TEXT: John 7:1-10
1 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee: for he would not walk in Jewry, because the Jews sought to kill him.
2 Now the Jew’s feast of tabernacles was at hand.
3 His brethren therefore said unto him, Depart hence, and go into Judaea, that thy disciples also may see the works that thou doest.
4 For there is no man that doeth any thing in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do these things, shew thyself to the world.
5 For neither did his brethren believe in him.
6 Then Jesus said unto them, My time is not yet come: but your time is alway ready.
7 The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil.
8 Go ye up unto this feast: I go not up yet unto this feast: for my time is not yet full come.
9 When he had said these words unto them, he abode still in Galilee.
10 But when his brethren were gone up, then went he also up unto the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.
Today, I am continuing the daily Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign sermon series, which is aimed at sharing the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ with unbelievers and reminding Christians, in this important election year, to keep the main thing the main thing — and that is reaching unbelievers with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and praying for their salvation, for the problem in America is not only disobedient presidents, politicians, and people, but disobedient pastors, preachers, and parishioners who have refused to obey the Lord’s Great Commission which is to, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” and who have refused to obey God’s repeated commands to “pray without ceasing” for unbelievers, believers, and political leaders. Yes, you should pray for the right candidate to win; yes, you should vote for the candidate that the Lord gives you peace about voting for. But, don’t get caught up in it like the world does. Nothing much is going to change until people get saved and get their hearts right with the Lord.
This campaign is inspired by the following three verses: 1 Corinthians 2:2 which says, “For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” Acts 5:42 which says, “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.” And 2 Timothy 2:4 which says, “No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.”
This series is not for Christians necessarily. However, I do hope you are one of those saints who still loves to hear the “Old, old story of Jesus and His love” — As another hymn says, “For those who know it best Seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest.” This series is primarily for unbelievers, so they can hear and understand the Gospel and be saved from sin and the punishment of sin which is hell. This is message number 85.
Ray Stedman said, “Jesus understood the Scriptures. He knew that God had appointed, not only a pathway for the Messiah to follow, but the very program and time in which the events would occur… It must have been a heartache to Jesus that his family did not understand and did not believe in him. There is nothing more hurtful than to be misunderstood by those closest to you, and yet this is what our Lord had to live with all the time.”
After being told by His brothers that He should go up to the Feast of Tabernacles and perform His miracles there, Jesus explains to them why He will not go to Jerusalem with them. The simple reason why is because it is not in God’s timing for Him to do so. He says, “My time is not yet come: but your time is alway ready.”
Jesus had a divine mission in the world, one that He was carefully carrying out. His brothers, on the other hand, were thinking and living according to what the world expected of them. As religious Jews, they could go up to the Feast of Tabernacles without worrying about people hating them or trying to kill them. They were in line with the standards of the world. So, Jesus tells them, “The world cannot hate you…” And, we find that to be true today. In nearly every aspect of life, as long as you are going along with what everybody else wants you to do and doing what is expected of you, you’re alright. But the moment you deviate and start to walk another path — even if it is one better than what others are walking — the critics come out.
Jesus continues, “But me [the world] hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil.” The Jews did not like Jesus because he pointed out what was wrong with the way they had been doing things. He showed them how they were wrong to elevate the law to such a point where it became a burden for people to follow. He tried to show them that God was not only a God of strict justice, but one of mercy and love. He tried to show them that they could have life, and life more abundantly through Him.
However, as is the case even today, people did not like Jesus shaking up the status quo. They hated Him because He told them their ways were evil. They plotted to kill Him since He wouldn’t stay silent. Jesus knew that eventually they would get their wish to see Him killed, but that would be a part of God’s plan for the redemption and salvation of the world. So, Jesus did not go up to the Feast of Tabernacles at this moment; He would readily go up to another feast six months later — the Passover — which He knew God had preordained to be the time for Him to be sacrificed.
The lesson we learn from this is that often what we view as normal is abhorrent in the sight of God. We must also realize that the hostility that rises up in us when we are rebuked for our sinful ways may simply be evidence of our desire to continue down the path that we have been going. We must learn to humble ourselves before God, seek His face, and realize that His ways are better than our ways. In the matter of our soul’s salvation, we must realize that there is nothing we can do — no matter how righteous we may think it is — that will save us from eternal punishment and separation from God. Only the work that Jesus accomplished on the cross can do that.
If you are with us today and do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, please know that the time is always right for you to believe in Jesus Christ and place your faith in Him. The saving work that He did on the cross is complete. Here is how you can be saved today.
First, please understand that you are a sinner and that you have broken God’s laws. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Please understand that because of your sins, you deserve punishment in hell. Romans 6:23 says “the wages of sin is death…” This is both physical death and spiritual death in hell.
But here is the good news. John 3:16 reads, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
The phrase “For God so loved the world” means that if you are in this world, God loves you no matter what you have done.
The next phrase, “that He gave His only begotten Son” refers to Jesus Christ. He is God’s son who suffered, bled, and died on the cross for your sins and for mine, and He was buried and rose again.
Our next phrase is “that whosoever believeth in Him”. The word “whosoever” means anybody at anytime. The phrase “believeth in Him” means to trust in Him, to depend upon Him, to rely on Him, or to have faith in Him for your salvation.
Our next phrase, “should not perish”, refers to eternal punishment in a place called hell.
And, lastly, the phrase “but have everlasting life” means to live eternally in Heaven with God.
The Bible also says in Romans 10:9 and 13: “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved…. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Dear friend, if you are willing to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, please pray with me this simple prayer: Heavenly Father, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I now believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.
If you believed in your heart that Jesus Christ died on the cross, was buried, and rose again, allow me to say, congratulations on doing the most important thing in life and that is accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour! For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to GospelLightSociety.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”
If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior today, please e-mail me at dw3@gospellightsociety.com and let us know. There is some free material that we want to send you. If you have a prayer request, please e-mail that to us as well, and we will pray for you until you tell us to stop.
God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.
Beirut Ambassador 