Judge Rightly

John 7:1–24
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It was F.B. Meyer, I believe, who once said that when we see a brother or sister in sin, there are two things we do not know. First, we do not know how hard he or she tried not to sin, and second, ... More

Judgment

There is a six-month gap between chapters 6 and 7. Jesus was aware of growing hostility against him. The Jews were seeking to kill him (v. 1). The multitudes who had followed Him before were no longer doing so. The feast of tabernacles was now at hand. Also called the feast of booths, this feast was held annually in Jerusalem for 8 days in early October. Families would build booths (out of tree limbs and thatched roofs) to live in for the duration of the feast. This was to remind them of the forty years of wandering in the wilderness (v. 2).

Jesus’s brothers had a difficult time believing in Him. As the feast drew near, they came to Him with some advice (vv. 3-5). They wanted Him to get out of the “sticks” (Galilee) and share his miracles with the rest of the people, especially in Jerusalem. They wanted him to be their version of the Messiah. But Jesus told them, “Now is not the time for that.” (vv. 6-8). Jesus did eventually go up to the feast, but it was not to appear publicly as the Messiah. Instead, he used it as an opportunity to teach the crowds the truth and invite them to Himself. It says that the people questioned how Jesus knew the Scriptures so well and spoke with such authority when He had never been to a seminary (v. 15). It seems that the people of Jesus’s day fell into the same trap that many people fall into today, believing that a person must graduate from a seminary and have a degree after their name before they are qualified to preach or teach. Jesus replied: I am not teaching something that I thought up (vv. 16-18). What I teach comes from the one who sent me. If you really want to obey God, you will know if what I teach comes from God or from me.

The Pharisees spent their days trying to achieve holiness by keep the rules they had added to God’s laws (v. 19). They did not even fulfill a legalistic religion, for they were living far below what the law of Moses required. “Do not judge by appearance, but judge with right judgment” (vv. 20-24). This means that we are to get our values straight and look at things from God’s point of view. Only then can we make a righteous judgment.

Application

The words of Jesus come home to our generation as strongly as they did in His day; “Do not judge by appearance, but judge with right judgment.” Lord help me to be this kind of person!

John 7:1-24 (English Standard Version)

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