To glorify God or to glorify self ?

Jesus Teaches at the Feast

14 Not until halfway through the Feast did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach.
15 The Jews were amazed and asked, How did this man get such learning without having studied?
16 Jesus answered, My teaching is not my own. It comes from him who sent me.
17 If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own.
18 He who speaks on his own does so to gain honour for himself, but he who works for the honour of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him.
19 Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?
20 You are demon-possessed, the crowd answered. Who is trying to kill you?
21 Jesus said to them, I did one miracle, and you are all astonished.
22 Yet, because Moses gave you circumcision (though actually it did not come from Moses, but from the patriarchs), you circumcise a child on the Sabbath.
23 Now if a child can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with me for healing the whole man on the Sabbath?
24 Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment.


一、：Content

1>（v14-15）The Jews leaders were amazed by the teaching of Lord Jesus Christ 
2>（v16-18）Lord Jesus Christ stressed that His teaching comes from God and that it was not his own.
3>（v19-24）In compliance with the law, Lord Jesus challenged them with whether or not one can heal people on the Sabbath Day?

Subject

1>Teachings filled with authority and power
2>To glorify God or to glorify self?
3>To restore the true meaning of the Law


二、Who is God, Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit?

1>（v14）Good teaching of Jesus Christ
2>（v15）Jesus Christ who is full of knowledge (knowledge of books)
3>（v16）God who bestowed the lessons
4>（v16）Receive lessons from Jesus Christ
5>（v18）True and no pseudo-real (there is no injustice in good faith) in Jesus Christ
6>（v19）Jesus Christ who was about to be killed
7>（v23）Jesus Christ who heals.

三、What did I learn from the lesson (command, promise, example, blame, and warning)?

1. Teaching filled with authority and power 

As recorded in the previous paragraph, the Lord Jesus secretly went to Jerusalem for the feast at the time of His choice. Suddenly He showed up in the temple during the festival and He started to teach people with authority and power. Even the Jewish leaders were incredibly surprised.
In Jesus’ time only those who went to school of rabbi and learned from the teachers were qualified to explain the Scriptures and to teach the Law. They based their teaching on what they learned from their teachers or the books of their teachers.
To them Lord Jesus Christ is nothing. Not only that He had never learned from any teachers but also He did not have the basis of any book. Yet He was even filled with authority and power to explain the Scriptures and to teach the Law.
Therefore, they were suspicious of His teaching and asked: "This man never follows any teacher, how could He become such a knowledgeable person?" Jesus then replied: "For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it." John 12:49. Jesus said: "Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. "John 14:10. Jesus said:"All these words came from my mouth were not from me but from Father. "
Clearly Lord Jesus Christ's teaching 100% comes from God. Teaching that comes from God definitely fills with authority and power.

Reflection: As a pastor I often need to teach and preach sermon. I hope that through out my ministry I can set aside personal ideas and base my teaching solely on the Bible and be loyal to the Word of God so that my teaching and preaching can be filled with authority and power.


2>Only follower can distinguish the difference 

"If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own." （v17）The meaning of this verse is when a person is indeed determined to follow God's will, only then he can obtain the wisdom to distinguish from God. That is able to distinguish the difference between God’s will and man’s will. In other words: doing God’s will is the most important thing.

Reflection: Am I really following the lessons from Bible and the will of God? Or do I just stay in the stage of knowledge? Do I have enough wisdom to distinguish them?


3>The difference between glorifying God and glorifying self

He who speaks on his own does so to gain honour for himself, but he who works for the honour of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. （v18）There are two kinds of people who will deliver messages. One who pursues personal glory and the other who pursues the glory of God. The people who pursue personal glory will teach from their own ideas; while the people who pursue the glory of God will teach what is revealed by God and it is faultless.

Reflection: Does my teaching or my preaching glorify God? Or does it glorify me?


4>To restore the true meaning of the Law

Lord Jesus said: On the day of Sabbath I did one thing which is unthinkable to you and you were all curious about it. According to the account in Chapter 5, on a Sabbath day the Lord Jesus healed a patient who had been sick for thirty-eight years, thus it made the Jewish leaders unhappy and they accused Him of violating the Law. Jesus took advantage of this opportunity to initiate the discussion of the Law.

Jesus Christ pointed it out straight forward to them that: Even though Moses did grant the Law to them, they proclaimed that they knew the Law, and also they were very proud of themselves as Law keepers. In fact they did not understand the Law, they even misinterpreted the Law, and no one obeyed the Law. How could it be? Because the Law clearly stated that thou shall not kill, yet they intended to kill Lord Jesus. Also, circumcision is just a religious ritual, while providing medical treatment for the needed is an act of love. Circumcision is to cut something off from the body, on the other hand providing medical treatment is to enable the body to recover. Since performing circumcision on the Sabbath day is acceptable, why then is it unacceptable for one to provide medical treatment to restore people’s health on the Sabbath day?
On Mark 2: 27 Jesus had also said: "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath." Clearly the main subject is human not Sabbath. Sabbath is set up for people’s need only!

In particular the original intention of God's law was for the well being of His people. Thus within the context of the Law, His people can be sanctified and prevent themselves from any harm, be set free, enjoy liberty and receive blessings.
However, the Jews of that era, especially their leaders, they has distorted the original intention of the Law. Although they did hold on to the provision of the Law but actually they did lose the spirit of the Law which in this case were love and compassion, they prohibited people from receiving treatment even put a limit on people's freedom. In this way, Law has become restraints and burdens!
Therefore Lord Jesus Christ took the opportunity to clarify and restore the true meaning of the Law

Reflection: In the path of my belief, have I sometimes fallen into the trap of legalism?


Translated by 曾秀娟