August 24, 1986
Public speakers know timing and identification with their audience can impact listener engagement. In the same way, Jesus’ decision to address the thirst of His audience at the Feast of the Tabernacles garnered varied, strong responses. In this message, Alistair Begg invites us to consider that like the crowd, the priests, and the temple guards, we cannot ignore Christ. Rather, we must decide what to do with His invitation.
37yOn the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, z“If anyone thirsts, let him acome to me and drink. 38Whoever believes in me, bas6 the Scripture has said, c‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of dliving water.’” 39Now ethis he said about the Spirit, fwhom those who believed in him were to receive, gfor as yet the Spirit had not been hgiven, ibecause Jesus was not yet glorified.
40When they heard these words, jsome of the people said, “This really is kthe Prophet.” 41Others said, “This is lthe Christ.” But some said, m“Is the Christ to come from Galilee? 42Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes nfrom the offspring of David, and comes ofrom Bethlehem, the village pwhere David was?” 43So there was qa division among the people over him. 44rSome of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.
45sThe officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, “Why did you not bring him?” 46The officers answered, t“No one ever spoke like this man!” 47The Pharisees answered them, u“Have you also been deceived? 48vHave any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? 49But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed.” 50wNicodemus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, 51x“Does our law judge a man without first ygiving him a hearing and learning what he does?” 52They replied, z“Are you from Galilee too? Search and see that ano prophet arises from Galilee.”
Copyright © 2024, Alistair Begg. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.