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

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued in His discourse with the authorities over His equality with the Father (see also the readings from Wednesday and Thursday):  "I can of Myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.  If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.  But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.  You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.  But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.  I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- Moses, in whom you trust.  For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.  But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?"

After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.  The lectionary skips over chapter 6 of John's Gospel, in which Jesus teaches that He is the bread of life, and made the fourth sign of John's Gospel, the feeding of five thousand in the wilderness.   He has also lost disciples for teaching, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.  For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.  He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.  As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever."  By now, as the text tells us, the religious authorities want to do away with Him.  We are now in the last year of Jesus' earthly life.  The next few chapters (7:1-10:21) cover Jesus' visit to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles.  The entire section covers eight days of this festival.  He teaches in the temple and attracts enormous attention.  Some will think He's mad, others will believe Him to be the Messiah, and still others (the Sadducees and Pharisees) consider Him to be a threat.  Those who sought to kill Him are the religious leaders, and not the people in general (in John's Gospel, the term "the Jews" is generally used as a political term referring to the authorities, reflecting the period in which the Gospel was written).

Now the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand. The Feast of Tabernacles, called Succoth or Sukkot in Hebrew, is an eight-day autumn festival which commemorates the time when Israel wandered in the wilderness of Sinai and the people lived in tents (or tabernacles).  It's also called the Feast of Booths, with the same meaning.  With Passover and Pentecost, this was one of the three most important festivals of the ancient Jews.  There were numerous sacrifices and celebrations as a part of the festival (Leviticus 23:33-43).  In the later times of this feast, the final day included drawing water from the pool of Siloam to be mixed with wine and poured at the foot of the altar, as both purification and remembrance of the water flowing from the rock that Moses struck (Exodus 17:1-7).  It further included the lighting of great lamps in the outer court of the temple.  All of these elements will be reflected in Jesus' teachings as we go through the Festival in our reading.

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.   We read the tension between the "worldly" and the reality Christ brings into the world.  John's Gospel presents very clearly the lack of faith even in Jesus' extended family (brothers here refers either to step-brothers -- that is, children of Joseph by an earlier marriage; or to cousins or other relatives, as is still common in the Middle East usage).  It was common for whole extended families to go on pilgrimage to festivals at Jerusalem, and John's Gospel teaches us about the years of Jesus' ministry, recording His attendance at various festivals.  But the conflict in ways of thinking is clear:  Jesus has a specific ministry to carry out, but expectations of Him contradict the direction given by the Father.  In a modern context, we understand the appeal of fame for its own sake.  Our time of instant fame (or notoriety, as the case may be) through use of popular media, especially possible through the internet, has itself produced many cautionary tales about this particular "worldly" perspective.

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.  My study bible says that not openly means not with a grand, public appearance, as on Palm Sunday (12:12-16).

What is it about fame itself that is so elusive, so dangerous really, so likely to be something attractive and yet destructive?  Jesus' "brothers" taunt Him.  They say that anyone who wants to be publicly known like Jesus has to go show Himself.  But, on the other hand, so much about spiritual life is hidden.  The very word "mystery" teaches us about the secret things of the soul and spirit.  Jesus Himself has taught us about prayer and the most intimate relationship we have, that with God the Father, in His memorable words regarding the practices of faith in Matthew chapter 6.  He says that we should avoid being like the hypocrites who do everything to be seen.  If we do a charitable deed, let it be in secret, so that "your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."  Perhaps His most striking words are about prayer.  He teaches His disciples,  "But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."  We note the double mention of secret (or "hidden"), the Father who is in the secret place, and who sees in secret as well.  (It should be noted that this is as "private" a statement as possible, as the "you" both times in that last sentence is singular.)  So much of the spiritual life is contrasted with that which is "worldly" by definition, that which is publicly known or seen -- and Jesus warns against fame for its own sake here, lest we become like the hypocrites ("hypocrite" being an ancient word for actor, meaning "under a mask").  Jesus teaches us to understand that reality is multi-layered.  It is easy to create appearances in order to convey falsehood and to deceive.  We are to be deeper than that in our understanding of our own reality and of our own identities.  Most importantly, Jesus has a mission, and the instructions come from the Father.  From this He will not sway; it is not yet his "hour," his "time," meaning that it is not the time for the open confrontation that will come at Passion Week, resulting in His crucifixion, death, and Resurrection.  This will be the time He "openly" comes to Jerusalem.   The crucially important lesson that we take from all of this is the essential communion we maintain within our hearts that directs the rest of our lives.  Jesus had a mission, but a mission means that it must be done a certain way -- using discernment, seeking the will of God in all things, and not being fooled or lulled into thinking a certain way because all we depend upon is appearances and worldly ways of thinking.  This is the crucial thread for us.  It's what we, too, must hang onto in the questions of our own lives, because ultimately everything depends upon Who it is to whom we assign power.  Is it the world we must please, or God we must please?  A "worldly" perspective is one in which God is absent from our considerations.  The true perspective we seek is one in which our faith guides us through the world and in right relationship to others.  All else flows from this.   We can see the varied responses to Jesus from the people at the festival.  We're not to rely on worldly results and responses for our "missions" in life.  It all begins with love, and with the love of God in our hearts.  Thereby we follow His example.  We can understand the torments and difficulties He went through in His life first, so that we may follow Him.

