Something about Nathanael

The book of John in the New Testament tells us a short story of how Nathanael meets Jesus. The following is that story:

"John 1:45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."
John 1:46 Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see."
John 1:47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!"
John 1:48 Nathanael said to him, "How do you know me?" Jesus answered him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."
John 1:49 Nathanael answered him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!"
John 1:50 Jesus answered him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' do you believe? You will see greater things than these."
John 1:51 And he said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man ( Holy Bible, ESV)."

In the foregoing verses, Jesus said that Nathanael was "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!" When Natahanael asked Jesus how He knew him, Jesus said: "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you." It appears that Nathanael knew that only God or the Fig tree knew where he was at the time he was under the tree, or something even more deep and spiritual took place that convinced Nathanael to believe in Jesus as the son of God. I am puzzled myself, but Nathanael was definitely convinced right away that Jesus was the Son of God.

References:

Holy Bible, ESV

Always Be Ready

Charlie H. Campbell is an apologetist I highly recommend, and below is the link to his website:

http://www.alwaysbeready.com/.

Doors, Gates, Puertas, and Portals

Doors, Gates, Puertas, and Portals

Psalms 24:7 reads:

"Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; that the King of glory may come in."


Everytime I read the foregoing verse, I think that those gates are strange because they have heads, unless they are people?

In John 10:7-9, the NT reads:

"So Jesus again said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.
All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.
I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture."

In the foregoing verses, Jesus said that He was the door, and Jesus was a person. Is anyone seeing what I am seeing here?

Mathew 23:13 says:

"But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.

Very interesting, in the previous verse I get the feeling that these scribes and Pharisees were not being open doors to the Kingdom of heaven. My interpretation is that God created us to be like Him, and if Jesus was a door than we are to be doors. The entire chapter 23 in Mathew speaks of the scribes and Pharisees, and it starts by saying: "so practice and observe whatever they tell you--but not what they do."

Finally, lets not do like the scribes and Pharisees who shut the Kingdom, but lets be a door just like Jesus. Lets be those ancient gates that allow others to enter the Kingdom of God! As the Psalms says: "Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in."

References:

Holy Bible (ESV)

JPS Tanakh