011 - Tents and Trouble

You pick up your Bible and wondered, is there more here than meets the eye.

Is there something here for me. I mean it's just words printed on paper right well it may look like just print on a page, but it's more than Inc. join us for the next half hour, as we explore God's word together as we learn how to explore it on our own. As we ask God to meet us there in its pages welcome to more than Inc. was right 77 yeah so I don't know if you're aware, but what if you if you read the entire book of John. There's 21 chapters and he spends the first. I forget how the count goes think the first 11 chapters 1011 chapters talking mostly about the first three years Jesus ministry and then the last half last 1011 chapters actually does have to split but almost cut exactly in half is the passion week is the last seven days so and most of that takes place in the temple courtyard and clearing with teaching yeah so so we are rapidly advancing toward that last week you know when we get to chapter 10 or 11. You know were that last week and were in chapter 7, so not sure just where just jetting through the ministry of Jesus and that John has specifically picked out certain scenarios.

Certain things that Jesus did certain places. He was to emphasize that Jesus is indeed the promised Messiah. And that's true today and now the opening contact is a big deal. So what is the opening context. In John seven well. John says that after this, Jesus went about in Galilee went all over Galilee and I'm just can start reading, and he wouldn't go bad in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill him. Now the Jews feast of booths was at hand so his brother sent him leave here and go to Judea stop here for a second and said the geographical places are important here is Judea in the southern part of the country where Jerusalem was located where the religious headquarters after the temple was.

That's where the scribes and Pharisees were I am the Sadducees.

Their primary stomping ground was down there at this time of year at the feast of booths. That's one of the three major festivals that Jewish heads of households men were all worth required to go to Jerusalem to offer sacrifice and take part in this festivals so but John says that Israel after what had taken place up at the feeding of the 5000, and walking on the water up in Galilee is now he's he's not going down to Judea because the Jews down there were seeking to kill them come in to pick up the reading. So his brothers said to him, leave here and go to Judea so that your disciples may see the works you doing for no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world for not even his brothers believed in him, so that's an interesting background. This little inside information that John gives us about what was really going on.

Why would they tell him to go do that. It's kind of like a sign while you know if you really think your Messiah go down there and make yourself the leader's the center of drive and let it all hang out to all those miracles be crazy right but but we probably need to remember that just after these things. John is is reminding us that he had been in John six talking about being the living bread he had fed the 5000. He had wanted to do on the water and revealed himself to his disciples, he had said all that the father gives me will come to me. Not everybody will come because of the teaching about, you know, you must eat my flesh and drink my blood. Lots of people said I'm not file this guy anymore.

This is too weird ran in and on top of that the Jewish religious administration knew enough about who Jesus was the threat of the momentum of what he was doing that they're already up to kill him right right that brings it to the beginning of John seven where their sand. We got this big festival.

One of the three biggies right you guys. I'll go down there and show your stuff and the people knew the Messiah but you know if you go down there, it's likely they may kill you so so Jesus got below sneaking how we participate in this but it's something I was a careful, careful carefully. Take some care about. How does this not publicly but privately, but he does need to manage this because indeed if he if he becomes too public to quickly. He's going to be killed too quickly in a short ministry so so so he's careful about how to do this so he doesn't want it doesn't want to give up the opportunity of proclaiming who he is in one of the three biggest celebrations of the year, but he's begun to be careful not to be killed so he says to his brothers my time as of yet, your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it. That's works are evil. You go up to the feast. I'm not going up in this feast for my time is not yet fully, and after saying this he remained in Galilee, but after his brothers had gone up to the feast. Then he also went up, not publicly but in private so that's you know he's he's distancing himself a little bit from the whole family entourage and he wants to just emerge suddenly into the middle of the crowd instead of arriving the parade with everybody else if I can.

Remind me what happened in the great Tiberias boatlift where he lets the apostles go on ahead to see you believe in Jesus stays behind knowing that the people would probably stay behind. They did not see him get into a boat and go away in the night. He privately leaves not on the boat again. He walked on the water so so Jesus as being very careful how he manages his exposure to people how he does this so and he's avoiding any appearance of a triumphal entry right at this point not because we see John tells us in verse 11.

Now the Jews were looking for him at the feast in single where Izzy and there wasn't much muttering about him among the people. While some said he's a good man.

Others said, now he's leading people astray, for fear of the Jews. No one spoke openly of him and about the middle of the feast Jesus went up to the temple and began to and shut so did yeah so he's avoiding the parade, but wants to just appear in the middle of it and and pick up teaching so that he avoids this appearance of I'm making a big showing of arriving right exactly. So Jesus does indeed become very public on seven and and interestingly enough, just as what you just said the people are people are not sure who, yes, the debate is going on and some say will is good man and I know other people say noise like people astray, so, so, with Jesus being there in the feast of booths. His identity is the core curiosity. Everyone that's there and they're asking who is this guy so in John seven.

