Jesus, The Unwilling One
John 7:1-13
Based upon that title, you have to be just a little curious.
Jesus; unwilling? No, never.
He was the most willing person I ever saw. He always accepts, always saves, always comes through with a peak performance.
You can’t say Jesus is unwilling.
Except for the fact that
That is exactly how John described Jesus in verse 1 of chapter 7.
“After these things Jesus was walking in Galilee, for He was unwilling to walk in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill Him.”
Now if you will notice, it doesn’t say that Jesus was afraid to walk in Judea.
It says He was unwilling.
It denotes someone must have had a desire for Him to walk in Judea, otherwise it would have said, “for He was not allowed to walk in Judea”.
The amazing point we see here is that there was actually a place that wanted Him that He was unwilling to go.
In fact, this entire passage is saturated with
The “unwillingness of Jesus” to do what is asked of Him.
First in verse 1 He is “unwilling to walk in Judea”, but that isn’t all.
In verse 3 “Therefore His brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go into Judea, so that Your disciples may see Your works which You are doing.”
But the answer they get from Jesus in verse 8 was, “Go up to the feast yourselves; I do not go up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come.”
Then again we see a disappointed crowd in verse 11, “So the Jews were seeking Him at the feast and were saying, “Where is He?”
Jesus wasn’t doing anything that anybody wanted.
This certainly brings a point of curiosity to our minds, and warrants some explanation.
FIRST, WE HAVE TO ASK OURSELVES, “WHY DID THE PEOPLE WANT JESUS AROUND?”
Well, you and I both know the answer,
But it is also seen in the statement of His brothers.
Verse 3-4, “Therefore His brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go into Judea, so that Your disciples also may see Your works which You are doing. “For no one does anything in secret when he himself seeks to be known publicly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.”
They wanted a magic show.
And let me tell you why.
Up to this point , most of Jesus miracles had occurred in Galilee.
He turned the water to wine
He healed the royal official’s son
He fed the 5,000
He walked on water
To this point, the only miracle Jesus had performed in Judea was healing the man at the Bethesda pool.
The point His brothers were making was a simple one.
Jerusalem was the acid test. That was where the validity must happen.
Anyone could get those ignorant, hot-headed Galileans to get excited, but the true test would be the verdict of the Sanhedrin.
If you can convince them, then you can convince us.
Jesus brothers wanted Him to work miracles.
But here in John 7, Jesus is unwilling to do so.
WHY?
Because miracles was not the point of Jesus ministry.
Contrary to popular belief, Jesus did not come
Just to cure all the social ills of mankind.
But so many think that is why He came.
They want God to heal their sickness…
They want God to fix their finances…
They want God to restore their comfort…
Yet many of them have found Jesus unwilling.
WHY? Is it because Jesus doesn’t care?
The reason Jesus is often times unwilling to show up with miracle power,
Is not because Jesus doesn’t care about your problems,
But because Jesus cares more about your spiritual problems than any other.
Jesus main concern was never curing social ills,
It was always preaching the truth.
Mark 1:37-38 “they found Him, and said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You.” He said to them, “Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may preach there also; for that is what I came for.”
Matthew 4:17 “From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Look for example at the setting were some of His most famous miracles occurred.
Remember Jesus healing the paralytic. That didn’t start out a healing service.
Mark 2:1-3 “When He had come back to Capernaum several days afterward, it was heard that He was at home. And many were gathered together, so that there was no longer room, not even near the door; and He was speaking the word to them. And they came, bringing to Him a paralytic, carried by four men.”
Remember Jesus feeding the 5,000? That didn’t start out a healing miracle show.
Mark 6:34 “When Jesus went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and He felt compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things.”
Jesus concern was always teaching the truth.
In fact, Jesus continually taught the importance of sacrificing the physical or temporal, for the sake of the spiritual and eternal.
Mark 9:43-48 “If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire, [where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE, AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED.] “If your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame, than, having your two feet, to be cast into hell, [where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE, AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED.] “If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into hell, where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE, AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED.”
The way to push Jesus away is not to doubt His power,
It is to disregard His preaching.
Mark 6:1-6 “Jesus went out from there and came into His hometown; and His disciples followed Him. When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue; and the many listeners were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things, and what is this wisdom given to Him, and such miracles as these performed by His hands? “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? Are not His sisters here with us?” And they took offense at Him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his own relatives and in his own household.” And He could do no miracle there except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. And He wondered at their unbelief.”
In a world where we treat God like Santa Claus who is obligated to fix all our problems and make our lives run smooth.
People need to know that those problems are allowed by God, some of them even caused by God, and they are there because He is more concerned with your soul than your comfort.
This is why Jesus was so unwilling to work any miracles here.
Matthew 12:38-42 “Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” But He answered and said to them, ” An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. “The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. “The Queen of the South will rise up with this generation at the judgment and will condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.”
The point is, if you aren’t willing to listen to the truth of Jesus,
Then don’t expect the hand of Jesus on your life.
And the text we are about to look at shows us this very thing.
Three reasons why Jesus refused to show up
And work miracles for these people.
He did eventually go up (after the streets were clear), but look why.
Vs. 14, “But when it was now the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and began to teach.”
Jesus wasn’t going to play the magician game.
And so what we see is 3 reasons why Jesus was unwilling to show His power to people, and it all has to do with the way these people treated the truth He preached.
