and open it up to the Gospel of John, chapter 7.
We're going back to our series through the Gospel of John,
and it's been a few weeks since we were there,
so we're going to take a few minutes just to recap all that we've heard and seen in John's Gospel.
John's Gospel is the account of John of the story of Jesus.
As we said at the beginning of the series, if the Apostle John could be here with us this morning
and tell you the story of Jesus, this is what he would say.
This is what he saw, what he heard, what he experienced.
John began his account in a different place than the other Gospel writers did.
He tells us that Jesus' story goes back to the very beginning.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John tells us that back then, before all things were made,
this one, the Word, or the Son, he was with God, and he was God.
John tells us that all things that have been created were created by and through him.
And then he tells us that the Word, the Son, became flesh and lived among us.
And we celebrated that just a few weeks ago at Christmas.
And John said this, he said,
We have seen his glory, glory as of the only begotten Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
And so as we've been working our way through John, we've been looking to see,
What did you see, John?
What did you see of Jesus' glory?
How did you see that he was full of grace and full of truth?
From there, John took us to the shore of the Jordan River.
We heard about John the Baptizer and his little run-in with the Jewish leaders
that were sent from Jerusalem to see what was going on.
We heard a little of what John had been saying.
There's somebody great coming after me.
He stands among you, even now.
And we saw through John's eyes that moment when the Baptizer pointed to Jesus for the first time
and said,
Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
This is the one I've been talking about.
We heard about how some of Jesus' first disciples, as a result of that, began to follow Jesus.
Andrew and Peter, Philip and Nathaniel.
We heard a little of their expectation as they began to share the news with one another
that we found the Messiah.
We heard Jesus tell them,
You guys haven't seen anything yet.
Just wait.
From there, John took us to Jesus' first public sign,
the wedding at Cana,
where he, in the back room, did an amazing miracle
and turned a whole bunch of water into wine.
Then we followed Jesus up to Jerusalem,
where he marked the Passover with his disciples.
And we saw how Jesus began to cause a stir as he flipped the tables in the temple courts of the sellers
and drove the money changers out of the temple courts,
which brought him into conflict with the religious leaders.
We read about how Jesus did several signs during that visit to Jerusalem,
and how many people believed, and yet the faith of these people was also suspect.
Jesus wouldn't entrust himself to these people because he seemed to know things about them,
even what they were thinking.
John gave us the example of Jesus' conversation with Nicodemus,
a member of the Jewish ruling council.
And we listened as Jesus told this teacher of Israel about how he needed to be born again
by the Spirit of God in order to enter the kingdom of God.
From there we saw how there was this noticeable shift.
Many of the baptizers' disciples were now going to Jesus.
And the crowds were dwindling for John and increasing for Jesus.
John the baptizer was kind of fading into the background,
and Jesus was taking the spotlight and the attention of the whole nation.
We saw how Jesus made this quick stopover in Samaria on his way back to Galilee,
where he encountered the woman at the well
and revealed himself to her as the Messiah and to the townspeople,
and many believed.
Then we saw him again in Cana of Galilee,
and it was there that some tensions began to rise
as Jesus started to come face to face
with the unbelief of the people in his own region.
It was there that he healed the royal official's son from a distance.
After that, John skips ahead to another time
that Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a festival.
And we saw how Jesus healed the man who hadn't been able to walk for 38 years
at the Pool of Siloam.
And he did that on the Sabbath.
And we watched as this brought Jesus into a very sharp dispute
with the religious leaders.
In fact, John told us then that even before this run-in,
they had already been plotting to kill him.
But now this was intensified even more.
Jesus began to say some things to them
in the hearing of others that really bothered them.
He began to tell them about his unique, special relationship with God.
A father-son relationship unlike anything we've ever heard or seen.
Jesus said that the works that he's been doing are small beans
compared to the kinds of works that the Father is going to give him to do in the future.
Things like raising people from the dead to life
and calling people out of their graves to judgment at the end.
He said he will be the one who will judge on that day
on behalf of his Father.
He said those who believe in him will receive eternal life.
And he began to expose and challenge the unbelief
and the pride and the self-centeredness of the religious leaders.
From there, Jesus went back to Galilee.
He crossed over to the other side of the sea.
