John Lesson 21

For the scripture says after these things Jesus walked in Galilee, for he would not walk in Jury or Judea, because the Jews sought to kill him. Now the Jews’ feast of tabernacles was at hand. His brethren therefore said unto him, Depart hence and go into Judea, that thy disciples also may see the works that thou doest. For there is no man that doeth anything in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do these things, show thyself to the world, for neither did his brethren believe in him. Then said Jesus unto them, My time is not yet come, but your time is always ready. The world cannot hate you, but me it hateth, because I testify of it that the works thereof are evil.

1. My Time Is Not Yet Full Come

Go ye up to this feast. I go not up yet unto this feast, for my time is not yet full come. When he had said these words unto them, he abode still in Galilee. The scripture here speaks that after the events of John chapter six, which were recorded at the second Passover, or the third Passover during the personal ministry of Jesus Christ, that from that time until our text Jesus uh stayed or remained in the northern part of Palestine, that is, in the region of Galilee. He did not go in Judea, because there the religious luder uh leaders were seeking his death, and therefore he would antagonize them on a daily basis almost, you could say, if he were in their midst. So he stayed in Judea, because his time was not yet full come.

That simply means that Jesus understood that his purpose for coming to this world was that he might die for a sinful man. He knew and expected the death on the cross. But that cross would not take place until his time was full, and that is, until he had fulfilled the mission which he had come to to do. And therefore Jesus did not go up and make himself prey to their plot of wanting to take him and put him to death. But now the time does come that there is a feast in Jerusalem, and one of the three major feasts, our annual feasts, at which all male Jews were required to go to Jerusalem. This one is called Tabernacles. The Feast of Tabernacles occurred exactly six months after Passover.

2. His Brothers Did Not Yet Believe in Him

And it was a joyful occasion. It was a time when they went to Jerusalem, and they recalled or remembered the occasion when their forefathers had lived in tents or in tabernacles as they journeyed out of Egyptian bondage in the wilderness on their way to the promised land. The Jews were required to go to Jerusalem. But the occasion here says that the brethren of Jesus urged him to go to Jerusalem, not just to the feast, but their reasoning was that he ought to go to prove himself before others. It perhaps added to the sorrows of Jesus, that his own brothers in the flesh did not really believe in him. And there’s nothing in the text here to say that they ridiculed him or scoffed at him, but they simply looked at him from an earthly point of view.

They did not understand that he was a king over a spiritual kingdom. They did not understand how that he was indeed the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of God, not at least at this point in their life. Later on, we read some scriptures that convince us that his brethren did become believers. But at this point in time, and that means only six months before his death. His brothers did not yet believe in him. Now there are those who do not acknowledge that Jesus had earthly brothers. But in Matthew chapter 13 and verse 55, the scripture speaks how that as some question is not this the carpenter’s son, it’s not his mother called Mary and his brethren James and Joseph and Simon and Judas. So there we have some name for us, and also Mark chapter six and in verse three.

So Jesus had what we would call half brothers, but they’re simply called his brothers. And they did not believe in him at this time. But they simply, from a human point of view, said, Why don’t you go to Jerusalem where men, the multitudes are gathered, and there do these other miracles or do miracles by which you might gain even more popularity and prove to the multitude that indeed you have great powers. Thinking of it perhaps as uh as an earthly king, he needed to gain popularity, and that would be the way to gain that popularity is by going and showing himself to the crowd. But Jesus told them in verse six, My time is not yet come. Your time is always ready. In other words, it’s always opportune for you to go.

They’re not seeking your life. You have an antagonized the Jewish leaders, and you can go up to Jerusalem at any time. But Jesus realized that he could not go to Jerusalem without being in danger of being taken in by these religious leaders. And as we’ve seen this expression, my time is not yet come several times in the text of the Gospel of John. First of all, in John chapter 2 and in verse 4, when Jesus said that statement to his to his own mother. We’ll find it many other times, in fact, three times in this one chapter, verse 6, verse 8, and again in verse 30. Jesus is simply referring to his death. But he said, It’s not time yet for me to die. In fact, he said, The world hates me.

It doesn’t hate you. Jesus had taught them concerning their evil deeds. And as John chapter 3 and verse 19 says, the darkness hates the light because its deeds are reproved by it. And when men are doing evil and they do not want to make any changes, they hate the gospel that is taught to them. And thus on this occasion Jesus said, The world, or even these religious leaders hate me, and they sought his life because he had taught them the truth. But now, beginning in verse 10, the scripture does say that when his brethren were gone up, then went he also up unto the feast, not openly, as it were in secret. Then the Jews sought him at the feast and said, Where is he? And there was much murmuring among the people concerning him.