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 Jesus speak about His Body and 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 section that follows (through several chapters in John) tells about Jesus' visit to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles.  The entire section covers eight days -- the length of the festival.  My study bible says, "At this festival during the last year of His earthly life, Jesus taught in the temple and attracted a great deal of public attention."  As we will read, some thought Him to be mad, others believed Him to be the Messiah, and still others (notably the temple leadership parties of Sadducees and Pharisees) considered Him to be a threat.  The Jews who sought to kill Him refers to the religious leadership and not the people in general.  Indeed, all the people in this text are Jews: followers, disciples, Apostles, and Jesus Himself -- and their families.  That includes the author of the Gospel.

Now the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand.  My study bible explains:  "The Feast of Tabernacles (Heb. succoth) is an eight-day autumn harvest festival commemorating the time when Israel wandered in the wilderness of Sinai and the people lived in tents, or tabernacles.  Along with Passover and Pentecost, this was one of the three most important festivals of the ancient Jews; it included numerous sacrifices and celebrations (Leviticus 23:33-43).  In later times, the final day of this feast also included drawing water from the pool of Siloam to be mixed with wine and poured at the foot of the altar, both as a purification and in remembrance of the water flowing from the rock that Moses struck (Exodus 17:1-7).  It further included the lighting of the great lamps in the outer court of the temple."  See also 2 Maccabees 10:5-9.

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.    Jesus "brothers" are extended family.  Commentators have maintained throughout Church history that they are either step-brothers from an earlier marriage of Joseph (who was a much older man at the time he and Mary were betrothed), or they are cousins.  Today in the Middle East, it is still common to call extended family (such as cousins) "brothers."

 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. My study bible explains that "not openly" means not with a great public entrance such as will happen on Palm Sunday (12:12-16).  We remember that at the period this Gospel was written, members of the early Church had first come to call themselves Christians, and their persecution fierce in the synagogues and elsewhere.  The "Jews" here refers to leadership -- and is meant to be used in political terms, not national or ethnic.  Before that time, followers of Christ had been considered to be a sect of Judaism, often referred to as "Nazarenes" - as is still common today by non-Christians.

Persecution can come in many forms, but it's not something that Christians haven't had to accept throughout the history of the Church.  Here in John's Gospel, we get the first indication of Jesus' disfavor with the leadership; they seek to kill Him.  Later on in John's Gospel, Jesus will teach His disciples that "a servant is not greater than his master."  As Christians, we are told to follow our Master, and given great lessons by Him that, "if they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept My saying, they will keep yours also."  What we understand from this teaching is that we must face adversity also through our faith.  In other words, we turn to Him in prayer, we look to His teachings, we turn over to God not just the beautiful things of life, but also the harsh things of life -- even if we face difficulties because of our faith.  This is a most important thing to understand, that the difficulties we have in life, no matter what they are, aren't excuses for us to quit our faith nor to catch ourselves "off the mark" so to speak.  When we hear about something called "spiritual battle" -- it's just that, the interior battle within ourselves to resist temptation to fall "off the mark" and to lose our faith in what we've been given.  Every adversity, no matter why it's there or how it comes to us, in this point of view, becomes a test or a challenge to us.  Can we meet it with Him, or are we going to deal with it "on our own," so to speak, and forgetting about the Master who has already gone through it all?  If we look at the early life of Jesus as an infant and a child, we see the struggles of His parents, Mary and Joseph, and what they went through to protect Him.  They were His chosen caretakers, and they understood how precious He was.  I think we also have to consider the nature of His identity, the announcement of Gabriel that Mary kept in her heart, and the understanding that protection also includes that the full public revelation of His identity must be kept secret until it was the appropriate time.  This, also, Jesus exemplifies through His ministry.  Everything He does is with purpose and mission in mind; there are no miracles to "prove" who He is on demand, it all depends on faith.  Woven throughout this story is the understanding that correct choices and protection, facing difficulties in the ways that God has given, are all based on faith, trust, and love.  And that's the balanced place we try to remain, on that mark we've been given.  Life may throw us constant curves, fears, trepidations, outrage, injustice, and all kinds of things we can't predict and may be thoroughly unprepared to deal with.  But the point of faith is just that, even when we don't feel our confidence, we turn to the confidence we can have in Him and the whole host of those who can help, even the entirety of the Church as it lives in Him, for help, for a way.  We call on the Holy Spirit who works in all things.  We may have to endure, to develop the "long-suffering" or patience we read about in the Bible, and of which there are so many examples in the fullness of all the Scriptures.  But we begin with Him, right here, where even His own brothers scoff and dare Him to come openly and prove Himself.  Let us remember His guidance is for every day, in all circumstances, rejoicing or otherwise.  To be wise as serpents and simple as doves is always where He wants us.

