DAY 141
SENTIMENT
1 Chronicles 13, 14 & 15 and John 7:1-27
Our readings from the Old Testament
describe a scene we read back on April 19 (Day 109). I highlighted this
situation with Uzzah & the Ark, and Michal and her husband David. The
point of course with the Ark is that they knew better. They knew they were
supposed to carry it on poles. The point with Michal is that she is somehow
jealous of David and looking for a reason to despise him.
Jesus has to deal with some similar
sentiments in John 7. It is the Feast of Booths (or Tabernacles). We know from
our Old Testament reading thus far that there are seven Jewish Festivals and
three of them require people to go to Jerusalem – this is one of those three.
It is a fall harvest festival and it is
designed (as so many of their festivals are) to draw them into the marvelous
works that God did as He delivered them from Egypt. The “booths” in the feast
are temporary dwellings they build in their backyards, on their roofs, wherever,
to remind them of what they lived in before God brought them to the Promised
Land. This year the Feast of Booths is Sept 27, 2013.
Jesus’ brothers are encouraging him to
go to Jerusalem for the Feast. They want him to have his “coming out party.” It is like going
to NYC to star on Broadway, or Hollywood for the movies, or Nashville for
Country Music. If you want to make it in the big time, you go to the “big city.”
Jerusalem is the “big city” for Messiah. Remarkably, Jerusalem, like its modern
day counterparts, embodies the attitudes of the world – not the attitudes of
God’s Kingdom.
Yet Jesus knows this is not his time,
the Feast of Tabernacles has some things that point forward to his mission. But
Jesus has been talking about something that has more the shape of Passover
than Booth’s.
Yet he does go, quietly, or as quietly
as he can. In the middle of the Festival (a week long) He begins teaching in
Temple. Two issues arise. First, who taught him? A pretty standard question:
most Rabbis studied under another Rabbi. We have similar professions in our
world where people list the person they studied under, more than the degree
they have earned. Jesus’ answer – “from the one who sent me"…i.e. God! The
second issue is whether His teaching is good. Jesus says you should be able to
tell if the teaching is from God; “judge my teaching!”
People today continue to be impressed
with Jesus’ teaching…and they struggle with his claim that He is the long
awaited Christ. Tomorrow we will read more about this episode of the Feast of
Booths, for today the Scriptures seem to be presenting Jesus and inviting us to
answer for ourselves who we think he is and what our sentiment is towards him.
Can you answer a question? Jesus goes to the Feast even though he says he won't go. I get this because it is not yet his time but as a devout Jew he needs to go. Why then preach openly in the Temple? He has to know that it wil get him negative attention from those plotting against him. Is it because they are his "lost sheep"?
ReplyDeleteSo I am speculating here. Jesus would not go...with his brothers. I think if he went with them, then they would try to make him a political king. As you point out, he goes because he is a devout Jew. When he goes he presents himself on his terms, in the Temple teaching. I think he knew it would get him negative attention, I mostly think his actions allowed him to do it on his terms.
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