Jesus, The One You Will Respond To

John 7:25-36

JESUS FINALLY WENT TO JERUSALEM AND THE CROWDS WERE AMAZED, SINCE HE WAS NOT EDUCATED.

He had been educated, just not by men.
He was taught by God, and He spoke the things of God.

John 7:16 “So Jesus answered them and said, “My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me.”

And so Jesus continued explaining why He was indeed true.
His Inspiration, His congregation, His motivation.

THEN JESUS MOVED HIS FOCUS TO THE CROWD
AND WHY THEY WOULDN’T BELIEVE

Their standard of measure was off.
Their selective memory saw no flaws in themselves.
Their superficial ministry puffed them up.

And so Jesus told them.
John 7:24 “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

AND SO THUS FAR WE HAVE SEEN THE TWO MAIN REASONS WHY PEOPLE REJECT JESUS

They either don’t see Him as someone worthy of Lordship,
They don’t see themselves as someone deserving of submission

Two condemning beliefs are still reigning supreme with our crowd.

We will work our way through the text,
But our main sermon is found in verses 33-34.

Verses 25-26, “So some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, “Is this not the man whom they are seeking to kill? “Look, He is speaking publicly, and they are saying nothing to Him. The rulers do not really know that this is the Christ, do they?”

1) You can see His boldness, preaching to those who want to kill Him.
2) You can see His wisdom, completely confounding the religious elite.
3) You can see His appeal, as the main attraction even to the disbelieving.
But mostly in these two verses, I like to see the power of Jesus.

THEY SCHEMED AGAINST HIM,
BUT THEY COULDN’T STOP HIM

You never read of Him being outsmarted…
You never read of Him being overpowered…
You never read of Him being defeated…

He always had the last word.
He always got the last laugh.
He always accomplished His purpose.
He was never even delayed in doing it.

Verse 27, “However, we know where this man is from; but whenever the Christ may come, no one knows where He is from.”

They say, “we know where this man is from”.

NO THEY DIDN’T.
Have we not just seen the argument.

John 6:41-42 “Therefore the Jews were grumbling about Him, because He said, “I am the bread that came down out of heaven.” They were saying, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does He now say, ‘ I have come down out of heaven’?”

“but whenever the Christ may come, no one knows where He is from.”

Now I don’t know where they got that,
But it most certainly was not from the Bible.

Isaiah 9:6-7 “For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this.”

But that isn’t all.
Micah 5:2 “But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity.”

It is foolish, so Jesus calls them on it.

Verse 28-29, “Then Jesus cried out in the temple, teaching and saying, “You both know Me and know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. “I know Him, because I am from Him, and He sent Me.”

You see the main point of the Messiah is not where He is from, but who He is from.
THEY SCRUTINIZED HIM,
BUT THEY COULDN’T SILENCE HIM

Despite attacking His credibility, Jesus still go the message across.
“I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.”

Verse 30, “So they were seeking to seize Him; and no man laid his hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.”

They were going to “seize” Him.
Translates – PIAZO
It means to lay hold of and to bind.

It is the word used of the disciples inability to catch fish.
John 21:3 “Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will also come with you.” They went out and got into the boat; and that night they caught nothing.”

It is also the word used of what Jesus will do
To the beast and the false prophet.

Revelation 19:20 “And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone.”

But of course you see the text.
“and no man laid his hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.”

THEY SOUGHT HIM,
BUT THEY COULDN’T SEIZE HIM

After Jesus offended His hometown
Luke 4:28-30 “And all the people in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things; and they got up and drove Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff. But passing through their midst, He went His way.”

Jesus was completely beyond their control.
They didn’t like His message so they schemed against Him, but they couldn’t stop Him.
They didn’t like His message so they scrutinized Him, but they couldn’t silence Him.
They didn’t like His message so they sought Him, but they couldn’t seize Him.

Verses 31-36, “But many of the crowd believed in Him; and they were saying, “When the Christ comes, He will not perform more signs than those which this man has, will He?” The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things about Him, and the chief priests and the Pharisees sent officers to seize Him. Therefore Jesus said, “For a little while longer I am with you, then I go to Him who sent Me. “You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.” The Jews then said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find Him? He is not intending to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks, is He? “What is this statement that He said, ‘You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come’?”

Now the good news here is that at least some of the crowd finally did have the light come on.

“But many of the crowd believed in Him; and they were saying, “When the Christ comes, He will not perform more signs than those which this man has, will He?”

Don’t get too excited, because in just about 6 months they will all be shouting “Crucify”.

But the focus of this text is not on them,
For their enlightenment only causes the hostility to heighten.

Look at verse 32, “The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things about Him, and the chief priests and the Pharisees sent officers to seize Him.”

But Jesus makes a response.
“Therefore Jesus said, “For a little while longer I am with you, then I go to Him who sent Me. You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.”

First what I want you to see is the response of the religious leaders.

Verses 35-36, “The Jews then said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find Him? He is not intending to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks, is He? “What is this statement that He said, ‘ You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come’?”

Can you see the tragedy of these people. They didn’t get it at all. They thought He meant He was going to teach “the Dispersion”

“What is this statement that He said, ‘You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come’?”

They schemed against Him, but they couldn’t stop Him.
They scrutinized Him, but they couldn’t silence Him.
They sought Him, but they couldn’t seize Him.

THEY SAW HIM,
BUT THEY COULDN’T SEE HIM

And this is perhaps the most dangerous of all.

The reason is because they were steeped in unbelief.
Sometimes people can’t see because they won’t see.

Some today desire to live in greed and refuse to see the poverty around them.
Some today live in pity and refuse to see the beauty around them.
Some today live in laziness and refuse to see the needs around them.

But the real tragedy is when people live in sin
And refuse to see the destruction that awaits.

And this is the point of tonight’s sermon.

Tonight you have seen reason after reason
Why people rejected Jesus.

Add to your list as to why people reject Him.
But in Jesus brief sermon of response,
What we see is the danger of rejecting.

