Representing God

Representing God

Life & Light Community Church

Message from 11/12/2022

Life & Light Community Church began in the early months of 2020. What began as an opportunity for me, my wife and step-kids to continue to worship together, has now evolved into a ministry that has expanded to include close friends, family, and those who are simply hungry for the word of God. You can find us on Facebook, so please, feel free to reach out and join us.

“So the Jews were seeking Him at the feast and were saying, “Where is He?” There was much grumbling among the crowds concerning Him; some were saying, “He is a good man”; others were saying, “No, on the contrary, He leads the people astray.” Yet no one was speaking openly of Him for fear of the Jews. But when it was now the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and began to teach. The Jews then were astonished, saying, “How has this man become learned, having never been educated?” So Jesus answered them and said, “My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me. If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God or whether I speak from Myself. He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who is seeking the glory of the One who sent Him, He is true, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. Did not Moses give you the Law, and yet none of you carries out the Law? Why do you seek to kill Me?”                                                                                    John 7:11–19 (NASB95)

The Feast of Booths has arrived, and the brothers of Jesus feel it is the perfect opportunity for Jesus to show Himself to the world, a world we learned that hates Him because He exposes its evil deeds. After a lengthy discussion with them, Jesus tells His brothers He will not be attending the feast because His time has not yet arrived. However, after His brothers depart for the feast in Jerusalem, Jesus Himself goes to Jerusalem but He goes “as if in secret.” What His brothers want Him to do in public, boldly and loudly, Jesus does in private.

Our passage picks up with the Jews seeking Jesus while those in the crowd grumble amongst themselves about Him. Some are saying Jesus is a good man while others disagree, saying He leads people astray. The one thing they have in common is that no one is speaking openly about Him for fear of the Jews. But when Jesus begins to teach at the Temple, the Jews are astonished at His teaching. Jesus explains that He is Representing God, and His teaching is not His own, nor does He seek His own glory. Everything Jesus does is within the Father’s will, for He is true and there is no unrighteousness within Him.

Those seeking Jesus at the feast are divided, some in favor and some against, but none fully understanding Him. When He teaches at the Temple, the people are astonished. But Jesus is Representing God, His teachings are from the One who sent Him, and He does not seek His own glory but the glory of God because He is true and there is no unrighteousness found in Him.

As Christ followers, we too will find division among those we meet – some believing in Him, others not believing, but few will fully follow Him. Because we are Representing God, we teach from His teachings, seeking to bring glory to His name, while always seeking to be true, proving there is no unrighteousness found within us.

In this message we seek to answer the question, “How are Christ followers Representing God to the world around us?

As Christ followers, we are Representing God among those who believe, those who do not believe, and those who do not fully follow Him.

1). As Christ followers, we are Representing God to the world around us because our teaching is not our own but comes from the One who has sent us.

We seek to do the will of God so others will know our teaching comes from God.

Our passage opens with the observation that the Jews are seeking Jesus, asking the question, “Where is He?” The second observation is just as important as the first, “there was much grumbling among the crowds concerning Him.” Why this distinction between the Jews and the crowds? If we have been paying close attention to John’s writing, he makes the distinction between the religious authorities, “the Jews,” and those who have traveled to the Feast and the citizens of Judea, “among the crowds.” However, it is clear that both groups are looking for Jesus at the Feast. One other helpful clue here is the fact that both negative and positive conversation concerning Jesus is done in secret, for Jesus is a taboo subject and everyone knows it!

What we see next is, indeed, a bit unusual. The Feast of Booths is a weeklong celebration, and we find Jesus coming to the Temple in midweek. We are not given any information as to why but perhaps it was just enough of a delay for those seeking Jesus to “let their guard down.” It must have worked for when Jesus begins teaching at the Temple, the Jews are astonished at His teaching and asking how this man became learned without an education? For the Jews to be seeking someone to kill Him it seems a bit strange to not even recognize the man you are seeking, doesn’t it? Then again, Isaiah 53 tells us that there was nothing about Jesus that would make us take notice of Him, nothing special to set Him apart. In fact, He was despised and forsaken among men, familiar with sorrow and acquainted with grief. Even Judas had to kiss the cheek of Jesus so He could be recognized at His arrest.

Yet, His teaching is so powerful it causes everyone, the religious elite included, to take notice. He is speaking with power and authority that they are not used to, that is not seen in others. The real question from the religious authorities is this, “How can He teach like this without approved schooling?” The answer is straight forth and comes quickly from Jesus. His teaching is not His own teaching but comes from the One who sent Him. It is the one who is willing to do the will of God who will know whether or not the teaching of Jesus comes from God or if Jesus is simply spouting off His own made-up tales.

The implication is clear! You, the Jews religious authorities, do not know Me, thus, you do not know the One who sent Me, because you are not doing the will of God. Because they are not doing the will of God, they cannot understand the teachings of Jesus and thus, they are astonished at what He teaches. These are the teachers of Israel and they do not understand the teachings of the Father. They study the Law and yet they do not understand what Jesus teaches. Jesus stands apart because His teaching comes from God. Jesus is challenging those who hear Him to stop seeing Him as the next great sage of Israel, and to begin seeing Him as a prophet sent by God, after all, a prophet does not need a “formal education,” for a prophet has a higher calling and is taught by God.