Jesus does not disappoint them talk all about Jesus as well. John makes a point of telling us three or four times in this chapter he gives us little insight into the conversations people were saying who is this guy waiting to get this teaching is a Messiah, is he not, here's the reasons why I think here's the reasons why you think you and I if we read this will be the core.

The debate in chapter 7 is who is this guy and he has a big coming out here in the feast of booths for the tabernacles or I like to think of it like I call it Jesus jamboree, but we probably need to talk about the feast of booths just say okay I see Jesus jamboree. I'm thinking about Boy Scout jamboree run to the regarded as disrespectful I know is because when I was in Boy Scouts. My older brother was. I have agreed up first world Boy Scout jamboree that was held in the United States.

Some it's been held all of the places and was up north Idaho so we eventually moved to but but if you just imagine if you just imagine it was at Farragut State Park at the time.

It's just imagine these fields covered with tents, just tense and tense and tense. So the feast of booths is people living in tents is all that is so, booths or tabernacles that just means tent is a temporary dwelling temporary dwelling place. And God got asked them to do this back in Deuteronomy and Exodus, Leviticus, he asked him to do this to commemorate them coming out of Egypt and living in tents for a while and it was a seven.

It was a seven day long, thing.

In fact, I just checked my calendar out. We are right now and October 10. Yesterday was the last of the seven days of the feast of Tabernacles this year for the Jews.

So yeah, I actually my friend is been posting pictures as she built her Sitka yes fun to watch that happening yet. So so this commemorates the leaving of Egypt and got to care of them in the desert and and all not only just affected the tents which is not the breakfast thing, but when you going to live in the desert and you pitch a tent in the desert where you get water and were you going to get food. And of course that was something that got provided for them every single day.

So this was a feast to remembering and rejoicing in God's provision and brought them out and gave them a temporary place to live so that they can know his provision and rejoice in that. So if you want to just come build that is a memory cue that the feast of booths is about rejoicing in God's provision and remembering his salvation even when your present circumstance seems tenuous and temporary, as the tent part of it still takes care of you intimately day by day so that's that's the contact well in that whole term Tabernacles is interesting because that's the same word that John had used back in chapter 1, when he says, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us that she's the more he tabernacles he dwelt in a temporary dwelling place always think temporary movable temporary place to live, even when using or tabernacles known for the temple.

The temporary tabernacle before the cold tabernacle right so that at this time we're in the fall. Nice to get a little chilly. It's kind of a harvest festival they would all go up to Jerusalem and build themselves up booths a temporary dwelling place there. Wherever they could in Jerusalem and celebrate this feast together by kind of reenacting living in those tents in the wilderness and rejoicing in God's provision said that's what's going on. It's a big celebration is a very happy time.

Every yet everyone in the nation is in Jerusalem, and everyone is pitching tents on every square inch of ground so look in your column of your Bible for your cross-references because you'll find references to Leviticus and Deuteronomy, perhaps even to Zechariah 2 what God had actually said how to celebrate where to celebrate. And then there's a lot of traditions that grew up around it that you could find in the Bible dictionary not commentary necessarily, but dictionary defines terms and gives you backgrounds on the feasts really helpful and those are probably important study skills to begin getting your well. Interestingly enough, if you go chasing down the feast of Tabernacles. You may actually find some topical connections to what happens in this event certainly hold onto the idea for second so I'm so okay so Jesus is there at this big everyone comes to Jerusalem the festival and everyone's living in tents outside. And so Jesus pops up.

Surprisingly, in the middle of the other Templars to teach these young take advantage of this and this jump and around versus 14 or 15. You know what, how does he start the whole thing out what makes himself, I do love this. This is verse 15 the Jews therefore marveled because you suggest suddenly shown up saying how is it. This man has learning when he's never studied okay so he's never graduated from their seminary bears and so here is Jesus's answer verse 16. My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me anyone's will is to do God's will. He'll know whether the teaching is from God or whether I'm speaking on my own authority 01 Seattle not reading them commenting. If anyone really wants to know if if he's from God please to do is compare what he's hearing from Jesus with what God is already set right. He says if you if you're really after God, you're gonna recognize him and me know that I'm not speaking on my own authority and speaking we got right so if you are really connected to God is with me a question in your mind you listen to me go. All this sounds like right so ask to be important later. Yeah I call this the self authenticating kind of phenomenon because it because anyone who is truly connected to the father will here which is a single this sound very consistent very rightly or right so it's that resonance that Jesus, if you had that residence because you were close, the father, you would understand what I'm saying is true that the one who sent me is true, and there is no falsehood, so Jesus was constantly raising these difficult questions.