Before Abraham was, I AM

 "He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear because you are not of God." 

Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?"  Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.  And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges.  Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."  Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon!  Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.'  Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead?  Who do You make Yourself out to be?"  Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing.  It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God.  Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him.  And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word.  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."  Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"  Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."  Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

- John 8:47-59

In recent readings, Jesus has been in dialogue at the temple.  The leadership has sought to have him seized and arrested but failed.  It is the Feast of Tabernacles or Succoth, to which Jesus went secretly, but then taught in the temple.  In our recent readings, He has been in discourse to the leadership, defending and defining His identity, the thing for which they are enraged, that He not only broke the Sabbath by healing a paralytic,  but also that He called Himself the Son of God, thereby making Himself equal to God.  In yesterday's reading, the leadership begin by responding to Jesus' statement, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.  And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."  They answered Him, "We are Abraham's descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone.  How can you say, 'You will be made free.'?" Jesus answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.  And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever.  Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.  I know that you are Abraham's descendants, but you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.  I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you do what you have seen with your father."  They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our father."  Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham.  But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God.  Abraham did not do this.  You do the deeds of your father."  Then they said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father -- God."  Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God, nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me.  Why do you not understand My speech?  Because you are not able to listen to My word.  You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do.  He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him.  When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of lies.  But because I tell you the truth, you do not believe Me.  Which of you convicts Me of sin?  And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me?  He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear because you are not of God." 

 "He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear because you are not of God."   Today's lectionary reading begins with the end of yesterday's:  Jesus' pronouncement about relationship and understanding.  What do we truly choose to worship, to put first, in our hearts?  How do we stay in the truth -- the liberating spiritual truth that is from God?  How will we know it when we hear it?

Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?"  This is an ironic statement, coming after Jesus' previous phrase.  He teaches that if they were of God, they could hear God's words said by Him.  They in turn accuse Him of being a demon-possessed Samaritan.  My study bible points out that Samaritans were viewed as demon-possessed heretics.

Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.  And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges.  Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."   Jesus counters:  it is the Father He honors, and they in turn dishonor Jesus.  Moreover, He doesn't seek His own glory, but His authority rests in the Father.  And the reminder of judgment comes, the "One who seeks and judges" -- and then the great promise.  "If anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."  It is a promise of relationship, of abiding into His life.

Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon!  Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.'  Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead?  Who do You make Yourself out to be?"  Once again, John's Gospel exposes the deeper meaning by having these men expose an understanding only of the surface or conventional meaning of Jesus' words.

Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing.  It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God.  Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him.  And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word.  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."   This is a brilliant response to the challenge of "Who do You make Yourself out to be?"  Jesus doesn't speak of Himself at all, He goes directly to the Father in His response.  "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing" -- but the honor that is of God is what counts for all.  Jesus will not back down and say He doesn't know God, because that would make Him a liar, a liar like them.  We remember His emphasis on truth from previous readings.  Instead, He asserts that He does know God and keeps God's word.  Then there is a hint of prophecy regarding Jesus Himself:  "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."

Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"  Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."   This is the fullness of Jesus' response as to His own identity.  My study bible tells us:  "I AM (Gr. ego eimi) is a name of God in the Old Testament, first revealed to Moses at the burning bush (Ex. 3:13-15; Is. 43:10 . . . ).  To the Jews this pronouncement was a direct, explicit, and unmistakable claim to perfect equality with God.  John places special emphasis on the use of the expression for the purpose of revealing Christ as God.  In context, this statement illuminates what He began saying in verse 51, that those who keep His word will neither see nor taste death.  Only God has power over death, and Jesus is claiming such power."

Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.  My study bible tells us that they "regarded Jesus' claim to be one with God as the most abominable form of blasphemy.  They took up stones because death by stoning was the penalty for blasphemy required by the Mosaic Law.  But Jesus departs from their midst by divine power, without being harmed."  It's not yet His time, His hour of the Passion.

If you think of Jesus as a man, His actions are really extraordinary.  He uses all situations in order to further the Father's will, and to proclaim what He must through His ministry.  He goes to this festival in secret and not openly (as He will when He begins the Passion Week).  And yet He preaches His most challenging words, and reveals Himself truly as God with the words, I AM.  Strangely He passes through the midst of His accusers when they seek to stone Him.  He will use any and all circumstances as they come to do God's will, to be true to the Father, to reveal His own identity and what He is here to reveal.  In His identity as a human being, we have to admire the strength this takes, the alacrity, the agility, and the moment-by-moment presentation of His "job", the thing He is here to do in the name of the Father.  If we could but resemble in the slightest way this example to us, then we would be well on our way to an understanding of what it is to truly live a righteous life.  Jesus, as God, as Son, does not coerce or force anybody to believe in Him.  He tells the truth.  He uses any and all situations not to force others to observe His authority, but rather for the glory of the One who sent Him and the honor that comes from that.  If we could keep in mind that God loves us to the extent that He sent His Son here to do this for us (as John's Gospel tells us), and that Christ taught us about the Shepherd that will leave the whole 99 to find the 100th lost sheep, then we have in mind how crucial His example is for you and me.  When we put God first in our hearts, and through all situations seek the honor that comes from God, then we learn to begin to adapt for ourselves the same qualities that Jesus the man embodies.  If, through all things, we seek what God wants of us, and the union of our sonship through adoption, then we, too, have a chance to learn how to live our lives the way that Jesus does.  And I think that is the great crux of the Cross, the learning to do things His Way, the life of real discipleship.  Let us consider Jesus' unwillingness to back down from His truth and to tell a lie ("like them"), but rather His judicious use of teaching in steps, to reveal what is necessary at the right time.  The I AM comes when it is appropriate.  They may not accept it, but it is not their honor that He seeks. 

Even His brothers did not believe in Him

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

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued His discourse to the leadership, when they accused Him of breaking the Sabbath in healing the paralytic by the Sheep's Gate (see Rise, take up your bed and walk). He then began to teach about His identity as Son in Thursday's reading ("Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of God; and those who hear will live").  In yesterday's reading, Jesus made His defense, offering several witnesses to His identity.  He continued, "I can of Myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.  If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.  But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.  You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.  But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.  I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- Moses, in whom you trust.  For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.  But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?"

In today's reading, we skip over chapter 6 of John's Gospel, in which Jesus speaks of Himself as the Bread of Life.  The lectionary will return to chapter 6 the week after next, and today we begin reading chapter 7.

 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.   My study bible has a note which prepares us for the events of the next few chapters in John:  "This section (chs. 7-9) tells of Jesus' visit to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles.  At this festival, during the last year of His earthly life, Jesus taught in the temple and attracted a great deal of public attention.  Some thought Him mad, others believed Him to be the Messiah, and still others (Sadducees and Pharisees who were members of the Sanhedrin) considered Him a threat to the religious and political status quo.  The Jews, that is, the Jewish leaders, sought to kill Him."  Remaining in Galilee, far from the central leadership of the temple in Jerusalem, was a way to avoid persecution before "His time" - the time of His Passion and crucifixion.

Now the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand.   My study bible tells us:  "The Feast of Tabernacles (Heb. succoth) is an eight-day autumn harvest festival commemorating the wanderings of ancient Israel in the wilderness of Sinai, a time when the chosen people lived in tents (or 'tabernacles').  Along with Passover and Pentecost, Tabernacles was one of the three most important festivals of the ancient Jews."

