Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20051016.htm

JOHN: TRUSTING JESUS AS MESSIAH AND GOD
Part XXII: Following Jesus In Credibly Obeying Scripture Over Family
(John 7:1-18)

Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

Seeking to discern and to do God's will can be difficult when the advice we receive from even devout Christian relatives differs from how we see God leading us:

In the last several weeks, several members in our Church have shared with me how "religiously devout" or alleged Christian relatives of theirs have taken stands or made comments that seem unbiblical, but that deeply affect the family due to the close ties involved!

For the privacy of all involved, I will not want go into detail on these things, but I bring this up because such a challenge repeatedly arises and eventually affects us all!



Well, HOW are we to RESPOND to suggestions, advice or pressure from religiously devout or even devout Christian relatives when WE see God through His Word leading us OTHERWISE? To mimic a popular phrase, "What would JESUS do?!"



(We turn to the sermon "Need" section . . . )



Need: "Some devout relatives are urging me to do what differs from what I see Scripture directing me to do! What would JESUS do?!"
  1. Opposite the beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church, Jesus' relatives were sinners who ignorantly even tried to get Him to disobey God!
    1. Mark 3:20-21 in the official translation of the Roman Catholic Church states Jesus' "relatives" had "set out" to "seize" Him as they faithlessly felt He was "out of His mind" for skipping meals in His ministry, The New American Bible for Catholics, 1986, p. 1069.
    2. These relatives who next "arrived" in Mark 3:31 to "seize" Jesus (Mark 3:21) are named in Mark 3:31 of this same official translation of the Roman Catholic Church as His mother and brothers, Ibid.!
    3. Thus, THOUGH Jesus' earthly mother, Mary rightly submitted to God's will when told by the angel Gabriel that she would bear Jesus by way of His miraculous virgin birth (Luke 1:38, 45, Ibid., p. 1093), opposite the Roman Catholic Church's belief in Mary's perpetual virginity (The Catholic Encyclopedia, 1986, p. 601), she had sons by Joseph after Jesus, and opposite the Roman Catholic Church's belief in her immaculate conception (Ibid., p. 285), Mary and these sons were sinners who once faithlessly doubted Jesus' sanity and thus His Person, and so tried to hinder Him from doing God the Father's will!
  2. Yet, in proof of His credibility as GOD'S TRUE Son, Jesus refused His relatives' sinful pressure and INSTEAD did God's will:
    1. Near a feast of Tabernacles, Jesus' human brothers once proposed He move from Galilee to Judaea, Israel's main hub of activity, so He could perform His miracles and enhance His earthly fame, John 7:2-4.
    2. Yet, this suggestion revealed they held the same errant worldly view as did the unbelieving 5,000 whom Jesus had recently fed, John 6:26; John thus wrote that Jesus' human brothers, just like the 5,000, ALSO failed to trust IN Him, but focused on His externals, Jn. 7:5 with 6:26.
    3. However, in proof of His credibility as God's righteous Son, Jesus rejected the advice of His human brothers to do God's will:
      1. Being subject to the Law (Galatians 4:4), Jesus was required by God in Deuteronomy 16:16 to attend this feast of Tabernacles.
      2. Nevertheless, Jesus told His brothers that since Judaea's leaders sought to kill Him, it would not be wise for Him to go up to Jerusalem's Feast of Tabernacles when it began, John 7:1-2, 6, 8b.
      3. Rather, He told His brothers to go, for the world could not hate them like it did Him, implying they were of the world, 7:7f; 15:19!
      4. Since Jesus exposed evil in the world, and Judaea's leaders were of the errant world, He was hated by them; that meant it was unwise for Him to go to the Feast when it began lest He incite trouble from these men [and lead to His premature crucifixion], John 7:8.
      5. Jesus' brothers thus went to the feast when it began and Jesus postponed His trip only (a) to arrive later in obedience to God, but in (b) private in contrast to the errant will of His brothers, 7:9-10.
      6. Thus, when Jesus finally revealed Himself at the feast, He did NOT impress others by focusing on His MIRACLES, but taught God's WORD that men might TRUST IN Him to be SAVED:
        1. Jesus' sudden public appearance in the midst of the feast in the act of teaching was designed to (1) inhibit His foes from trying unjustly to kill Him before the crowds (2) and to get others to focus on His word versus His miracles, John 7:11-14.
        2. This move yielded the desired effects: (1) not only was He left safely alive by Jerusalem's leaders, but (2) even Jesus' foes marveled at His Scripture knowledge due to His words though He lacked rabbinic training, John 7:15; Ibid., ftn. to John 7:15.
        3. Jesus then explained that His knowledgeable words were not His, but the Father's, John 7:16; He said all who knew the Father would recognize He spoke the Father's words, 7:17.
        4. As Jesus did not seek a false glory by trying to win human fame by His miracles as the faithless 5,000 and his brothers willed, but rather aimed to glorify the Father in doing His will, Jesus testified He spoke the Father's words so His hearers might be amazed that His words came from GOD, John 7:18! Then they could believe in Him as God's Son and be saved, John 6:29, 40!
Application: (1) May we trust in Christ for His refusal to heed His devout family's errant wish so He might present Himself as the Father willed that men might trust IN Him to be saved. (2) May we like Jesus heed Scripture over even devoutly religious relatives when they hold an errant, worldly view!

Lesson: Jesus OPPOSED clouding the Gospel by impressing people externally like His faithless but devoutly religious human brothers and the 5,000 willed, and INSTEAD heeded the Father's will of urging men to trust in Him as God's Son for salvation; accordingly, He came late and in private to the feast of Tabernacles, and revealed Himself there with a focus on teaching the Father's WORDS as OPPOSED to highlighting His MIRACLES! In doing so, He displayed He was God's TRUE Son!

Conclusion: (To illustrate the sermon lesson . . . )

 Without going into any detail for the sake of privacy, the timing of our arrival at this section of John's Gospel could not be more fitting for a particular man in our Church! He found out last week that a potentially divisive issue involving his Christian relatives had arisen, and he was under pressure from a party involved to respond in a way that would have countered how God had led him in his life!

When he saw we were about to start on John 7:1-18 where Jesus Himself had to choose between the advice of his earthly relatives and God's will, and what that passage meant by way of application to his own situation, he was amazed and very relieved at God's direct and very detailed guidance in the matter! Accordingly, he has chosen to apply the example of Jesus in John 7:1-18, opting to do the will of God over the errant suggestion of his professing Christian relatives!



Though God wants us to love and honor our relatives just like Jesus did His human family, especially when it comes to professing CHRISTIAN relatives, may we NEVERTHELESS heed GOD'S leading through our REGULAR exposure to HIS WORD over what even devoutly Christian family or extended family members would suggest to the contrary! In so doing, (a) may we trust in Christ as Savior from sin and (b) heed HIM in our walk above all other goals or agendas by any party, even by relatives!