He says I haven't Moses given you the law, yet none of you keeps the law.

Why do you seek to kill me.

So they were already there was a death plot they have to do away with him in a crowd interviewing demon seeking to kill you right because the plot at this point was just in the religious leadership yeah and so exited the second half of section from about 20 to 24 is really focusing in on people sample want to kill him because of reason, healing the paralytic basically John five right and it was on the sat on the Sabbath, so, so he may come if makes really almost laughable point in 19 you know Moses gave you law and that you let yet none of you keeps the law – a white boy trying to kill me when you guys are failing the law, not right so it's really kind of a funny conversation in many ways about the whole Sabbath issue, but so Jesus is teaching in the middle of contention and the Jews want to kill them and he is being pretty much in their face about how to do this even more talk about Sabbath issues, which is what the paralytic thing was, so let's move on about verse 25.

So of course will always teaching the people's response is you know you know is this is is not this the man who may seek to kill so like if he's going.

If he is the target of of an assassination plot from leadership. Why is he being so public is basically what they're saying why is he speaking so openly and yet they don't say anything as is 26 or afraid they're afraid that exactly so. So some of them in the end of 26 a so could very could it be that he actually really is the guy.

Authorities are not arrested right which put the authorities in a really bad position because the authorities realize that if they don't take some action against Jesus. It will look like they are endorsing him right so this is this, amps up the flame little bit that's exactly what people are saying. Maybe. Maybe this is the Christ and not arresting him. So here he is saying publicly. If you're really seeking God you recognize me, which is basically what he says in verse 17 and then down to rest when it says you know, if you don't recognize me, it's because you don't know God. Again there that the imprint of God is heard and seen in Jesus and those who are really seeking God. The God who is recognize that this guy this guy is a connection with God. We don't have is can where they start and then ultimately come to a place of saying what do you believe that I am someone, and lots of people were coming to believe in him.

It says in verse 31. Many people believed in him, even though the leaders were seeking to arrest him.

I said when the Christ appears will will he do more than this guy, this guy is not the Messiah, you know who's going to do more. It's really a great argument because none none. Is it sufficient but gosh the room assigned more than just doing so is just not to. They also bring up an issue that paragraph about the fact that the, the, the legend is that when the Messiah shows up, you'll be someone who has no past, he has no origin unless an exact truth is legend. Really, because we do know there's and there's an origin issue, but there there trying I call this the fact checking it in the Bible do this a couple time to try to say. Could this be the guy well according to what we know, the Messiah guy should have really no origin has mysterious word like Melchizedek does.

He does kind of a walk on appearance in Genesis and walks off again and so they're saying maybe he's not the Messiah, because he he has an origin. He comes from Nazareth.

So what's going on so that so the really rest of the people really wrestling. Is this the guy and if that he's nothing arrested may be the guys there endorsing by not arresting but then dozen he has for us to have a mysterious pass of the really pick in this together and I like this. I like the wrestling with Russia who is richly should which they really should and are using biblical issues to try and figure out whether Jesus fitting the pattern we should be also know the authorities get involved in verse 32 and I said something sent some offices, duress, Jesus and they have some problems doing that Jesus doesn't physically resist but he does hit them with a very strange line, he says, and 33 I'll be with you a little longer and then I'm going to go to him who sent me. You will seek me like you're seeking now, but you won't find me more where I am, you cannot come which those urban into a tizzy. What would you like where is he going you mean if we wait to rest until later. You will be able to find me as a what you're saying and it seems Vienna and so there twisted up trying to figure out what this means is this about the dispersions you going off to Gentile land where the Greeks on what what is he mean that you're going to seek me, but you're not going to find me. What well so what he's doing. He's arousing the thirst in them and they are talking to one another and they're asking the question, but hearing this, an echo of what he says later on that that last night to the disciples and he says I'm going to make a place for you. So where I am, you will be well.

