John 7:1-24
Lesson Focus
Jesus faces increasing opposition as he teaches, emphasizing the necessity of discerning and practicing God's will with compassion rather than rigid adherence to the law.
Lesson Outcomes
Through this lesson, students should:
Understand Jesus' emphasis on compassion and healing over strict legalism.
Recognize the importance of discerning God's will through love for God and neighbor.
Appreciate the role of community and the Holy Spirit in making difficult moral decisions.
Catching up on the Story
After successfully feeding five thousand men, plus women and children, Jesus experiences a minor setback. The crowd so interested in what Jesus had to say and the miraculous signs he could perform has now largely deserted him. The crowd’s desertion is due to Jesus’ insistence that the way to eternal life is by eating Jesus’ body and drinking his blood. He also makes claims that the Jewish religious leaders interpreted as Jesus’ self-elevation to the status of God.
Not everyone abandons Jesus, however. Somewhat dejectedly (at least that’s how I picture the exchange in my mind), Jesus asks the inner group of twelve if they will abandon him also. So often the first to respond to Jesus’ questions or situations of adversity, Peter rhetorically asks Jesus where else they would go. Peter fully understands the truth of Jesus’ statement that he is “the Holy One of God.” Speaking for the group, Peter affirms the disciple’s commitment to following Jesus. They have tasted the bread of life, and now nothing else will do.
Of course, not everyone is completely on board. Jesus reasserts his call to the twelve, even though he knows one of them will betray him. Jesus doesn’t name the unfaithful disciple, but John does, Judas, son of Simon Iscariot.
Acts in Secret
Some time has passed since Jesus’s mass rejection from the crowds. At the beginning of chapter six, John tells us that the feeding of the five thousand was done around the time of the Passover festival. At the beginning of chapter seven, John indicates that the festival of Booths was near. Six months separate these two important festivals.
It seems that Jesus remained in his home region of Galilee to avoid further provoking the religious leaders. Going south to Judea and Jerusalem would have put Jesus’ life in danger, a fact likely known by Jesus’ brothers as well as his disciples. We have no reason to believe that the danger to Jesus’ life motivated his brother’s suggestion that Jesus go to Jerusalem to celebrate the festival.
Nevertheless, John tells us that Jesus’ brothers encouraged him to attend the festival of Booths. “The present festival was called “Booths” because Israel was asked to pitch tents on [their] roofs, yards, or nearest free space, and then for seven days to eat and sleep there in grateful remembrance of God’s provision during the wilderness years of living in booths” (Bruner, 468). In short, the festival of Booths was a celebration of God’s care for Israel even after the initial Exodus narrative ended. God never liberates us from what keeps us captive, only to leave our lives after liberation without God’s care. God’s salvation always entails God’s continued presence guiding and empowering us toward mature faithfulness.
Jesus’ brothers encourage him and his followers to journey south to celebrate the festival. While their prompting isn’t motivated by ill intent, it isn’t exactly in line with Jesus’ way of doing things. Jesus’ brothers want him to go to Judea and put on a spectacular show of Jesus’ power. Rightly so, they want Jesus to be widely known. Given that Jewish pilgrims from all over would make their way to Jerusalem for the festival, an appearance by Jesus would be prudent.
In Jesus’ brother’s estimation, Jesus has not done enough to further the cause of Israel’s salvation. He simply needs a bigger, more important stage. While Jesus’ brothers aren’t seeking to take Jesus by force to make him king, as the crowd wanted after feeding the five thousand, there can be no doubt that placing Jesus on Israel’s throne was something Jesus’ brothers would have wanted.
In verse 5, John makes a parenthetical comment: “(for not even his brothers believed in him).” If Jesus’ brothers didn’t believe in him, why would they want him to gain as much notoriety as possible? Is it possible for a person to believe in Jesus as God and the world’s savior without truly believing in Jesus’ way of life? That may be the distinction John is making. Those who know Jesus best still do not see Jesus for who he is. Their understanding of Jesus is clouded by what they think they know about what a Messiah should be. The brothers lack an adequate openness to hearing from God in fresh ways.
