My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready. The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil

 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.  Now the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand.  His brothers therefore said to Him, "Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing.  For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly.  If You do these things, show Yourself to the world."  For even His brothers did not believe in Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready.  The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil.  You go up to this feast.  I am not yet going up to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come."  When He had said these things to them, He remained in Galilee.

But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.  Then the Jews sought Him at the feast, and said, "Where is He?"  And there was much complaining among the people concerning Him.  Some said, "He is good'; others said, "No, on the contrary, He deceives the people."  However, no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews.

- John 7:1-13

Yesterday we read that many of His disciples, when they heard His saying about eating His flesh and drinking His blood, said, "This is a hard saying; who can understand it?"  When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, "Does this offend you?  What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before?  It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing.  The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.  But there are some of you who do not believe."  For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him.  And He said, "Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father."  From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.  Then Jesus said to the twelve, "Do you also want to go away?"  But Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus answered them, "Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?"  He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve.

 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.  The Jews in John's Gospel -- both here and generally -- is a term used as a kind of political party label, and it is used to designate specifically the religious leaders.  All of the people in the text we're reading are Jews, including Jesus and His disciples.  This section of the following several chapters (7:1-10:21) speaks of Christ's visit to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles.  The whole section covers eight days.  This is the last year of Jesus' earthly life.  At this festival, Jesus taught in the temple and attracted a lot of public attention.  As we will read, some people thought He was mad, others believed He was the Messiah, and others (especially in the ruling parties of the Sadducees and Pharisees) thought of Him as a threat; these leaders among those in the ruling parties are they who sought to kill Him, and not the people in general.

Now the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand. The Feast of Tabernacles (or Sukkot in Hebrew) is an eight-day autumn harvest festival.  It commemorates the time of Israel's wandering in the wilderness of Sinai, living in tents or tabernacles.  Together with Passover and Pentecost, this festival was one of the three most important to the ancient Jews.  It included many sacrifices and other celebrations (Leviticus 23:33-43).  Eventually, the final day of this feast included taking water from the pool of Siloam to be mixed with wine and poured at the foot of the altar, as both purification and in remembrance of the water that flowed from the rock that Moses struck (Exodus 17:1-7).  It also included the lighting of the great lamps in the outer court of the temple.  All of these elements will figure in Jesus' preaching and the images He will use in teaching the people.

His brothers therefore said to Him, "Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing.  For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly.  If You do these things, show Yourself to the world."  For even His brothers did not believe in Him.  Jesus' brothers are members of His extended family, such as cousins and other relatives.   Across the Middle East, "brothers" is still used the same way.

But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.  Then the Jews sought Him at the feast, and said, "Where is He?"  And there was much complaining among the people concerning Him.  Some said, "He is good'; others said, "No, on the contrary, He deceives the people."  However, no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews.  Not openly means without a public entrance, such as on Palm Sunday (12:12-16).   Interestingly, the Gospel gives us the perspectives of the people.  Jesus is known to them as a public figure; the leadership seek Him out while the people disagree in their opinions about Him.  But all the people fear to speak openly because of the religious leaders.

This is the final year of Jesus' life.  It is now autumn, and in spring, at the Passover, He will face the Cross and go to His human death.  He enters into the public arena in secret, so to speak, as another pilgrim going to the Festival.  This autumn harvest festival is one of great significance, and it lasts eight days, combining several types of commemorations.  The next several chapters will be taken up with Jesus' time at the Festival and events that occur there.  Clearly He is aware of the controversy regarding His identity among the people, and also the fact that the religious leaders already view Him as a person to be eliminated.  We have just read in the previous chapter (yesterday's reading, above) that many of His own disciples have deserted Him, because of His "hard saying" of His Body and Blood.  As we've also been told on more than one occasion that Jesus is aware of what is in the hearts of others,  He's acutely aware, we can assume, of all of these factions in the leadership and among the people.  He is also aware of the problems within Judas Iscariot, who will betray Him (6:70-71).  Even His own family does not believe in Him, with the exception at least of His mother (2:1-12).  Amidst all these factors, Jesus goes to the Festival.  It not only tells us about Jesus' courage, but the wisdom that He shows to all of us, and the type of leadership He teaches.  He is aware of the place to which He goes, toward the Cross, upon which He will give His flesh for the life of the world (6:51).   The Gospel makes careful note of the fact that Jesus knows that it is not yet His time, His hour, the time of the Cross.  He knows His circumstances, His surroundings, the controversies, and His enemies -- even one among His own chosen Twelve.   He has things to do, and to teach and preach, before that time, and He goes to this Festival knowing the dangers and yet following in complete accordance with the will of the Father.  The Gospel makes note that this time He goes, as it were, in secret to the Festival; that is, without drawing attention to the fact that He is there.  All of this is what we must take from Christ's leadership.  In all things, He has the Cross firmly in view.  That is, the Cross as the symbol of the choices we make to follow God, to aim to remain sinless, through all things.  It is not so much a question of an intellectual endeavor as it is one of prayer and communion, of remaining in that place where, to the best of our understanding. He calls us to be.  That is the place of the Cross, our true direction.  It is through this endeavor, through Christ's life as He lived it, that the most dreaded instrument of capital punishment became the symbol of salvation, and transformation for a whole world -- for the life of the world.  Jesus says, "My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready.  The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil."  The Cross is all about the truth that separates one thing from another, the truth He is willing to tell, His mission in the world.  May we choose to follow as truly as we can.