The Worldliness Next to Godliness (John 7:1–9)

Series: “John: Life in Christ’s Name”Text: John 7:1–9

By: Shaun Marksbury Date: June 17, 2023

Venue: Living Water Baptist ChurchOccasion: AM Service

Introduction

We often wrongly think of worldliness simply in terms of behavior and culture. In hyper-fundamentalist circles, men who wear their hair too long and women whose hair is too short might be deemed as worldly. Other signs of infection of the world might be women wearing pants, men wearing shorts, people going to the theater, playing cards, both sexes at the swimming pool or beach, and so forth. I remember briefly attending a fundamentalist Bible college which had such items listed in a code of conduct students had to sign; when I asked the basis for such regulations, I was told that these were the pastor’s convictions, and therefore, they were the rules for all members of the church and college. Such regulations are in place in churches for members to avoid worldliness, which folks often think of in terms of unacceptable behaviors in which unbelievers engaged.

It’s not that there isn’t an appearance of wisdom in such religious regulations. Yet, the efforts to avoid worldliness and live godly lives are ultimately unbiblical. During the efforts for prohibition, for instance, a hymn appeared which was titled from Colossians 2:21. As one author notes, “An early twentieth-century temperance hymn quotes ‘Touch not; taste not; handle not’ (Col.2:21 KJV) to condemn alcohol use. However, in the biblical context, the apostle condemns those who use these words to prohibit the permissible.” As a modern version of Scripture goes on to say, “These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence” (v. 23). Legalistic requirements do not make a person more godly.

This can be applied to other methods, some of which may even seem biblical. The church says something along the lines of “Don’t smoke or chew or hang with those who do,” and Scripture says, “Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company corrupts good morals’ ” (1 Cor. 15:33). Yet, such behaviorism can lead to pride, and Scripture also says we should “learn not to exceed what is written, so that no one of you will become arrogant in behalf of one against the other” (1 Cor. 4:6). When a person elevates opinions and personal convictions to the level of biblical requirements, this will result in pride.

Interestingly enough, the world that such individuals are trying to avoid can have its own moralistic requirements. There’s the old saying “Cleanliness is next to godliness,” but this isn’t a Bible verse. It was an expression that John Wesley popularized as he talked about personal dress and hygiene from Scripture, but it appears he was quoting a saying. Benjamin Franklin also included this in his virtues. Today, noted agnostic Jordan Peterson expresses similar thoughts, noting that no one can clean up the world if they can’t even clean up their room. Moralistic living does not necessarily require a belief in God, so applying standards of living in a religious context does not evidence freedom from worldliness.

While God does give us commandments for living, He condemns the adding to them, and He defines worldliness differently than we might expect. In fact, there is a worldliness next to godliness, as we see with Jesus’s brothers who He identifies with the world in v. 7. So, we can glean two truths about worldliness from this passage. First, worldliness can be religious (vv. 1–4). Second, worldliness disbelieves Jesus Christ (vv. 5–9).

First, worldliness can be religious (vv. 1–4).

After these things Jesus was walking in Galilee, for He was unwilling to walk in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill Him. Now the feast of the Jews, the Feast of Booths, was near. Therefore His brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go into Judea, so that Your disciples also may see Your works which You are doing. For no one does anything in secret when he himself seeks to be known publicly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.”

This chapter launches us into a larger section that will focus on both the Feast of Tabernacles, who Jesus is, and increasing conflict with the Jewish authorities. That will span the next few chapters, but we’ll be considering the Feast and Jesus’s discourse throughout this chapter. In our section this morning, we read about Jesus declining to go to the feast with His brothers, but He does go secretly in v. 10, setting the stage for the rest of the chapter.

This chapter begins, “After these things.” John is indicating that a period of time has elapsed since the previous chapter. In this case, it has been a while — about six months. In chapter five, He visited Jerusalem for another feast of the Jews, but He’s been in Galilee since John 6:1. Chapter six only covers two days of Jesus’s Galilean ministry, but He continued in that northern region of Israel, traveling and teaching.

To find out what He was doing in the interim, we’d have to consult the other Gospels. As one commentary notes,

During that time He performed miracles, including healing (Matt. 15:29–31; Mark 8:22–26), casting out demons (Matt. 15:21–28; 17:14–18), and feeding the four thousand (Matt. 15:32–38).

Most of the six months, however, was spent discipling the Twelve. The Lord taught them extensively (Matt. 16:13–27; 17:19–23; 18:1–35), including telling them for the first time of His impending rejection, crucifixion, and resurrection (Matt. 16:21; cf. 17:22–23). He also revealed to the inner circle (Peter, James, and John) a glimpse of His divine glory (Matt. 17:1–8).

That is, of course, an example to us. Our focus shouldn’t be on drawing crowds but on discipleship. After all, discipleship is the mission Jesus left the local church (Matt. 28:19).

