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Grace, mercy, and peace of God our Father and of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Brothers and sisters in Christ, the texts are from both of the gospel readings, first from John, then from Luke, regarding Bartholomew. So yes, contrary to what you may have thought, Bartholomew is the same as Nathanael. Nathanael, of course, is what John used, but Bartholomew was what Matthew called him. And so that name stuck because John’s gospel was written about 50 years after Matthew’s gospel.
There’s not a lot known about Bartholomew other than what we have this morning in the gospel reading of John. Tradition says that Bartholomew, after leaving Jerusalem and that area of Judea, went far north… North of Iraq and Turkey into the country of Armenia and preached the gospel there. You may or may not know that Armenia is the oldest Christian nation in the world, claiming Christianity since the early 300s AD. But what we do know about Bartholomew, not in tradition, is that we do know he was one of the first of God’s 12 apostles. We know he was from Cana in Galilee, the same town as Peter. Right? We also know that he was sought out by Philip.
So Jesus didn’t come to him and say, “Hey, you, you’re the one.” Instead, God chose to call him through Philip. Philip comes excited to tell Bartholomew, “Bartholomew, we have found the one about whom it is written in the law and the prophets, this Jesus of Nazareth.” Bartholomew, being the dour man that he was, asks, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Bartholomew is a judger. He judges things by what makes sense in his mind, and in his mind, nothing ever good came from Nazareth, that scalawag of a town.
There are many of you who might say, “Can anything good come from College Station?” Or those of you who wear the maroon might ask, “Can anything good come from Austin?” Can anything good come from Nazareth? Now, Philip does something that I wish I could do more often, and that’s keep my mouth shut and just say what Philip said: “Come and see.” You and I, we love to argue. We give points on why they should understand and see these things. All Philip did was say, “Come and see, Bartholomew.”
So on the way, when he comes to see Jesus, Jesus reminds Bartholomew that he saw him before he ever saw him. And Bartholomew responds with simple childlike faith, “You are the Son of God.” That’s what we do know about Bartholomew. This was at the very beginning of Jesus’ time with Bartholomew. Fast forward to our Gospel reading from Luke.
The Gospel reading from Luke is three years later, after Bartholomew had seen all the miraculous miracles: resurrection from the dead, blind seeing, deaf hearing, lame walking, water to wine. For three years, he had heard every single one of Jesus’ instructions and sermons. For three years, he had been intimately knit into Jesus’ life. He was in a relationship with Jesus—a very intimate relationship with Jesus. And yet, after having supped the first Lord’s Supper, he’s found arguing with the other eleven about who’s the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Think about that. He has just been told this bread is Christ’s flesh, this wine is Christ’s blood; he has eaten the flesh and drank the blood, the sacrifice of Christ, received forgiveness, life, and salvation, and then, having received it, is so self-centered that he’s arguing with the other eleven as to who’s the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. This is one of God’s chosen twelve, this Bartholomew? Yes, it is. He’s just like Peter, James, and John— the ones we know a lot about their sin, don’t we? He’s just like them. And he’s also one of the twelve who run away from Jesus as soon as the soldiers come in the garden to arrest him.
Now, again, here is Bartholomew. He has just received the Holy Supper of our Lord Jesus Christ, and he leaves that moment. Instead of thinking about what God has done for him, he’s thinking about earthly things, earthly matters, and not heavenly things and heavenly matters. Sound familiar? Sound familiar? How long after we have left this altar do we start thinking about things in this world? How often after we have left this altar does our mind drift and think, ponder, and become consumed by thoughts and worries?
We’re just like Bartholomew, or you could say Bartholomew is just like us. Either way, we too will come to this altar with earthly concerns. And lest we think we can leave this altar more pious than anybody else, we’ll also leave it with earthly concerns. So then what does it mean to be served by Christ at this altar for you? What does it mean for Christ to come to you and serve you then? What does it mean that he who is divine has had you grafted into him at this altar when you eat and drink and are joined to him? What does it mean then? This eating and drinking, with you and me together at the same place at the same time, has to do with being heavenly minded? No, being earthly minded about heavenly things.
