John 7:25-53
Is Jesus the Christ?
25At that point some of the people of Jerusalem began to ask, "Isn't this the man they are trying to kill? 26Here he is, speaking publicly, and they are not saying a word to him. Have the authorities really concluded that he is the Christ? 27But we know where this man is from; when the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from."
28Then Jesus, still teaching in the temple courts, cried out, "Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from. I am not here on my own, but he who sent me is true. You do not know him, 29but I know him because I am from him and he sent me."
30At this they tried to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his time had not yet come. 31Still, many in the crowd put their faith in him. They said, "When the Christ comes, will he do more miraculous signs than this man?"
32The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering such things about him. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest him.
33Jesus said, "I am with you for only a short time, and then I go to the one who sent me. 34You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come."
35The Jews said to one another, "Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? 36What did he mean when he said, 'You will look for me, but you will not find me,' and 'Where I am, you cannot come'?"
37On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." 39By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
40On hearing his words, some of the people said, "Surely this man is the Prophet."
41Others said, "He is the Christ."
Still others asked, "How can the Christ come from Galilee? 42Does not the Scripture say that the Christ will come from David's family and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?" 43Thus the people were divided because of Jesus. 44Some wanted to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him.
Unbelief of the Jewish Leaders
45Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, "Why didn't you bring him in?"
46"No one ever spoke the way this man does," the guards declared.
47"You mean he has deceived you also?" the Pharisees retorted. 48"Has any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed in him? 49No! But this mob that knows nothing of the law—there is a curse on them."
50Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own number, asked, 51"Does our law condemn anyone without first hearing him to find out what he is doing?"
52They replied, "Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you will find that a prophet[d] does not come out of Galilee."
53Then each went to his own home.
Questions
1. In verses 37 Jesus says, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink." What do the streams of living water (vs.38) signify?
2. What is required to receive those streams of living water?
3. Who is Jesus? Is He Prophet or the Christ? (Please feel free to reference other scriptures in your answer)
1 comment:
Q1. The verses signify eternal life, through the Holy Spirit. It is the life which will sustain us in our walk with the Lord here on earth as we go through good and bad times, and highs and lows ... and that will ensure we never truly see death even though we die in the flesh.
Q2: We must put our faith in Jesus Christ (and Him alone). We must confess that we are sinners and agree that only through Him we are forgiven and saved, and made right with the Father.
Q3: Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life, and no one can have access to the Father without Him (John 14:6).
He is the owner/personification of the only name by which human kind can be saved. Acts 4:12 says, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
He is the Anointed One, The Messiah (Christ means anointed).
He is the first one who tasted death for all so that none would have to see death. "But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone" (Hebrews 2:9, NIV).
For those who cross from death into life by faith in Him, He is our Advocate and High Priest. "...If anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father - Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world" (1 John 2: 1b - 2, TNIV).
He is the only human who never sinned, whom we can trust to help us in our struggles. "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin" (Hebrews 4:15, NIV.
Jesus is this and so much more... Praise Him!
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