Jesus turns down his brother’s proposal, noting that his “time has not yet come.” For the first time in John’s gospel, Jesus refers to the world in judgemental terms. To this point in the story, Jesus has only expressed God’s love for the world. Here, Jesus bears witness to the nature of the world’s work as “evil.” Notice that Jesus does not say that the world is evil but that its works are evil. It’s a small distinction but an important one. We cannot throw out God’s care and love for the world because some in it refuse to follow the Jesus way. The transition in Jesus’ talk about the world is brought about by the opposition he has and will continue to receive at the hands of the religious leaders.
Finally, Jesus encourages his brothers to participate in the festivities in Jerusalem, reiterating that his time has not yet fully come. Jesus chooses to remain in Galilee, but only for a while.
To the Festival
After Jesus’ brothers departed for the festival, Jesus also decided to head to Jerusalem to participate. We don’t know how long it had been since the brothers left or why Jesus changed his mind. There’s no need to believe that Jesus intentionally tried to deceive his brothers. Nevertheless, Jesus goes to Jerusalem in a stealthy manner, which makes sense given he knew some were seeking to take his life.
For their part, the Jewish religious leaders anticipated Jesus’ arrival in the city. When Jesus didn’t show up as expected, the religious leaders searched for him. John tells us that “there was considerable complaining about him among the crowds.” The crowds were less single-minded than the religious leaders; some took to defending Jesus while others believed he was intentionally leading them astray through deception. The word John uses for “deceiving” is used by Hellenist Jews to describe a person who challenges the oneness of Israel’s God (Sloyan, 86). While there was conversation and debate about Jesus, it was done in a secretive manner, as people were scared of what the religious leaders might do if they were found to be in support of Jesus.
When Jesus is discovered, he is in the temple teaching. His teaching is met with astonishment because people find it profound and thought-provoking. Many see Jesus as someone who has not gone through the proper religious training to teach so well. He’s an outsider who challenges the status quo through his words and actions.
My Teaching…
Beginning in verse 16, Jesus addresses the crowd’s concerns by asserting that what he teaches is from the one who sent him. As John has done in several places, John stresses the unity between Jesus and the Father. Jesus has not gone rogue. He hasn’t taken Israel’s historic beliefs and abolished or degraded them. Jesus clearly wants those who hear his words to understand that what he teaches is in service of God’s kingdom here on earth.
Clarity will come to those who genuinely want to do the will of God (v. 17). “Jesus means nothing more complicated than this: The way to know Jesus’ truthfulness is to make the very practical decision to believe and to seek to put into practice Jesus’ clear claims and commands. The way to his truth, in other words, is practical, not theoretical; simple and not complex; straightforward and not convoluted. Will to do his will, and one will see” (Burner, 475). Perhaps Jesus’ statement begs the question, how do we know God’s will? Jesus would likely have responded to the question: “The will of God is to love God with all your heart, mind, and soul, and to love your neighbor as yourself.” By referring to the will of God, Jesus does not have in mind the small (and even large) decisions we need to make to move successfully through life. Jesus isn’t talking about which house to buy, what college to go to, or who to marry. Sure, God will guide us through making those decisions, but the will of God will always come down to practical expressions of love for God and neighbor. For Jesus and us, God’s will always points to the goodness and glory of the Father (v. 18). In no uncertain terms, Jesus confesses that his teaching comes from the Father and that Jesus seeks only the glory of the one who sent him.
Eventually, Jesus evokes Moses’ giving of the law. Jesus finds it odd that they celebrate Moses and the law but don’t keep it in the way it should be. I imagine there were those in the crowd who sincerely believed they were faithful to the law. This allows Jesus to place Israel’s understanding of the law in the proper context through the man’s healing on the sabbath.
One Work…
Verses 21-25 form the heart of Jesus’ comments in this part of John 7. He begins by appealing again to Moses, who informed Israel of God’s intention for circumcision and sabbath keeping. Jewish law mandated that a male baby be circumcised on the eighth day after birth. Jewish law also mandated a strict sabbath adherence that prohibited any work that day. By Jesus’ time, the regulations around sabbath keeping were quite large. What do you do if the eighth day after a male child’s birth falls on the Sabbath? Do you go ahead and circumcise the child, breaking the sabbath law? Or do you postpone it or do it a day earlier? Which law do you break?
