Skeptical of the Son of God

Nathanael said to him, “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” “Come and see!” Philip told him. John 1:46 

It would be an easy thing to say that we live in a skeptical world. But this is not always the case. Consider how many people believe that rather than being demons out to deceive us that ghosts are the disembodied spirits of human beings that flutter around this world until they can be brought to peace with some matter left undone in this world. Or consider how many people devote their lives to the pursuit of alien life forms and try to contact them. Or even consider the fact that the search for the Loch Ness monster continues to this day. No, far from skeptical, many people are open to vast areas of thought…even open to gullibility at times. Except for in one area…. 

All human beings are skeptical about the Son of God. We are born into this world doubting God and His plan for our lives. Fascinating isn’t it that the same people that are willing to invest in paranormal equipment to contact ghosts are unwilling to invest time in God’s Word. Fascinating isn’t it that the same people who would go to the ends of the universe to find other life forms would not be willing to crack open the cover of a Bible to find the Creator of the heavens and earth. Fascinating isn’t it that the same people who would search the depths of Loch Ness for a cryptozoological creature are unwilling to search the depth of their hearts to see they need the Savior. Our fellow human beings are willing to believe anything…well, except Jesus. 

So we give up on them, right? Hardly. We, rather, work all the more diligently to bring them to the Savior. Perhaps some of you are old enough to remember the Synod evangelism push entitled “Come and See!” The idea was taken from this very passage of Scripture. The method was simple. We simply invited the skeptical among our family members, friends, neighbors, and coworkers to come and see, to come worship with us and hear the words of Jesus proclaimed. And while some would remain skeptical, others would have their hearts opened by the Holy Spirit the same way that Nathanael’s heart was opened when Jesus simply revealed that He had seen him sitting under the fig tree when Philip shared the good news with him. 

By nature, we are skeptical about God’s plan for salvation. On our own, we will not seek to know God. We will instead seek truth in all the wrong places. This is because by nature we are susceptible to the deceptions and lies of the evil one. We need someone to lead us to the truth. We need someone to share the gospel with us and to lead us to come and see the Savior just as Philip did for Nathanael. Praise God that someone did that for you. Now join the Savior’s ministry of seeking and saving those who are lost in the world’s skepticism. Blessings, 

Frank Van Brocklin 

Principal Teacher 

The following events are coming up this week at Immanuel Lutheran School:

❖ Students will be going ice skating for the second quarter Accelerated Reader field trip on Thursday, January 11.

❖ Second quarter ends on Friday, January 12. Student assessment reports will be sent home on Monday, January 15. 

❖ Our A and B basketball teams will be travelling to Trinity Marshfield for basketball games on Friday, January 12.