{"id":286,"date":"2014-01-18T12:25:03","date_gmt":"2014-01-18T12:25:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/?p=286"},"modified":"2020-12-02T17:40:27","modified_gmt":"2020-12-02T17:40:27","slug":"can-anything-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/can-anything-good\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Anything Good\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

John 1:43-51<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

January 18, 2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a culture, we have an obsession with worth. We want to know whether something is \u201cworth it\u201d for us. We ask, \u201cIs it worth our time, energy, or money\u201d before we invest ourselves in it. It\u2019s no wonder that many people carry around Apple products like iPhones because based on reviewers and critics, it remains the best smartphone one can buy. It\u2019s worth it to spend more money on an iPhone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In our lesson for today, Nathaniel asks, \u201cCan anything good come out of Nazareth?\u201d and I hear him wondering, \u201cCan this guy from Nazareth be worth it?\u201d \u201cIs Jesus worth my time and energy?\u201d I think many people ask that question today: not of Nazareth, but of the church or Christian groups to belong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Living in the Bay Area is unlike any other place around the country. People elsewhere want to come here. But in many small, rural towns that most people have never heard of, many people would ask: \u201cCan anything good come out of there?\u201d In these abandoned towns, there are few jobs and few opportunities as highways keep routing people to larger cities. Most of the younger generation looks to leave as soon as they can, without plans to return. The older generation sees them leave and wonders if their community will slowly disappear or get absorbed by a larger city. Perhaps those who live there, even those who have lived there their whole lives, are beginning to ask, \u201cCan anything good come from here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The question is certainly not limited to small towns. This same question asked of hurting urban areas like Detroit or Stockton or Vallejo, once proud cities are now struggling to find their place in the new world. Stereotypes of crime and corruption haunt them. As these cities become associated with bygone days and slow decay, we wonder, \u201cCan anything good come from there?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our own San Francisco Chinatown has been in the news recently about the fact that it was once a tourist-destination has now become worn-out, un-kept, dirty, and nothing special to appeal to visitors. So investor Betty Louie is converting the Four Seas Restaurant across the street from our church into a locally grown, fresh ingredient restaurant with chef Brandon Jew leading the way to rebrand Chinatown one restaurant at a time. For now, we are saying, \u201cCan any good Chinese food come out of Chinatown?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nathaniel<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before our lesson, we have the account of Jesus\u2019 first disciples beginning with Andrew and another disciple who answered the call of Jesus when he said to them, \u201cCome and see.\u201d Then Andrew looked for his brother Simon and said to him, \u201cWe have found the Messiah.\u201d And when Andrew brought Simon to meet Jesus, Jesus immediately renamed him, \u201cPeter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next day, Jesus found Philip and said to him, \u201cFollow me.\u201d Then Philip found Nathaniel and said to him, \u201cWe have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.\u201d And at that point, Nathaniel said, \u201cCan anything good come out of Nazareth?\u201d Since Nazareth was considered a kind of a hick town, Nathaniel was wondering if anything worthy of his time and energy could come out of that small town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s interesting to see that Philip doesn\u2019t engage in that argument. He simply says, \u201cCome and see.\u201d To his credit, Nathaniel does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think about how often we miss out on opportunities to simply invite people to come and see. We argue and debate; we trick and cajole; we promote and persuade. Rather than trying to wear someone down, all we need to do is to invite people to come and see. Even when someone turns down our invitation, our invitation would have extended hospitality. This is essentially what the Reception Ministry is all about. We open up our church doors, light up our church sanctuary, put on a hot pot of Lanna Coffee and invite people to \u201cCome and see.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Jesus saw Nathaniel coming toward him, Jesus said to him, \u201cHere is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!\u201d Jesus knew that Nathaniel is the kind of person who says what is on his mind. No pulling punches, no polite answers but call it the way he sees it. From Nathaniel\u2019s point of view, \u201cCan anything good come out of Nazareth?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus somehow knows what he saw in Nathaniel when he was under the fig tree. And immediately, Nathaniel replied, \u201cRabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!\u201d He is opened to having his mind changed. It doesn\u2019t take him long at all to decide that, indeed, something very good has come out of Nazareth!