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Copyright © 2012 J. Neely. All rights reserved.
Chapter 7 - Good Shepherd
John 10:22-26
22 And [de] it was [ginomai] at [en] Jerusalem [Hierosoluma] the feast of the dedication [egkainia] , and [kai] it was [en] winter [cheimon] .
23 And [kai] Jesus [Iesous] walked [peripateo] in [en] the temple [hieron] in [en] Solomon's [Solomon] porch [stoa] .
24 Then [oun] came [kukloo] the Jews [Ioudaios] round about [kukloo] him [autos] , and [kai] said [lego] unto him [autos] , How long [heos] [pote] dost thou make [airo] us [hemon] to doubt [psuche] ? If [ei] thou [su] be [ei] the Christ [Christos] , tell [epo] us [hemin] plainly [parrhesia] .
25 Jesus [Iesous] answered [apokrinomai] them [autos] , I told [epo] you [humin] , and [kai] ye believed [pisteuo] not [ou] : the works [ergon] that [hos] I [ego] do [poieo] in [en] my [mou] Father's [pater] name [onoma] , they [tauta] bear witness [martureo] of [peri] me [emou] .
26 But [alla] ye [humeis] believe [pisteuo] not [ou] , because [gar] ye are [este] not [ou] of [ek] my [emos] sheep [probaton] , as [kathos] I said [epo] unto you [humin] . KJV-Interlinear
22 At that time the Feast of the Dedication took place at Jerusalem; 23 it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon. 24 The Jews therefore gathered around Him, and were saying to Him, 'How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.' 25 Jesus answered them, 'I told you, and you do not believe; the works that I do in My Father's name, these bear witness of Me. 26 'But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep. NASB
The Feast of Dedication is often referred to as the Feast of Lights, the Feast of the Purification of the Temple, the feast commemorative of freedom from the Syrian yoke. Its origins went back to the Maccabaen revolt and the rededication of the Temple after the profanity of it by Antiochus Epiphanes (you recall our study in Daniel). Antiochus Epiphanes being the pattern after which the Tribulational anti-christ will follow.
The feast was held in December and ran for eight days, from December 19 through the 26th, and was a celebration of happiness, of eating (no fasting) and was intended to be a joyful occasion (mourning was prohibited) for all.
It was winter time and that implies that it was very cold outside. And though the temperature inside was probably more pleasant, the attitude of those present (the Pharisees) was very cold toward Christ. They were all on the porch of Solomon's Temple as rebuilt by Herod. The apostles afterwards adopted this place as the scene of some of their most explicit assertions of the gospel, Acts 3:11, 5:12.
The place is of no concern only in that Jesus was present and very near to the leadership of the Jewish people, and the highest leadership was not present. Here is Christ, the Son of God who is standing right in the Temple and the highest offices of the Temple (the Sadducees who controlled the office of the High Priest) were not there.
His presence is followed by a huge public reputation and huge crowds who followed Him around, achieved primarily by His many discourses, His many miracles, miracles of which no human being in the past nor even to our present day can duplicate.
Jesus has admitted his identity as the Messiah to the woman in Samaria, to the Capernaites, to the blind man, to Peter and the other apostles, and in several other situations, and now these men who have heard Jesus' teachings before are here and are now demanding an answer. An answer which He has repeated time and time again.
The problem here is that the scriptures describe the Messiah in one form and the Jewish leadership has invented and is expecting a Messiah in a very different form. Jesus simply does not fit their definition.
They are expecting someone of noble blood lines, someone who is a Prince, if you will, someone whom they can easily identify because they have pictured Him as a Royal White Knight so to speak. And someone who will come charging in, cut up the Romans, and establish the greatest nation on earth, and ... of course elevate them (the Pharisees) to high posts to which they obviously deserve.
Jesus doesn't look anything like what they are expecting.
People who reject the Word of God will take into their souls any alternative which appeals to their own lusts, to their own desires, to their own plans. They will accept the lie (their own self invented truth), and totally block out the real truth such that even if it were standing right before them, they will not see it. They refuse to see it.
Jesus tells them point blank that they refuse to hear the truth. They refuse to see the proofs which exist right before them. He tells them that in effect since they reject the proofs of the Father, then they are in effect rejecting the Father. Jesus is that proof. His miracles are that proof. His fulfillment of the scriptures (which these men surely have knowledge of) are additional proof. What more could they possibly want? Yet they demand more and greater miracles - 'Show us a sign,' as they will demand in a later meeting. 'Show us a great sign from heaven.' And Jesus while on the Cross will show them all the greatest signs and wonders immediately following His physical death.
They do not see because they do not believe. They do not believe because the truth does not fit their agenda. Only those who believe in Christ have the opportunity to see and understand and know what it true and what is the lie.
Truth is merely the facts meeting perfectly with reality. This eliminates the emotional or wishful swings mankind can have. This eliminates compromising or convenient interpretations which mankind can have. This eliminates the convincing arguments which witty salesmen or smooth talking politicians use. And this eliminates human opinion.
Remember that those who reject the truth are robbers and thieves who seek to deceive others so as to gain something for themselves. They have no concern for those from whom they want support, and their victims are only good as long as they are of use to them. Once the robbers and thieves have achieved their goals, then the victims are thrown away.
Naive people, those who lack wisdom from Bible doctrine are the victims of choice. The are easily deceived.
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Study to show thyself approved (mature) unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing (studying/discerning), the Word of truth.
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