And John tells us that there was a massive crowd following him around,
numbering over 5,000 people.
And we saw how Jesus amazed them all by making bread and fish
enough to feed the whole lot of them out in the middle of nowhere
with nothing but a boy's lunch.
We watched as Jesus sent his disciples back across the lake
only to join them later on in the middle of the night
walking out to them on the water
in the middle of a storm.
Then when they were back on the other side,
we listened as many of the crowd from the previous day
caught up with Jesus.
And Jesus talked with them in the synagogue.
And he challenged them to really read and understand
the signs that he was doing correctly
and to believe in him.
He told them that he was the bread of life
that had been sent down from God,
from heaven to give life to the world.
And we saw as that conversation went from tense
to an all-out argument.
How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
Some said.
After that, we watched as many of Jesus' followers left him
and decided they were done following Jesus.
But even though many left him,
the twelve and probably a few more
stayed with him,
the faithful few.
So this is the story that we've heard from John
up until this point.
Let's turn our attention now to what happens next
in John chapter 7,
starting in verse 1.
After this, Jesus went around in Galilee.
Galilee is that northern region
right up there.
He kind of has the towns of Cana
and Capernaum and Nazareth up there.
He was moving around there.
He was conducting his ministry there.
He was doing his signs.
All that he has been doing.
But up in this region in Galilee,
he did not want to go about in Judea
because the Jewish leaders there
were looking for a way to kill him.
So Jesus stayed up in this northern region of Galilee.
Judea is down here, of course,
where Jerusalem, the capital city, is.
That's the place where the temple is.
That's the place where all the religious leaders
and the ruling council are headquartered.
And that's the place where he is wanted the most.
So he's staying up here in Galilee,
conducting his ministry there.
And it might be a little bit tempting
to jump to conclusions here
or to make assumptions.
We might wonder,
is Jesus afraid of their religious leaders?
But of course, we can only guess
at what's going on in Jesus' heart and mind.
John only tells us that he didn't want to go there
because they were looking for a way to kill him.
Now, if it was me that they were looking for,
you'd bet I'd be anxious.
You bet I'd be afraid.
I'd be thinking of how to get out of the country real quick.
But we can't assume that Jesus feels
or even thinks just like we do
because as we've seen many times,
he often doesn't.
Verse two.
But when the Jewish festival of tabernacles was near,
John tells us that the festival of tabernacles was near.
Throughout the year, there were several festivals,
like this one, that they would have.
And people from all over the land
would go up to Jerusalem
and mark these festivals
just as God commanded the Israelites to do
back in the days of Moses.
And you can just imagine
with all these people going up to celebrate
and to worship, to mark the festival,
this is going to be interesting.
The tensions have never been as high
as they are now between Jesus
and the religious leaders.
Jesus is a wanted man.
They want him dead.
And so will Jesus head back down to Jerusalem
yet again for the festival
even while they're trying to kill him?
Verse three.
Jesus' brothers said to him,
leave Galilee and go to Judea
so that your disciples there may see the works you do.
No one who wants to become a public figure
acts in secret.
Since you're doing these things,
show yourself to the world.
So as the day of the festival is drawing near,
Jesus' brothers tell him to go down to Judea,
the very region that he's been avoiding.
Why?
They say so that your disciples there
may see the works that you are doing.
Now I'm not really sure
just what Jesus' brothers are thinking here.
At first it might seem like
they're just simply giving him
some good brotherly career advice.
Jesus, you should go back to Judea.
The festival will be starting soon
and you should try and reconnect
with some of your followers there.
They need to see the things
that you've been doing here in Galilee.
They say,
for no one who wants to become a public figure
acts in secret.
Since you're doing these things,
show yourself to the world.
On the surface,
it kind of seems like reasonable advice,
doesn't it?
And truly, it's not unlike the advice
that we might hear in our world today.
If you want to make a name for yourself,
you need to put yourself out there.
You need to connect with your followers.
But then John,
the one telling the story here,
says this,
for even his own brothers
did not believe in him.
So there's something else going on here.
The advice that they are
probably,
that they are giving
probably contains a hint of cynicism.
Perhaps they're saying these things
with a little bit of mockery in them.
To be honest,
I'm not really sure
what the tone of their voices is
or what they are truly meaning here.