Look back at His response to a group of religious rulers who desired to seize Him.

Verses 33-34, “Therefore Jesus said, “For a little while longer I am with you, then I go to Him who sent Me. “You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.”

This crowd had every opportunity to respond to Him and wouldn’t do it.
For some reason they continued to white knuckle the pews.
For some reason they just wouldn’t let go and follow Jesus.

SO JESUS PREACHES ON THE IMPORTANCE OF RESPONDING
There are three different times that you have an opportunity to respond.

And I want you to know you will respond to Jesus at one of these 3 times.

Will you respond to Jesus,
#1 WHEN IT IS FAVORABLE
John 7:33a
“Therefore Jesus said, “For a little while longer I am with you”

You see this crowd had done an awful lot of mocking. They had done an awful lot of suppressing, but what they needed to understand was that their time would not always be opportune.

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.”

Isaiah 55:6 “Seek the LORD while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near.”

And perhaps Paul put it best.
2 Corinthians 6:1-2 “And working together with Him, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain — for He says, “AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU, AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU.” Behold, now is “THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,” behold, now is “THE DAY OF SALVATION”

So many people fail to realize this, but the salvation of God comes on His timing, not ours.

We always think there will be another service,
Another invitation, Another opportunity.

They treat salvation like it is always opportune.

The only time we get the opportunity is when God calls us.
John 6:44 “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.”

We may think we have forever to flirt with the conviction of the Holy Spirit, but we do not. We only have “today”.

Hebrews 3:7-13 “Therefore, just as the Holy Spirit says, “TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME, AS IN THE DAY OF TRIAL IN THE WILDERNESS, WHERE YOUR FATHERS TRIED Me BY TESTING Me, AND SAW MY WORKS FOR FORTY YEARS. “THEREFORE I WAS ANGRY WITH THIS GENERATION, AND SAID, ‘THEY ALWAYS GO ASTRAY IN THEIR HEART, AND THEY DID NOT KNOW MY WAYS’; AS I SWORE IN MY WRATH, ‘THEY SHALL NOT ENTER MY REST.'” Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”

If Jesus is calling your heart now, now is the favorable time to respond.

The question is will I respond to Jesus when it is favorable?
There are some who will respond to Jesus when it is favorable.

But there is another time to respond to Jesus
#2 WHEN IT IS FINAL
John 7:33b “then I go to Him who sent Me.”

There is coming an end to this invitation.
I believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that there is a final invitation for every lost soul of man.

It may be because you will die before you ever get invited again.
It may be because God will quit knocking on your heart.
It may be because your heart will get too hard to even recognize the call.

Remember the parable of the soils.
Matthew 13:19 “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road.”

There are those who have so hardened their heart that it is comparable to a dirt road and the seed no longer penetrates. They no longer even recognize the invitation.

Some have just received their last chance.
Hebrews 6:4-8 “For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame. 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.”

Jesus flat out told some when they had.
In Matthew 11 He pronounced judgment on Chorazin, Bethsaid, and Capernaum.

Matthew 11:16-20 “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market places, who call out to the other children, and say, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’ “For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘ He has a demon!’ “The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.” Then He began to denounce the cities in which most of His miracles were done, because they did not repent.”

Then He went on to say how Tyre and Sidon and Sodom and Gomorrah would have it better in the judgment than those cities.

Jerusalem, along with the rulers had received and missed their final invitation, and look at what Jesus said to them.

Matthew 23:29-39 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ “So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. “Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers. “You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell? “Therefore, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city, so that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. “Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. “Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! “For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!'”

There is a final time when the invitation is offered,
If you miss it, it will never be offered again.

The question I always want to ask people is when will your final time be?
Jerusalem missed hers,
The thief on the cross seized his,
What about you?

There is a favorable time to respond and there is a final time to respond.

#3 WHEN IT IS FUTILE
John 7:34

Here is the real tragedy that those in Jerusalem faced.
Jesus actually said there would be a time
When they would want Him, but would not be able to find Him.

COULD THERE ACTUALLY BE A TIME WHEN WE WOULD SEEK JESUS, BUT NOT BE ABLE TO FIND HIM?
Apparently so,

BUT YOU SAY, “WHEN WILL THIS TIME COME?”
During the judgment.

I believe there will be scores and scores of people who will cry out to Jesus in the judgment and it will be too late.

Think about the judgment during Jeremiah’s time, do you not think there were some who sought forgiveness?

Of course there were.
My son repents during every spanking, but by the time the spanking comes around, it is too late.

I want you to know there is a time to respond to Jesus
When it is futile.

Listen to these argue with Jesus at the judgment.

Matthew 7:21-23 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’

Listen to these.
Matthew 25:41-46 “Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘ Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’ “Then they themselves also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’ “Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Listen to these.
Matthew 25:10-13 “And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut. “Later the other virgins also came, saying, ‘ Lord, lord, open up for us.’ “But he answered, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’ “Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.”

Luke 13:22-30 “And He was passing through from one city and village to another, teaching, and proceeding on His way to Jerusalem. And someone said to Him, “Lord, are there just a few who are being saved?” And He said to them, “Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. “Once the head of the house gets up and shuts the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock on the door, saying, ‘ Lord, open up to us!’ then He will answer and say to you, ‘ I do not know where you are from.’ “Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets’; and He will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you are from; DEPART FROM ME, ALL YOU EVILDOERS.’ “In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but yourselves being thrown out. “And they will come from east and west and from north and south, and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God. “And behold, some are last who will be first and some are first who will be last.”

Can you see that at that point it is futile to respond to Jesus.
How many wait too late to respond?

There is a favorable time
There is a final time
There is a futile time

I would just ask you again, about your response to Jesus.
We know what eventually happened to this crowd.
They would respond when it was too late.

They now sit in the fires of hell and cry out
That Abraham would send Lazarus to their brothers
To warn them not to come to this dreadful place.

But what about you.

Just don’t wait until the time is futile.

