John 1:51, commentary and pictures

Jesus promised Nathanael that having believed from seeing Him under the fig tree, he would see still greater things with heaven opened and God's angels ascending and descending upon the Son of man. The ladder Jacob saw is Christ Himself, planted on earth and reaching to God's throne, joining finite humanity to the infinite God as the only medium of communication between heaven and earth. The ascending and descending angels show constant traffic between heaven and earth, bearing prayers upward and bringing blessing, protection, guidance and help to those who will inherit salvation. Through His merits, sacrifice and intercession Christ has bridged the gulf made by sin, so fallen people have access to the Father, receive pardon and grace, and are lifted into communion with God unto everlasting life. God calls every person to climb this ladder by clinging to Christ step by step, looking upward to Jesus, aided by angels and divine grace, until persevering climbers enter the everlasting kingdom.

Promise to Nathanael

Jesus gave this promise to Nathanael after wavering faith had become firm and he had confessed Him as the Son of God and the King of Israel. Because Nathanael believed from the evidence that Jesus had seen him under the fig tree, Jesus answered that he would see still greater things than that. Hereafter he would see heaven opened and the angels of God in active ministry ascending and descending upon the Son of man, as God's messengers moving to and from Him. Seeing Jesus swept away Nathanael's prejudice and unbelief, and firm, abiding, trusting faith took their place.

Nathanael had opened his mind and heart and believed without any questioning unbelief, and Jesus looked with pleasure upon that sincere, guileless faith. When God speaks, His word is to be recognized and carried out in daily actions, for God never honors unbelief and questioning and doubt. When the heart is in living connection with God, the voice that comes from above will be recognized.

Nathanael represents the sincere Christian pleading with his Father in heaven for light to know the truth. He had grace but less light, yet he held fast unyieldingly to the light and truth he had, unsatisfied to grope in darkness and wanting clearer light, and the Lord did not leave him in darkness. His case calls for earnest seeking for the truth with humility, prayer, fasting and earnestness, as Nathanael did. Jesus saw him praying under the fig tree and answered his prayer.

The promise belongs to the entering upon the great work of Christ's earthly life, when He called disciples one by one from their humble occupations to accompany Him, receive His divine teachings and witness His mighty miracles that they might publish them to the world. John, Andrew, Simon, Philip and Nathanael were thus chosen, with Andrew bringing Simon Peter and Philip bringing Nathanael. The first disciples bringing relatives and acquaintances to Christ by personal effort shows that every follower, young or old, should tell others of Jesus and the friendship found in Him. This work has a part for every follower and cannot be left entirely to ministers, and faith is exercised and strengthened through faithful work for others, bringing growth in faith and Christian life.

Christ the Mystic Ladder

The ladder Jacob saw in his dream is Christ, the mystic ladder and appointed channel and link joining earth to heaven and finite humanity to the infinite God. Its base is firmly planted on the earth while its topmost round reaches to the highest heavens and to God's throne, and upon the Son of man heaven is opened with the connection between heaven and earth made visible. Through His atonement the communication broken by transgression is restored, and the vision of heaven open with angels ascending and descending revealed to Jacob the plan of salvation. The ladder reaches from humanity's lowest degradation to the highest heavens, and people ascend it through God's goodness and not by strength alone, never being left to struggle alone.

Christ is the only medium and open way of communication between God and sinful humanity, the only connecting link through whom alone the repenting sinner finds pardon and sinners are restored to communion with God. Since the fall all intercourse between heaven and earth has been through Christ, and heavenly messengers minister to people and to those who will inherit salvation through Christ alone. Through Him angels pass between heaven and earth with messages of love, and the ascending and descending angels mean ministering angels can hold communion with man.

As the Son of man His human nature has its foot on earth, touches the earth and embraces the whole human race, while His divine nature reaches heaven, lays hold of the Infinite and remains united with God's throne. With His human arm He encircles the race and with His divine arm He grasps the throne of the Infinite, joining fallen humanity to God and opening communication between God and people. By taking human nature He joined Himself and His interests to fallen humanity while His divinity reached the throne of God, serving as mediator between God and humanity.

The ladder's foot on earth represents His descent into human suffering, humiliation and sympathy for fallen people, and its top reaching heaven represents His divine power and union with God, joining finite people to the infinite God. In the apostasy man alienated himself from God and earth was cut off, divorced and separated from heaven across a gulf made by sin and transgression, with no communion across it. But Christ with His own merits, atonement, righteousness and sacrifice has bridged that gulf and linked earth again with heaven, so that through Him people have access to the Father, receive pardon, mercy and grace, and have the way to salvation and everlasting life. He is the golden chain uniting earth and heaven and humanity's only hope, through whose sacrifice humanity can be lifted from sin into connection with heaven's light, without which every child of Adam would remain in bondage to sin; He comes to people where they are, saves them through His merits and sacrifice, brings them back to God giving divine nature and moral power to honor the Creator, and is the way to everlasting life and the pattern whose example people follow, with escape for humanity if people keep God's commandments. The ladder also pictures gradual progress upward toward God's wisdom.