But we kind of get a sense
that it's probably negative.
Like, come on, Jesus.
If you are the Messiah,
and you're doing all these amazing signs
and miracles
which confirm it,
go down to Jerusalem
and prove it.
Make it official.
Make it all happen.
Get onto the world stage here.
That's what the Messiah
is supposed to do.
Whatever they're thinking,
John tells us
that even though
they were his brothers,
they did not believe in him.
That's maybe a surprising thing,
isn't it?
We kind of expect
that if anyone would believe in Jesus,
it would be his own brothers.
The people who know him best.
The people that he grew up with.
And yet,
just because they were close to him
all those years,
didn't mean
that they believed in him.
And it kind of leaves us to wonder,
well,
what did they believe about him?
If they didn't believe
that he was the Messiah
sent from God,
what did they believe about him?
what are the alternatives?
Did they believe that he was a con artist?
Did he believe he had somehow perfected
the art of fooling people
with elaborate tricks?
Did they believe that he was making claims
that were not true?
A deceiver?
Or did they just think
that he was out of his mind?
We can't be sure here.
But one thing stands out to me
in all this,
and it's that Jesus was truly human.
So much so
that his own brothers
couldn't see past his flesh
and bones
to know that he was more than just a man.
I don't know how they explained
away the miracles that he did
or maybe in their own warped thinking
they kind of convinced themselves
that he was just some kind of
self-righteous older brother
who was always looking down on them
and exposing the things
that they didn't want
people to know about or see.
I got thinking about this
in terms of what's going on
in our world today.
With COVID and political upheaval,
we know all too well
how easily people can come
to polar opposite viewpoints
on things
and just get real dug in
about those things.
Well, somebody's got to be right.
There is truth and fact
in all that's going on.
But somehow,
as it often happens with people,
Jesus' brothers
are just not seeing straight.
Maybe they're just kind of,
you know,
putting up with him
and his grand delusions.
Or at best,
maybe they just don't really know
how he can do these miracles.
Maybe they are hoping
that he'll be successful,
but they just kind of have their doubts
and their reservations.
They don't believe in him.
How is it that Jesus' own brothers
do not see the glory
of the one and only Son
who came from the Father?
I think it harkens back
to what Jesus said earlier
to his followers
just before this in chapter 6.
John 6, verse 64.
Jesus said,
Yet there are some of you
who do not believe.
Verse 65.
This is why I told you
that no one can come to me
unless the Father has enabled them.
unless it has been granted to them
by the Father.
There's more going on here.
For some reason,
at least for now,
Jesus' brothers remain in the dark.
Blind to the reality
of just who their own brother is.
So they give their advice to Jesus.
The brothers do.
And then Jesus gives
his response to them.
He replies in verse 6 to 8.
Therefore Jesus told them,
My time is not yet here.
For you, any time will do.
The world cannot hate you,
but it hates me
because I testify
that its works are evil.
You go up to the festival.
I'm not going up to this festival
because my time has not yet
fully come.
So Jesus says a lot here.
And to be honest,
I'm not entirely sure
just what Jesus means
by all of it.
It's interesting.
What is clear
is that he tells his brothers
that he's not going
to this festival,
at least not yet.
Not now,
as they've been encouraging him to do.
And then he urges them
to go on ahead of him.
You guys go.
I'm not going yet.
And his reason
for not going yet,
it seems,
has to do with timing.
He says,
My time is not yet here.
For you,
any time will do.
What is Jesus referring to
by my time?
There are a couple
different ideas here.
One is that it's like
what he says in other places
when he says,
My hour has not yet come.
But probably the view
that makes the most sense to me
is that he's simply talking
about the time to leave
and go to the festival.
And there's a couple
good reasons for that.
First,
he doesn't use the word
for hour
like he does
in the other places.
Here he uses the word
for time
or it's a more general word,
appointed time
or season.
And in addition to that,
in the original language,
you can see
the clear emphasis
on his pronouns.
It kind of pops out to you
in the way
that it was phrased.
My time is not yet here.
For you,
any time will do.
In other words,
what I think Jesus is saying
is something like,
you guys can go up
to the festival anytime.
Whether you go today
or tomorrow,
doesn't matter.
But for me,
there is an appointed time.
And that time
is not yet here.