2 Corinthians 6:2 “for He says, “AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU,
AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU.” Behold, now is “THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,” behold, now is “THE DAY OF SALVATION”

Jesus, The Misjudged One

John 7:19-24

This morning we listened to Jesus as He defended the fact that He is indeed the True One of God.

We have no doubt that what Jesus speaks is true because He received His message from the Father, He was followed by those who truly loved God, and His only motive was to glorify God.

And so this morning Jesus laid out the facts as to why we should listen to Him.

But in our text this evening, Jesus shifts the focus of His sermon.
He stops shining the light on Himself, and shines it on the crowd.

This is a very important second step.

For if Jesus comes claiming to be speaking God’s truth,
And people refuse to listen to Him,
That can only mean one of two things.

1) Either He is a false prophet and the people have seen through Him
2) Or He is exactly what He says and the people will not see it.

Since we determined this morning that Jesus is indeed the true one, we have no other option than to accept the second problem.

These people are obviously in a state of determined blindness.
Matthew 21:23-27 “When He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. “The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?” And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ “But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the people; for they all regard John as a prophet.” And answering Jesus, they said, “We do not know.” He also said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

And this is a mindset we continually see in the people of Israel.
They refused to see the truth about Jesus.

They did not like what He was teaching, “By what authority are You doing these things?”

But they would not accept that His authority was from God.

THE CRAWFORD SUNDAY SCHOOL SCANDAL

It is the same contradiction that the people are facing here.

Their refusal to follow Him
Is only revealing their own persistent blindness.

Jesus described these types of people like this.

Matthew 15:14 “Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”

Later He would confront the Pharisees in much the same way.

Matthew 23:16-26 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘ Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’ “You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold? “And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.’ “You blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering? “Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and by everything on it. “And whoever swears by the temple, swears both by the temple and by Him who dwells within it. “And whoever swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. “You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. “You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.”

Jesus didn’t have many different adjectives for the religious leaders. One was hypocrite, the other was blind.

And later, in a humiliating comparison,
Jesus will actually reveal their blindness
Through healing a blind man that could see.

To which Jesus will say after this former blind man confesses Him:
John 9:39-41 “And Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.” Those of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, “We are not blind too, are we?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, ‘ We see,’ your sin remains.”

And of course this is exactly what Isaiah prophesied.
(Interesting that no Old Testament passage is quoted more in the New Testament than this one.)

As Jesus was speaking to His disciples:
Matthew 13:14-17 “In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says, ‘YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND; YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE; FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL, WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR, AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES, OTHERWISE THEY WOULD SEE WITH THEIR EYES, HEAR WITH THEIR EARS, AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN, AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.’ “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. “For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”

This group was obviously walking in the spiritual blindness that Isaiah prophesied.

I don’t even have to tell you how this applies today.
So many today who go throughout this world having heard the truth And yet refuse to see it.
We live in a day of determined blindness

He gives three attributes of these spiritually blind.

Although they were extremely religious, although they knew their Bibles, we are going to see that in what ways these people were blind even though they could see.

3 attributes of the religious yet spiritually blind
#1 SELF-GRATIFYING MEASURE
John 7:19

Now you understand what I mean by “measure”.
Everyone has one.

We all have that line in the sand that we draw in our brains as the difference between what is acceptable and what is not.
WOODY WOODWARD

If you where here Wednesday night and heard the testimony of Iris Blue and how she always had someone to compare herself to, and no matter how bad she lived, she could always find someone worse.

Now, if you want to know the true line, it is God’s righteousness.

This righteousness was first seen in the Law.
Deuteronomy 6:24-25 “So the LORD commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God for our good always and for our survival, as it is today. “It will be righteousness for us if we are careful to observe all this commandment before the LORD our God, just as He commanded us.”

Of course Jesus is the epitome of this righteousness.
Isaiah 28:16-17 “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed. “I will make justice the measuring line And righteousness the level; Then hail will sweep away the refuge of lies And the waters will overflow the secret place.”

But what happens is that people look at God’s measure
Through self-gratifying glasses.

Men find ways to examine God’s righteousness with glasses
That always seem to make themselves look better
And other people look worse.

Their measure is skewed to make themselves look better, and at the same time their measure is skewed to make others look worse.

Remember what Jesus said?
Matthew 7:3-5 “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? “Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.”

Jesus was confronting a people who were blind to their own wickedness, and that is what He says here as well.

“Did not Moses give you the Law..?”

But Jesus confronts their hypocrisy.
“Did not Moses give you the Law, and yet none of you carries out the Law?”

You see these people looked at the Law and never saw their own flaws.
In their mind they were fine and everyone else is the sinner.

And Jesus just exposes them by asking this question.
“Why do you seek to kill Me?”

Why were they so willing to single Him out?

It is reminiscent of the famous statement of Jesus.
John 8:7 “But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”

Jesus point was that these people had a self-gratifying measure.
They only could see other people’s flaws, not their own.

THAT IS DETERMINED BLINDNESS
This is exactly who the Pharisees where.
Matthew 23:25-28 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. “You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. “So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”
If you are unwilling to see the truth about yourself,
You cannot see Jesus,
Because the first thing He does is
Hold up a mirror for you to look into.

Hebrews 4:12-13 “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.”

If you have a self-gratifying measure, you are missing Jesus too.

#2 SELECTIVE MEMORY
John 7:20-21

Now after Jesus points out that they want to kill Him, they have a great argument.

They simply say, “Nu-uh!”

In fact they go further than that.
They actually accuse Him of having a demon, which is making Him paranoid, and that no one really wants to kill Him.

“The crowd answered, “You have a demon! Who seeks to kill you?”

My, My, My, what a selective memory.
And just to help their memory Jesus makes another statement.

“I did one deed, and you all marvel.”

NOW WHAT ONE DEED DID JESUS DO IN JERUSALEM?
That’s right, He healed the man at the Bethesda pool.

John 5:15-18 “The man went away, and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. 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 is at this point that I’m surprised someone in the crowd didn’t say, “Oh that, we were just joking.”

