Jesus and the Passover Crowd
Notes
Transcript
But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him,
that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke: “Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”
Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again:
“He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, Lest they should see with their eyes, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.”
These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.
Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue;
for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.
Then Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me.
And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.
I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.
And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world.
He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day.
For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.
And I know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak.”
Intro:
Intro:
AG: Dangerous Theology, “We must never forget that it is by God’s appointment that if His word does not quicken, it must deaden.”
TS: The scandal of the unbelief of God’s chosen people was a thorn in the flesh for the followers of Jesus.
What we see here was not the beginning of their unbelief, but a continuation of the pattern established in the first part of the gospels.
John notes that they “kept on disbelieving” with the imperfect tense.
One little precursory note—John notes that Isaiah said what he said “when he saw the glory of God.”
That is interesting on a couple of fronts.
First is that the context of what Jesus has just been speaking about is the glorification of the Son of Man.
Secondly, this truth we are about to speak of is close to the core of who God truly is—in this instance, One who is absolutely free to open the eyes of the blind or restrain the eyes of those who might see, revealing Himself to only those He chooses and when He chooses.
Israel’s unbelief was to open the door for all people
It is where God brings a greater good out of this apparent bad circumstance
RS: in this text we see people who see but don’t see, on purpose. This morning I want to look at some characteristics of unbelief.
In Spite of Evidence v. 37
In Spite of Evidence v. 37
But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him,
Jesus worked miracles which clearly demonstrated He was Messiah
The proof was undeniable!
This verse echoes a theme many people resist:
unbelief is mostly about what a person wants, not what a person knows.
Jesus lambasted His religious critics for "refusing" to acknowledge the obvious conclusion of their own study (John 5:39–40).
He pointed out that even seeing a miracle wouldn't convince those who ignored prior evidence (Luke 16:31).
That message was confirmed when Jesus raised a man from death, and His enemies responded by plotting to assassinate both the miracle-worker and the restored man (John 11:53; 12:9–11)!
In the prior conversation, Jesus was affirmed by an actual voice, from heaven, speaking audible words (John 12:28). Some of the people who heard it dismissed it as thunder (John 12:29).
Some refuse to seriously consider the evidence.
They see and hear, but choose to reject
They will go out of their way to invent another story instead of accepting the truth of God
IL: Evolutionists can’t seem to come up with an idea of how to get life started on Earth. They can’t reproduce it in any conditions to cause bio-molecules, spur them to coalesce into living matter much less a functioning cell.
So how do they bridge this gap from ooze to life? Aliens! intelligent aliens seeded us here. OR alien life (bacteria) rode asteroids to Earth and started growing after surviving entering our atmosphere and crashing into the surface.
Sounds more fantastic than God SAID let there be life.
So that prophesy may be fulfilled v. 38
So that prophesy may be fulfilled v. 38
that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke: “Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”
The prophesy
The crowd’s unbelief was predicted centuries before by Isaiah
Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
“Make the heart of this people dull, And their ears heavy, And shut their eyes; Lest they see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their heart, And return and be healed.”
Their unbelief had been foretold.
The very actions they took in rejecting their Messiah, was known by God hundreds of years before!
Why? Because He was God!
Jesus was a to be a man of sorrows and acquainted by grief, despised and rejected, slandered and mocked.
All was unfolding as God had previously revealed to Isaiah.
But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?”
They chose to not believe the evidence.
Yet their choice was foreknown by God.
Restricted by God v 39-40
Restricted by God v 39-40
Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again:
“He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, Lest they should see with their eyes, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.”
God in His infinite wisdom, was carrying out His purpose.
His purpose included Jewish rejection, Jesus’ Crucifixion, gentile belief
This is not the only time we see such references in Scripture
IL. In Exodus, God hardened Pharaohs heart.
And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt.
And Pharaoh’s heart grew hard, and he did not heed them, as the Lord had said.
So the Lord said to Moses: “Pharaoh’s heart is hard; he refuses to let the people go.
Ex 7:22
Then the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments; and Pharaoh’s heart grew hard, and he did not heed them, as the Lord had said.
God carries out His will on Earth, and yes, that means He puts His finger on the scale to bring about His purpose
Unbelief sometimes serves God’s greater purposes of God
The Apologetics Study Bible: Real Questions, Straight Answers, Stronger Faith Article: Is There Evidence for Life after Death? (Hank Hanegraaff)
Is this deterministic predestination? No, for in Is 6 (quoted here) God was responding to prolonged unbelief and rebellion by Israel and still held out hope for a righteous remnant who repented (v. 13). The same was true here, as some did in fact believe (v. 42). For those who didn’t, God merely confirmed their freely chosen disobedience.
Isaiah was commissioned to preach to Israel, but was told before He ever started that people would not listen.
His ministry was to preach until they fell into captivity.
He was testify to the truth
His success was in faithfulness, not results
We must testify the truth
We never save anyone.
They may reject
They may believe
We proclaim
Israel’s rejection, opened the door for the gospel to turn to the Gentiles
I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles.
Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!
And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree,
That was always God’s plan.
Same as unbelief in God v. 44-45
Same as unbelief in God v. 44-45
Then Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me.
And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.
Jesus again makes Him and the Father One
Not believing Him is not believing God.
Believing in Him is believing in God!
It is a package deal!
Some try to to this even today
They accept God the Father as the Almighty God
They relegate Jesus to a lesser role that complete unity with God
Some say just a prophet
Others say He won the election to be Messiah and Lucifer won the vote for Arch Nemesis
still others accept some of His teachings but reject the gospel
You can’t have it your way! God and eternity isn’t a fast food restaurant!
God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. ..
3 in 1. All equal.... All 1
Walking in Darkness v. 46
Walking in Darkness v. 46
I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.
Jesus also says that knowing Him is like walking in the light, whereas unbelief is like fumbling around in the darkness, bumping into things, knocking over things, falling into things.
Jesus says He turns the lights on in your house, and you will remain in darkness no more if you trust in Him.
But if you don’t, you are already in the dark, and don’t know it.
You fumble through life w/o the assistance of sight brought by the light.
John D. Crisis of Faith (12:37–50)
Jesus offered a mini-resumé, emphasizing again that he was God, light, and the Savior. Did these people at the feast come to see the Lord Most High? They needed only to look and listen to the message of his Son. No one must remain in darkness, for the light has come to dispel it. As Boice points out, “When the Lord Jesus Christ came into the world and shone as God’s light, he exposed the darkness of the world as no one had ever done previously. And of course, those who had a vested interest in things as they were hated him for exposing their darkness and eventually had him crucified” (Boice, p. 389).
Rejecting God’s Authority v. 48-49
Rejecting God’s Authority v. 48-49
He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day.
For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.
Jesus makes some hard sayings here.
He says that if you reject Him, you are rejecting God and His authority in your life.
Jesus is clear that His words, actions, and ministry come on direct order from God the Father.
So to ignore what Jesus says is tantamount to hearing a direct command from a superior officer, and you blowing him off flippantly.
Rejecting Everlasting Life v. 50
Rejecting Everlasting Life v. 50
And I know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak.”
Maybe the most pertinent thing that Jesus said in this conversation, especially to those of you who are not yet convinced that you are authentic believer, is that if you reject Jesus, His commands, thus the Father’s commands, you are rejecting eternal life.
Concl
Concl
Unbelief is the most tragic condition
To hear the gospel and reject it.
To see the light and turn from it
It leaves someone unchanged and lost. headed for Hell.