Daily Bread 2011 – John 7


Jesus Teaches at the Festival
14 Not until halfway through the festival did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach. 15 The Jews there were amazed and asked, “How did this man get such learning without having been taught?” 16 Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. 17 Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. 18 Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory, but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. 19 Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?”

What Does This Mean?
In Jesus’ day like our own, there was a tendency to uplift the charismatic teacher/leader who had the most knowledge/education. Jesus kept pointing them back to the Father, whose words He was relaying. It was particularly perplexing for the people to see that Jesus had not taken the traditional path of rabbinical training. Later we will see His disciples preaching and teaching with equal authority, and the people were amazed that such teaching came from ordinary fishermen.

Jesus reminds them and us that whoever speaks on their own is doing so for personal glory, but he who seeks to speak for the glory of God is a true teacher in whom there is no guile. Then Jesus reminded them that if they were looking for an objective standard of teaching, take the Jewish Law that God had given them. And He was saying nothing contrary to that yet they were still trying to kill him. Thought the Law stopped short in giving them what they needed for salvation (Christ) it pointed them toward that need.

What Does This Mean For Us?
It is easy for us to get enamored with charismatic speakers/preachers/teacher. There is nothing wrong with being charismatic, but the key thing is that content is coming from God/Bible not man. It would be better to utter one thing that squares up with God’s Word, than 1,000 charming speeches that are all based on man’s wisdom.
Bottom line: Make sure the one who you are learning from (your teacher/pastor) is teaching/preaching is from God and lines up with God’s will as revealed in Scripture. Jesus then adds that if we are obedient to a teaching from God’s will that we will surely know it by the fruit it produces in our lives.

Heavenly Father we thank you teaching us the way to abundant life through Your Word, as Jesus came to be the incarnate Word of God. Send your Spirit so we can discern the teaching we receive and apply in so that we can see the truth of it in our lives. Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Acts 22 - Paul Sees the Light

Image
6  “About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me.   7  I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me,  ‘Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?’  8  “‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked.  “  ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth,  whom you are persecuting,’  he replied.   9  My companions saw the light,  but they did not understand the voice  of him who was speaking to me.  10  “‘What shall I do, Lord?’ I asked. “  ‘Get up,’  the Lord said,  ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do. This is the famous story of the apostle Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus.  Paul was going there to persecute Jewish Christians and throw them into prison and he meets Jesus is a spectacular way.  Not only is he blinded by a briliant light, but he hears the Lord's voice audibly.  And the Lord asks him, "Lord, Lord why a...
Read more

Hebrews 6 - Have You Graduated From Elementary School of Faith Yet?

Click Here to Read or Listen to Hebrews 6 6 Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, 2 instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And God permitting, we will do so. The author once again picks up with the theme of moving on to Christian maturity.  He teaches them to move on from the "elementary" teachings about Christ. What does he mean by that?  He gives clues by citing repentance, faith, cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, and teaching on the judgment and resurrection from the dead. We might call these the basics of the Christian faith. If you read through the Apostle's Creed, which our church confesses in our 8am service, it contains many of these core doctrines.  Click here to see the Apostle's Creed Written Around “When we consider the...
Read more

2 Timothy 4 - Fight the Good Fight! Finish the Race!

Click Here to Read or Listen to 2 Timothy 4 4 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. Paul gives a closing charge to Timothy. First of all, he is to preach the word. God's Word speaks to all situations and seasons. The Word of God will sometimes correct us. Our lives can get of out alignment with God's will as outlined in ...
Read more