The Identity of Jesus (Jn 7:25-52)

The Identity of Jesus

Bible Passage: John 7:25–52

Big Idea: Recognizing Jesus for who He truly is—both God and man—transforms all aspects of our life

Introduction

Have you ever watched The Truman Show, starring Jim Carrey as Truman Burbank? If it’s been a while, or you’ve never seen it, here’s the premise: Truman lives his entire life in what seems like an ordinary world, but everything around him—his neighbors, his job, even his closest relationships—is staged. He is the unwitting star of a massive reality experiment, and everyone except Truman knows the truth.

For years, Truman accepts this illusion as reality. He doesn’t question the strange coincidences or odd behaviors of those around him. It isn’t until he reaches the edge of his world—literally—and confronts the door to reality that he begins to see things for what they truly are.

While we aren’t living in a sadistic reality television show, many of us are living with spiritual delusions—false assumptions about Jesus and the truth of Scripture. These misconceptions shape how we see Him, how we live, and what we believe about salvation, grace, and purpose.

Transition to Delusions

Here are some common delusions people hold about Jesus:

Jesus was just a good moral teacher.Jesus is only for religious people.Jesus is a myth or legend.Jesus wants to make my life comfortable.Jesus is only about love and acceptance, with no concern for sin or accountability.Jesus condemns me—I’ve done too much wrong to be forgiven.Jesus was only human.I don’t need Jesus; I’m good enough on my own.Jesus saved me, but I still have to earn His love.Jesus will wait for me—I can follow Him later.

The Jewish people in John 7 wrestled with their own misconceptions about Jesus—some thought He was a prophet, others a deceiver. But Jesus challenged them to confront their assumptions, just as He challenges us today.

Main Idea & Questions

This morning, we’ll look at John 7:25–52 and ask four questions to dispel these spiritual delusions:

Who do you think Jesus is? Where is Jesus leading you? Are you thirsty for what He offers? Why are people so divided about Him?

Let’s confront these questions together and step into the reality of who Jesus truly is.

1. I. Who Do You Think Jesus Is? (John 7:25–31)

Key Observation: The people in Jerusalem debate whether Jesus is the Messiah.

There was confusion concerning Jesus and the authorities.

If the authorities believed that Jesus was the Christ this would explain why he hasnt been arrested yet. However, There was some deluision concerning their understanding of the messiah.

Jewish writings brought delusional statements to the authoritative word of God. AS some believed in that time that the Messiah would come suddenly and the political force would be unexpectant.

They beileve to know where jesus comes from. However, Jesus reminds them that they do not.

Yes he comes from Galliee however, his spiritual origin is what JEsus is trying to get his hearers to understand.

John is likewise trying to get us to understand this.

John 1:1–3 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.”

They may know of Jesus but they do not know the Father.

For them to know the Father they must truly believe in Jesus.

However, the crowd was torn. John 7:31 “Yet many of the people believed in him. They said, “When the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?””

They were seeing Jesus as they they expected him to be. They were not seeing him as he showed himself to be. The son of God here in the flesh. They saw his signs, but they did not hear his words.

Application: Do you see Jesus as He truly is, or as you expect Him to be?

Or said in another way, have you built a Jesus to your liking or have you encountered the true Jesus?

There’s a humorous story about a group of friends who decide to build a snowman, but they each add their favorite features. One gives it a cowboy hat, another adds glasses, and the last one throws on a superhero cape! They end up with a confused-looking snowman. Sometimes, we can mold Jesus into our own snowman creation, rather than embracing who He truly is. Are we worshipping an imaginary Jesus?

Consider the conversations you have at home. When discussing faith or Jesus, reflect on whether you align with the biblical portrayal of Him or if you have shaped an image of Jesus that fits your personal beliefs. If you find discrepancies, why not set aside a moment each week to study Scripture as a family? Use family devotionals to explore what the Bible truly says about Jesus, and encourage your family to ask questions about their own beliefs, ensuring that you're all growing closer in understanding Him accurately.

If you have children or teenagers at home, consider how you are portraying Jesus to them. It's easy to inadvertently emphasize a version of Jesus that is comfortable rather than biblical. Create a family ritual of reading Scripture together and discussing Jesus' parables and actions. Use real-life scenarios to relate biblical lessons to modern situations, providing them a clear understanding of Jesus' character and intentions. This grounding in Scripture will help them develop a faith based on truth, not just on culture.

II. Where Is Jesus Leading You? (John 7:32–36)

Key Observation: Jesus speaks about His departure and mission, which confuses the crowd.

In hearing the crowds whisperings about Jesus, the Jerusalem authorities decide to arrest Jesus.

The temple gaurds were a kind of temple police taken from the Levites, they had a responsibility to maintain order in the temple.

The Sanhedrin would govern the internal affairs of the country and they were tired of hearing Jesus be the latest news on the street. They were ready to deal with him.

As Jesus hears of the official warrant , Jesus begins speaking about his departure. To those hearing him they are confused to where Jesus is going.

The gospel writer takes us right to the cross. Jesus’s ultimate mission, the mission of redemption, on full display for the hearers but they are confused by Jesus’s words.

Jesus is going to return to the one that sent him. As he was sent into the world by the father for the purpose of his redeeming sacrifice. Death however, is not the end of his journey for Jesus, He would return to the glory that he had with the father before the world began.

As Jesus would ultimately ascend to his glorified state at the right hand of the father, those who are around him will not be able to come with him.

Jesus’s words are misunderstood again. The Jews speak in ironic sarcasm to each other.

WE can see the irony that is found here. The place that they say in derision that Jesus is going to go, to the greeks, is one of the places that the gospel goes forth to. It goes to the Gentiles.

