Unbelief of Religious Leaders – John 7:40-52

         Last week we learned that Jesus taught that He was the carrier of the living water and would pour it out from His well of salvation. God had said that His “salvation was on the way” in Isaiah 51:5.  In Jeremiah 2:13, God says through the prophet, “My people have forsaken Me, the spring of Living Water, and have dug their own cisterns that cannot hold water.” Jesus wants us to leave our cracked, dry cisterns for His living, eternal water. Unfortunately, the majority of His people will reject the One who pours out the spiritual living water! Any “cistern” manufactured from our own knowledge will be a broken one. A broken cistern exchanges the truth of God for false doctrine and sets up a manmade religion not a God-made one. Colossians 2:8: “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends upon human tradition and the basic principles of this world, rather than Christ.

            Jesus wanted to draw attention to His living, spiritual, eternal water, but the Jewish leaders were angered because He was leading people away from their understanding of the Truth. Jesus is the well from which Truth and the Holy Spirit flow. There is no eternal life without the Godhead.

            There was confusion among the people about Jesus’ words and revelation:

·        Some thought Jesus was a “good man.” John 7:12

·        Others said He was deceiving the people. John 7:12b

·     Some were fearful. “But no one would say anything publicly about Him for fear of the Jews.” John 7:13

·      Still others were amazed at His teachings and asked, “How did this man get such learning without having studied.” John 7:15

·        Some thought He was demon possessed. John 7:20

·       Some thought that He could be the Christ because none of the authorities were saying a word to Him. John 7:26

·        Some put their faith in Him. John 7:31

·        Some thought He was “The Prophet.” John 7:40

·        Others said, “He is the Christ.” John 7:41

·     Some thought that “No one ever spoke the way this man does.” John 7:46

Jesus had not sat under a Master Rabbi as all of the Jewish rabbis must do to get their learning of the scriptures. Though Jesus had a flesh body, His spirit man was God and Eternal. He is the Truth – the Word of God – so no one had to teach Him truth! He was the fullness of the Godhead bodily (in His flesh body).

The Prophet some spoke of is the prophet that Moses spoke about in Deuteronomy 18:15. The Lord said to Moses, “I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put My words in His mouth, and He will tell them everything I command Him. If anyone does not listen to My words that the prophet speaks in My Name, I myself will call him to account.” Jesus is this Supreme Prophet. Jesus spoke the Word of God because He is the Word of God. Jesus, although not just a man like Moses but also God in the flesh, was like Moses in the following ways;

·        Moses was God’s anointed ruler of His people as is Jesus.

·        Moses was the mediator between God and His people as is Jesus.

·     Moses was the Law-giver, as Jesus trumpeted in the New Testament and the new law of love through grace and truth.

·    Moses was a prophet, as Jesus is the Supreme Prophet as God who only spoke God’s Truth as God’s voice.

·   Moses with God’s help delivered God’s people out of bondage and led them to the earthly Promised Land of God, as Jesus delivered mankind from the slavery of sin and the devil and leads His people to the Heavenly Promised Land.

“Others asked, “How can the Christ come from Galilee? Does not the Scripture say that the Christ will come from David’s family and from Bethelem!” John 7:41-43. The Christ was to come from Bethlehem not Galilee. They had obviously forgotten that Christ was born in Bethlehem and was from the line of David through both Mary and Joseph. Micah had prophesied that “one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times” will come out of Bethlehem. Bethlehem means “house of bread.” Jesus is the spiritual Bread of Life. Jesus came forth from Bethlehem but He didn’t reside there. He and his family lived in Nazareth of Galilee. Joseph had been warned in a dream by God to leave Judea and go to the district of Galilee and reside in a town called Nazareth. Matthew 2:23:  And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”  

Jesus began His ministry in Galilee. He began choosing His disciples there. 25 miracles took place in Galilee. He spoke the Sermon on the Mount in Galilee, and 13 of His parables were spoken there. In Galilee, Jesus revealed that He is the Bread of life and spoke about purity, forgiveness and humility.

The Jewish religious leaders wanted to arrest Jesus but they restrained themselves. Even the temple guards would not touch Jesus. The power and authority of Jesus’ words made his condemners step back. See John 7:45 God has a timetable. The time had not yet come for Jesus to be arrested. This would take place 6 months later when the Feast of Passover was taking place. Why? Jesus will be the once-for-all eternal Lamb of God who will take away the sins of the world.