These are legitimate questions, ones that Israel had already settled. It was appropriate to circumcise a male child if the eighth day after birth fell on the Sabbath. Jesus sees circumcision as important enough to warrant a small breaking of the Sabbath. It follows, then, that healing a man’s whole body should deserve an exception, too. For Jesus, the Jewish religious leaders shouldn’t be angry because what he did to heal the man on the sabbath was an act of love for a neighbor. Marianne Meye Thompson sums it up nicely, “Sometimes, in order to keep the law, it becomes necessary to set aside or “override” an injunction of it. Thus, if one can remove the foreskin of a single body part on the Sabbath, and so “override the Sabbath,” surely one may make an entire man well on the Sabbath” (Thompson, 172). Unyielding adherence to a set of rules or laws without the ability to break that law so a person might move from brokenness to wholeness is a grievous sin.
Jesus ends his little speech by calling us to judge situations on the surface and with thoughtful consideration of the people involved so that the law doesn’t become a barrier to fulfilling Jesus’ greatest commandment to love God and our neighbors.
So What?
On the surface, this passage seems innocent enough. Jesus’ brothers wanted him to go to Jerusalem to display his power and authority. Jesus, however, knows that the time has not yet come for him to do so. Jesus does end up going to Jerusalem to observe the festival of Booths, but he does so in a quiet manner. While teaching in the temple, Jesus’ presence becomes known. All the while, the religious leaders are out to kill Jesus, making the crowds afraid to openly discuss their opinions about who Jesus is.
The episode provides an opportunity for Jesus to address the religious leader’s disdain for Jesus’ healing of a man on the Sabbath. Once again, Jesus stresses his commitment to revealing the Father and his relationship with the Father. His commitment to and relationship with the Father gives him the authority to teach and interpret the law. In doing so, Jesus highlights that, at times, it is necessary to break part of the law so that others might be healed and enjoy the wholeness Jesus intends them to have.
Several questions need to be addressed. Are there ways in which we’re like the religious leaders, expecting absolute adherence to God’s law even when it comes at the expense of another’s wholeness or healing? How do we judge which of God’s commands might be appropriate to break to express our love for God and our neighbor? Are we actively hurting others for the sake of religious or moral purity?
These are not easy questions to answer. Our judgment of these things requires prayerful discernment of a community of faith that has submitted itself to God and each other. Failure to judge “with right judgment” (v. 24) can lead to moral ambiguity where anything goes. I suppose this slippery slope is why we’re so inclined toward absolute adherence to the law or moral purity codes. The road of discernment is narrow and not easily traveled, but thanks be to God, we are not alone as we travel this road. In God’s faithfulness to creation, God has given us the gift of the Holy Spirit and the gathered community of faith we call the church. Let us never give up discerning the best ways to love God and our neighbor, even if, at times, it feels like we’re breaking the law.
Discussion Questions
Read the text aloud. Then, read the text to yourself quietly. Read it slowly, as if you were very unfamiliar with the story.
Why do you think Jesus secretly chose to go to the Festival of Booths?
How does Jesus' response to his brothers' suggestion reflect his understanding of his mission?
What does it mean to "judge with right judgment,” as Jesus instructs in verse 24?
How can we balance following religious laws and showing compassion to others?
In what ways do you see the religious leaders' attitude towards Jesus' healing as problematic?
How might our preconceptions of what a Messiah should be affect our understanding of Jesus?
What are some modern examples where strict adherence to rules might conflict with showing love and compassion?
How can our community better discern God's will in complex situations?
What role does the Holy Spirit play in helping us make moral decisions?
How can we support one another in practicing the love of God and neighbor in our daily lives?
Works Cited
Frederick Dale Bruner, The Gospel of John: A Commentary
(Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, 2012).
Marianne Meye Thompson, John: A Commentary, First edition, The New Testament Library (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015).
Gerard Stephen Sloyan, John. Interpretation, a Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching (Atlanta, GA: John Knox Press, 1988)
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