You see this is also a characteristic of those who are deliberately blind.
They have a selective memory.

Somehow they only seem to remember the good things they do, And conveniently forget the bad things they do.
They are unwilling to look at themselves in the mirror,
But they are also unwilling to own up to the mistakes
They have made in the past.

They’re unwilling to get honest about who they are, or what they’ve done.
A selective memory is a determined blindness,
And it will catch up with you.

Matthew 25:41-46 “Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘ Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’ “Then they themselves also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’ “Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

It is always tempting to look at our own deeds with selective memory.
(Ever watch a reply of a football game?)

It is a characteristic of determined blindness.
Self-gratifying measure
Selective memory

#3 SUPERFICIAL MINISTRY
John 7:22-23

Now this passage gets a little wordy here, so let me see if I can help you through it.

You will notice that Jesus makes a statement that doesn’t seem to fit.
“For this reason Moses has given you circumcision…”

FOR WHAT REASON?

And Jesus then gives a parenthetical statement to say, “(not because it is from Moses, but from the Fathers)”

So in other words, Moses didn’t give you circumcision,
He continued to enforce it or to show it’s necessity, but WHY?

For that you have to look back at Jesus initial statement.
“Did not Moses give you the Law, and yet none of you carries out the Law?”

Moses knew that no one would be able to carry out the Law, and for this reason Moses continued to emphasize circumcision.

NOW WHERE DID CIRCUMCISION COME FROM?
That’s right, Abraham.

Genesis 17:9-14 “God said further to Abraham, “Now as for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. “This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: every male among you shall be circumcised. “And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be the sign of the covenant between Me and you. “And every male among you who is eight days old shall be circumcised throughout your generations, a servant who is born in the house or who is bought with money from any foreigner, who is not of your descendants. “A servant who is born in your house or who is bought with your money shall surely be circumcised; thus shall My covenant be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. “But an uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.”

Circumcision was a symbol that meant you had entered into covenant with God. It was an outward symbol of inward faith.

Paul explains Abraham’s circumcision like this.
Romans 4:11 “and he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while uncircumcised, so that he might be the father of all who believe without being circumcised, that righteousness might be credited to them,”

Paul said that Abraham’s circumcision was “a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while uncircumcised”

It was an outward picture of his inward faith.

Moses gave circumcision because he knew that man would not be justified by the Law, but by faith.

So now listen to Jesus.
“For this reason Moses has given you circumcision (not because it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and on the Sabbath you circumcise a man. If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath so that the Law of Moses will not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made an entire man well on the Sabbath?”

DID YOU CATCH HIS POINT?

If you are willing to forego the Sabbath command of not working Because you realize that the spiritual significance to circumcision is more important.

How in the world can you fault Me for making a whole man well?
And notice the term “well”.
We are talking about a complete spiritual transformation, not just a healing.

The point is that these people had a superficial ministry.

Their ministry wasn’t about truly doing the will of God,
It was about using ministry to make themselves look good.

This is a determined blindness.
When people can’t even see that what they are doing is pointless.

That leads Jesus to make this very powerful statement.

Verse 24, “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

The word appearance translates (OPSIS), and this is the only place it is translated “appearance”.

Every where else it is translated “face”.
John 11:44 “The man who had died came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

Revelation 1:16 “In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength.”

You disregard Me because you don’t like how I look,
And you aren’t willing to see how you look.

Quit looking at the outward appearance of things.

Unfortunately this is all they could look at.
John 7:27 “However, we know where this man is from; but whenever the Christ may come, no one knows where He is from.”

John 7:31 “But many of the crowd believed in Him; and they were saying, “When the Christ comes, He will not perform more signs than those which this man has, will He?”

John 7:52 “They answered him, “You are not also from Galilee, are you? Search, and see that no prophet arises out of Galilee.”

They couldn’t see the miracles,
They couldn’t hear the authority,
All they could see was that He was a carpenter from Nazareth and that He spent too much time in Galilee.
His appearance caused them to miss Him.

Isaiah 53:1-4 “Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.”

Had they seen their own sin for what it was,
Maybe they would have more readily seen the Savior.

I want you to know something tonight.
JESUS IS THE MISJUDGED ONE
People all over the world are missing Jesus for the very same reason.

They live in a determined blindness.

They are unwilling to see that the sin the Bible talks about is in their lives.
They are unwilling to see that they are indeed the wretch that the song refers to.

They will not look past their religious ceremony, and they will not see that they are falling way short of the mark.

You cannot see Jesus if you live in a determined state of blindness.

“Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

Look at yourself with God’s eyes.
Believe you are what the Bible says you are.

And then run to Jesus.

Pray

Jesus, The True One

John 7:14-18

When last we left the book of John, we saw how Jesus brothers
Wanted Him to go up to the feast of booths in Jerusalem.

The reason of course is because Jerusalem was the true test.
Sure Jesus was able to get a large following in Galilee.
Those ignorant Gentiles would believe anyone who would put food in their stomach.

But if Jesus was real, He needed to stand before the Sanhedrin, They would determine if Jesus was real.

Jesus brothers wanted Him to work His works in Jerusalem
And then let the verdict about Him be handed down.

John 7:3-5 “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.” For not even His brothers were believing in Him.”

They wouldn’t believe until the educated elite did.

In fact, this was one of the major problems of the entire Jewish people.
Very few were willing to believe in Jesus until the religious elite did.

John 12:42-43 “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.”

Certainly this was the mindset of the religious elite.
John 7:45-49 “The officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, and they said to them, “Why did you not bring Him?” The officers answered, “Never has a man spoken the way this man speaks.” The Pharisees then answered them, “You have not also been led astray, have you? “No one of the rulers or Pharisees has believed in Him, has he? “But this crowd which does not know the Law is accursed.”

It was literally the blind leading the blind
Because of their lack of conviction they were continually led astray.

Israel’s history is one of deception after deception.
You read continually how they followed the false prophets to their own shame.