  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.  My study bible says that "His brothers are members of His wider family clan who themselves do not believe in Him.  The Eastern Fathers understood 'brothers' as stepbrothers, sons of Joseph by a previous wife; while the Western Fathers understood them to be first or second cousins.  Never are they called sons of Mary."  Today throughout the Middle East, it remains customary to refer to cousins and other extended family as "brothers."  But there is a deeper context to the ways in which Jesus' family members challenge Him here.  In chapter 6, which we'll read after the lectionary returns to it later on, even many of His disciples fall away because of a "difficult saying" He gives them.  So this doubting is not only in the context of the falling away of many disciples, but also we remember that John's Gospel has already mentioned that Jesus testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country.

 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.  Jesus speaks very boldly to His "brothers" - and it's important that we understand Him.  In the previous reading of the lectionary, He linked all things with faith, our capacity to hear truth depending on what we love and put first in our hearts.  Most especially He contrasted the love of the honor that comes from God with the honor that comes from men.  In the taunting of the "brothers" that tells Jesus to prove Himself ("show Yourself to the world"), we can hear the reflection of belief in the honor that comes from men.  Jesus will follow the will of the Father; His time has not yet fully come.

But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.  My study bible tells us that "not openly" means not publicly, as in the case of the Triumphal Entry, His final entrance into Jerusalem when He is welcomed as Messiah, which we commemorate on Palm Sunday.

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. So the scene is set for us, the "energy" of the moment is clear.  There is great turmoil here:  He's sought by the leadership, but the people are mixed in their opinions.  Some think He is good; others believe He's a deceiver -- but everyone speaks secretly among themselves because they fear the leadership.

At this point in Jesus' ministry, things are beginning to come to a head:  the authorities seek Him to put Him to death, the people's opinions are mixed -- and all is in an atmosphere of fear and urgency and secrecy.  It's not just Jesus who conceals Himself from the leadership until it is time for open confrontation (and for His Passion), but the people also fear them and will not talk openly.  His brothers taunt Him to show Himself openly, to "show Himself to the world."  Many of His disciples have fallen away because of a difficult teaching - a "hard saying" they cannot understand.  So we get a feel for what is happening, and the pressures under which He's now operating.  And yet, He does not miss the feast.  Indeed, He will teach in the temple.  But what we most observe right now about Jesus is the way in which He uses all situations, in the midst of great tumult and difficulties, doubting, taunting, disbelief, and persecution -- He will use all of this situation in His own way.  Every step is plotted by the Father.   It does not cater to the whims and fears of other people, but is measured in terms of what is necessary for His ministry.  Going openly to the festival without the preparation for the Triumphal Entry would be improper; it's not "His hour" for this, that time has not yet fully come.  But going and teaching is an important step, while everyone seeks Him for their own purposes.  Jesus will measure each situation, no matter how complex and how full of pressure, by what is necessary for God's will, for the fulfillment of His ministry as He must fulfill it.  And I think in that we can see a way to negotiate our own lives.  Putting our assorted pressures and duties in front of God in prayer is one way to do that.  It is a way not only to detach from our immediate circumstances and the demands we may feel are placed on us, but it is also a way to invite discernment, God's perspective for where we are and what we need to do in our lives.  It is, in a sense, putting perspective on the right priorities.  What we really need and what is best may not be clear at all when we're mixed in the swirl of the demands of the "world" and the honor that comes from men.  Sometimes we have to forgo what everyone else will tell us is right in order to be truly "right"; that is, right-related to the world in a heart that's right with God.  So take time, take a breath, put it into prayer, and let it go.  Let us remember the pressures on Jesus, and what He has to teach us about love and priorities.  Let us remember the Paraclete who is by our side when we call, and that to send us this Helper what His ministry was for.

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

Over the course of the past week, since the Friday past, we have been reading Jesus' discourse on the Bread of Life. It began with the feeding of five thousand men on the mountaintop. The crowds wished to make Him king, but He eluded them and went up the mountaintop again alone as it grew dark, while His disciples rowed across the Sea of Galilee. At night, the wind was fierce and the sea rough to the point at which they feared they were drowning. Jesus was there walking on the water toward them, and they became even more frightened! Jesus said, "It is I; do not be afraid." Arriving at Capernaum, the crowds who'd followed the disciples in boats wondered how He arrived. He said to them that they sought to make Him king not because they saw a sign, but only because they were filled. He told them to labor not for the food which perishes, but for the bread which leads to eternal life. The work of God is faith, He told them. They asked what sign He would show that they may believe in Him, and spoke of Moses giving the people manna; Jesus replied, "My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." They said, "Give us this bread always." He told them, "I am the bread of life." This led to controversy as He is in His home country -- how can He say He came down from heaven? He told them, "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me." He said, "I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world." As they quarreled the more in the synagogue at Capernaum, they asked, "How can this man give us His flesh to eat?" He told them, "For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him." Finally, in yesterday's reading, John's Gospel tells us that many disciples left Him over these sayings. Jesus told them, "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." 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." 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." So the Twelve remained. But Jesus said to them, ""Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?" He was speaking of Judas who would betray Him.