For some said he is a good man. Others said, Nay, but he deceiveth the people. Howbeit no man spake openly of him for fear of the Jews. Now about the midst of the feast, Jesus went up into the temple and taught. And the Jews marveled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned? Now Jesus told his brothers, You go on up to Jerusalem. He did not go when they did. But he did later go. He was not trying to abstain from his responsibility as a Jew to go to the feast, but he did not go openly. Rather the scripture says he went secretly, or other as it is in a private way. He didn’t take the roads that were traveled by many, and he didn’t go in a great company or family and and friends, but he went privately up to Jerusalem.

3. How Knoweth This Man Letters, Having Never Learned?

And then it was about the middle of a week, the scripture says that he made himself known to them, that he went into the temple and began to teach. And you notice in this chapter of John 7, that there is some confusion stirring among the multitude at Jerusalem. Who is this Jesus? Is he really the Christ or is he not? In fact, we have the murmurings, the scripture says in verse 12. Some said, He’s a good man. Others said, No, he deceives the people. But as he spake to them concerning the word of God, it was the religious leaders who in verse 15 marvel, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned? And that’s an interesting question. We’d probably put it in other words by saying, Where does he where does he get his source of authority?

How does he know anything? He didn’t go to our uh schools. He he wasn’t trained in the rabbinical schools of these Jewish leaders. How can he speak with such authority as he does? They marveled that he did. I’m reminded of another text in the life of Christ recorded in Matthew chapter 21. For the scripture says that the Jewish leaders came to Jesus and and they raised the question, verse 23 of Matthew twenty-one, by what authority doest these things, and who gave thee this authority? And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I am likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things. The baptism of John, whence was it? From heaven or of men.

And they reasoned with himself, saying, If we shall say from heaven, he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him? But if we shall say of men, we fear the people, for all hold John as a prophet. And they answered Jesus and said, We cannot tell. And he said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things. I think those religious religious leaders pulled a cop out in the day of Christ. They asked him the question, What authority do you do these things? Who gave you this authority? That’s a good question. We ought to ask that question today. But what they were really asking of Jesus, where did you get ordained? Who taught you the things you you know?

And that’s similar to our question really in John chapter 7 and verse 15. It’s sort of the same kind of thinking today in some modern religious teachers. That if you haven’t been trained in a certain seminary, you really are not qualified to preach. And if you haven’t been licensed or ordained by some church board, then who gave you this authority? How can a man speak if he hasn’t been trained in the schools of the day? But much of the modern teaching in seminaries today does much to undermine faith rather than to build faith. It teaches men about church creeds and church doctrines, but it does not educate them in the word of God. Jesus was teaching the word of God. In fact, in Matthew chapter 20 21, Jesus replied to those religious leaders with a question.

He said, Look, I’ll answer yours if you’ll answer mine first. The baptism of John, whence was it? From heaven or from men. They reasoned with themselves that if they answered the baptism of John was from heaven, they’d have to admit Jesus was the Christ, because John had testified that Jesus was the Lamb of God. And they did not want to admit that John was preaching of heaven. On the other hand, if they said that John’s baptism was of men, then they would they would incur the wrath of the multitude because the people held John to be a prophet. And so they simply said, We we don’t know. We cannot tell. And that’s a cop out. Rather than answering the question, they evaded the question. There are some religious leaders today who handled the word of God that way.

They’ll make a statement and they’ll come as though they have authority. But you find them and ask them to say, get your Bible open and let’s test the word of God. Let’s test what you say by the Word of God. Let’s reason together the scriptures. And there are men who say, Well, we really can’t understand the Bible alike. You understand it one way, and let me understand it my way, and we’ll go our separate ways. Rather than come into what saith the Scripture, what is the authority of God? We have a lot of religious divisions because of the various seminaries and the various schools of thought, and we ought to come to unity based upon what saith the scripture, not on the basis of what men say and what teachers over here and over there are say, or what this church is ordained and what that church practices.

Let’s come back to the Bible. Let’s let the Bible speak and let our faith be based upon the authority of the word. Is Jesus what he claimed to be? Indeed, there was every evidence, even in the first century to those religious leaders that they could have understood, and they could have under known that Jesus was the Christ and accepted him. But they were blinded by their own prejudice. Their minds would not be open to the truth. Now in verse 16, Jesus answered them and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me. If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God or whether I speak of myself. He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory.

