The first thing I thought of when reading John 7, was that no one really thinks about Jesus' brothers all that much. We know that he had them, but we don't hear all that much about their relationship. Did they fight a lot? Were they chummy? Maybe they swapped their favorite scriptures? One thing that is started in John 7, however, is that even Jesus' brothers were skeptical about his claims. Since even Jesus' brother didn't believe in him, do you think they wanted him to be crucified, and that's why they told him to go to Judea?
In John 7:30, it says "At this they tried to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his time had not yet come." What do you think the bible means by this? What made them stop? I'm actually generally curious about this. Did the crowd actually advance on Jesus and then they suddenly came to a halt? Or did they want to advance on him but no one actually did?
On of my favorite stories is in John chapter 8, because I feel like everyone can relate to it.
We all sometimes feel like the adulterous women in chapter 8. But Jesus says to us "Go now and leave your life of sin". How does that make you feel and what does that mean for us as Christians?
Jesus later talks about judging each other by human standards. This is a lot of the same stuff Pastor Chip was preaching about on Sunday. Jesus basically says that only he knows where he came from, the right hand of the Father. He doesn't expect them to understand some things because he is from somewhere they have never been. While they judge each other based on human standards, he judges no one, but he alone is worthy enough to judge because he speaks for God.
I going to make a side no here and just mention that I love pretty much all of chapter 8. Jesus goes to town on the Jews who were being egocentric, calling them out on their ignorance. He says things like, "If you really knew my Father, you would not be trying to kill me". He kind of made the Jews look like they didn't know anything.
Now I'm about to get real. Healing is a topic I take very seriously. I believe God can do amazing things, healing people. When Jesus heals the blind man, he says something that I find so powerful and hopeful. He says "Nether this man nor his parents have sinned, but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." Isn't that awesome? Yeah, you might be going through some rough times; with school, or friends, or work, or family, but just remember those hard times could just be a blessing in disguise. If you change the way you think about these situations, how do you think that could help you? I'll tell you for me, I look at all the pain and health issues I have to go through as a way for God to use me as an example of his awesome and mighty power, and just that gets me through the tough times.
Last question: What do you think Jesus meant by what he said in John 9:39? "For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind"?
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