Camphor Tree on the Walk to the Lake

March 12, 2003

Jesus Shunned Jn 7:40-53

Some in the crowd who heard these words of Jesus said, "This is truly the Prophet." Otherssaid, "This is the Christ." But others said, "The Christ will not come from Galilee, will he? Does not Scripture say that the Christ will be of David's family and come from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?" So a division occurred in the crowd because of him. Some of them even wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.

So the guards went to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, "Why did you not bring him?" The guards answered, "Never before has anyone spoken like this man." So the Pharisees answered them, "Have you also been deceived? Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed." Nicodemus, one of their members who had come to him earlier, said to them, Does our law condemn a man before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?" They answered and said to him, You are not from Galilee also, are you? Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee."

Then each went to his own house.

They said that no prophet arises from Galilee. What nonsense to believe that what a man is saying is truly wise and prophetic but not believe him because it was foretold that a prophet would be from somewhere else, from David's house, from Bethlehem. They questioned Jesus on many things but if that had been a question put forth to Jesus there would have been an affirmation that he is the Christ rather than the jump to false conclusion that he is not. It is so much a part of human nature that we do not directly put our doubts about a person to them but voice them to someone else and never learn the real truth. A jump to conclusion about what sort of person someone is by where they are from is another easy false way to take rather than taking the time to know who the person truly is. I will make an effort to see who the people I encounter today really are and strive to remove any preconceptions that I have.