As Christ followers, we too will come across grumbling within the crowds in which we live, work and play. Some will be counted among those who believe, more will be counted among those who do not believe. The common denominator will be you, the Christ follower. It will be the teaching you share, whether with your lifestyle and beliefs, or in using words to explain what you believe and why you live as you do, that will make the impact, making some uncomfortable and other curious. Everything we do, everything we say, is meant to point to God the Father; we belong to Him, and our words and action must indicate we are seeking His will, not our own. We can bring clarity or add to the confusion. What are your words and actions saying to others?

Questions for discussion/reflection:

What kind of “grumbling among the crowds” are you encountering in your word?

What teaching of Jesus currently has you “astonished?”

How is your life and your words showing others that your “teaching” come from God?

As Christ followers, we are Representing God among those who believe, those who do not believe, and those who do not fully follow Him.

2). As Christ followers, we are Representing God to the world around us because we do not seek our own glory but only the glory of the One who has sent us.

We do not speak for ourselves; we only speak for the glory of the Father.

Jesus has challenged the Jews and those in the crowd to stop seeing Him as the next great sage and to begin seeing Him as a young prophet of God. To help drive this point home, Jesus tells those in the Temple He is not seeking His own glory, but rather the glory of the One who sent Him. Jesus has said that His teaching is not His own and those who do the will of God will know His teaching is from God. Now He says those who speak for themselves seek only their own glory. Jesus is saying that because His teaching comes from God and He seeks the glory of God, this makes Him an authorized representative of Israel’s God, true and without any unrighteousness found in Him.

We know that Jesus is doing God’s will, going where the Father tells Him to go and, just as importantly, going when the Father tells Him to go. This feast is an example of Jesus following the Father’s will. He did not come to the feast immediately, as His brothers did, because His time has not yet come. Jesus waited until the Jewish religious leaders had let their guard down and were not expecting Him before He arrived at the feast and began to teach. Because He is doing God’s will, His teachings astonish the Jewish leaders who do not recognize Him. We also know that Jesus speaks only what the Father has given Him to speak. Thus, the reason the religious leaders do not recognize Jesus as the One they have been seeking to kill.

What, exactly, does this mean? It means the religious leaders of Israel, the ones who teach the people about God do not know the God they have been teaching and claim as their own! If they were doing the will of God, they would recognize Jesus as a prophet sent from God, they would be able to understand the teachings of Jesus and there would be no need to question whether or not He has received an authorized education. These leaders seek only their own glory and speak only for themselves. This is the very reason they are at odds with Jesus, He refuses to withhold His criticism of their religious system. He calls them out because they cannot see the power of God working within Him. The Judean people have seen the works of Jesus and still they do not believe.

Finally, Jesus drives His point home by hitting them where they live, so to speak. They have been listening to Him teach and interpret the Torah and yet they have not made the connection between the one teaching and the One they have been seeking, the infamous Jesus of Nazareth. Suddenly, Jesus begins to make things clear with the question “Why do you seek to kill Me?” But John, the author of this gospel, does what he has been trying to do from the beginning…include the Samaritan Israelites in the conversation. Prior to the question asked, Jesus returns to Moses and the Law. “Has not Moses given you the Law?” Both Judean and Samaritan Israelites claimed to follow the Law and yet Jesus calls them out for not following the Law they claim! The Samaritan Israelites have long held that the Judean Israelites did not keep the Torah of Moses. By this critique of the Judean misinterpretation of the Torah Jesus is able, at the same time, to include the Samaritan Israelites in the conversation.

Make no mistake here, the words of Jesus seek only to bring glory to God, not to Himself. In pointing out the misinterpretation of the Torah, He is clearly saying to the Judean religious leaders they simply do not know the God they teach, the very One who has sent Jesus among them as Messiah. As Christ followers, we must be aware that what we say is just as powerful, if not more so, than what we do. If our words and actions do not line up, we have already lost the battle. Our words should speak to the glory of God and our actions should line up with those words. Then, those we walk among will be able to tell that our teaching comes from God and seeks only to being glory to the One who has sent us.

Questions for discussion/reflection:

How are you challenging people to see you as someone sent by God?

Do your words and actions say that you are doing the will of God?

How are your words and actions bringing glory to God?

As Christ followers, we are Representing God among those who believe, those who do not believe, and those who do not fully follow Him.

The bottom line for the Christ follower is this, it is not going to be easy living a life that clearly speaks to others as a life within God’s will, that seeks to bring glory to God the Father. It just won’t be easy, but that doesn’t mean that it cannot be done. Jesus is sought by many but understood by few. This is why we will encounter grumbling among those we walk among on a daily basis. This will include other Christ followers who will not be as willing to accept what they will consider “new teaching” about the gospel message, the disciples, Jesus Himself, and how we are to live our lives as Christ followers. This is the reason it is so important to be in your Bible every day. Read and study God’s word so those you meet can tell your teaching comes from God and are not your teachings at all. This is how we bring glory to God; we live lives that speak to His power and presence in our lives; we seek His glory and not our own; we do the will of God and speak only those things He has given us to speak, again bringing glory to His name. By this, we will be true, and others will be unable to find any unrighteousness within us.

We do all things for the glory of God, through Christ our Lord,

Amen and amen.

Next Week: Thanksgiving Message from Philippians 4:6-7