Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

The Background

As we come to the beginning of chapter 7 we will notice a transition in the ministry of the Lord.

There is an ending of his Galilean ministry and a beginning of open and militant opposition.

The Brothers

Mary had other children with Joseph and they would have been half brother to Jesus and we find an interesting conversation they have with Jesus at the beginning of this chapter.

Declaration: Although Jesus’ brothers were familiar with him, they were still blind to his power and his person!

Preposition: Could we be guilty of the same “Spiritual Blindness”?

Transition: As we consider this conversation between Jesus and his brothers I want us to notice some striking characteristics of their relationship and attitude toward their brother, the “only begotten son of God” and how these may parallel our own heart at times.

I. Notice their Relationship

As we look at this passage it is amazing that a group of brothers who grew up with our Lord and were so familiar with him, yet they were so blind to his glory.

They were blind to who he was.

Question: Can you imagine what it must have been like to grow up with Jesus in your house?

Illustration: Young people who grow up in church and yet they are blind to Christ- Many young people grow up in church leave as soon as they are older and choose not to serve God with their lives?

They are familiar with God and with Christian principles but yet they are really blind to the glory of Christ and to his message!

Application: We can be just as blind!

Just being a Christian does not exempt you to the problem!

Proximity does not equal Perception!

“is blind and cannot see afar off”

II.

Notice their Reasoning

“depart hence, and go into Judea”

A. They Observed His results

The crowds had left Jesus at this point and it would have been easy for his brothers to draw the wrong conclusion from what they were seeing.

We

Illustration: In the late 1800s, doctors and scientists believed in something called spontaneous generation.

Spontaneous generation was the idea that living organisms could suddenly pop up anywhere from non-living organisms, and this pretty much how they explained disease in the late 1800’s.

The assumption was that these diseases just popped up and that it was completely random.

And there was no investigation to determine how these diseases were related or how diseases were transmitted, because it was assumed, because of spontaneous generation, that a non-living organism could just suddenly produce some sort of living organism that would turn into a disease.

Then Louis Pasteur came along and he said that there are invisible organisms that you cannot see that actually carry these diseases, and they can be carried by the wind.

They can be passed on by touching someone’s skin.

They can live in food.

They can live on different surfaces.

And that these diseases are not just popping up randomly from non-living organisms, but there are invisible organisms, there’s an invisible world that’s impacting the visible world, and it’s the invisible world of germs (as they would eventually be called).

And this unseen world is impacting the seen world and has the potential to destroy lives, families, communities, and create all kinds of pestilence that goes all over the world and kills hundreds and thousands of people, all because of something you just can’t see.

And so he put forth what became known as The Germ Theory of Disease- the idea that invisible micro-organisms could impact the seen world.

Well, this caught on pretty quick among the close-knit group of the medical community he was a part of, and they began washing their hands.

They began separating people from each other.

They began quarantining.

They began watching to see if there was a transmission from one person to another of a common disease.

But many people in the medical and scientific community, and people outside the medical and scientific community, thought it was crazy.

"You’re telling us that there’s something we can’t see that impacts what we can see?

You’re telling us that something that’s invisible can float through the air, land on food, and infect food?

That something you can’t see can float through the air and land on a person’s skin and impact . . .

you’re telling me there’s something that I can’t see that could be on my skin that gets transmitted to somebody else’s skin?

That there’s an invisible world, that we’re surrounded by all these invisible, living organisms that impact our visible world?"

To which Louis Pasteur said, "Absolutely."-

Things are not always what they seem to be!

This rejection of the Lord was exactly what the Bible said would happen and his brothers were trying to fix the “problem”

Application: What may look like a departing crowd in our life may be a work of God.

Medical Problems, Financial Setbacks, Job Difficulties all of these things situations can cause us to doubt God and wonder if he is really at work.

B. They Offered Him Advice

“depart hence, and go into Judea”

Here these brothers were - blind to who Jesus was and completely unable to scripturally evaluate His ministry, yet they were willing to offer advice!

Application: We need to be careful when we are getting advice.

Many people are just like Jesus brothers, they are spiritually blind to the glory of God, they are spiritually blind to the working of God and yet they are quick to give their advice on how to handle the situation.

Quote: “Don’t take financial advice from your broke uncle” - Dave Ramsey

III.

Notice the Root

“neither did his brethren believe in him”

Their spiritual blindness was a result of their unbelief!!

Why were they so blind?

Unbelief!

Conclusion:

Review

We noticed their Relationship - brothers- they were close- that didn’t guarantee spiritual sight

2. We noticed their Reasoning - Reasoning that lacked spiritual discernment

3. We noticed the Result - Everything in our spiritual life comes back to believing God