7 10-18 Would Jesus Lead Us Astray
liberty bible church 7/13/08 a.M.
By Tom Zobrist
“would jesus lead us astray?”
John 7:10-18
introduction
Illus. of the LIFE Club Mystery Trip this past week. We had an enjoyable time of fellowship and encouragement. Part of the fun of this activity is the “mystery” that surrounds the destination and activities involved. I like to keep the destination a mystery, but I would never deceive anyone into something that could be harmful in any way. They may not know, but trust that the trip it is going to be something good and exciting and so we go. And so far, it has been great! For believers, something similar occurs in our relationship with God. There are many things that God doesn’t tell us, but we know that if we trust Him, the journey through this life and on into the next is going to be fresh and exciting everyday. There may be unknowns and it may not always be easy, (the air spits on you, as last year) but it always works out when we seek to do God’s will. Even though God may keep some details a secret, He would never purposefully deceive us. But, is the same true for Jesus? There is so much disagreement over some of His teachings that are hard. Does He not want us to understand? Or even worse, would Jesus purposefully lead anyone astray?
OPEN to the passage.
Prop. In this passage, we see how we can learn and know and trust the teachings of Jesus.
Open in PRAYER.
PREVIEW the passage. In the last paragraph, Jesus and His brothers are preparing for the Feast of Tabernacles. His brothers felt that this was a good opportunity for Jesus to get the trust of the nation, if He was to be the Messiah. Cf. 7:1-9 But Jesus, by God’s will, had a plan. And we see Him set that in motion in this next paragraph. It’s here that we see first…
i. divine secrets concealed vs. 10-15
Illus. of we revealed the destination of the LIFE club trip after the first stop. Some anticipation built up, we played a word game with some clues, and some were beginning to guess. We have several more hours to go so wanted them to not get frustrated. So, at the right time, we revealed the destination and the plans for the day. The same is true here with Jesus. At the right time, He lets the people know that He had come to Jerusalem. But not immediately.
a. Jesus can keep a secret
V 10 Being God, Jesus cannot lie. But He sure can keep a secret. Not wanting to be publicly exposed just yet, it was not yet His time to die, He goes up in secret to the Feast of Booths at Jerusalem.
b. Jesus is Missed
V 11 1. The Jewish leaders sought Him out. They were expecting Him to come and make trouble and they wanted to be ready. All the while, it appears that the opposition was growing. But, His time was not yet.
V 12a 2. “complaining” is the term “grumbling.” Basically there was a debate going on amongst the common people, as the leaders. He was a lightning rod.
V 12b 3. Some thought He was good. He worked miracles. He fed the people. He opposed the evil authorities. He worked for the common man. Perhaps He is the Messiah. Others called Him a deceiver. He looked good but could never deliver the real thing. This is a very serious charge. The penalty for this according to Talmudic law was death by stoning.
V 13 4. This meant that they feared the religious leaders. Besides Rome, they hade the next greatest power over the people. Illus. of the way that many of us talk about politicians today. We do it in small groups, in coffee shops, but rarely do we do it in public forums. We can. We have that freedom. But, we don’t usually get the opportunity. These people had opportunity but didn’t have the freedoms we have. So the debates were more private, but widespread… in many circles. Finally…
c. jesus begins revealing truth
V 14 1. The first 3 days pass without incident. Jesus is there privately, watching and listening to the talk. Finally, He goes into the temple courts and begins to teach the people. The religious leaders were there, the common people were there. This was a public display of God’s wisdom and Truth. How would they respond?
V 15 2. The Jewish leaders were amazed. Two them, when it came to Jesus, there were only two choices. Even though Jesus’ teachings were very wise and penetrating, it was hard for them to accept. He had never been trained in a Rabbinic school. How could He know so much? One had to either study at one of their schools or one had to be self-taught. But, there may be another option, one that they had yet to discover. But Jesus was about to reveal it to them.
Trans. Up until now in this passage, there were DIVINE SECRETS CONCEALED. But now, we will see…
ii. divine secrets revealed vs. 16-18
Illus. of preachers today have degrees from Bible Colleges and Seminaries and Ordination papers from churches that attest to their education and knowledge, giftedness and calling from God. Jesus had nothing of the sort. What did He have?
a. Jesus is God taught
V 16a 1. Jesus’ teachings did not originate with Him, at least not the man part of Him. No, He was not trained at one of the many Rabbinic schools. Then from where did they come?
V 16b 2. Jesus’ teachings came from God…directly. No middle man, no rabbis, not reading, Straight from God. That makes Him different than anyone else. That’s makes His teachings different from anyone else. That makes understanding His teachings different as well. Since many of these people were struggling, what were they doing wrong? They didn’t realize that…
b. we must seek God’s will to understand Him
V 17a 1. To really understand Jesus, we must desire to do God’s will. To believe in Jesus is God’s will. Cf. John 6:28-29 Without faith in Jesus we will never fully understand His teachings, at least not the way He intended. Without faith in Jesus, we can never please God. Cf. Heb. 11:6 If we have this type of faith in Jesus, we will understand what He teaches as He intended it to be understood.
V 17b 2. We will then know that His claims are true. He really is from God and so are His teachings. If not, He will just be another great teacher or prophet, as the world says. A little test follows in verse 18.
V 18a 3. If Jesus were self-taught or some sort of genius, He would glorify Himself. But He doesn’t do that at all. His task was to glorify the Father.
V 18b 4. Jesus sought the glory of the Father, which attested to His truthfulness. He is totally reliable and trustworthy. Cf. John 8:26
V 18c 5. We should strive to be like Him because He is the perfect example. But, if you don’t believe and trust in Him, you can’t know Him, and if you don’t know Him, you can’t really understand Him.
conclusion
There are DIVINE SECRETS CONCEALED and there are DIVINE SECRETS REVEALED, but not to you if you don’t know Jesus in a personal way and seeking the will of God. So, back to our question. Would Jesus lead us astray?
1. If we’re not saved, we’re already astray. Cf. Is. 53:6
2. We must understand the GOSPEL and apply it to our lives.
3. We must be living in God’s will to understand all of the Word and properly apply It.
Illus. of “On the Wrong Train” As a train was about to leave a large railroad station, the conductor began to take tickets. Looking at the ticket of the first passenger he remarked, “Friend, I think you’re on the wrong train!” “But,” replied the man, “the ticket agent told me this was my train.” After a little discussion, the conductor decided to check with the ticket agent. Before long, it became clear that the conductor was on the wrong train!
When it appears as if Jesus is leading us astray through His Word or His people, when He asks us to do the difficult, He’s not on the wrong train, we are. We start to follow the flesh, the lusts of the world, perhaps even Satan himself, who is leading millions down a shining path that leads to destruction. God’s Word is clear as to how we are saved and how we are to live…and love. Jesus never leads us astray. Follow Him and you will be on the path to life and joy.
pRAY
“would jesus lead us astray?”
John 7:10-18
introduction
Even though God may keep some details a secret, would He ever purposefully deceive us?
i. divine secrets vs. 10-15
a. Jesus can keep a secret
b. Jesus is Missed
c. jesus begins __________________________ truth
ii. divine secrets vs. 16-18
a. Jesus is ____________________________
b. we must seek ______ ______ to understand Him
Cf. John 6:28-29; Heb. 11:6; John 8:26
conclusion
Would Jesus lead us astray?
1.
Cf. Is. 53:6
2.
3.