It was 10 false spies who cost Israel 40 more years in the wilderness.
It was Balaam who brought an enormous plague on Israel
It was false prophets in Jeremiah’s day who kept the people in a state of spiritual apathy proclaiming, “Peace, Peace, when there was no peace.”

It is no wonder the crowd is leery of false prophets.

And so they are leery of Jesus.
And they want Jesus to go to Jerusalem to be tested.

Although the timing was not right initially, Jesus did finally go.
Verses 14, “But when it was now the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and began to teach.”

Jesus was unwilling to go earlier
Because He was not looking to start another circus,
But once the feast was half over,
Jesus secretly approached and began to teach.

And then we see a marvelous statement.
Vs. 15, “The Jews then were astonished, saying, “How has this man become learned, having never been educated?”

When they listened to Jesus, there was no doubt
He spoke with wisdom they had never heard before.

Matthew 7:28-29 “When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.”

But regardless of His teaching, they were still doubting His validity.
AND DO YOU SEE WHY?
Because Jesus was not properly endorsed.

They thought the best safe guard against false prophets
Was to lean on their properly educated teachers.

Instead of examining Jesus for themselves,
They entrusted their eternity to the religious big-wigs

WE SEE THIS TODAY
“You have to go to seminary, you need to get your doctorate,
Or there are some churches who will not accept you.”

I’m not here to talk about all the flaws in that way of thinking,
But the point is, you can see the same mindset at work,
Just as it was 2,000 years ago.

And to some degree, it comes from genuine motives.
People don’t want to get a preacher who is a false prophet
That will lead the people astray.

The flaw is in thinking that they way you tell is by his education.
THIS IS NOT SO.
Jesus is going to answer the question of the people,
And in so doing, He will also show us the proper way
To evaluate a prophet to determine his validity.

It was not wrong for them to closely discern Jesus.
Jesus will later say,
John 7:24 “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

What is wrong is the criteria by which they judged Him.
People have been misjudging Jesus and His prophets for years
Because they judge according to appearance,
Instead of with righteous judgment.

AS JESUS TELLS THE CROWD HOW TO EVALUATE HIM
This morning we will see the proper way to evaluate a prophet,
And in so doing, you will see that Jesus is certainly the Messiah that God intends for you to follow.

When looking at a so-called prophet, you should look at three things.
#1 HIS INSPIRATION
John 7:16

In other words, where does he get the stuff he preaches?
When a man stands before you with a message,
It is vitally important to know where that message came from.

And Jesus is very clear with His answer to this doubting crowd.
“My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me.”

This is a fact for every single true prophet of God in the Bible.
Their education didn’t come from man, it came from God.

Isaiah heard God’s message first hand.
Isaiah 6:9-10 “He said, “Go, and tell this people: ‘Keep on listening, but do not perceive; Keep on looking, but do not understand.’ “Render the hearts of this people insensitive, Their ears dull, And their eyes dim, Otherwise they might see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, Understand with their hearts, And return and be healed.”

Jeremiah had God physically put the message in his mouth.
Jeremiah 1:5-9 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.” Then I said, “Alas, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, Because I am a youth.” But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’ Because everywhere I send you, you shall go, And all that I command you, you shall speak. “Do not be afraid of them, For I am with you to deliver you,” declares the LORD. Then the LORD stretched out His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me, “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.”
Ezekiel was told precisely what to say.
Ezekiel 2:3-5 Then He said to me, “Son of man, I am sending you to the sons of Israel, to a rebellious people who have rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. “I am sending you to them who are stubborn and obstinate children, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD.’ “As for them, whether they listen or not — for they are a rebellious house — they will know that a prophet has been among them.”

Paul in the New Testament would agree.
Galatians 1:11-12 “For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.”

You could argue that each of these men were also educated by men,
Isaiah was a member of the King’s court,
Jeremiah the son of the High Priest,
Ezekiel was a priest,
Paul a Pharisee.

But not every prophet had such credentials.

Amos certainly didn’t.
Amos 7:12-15 “Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Go, you seer, flee away to the land of Judah and there eat bread and there do your prophesying! “But no longer prophesy at Bethel, for it is a sanctuary of the king and a royal residence.” Then Amos replied to Amaziah, “I am not a prophet, nor am I the son of a prophet; for I am a herdsman and a grower of sycamore figs. “But the LORD took me from following the flock and the LORD said to me, ‘Go prophesy to My people Israel.’

Peter and John
Acts 4:13 “Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus.”

A true prophet may indeed be educated,
But the common thread for all prophets is that
Their message does not come from man, but God.

And this is exactly where Jesus got His message.
John 8:26-28 “I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and the things which I heard from Him, these I speak to the world.” They did not realize that He had been speaking to them about the Father. So Jesus said, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.”

John 12:49-50 “For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. “I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me.”

John 14:24 “He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s who sent Me.”

Jesus point is that you can trust Him
Because the word that He speaks is directly from the Father.

One of the ways we discern a true prophet from a false one.

A prophet by definition is one who speaks from God to man.
Therefore if they are not getting their message from God,
Then they are by definition a false prophet.

We would do good to remember this in our world today.
Every author in the Bible warned us of the certainty of false prophets.

There are more preachers getting sermons off of the internet today than I would care to imagine.

Every week we get promotional magazines
That are full of sermon outlines, sermon illustrations, and support texts.

Every newsletter from various organizations
Will have a sermon outline in it.

If you go the Southern Baptist Convention,
You can buy a book that has two sermons for every Sunday of the year.
Compete with points, illustrations, jokes, support texts, and even an invitation prayer.

It is no wonder Paul and Peter warned so heavily about false prophets.
They are rampant throughout our churches, but we fail to see them for what they are because they have a seminary education.

A man who gets his sermon inspiration from anywhere but God Is not fulfilling the office of a prophet.

Jeremiah 23:30-32 “Therefore behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the LORD, “who steal My words from each other. “Behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the LORD, “who use their tongues and declare, ‘The Lord declares.’ “Behold, I am against those who have prophesied false dreams,” declares the LORD, “and related them and led My people astray by their falsehoods and reckless boasting; yet I did not send them or command them, nor do they furnish this people the slightest benefit,” declares the LORD.”