4. If Any Man Will Do His Will, He Shall Know

But he that seeketh his glory, his own uh he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him. Jesus replied to them that what he taught did not come from some rabbinical school. It did not come from man, nor did it come from Jesus Himself. He said, My doctrine is not mine, but it is his that sent me. That is, it is the Father’s will. But then in verse 17, a very important verse. He said, If any man will do his will. One translation says, He that willeth to do his will. Those who want to do the will of the Father, Jesus said they can know the truth. Can we understand the Bible? There are many verses in the scripture that affirm that we can.

And here is one from the mouth of Jesus Himself that says, You find a man who wants to do the truth, and he can know the truth of God. It takes a strong desire. And it takes some effort on our part to discern what is truth. Look at the very scene. When Jesus made this statement, there were different ones of various opinions. Who is Jesus? I once had a lady tell me, you know, I wish I lived back in the first century when there was only one gospel taught and one truth, and I wouldn’t have any trouble trying to discern what is right from what is wrong. Well, that was idealistic, and I know there are many of us who would like to have a situation like that where we wouldn’t have to do much thinking about it.

But she was wrong, really, in thinking that that’s the way it was in the first century. Well, these multitudes that were gathered at Jerusalem, and they were religious people. That’s why they had gathered for a religious holy day. But they had to use their minds. They had to do some reasoning. You see, the religious leaders were challenging the authority of Jesus. They were saying he’s deceiving the people. He is not the Son of God. And yet there were people who were saying, Well, but he is a good man. And he does teach truth. Jesus said, You can know the will of the Father if you will to do, if you want to do his word. There are some who do not want the truth. And it is true that the devil has blinded their hearts and they do not know what is right.

They do not know the truth. Second Thessalonians chapter 2, one of those fearful passages. The Bible speaks how that those who receive not the love of the truth, God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie, that they should believe a lie, and they might be damned who believe not the truth, but have pleasure in unrighteousness. If we close our minds and our hearts to the truth, God will allow us to believe a lie in the place of truth. Religious people rejected Jesus Christ. They were not all the atheists of the world, they were religious people. Second Corinthians chapter 4, verses 3 and 4 speaks about how the gospel be hid. It is hid to them that are lost, in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the God the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God should shine unto them.

There’s some who have closed their eyes to the truth, and the gospel is hidden to them. In 1 Timothy chapter 1, verses 5 through 8, Paul spoke about some, he said, who have turned aside unto vain jangling. He said they desire to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor whereof they affirm. But we know that the law is good if a man use it lawfully. It’s possible to take the scriptures and to misuse them, to turn aside and under vain jangling, to take a passage here and a part there, and to add with it a little opinion here and and man’s interpretation there, and we can come out with false doctrine. But he said the law is good if we use it lawfully.

You take a passage in its context, and it will not contradict any other passage. Truth does not contradict itself. Truth agrees with itself, and it is one message. It’s not many different messages. It’s not a matter of man pleasing himself and you just believe what you want to believe and want to go to heaven and we’ll all get there. We have a responsibility to take the word of God and to search it and understand what is truth and to accept what is truth. We need to will to do his will, not want to do our will, but will to do his will. Then we can know the truth, whether or not it be of God. In Galatians chapter 1, verses 6 through 8, Paul said, I marvel that you are so soon removed from him that calls you into the grace of Christ to another gospel, which is not another.

But there be some that trouble you and would pervert the gospel of Christ. Listen, though we are an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. If you preach something other than the word of God, it’s false, and we’ll be lost over it. We need to have the Bible open and our hearts and minds open to receive the truth and accept it just as it is. Let our will will to do his will. Let us have the attitude. And then Jesus said, We can know. By searching and by testing, by trying the word of God, we can know whether or not it is indeed the word of truth. Yes, we can understand the Bible.

It was written for that purpose that we might understand the Bible. In Ephesians chapter 3, Paul spoke how that by revelation God had made known unto him the mystery. He said, As I wrote afore in few words, whereby when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ, which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. He said, Now it’s been revealed by inspiration. And you have it. And when you read it, you can understand it. It takes some thinking, it takes some reading, it takes a study of God’s word, but when you do that, you can know the will of God. And be certain, because you have a book, you have a compass, you have a blueprint.