And this is maybe
more similar
to his statement
about,
in those other places,
about his hour
not yet having come.
I think what Jesus
is saying
is that he is under
a special constraint
that his brothers
are not.
just as Jesus
can't act
or speak
apart from what
he sees his father doing
and hears his father
saying
in some mysterious way
that we don't understand.
He is also bound
or constrained
to this certain time,
this timeline
by his father.
Father and son
acting in harmony
and synchronization.
And Jesus,
the son,
for his part,
is in the role
of submission
to his father.
So Jesus says,
you guys go on ahead.
My time to go up
is not yet here.
For you guys,
it doesn't matter
is what I think
Jesus is saying.
But then in the middle
of all this,
Jesus makes this statement
about the world
hating him.
Somehow this factors
into Jesus' timing
as well.
Jesus says,
the world cannot hate you,
but it hates me
because I testify
that its works
are evil.
Another statement
of comparison
and again,
the emphasis
is kind of on the pronouns,
you versus me.
The world cannot hate you.
Why not?
We're kind of left to wonder.
Perhaps Jesus is implying
that the world
cannot hate them
because they're a part
of the world.
I'm not really sure.
But what is clear
is why the world
hates Jesus.
He gives us the reason.
He says,
because I testify
that its works
are evil.
In other words,
there is a strong
current of opposition
to Jesus
that factors into
Jesus going into Judea
and when he will go up
to the festival.
There are some
who hate him
and we know
as we've heard
in the story
that this hatred
has been building
over the past while
both from the religious leaders
and now
it's building
amongst the people
in the crowds
that he's been talking to.
Why?
Why do they hate him?
Jesus says
they hate him
because he has been
testifying
that their works
are evil.
What does Jesus
mean by that?
Well,
it's maybe a little
more difficult to see
but this has been
happening all along
through the story
right from the beginning.
Jesus has been
exposing
the sinful thoughts
and attitude
and behaviors
of the people.
He's been,
in a sense,
shining the light
on them
and telling them
that what they're thinking,
what they're doing
here and there
is wrong,
is sinful.
In fact,
in the Gospel of Mark,
Mark just tells us
quite plainly,
right from the get-go,
Jesus' message
was this,
repent
and believe
the good news.
Repent,
turn from your
sinful ways,
your wicked ways,
and seek
God's forgiveness.
righteousness.
We saw Jesus
testifying
that people's
works were evil
at the temple courts
as Jesus
flipped the tables
and drove the sellers
and exchangers out.
Stop turning
my father's
house
into a marketplace,
he said.
In other words,
what you're doing
here in the temple courts
is evil.
We saw it
with Nicodemus
in a much
subtler
way
as Jesus
essentially
told him
that despite
how good
he thinks
he's been
or what
his position
is,
it's not
good enough
to enter
the kingdom
of God.
He told
Nicodemus
about the
unbelief
in Nicodemus'
own heart.
We saw it
with the Samaritan
woman
and how Jesus
said that he
knew about
her past
five relationships
and about
how she was
with a man
right now
that she
wasn't married
to.
He didn't
even have
to say
that's wrong.
She knew
it.
But Jesus
did bring
it up
and he
exposed it.
I testify
that its
works are
evil.
We saw
it with
the crowd
back in
chapter five.
Jesus
said there,
unless you
people see
signs and
wonders,
you will
never believe.
Again,
exposing
the evil,
the stubbornness
in their
hearts
as they
refused to
listen to
him.
We saw
it with
the man
from the
pool of
Siloam
that he
healed on
the Sabbath
day.
After Jesus
had healed
him,
Jesus
bumped into
him again
later that
day at
the temple
and he
said,
see,
you are
well again.
Stop
sinning or
something worse
may happen
to you.
I testify
that its
works are
evil.
We saw
it with the
religious leaders
that same
day as
Jesus told
them about
how they're
not seeking
God's
glory,
but instead
they're
seeking
glory from
one another.
I testify
that this
world's
works are
evil.
We saw
it with
the people
from the
feeding of
the 5,000.
When they
came back
across the
lake,
Jesus said
to them,
do not
work for
food that
spoils,
but for
food that
endures to
eternal life.
What you're
seeking is
all wrong.
