Please read John 7:1-13 in your prefered translation before reading my reflections below!
This not well-known passage gives us a glimpse into Jesus’ family as He continued His ministry on earth. The Biblical witness gives very little information about Jesus’ family. Remember the story of changing water into wine? His mother asked Him to do it and He snapped back at her that it was not His time to go public, but still He did as she wished and helped the wedding family save face. And there is the passage in Matthew about His mother and family calling Him to come away from teaching and His rebuke of their request: “Who is my mother, and my brothers? And pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and brothers! For whoever does the will of my father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” (NRSV Matthew 12:48b-50)
However, this passage from John shows the peer pressure of His family trying to “help” Him in His ministry. They are offering advice to Jesus’ brand campaign by telling Him to get out there in public and go to Jerusalem to the Feast of Tabernacles where Jews have gathered to honor the harvest and celebrate the Exodus. All Jewish males were required to journey to Jerusalem for this feast and to present themselves in the temple. His siblings seem to support His going, but could this be in response to the previous public rebuke of His family interrupting His teachings? They had heard the rumbling opinions about their brother. Had they seen the light and decided to help? It would be an ideal time to go public, lots of people at the feast to hear His message and as an added incentive, His disciples would see His works and what He is doing and be encouraged to continue following Him. They urged Jesus to get on with it! And He knows them well. He understood that even they don’t believe in Him as God’s Messiah. That’s what the Apostle John writes! Their motive were not necessarily pure or at least not well informed.
Again, Jesus has to remind them that He is on God’s timeline on theirs. He encourages them to go –to follow their traditional timeline. He stayed behind, probably in prayer to the Father. After a short time He goes into Jerusalem quietly because the Jewish leaders were watching and waiting for Him, trying to find a reason to arrest Him. John indicates there was much muttering about Jesus among the people. This was a controversial time of Roman Rule and the devout Jews seeking God’s rule in their lives. There was divided opinion about this Jesus—who He was and what He was up to. Some believed He was leading the people astray. It was a mixed crowd, much like social media today. Everyone has an opnion. Nothing seems definite, everything is up in the air…
And so is our journey on earth as we continue in the season of lent, watching, waiting, and praying for His coming again –into our hearts and into our world. And even into our families. For Jesus has called us brothers and sisters. God doesn’t have grandchildren! We are all children of God. For all the opinions about Jesus, who He is and what He did and what that means, those who believe are indeed Jesus’ siblings –disciples who follow Him and do the will of the Father in heaven. Wishing you God’s grace and peace as we continue the journey.
For your consideration:
Read John 7:1-13 again. Use a different translation if you have one.
In this story Jesus is being pressured to do something by this family. Do you recall a time when family and friends were pressuring you to take action about a situation? Answer these questions about that time:
- How did you respond to the pressure?
- What decision did you make about the situation?
- How did you rely on God to help make the decision?
- What was the outcome of your decision?
- What did you learn about yourself and your family/friends during this time?
- Would you make the same decision today? Why or why not?
Super post Jackie! As part of our Lent study, we’re looking at Jesus’ Last Words from the cross and this week’s focus is John 19:25-27, where he says “Woman, here is your son.” It reminds me both of the wedding at Cana (where he calls his mother “woman”) and also this section in John 7 with his brothers. Family in the Kingdom of God is different than family as we know it. Family is us! You and me, and all of us who believe. It’s so hard to get our minds wrapped around the idea that we’re family, but in God’s kingdom we are just that…and I believe that the deeper we move into that reality, the closer we are to God’s kingdom. Thanks for this great post and hope to see you around soon, sister 🙂
Thanks for the kind words! Blessing to you this Easter season, my brother in Christ.