John – Chapter 7:14-24
v.14 Jesus teaches in the Temple – Jesus does not appear at the feast until it is halfway over, that is, the fourth day. Yet, He comes to the temple not to manifest His power/glory but rather “to teach.” This is significant, as “teaching” is used sparingly in John (6:59; 8:20). But by what authority does He acts as rabbi, what training, what ordination? And to teach in the temple? There are many allusions to ch. 5, thus leading some scholars to suggest this material originally came at the end of ch. 5, especially the healing on the Sabbath in v. 19ff. But this is a different setting and a different viewpoint in the appeal to Moses. Ch. 5 was about Jesus’ sonship and appeals to Moses as a witness (5:18). Here, the narrative is about Jesus’ authority and who’s actions can look to Moses for justification. v. 15 – Jesus’ teaching produces amazement and bewilderment, not over His knowledge but rather at its offense (see also 3:7; 4:27; 5:28; 7:21). And it is important that for “the Jews” and even for us, the training in reading and writing was for the aid in receiving the Scriptures. We forget that Lutheran education began in Wittenberg so that al could read and know Jesus in His Word. v. 16 – Jesus’ appeal is to the one who sent Him, namely the Father. His authority is not grounded in His study or human learning, but being sent by God. His teaching’s authority is rooted on His being sent by the Father (see also 5:19-23). v. 17-18 – The doctrine itself bears witness to His authority as the Sent One of the Father. Does it bear the marks of God? Does it teach unanimously with the Scriptures, the Old Testament? (5:41, 44; 8:50, 54). All Jesus’ words and actions do not seek glory in themselves, but rather accomplish what God has been doing from the very beginning: loves and seeks the world and calls it to repentance and faith. Thus, there is “no unrighteousness in Him” (see Psalm 92). v. 19 – Here Jesus refers back to His healing on Sabbath and the beginning of His conflict with the Jews. This illustrates the difference of formal authority (as people do) and material discernment (as Jesus requires). Jesus is asking them for nothing more than to compare what He says…