“How do you know me?” Nathanael asked.
Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”
Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”
John 1:48-49 (NIV)
That brief, mysterious first meeting between Nathanael and Jesus shows us how deeply moved he was when Jesus said the words, “I saw you under the fig tree.” Those words convinced Nathanael that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God. They were words that could only have meaning for Nathanael, and no one else. It makes us wonder what happened with him under that fig tree, but scripture leaves it to our imagination, not giving us the details.
We can only imagine that Nathanael might have been in a place of desperation, praying and talking to an invisible God, then wondering if He really hears him. Maybe he was asking God to show Him if He is really there. Whatever it was, the defining moment happened when Jesus told Nathanael that He saw him under the fig tree. Jesus personalized His message with words that were significant only to Nathanael.
If we think about it, we’ve all had fig tree moments in our lives. It might have been a time when we received fearful news, or a serious diagnosis for ourselves or a loved one, or maybe it was a new overwhelming responsibility.
In difficult times, we often wonder if God is still there, but He always finds a way to signal us that He is. Like Nathanael, He personalizes Himself into our fig tree moments, and in some way, confirms that He is with us, reinforcing our faith in Him.
I’ve had many fig tree moments, through various trials, but the most recent ones were related to my son’s traumatic brain injury. While Jon was in a coma for two weeks, I used to go to the UPS store to pick up his mail. One day a totally new person who I never saw before, was at the desk. He brought me Jon’s mail, but then he paused and said to me,
“I want you to know that I have been praying for your son.” It was kind and caring of him, but so unusual to hear it from a stranger who I’ve never met before. Jesus speaks peace to us in our distress, and sometimes He does it through a stranger.
There was another incident, such as the day I was telling my banker about Jon’s accident, and a total stranger in the bank, came up to me afterward, asking his name so that she could pray for him. I have no doubt that it was another fig tree moment.
Fig tree moments remind us that God sees us in times of our greatest distress, and while we think we are alone, wondering if God is near, He signals us that He is. Jesus heard and saw Nathanael, and He also hears and sees us. For all those times when it felt like no one else knows what we are going through, Jesus wants us to know,
“I saw you under the fig tree.”
One day, I drifted into a mood of asking God why He doesn’t answer certain long awaited prayers. Faith is challenged when certain things we pray for, seem to be worsening. While in that state of mind, I turned on the Christian radio station in the car, and the person on the radio said,
“We tend to ask God to work within our plans rather than asking Him to lead us in His.”
It seemed to confirm that God saw and heard me under my fig tree in that moment. Just knowing I was heard and seen by the Lord, is a gift in itself. If we open the ears and eyes of our heart, we’ll find that Jesus uses various means to give us signs that He is here with us. We can be assured that all will be okay, since Jesus is leading us according to His perfect plans.
Lord, thank you for loving us through special moments, where you give us signs, confirming that you are here. Open our hearts to know when a fig tree moment has just occurred. Amen
