7 After this, Jesus traveled around Galilee. He wanted to stay out of Judea, where the Jewish leaders were plotting his death. ² But soon it was time for the Jewish Festival of Shelters, ³ and Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, where your followers can see your miracles! ⁴ You can’t become famous if you hide like this! If you can do such wonderful things, show yourself to the world!” ⁵ For even his brothers didn’t believe in him.

⁶ Jesus replied, “Now is not the right time for me to go, but you can go anytime. ⁷ The world can’t hate you, but it does hate me because I accuse it of doing evil. ⁸ You go on. I’m not going to this festival, because my time has not yet come.” ⁹ After saying these things, Jesus remained in Galilee.

¹⁰ But after his brothers left for the festival, Jesus also went, though secretly, staying out of public view. ¹¹ The Jewish leaders tried to find him at the festival and kept asking if anyone had seen him. ¹² There was a lot of grumbling about him among the crowds. Some argued, “He’s a good man,” but others said, “He’s nothing but a fraud who deceives the people.” ¹³ But no one had the courage to speak favorably about him in public, for they were afraid of getting in trouble with the Jewish leaders.

¹⁴ Then, midway through the festival, Jesus went up to the Temple and began to teach. ¹⁵ The people were surprised when they heard him. “How does he know so much when he hasn’t been trained?” they asked.

¹⁶ So Jesus told them, “My message is not my own; it comes from God who sent me. ¹⁷ Anyone who wants to do the will of God will know whether my teaching is from God or is merely my own. ¹⁸ Those who speak for themselves want glory only for themselves, but a person who seeks to honor the one who sent him speaks truth, not lies. ¹⁹ Moses gave you the law, but none of you obeys it! In fact, you are trying to kill me.”

²⁰ The crowd replied, “You’re demon possessed! Who’s trying to kill you?”

²¹ Jesus replied, “I did one miracle on the Sabbath, and you were amazed. ²² But you work on the Sabbath, too, when you obey Moses’ law of circumcision. (Actually, this tradition of circumcision began with the patriarchs, long before the law of Moses.) ²³ For if the correct time for circumcising your son falls on the Sabbath, you go ahead and do it so as not to break the law of Moses. So why should you be angry with me for healing a man on the Sabbath? ²⁴ Look beneath the surface so you can judge correctly.”

²⁵ Some of the people who lived in Jerusalem started to ask each other, “Isn’t this the man they are trying to kill? ²⁶ But here he is, speaking in public, and they say nothing to him. Could our leaders possibly believe that he is the Messiah? ²⁷ But how could he be? For we know where this man comes from. When the Messiah comes, he will simply appear; no one will know where he comes from.”

²⁸ While Jesus was teaching in the Temple, he called out, “Yes, you know me, and you know where I come from. But I’m not here on my own. The one who sent me is true, and you don’t know him. ²⁹ But I know him because I come from him, and he sent me to you.” ³⁰ Then the leaders tried to arrest him; but no one laid a hand on him, because his time had not yet come.

John 7:1-30

Dear God, reading this story, it feels like Jesus was trying to feel out the situation and discern what you wanted him to do. Should he go or not go. Should he expose himself to premature death or should he shrewdly avoid Judea. First he sneaked down to Jerusalem for the festival, but then he seemingly spontaneously stepped out of the shadows and started publicly teaching (verse 14). Was that his plan all along or did he get assurance from you that it was the right thing to do.

Then there’s the vagueness of verse 30. The idea that the leaders tried to arrest him but weren’t able to implies that you were supernaturally working to protect his physical life for the time being. There would be a time for his death, but this wasn’t it.

Now, in the middle of all of this is Jesus challenging people on their hypocrisy. In this case, it’s over their accusing him of working (healing) on the Sabbath. This is the part I feel like I need to think about. Where can I be accused of hypocrisy? Are there areas where I judge others and then make the same exact mistake? Or do I condemn people who are actually doing good? I think it’s a self-assessment that all of us need to make. How am I the hypocrite, or how am I misjudging someone’s actions as bad when they are really good?

Father, give me self-awareness today. I have a meeting this morning that I’m not enthusiastic about attending. As I sit here now, I feel a conviction that I have the wrong attitude about it. Thank you for that conviction. I’m sorry. I’ve felt a disdain for it that I feel regret now. So help me to walk into it with a willing, loving spirit. Give me wisdom and shrewdness. Use it all for your glory.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen