Who Is Jesus?

 By: Dr. Dale Weckbacher

 

Text: John 7:37-53

 

John 7:40-41

Therefore ^[c]many from the crowd, when they heard this saying, said, “Truly this is the Prophet.” ⁴¹ Others said, “This is the Christ.”

But some said, “Will the Christ come out of Galilee? 

(NKJV)

 

With the rise of identity theft in the digital age, knowing the true identity of another person may require doing some due diligence to verify who they are. Unfortunately, the religious leaders of the time of Jesus did not exercise due diligence, or did not want to, so they could verify whether Jesus was the Christ, like some in the crowd believed, or a fraud. This caused them to have a mistaken identity of who Jesus was, causing them to miss knowing that Jesus was the promised Messiah.

 

During the last day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out inviting anyone thirsting to come to Him and drink (John 7:37). Jesus then continues by saying that anyone believing in Him will have rivers of living water flowing from his or her heart (Isaiah 55:1; John 7:38). Jesus was prophesying about the Holy Spirit which anyone believing in Him would receive after Jesus was resurrected and glorified (John 7:39). Jesus has just identified Himself as Messiah.

 

This declaration by Jesus caused some to call Him the Prophet or the Christ, with others doubting because they believed Jesus came from Galilee (John 7:40-41). Citing Micah 5:2, they remind everyone that the Christ will not come from Galilee but be of the lineage of David (John 7:42). This caused a division among the people, with the religious leaders once again wanting to seize Jesus but holding back because of the crowd (John 7:43-44).

 

The officers of the Temple came to the chief priests and Pharisees who wondered why they had not brought Jesus to them, indicating that as the purpose of their confronting Jesus (John 7:45). The officers reply by telling the chief priests and Pharisees that they had never heard a man speak like Jesus, prompting the chief priests to ask if they too have been deceived (John 7:46-47), They also tell the officers that the crowd they feared does not know the law and that they are accursed (John 7:48-49).

 

Nicodemus, who met with Jesus in the night recorded in John 3:1-21 then speaks up (John 7:50). Nicodemus asks the chief priests and Pharisees if they would accuse a fellow Jew of something without hearing from him to understand what he is doing (John 7:51). Jewish law requires evidence from two or three witnesses (Deuteronomy 17:6). This also implies the accused can call their own witnesses. The Pharisees and chief priests did not give Jesus this right, as pointed out by Nicodemus. The chief priests and Pharisees justify their actions by accusing Jesus of claiming to be the Christ while not coming from Bethlehem as foretold in Scripture and then departing to go home (John 7:52-53; Micah 5:2)

 

Jesus represents a threat to the religious leaders of his time because the people are turning to Him and away from the established religious structure. His bold statements are causing many to believe He is the Christ. Therefore, they insist Jesus cannot be the Christ because he is from Galilee and not Bethlehem. The Pharisees only see someone coming out of Nazareth in Galilee and are not aware that Jesus was born in Bethlehem (Luke 2:1-7). This is similar to someone like me who was born in one state and moved as a young child to another state, where I have spent most of my life. One who did not know me as a child may erroneously believe I am from the state in which I now live when I am from another state. Rather than gathering all the facts around Jesus’ birth, these men would like to use the fact of Jesus’ coming from Galilee to declare Him a fraud.

 

To truly know who Jesus is, we must ask ourselves these questions,

• Is what I know about Jesus based on the Bible?

• Do I believe Jesus was a good man, a prophet, or the Christ (Messiah)?
• Do I believe Jesus died, was buried, and rose again so I can be saved?

 

If your answer to these questions is that your knowledge of Jesus is biblically based, that Jesus is the Christ, and that he died, was buried, and arose again for your salvation, you are on track to know Jesus and not just know about Him. Romans 3:23 reminds us that we are sinners, with Romans 6:23 pronouncing a death sentence on sinners. However, the second half of Romans 6:23 promises us eternal life as a gift of God’s grace (Ephesians 2:8-9). For one to know Jesus as their savior, they must genuinely and publicly confess their belief in His death, burial, and resurrection (Romans 10:9-10).

 

If you believe in your heart that Jesus died, was buried, and rose from the grave but have not made a public confession of this belief, I invite you to pray with me now,

 

Dear Lord Jesus, I know I have sinned (Romans 3:23) and know that the penalty for my sin is death (Romans 6:23).  I ask you to forgive me of my sin and cleanse me as you promise in your Word (1 John 1:9).  I believe you died, spent three days in the grave, and resurrected from the dead and now declare you Lord of my life.

 

I invite you to let someone know of your decision or to comment on this post about your decision. I also encourage you to become involved in a Church that teaches the Bible and following through with baptism. May God challenge and bless everyone reading this post.