The Unbelief of those in Authority

Then the temple police went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why did you not arrest him?” The police answered, “Never has anyone spoken like this!” Then the Pharisees replied, “Surely you have not been deceived too, have you? Has anyone of the authorities or of the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd, which does not know the law—they are accursed.” Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus before, and who was one of them, asked, “Our law does not judge people without first giving them a hearing to find out what they are doing, does it?” They replied, “Surely you are not also from Galilee, are you? Search and you will see that no prophet is to arise from Galilee.” (John 7:45-52, NRSV)

No prophet is to come from Galilee. Yet the Messiah is to be descended from David’s hometown.

And here we have Nicodemus who came to Jesus under the cover of darkness the first time. Here he is speaking out publicly for Jesus.

Those in authority do not want Jesus to be the Messiah because it will mean the end of their way of life.

But really isn’t that what Jesus does? End our old life to give us a better one?

Division among the People

When they heard these words, some in the crowd said, “This is really the prophet.” Others said, “This is the Messiah.” But some asked, “Surely the Messiah does not come from Galilee, does he? Has not the scripture said that the Messiah is descended from David and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?” So there was a division in the crowd because of him. Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him. (John 7:40-44, NRSV)

Bethlehem is in Galilee. I wonder why this caused division among the people.

So they didn’t know what to do with Him.

So they let Him go unsure what to do.

So what do you believe about Jesus?

Rivers of Living Water

On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, ‘Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.’” Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified. (John 7:37-39, NRSV)

Have you ever been really thirsty? Like you would drink water out of a mud puddle kind of thirsty?

Jesus said out of believer’s hearts would flow living water, and whomever drank this living water would never be thirsty.

Jesus will or has given us the Spirit and through the Spirit we are connected to God and through us God’s grace and mercy flows as a never-ending river.

Allow God to spray the world through you!

Officers Sent to Arrest Jesus

The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering such things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent temple police to arrest him. Jesus then said, “I will be with you a little while longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. You will search for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.” The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? What does he mean by saying, ‘You will search for me and you will not find me’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?” (John 7:32-36, NRSV)

The image is the map from Dora the Explorer. When she would get ready to go on an adventure she would sing, “Where are we going?” The map would come out and show them the way. That is what the people are wanting here, the map to where Jesus is going.

We want to know the way, we want to completely understand. But isn’t that why we call what we have in Jesus faith?

I can’t prove it empirically, but I believe all the promises I have read and heard from Jesus. He is my guide and I will follow. I know He will not leave me. He will always be with me, even if I don’t know where He is, or I can not see Him.

Do you believe or do you want a map?

Is This the Christ

Now some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, “Is not this the man whom they are trying to kill? And here he is, speaking openly, but they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Messiah? Yet we know where this man is from; but when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.” Then Jesus cried out as he was teaching in the temple, “You know me, and you know where I am from. I have not come on my own. But the one who sent me is true, and you do not know him. I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me.” Then they tried to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him, because his hour had not yet come. Yet many in the crowd believed in him and were saying, “When the Messiah comes, will he do more signs than this man has done?” (John 7:25-31, NRSV)

When the Messiah comes He will do more signs than this man has done…

Why did Jesus do the signs?

To show He was the chosen one?

To bring glory to himself?

Jesus did signs to point to God. Do you follow Jesus for what He can give you, or do you follow Jesus to understand better who you are in God?

We look for the Messiah for what He will give us, freedom, a leader. But Jesus as the chosen one did not do this the way people expected so He couldn’t be the Messiah…

Is Jesus the Christ?

Why do you follow Him?