John 7 - Better Than Vitamin Water!

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Jesus Goes to the Festival of Tabernacles

Jesus hung out in Galilee for fear of the Jews, but the Festival of Tabernacles was drawing near. His brothers urged him to go to Jerusalem against the wishes of his disciples, though it says his brothers did not believe in him themselves. This was a festival to celebrate the harvest, as they gathered the grain in tabernacles or booths. 

So Jesus told his disciples to go to the festival, and he stayed around Galilee apparently not joining them. He cited the fact that the Jews hated him and his time was not ready yet.  Unbeknownst to them, Jesus went to the festival. Jesus wanted to make a secret appearance. 

We see one of the reasons why Jesus did not come with his disciples as the Pharisees were lying in wait for him. He was clearly a person of interest. The crowd was giving Jesus mixed reviews some saying, "He is a good man". Others thought he was deceiving people. Regardless of their feelings, they were all afraid of getting in trouble with the Jewish leaders because of their opinions. 

Jesus Teaches at the Festival

Jesus, seemingly undeterred from being under the watchful eyes of the Pharisees, began to teach in the temple courts. This was obviously a very bold move, but one he thought was necessary. The Jews were amazed at his teaching, and importantly they noticed the authority he taught with. 

Jesus again boldly tells them that it is not his teaching, but teaching from the one who sent him. They would know the truth of his teaching by living according to it. Someone has once said, 

"Christianity has not been found to be wanting but wanting to be tried!"

If someone were to just put into practice the basic teachings of Jesus, they would experience the truth that sets them free. Similarly, Moses gave the Law, which was God's truth, but they did not obey it and suffered the consequences. Someone said, 

"God's Word is like a brick wall, we can choose to bang our head against it but it is not going to move. We will only get a big headache!"  

Jesus then asks them, "If you say I am from God, why are you trying to kill me?" 

To this they reply that he is demon-possessed and asked him who was trying to kill him.  Jesus then refers to the fact that he healed on the Sabbath and was criticized, yet no one is against circumcising a young boy according to the Mosaic Law. 

The people didn’t know that the rulers wanted to kill Jesus because He healed a man on the Sabbath (John 5:16). They thought Jesus was crazy and perhaps paranoid.

 If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken: It was permitted – even commanded – to do a negative work on the Sabbath, such as cutting away the flesh in circumcision (Leviticus 12:3). It was even more right to make a man completely well on the Sabbath, as Jesus did (John 5:8-9).

Division Over Who Jesus Is

So begins the debate about Jesus. They know he is something special, but they are not sure why the Pharisees are trying to kill him. Also, since they know Jesus grew up in Nazareth, they didn't think this was where the Messiah was supposed to be from.

Jesus overheard them and rebuked them saying they knew he was sent by God, but they didn't know God. This infuriated them, and they looked for a way to kill him, but it was not his time yet. Others seemed to believe in him, after all what other signs were people looking for in a Messiah. 

The Pharisees got wind of this and sent officers to arrest him. Jesus then announced to them that he would not be with them for a long but would be going back to the One who sent Him. They would look for him and not find them. And, they would not even be able to go to where he was. 

Again Jesus is clearly stating his divinity and that He is from God the Father and returning to God the Father. They would not be able to get to him because He was in heaven, yet we know they could know God and get into heaven by faith in Him. 

The Jews did not understand what Jesus meant by saying he was going to a place where they could not come. They could only think that he might go to the Greek speaking Jews, who were scattered far away from Jerusalem. Their minds were not opened to see who Jesus was, or his true purpose. 

The last day of the Festival was the most important one. It was a time that water flowed in the temple over the altar as a remembrance of God's provision in the desert. 

The Feast of Tabernacles lasted eight days. All through the first seven days water from the Pool of Siloam was carried in a golden pitcher and poured out at the altar to remind everyone of the water God miraculously provided for a thirsty Israel in the wilderness. It seems that on the eighth day there was no pouring of water – only prayers for water – to remind them that they came into the Promised Land. - Guzik

Jesus had predicted his divinity and his return to the Father and dramatically said he was the living water which had come down from heaven would flow out of them. If anyone drank from his well they would never again thirst. 

This elicited many responses from the people. Some concluded he was a prophet. Some continued to question how the Messiah could come from Galilee. They noted that the Messiah was from the line of David, which was Bethlehem. It seems they might have forgotten that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. 

Unbelief of the Jewish Leaders

When the leaders heard the mixed reviews from their guards, they didn't budge. The guards knew there was something about Jesus, but the leaders berated them as if they were naively being "duped" by Jesus too! 

They pointed to the fact that none of them had believed. Besides the Messiah was not supposed to come from Galilee.

Nicodemus, who had come to Jesus at night in John 4, reminded them that no one could be condemned without a trial. The tried to talk down to him as well, by making him look stupid. 

While Jesus had clearly revealed himself in many ways, there were a few who believed, some were curious, but most of the leaders and people were stuck on where he was born.