John 7:32-52

Relax, Read and Reflect

Prayer- Lord, Open our hearts and open our minds and help us learn. Go-Fight-Win. Amen.

^32-34The Pharisees, alarmed at this seditious undertow going through the crowd, teamed up with the high priests and sent their police to arrest him. Jesus rebuffed them: "I am with you only a short time. Then I go on to the One who sent me. You will look for me, but you won't find me. Where I am, you can't come."

^35-36The Jews put their heads together. "Where do you think he is going that we won't be able to find him? Do you think he is about to travel to the Greek world to teach the Jews? What is he talking about, anyway: 'You will look for me, but you won't find me,' and 'Where I am, you can't come'?"

^37-39On the final and climactic day of the Feast, Jesus took his stand. He cried out, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Rivers of living water will brim and spill out of the depths of anyone who believes in me this way, just as the Scripture says." (He said this in regard to the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were about to receive. The Spirit had not yet been given because Jesus had not yet been glorified.)

^40-44Those in the crowd who heard these words were saying, "This has to be the Prophet." Others said, "He is the Messiah!" But others were saying, "The Messiah doesn't come from Galilee, does he? Don't the Scriptures tell us that the Messiah comes from David's line and from Bethlehem, David's village?" So there was a split in the crowd over him. Some went so far as wanting to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him.

⁴⁵That's when the Temple police reported back to the high priests and Pharisees, who demanded, "Why didn't you bring him with you?"

⁴⁶The police answered, "Have you heard the way he talks? We've never heard anyone speak like this man."

^47-49The Pharisees said, "Are you carried away like the rest of the rabble? You don't see any of the leaders believing in him, do you? Or any from the Pharisees? It's only this crowd, ignorant of God's Law, that is taken in by him—and damned."

^50-51Nicodemus, the man who had come to Jesus earlier and was both a ruler and a Pharisee, spoke up. "Does our Law decide about a man's guilt without first listening to him and finding out what he is doing?"

^52-53But they cut him off. "Are you also campaigning for the Galilean? Examine the evidence. See if any prophet ever comes from Galilee."

Then they all went home.

Jesus has made the religious rulers, (the pharisees) mad. He is preaching that he is the Messiah, so they send the police to arrest him. He disappears and the people start to grumble. Has he gone to teach the Greek?(gentiles.) Is he a prophet? Is he the Messiah?

The theme of "can the Messiah, (or anything good,) come from Galilee" is continued. Galilee is a very poor part of the country. This would be similar to "can anything good come from Mississippi?" Even worse. Some of the crowd remembers that the prophet predicted the Messiah would come from David, from Bethlehem.

The police do not arrest Jesus and the leaders are hot. Nicodemus, (who has already met Jesus, remember?) asks why are the police trying to arrest Jesus without going through due process. Remember, the Jews had very strict laws on how to live and how to do anything, including how to try people. The leaders, who wanted these laws followed to the letter, were not following the laws when it came to Jesus. For this observation Nick is slandered. "Are you too from Galilee?"

Questions:

1. Why did the leaders send in the police?

2. What did the people say?

3. What did Jesus tell the people on the last day?

Prayer- Lord, help us go throughout our world and SHOW that world who You are by what we do. Let our actions speak for you during this time of lent. Go-Fight-Win. Amen.