You're
looking for
me not
because of
the signs
I did,
but because
you ate
the loaves
and had
your fill.
Again,
Jesus
testifying
that their
works are
evil.
It's not
always explicitly
talked about
in John,
but you can
see hints
of it all
throughout.
And it's
going to
happen even
more as
we go on.
This was
part of
Jesus'
ministry
from start
to finish.
He
proclaimed
that people
should repent
and turn
from their
sinful ways,
their wicked
thoughts,
attitudes,
and as
it says
here,
their
works.
He
testified
that
people's
works
were
evil
in
general
ways,
as he
taught the
people about
how they
should live
righteously
in the
Sermon on
the Mount.
And he
talked to
people about
how their
works were
evil in
very personal
ways,
as he
spoke with
individuals
about their
very specific
sinful
behaviors.
Jesus'
message was
not just
God loves
you and
I love
you.
His
message was
those things,
but it
was also
repent,
turn from
your sin,
believe in
me so
that you
will not
perish and
receive what
you deserve
for your
sins.
There are
many in
our world
today who
are trying
to hide
this little
phrase,
I testify
that its
works are
evil.
They're
trying to
say that
Jesus only
spoke about
how he
loved
people,
or that
he was
always
affirming
of people
no matter
how they
lived.
It's
simply
not
true.
Jesus
talked
about
sin all
the time,
and he
was not
afraid to
call people
out for
their sins.
That's why
they hate
him.
That's why
they wanted
to kill
him.
That's why
they did
go all
the way.
to taking
his life
when they
executed him
on the
cross.
They wanted
to get
rid of
this man
whom God
had sent
to shine
the spotlight
on their
sin,
on their
evil thoughts
and attitudes
and works.
God
John has
brought this
dynamic to
our
attention
back in
chapter 3
verse 19.
This is
the verdict.
Light
has come
into the
world,
but people
loved
darkness
instead of
light
because their
deeds were
evil.
Everyone
who does
evil
hates
the light
and will
not come
into the
light
for fear
that their
deeds will
be exposed.
That's what's
going on
here.
Jesus
not only
exposing
the sin
of a
couple
people,
he's
exposing
the sins
of everyone
in all
kinds of
ways
and people
don't like
it
because they
love their
evil ways.
And this
is not just
something that
happened back
in Jesus'
day.
This is a
dynamic that
describes what's
going on
even today.
The world
still hates
Jesus when
they hear
him expose
and testify
that their
works are
evil.
Now,
Jesus is not
here in the
flesh,
but whenever
we,
as Christians,
teach or
preach or
tell others
of what he
said about
sin,
they don't
like it.
They recoil.
And if the
light comes to
shine too
brightly on
something in
particular that
they've been
doing,
they can get
mad and
angry.
Don't you
dare tell me
that how I'm
living is
wrong,
is evil.
Don't you
dare tell me
that someday
I'm going to
face judgment
or go to
hell.
But the
truth is that
Jesus talked
a lot about
hell.
Why?
Because it's
a real danger
for sinners
like you and
me.
Unless we
repent.
and believe
in Jesus.
Back to
Jesus'
answer to
his
brothers.
He says,
I'm not
going up yet
to the
festival because
my time is
not yet
here.
You go
on ahead.
Verse 9.
After he
had said
this,
he stayed
in Galilee.
However,
verse 10,
after his
brothers had
left for
the festival,
it says,
he went
also,
not publicly,
but in
secret.
And this
is how
things started
to go.
Now,
at the
festival,
this is
verse 11,
the Jewish
leaders were
watching for
Jesus and
asking,
where is he?
Among the
crowds,
there was
widespread
whispering
about him.
Some said,
he's a good
man.
Others
replied,
no,
he deceives
people.
But no
one would
say anything
publicly
about him
for fear
of the
leaders.
Can you
feel the
tension here
in Jerusalem
as thousands
are gathered
for this
festival?
Tension
between the
people who
came up
to attend
the festival?
Tension
between the
people and
the leaders?
Fearing that
they might be
caught on the
wrong side of
things?
There's
whispering
going on?
And we'll
find out what
happens next
Sunday.
But for this
morning, let's
take a few
minutes to just
reflect on what
we've heard so
far.
How does this
all apply to
us?
How can we
respond to it?
How can we
relate to it?