Jeremiah 23:21-22 “I did not send these prophets, But they ran. I did not speak to them, But they prophesied. “But if they had stood in My council, Then they would have announced My words to My people, And would have turned them back from their evil way And from the evil of their deeds.”

Jeremiah hit the nail on the head there.
Many preachers don’t want to spend the time to stand in the council of the Lord. It is much easier to go to some internet site.

Jeremiah 14:13-14 “But, “Ah, Lord GOD!” I said, “Look, the prophets are telling them, ‘You will not see the sword nor will you have famine, but I will give you lasting peace in this place.'” Then the LORD said to me, “The prophets are prophesying falsehood in My name. I have neither sent them nor commanded them nor spoken to them; they are prophesying to you a false vision, divination, futility and the deception of their own minds.”

Jeremiah 27:14-15 “So do not listen to the words of the prophets who speak to you, saying, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon,’ for they prophesy a lie to you; for I have not sent them,” declares the LORD, “but they prophesy falsely in My name, in order that I may drive you out and that you may perish, you and the prophets who prophesy to you.”

If you want to know if a prophet is real,
Then find out where he gets his sermon inspiration.

It didn’t matter what the educated thought of Jesus.
He is real, because He got his sermons directly from God.

He spoke exactly what God told him to say.

But if you want to test a prophet, first look at his inspiration.
#2 HIS CONGREGATION
John 7:17
Look at what Jesus is saying here.
WHAT TYPE OF PERSON WILL KNOW JESUS IS FROM THE FATHER?
“anyone willing to do His will”

SO WHAT TYPE OF PERSON IS A FOLLOWER OF JESUS?
“anyone willing to do His will”

WHAT TYPE OF PEOPLE DON’T FOLLOW JESUS?
People who aren’t willing to do His will

The point then is this.
Jesus is real because the people who truly love God follow Him, And the people who don’t truly love God reject Him.

You can tell a prophet by his followers.
Matthew 7:15-20 “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. “You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? “So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. “A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. “So then, you will know them by their fruits.”
Jesus says you will know them by their produce.

So if you want to see if a prophet is real, then look at what he produces.
Look at his followers.

ARE HIS FOLLOWERS WALKING IN OBEDIENCE TO GOD?
ARE HIS FOLLOWERS FEASTING ON THE THINGS OF THE WORLD?

The only way you are going to follow Jesus is if you really love God.
Those who don’t really love God but only love themselves
Won’t stay with Jesus very long.
(John 6)

We can see that Jesus is real by the testimony of His followers.
If you were around Jesus,
You either got righteous or you tried to kill Him.

You can tell a prophet by His congregation.
Sometimes by the type of people who are present,
Sometimes by the type of people who aren’t.

Look at the false prophet’s congregation.
Jeremiah 5:30-31 “An appalling and horrible thing Has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule on their own authority; And My people love it so! But what will you do at the end of it?”

The righteous followed Jesus, the unrighteous would not.
John 8:42-45 “Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me. “Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. “But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me.”

This also is an evidence of a true prophet.
If your followers love God, and those who don’t’ love God want to kill you, then rest assured you are on the right track.

Matthew 5:11-12 “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Luke 6:26 “Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.”

You see you can tell what a man is not only by the type of people who follow him, but by the type of people who oppose him.

Philippians 1:27-28 “Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; in no way alarmed by your opponents — which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and that too, from God.”

We know Jesus is a true prophet because He gets His message from God, and because the people who love God follow Him.

Inspiration, Congregation
#3 HIS MOTIVATION
John 7:18

Here Jesus really opens up the comparison game.
He sets Himself beside every false prophet,
And ultimately beside Satan who is their guide.

Jesus says you will know if I’m from God by who I seek to glorify

John 8:54-55 “Jesus answered, ” If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God’; and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him; and if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you, but I do know Him and keep His word.”

John 12:27-28 “Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘ Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour. “Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came out of heaven: “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.”

Charles Spurgeon Spectator:
“Preacher, I saw no preacher, I saw only Jesus.”

A TRUE PROPHET IS IN IT FOR THE GLORY OF JESUS.
We live in a day of ladder climbing preachers.
They promote their education
They promote their books
They promote their abilities

They obviously do not follow the leading of the Holy Spirit,
For one of His main purposes is to glorify Jesus.

I mean, come on people, the donkey that carried Jesus
Knew the applause was not for him.

A true prophet is nothing but a donkey to carry Jesus to the people.
But you contrast that with the false prophets of the Bible.
They aren’t in it for God, but for their own benefit.

Ezekiel 34:1-3 “Then the word of the LORD came to me saying, “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and say to those shepherds, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Woe, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flock? “You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat sheep without feeding the flock.”

My dad taught you about Satan, Look at who he tried to glorify.
Isaiah 14:12-15 “How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, You who have weakened the nations! “But you said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly In the recesses of the north. ‘I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’ “Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, To the recesses of the pit.”

2 Peter 2:15 “forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;”

Look at these other passages in the New Testament
2 Timothy 3:1-9 “But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these. For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith. But they will not make further progress; for their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes’s and Jambres’s folly was also.”

2 Peter 2:1-3 “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”

There is no doubt that Jesus is “The True One”
He is the One whose inspiration came from the Father.
He is the One whose congregation sought for righteousness.
He is the One whose motivation was to glorify the Father.

The tragedy is that these people still would not believe Him Because He did not have the endorsement of the educated elite.

And let me tell you something.
Jesus will never have the endorsement of the educated elite.
Jesus doesn’t want you to come because someone else did.
Jesus wants you to come to Him because He is the truth.

So let me ask you.
WHAT IS KEEPING YOU FROM FOLLOWING JESUS?
WHAT IS KEEPING YOU FORM LISTENING TO JESUS?

I can tell you the answer.
If you aren’t following Jesus, He already told us why.

Verse 17, “If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God or whether I speak from Myself.”

