing access for mankind to come into contact with Him and be forever changed!

And so Jesus was saying "you will see heaven meet earth in me, Nathanael Bartholomew!" "I am the way, the truth, the life." "You will find access to the heavenlies through me!" Bartholomew got more than just a revelation of what the ladder meant, but found himself with his hands on the rungs! Oh, how Jesus exceeds our greatest expectations! But for Him to do that, we must be seeking Him and have expectations! Bartholomew was seeking truth, Messiah, and a way to get to heaven, He found all three and more in Jesus Christ!

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After such a detailed account of his coming to Christ, the scriptures fall silent in regard to Nathanael Bartholomew. We know that he was present with the other disciples after the resurrection on several occasions. He received the Holy Ghost in the first two chapters of Acts. After that, he is not mentioned in scriptural accounts.

The most reliable tradition of Nathanael Bartholomew's remaining life is that of the story of Panaenus of Alexandrea, a philosopher famous for wisdom, who traveled to India in the second century and found a Hebrew copy of the Gospel of Matthew which had been left by Bartholomew. It would seem evident from this that Nathanael Bartholomew spent the remainder of his life preaching the Gospel of Christ to the nations southeast of Israel and serving His king! He is traditionally believed to have died a martyr in the country of Armenia after his preaching had led to the conversion of one of the kings of the area. Tradition holds that he was crucified with his head downwards and then skinned alive.

Nathanael Bartholomew had spent the first part of his life searching for his master, Messiah, and king and he found Him in Jesus Christ and overcame his prejudice to serve Him faithfully until the end of his life! May the search for joy and true happiness in our life, be found in the same object as this apostle found -- Jesus Christ -- and may we serve Him as sincerely and faithfully as this apostle did!