Morning Moments

Those who presume to know God's will for you apart from the Word of God can get you completely out of the will of God. It is a danger we must all be aware of. Jesus experienced it with his brothers in John 7:2-5. There is a big difference in wanting to help guide someone with the Word of God and wanting to have them follow your wishes.

"But when the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles was near, Jesus' brothers said to him, "You ought to leave here and go to Judea, so that your disciples may see the miracles you do. No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world. For even his own brothers did not believe in Him.

The Feast - "Jewish Feast of Tabernacles"

Jewish men were expected to attend this feast which celebrated the Fall Harvest and the Exodus. It was an eight day festival which involved the sacrifice of 70 bulls, along with the daily sounding of the temple trumpets. The festivities included the erecting of booths as a reminder of the wilderness journey. Families stayed in them for the festival. The Holy candleabra and a parade of torches reminded them of the pillar of fire that led them by night. The water from the pool of Siloam reminded them of God's provision of water. Jesus uses these symbols as a platform for preaching the gospel.

The Family - "Jesus brothers said to him"

Jesus' brothers, James, Joses, Judas, and Simon (Mt 13:55) suggest that He go to the feast to declare and prove His Messiahship. His brothers were attempting to draw Him into a "put up or shut up" situation. Remember, at this point they did not believe He was Messiah anyway. Satan can use family members to draw us away from the truth and timing of God in our lives. We must be careful and prayerful.

The Flaw - "You ought to leave"

People who presume to know God's will for you can place you out of the will of God and in great danger. God's timing is equal to His Truth. There is a serious flaw in any suggestion that one make oneself a star for the purpose of proving anything to anybody. That's not God's way. Jesus made of Himself no reputation. He never flaunted his deity. Jesus would not allow their worldly ambitions get Him off track.

The Figure - "no man who wants to become"

They were reading the polls, and the polls said that Messiah should make of Himself a reputation. Be a figure of distinction and noterriety. There are always those who want to ride in on the coat tail of a celebrity. why waste time on a dozen who are nothing more than a bunch of roughes when you could have a stadium full? Why worry about a handful, Jesus, when you can have a temple full? That was their thinking.

The Fame - "show yourself to the world"

How unlike man God is! Man says, "show them and they will believe," but God says, "Believe and I will show you." My heart breaks that He is not enough for us. We must have the press, the perks, the production, and all the while, we miss the personal and inimate fellowship that comes from a closet, not a crowd. The world looks for a celebrity, but the true believer looks for a closet.

The Faithless - "His brothers did not believe in him"

When Jesus is the object of our trust, we don't need tricks. He puts righteousness in the holy, but He does not pull rab its out of hats. He is the MESSIAH, not the magician. How could these "brothers" have heard Him speak and seen Him live without knowing He must be more than mortal?

Maybe there is a lesson in this for us.

PRAYER: Help us to see Lord, that seeking celebrity is carnal, but seeking Christ is Christian.