John – Lesson 13

John Chapter 7:27-53

In the first part of Chapter 7, we saw Jesus attending the Feast of Tabernacles at Jerusalem after first refusing to go with his brethren to the feast. We saw that Jesus’ own brethren did not accept that He was the true Messiah sent from God, and due to their hypocrisy, Jesus waited and went up alone. We closed as Jesus taught in the temple.

I.  Jesus is Urged to Attend the Feast of Tabernacles.

We see much murmuring going on about Jesus. We saw that most would not speak out openly for fear of the religious leaders of the day. Here they question if Jesus is not the very one that they sought to kill, while we saw some saw in the earlier verses that "he had a devil" making him think someone was out to kill Him. Be sure, there were many who wanted Jesus dead, but His time was not yet come. We see in verse 26 that they question whether the rulers really knew that Jesus was "the very Christ." But then they turn around and say that Jesus could not be the Christ since they knew his background and where he came from. What they did not realize is that Jesus was not Joseph and Mary’s son, but Jesus was the very begotten Son of God. Mary was his human mother, but Joseph was not his father. Jesus was the one and only virgin born man on this earth.

These comments so moved Jesus that he cried out to them that they only thought they knew Him. Jesus was not the son of Joseph, but the Son that came down from heaven. Jesus says that his is not come of myself, but of He who sent me. Some there might have had some knowledge of God, but no one there knew God like Jesus. Being a part of the God head, Jesus was God manifested in the flesh. He had the mind of God. John Calvin commented that it as if Jesus was saying "You have your eyes fixed on the earth, and you think that you see all of me, and therefore you despise me as an unknown son of the earth. But God will testify that I come from heaven. While I may be rejected by you, God will testify that I am in reality His, because God is true."

Last week, we gave a number of scriptures about how that many times they sought to take Jesus, but he walked right through their midst because his time was not yet come. God had a perfect time for Jesus to be born on earth, a perfect time for Him to have His ministry, and a perfect time for Him to die as our substitute for sin on Calvary. And there are some more perfect days in the perfect timetable coming up, and one that is sure to come to pass soon is when Jesus comes to take us out of this old world prior to the 7 years of tribulation. Jesus was truly in danger of men all through his ministry, but we do not see Him walking around in fear. You and I are not to have that spirit of fear either. I heard about a man in the cemetery of Westminster Abbey in England that had written on his tombstone, "He feared man so little because he feared God so much." Think about that. If we fear God properly, we will not fear man.

Even amidst all of this turmoil and doubt, praise the Lord, some believed on him. When you and I go out and witness, not all will believe. But there will always be a few and perhaps even fewer as the days grow shorter until Christ’s coming. But the people knew that another would be hard pressed to do more miracles than Jesus had done. One more paragraph from the commentary on John by John Calvin. "It might appear that Christ was preaching to the deaf and utterly obstinate, and yet the evangelist says that some fruit followed. So while some people may grumble, others smile, and others slander; and though many differences may arise, the preaching of the Gospel will not be without effect. So we must sow the seed and wait patiently, until eventually the fruit appears. The words "put their faith in Him" are used here in an imprecise way, for they relied more on the miracles than on teaching and were not convinced that Jesus was the Christ. But as they were ready to listen to him and allowed themselves to be taught by him, such a preparation for faith is called faith. Sow when the Holy Spirit gives to a small spark of the right attitude such an honorable title, it should encourage us not to doubt that faith, however small, will be accepted by God." I want to add that even faith itself is a gift of God. The Holy Spirit draws us, and we do have to acknowledge and accept Christ, but faith and repentance are gifts of God also. Man has nothing to boast of before God, since salvation is wholly of the Lord.

We see the Pharisees heard the murmuring of the people, and they decide to send officers to take Jesus. It is amazing how when truth goes forth, Satan is quick to try and quench it or water it down where is not really truth at all. What Jesus spoke was total truth. He tells them that He will be with them for a little while, and then return to the one who sent Him. Always remember that Satan is not ignorant of the scriptures. I believe some of Satan’s biggest demons are ministers of light in this old world today. They preach "part truth" and "part error." It is crucial for us to not only read the Word, but to study it where we can truly "rightly divide the word in truth." When the Devil came to tempt Jesus, he quoted scripture all three times to try and trick Jesus. But Jesus knew all scripture, and partial bits of the Word did not mislead Him. How about you and I? What versions of the Bible do you study? Are you sure that those words are the very words that God had men to pen? I believe with all my heart that we have the true Word of God today that God has preserved for man until the end of time. And it is not just in the original transcripts, but written in ink on the pages of the King James Version of the Bible. This version was not translated from corrupt texts of liberals who set out to destroy God’s Word. We can trust the words that are penned and not have to question each verse as to whether it is accurate or not.

None of us will ever be able to ascend into heaven unless Jesus provides the way, and that is what He was speaking of in verse 34. The Jews are so earthly and carnal that all they could think about was where Jesus might go to hide from them. They thought that perhaps he would go outside of the country to where other Jews were dispersed. This made them fear that Jesus might teach the Gentiles since they perceived the Gentiles as a lower class that was unfit for the things of God. God help us to never think that we are superior to others. There are really only one class of people on this earth. Sinners. Some are lost, others have been saved. But all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God.

Yesterday, I went down and helped to mow down my Dad’s overgrown garden. It was hard, dirty work, and when we finished, we went back in the house and he asked me if I wanted a coke. I told him I wanted some cold ice water. When you are really thirsty, nothing satisfies your thirst like pure water. And when it comes to the spiritual thirst, there is only one drink that satisfies forever, and that is our Lord Jesus Christ. Today, I know I will need another physical drink of water to satisfy this old body. But what Jesus did for me spiritually in 1963 is still satisfying me here today in 1998. Of course I have to read my Bible to stay in close fellowship, but the spiritual water has never and will never run out. As it says in verse 38, those that believe on Jesus will have rivers of water flowing out of his belly. We won’t stop to read these verses, but compare these verses on the living water in John 4:14-16, John 6:36, Rev 22:17, and Isaiah 55:1.

Many today don’t want to know the truth. If you tell them what the Bible says, they sometimes reply "I don’t care what the Bible says. This is what I believe." I don’t know about you, but I sure care what God’s Word says about things. The Bible teaches that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Until we fear the Lord properly, we are not wise truly, but only wise in our own minds. Satan has us right where he wants us. Relying on ourselves which is never a stable position. But when we base our decisions on "thus saith the Lord", we have a solid rock, an unmoveable foundation that will never fail us.

I have always loved these verses. It says that they wanted to take him, but no man laid hands on him. And all these religious leaders want to know why the soldiers did not bring him to them. And their reply was "Never man spake like this man." And why was this? Because Jesus was no ordinary man. He was God Himself. All the knowledge of all the ages was at His disposal. They marveled at the wisdom of Solomon, but Jesus was far superior to David’s son Solomon.