Nathanael Called By Jesus – John 1:45-51

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Today is Wednesday, March 20, 2024

January 5 2024: Bible Verse of the Day – Christmas Weekday January 5 (Memorial of Saint John Neumann, Bishop), Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, archangels, Feast of Saint Bartholomew, Apostle – Nathanael Called By Jesus – John 1:45-51

Jesus saw Nathanael coming towards him and said of him, “Here is a true child of Israel. There is no duplicity in him.”
Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.”
Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” – John 1:45-51

Catholic Readings For Today

Christmas Weekday January 5

Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, archangels

Feast of Saint Bartholomew, Apostle

Today’s Healing Prayer

Today’s Bible Verse of the Day Reflections

At first read of this passage, you may find yourself needing to go back and read it again. It’s easy to read this and think you missed something.

How is it that Jesus simply told Nathanael (also called Bartholomew) that He saw him sitting under the fig tree and that was enough for Nathanael to reply, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.”

It’s easy to be confused about how Nathanael could jump to such a conclusion from the words Jesus spoke about him.

But notice how Jesus described Nathanael. He was one with “no duplicity.” Other translations say he had “no guile.”

So what does that mean? If one has duplicity or guile it means they are two-faced and cunning. They are skilled in the art of deception.

This is a dangerous and deadly quality to have. But to say the opposite, that one has “no duplicity” or “no guile” is a way of saying that they are honest, straightforward, sincere, transparent and real.

As for Nathanael, he was one who spoke freely about what he thought. In this case, it was not so much that Jesus put forth some form of convincing intellectual argument about His divinity, He said nothing about it.

Instead, what happened was that this good virtue of Nathanael, of being without duplicity, enabled him to look at Jesus and realize that He is “the real deal.”

Nathanael’s good habit of being honest, sincere, and transparent enabled him to not only reveal who Jesus is, but it also allowed Nathanael to see others more clearly and honestly.

And this quality benefited him greatly as he saw Jesus for the first time and was able to immediately comprehend the greatness of who He is.

Reflect, today, upon how free you are from guile and duplicity. Are you also a person of great honesty, sincerity, and transparency? Are you the real deal? Living this way is the only good way to live.

It’s a life lived in the truth. Pray that God helps you grow in this virtue today through the intercession of St. Bartholomew.

Prayer: Lord, help me to be free of duplicity and guile. Help me to be a person of honesty, integrity and sincerity. Thank You for the example set by Saint Bartholomew. Give me the grace I need to imitate his virtues. Jesus, I trust in You. Amen.

Bible Verse of the Day in Pictures

Nathanael Called By Jesus - John 1:45-51 - Bible Verse of the Day
Nathanael Called By Jesus – John 1:45-51 – Bible Verse of the Day

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About Laban Thua Gachie 10721 Articles
The founder of Catholicreadings.org is Laban Thua Gachie. I am a Commissioned Lector, a commissioned Liturgy Minister, and a Commissioned member of the Catholic Men Association. We at Catholic Daily Readings, operate the catholicreadings.org, a Catholic Church-related website and we pride ourself in providing you, on a daily basis the following; 1. Catholic Daily Mass Readings 2. Reflections on those Daily Readings 3. Daily prayers 4. Bible Verse of the Day 5. Saint of the Day