Open Heaven and Angels

The opened heavens at the Jordan, when the Spirit descended upon Jesus, were the sign that He is the Son of God, and through faith in Him heaven is opened to believers and remains open. The ascending and descending angels show a constant, continual communication kept up between heaven and earth by a direct and important channel, so that heaven knows earthly affairs, its counsels are carried out on earth, and human actions are judged in heaven. They report what they have done and the state, condition and conduct of individuals, receive further orders and carry them out, observe human conduct, and carry upward the record of the deeds of all people.

The angels bear the prayers of the needy and distressed to the Father above and bring blessing and hope, courage and help, health and life to the children of men. They create a heavenly atmosphere about the soul, lifting people toward the unseen and the eternal, and they are sent to bring help to those who seek God, even before a discouraged soul asks. Ascending and descending upon the Son of man, they are ministering spirits to those who will inherit salvation, encamping around those who fear and love God. They guard and keep the subjects of grace from evil angels and the darkness Satan throws around them, watching and guarding people, keeping them from the influence of sin and sinning, helping them in weakness and guarding them from moral and physical danger, and cooperating with Christ and with human agents in seeking and saving the lost.

They carry messages of mercy and warning from heaven to earth and move upon human minds and hearts, bringing love, comfort, reproof, light, instruction and encouragement, and the rays of light that believers shine come directly from Jesus. Christ's work of relieving the oppressed, healing the sick and breaking Satan's power, and His miracles for the afflicted and suffering, were accomplished by God's power through angels, and all blessings from God to humanity come through holy angels. Their work of relieving suffering and ministering to suffering humanity, whether for salvation of souls or removal of physical pain, is in harmony with the Sabbath law, so healing the afflicted on the Sabbath accords with their work.

Angels were also assigned to ascend and descend with strengthening balm from glory to soothe the Son of God in His sufferings and minister to Him. God is above the ladder and His glory shines upon every soul ascending heavenward and along the whole length of the ladder upon every round, bringing light, strength and encouragement. That shining reveals the plan of salvation and the heavenly court, and shows that heaven stands open to earth, God oversees His work, and heavenly wisdom and light from heaven reach the inhabitants of earth. In every assembly angels ascend and descend the heavenly ladder under Christ's direction, Christ is present, and God's glory shines upon the congregation.

The forms of angels cannot be beheld with natural sight and the harmony of their voices cannot be heard with the natural ear; heavenly things are discerned only by spiritual vision and heavenly voices heard only by the spiritual ear.

Salvation and Heavenly Mediation

Through Christ earth is linked again with heaven after the apostasy in which man alienated himself and earth was cut off with no communion across the gulf sin made, for with His own merits, atonement and righteousness He has bridged that gulf and restored sinners to communion with God. He is the only medium of communication between God and fallen humanity, the appointed way by which alone the repenting sinner finds pardon, and since the fall all intercourse between heaven and earth has been through Him. In weakness and helplessness fallen man is thus connected with the Source of infinite power, with His human arm encircling the race and His divine arm grasping the throne of the Infinite and reuniting finite man and earth with God and heaven. This gives living faith that believers are not alone but that One stands near beholding all their works and ready to help in every emergency, so that trusting God as refuge and helper they are kept by God's power through faith unto salvation, can lay hold on divine power, and have strength to resist temptation and overcome.

The mystic ladder opens the way into the holiest to the world, as the link between earth and heaven on which angels ascend and descend upon the Son of man. Christ is the golden chain uniting earth and heaven and humanity's only hope, for through His sacrifice humanity can be lifted from sin into connection with heaven's light, and without it every child of Adam would remain in bondage to sin. He comes to people where they are, spans the gulf made by sin to give access to the Father, saves them through His merits and sacrifice, and brings them back to God, giving divine nature and moral power to honor the Creator. He is the way to everlasting life and the pattern whose example people follow, with escape for humanity if people keep God's commandments, and heaven's glory reaches the lost by a way to God's throne beginning at the cross.

