"Being Real"

[Read John 1:43-51]

Comedian George Burns used to say:

“Sincerity is the key. If you can fake that, you’ve got it made.”

Another comedian, W.C. Fields, was caught reading the Bible.

When asked why he was reading the Bible, he said:

“I was looking for loopholes.”

When I hear the word “loopholes” I think of tax loopholes.

A tax loophole is something that benefits the other guy.

If it benefits us, it’s called tax reform.

Billy Graham has something to say about loopholes:

“You’re born. You suffer. You die. Fortunately, there’s a loophole.”

That loophole is Jesus.

The loophole is we are not punished for our sins when we die because Jesus died for our sins.

Loopholes and sincerity.

I bring up loopholes and sincerity because the character who we are introduced to in our text for today is a person who is apparently quite sincere and isn’t looking for loopholes.

It’s quite a compliment Jesus pays Nathanael the first time they meet.

When Jesus saw Nathanael walking toward Him, he said, “Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false.”

Some other translations read in whom there is no deceit.

The King James reads in whom there is no guile.

That’s not something that could be said about everyone and not even about every Christian.

Jesus knew about Nathanael before the two ever met.

Jesus also knows what we are really like.

Does that thought make us comfortable or uncomfortable?

If we are honest people, we will be comfortable with that thought.

If we are dishonest people, we will not be comfortable with that thought.

I. The Sin of Guile

Sometimes we have good intentions.

And yet we tend to be calculating in our speech.

We weigh what we say to put our best foot forward.

The different words used by the different translations pretty much mean the same thing: false, deceit, guile.

I kind of like the word “guile” because even the word has a dark sound to it.

A person with guile sounds like someone you would want to avoid.

Deceit or guile is translated from the Greek word dolos which comes from an even older Greek word meaning “decoy.”

We all know what decoys are, especially you hunters.

They are not real.

The word “crafty” is a synonym for guile.

Do you remember who is first identified in the Bible as being “crafty”?

It was the serpent in the garden.

Genesis 3:1 = Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made.

The serpent is the devil.

Even today the devil, whose name is Satan, is a crafty being.

He is a liar and the father of lies.

Satan will tempt us to lie or stretch the truth or exaggerate.

Jesus declares that there is no guile in Nathanael.

Nathanael is not crafty nor deceptive.

He is not out to take advantage of others.

So if Nathanael was without guile or deceit, it means that he made no claims about himself that he did not strive to live up to.

Nathanael gave honest answers.

He was sincere and upright.

It was indeed a great compliment Jesus gave him.

Jesus calls Nathanael a true Israelite or an Israelite indeed.

This indicates that God’s intention for the people of Israel was that they be without guile or deceit.

The Israelites were to be people of integrity.

Nathanael becomes a model for the kind of character Jesus’ followers were to display.

II. Living Without Guile

Guile sometimes begins with what behavioral psychologists call “compartmentalizing.”

People sometimes compartmentalize different areas in their lives into watertight compartments in their minds, each with its own set of ethical rules.

In other words, you have one set of rules for one compartment and a different set of rules for another compartment.

That wouldn’t be a problem if the different compartments were to remain sealed.

But that is faulty thinking because the different compartments do not remain sealed.

Our lives cannot be divided up into compartments.

The compartments only exist in our minds and they are not real.

They are imaginary compartments.

In the animal kingdom, dogs comprise one species that’s surely without guile.

It’s generally easy to know what dogs are feeling because it shows all over their bodies.

If they are happy to see you, you know it.

What you see is what they are.

They don’t seem to possess the genes for deceit.

The problem is we are more complex than dogs.

We are complex individuals who are sometimes driven by motives that we’re not even aware of.

We are shaped by experiences and scars from our past.

In our dealings with others, we sometimes use defense mechanisms such as denial, rationalization or passive aggression.

When we are able to be radically honest with ourselves, we can work to get past the defense mechanisms.

Once we get past the defense mechanisms, we can deal with conflicts in more straightforward ways.

To be without guile doesn’t mean that we have no social skills.

Sometimes we assume that having social skills will require that we lie in relatively innocent dealings with others.

We call them white lies.

For example, saying something tastes good when it may not taste good.

Or saying something looks great when it may not look great.

These actually can be difficult situations.

It is possible to be sociable and friendly without lying, though it takes a bit more thought.

But let’s maintain a proper perspective on this.

The little white lies are not going to land us in Hell.

I’m not advocating white lies.

I’m just saying that if you have a choice between hurting Grandma’s feelings and saying a little white lie, go with the little white lie.

I can’t believe I just said that.

III. Having an Open Heart to Truth

On a much more important level, on a higher level, to be without guile means to live with our hearts open to truth.

It means not running from the truth.

It means that when we become aware of unflattering truth about ourselves, we make the necessary changes truth requires of us.

We don’t bend facts to fit some false idea of ourselves.

We are truthful with others and truthful with ourselves.

We admit it when we have made a mistake.

What’s interesting about Nathanael is that he had a prejudice moment right before he met Jesus.

Nathanael said, “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?”

It’s like some of you who live in Coon Rapids saying, “Blaine! Can anything good come from there.”

And those of you living in Blaine saying, “Coon Rapids! Can anything good come from there?”

Notice how quickly Nathanael abandons his prejudice once Jesus speaks to him.

Nathanael is amazed by Jesus and asks “How do you know me?”

And then shortly after that, Nathanael declares “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.”   

One commentator describes Nathanael as “a good man, hampered by prejudice, but quite willing to be enlightened.”

People Without Guile Are Pleasant People.

Have you ever lived or worked around someone who is sneaky?

How did it make you feel to be around that person?

Probably not good.

Father Roy Cimagala, a priest in the Philippines, commented on this Scripture reading on Nathanael.

He said:

“People without guile are humble enough to accept things as they are, never bending them to make the pieces fit their own ideas. Rather, the contrary. That’s why you immediately feel good every time you meet such persons. They always exude such welcome and wholesome aura (or’e) about themselves in spite of their imperfections. They contribute in making society more at peace and in harmony.”

Living with integrity and exuding a wholesome aura does not make one a Christian.

There are certainly people of integrity who are not Christians.

To follow Jesus means to embrace Him as Savior and Lord.

Then, as a Christ-follower, we choose to follow the example and teachings of Jesus.

But living without guile is one expression of loving God and loving our neighbor.

There may be times when it would be convenient to lie,

            Or to be sneaky,

            Or to take advantage of someone else,

            Or to misrepresent our actions,

            Or to deny our wrongdoings,

            Or to do some other devious thing.

But Nathanael serves as a reminder that Jesus praised a life without guile.

And if Jesus praises a certain lifestyle, it’s the right thing to do.

We can’t pretend to be something we are not.

God wants us to be real.

God knows the real you and the real me.