Solomon got it right. He said, “Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you.” That means you and I, because of our own sin, forsake. We don’t always hold fast to God’s steadfast love and faithfulness because of earthly fears and worries. Solomon goes on. “Do not lean on your own understanding. Be not wise in your own eyes. Fear the Lord and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.”
Paul said it in a different way, didn’t he? He said, “We have this treasure in jars of clay so that the surpassing power belongs to God, not to us.” It fits so well with the theme for our school year. We are the clay; God is the potter. Why is that so profound? Because it shows, as Paul says, that the surpassing power of God comes from God and not from within us. Here is where our Lord kept his mind and his heart on the very thing that it needed to be kept on to cover over for all the times when our mind chases those rabbits down those trails and those dark tunnels with fears, concerns, and worries.
Here is where his heart and mind were fixed purely on accomplishing your salvation and not about how it would affect his life. He did not deter or was not deterred from that focus for all the times when our minds are consumed by everything but what God gives us. Here is where he is shown to be the greatest of all because he serves all. Here is where he takes responsibility for your concerns and for you and your life and all that it looks like to him. He takes responsibility for you to show that the surpassing power comes from him.
So let’s take a look at this then. As Jesus broke the bread and gave it to each of those twelve disciples, he knew each of those twelve disciples would argue among themselves about who was the greatest. And you know what he did? He still served them. As he looked into each of their eyes, he knew they would abandon him in the garden. And you know what he still did? He served them his flesh and blood. He knew, as he looked at them and saw into their hearts, all of their reasons why they would run away, all of their excuses for why they were concerned. And do you know what he did for them? He served them his flesh and blood and his forgiveness.
In addition, look what he even says about them, knowing that they’re going to argue about who’s the greatest, knowing that they’re going to abandon him, and knowing all that is in their hearts and minds. Why in the world would God say, “For you are those who have stayed with me in my trials”? Because if God can say that about a sinner like Bartholomew, that’s what he says about you when you leave this altar after he has served you. If God can proclaim such things about someone whom he knows is going to sin and still says it, he sure can say it about you as you leave this altar, knowing full well your sins and what you will do.
That’s God’s word judging you, righteous because of Christ. And that brings joy. Think about it. He knows every thought that’s passed through your mind, every word that’s crossed your lips, and every action you have completed. Right? Not the ones that don’t bother your memory, but the ones that do bother your memory and Satan stokes that fire to remind you of. And he knows them. He knows them before you come to this place, and he knows them after you leave this place. And what does he do to you? He serves you.
He serves you. Even those things with which you struggle, with which you can’t stop seemingly. You wish you could pull back those words, and before they come out, they come out. You wish you wouldn’t have the anger or the frustration or the pulling back and becoming very independent. And yet, he still does what to you? Serves you. Even when it seems to be all-consuming, he still serves you. This is what he did to Bartholomew. This is what he does to you.
Repent, brothers and sisters. Repent of these worries, these earthly-minded thoughts, and these concerns that consume us, and come and be served by him. His desire is to be among you, sinners, every single Sunday. He desires to be among you and serve you with his forgiveness. That’s what his desire is. He wants to be the one who serves you. He doesn’t want you coming here bringing anything to offer him. You’ve got nothing to offer him but your earthly mindedness. He’s got everything to offer you. Knowing what you are before you come to his supper table and knowing what you will do throughout the week, he still does what to you? Serves you.
This is good indeed. Now we can argue with Satan all we want, but you can argue and justify things in your mind all you wish. Be like Philip who just said, “Come and be served. Come and see and be served.” That those things that plague you and me can be forgiven, cleansed, and our joy may be full in the name of the one who sups with sinners like Bartholomew and like you, Jesus himself.
Amen. The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and your minds on Christ Jesus, to life everlasting. Amen.
