Blind Hatred

Intro.

As we continue through the Gospel of John, we have come with Christ to the Feast of Booths/Tabernacles/Tents, and we have seen Christ stand up before the people and boldly proclaim some very stirring truths.

He came from God

The Pharisees did not make righteous judgments over what they saw

He was soon to go back to God

The Spirit of God would come after He left, and flow from within those who believe in the Son.

We also remember that the Jewish officials were out to kill Jesus. Do you remember why they could not?

His time had not yet come

This means that He was always in control of when He went to die, so that it would be according to the Scriptures.

As the Pharisees could not lay hands on Him themselves, they sent people to do it for them.

Jn. 7.30.

Jn. 7.32.

Who remembers what was happening while Jesus was preaching about the living water?

The ceremony of pouring water from Bethesda onto the altar, in anticipation of the Messiah’s blessings.

Now, being sufficiently refreshed, we come to our text this evening.

John 7:45–52 CSB

45 Then the servants came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring him?” 46 The servants answered, “No man ever spoke like this!” 47 Then the Pharisees responded to them, “Are you fooled too? 48 Have any of the rulers or Pharisees believed in him? 49 But this crowd, which doesn’t know the law, is accursed.” 50 Nicodemus—the one who came to him previously and who was one of them—said to them, 51 “Our law doesn’t judge a man before it hears from him and knows what he’s doing, does it?” 52 “You aren’t from Galilee too, are you?” they replied. “Investigate and you will see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”

The Question

So after all of this, the failure of the officials to either understand Jesus or capture Him and then the teaching He offers, the servants come back again. When they have returned, the officials have a question for them: “Why didn’t you bring him?”

What do they reply?

No man ever spoke like this!

Do you remember where else this claim was made of Jesus?

Matt. 7.28-29

Who are some of your favorite speakers?

Francis Chan

Pat Shaeffer

Robert Kuenning

Ed Wharton

These men are all energetic, and passionate speakers on God’s Word — and they all mean what they preach. However, none of them are able to preach as having authority. What do I mean?

They did not inspire the text, nor were they ever divinely inspired or given revelation. Like the teachers of the day, we study the text, and as God teaches us what He has revealed to mankind that is the only thing we preach!

Jesus, on the other hand, being God, spoke more than just with riveting passion. He spoke with authority! His Godhead is the source of that authority, and that is what captivated the people over and over again!

How captivated are we by the words of Jesus?

The Second Question

John 7:47–49 CSB

47 Then the Pharisees responded to them, “Are you fooled too? 48 Have any of the rulers or Pharisees believed in him? 49 But this crowd, which doesn’t know the law, is accursed.”

The officials have asked another question of their servants — “Why do you believe this guy, when we don’t?”

Can you believe the arrogance? How full of yourself — how power hungry — does a person need to be to ask such a question?

And yet, it happens all the time even in our own world.

Cults like the JW and LDS will only believe what their higher-ups have said is true. The Roman Catholic Church even falls into this, believing that whatever the Catholic Church says is doctrine even when it evolves over time.

It happens in the political sphere all the time — they will say we shouldn’t believe anyone else because Party X is the only one with the People at heart. Most people can look at these claims and say it isn’t true, yet there are those who are die-hard and will consume and believe anything their party leaders say.

Specifically with this group, I usually see people do this because they are so full of hate for the “other people” that they refuse to even hear them. Sound familiar?

The Jewish officials have been so filled with hate against the Lord that they refuse Him solely on that basis.

Not only this, but being blinded by their hatred they even claim anyone who follows Him a heretic!

They are so bound to their arrogance, their own way of thinking, and their own claim to power that they have lost all sight of rationality and truth.

How do you figure this could relate to us?

We have to be sure we are not so blinded by any hatred or pride that we refuse the very voice of God.

The Third Question

John 7:50–52 CSB

50 Nicodemus—the one who came to him previously and who was one of them—said to them, 51 “Our law doesn’t judge a man before it hears from him and knows what he’s doing, does it?” 52 “You aren’t from Galilee too, are you?” they replied. “Investigate and you will see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”

The third question comes from someone new. A voice of reason in all this noise.

Nicodemus.

Where do we know him from?

Chapter 3.

What do you think he is communicating through this question?

Perhaps Nicodemus was coming around to Jesus! He certainly is trying to be more fair to Him than anyone else in the elite class of Israel.

Perhaps he was in league with the officials, agreeing with their sentiments. If this is the case he remain, in my opinion, a better teacher and leader than they because he was careful to give special heed to the Law over his emotions.

The Fourth Question

After Nicodemus speaks up, attempting to speak reason into the situation, they retort back with prejudice and falsehood.

“You’re not from Galilee too, are you?”

You can see their feeling toward people in this area.

Then, what do they say?

No prophet ever came from Galilee. Is this true?

2 Kings 14:25 CSB

25 He restored Israel’s border from Lebo-hamath as far as the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word the Lord, the God of Israel, had spoken through his servant, the prophet Jonah son of Amittai from Gath-hepher.

Gath-hepher was in the region of Galilee. Jonah was Galilean.

Sometimes our own pride can cause us to forget, or worse neglect, truth for the sake of our narratives.

We overcome this by humbling ourselves before God, as James calls us to, and listening to His words over our own feelings and experiences.

There are people we don’t like, there are sometimes even people we think are beyond grace! Sometimes we may want to refuse to tell people the Gospel because of our feeling toward them.

We need to get over that. Because in Christ, there is no separation between ethnicity, culture, gender, background, or anything else. All are one Body in Christ, saved by the one Gospel.

As we become, more and more, people who are enamored by the words of Christ we will inevitably be more like Him. So, let’s not e like the normal believer who only reads the Bible once a week — but let’s be diligent in Scripture and in prayer so that we hear and listen to the voice of God over our own preference.