They could not come with Jesus because that have not come to Jesus.

The destination for those listening seems unsure for Jesus mission. Why would he leave them, where would he go, what is he doing? All im sure that these questions are playing through his head.

The destination is unsure for those who are around him.

For the Christian today, as we sojourn through this land, we often can feel unsure of the destination, we can feel uncertain concerning the direction that the Lord is leading us.

Jesus trusted the direction that he was heading. He knew that his death meant glorification for his self, redemption for those who believed, and obedience to the will of the Father.

Are you okay without knowing the exact path that the Lord is bringing us through?

Trusting Jesus means embracing the path even without full knowing the destination. We can step back and cast all our anxieties upon the Lord because he cares for us, and he knows what the end is.

We have been given a glimpse in the ultimate end. Jesus wins and we get to see him and be face to face with him.

Therefore we can ask God for guidance and clarity, releasing our fears, spending time in prayer and study, and trusting the road that we are on till we arrive face to face with our Lord.

Application: Trusting Jesus means following Him, even when we don’t understand the destination.

III. Are You Thirsty for what he offers? (John 7:37–39)

Key Observation: Jesus invites the thirsty to come and drink, offering the Holy Spirit.

On the seven days of the Feast, a golden flagon was filled with water from the pool of Siloam and was carried in a procession led by the High Priest back to the temple. As the procession approached the watergate on the south side of the inner court three blasts from the šôp̄ār—a trumpet connected with joyful occasions—were sounded. While the pilgrims watched, the priests processed around the altar with the flagon, the temple choir singing the Hallel (Pss. 113–118; cf. Mishnah Sukkah 4:9). When the choir reached Psalm 118, every male pilgrim shook a lûlāḇ (willow and myrtle twigs tied with palm) in his right hand, while his left raised a piece of citrus fruit (a sign of the ingathered harvest), and all cried ‘Give thanks to the Lord!’ three times. The water was offered to God at the time of the morning sacrifice, along with the daily drink-offering (of wine). The wine and the water were poured into their respective silver bowls, and then poured out before the Lord. Moreover, these ceremonies of the Feast of Tabernacles were related in Jewish thought both to the Lord’s provision of water in the desert and to the Lord’s pouring out of the Spirit in the last days. Pouring at the Feast of Tabernacles refers symbolically to the messianic age in which a stream from the sacred rock would flow over the whole earth (cf. J. Jeremias, TDNT, 4. 277f.).

Jesus would cry out. He would stand with boldness in this dramatic pronouncement.

If anyone thirst come to me and drink.

Why is this important? Right here at the end of the feast.

The water-pouring ceremony is seen as a foretaste of the further rivers of living water that is found in Ezekiel 47 and Zechariah 13. There would come a time where the waters of salvation would be outflowing from the temple.

Jesus is clear: He is the fulfillment of all that the Feast pointed to. Just as Isaiah invites the thirtsy to drink from the waters, Isaiah 55:1 ““Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.”

Jesus bids them to come to him the one who provides such waters.

The water of salvation and life is found in Jesus alone.

Mankind can receive it through a belief in the one that the Scripture proclaims and points to, the messiah, our king Jesus.

The result of those who come to drink is an outpouring of the the living water, the Holy Spirit.

The promised holy spirit would come as a blessing in the time of the messiah.

Isaiah 58:11 ESV

And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.

Isaiah 12:3 “With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.”

Isaiah 44:3 “For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.”

Ezekiel 36:25–27 “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.”

Joel 3:18 ““And in that day the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the streambeds of Judah shall flow with water; and a fountain shall come forth from the house of the Lord and water the Valley of Shittim.”

God provided water for the thirsty in the OT wilderness. Nehemiah speaks of God giving water for the thristy.

The Scripture has itself promised this bountiful provision of living water welling up in believers: all the Old Testament portrayals of this rich bounty are understood to be at bottom anticipations that point to the richest provision of all. John himself explicitly confirms the connection between water and Spirit (v. 39)

D. A. Carson, The Gospel according to John, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans, 1991), 328.

Future bringing of the Spirit would come after Jesus was glorified.

Acts 2:1–4 “When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

Reflection:

Application: Are you drinking deeply of the living water Jesus offers, or are you still thirsty?

We call all to come ,who are thirsty and drink from the well springs of life in Jesus

We continuously drink and live in the spirit.

This is why when we come to the worship gathering we come thirsty beat down from a week of craziness, we come to drink from the one who gives life sustaining water. We come to Jesus.

Imagine a church service where the focus shifts from worshiping God to a talent show. Instead of prayers and hymns, we see folks juggling or showcasing magic tricks. While entertaining, these novelties replace the very essence of worship. It’s like trying to fill a spacious void with trinkets, missing the profound presence of the Spirit. We laugh, but we must ask ourselves: are we captivated by entertainment or the Creator?

When we replace any part of the worship service with novalties and nationalism, we are not coming to the one whom we proclaim can save us, we are coming from to a man made act of tradition that is void of the life giving spirit of Christ.

IV. Why Are People Divided About Jesus? (John 7:40–52)

Key Observation: The crowd is divided, the Pharisees resist, and Nicodemus steps forward.

What causes division about Jesus today?

Are you more like the Pharisees, resisting truth, or Nicodemus, seeking it?

Application: Are you willing to stand for Jesus in a world divided about Him?

Conclusion: What Will You Do with Jesus?

Challenge:

Will you accept Jesus as the living water for your soul?

Will you stand for Him like Nicodemus, even when it’s hard?

Invitation: Jesus’ call is personal. Who do you say He is?