Jesus said the reason people don’t follow Him is because they are not willing to “do His will”.
They are not willing to obey.

No wonder people follow the false prophets.
They offer you salvation without obedience.
But I am here to tell you this morning such a salvation does not exist.

God is requiring of you today the same thing
He has always required.
Repentance, Obedience, and Perseverance
FAITH

God wants you to let go of yourself and fully give yourself to Jesus.
He is “The True One” and He is the One you must do something with.

WILL TODAY BE THE DAY YOU DECIDE TO FOLLOW JESUS?

WILL TODAY BE THE DAY YOU QUIT WORRYING ABOUT WHAT OTHER PEOPLE THINK?

WILL TODAY BE THE DAY YOU WILL FINALLY LET GO OF YOUR SIN AND SUBMIT TO JESUS?

The decision is yours.
John 3:20-21 “For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. “But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”

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.”

Jesus, The Chief Cornerstone

John 6:66-71

This morning we saw how Jesus not only serves in the role of Savior, But sometimes He is the very thing that keeps people lost.

The Scandal of the cross, and the Offense of the truth
Can be the one thing they never seem to get past.

As we saw with the multitude this morning.
They were stumbling
They were suppressing
They were scheming

In short they did not love the truth and therefore, they rejected Jesus.
They were a picture of fraudulent disciples.

And tonight we see their 8th and final response to Jesus.

Vs. 66, “As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore.”

Their 8th statement is unspoken, but every bit as loud.
What they did spoke much louder than anything they had thus far said.

And that leads Jesus to His eighth and final point
Vs. 67, “So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also do you?”

Now there is much we need to see at this point.

First I want you to see what Jesus didn’t do.
He didn’t go after them.
He didn’t cater to their demands.

If there was ever a time for Jesus to play to the people, this was it.
He was watching His entire ministry go down the tube.
He was losing all of His followers.

Imagine if this happened in a church setting.
Where, after preaching a sermon, people took such offense that nearly everyone left your church.

It is a fear of this that has caused many ministries,
In my opinion, to take wrong turns.

So many have tried to make
The cross less scandalous and the truth less offensive.

So many look at the truth as a dilemma to get around,
Instead of the power to lead to salvation.

It led to a MARKET-DRIVEN, CULTURALLY RELEVANT, SEEKER SENSITIVE ministry approach.

If you have learned nothing from Jesus in this chapter,
You should at least be able to notice
That Jesus was not nearly concerned about numbers
As He was about the truth.

It is dangerous when we get too concerned with attracting people, and thus are tempted to down play the offense.

Jeremiah 23:28-29 “The prophet who has a dream may relate his dream, but let him who has My word speak My word in truth. What does straw have in common with grain?” declares the LORD. “Is not My word like fire?” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?”

In Jesus day, the word, “cross” was a derogatory term.

And Yet Paul said,
Galatians 6:14 “But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”

1 Corinthians 2:2 “For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.”

What I want you to see is that Paul’s theology
Was right in line with Jesus’ theology.
Neither was willing to sacrifice the truth in order to maintain a crowd.

AND OF COURSE THERE IS A THEOLOGICAL REASON FOR THIS.

Matthew 15:12-14 “Then the disciples came and said to Him, “Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this statement?” But He answered and said, “Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be uprooted. “Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”

“Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be uprooted.”

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
Well, that means you can produce all the converts you want, but if God isn’t doing it, then they won’t last.

We do a very good job of assimilating people into church.
We show them how to walk, how to talk, how to dress, where to sit, when to cry, when to laugh, and how to put the fish on the tailgate of their pickup.

But if all of those things aren’t coming
From an inner conviction from God, they won’t last.

Jesus knew that,
That is why He was not afraid of running these people off.
Jesus knew if He could run them off, then they weren’t real anyway.

That leads to the second thing you need to see about this verse.

After this crowd leaves.
Vs. 67, “So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also do you?”
Jesus turns to the twelve and offers them the door as well.
He gives them opportunity to leave.

WHY?
Because Jesus knew if they were real, they weren’t going anywhere.

So in essence what we have occurring here is
Jesus contrasting the fraudulent crowd with the faithful one.
This morning He put the phonies on display,
Tonight He puts the faithful on display.

Tonight we see 3 characteristics of those who believe.
The Non-Believers Stumbled, but the Believers:
#1 TASTED
John 6:68

Now there is a great statement, and one that stands alone quite well.

But as Jesus offers the disciples the door, Peter refuses.
He knows Christianity will be tough.
He knows that what Jesus said was difficult to accept,
But where else was he supposed to go?

We tried to talk John-Paul out of salvation
“Yeah, but that’s the only way to be saved.”

And of course Jesus is completely comfortable
With you making such a logical decision.

Matthew 16:26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”

Jerry Vines listed three reasons why you ought to come to Jesus.
1) You don’t want to go to hell.
2) You DON’T WANT TO go to hell.
3) YOU DON’T WANT TO GO TO HELL.

Peter had a similar motivation.
“To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

The cost didn’t matter to Peter.
The cross didn’t cause him to stumble.
He was willing to hang around and taste whatever God had for him.

Psalms 34:8 “O taste and see that the LORD is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!”

Peter, and the rest of the 12, we were willing to give it a chance.
John 1:35-39 “Again the next day John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as He walked, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. And Jesus turned and saw them following, and said to them, “What do you seek?” They said to Him, ” Rabbi (which translated means Teacher), where are You staying?” He said to them, “Come, and you will see.” So they came and saw where He was staying; and they stayed with Him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.”

Matthew 4:18-22 “Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. Going on from there He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and He called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.”

I have always loved the story of Lazarus. When Jesus decided to finally go down to where Lazarus was, one of His disciples had this to say.

John 11:16 “Therefore Thomas, who is called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, so that we may die with Him.”

Now of course they didn’t die there, but they didn’t know that.
They were willing to try it, they were willing to taste it.

This is a characteristic of the believing.
They don’t stumble over the truth, they try it out, they accept it.

