John 7
And there was much complaining among the people concerning Him. Some said, “He is good”; others said, “No, on the contrary, He deceives the people.” However, no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews. John 7:12-13 NKJV
Many people were talking about Jesus, but they were afraid to say anything publicly. We need to remember that the Holy Spirit can equip us with the courage, power and even the words needed to talk to others about Jesus. Don’t let fear keep you from planting the seeds of faith in the heart of someone you know. Keep in mind this great promise from Jesus, that comes with an attached warning: “Whoever acknowledges Me before others, I will also acknowledge before My Father in heaven. But whoever disowns Me before others, I will disown before My Father in heaven” (Matthew 10:32-33).
“However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from.” Therefore many from the crowd, when they heard this saying, said, “Truly this is the Prophet.” Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Will the Christ come out of Galilee? Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where David was?” So there was a division among the people because of Him. Now some of them wanted to take Him, but no one laid hands on Him.” John 7:27, 40-44 NKJV Although there was a popular thought during the time of Jesus that the Messiah would simply appear, it is clearly written in scripture that this was not the case. In fact, it was predicted by the prophet Micah 700 years before Jesus was born that the Messiah would come from Bethlehem: “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me One who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times” (Micah 5:2). One of the most straightforward Messianic prophecies fulfilled by Jesus was completely missed by the Jewish leaders because they did not take the time to investigate. They wrongly assumed that Jesus was born in Nazareth because that is where He was raised. We know from multiple accounts that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, which shows that He truly did fulfill this prophecy. We can learn from the mistakes of the religious leaders of Jesus’ day. They allowed their intense desire for a different type of Messiah to cloud their thinking and allow them to make judgements without even knowing all of the facts. Make sure not to fall into this same trap and allow your personal agenda to misguide you. As we have seen, doing so can have severe, and even eternal consequences.
“Then the Jews sought Him at the feast, and said, “Where is He?” And there was much complaining among the people concerning Him. Some said, “He is good”; others said, “No, on the contrary, He deceives the people.” Now some of them from Jerusalem said, “Is this not He whom they seek to kill? But look! He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ? However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from.” Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, “You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me.” Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. And many of the people believed in Him, and said, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?” The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him. Then Jesus said to them, “I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me. You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come.” Then the Jews said among themselves, “Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him? Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? What is this thing that He said, ‘You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come’?” On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. Therefore many from the crowd, when they heard this saying, said, “Truly this is the Prophet.” Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Will the Christ come out of Galilee? Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where David was?” So there was a division among the people because of Him. Now some of them wanted to take Him, but no one laid hands on Him.” John 7:11-12, 25-44 NKJV
These passages show how confused and divided the people were when it came to Jesus. They were unsure of where He came from, who He really was, what His plans were, and the meaning of His words. Actually, not much has changed in 2000 years! Although Jesus’ existence and the fact that He walked the Earth for 33 years is generally accepted, there are still lots of questions about His true identity. Here are some common responses to the question, “Who is Jesus?”:
1. He is the Son of God, who is eternal and who was sent to Earth to die for the sins of all mankind. This is certainly who He claimed to be, and was backed up by the fulfillment of hundreds of Old Testament prophecies, along with His resurrection from the dead. His identity was clearly foretold in Isaiah 9:6: “For to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” For those of us who understand and believe this truth, an eternal reward awaits us: “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9).
2. He was a prophet. He predicted the fall of Jerusalem with specific details: “As He approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it and said ‘…The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you'” (Luke 19:41-44). 40 years after Jesus said these words, the Roman army surrounded Jerusalem, destroyed it, and killed 600,000 Jews. Although He was a prophet, this is only part of who Jesus really was. The prophets that God used to speak through were fully human and were not divine. While it is true that Jesus became fully human, He is also fully God. It was necessary for Him to become human so that He could die. But He is also fully God, which is how He was able to pay the penalty for the sins of the whole world, and why He is the only way to salvation. He proclaimed: “…I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).
3. He was a good man, and a great teacher. People that believe this about Jesus have obviously not studied His teachings. Jesus makes His identity obvious when talking to Peter in Matthew 16:15-17: “‘But what about you?’ He asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’ Jesus replied, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven.’” He also unmistakably proclaims His divinity in John 8:58: “‘Very truly I tell you,’ Jesus answered, ‘before Abraham was born, I am!’” So…one must either believe Jesus’ claims to be the Son of God or must label Him as a liar or a lunatic. There is no middle ground here given how clearly Jesus stated who He really was on multiple occasions.
4. He was demon possessed. Mark 5 and Luke 8 tell the story of Jesus encountering a demon possessed man. The demon, named Legion, immediately recognizes and fears Jesus: “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me!” Not only does the demon announce Jesus’ identity, but he is terrified because he knows they are on opposing sides. If Jesus was demon possessed, Legion would not have reacted in this manner towards Jesus.
5. He was a liar, a fraud, or insane. If this were true, it is extremely doubtful that over 2 billion people would still be worshiping Him and trusting His teachings 2000 years later.
We have so many of His words recorded in the Bible, and none of them have ever been proven false. The bottom line is that without believing Jesus was exactly who He said He was, we would have no way to explain how so many lives have been changed over the centuries simply by believing in Him and following His ways.