Jesus was purposefully avoiding southern Israel — “He was unwilling to walk in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill Him.” They are already seeking His life, and He knows this. We first noted their plan in John 5:18, and we’ll see it again in 7:19; 8:37, 40; 11:53. The Lord Jesus knew this and wisely avoided the trouble. He may have understood the Father’s timing, as He notes in v. 6. Perhaps these months away avoided antagonizing the Jewish leadership and pushing His crucifixion ahead of schedule.

In any event, the Feast of Booths or Tabernacles was near, which we read about it in Leviticus 23:34–43 and Deuteronomy 16:13–17. This is the third feast in the month of Tishri, our September/October. The first was the Jewish New Year (called Rosh Hashanah), and the second was the Day of Atonement (known as Yom Kippur). This third feast is the longest in the Jewish calendar. After the grapes and olives are harvested, the Jews would build tabernacles or booths outside their homes with branches and foliage and feast for seven days long, reminding themselves of the Jewish wanderings in the wilderness (Lev. 23:42–43). Imagine that — a religious observance where you get to camp and eat for a whole week! It’s easy to see why this feast was so popular.

The feast ultimately pointed to Christ, though. It reminded them of God being in the midst of Israel in the wilderness, and Jesus is Immanuel, “God with us.” Back in John 1:14, we read, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us;” the word for “dwelt” is a verbal form of “tabernacle” or “booth,” so we could translate it, “And the Word … tabernacled among us.” Moreover, because there was the drawing of water and the lighting of lamps during the feast, Jesus will say, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink” (John 7:37) and “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life” (8:12). Finally, we read in Zechariah 14:16–19 that this feast will be celebrated in the earthly Messianic kingdom.

How much of this did Jesus’s brothers know? They may have known that Tabernacles was Messianic, and since at least family member had to be present at the feast, they urged Him to go with them. They say, “Leave here and go into Judea, so that Your disciples also may see Your works which You are doing. For no one does anything in secret when he himself seeks to be known publicly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.”

Before we consider what they are saying and why, let’s take a moment to identify them. In English, we read that these are His brothers. In the original language, we also read that these are His brothers. That is, of course, the simplest reading.

Some in history have thought that these individuals may have been cousins or stepbrothers, usually motivated by the belief that Mary never had any children outside of Jesus. There have been so many throughout church history who believed that Mary was a virgin all her life, so there was a need to explain the origin of Jesus’s brothers. However, that assumes that there is something wrong with intercourse between a husband and his wife, another non-biblical view. God created marriage, declared its one-flesh consummation, condemns those who withhold from their spouses, and says multiple times in the Gospels that Jesus had siblings. Another other interpretation is foreign to the text and built on unbiblical assumptions.

Because this is the normal word for brothers, and the other Gospels confirmed that Jesus had brothers (Matt 12:46; Mark 3:21), that seems to be the natural conclusion. Of course, these would be Jesus’s half-brothers, born to Mary and Joseph while Jesus is not the biological son of Joseph. Biblically, we see the term applied in this way, like with the sons of Jacob who came from multiple women but are still deemed brothers.

Just as we see strife between the sons of Jacob, we see it again with Mary and Joseph’s children. Joseph is absent at this point in the narrative, presumably dead, so it would fall on Jesus to take over the family business and take care of the home. However, He’s spent the past couple of years wandering around Israel, gathering a following and giving strong clues that He’s the Messiah. His brothers weren’t there when the angels announced Jesus’s birth or when the wise men came from the east; all they know is that their brother isn’t home and the whole country is talking about His works. Perhaps they even heard how He had somehow fed thousands but ended up running off potential disciples.

So, it seems that they are now calling Him to lay everything on the table. There will be a whole world of people in Jerusalem for the feast. It’s difficult to say whether they believed He could actually work miracles, but in an age without cell phones and recording technology, the best way to demonstrate one’s claims was with a great gathering of people in Jerusalem, in front of the Jewish priests and leadership. He needs to step out of the shadows into the light, as it were.

In the next verse, we see that their advice didn’t come from a place of belief. Now, it’s important to note that Jesus’s brothers here are religious. They plan to participate in the feast, and they even journey to Jerusalem. Yet, Jesus is about to associate them with the world. Worldly people are not necessarily irreligious, and you can come to church and participate with all the requirements while still being worldly. It’s not just the pagans who are worldly.

What’s the dividing line? Belief. That brings us to the next point:

Second, worldliness disbelieves Jesus Christ (vv. 5–9).

For not even His brothers were believing in Him. So Jesus said to them, “My time is not yet here, but your time is always opportune. The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil. Go up to the feast yourselves; I do not go up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come.” Having said these things to them, He stayed in Galilee.

It’s hard to imagine anyone around Jesus lacking belief in Him, especially among His family. Again, though, remember that His brothers were not present for any of the signs surrounding Jesus’s birth, and He took on normal humanity in His incarnation. Furthermore, Jesus didn’t perform miracles all the time, and His first one was at the wedding of Cana. His brothers might have noticed His impeccable moral compass growing up, but He would have seemed ordinary beyond that (working, getting hungry, eating food, getting tired, sleeping, etc.). It is quite possible that they simply thought He was a little full of Himself, maybe even a little crazy, but they rejected any notion that their brother was the Messiah, the Christ.