Through Christ heaven is joined to earth and humanity has access to God, for Jesus intercedes before God for sinful people, pleads humanity's cases with the Father, and people may share God's throne. At His baptism on Jordan's banks His prayer pierced through Satan's hellish shadow to the Father and heaven was opened, making way for the prayers of every fallen son and daughter of Adam to enter through gates left ajar. Everyone coming to God presenting Christ as Advocate and credentials is accepted in the Beloved, with faith respected and prayer heard, while Christ pleads the petition before the Father without and the Holy Spirit pleads within. Christ mingles His own righteousness as fragrant incense with the petition so it ascends to God with power. At the same time every deed is open to divine justice and human deeds are open to the scrutiny of divine justice.

The sacrifices begun after Adam's fall had value only as they pointed to Christ, the true sacrifice and mediator who died for human sin. This connection was represented at Jerusalem by the worship, sacrifices and divine presence centered on the sanctuary, for Christ is the way into the holiest of all. Yet those who give themselves to unbelief place themselves where the Spirit of God cannot find access to their hearts, and God will not devise some new way to reach hearts shut away from the light, so it is at the peril of their souls that they refuse the light.

Climbing the Ladder by Faith

Coming to Jesus sets the feet upon a ladder reaching from earth to heaven with God over all above it, and God calls people to climb it. Its base rests firmly on earth and its top reaches heaven and the everlasting kingdom, its rounds represent Christ's merits which are grasped by faith, and Christ Himself is its first step. There are lower rounds and a first round where sinful, ignorant souls must begin, and all in their sinfulness may lay hold of Christ by faith as Redeemer and be saved.

Climbing means holding fast and clinging to Christ the Mediator, looking constantly upward and heavenward to the top and to Jesus with eyes fixed on the glory there. It begins with the first step and goes upward step by step, adding the graces of the Spirit, entering fellowship with Christ's sufferings and being shaped in His likeness until His character is formed. So Christ becomes wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption to the believer, as revealed in spirit and words and actions.

As they advance climbers must leave earthly hindrances behind, including attachment to possessions and convenience and personal advantage and frivolous living, and following Christ involves making every sacrifice. Overcoming requires continued effort and spiritual vigilance, and letting go of Christ leads to ruin.

People ascend through God's goodness, not by strength alone, and are not left to struggle alone. Angels help those willing to climb, guard God's people, watch each step and keep them from falling when the gaze is fixed on God's glory at the top, and their help is available to every soul who truly desires it. Divine help is sent when the hand relaxes and the foot trembles, grace is multiplied as needed, and light and strength and encouragement bring companionship and comfort and help, with abundance of light in heaven for those who climb in confidence in the heavenly Father without doubting His promises. Trying to reach the highest step without beginning at the first is the wrong way.

Not one who perseveringly climbs will fail but will have everlasting life and step off the top into an abundant entrance into the everlasting kingdom, where none shall pluck them from Christ's hand. Through Christ alone heaven is made sure, where all is purity and holiness and peace and blessedness with glories mortal lips cannot describe. The reward awaiting the overcomer is a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, an eternity of bliss unfolding new glories through ceaseless ages.

Weak, doubting, struggling newborn souls who call upon the Lord will see heaven open before them with angels ascending and descending the ladder of shining brightness they are trying to climb. The Lord marks the conflict of every such soul and helps all who call upon Him. As newly believing souls seek counsel and the society and spiritual encouraging conversation of those who love and fear God, they will experience this open heaven and angelic help while discerning and resisting temptation.

Everyone who has seen the evidence and light of truth and accepts it, professing faith in Jesus, is a missionary in the highest sense, a receiver of heavenly treasures whose duty is to impart and diffuse what is received. Believers are to hold to Christ and work to lift others from a perishing world, join angels in unselfish service rescuing people and bringing them back to loyalty to God, trusting heavenly angels will join their efforts and bring power from above. As workers they are to meet people at the lower rounds showing them where to put their feet and leading them upward step by step instead of standing above with precise methods, while angels of heaven work with human workers and the church in heaven draws near to help the church on earth in zeal and unity. Keeping sight of God above the ladder as the source of all power teaches one in influence to remain His humble agent, walk in holiness and look to eternal life, keeping honor and influence from becoming pride.

The ladder is to be taught by pen and voice in clear, hopeful language that melts the heart, showing how to escape deserved shame, and never in a way that discourages or makes the way to heaven seem very difficult. Because heaven stands open to earth and God oversees His work, heavenly wisdom is available and the needs of the Lord's work in distant lands must not be neglected nor the work diverted into wrong channels by self-sufficient men.

One who has blessed assurance that Jesus is his receives a foretaste of divine glory, with visions of rapture bursting on sight and heaven open above. Angels descend from above bringing echoes of mercy and whispers of love, giving perfect submission and perfect delight and rest and happiness and fullness of goodness while watching and waiting looking above.