The Non-Believers Suppressed, but the Believers:
#2 TRUSTED
John 6:69a “We have believed…”

Where the fraudulent stumbled, these guys followed…
Where the fraudulent doubted, these guys had faith…
They didn’t suppress.

Hebrews 3:12-13 “Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”

They had faith.

Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”

Luke 5:4-8 “When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” Simon answered and said, “Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but I will do as You say and let down the nets.” When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish, and their nets began to break; so they signaled to their partners in the other boat for them to come and help them. And they came and filled both of the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw that, he fell down at Jesus’ feet, saying, “Go away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man!”

Peter messed up a lot of times, but this wasn’t one of them.
As he fell on that pile of dead fish, Peter only smelled one stink,
And that was himself.

This is a characteristic of the faithful. They trust God.
John 14:15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”

The Non-Believers Schemed, but the Believers:
#3 TESTIFIED
John 6:69b
“and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.”

This is a beautiful thing that is taking place here.
After having the faith to stick it out with Jesus, and the willingness to believe,
We see that now they have even gone a step further.

They are now testifying as to the conclusion they have drawn.
This also is a characteristic of those who believe.

We have talked many times about this verse.
Luke 8:16-17 “Now no one after lighting a lamp covers it over with a container, or puts it under a bed; but he puts it on a lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light. “For nothing is hidden that will not become evident, nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light.”

Think about Peter for a second.
There was one time in life that he wanted to cover his light.

Matthew 26:69-75 “Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a servant-girl came to him and said, “You too were with Jesus the Galilean.” But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about.” When he had gone out to the gateway, another servant-girl saw him and said to those who were there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” And again he denied it with an oath, “I do not know the man.” A little later the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Surely you too are one of them; for even the way you talk gives you away.” Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know the man!” And immediately a rooster crowed. And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said, ” Before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.”

Peter tried like crazy to cover his light, but it just couldn’t be concealed

Remember when Peter healed the beggar?
Acts 4:13 “Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus.”

After arguing with Peter and John, the chief priests got in a huddle and said,
“Oh! It’s like arguing with Jesus!”

The point was the light was coming out.
But not only that, Peter wanted his light to shine.

Acts 4:19-20 “But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

Paul was the same way.
Acts 21:13 “Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”

And Paul was a true miracle since the first portion of his life was characterized by fighting against the truth.

Now, not even his close friends could convince him not to testify

That is because true believers testify about the truth.
Even if they could contain it, they wouldn’t.

These guys were the real deal.
They tasted, They trusted, and They testified.

And that leads Jesus to make a statement.
Vs. 70-71, “Jesus answered them, “Did I myself not choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is a devil?” Now He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, on of the twelve, was going to betray Him.”

Jesus points out that the reason these guys were real
Is the same reason why the fraudulent followers weren’t.
Those fraudulent followers were fake because, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him.”

That stands to reason that the reason these guys were real is because, “Did I Myself not choose you?”
Salvation comes from God.

Matthew 16:13-18 “Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

You will notice why Peter is saved.
Because the Father revealed it to him.

Conviction comes from God, Persuasion comes from man.

Men can convince you to do certain things, and say certain things,
But only God has the means to plant His truth down inside your heart And make you convinced about it.

2 Timothy 1:12 “For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.”

I like the story later, when Paul was a prisoner on the ship that would soon be torn apart by the sea, but an angel told Paul not to worry, for all lives would be spared.

Acts 27:25 “Therefore, keep up your courage, men, for I believe God that it will turn out exactly as I have been told.”

Paul had this conviction because God told him it would be ok.

That is exactly why Peter was blessed.

But tonight I want you to see what Jesus says next.
Peter confessed Jesus as the Christ, and then Jesus responds:

“I also say that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

Now you see what we are talking about.
Jesus as the Christ is the rock upon which the church is founded.
The entire basis, the entire existence of the true church,
Rests upon the conviction that Jesus is the cornerstone of our faith.

Ephesians 2:19-22 “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.”

1 Corinthians 3:11 “For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

That is a statement that should echo through our minds.

False believers all over the world
Try to make anything other than Jesus
The foundation upon which their hope rests.

Many rest their hope upon the fact that they go to church, but that isn’t a suitable foundation.

Many rest their hope upon the fact that they prayed a prayer, but that isn’t a suitable foundation.

Many rest their hope upon the fact that they were baptized, but that isn’t a suitable foundation.

THERE IS ONLY ONE FOUNDATION!

Isaiah 44:8 “Do not tremble and do not be afraid; Have I not long since announced it to you and declared it? And you are My witnesses. Is there any God besides Me, Or is there any other Rock? I know of none.'”

Psalms 18:31 “For who is God, but the LORD? And who is a rock, except our God,”

1 Samuel 2:2 “There is no one holy like the LORD, Indeed, there is no one besides You, Nor is there any rock like our God.”

You see the point is that Jesus is “The Chief Cornerstone”
He is the only One who is a suitable foundation for salvation.

You can run to other things, you can try other avenues,
But there is no other rock.

To all those who refuse Him,
He becomes the rock they stumble over,
But He is still the only rock.

But to all those who taste, trust, and testify, He is the chief cornerstone
That is a wonderful concept for you and I to grasp.
We don’t worship One who is a faulty foundation.
We don’t worship One who is incapable to save.
We band our lives upon the rock.

“And the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.”

I would ask you tonight again.
WHICH ROCK IS JESUS IN YOUR LIFE?
IS YOUR LIFE CHARACTERIZED BY:
Stumbling, Suppressing, & Scheming
OR
Tasting, Trusting, & Testifying?

It will be far better to stand upon the rock than to trip over it.

Isaiah 26:4 “Trust in the LORD forever, For in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock.”

Psalms 144:1-2 “Blessed be the LORD, my rock, Who trains my hands for war, And my fingers for battle; My lovingkindness and my fortress, My stronghold and my deliverer, My shield and He in whom I take refuge, Who subdues my people under me.”

Psalms 18:1-3 “I love You, O LORD, my strength.” The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, And I am saved from my enemies.”