For Jesus, to travel to Jerusalem was to enter into the heart of Jewish religious life. This was the epicenter of religious and political life for the Jew. This was where the great rabbis gathered students and publicly demonstrated their learning. Into this arena, into the temple precincts, Jesus taught, “About the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and began teaching. The Jews therefore marveled, saying, ‘How is it that this man has learning, when he has never studied?’” (John 7:14-15) Jesus did not come with any earthly credentials. Jesus made no claim to originality in his teaching. As Leon Morris notes:
The age did not prize originality. The rabbinic method was to cite authorities for all important statements. So Jesus did not claim to be the originator of his message. It does not stem from any earthly source. It stems from him who sent him…It is not something that can be learned only by those who are expert in theological niceties. Anyone who really wills to do the will of God (i.e., whose whole will is bent in this direction; it is the set of the life that is meant) will have the spiritual discernment required. [Morris, NICNT, 359]
Jesus challenges those who hear him with this response, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. 17If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority.” (John 7:16-17) What an amazing Savior and Teacher is Jesus Christ! He is not worried about producing a sheepskin (academic degree) to appease his hearers. Rather, he wants them to engage in heart-work. He wants them to evaluate their wills to see if they are willing to do God’s will. As Leon Morris powerfully writes, “His hearers had raised the question of his competence as a teacher. He raises the question of their competence as hearers.” [Ibid, 360] Where are you today? Are you a follower of Jesus Christ? Is your desire to know the will of God as it is expressed through the teachings of his Son? Have a blessed week and we will see many of you on Sunday.
Love in Christ,
Pastor Dale
