John 7:14-24
14 Not until halfway through the festival did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach. 15 The Jews there were amazed and asked, “How did this man get such learning without having been taught?”
16 Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. 17 Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. 18 Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory, but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. 19 Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?”
20 “You are demon-possessed,” the crowd answered. “Who is trying to kill you?”
21 Jesus said to them, “I did one miracle, and you are all amazed. 22 Yet, because Moses gave you circumcision (though actually it did not come from Moses, but from the patriarchs), you circumcise a boy on the Sabbath. 23 Now if a boy can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with me for healing a man’s whole body on the Sabbath? 24 Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.” [1]
___________________
What struck me in this passage today are Jesus words pointing to the results of following after Him, the growth in knowing and doing truth. It’s been said that virtue is its own reward, and that is true, but it’s not the only reward or benefit of pursuing what is right, in this case, the will and glory of God.
So what does Jesus say? Choosing to do the will of God will confirm in us the sense that it is truly from God. In other words, doing the will of God brings the spiritual blessing of being tuned to the will of God. In the next sentence Jesus points out that those who seek God’s glory (which is the same is choosing to do His will) are people of truth, with nothing false about them. So pursuing God’s will and glory connects us with truth, God’s truth, and drives out falseness.
And then what happens next is Jesus confirms this teaching by pointing out he falseness in His detractors. They deny that they are trying to kill him, which is patently false. Their intent to kill Him is what delayed His arrival at the feast. So they are not people of truth, but are instead people of lie. And then Jesus next points out the hypocrisy of their teaching regarding the Sabbath, illustrating how they are not in line with God’s truth.
So do I want to be a person of spiritual integrity and truth? Confirmed in God’s truth? I learn God’s truth from His word, but Jesus says here that pursuing God’s will, putting the Word into practice, seeking His glory in my life actually aligns our lives with the truth.
So what comes to mind for my prayer today is simply the first part of the Lord’s prayer: “Hallowed be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will be done.” I pray that God’s name would be hallowed in my life, His kingdom come in my life and that I do His will this day. For then I am aligning with truth, His truth.
[1] The New International Version. 2011 (Jn 7:14–24). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