If you treat the truth of Jesus the way these people did,
I can promise you won’t experience His power either.
#1 DISDAIN FOR IT’S VERACITY
John 7:1
Veracity means “accuracy or precision”
These people showed disdain for the accuracy or precision of the truth that Jesus preached.
NOW WE ARE TALKING ABOUT JUDEA, WHEN DID THEY HEAR IT?
Remember the story of Jesus healing the man at the Bethesda pool. Well you remember they had qualms with Him doing that on the Sabbath.
John 5:16 “For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath.”
But notice they were only persecuting Him for that.
WHY DID THEY WANT TO KILL HIM?
John 5:17-18 “But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.”
It was the truth of Jesus that made them want to kill Him.
He wasn’t unwilling because they scolded His compassion.
He was unwilling because they hated the truth He preached.
If you are not willing to accept the truth of Jesus,
Then don’t expect Him to hang around working miracles.
He came to preach the truth,
To expose and convict your sin,
And to lead you to repentance and salvation,
But if you won’t submit to that,
Don’t expect Him to hang around working miracles.
John 12:35-36 “So Jesus said to them, “For a little while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. “While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light.” These things Jesus spoke, and He went away and hid Himself from them.”
Many of you need to know this is why
It seems like God isn’t answering your prayers.
WHY?
Because God is trying to show you something else,
And He is moving until you listen.
I loved Leo’s testimony this morning. God wasn’t helping with anything until Leo learned to spell Guatemala.
GOD ALWAYS PUTS THE SPIRITUAL AHEAD OF THE ETERNAL
So first, if you have disdain for the veracity of His truth He can become unwilling.
#2 DISREGARD FOR IT’S VALUE
John 7:2-9
Another reason is if you treat lightly the truth you have already received.
If you refuse to digest what you have been given,
Why would you expect God to give you anymore?
This certainly is the boat His brothers were in.
They wanted Jesus to work more miracles. If possible to get the approval of the Sanhedrin so they would feel safe in believing.
They wanted Jesus to go up and offer more proof.
But Jesus makes a startling point.
Verse 6, “So Jesus said to them, “My time is not yet here, but your time is always opportune.”
The word “time” translates KAIROS
It indicates an opportunity.
Right now is not His best opportunity,
HOWEVER Jesus brothers always had the opportunity.
HE WAS RIGHT THERE IN FRONT OF THEM.
They didn’t need Him to work any more miracles, all they had to do was look at Him.
They grew up with truth incarnate, and failed to see His value.
And Jesus continues His rebuke in verse 7, “The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it, that it’s deeds are evil”
They didn’t understand why Jesus couldn’t go up
Because they didn’t understand the hostility that He faced.
They were of the world, and as John adds in verse 5, “For not even His brothers were believing in Him.”
A good way to keep God from working more in your life
Is by suppressing the truth that you do have.
The comedian Red Skelton He said, “I got her a cemetery plot last year, and she didn’t use it, so I ain’t getting her nothing this year.”
Matthew 13:10-13 “And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. “For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. “Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.”
Hebrews 6:7-8 “For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned.”
Disdain for the veracity of His truth
Disregard for the value of His truth will turn Him away in a heartbeat.
#3 DEBATING IT’S VALIDITY
John 7:10-13
Now you will notice this crowd wanted to see Jesus (obviously to see more signs) but they found themselves disappointed.
And then the debating began.
Some thought Him to be good, others thought Him to be bad.
Both were wrong.
There are many ways to describe Jesus, but “a good man” is not one of them.
They had missed the mark on Him completely.
But the real problem wasn’t that they had a faulty understanding
The real problem was what it was going to take to get them to believe in Him.
You will notice none of them would do anything.
Vs. 13, “Yet no one was speaking openly of Him for fear of the Jews.”
They wouldn’t take a stand for truth until it was endorsed by big-wigs
They weren’t concerned about truth,
They were concerned about being accepted.
John 12:37-43 “But though He had performed so many signs before them, yet they were not believing in Him. This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet which he spoke: “LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT? AND TO WHOM HAS THE ARM OF THE LORD BEEN REVEALED?” For this reason they could not believe, for Isaiah said again, “HE HAS BLINDED THEIR EYES AND HE HARDENED THEIR HEART, SO THAT THEY WOULD NOT SEE WITH THEIR EYES AND PERCEIVE WITH THEIR HEART, AND BE CONVERTED AND I HEAL THEM.” These things Isaiah said because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him. Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God.”
DO YOU KNOW WHY PEOPLE DEBATE THE TRUTH?
Because they don’t want to accept it.
They don’t want to accept it is because it costs too much.
If you are wondering why God isn’t showing up in your life,
It may be because you have been teetering
On what God is telling you.
So many times God clearly tells me what He wants from me,
And then I go to debating with Him.
WHY IS GOD NOT WORKING?
Am I showing disdain for the veracity of the truth?
(Did I refuse to believe what He told me?)
Am I disregarding the value of the truth?
(Is there something He told me that I have not acted on?)
Am I debating the validity of the truth?
(Am I putting off obedience on something He has said?)
If you are treating truth like that, then don’t expect Jesus to come and bail you out of your temporal dilemma.
He will allow you to remain there as long as He needs to if that is what it takes to get you to see the truth.
He is much more concerned with the state of your soul than with the state of your bank account.
Matthew 5:29-30 “If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. “If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.”
