As a Layman I always find and learn different things when I go a little bit beyond the word. Before we really get started on this weeks blog let’s examine the fact that Nathaniel is called Bartholomew because that’s his family name. Meaning he is the son of Tlmai and Nathaniel is his name. I will repeat that. To clear this up just a little bit, Betholomew is a surname or a family name and Nathaniel as we said above is his personal name. The gospel of John identifies him as Nathaniel while the other gospels referred to him as Bartholomew. Nathaniel is his Hebrew name. It means God has given. We find in the gospel of John that he is identified as Nathaniel. Now the other gospels, Matthew Mark and Acts referred to him as Bartholomew and he is listed as among the 12 apostles, they use his family name of Bartholomew. We can be sure that most scholars believe that Bartholomew and Nathaniel are the same person. Bartholomew, also known as Nathaniel is primarily known for his role as one of the 12 apostles of Jesus Christ that led to his missionary work. His missionary work was particularly in Armenia where he is believed to have been martyred, he also was recognized for his initial skepticism about Jesus which transferred into an unwavering faith. It is written of him that he was present at the last supper and that he did receive the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

He also uttered these words when first being made aware of Jesus…According to scripture, John 1:46  “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” many Jews of that day believed that Nazareth and all the areas around Galilee were quite a wicked place. We all know from scripture Bartholomew or Nathaniel however, you want to view it, Bartholomew did see the risen Lord and he was present at the ascension. In doing my research and reading for this blog tradition indicates that Bartholomew was a minister of the gospel in Persia and in India. Now there are several reports or theories  of his demise one being that he was skined alive, beheaded, and then crucified because he refused to worship pagan gods. But there is really no biblical record of his death, it was also said that he was tied up in a sack and dropped into the sea. But whatever we read and whatever manner he left this earth he did die a martyrs death, all the apostles, except John died a martyr’s death.

Join us next week as we continue this series about how the apostles going forth after receiving the Spirit on Pentecost.

Life is Good

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