There are a
number of
points in
which this
applies to
us.
First, there's
a big focus
here on the
simple question
of who is
Jesus.
Everybody in
Jerusalem is
talking about
him, whispering
about him, and
different people
have their ideas
about him.
He's a good
man.
No, he's a
deceiver.
Who is
Jesus?
Even Jesus'
brothers don't
believe that
Jesus is who
he has been
claiming to be.
All of this
really should
bring us to
consider for
ourselves, who
is Jesus?
Who do you
think he is?
Second, much
of this section
is focused on
Jesus'
relationship with
his brothers.
John shows us
that it is truly
possible to have
known, to have
known Jesus all
your life, and
yet not truly
know him.
That's kind of a
scary thought.
That was Jesus'
brothers.
I wonder if you
have any kind of
feeling that maybe
you can relate to
that.
Perhaps you've
known and heard
lots about Jesus
from the time you
were young.
You've been in the
church lots.
You're pretty sure
that you've got
Jesus figured out.
But do you see
him as a mere
man, like his
brothers did?
Or do you see
him as the one
who was sent
from God, the
son of God, the
Messiah, the king
who will someday
come back to
judge and to
rule our world?
This is really the
key issue here.
Do you believe
Jesus?
And I don't
mean just believe
that Jesus will
save you.
Many people
believe that.
But do you
really believe
Jesus and what
he said and
taught?
His brothers,
at least so
far, it says,
do not believe
in him.
Many of the
people in
Jerusalem think
that he's a
fraud and a
deceiver.
What about
you?
Do you
believe?
Jesus.
Fourth, do
you believe
what Jesus has
been saying to
everyone, to
the world?
Do you
believe him when
he says that
your works are
evil?
Do you
believe what
Jesus says,
that you are a
sinner who needs
to repent, to
turn from your
sinful ways, to
seek God's
forgiveness, or
else you will
perish?
Do you
believe that you
are guilty for
your sins against
God?
Do you believe
that you're in
real danger of
perishing in
hell because of
your sins?
Does this
message of Jesus
stir up hatred
for you in your
heart?
Or are you
ashamed of this
message of
Jesus?
Or do you
believe that
Jesus is
right and
that you
really are in
need of his
forgiveness and
saving?
Are you deeply
thankful in your
heart for what
Jesus did at the
cross to deal
with your evil
works?
I know I am.
finally, I
believe there's a
simple word of
encouragement here
for those of us
who have family
members who do
not believe in
Jesus.
Do you know
that Jesus knows
what it's like
to have family
members who do
not believe?
He has lived
with that reality.
And for him,
it was even more
personal because he
was the one that
they did not
believe in.
The Lord Jesus
hears your
prayers for
those in your
family who do
not believe.
His heart knows
deeply what you
are feeling for
them.
By God's grace,
there did come a
day when Jesus'
brothers came to
believe in him.
Acts 1,
verse 14,
talks about how
the church was
all gathered
together after
Jesus had
ascended.
And it says,
they all joined
together constantly
in prayer,
along with the
women and Mary,
the mother of
Jesus,
and with Jesus'
brothers.
Talks about
there,
in those days,
Peter stood up
among the
believers.
Jesus' brothers
were among the
believers.
By God's grace,
there came a day
when Jesus'
brothers had a
change of heart
and a change of
mind towards him.
A day when they
knew that he was
so much more
than just their
brother.
father.
So do not lose
heart for those
family members
that you have
who do not
know the Lord.
They may not
believe in Jesus
today.
They may seem
blind or hard
to what you say
about him.
They may even
disapprove,
mock,
or look down
on you for
believing in
Jesus,
but don't give
up on them
yet.
Keep asking
the Lord Jesus
for their
salvation.
The power of
God's grace
and mercy
can soften
even the
hardest
of hearts.
Let's pray.
Father in
heaven,
thank you for
your words
to us.
Please cause
them to sink
deep down
into our
hearts and
help us to
know what
we can do
with them,
who we can
share them
with.
We do ask
that you would
put in our
hearts those
in our
families and
in our
community who
don't believe
in you.
Show us how
we can reach
out to them
and continue
to love
them and to
speak the
truth with
gentleness and
respect to
them.
We ask this
in Jesus'
name.
Amen.