Now, if we are a bit like James and John, the Sons of Thunder (Mark 3:17), we might expect Jesus to lay into them! How could His brothers still disbelieve now? Perhaps He should call down fire from heaven and prove it to them!

However, He speaks gently with them, for He is a Savior meek and mild. He simply replies, “My time is not yet here,” and He says something similar in v. 8 — “My time has not yet fully come.” He says at many points that it is not yet His time (John 2:4; 7:8, 30; 8:20; 12:23; 13:1; 17:1; Matt. 26:18; Mark 14:41), meaning that He’s bowing to a heavenly timetable. Understand that history doesn’t just “happen;” God the Father has planned the days and the hours. He prophesied the rise and fall of nations. He appointed a time for the Savior to be born and to die for the sins of the people. Here, we see that He has even scheduled a time for Jesus to publicly reveal Himself as the Messiah, and the Lord knows when that is.

Now, they won’t understand this. They don’t have His divine insight, of course. More to the point, though, because they don’t believe, they don’t understand the Father’s timing. They instead embrace the world’s timing, even if it’s a religious timetable. So, it’s always their time. As the NLT renders this verse, “Now is not the right time for me to go, but you can go anytime.”

That is the kindest way to say that they are a part of the world’s system. This is why He says, “The world cannot hate you.” They mention the world in v. 4 (thinking of the people), but Jesus now speaks of the world in terms of morality. The world isn’t neutral; it ultimately rejects God and all His ways. God had to destroy the world with a flood because of its corruption (Gen. 6:11). In 1 Corinthians 1–2, we see that neither the sign-seeking Jews nor the wisdom-seeking Gentiles will come to God because they are part of the world. And Jesus says here that the world hates Him.

As such, James 4:4 says, “You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” He’s not talking about hair styles there — the Lord is telling us to stop pursuing the world’s admiration and to avoid adopting the world’s thinking. We must recognize that the world will even come to hate us as it does our Master.

Worldliness is a hatred for Christ and His words. He says that “it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil.” He bears witness about the works of the world, and He tells His disciples to understand that, at times of hatred, the world first hates Him (John 15:18–19). We will face the same hatred.

This means that, if we attempt to avoid the hatred of the world, we are unwittingly engaging in worldliness. This month is a good example of that. If you say anything negative toward anyone waving a pride flag, you get accused of being hateful and phobic. Of course, we don’t try to antagonize as Christians, and we try to represent our gracious Savior, but that means speaking in both truth and love. Still, any act of speaking truth and exposing wickedness will be hated by this world.

This is one area this Father’s Day to highlight with dads. There are those trying to push gender confusion on children, but statistically, having a dad present and active in the home reduces the chances of a child buying into such nonsense. A father wants his sons to grow into men and his daughters to grow into women. He’s going to help his children see that any confusion around adolescence is normal, but God has a reason He made them male and female. He’ll help them grow to be comfortable in their own skin and fight those who would push mutilations of his children’s precious bodies.

There are those who will compromise in these kinds of messages. Maybe they will twist Jesus’s words. Some of these kinds of churches are filled with friendly people who might even genuinely care for others. Understand, though, that there is a worldliness next to their supposed godliness. They are so near the truth in some ways, and so far away in others.

Worldliness is not believing the whole of God’s Word. Worldliness is not believing in Jesus. So, Jesus kindly gives his worldly brothers their leave: “Go up to the feast yourselves; I do not go up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come.” And we see in the next verse that “He stayed in Galilee.” Now, in v. 10, we read that He eventually went to the feast, but in secret — we don’t even read about His disciples coming. He does exactly what they advised Him not to do! Their advice was worldly, their timing was worldly, and it all stems from their disbelief in Him and His words.

Conclusion

Here is the key to the problem. They don’t believe in Jesus. Their worldliness doesn’t stem from lack of time in synagogue, avoidance of religious rituals, or a professed faith in God. Rather, it comes from a rejection of the truth of Christ.

Thankfully, they don’t remain in unbelief. In Acts 1:14, His brothers are there with Mary, and James is leading the church. They came to believe, likely due to the resurrection of Christ (1 Cor. 15:7).

Worldliness can be a problem in the church, but it’s not card-playing or a person having the wrong Bible translation. The issue is a lack of confidence in the words of our Lord.

How might we combat it? In the case of unbelievers, it takes the Lord to open a person’s eyes, so all we can do is be faithful to share the gospel every week, Jesus died for the forgiveness of your sins and rose again to promise you new life. In the case of believers, we should follow our Lord’s lead and patiently and faithfully disciple, teaching all that the Lord has taught us. By His grace, may we be a church free of worldliness, embracing our Lord and Savior and everything He taught.