21 Mar 26 | Division Over Jesus
Everyone in this passage has an opinion about Jesus, but the ones who encounter him directly cannot bring themselves to act against him, and that inability is itself a testimony.
The Gospel: John 7:40-53
Some in the crowd who heard these words of Jesus said,
"This is truly the Prophet."
Others said, "This is the Christ."
But others said, "The Christ will not come from Galilee, will he?
Does not Scripture say that the Christ will be of David's family
and come from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?"
So a division occurred in the crowd because of him.
Some of them even wanted to arrest him,
but no one laid hands on him.
So the guards went to the chief priests and Pharisees,
who asked them, "Why did you not bring him?"
The guards answered, "Never before has anyone spoken like this man."
So the Pharisees answered them, "Have you also been deceived?
Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him?
But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed."
Nicodemus, one of their members who had come to him earlier, said to them,
"Does our law condemn a man before it first hears him
and finds out what he is doing?"
They answered and said to him,
"You are not from Galilee also, are you?
Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee."
Then each went to his own house.
Today’s Focus
Everyone in this passage has an opinion about Jesus and almost no one gets it right. The crowd uses the right criteria and the wrong facts. The Pharisees dismiss everyone who will not agree with them. The guards come back empty-handed and changed. Nicodemus asks one honest question and pays for it. The feast ends and everyone goes home with the question unresolved. But the word has been spoken and it has already done something that cannot be undone. That is the nature of an encounter with Jesus. You do not have to arrive with certainty or credentials. You just have to be honest about what you have heard.
In the Margins
This passage follows directly from Jesus’ cry in the Temple during the Feast of Tabernacles (John 7:1–30). The crowd’s division here is the continuation of the division John has been building throughout chapter 7. They are hearing the words He says and trying to discern collectively who Jesus really is. They believe they know how the Christ should look – where He should come from, what His ancestry is, etc. They are hearing Him and some immediately disbelieve. Others cannot make sense of it or fall short. Finally, there is a group who believes He is in fact the Christ.
The objection that the Christ cannot come from Galilee is theologically precise and scripturally grounded, to some degree. Micah 5:2 identifies Bethlehem as the birthplace of the coming ruler. 2 Samuel 7 grounds the messianic promise in the Davidic line from Judah. The crowd’s objection is correct in its criteria. Their error is factual. Jesus was born in Bethlehem and is of the Davidic line through Joseph. The Pharisees, a group that prides themselves on legal and scriptural expertise, offers a dismissal that is factually incorrect. Jonah was from Gath-hepher in Galilee (2 Kings 14:25). Nahum was associated with Galilee. Elijah operated extensively in the northern regions. The experts are wrong about the very thing they claim as their authority.
The Temple guards were sent by the chief priests and Pharisees to arrest Jesus. They return without him. The guards are not theologians. They are not disciples. They are functionaries sent to perform an arrest. Their testimony is therefore more significant, not less. They have no stake in protecting Jesus, yet they return empty handed because of what they saw when He spoke. They have every professional reason to complete their assignment, yet they cannot. The word of Jesus has done something to them that they cannot explain and cannot overcome.
The Pharisees’ response to the guards operates on three levels of dismissal. First they accuse the guards of being deceived. Second they appeal to authority, that no ruler or Pharisee has believed in him. Third, they dismiss the crowd as ignorant of the law and accursed. The Pharisees are pronouncing a theological verdict on the crowd for their openness to Jesus. This is a significant escalation. They are not just dismissing the crowd. They are placing them outside the covenant.
The passage ends with Nicodemus being accused of being sympathetic to Jesus, right after the Pharisees have passed a theological verdict on the crowds. Everyone disperses and leaves the situation unresolved. In this situation, Nicodemus makes his second of three appearances in this Gospel. His first was when he met with Jesus at night, here in this passage is the second, and he will assist with Jesus’ burial for the third. This shows that a relationship and belief in Jesus is something that can grow over time. Nicodemus used the Law to defend Jesus, recalling Deuteronomy which requires a hearing before condemnation. Still, he is accused of having been compromised and this would have cost him status and reputation in his time.
This is something that many Christians face today to some degree. It is something Jesus eventually warns His disciples about in Matthew 10:22 and John 15:18–20. Following Jesus, truly believing in Him, could cause us to be shunned by some. There is a very real chance that others will cast you out for being a follower of Christ, and in some areas, these people are truly persecuted. We have to hold firm in our beliefs, such as those who truly knew that Jesus was the Christ. We know who He is and what He came to do. What He gave and what we have received because of it is something that no one can take away from us. Our job now is to have faith and love, ensuring our heart remains aligned to the Lord. Nicodemus had a slow burn relationship coming to know Jesus, we don’t have to have to be ashamed of our past or how quickly we have come to know the Lord. He just wants us to come home.
Reflection Question
Where are you in your own slow journey toward Jesus, and what is keeping you from taking the next step?
A Small Invitation
If this reflection helped you, consider sharing it with someone who may benefit from hearing this message.