John 7:1-9 FAMILY DYNAMICS There can be a lot of bitterness among those who oppose the Gospel and the efforts of the ones who seek to see them saved by God's grace. When people think we are condemning them because they are trusting in their works, their sincerity, their religion or their personal opinions - it doesn't take long for them to openly oppose us, or at the best seek to avoid us. When we are called to proclaim the Gospel publicly, we expect such reactions and are not offended by them. But those of our family and relatives sometimes experience the same criticism and opposition because of their association with us. They find it difficult to be ostracized through no fault of their own, simply because they are related to us.
I can, in a way, understand why Jesus' brothers were at times sarcastic and, to a degree, opposed to Him. The Jewish leaders were not hiding the fact they wanted to kill Jesus. His teaching, the signs He gave as to His deity and the miracles He did, showed up the falsehood and deception of the religious traditions they had added to the word of God. It would have been tough to have been raised in the same home in the shadow of an older brother who never did anything wrong, never said anything inappropriate, never disobeyed or displeased His parents and was obviously "in favor with God and men." All the people who knew Him in His growing up years would have been able, if they wanted to, to use Jesus as an example of a perfect child and then a perfect son growing into manhood. No wonder He was "a stranger to His brethren, and an alien to His mother's children." Then to have Him as the object of murderous intent, and perhaps fear from family associations, would have antagonized His brothers.
The challenge by Jesus' brothers to go up to Judea and show the people who He really was, was an act of opposition on their part in the family unit. "Go ahead. Do what kings and leaders are supposed to do if you really are the Son of God," was their challenge. The sarcasm in their comments was such that there was no question they did not believe in Him. It may be on occasion, those closest to us are the most difficult to convince of your sincerity and the reality of your call to do things differently than what they expect of you. The Lord's life on earth was ordered by God, and Jesus knew what God wanted. Some things just cannot be explained to the satisfaction of others. We just have to leave those to God to deal with and move ahead in faith and do what we know He wants from us.
The brothers of the Lord were not hated by the Jews because they were of the world and the world loves its own. They did not testify against the world nor against the evil that was being practiced. In His infinite wisdom and understanding, the Lord Jesus Christ could see all the evil in the world and in the hearts of those who looked righteous on the outside but were sinful on the inside. "Man, looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart."
By remaining in Galilee until He would go to Jerusalem arriving in the middle of the week of the feast of Tabernacles (booths), Jesus moved according to God's chosen order of events, not what was expected by His brothers or other people. We may not always be at liberty to do what people expect when we are acting according to God's will. Our obligation is to act upon God's revealed will, not on human expectations. For a Christian to be loved by the world because we conform to it, is not normal. We are "in the world but not of the world." "I any man love the world; the love of the Father is not in him."
In any situation in which we find ourselves, we need to wait on God's time for any change. The Lord Jesus went to the feast and was there when God wanted him there - not before nor after God's time. Some things we need to leave to God as far as the timetable of events is concerned. The Lord's brothers seemed to think if Jesus was the Son of God, He should act like other world leaders and get out and advertise Himself publicly. The worldly ideas of promotion are different from the divine intent. It is incumbent on us to know what God wants us to do, but also not to run ahead of His will nor lag behind to accommodate to our own schedule. God said, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways." So, in the course of family living, the same as in public testimony, we need to wait on God to reveal His timetable, and then act upon it without hesitation, and in accordance with what is consistent to faith, grace and humility.