Who Is Jesus

Timing Is Everything

The time that had elapsed from chapter 6 to chapter 7 is about 6 months. The reason we know this is by the feast. It was the Feast of Booths which was the last feast of the year. The first feast of the year happened in the spring . It is called the feast of unleavened bread. This is know as the passover feast to commemorate the deliverance of Israel from Egypt. It was also a was a feast that observed the anticipated Christ atoning death on the cross.

The second Feast was the Feast of Weeks which is 7 weeks after Passover. It was the beginning of the wheat harvest. It was to commemorate the giving of the Law and began on Sunday . It was a foreshadowing of the beginning of the Christian Church. You will recall that it was at Pentecost that the Holy Spirit was given to the followers of Christ and where the church began.

2 When the day of Pentecost [a]had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared to them tongues as of fire [b]distributing themselves, and [c]they [d]rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other [e]tongues, as the Spirit was giving them [f]utterance. Acts 2:2-4

The third feast of the year was the Feast of Booths. This marked the end of the harvest season and was perhaps the most popular of the feasts.

John, Volumes 1 & 2 Chapter 48: At the Feast of Booths (John 7:1–13)

Christians think of Passover as the chief feast, but for the Jews, Tabernacles was the greatest. Leon Morris explains: “Tabernacles marked the successful completion of their labors. The harvest was in the barns; the people could relax and rejoice. It was the feast for an agriculture people.” Moreover, Tabernacles was an exciting festival. To recall their exodus sojourn, the people lived outside in booths made of sheaves. The residents of Jerusalem set up booths on their porches and visitors set up booths in the streets. It was a festive scene: a national campout.

This Feast was associated with kingship, therefore it was a foreshadowing of the second coming of Christ.

The reason Jesus was not willing to go publicly to the feast of Booths with His brothers was that He knew that the Pharisees were wanting to kill Him and His time was at Passover, not Feast of Booths. Jesus would be crucified at Passover because of what it stood for. The deliverance of people from captivity.

Every second of Jesus life was perfectly timed.

His Birth- 4 But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, Gal. 4:4

His Childhood and Youth - 52 And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and [a]stature, and in favor with God and men. Luke 2:52

His Public Ministry- 21 Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.” Luke 3:21-22

His First Miracle- On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; 2 and both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus *said to Him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus *said to her, “Woman, [a]what does that have to do with us? My hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother *said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.” 6 Now there were six stone waterpots set there for the Jewish custom of purification, containing [b]twenty or thirty gallons each. 7 Jesus *said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” So they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He *said to them, “Draw some out now and take it to the [c]headwaiter.” So they took it to him. 9 When the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter *called the bridegroom, 10 and *said to him, “Every man serves the good wine first, and when the people have [d]drunk freely, then he serves the poorer wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.” 11 This beginning of His [e]signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him. John 2:1-11

His Death- Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit. John 19:30

Every aspect of Jesus life was timed perfectly. Jesus came to fulfill the purpose of the Father. He paid the price for humanities sin by fulfilling the law and giving Himself as a sacrifice for all those who would put their faith in Him for the forgiveness of their sins and reconciliation to the Father.

We have a timeline as well!

Just as Jesus had purpose, so do we. We will go through seasons of life. God knows the perfect timing for us as well. He created our birth, has appointed our death, and assigned everything in between. The greatest joy and when a person really begins living is when they decide to follow Jesus. Life is but mere survival until that point. When a person begins following Jesus they begin living in their purpose. That is to bring glory to God.

We must learn to trust that God’s timing is perfect. He is the One who created time, but is not limited by time since He is eternal. If life isn’t happening they way you want or as quickly as you like, get on God’s agenda and it will happen right on time.

So where are you in your timeline of life. Have you begun to live or are you just surviving. The answer lies with what you believe about Jesus.

What Do You Believe About Jesus

We see different viewpoints in this passage about what people believe about Jesus. We see His brothers, the Pharisees, and the crowd. All of them had different views of Jesus.

His Brothers

John records that Jesus own brothers did not believe that He was the Son of God. We see this in their mocking Him. They were telling Him to go to the most popular festival and reveal Himself to the people who He was if He really was who He claimed to be.

I find this interesting as they saw Him and grew up with Him. They saw that he was perfect and did not sin. I wonder if they were jealous of Him and did not like Him and as a result would not believe in Him.

Perhaps you have tried to witness to your family and find it difficult because they know you better than others. Could it be that they are jealous for what you have and would rather you not have a relationship with Jesus than them having a relationship with Jesus?

Could it be that the only things that the brothers wanted was an easier life.If Jesus showed Himself to the people they would, by being His brothers, get the honor as well. They wanted what Jesus could bring them here on earth. They could care less about eternity all they want is the here and now.

We do not know why the brothers were unbelieving, but we know that they were at this time. Praise God that we know 2 of His brothers came to faith in Jesus after His resurrection. James and Jude. They both wrote about Him in the books of the Bible.

The Pharisees

The Pharisees hated Jesus. They posed a threat to their religion, culture, and way of life. They believed that they were chosen and the way you got salvation was by observing God’s law. They believed since they were priests and pharisees that they were good enough for heaven. They did not need a savior.

Jesus came to tell them and the world that it is evil. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil. John 7:7

Jesus came to tell the world that everyone is a sinner and that they need a savior. Jesus is the Savior.

John, Volumes 1 & 2 Jesus and the People

William Barclay writes, “When a man’s ideals clash with those of Christ, either he must submit or he must seek to destroy him.” This is why so many people who reject Jesus today devote sermons, books, and films to blaspheming Jesus and denying his teaching.

The Pharisees ideals clashed with the Pharisees. They were not willing to submit to Jesus so they sought out to destroy Him.

This is why many agnostics, atheist, and other religions seek to reduce Christ to the point of insignificance. This is another way of destroying Him.

The Crowds

The crowds were divided. Some said Jesus was a good man while others said He was an evil man. Neither one of them claimed that He was the Son of God. One thing they had in common was they remained silent for fear of the Pharisees. They knew if they said something that was in opposition to the pharisees that they could be cut off from their people and be put out of the temple. Therefor they kept silent.

The reason they kept silent is they knew about Jesus, but didn’t know Jesus. They had heard stories, but did not really know Him. This is why they were not willing to speak up loudly the truth about Jesus.

Unfortunately, the majority of the church is like the crowd. They remain silent. The reason they remain silent is that they know about Jesus. They have been taught the bible in Sunday school and have heard many sermons, so they know about Him. However they don’t know Him personally.

To know Jesus personally means to live with Him and in Him in your daily life. He is a part of every aspect of your life. You talk with Him daily, you observe His presence in your life and you testify about His presence in your life. This is how you know if you are walking with Jesus. If you remain silent, then you are not walking with Him.

Christians that walk with Jesus can’t remain silent they must tell others. The goodness of they Lord flows from the heart and fills our minds and our mouths with the gospel and testimonies about the goodness of our Lord!