After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him. John's Gospel moves us through Jesus' ministry, and all the things that progress as He goes forward. Many disciples have fallen away because of His Eucharistic teachings about His flesh and blood, in His discourse on the Bread of Life. He has also called Himself Son, and God His Father, saying that He came down from heaven. "The Jews" we remind once again, mean the religious leadership, not the Jewish people.

Now the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand. The Feast of Tabernacles or Succoth in Hebrew is a festival which commemorates the wanderings of ancient Israel in the wilderness. My study bible notes it is an eight-day festival in the autumn, one of the three most important festivals for the ancient Jews, along with Passover and Pentecost. Wandering in the wilderness of Sinai, it was a time when the people lived in tents (or "tabernacles"). In the Prologue at the beginning of John's Gospel, John tells us in verse 14: "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." The Greek verb translated "dwelt" here is actually from the word for tent or tabernacle: He "tented" or "tabernacled" among us -- just as the Holy of Holies, God's presence, was among the ancient Israelites. In John's Gospel, each Festival becomes tied to Jesus' ministry.

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" here has been understood by the Church Fathers as members of His extended family. Even today in the Middle and Near East, "brothers" is also used to mean "cousins." My study bible notes that "the Eastern Fathers understood 'brothers' as stepbrothers, sons of Joseph by a previous wife; while the Western Fathers understood them to be first or second cousins." However we may understand this reference to brothers, one thing is quite clear: that as many of Jesus' disciples have fallen away because of His "hard saying" about eating His flesh and drinking His blood (in His teaching on the Bread of Life), so also He has family that does not believe. They challenge Him to "show Himself" to the world, even as the leadership in Jerusalem seek His destruction.

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. Jesus' words are related to the falling away of disciples, and the hostility of the leadership. His word is like a sword -- a sword of truth. He testifies that "worldly" works are evil. He has spoken to the leadership in previous readings about those who seek the "honor" or "praise" of men, that comes from one another, above the honor that comes from God. We remember that Jesus has just finished teaching that the "work" of God is faith, belief in the word of Him whom God has sent.

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" here means that Jesus did not go publicly to the feast. As we can see, the Gospel teaches us that Jesus is by now in the center of controversy. The leadership seeks Him in order to persecute Him, and among the people there is tremendous disagreement about Him. But all are also afraid to speak openly because of the religious leadership.

I think quite often we are under the mistaken understanding that Jesus' ministry is always one of great ease, companionship, acceptance. Perhaps we expect that as Christians who seek to lead lives of love we will always find understanding and harmony. But this once again seems to be an invention of "the world" or popular imagination. The reality here is quite different. Jesus' words have acted to separate those with faith, who can follow them, and those for whom they are too difficult, too hard. His teachings have offended the leadership, who feel they are guardians of the Law, and He has infringed not only on their territory, but made Himself an equal to and Son of God. In yesterday's reading, Jesus indicated that He knows one even among the Twelve He chose will betray Him. In today's reading, we are told that even His brethren taunt Him and don't believe in Him. It all comes down to how we hear His word. In yesterday's reading, Jesus said, "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life." Peter's confession of faith, made on behalf of all the apostles, asked, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." Let us consider Jesus' word, and how it may come to us. Jesus Himself has taught, "It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me." Father, Son, and Spirit -- let us consider relationship, and how we abide in Him and He in us. The living truth is not meant as something uttered 2,000 years ago, but rather that which lives in us, is present in us and to us, and Peter's words live for us now, too. How do you find that word? Through what does it shine for you and teach you today? How is it present for you now? It may force choices as you go forward in that faith, and believe more deeply and powerfully, in relationship that grows more deeply and abides in you. You may find those who seek praise or honor from one another cannot understand the faith that is in you.