And anything added to this word or taken from this word is false. But you take only the word of God and you follow what it says without addition, without subtraction, and you can know it is God’s will. In fact, 1 Corinthians chapter 2 and verse 12 says that we have received not the Spirit of the world, but the Spirit of God, that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. It has been revealed that we might know the things of God. Jesus said in Matthew 7 and 7, Seek and ye shall find. Ask, and it shall be given. Knock, it shall be open unto you. If we just have that sincere desire and that heart to want to know what is truth, we can come to the understanding of it.

5. Judge Not According to the Appearance

Are you a Christian? Have you come to the Word of God really to know who Jesus is and to learn what he says, to do to be saved? Jesus said in Mark 16 and verse 16, He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. He that believeth not shall be damned. There are many people who’d like to take that verse and cut it out of the Bible. It says, He that believeth and is baptized, they’d like to have it, he that believeth only shall be saved. But the Bible says, He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. Are you happy with it with what the scripture says there? You need to turn to it with an open mind and obey it. In John chapter 7, in the scripture begins in verse 19, and we’ll read through verse 24, where Jesus said, Did not Moses give you the law?

And yet none of you keepeth the law. Why go ye about to kill me? The people answered and said, Thou hast the devil. Who goeth about to kill thee? Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel. Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision, not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers, and ye on the Sabbath day circumcise a man. If a man on the Sabbath day received circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken, are ye angry at me because I have made a man everywhere whole on the Sabbath day? Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment. Now Jesus here is referring to a text that we studied many weeks ago in John chapter five.

Actually it was on the Passover time when Jesus had healed a man who had been lame for some thirty eight years, it’s recorded in John chapter five, verses one through sixteen. You may recall after Jesus had healed that man, it was on the Sabbath day, and about the only way the rulers could accuse Jesus or find some fault in him was that he had told he had healed the man on the Sabbath day and told him to take up his bed and walk. They accused him of breaking the Sabbath, and they sought to kill him for that. Now Jesus says in verse 19, Did Moses give you the law and none of you keep it? Why go about to kill me? Really what he had done was no worse than what they were doing on the Sabbath day.

There were some things they did to break the Sabbath day law, if indeed it was such a strict law that it had no variance at all, or no exceptions to the rule. And he gives them an exception, in fact, verses twenty two and twenty three, when he talked about circumcision. You see, the law of Moses had commanded Leviticus twelve and verse three, that on the eighth day they were to circumcise the male child when he was born. Now the eighth day, even if it fell on the Sabbath, they would circumcise. They would keep that part of the law. Jesus said, That isn’t a breaking of the Sabbath. And if doing this good work, even if it fell on the Sabbath, is not breaking it, then how did Jesus break it when he healed a lame man, a man who had been afflicted for thirty-eight years?

Well, indeed, they had no answer to that. The logic of Jesus was right. Some of the multitude said, Well, what do you mean we’re seeking to kill you? Evidently, some in the multitude did not know that the religious leaders sought to kill Jesus. So he exposes them. And he exposes their petty reasons for wanting to slay Jesus. Really, their reason was not just that he had broken the Sabbath. They were envious of Jesus. And they hated Jesus. They had closed minds to who he was, the Son of God. And they used this merely as an excuse, and it was a hypocritical way of saying, We’d like to get Jesus out of the way. But Jesus, in reasoning with them concerning this, what he did, and you’ll notice, was apply the scripture.

He took one scripture and applied it to what they were saying. Religious leaders now were saying he can’t be the Christ, he’s broken the Sabbath. Sometimes a day there’s an attitude that says, Well, if the preacher said it, or if our elder said it, or if our religious leaders in the church said this or that, we’re going to do what they say because they’ve studied and they ought to know what’s right. What if you’d been in the day of Jesus? Would you have followed the religious leaders? Would you have sought to kill Jesus along with those religious leaders? You see, the people couldn’t follow religious leaders when their religious leaders are wrong, and neither should you nor I. We need to take a Bible and read for ourselves and understand truth and follow that, not what men may say.

Conclusion

Notice verse 24, it’s very important. Jesus said, Judge not according to appearance. Don’t judge superficially. Don’t judge merely by emotion. You judge righteous judgment. Take time and take thought. In 1 John chapter 4 and verse 1, the apostle said, Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits, whether they be of God, for many false prophets are gone into the world. We need to make a test today of every preacher. By what authority doest thou these things? Who gave you this authority? Test him, try him. What does he say? Is it the word of God or not? We hope you’ll study with us again as we continue in John chapter 7 in our next study. I believe as we let the Bible speak, we only then can come to the truth.

May God help us to understand it and to obey it.