What's the difference between then in this it's believing that what he says is true, and he is God's anointed God sent one exactly at this point he saying to the Jewish leaders. Hey, you know I'm going somewhere you can't come you can you just not equipped to go there because you don't believe that I came from the father I always do the things he says that I should do and gives speaks his words get a little ahead of myself. But it gets there in later part of the conversation in chapter 8 bullet list move on to 37 because Jesus does teaching, but he is no if anyone thirst, let them come to me and drink and believes in me, as the Scripture says, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. What does this sound familiar John when you have a high said that the woman that well and to go back and look in Scripture is the Old Testament you really should talk about the Holy Spirit and even explains it to us what John explains, but you can find another place in the Old Testament so so this actually has a connection to the feast of Tabernacles because while they were in their tents in the desert, God miraculously provided water for them because there is no water in the desert as a Jesus just launches right out while I was thinking about tents and think about general what happened coming out of the Exodus in Egypt and all that kind of stuff is worth a what were the water come from then guess what were the warm water come from hell. You know the Holy Spirit. So he's making a slight connection to the actual well as it was this tradition that had grown up you won't find it in Leviticus or Deuteronomy, but this tradition that had grown up on the last day of the feast. By this time that temple people would create this sort of water conveyor belt to take water from I was a pool of Siloam and carry it up the hill to the to the temple precincts so there was a lot of water carrying and water pouring going on, is kind of the climax of this feast. God is providing water for us so that's actually the backdrop that's happening when Jesus says hey if you want.

If you believe in me, the Scripture said out of your innermost being will flow rivers of living water that you see this water is all a picture but to make this happen. Let them come to me. Let them come to me so he's the source of all of that is just amazing thing was push him around internal type.

This list get to 40 where there's this big is this big debate about who he is to remember that he has just launched all these discussions about who he is and people are truly there were back to check that fact checking and try to figure out what Jesus is saying you when you get to 41.

Will this really is the prophet and oat divorce and well know if this the cries and sums as well but but is the Christ to come from Galilee has in the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the offspring of David, and comes from Bethlehem, the villager David was and for those of us who read know the Christmas account in Matthew and Luke were going well.

He did come from. So there's this constant argument constant question bubbling up and some of them wanted to arrest him. It says in verse 44, but no one laid hands on him as his constant division in the people about him yeah and you know if they are better talk about Jesus history.

They know that she was born in Bethlehem and sign some should raise her hand so he was born in Bethel and he sure attracted their attention. It's interesting note to that perhaps is this confusion about being born versus being born in Bethel and actually gained him a year to an actual ministry because it kept people from coming to the conclusion. This is the Messiah because it wasn't that well known that he came in Bethel born Bethel took I might've extended the time Mr. don't know but that could be the case was a clearly did here. They're not arresting them instantly because it doesn't seem like he's Messiah will that's what the people are saying 45 to get down to the officers you guys who were sent there just to sit and they come back empty-handed and when I say when they came back talk like this guy. Pharisees said have you also been deceived authorities. The Pharisees believed in him will actually date and then they say that this crowd doesn't know the law is a curse right there ignorant pain they've never heard they don't understand the law will probably they understand more than they're being given credit for.

But Nicodemus verse 50 who had done to him before, and who was one of them said to them, does our law judge a man without first giving them hearing and learning what he does. Hey, are you from Galilee to search and see that no profit arises from Galilee.

You know it's all about the leaders is the same. I come from the same. He's not supposed to come from Galilee sports combatant they didn't know he was born in the poem seems like such an amazing thing and know you think about this. Of these officers to arrest him an excuse. Coming back isn't that he resisted arrest but that will but you know he teaches really in writing off again. This is the self authenticating truth got a thing. They came back and said I'm not sure we should arrest him because you know his teaching is exceptional really have anything to charge him with other than breaking the Sabbath all along. It said why I'm only doing what the father has told me to do and then he would raise legal questions about observing the Sabbath like you circumcised babies on the Sabbath. Are you going to get rocks out of the pit of the Sabbath so you know he could raise for them. He did raise for them questions that kind of giggled at them anyway. Where is the line with resting on the Sabbath. So we come to the end of chapter 7 and the entire question in chapter 7, which Jesus stimulated was who is this man and the people debate and their they're doing fact checking. Were she supposed to be born, the leaders are saying we know were he supposed be born is coming from the wrong place. I mean it when you get to the end of chapter 7 is just a whirlwind of discussion about who is this guy is because Jesus took the risk which really wasn't risk God's perspective kingdom to the feast of millions, perhaps people were there in the tents and stood up and was very bold and because just a huge discussion. So next time. In chapter 8 was come up in chapter 80 my gosh, will the conversation.

This is all set up for John 820 say hey I'm from above year from below. I'm speaking the truth here. Speaking lies I have things to say you can't hear them yet. He's going to continue the entire discussion about the origin of the Messiah. He's going to actually talk about his origins is not about something, even before Abraham was, I am so when you get in the chapter he can be times you see the phrase I am showing you because it will show a lot of times so the questions raised in chapter 7 businessman check. He says so join us next time. On more than we think. Comparative