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Nathaniel, you\u2019re always going to know where you stand. He\u2019s not going to sugarcoat it for you. He\u2019s not going to tell you polite things just in order to get along with everyone else. He is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I suspect that we have a lot of Nathaniels in the world today. They are intelligent people, speak their minds, say what needs to be said and probably have little patience to what the church has to offer them. They wonder if church is worth their time, energy or money. But if we serve like Philip, we don\u2019t argue with the Nathaniels in the world; we only invite them to \u201cCome and see.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Nathaniel, Jesus told him that he hasn\u2019t seen anything yet. If you like what you see now, get ready to see this Messiah is far more than you expect. \u201cYou will see greater things than these.\u201d And then Jesus told Nathaniel that he will see \u201cheaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man\u201d which is like Jacob\u2019s ladder or stairway with the assurance of God\u2019s constant presence and protection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Jacob when he woke up, he called it \u201cnone other than the house of God\u201d (Gen. 28:17,19) and named it Beth-el. Jacob saw it as the gateway between heaven and earth. So what Jesus is saying is that he is the gate, the true gateway, the Word became flesh\u201d that connects heaven and earth. Nathaniel is given this blessing of God\u2019s constant presence and protection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Come and See<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a church, we invite you and everyone to come to worship and see Jesus, the good that comes out of Nazareth. We invite you to come and meet Jesus and see how your lives will change as a result. We need to train ourselves to invite others in our homes, in our neighborhoods, in our workplaces and right here in Chinatown to come and see. Can anything good come out of this church? Well, come and see! Come and see the difference we make in people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We know that parents in Chinatown know that we have one of the best Day Camps in town and they have been sending their children here over the years. We know that we have young parents who deliberately moved back to FCBC because they want their own children to have the same kind of solid and firm foundation in Christ that they had growing up here. We know that youth and young adults talk about our church and invite their friends to come because of the excellent Youth Camp we have and now a Welcome Table serving great coffee. We have a well-established Friday Night School ministry that has helped countless immigrants settle in America because they learned English, became US citizens and most of all, developed a personal relationship with Jesus Christ as their Savior. People come and they get to see some incredible things\u2014greater things than these!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By accepting Philip\u2019s invitation, Nathaniel discovers Jesus is God\u2019s Son, the Messiah. While he follows as a disciple he will continue to see amazing miracles, healings, and teachings. When we open our eyes to see what God is doing in unlikely places, we see amazing things as well. Like Nathaniel, we have the opportunity to discover that Jesus knows the truth about ourselves and still cares for us. We also can see incredible moments of God\u2019s power and grace as God redeems our broken places and lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes we ask the question: \u201cCan anything good come from that family?\u201d We allow the struggles of past generations to define people, writing them off before they ever have a chance to succeed. We expect them to fail and so often they live into our expectations, having never heard another possibility for their lives. Behind their backs, we wonder, \u201cCan anything good come out of that family or those people or that kind of people, and etc.?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The good news is that we know that something good can indeed come out of Nazareth. If something good can come out of Nazareth than there is hope for all places and all people. This is a hopeful word that ministry is not restricted to big places or high temples. Struggling areas can also develop fruitful ministry. Broken people can exhibit fruits of discipleship. When we accept the invitation to \u201ccome and see,\u201d we witness God at work. When we invite others to come and see, we allow them to join in the amazing work of God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is being a Christian worth it? Is following Jesus a good value for our time, energy, and money? You bet it is!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

People will ask you, \u201cCan anything good come out of FCBC?\u201d I pray that you will declare like Nathaniel, \u201cAt FCBC, I have met Jesus who is the Son of God! I met the King of Israel! Would you like to \u201cCome and see\u201d for yourself?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let us pray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank you, O God for blessing us with the faith that you have come to save people like us in Jesus Christ, our Lord. As redeemed people, lead us to invite others to \u201ccome and see\u201d for themselves the love of Christ that they can have in their lives. Strengthen our witness in both words and in deeds to proclaim Good News in a world that seeks God\u2019s presence and righteousness. We pray that we may lead others to meet Jesus here at our church. In Christ we pray. Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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