John 7:15-30
"And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"
Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine but His who sent Me.
"If anyone will to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.
"He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true and no unrighteousness is in Him.
"Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law? Why do you seek to kill me?"
The people answered and said, You have a demon. Who is seeking to kill You?
Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel.
"Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath.
"If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?
"Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."
Now some of them from Jerusalem said, "Is this not He whom they seek to kill?
"But look! He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?
However, we know where this Man is from: but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from."
Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.
"But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me." Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him because His hour had not yet come."

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The setting for our lesson today is in the Temple at Jerusalem while the Feast of Tabernacles is in full celebration. Jesus had waited in Galilee for four days before making His entry into the throng of people. When He arrived, He began to teach those who would listen and they marveled at His tremendous knowledge of the teachings of Judaism, and His grasp of the Old Testament scriptures.
Verse 15 reads: "And the Jews marveled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?" Educational standards for rabbis were well established in the first century. Advanced study under a rabbinic scholar in a school was common. Jesus possessed no such credentials. The Jewish leaders, in effect, wish to see these, and Jesus complies by saying that His diplomas are divine. God has taught and commissioned Him; God has given Him the things He teaches. And the judicious and masterly manner in which He taught the people was with a majesty and eloquence that far exceeded the scribes and Pharisees of His day.
In Matthew 7 where we have the recorded sermon that Jesus preached, the passage ends with these words: "And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes." (Matthew 7:28-29)
After the resurrection, Luke records for us a conversation that Jesus had with the two who were returning to Emmaus from Jerusalem. When Jesus accepts their invitation to stay with them for the evening, they are sitting around the table. He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.
All the while they did not know who their guest was, but as soon as He blessed the bread and broke it, "then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. And they said to one another, "Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?" (Luke 24:28-32)
It must have been a thrilling experience to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen to His teaching!
Because Jesus had never been enrolled in their rabbinic schools, their words imply that Jesus was simply uttering His own private opinions about religious matters; and therefore, that one should refuse to listen to Him any longer.

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In His answer Jesus shows that the critics had failed completely to think of the possibility that the contents of His teaching might have been derived from another source, far superior to any Jewish seminary! So Jesus answered them and said, My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me."
Not taught by man, nor self-taught, but instructed by God Himself, that was His answer. Not only had He derived the contents of His teaching from His Father in heaven, but He had also been divinely commissioned to convey it to the people on earth. Let His enemies take note of this fact; namely, that in rejecting Him and His message, they are rejecting God Himself.
This discourse Jesus had delivered originated not in His own mind. His doctrine came from the One who sent Him.
In chapter 8 of John, Jesus has another confrontation with the Jewish leaders. Listen to His response: "Then they said to Him, "Who are You?" And Jesus said to them, "Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning.
"I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him."
They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father.
Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.
"And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him." (John 8:25-29)
As Jesus had been divinely taught, so it was with the Apostle Paul. Hear him as he says to the Galatians, "But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ." (Gal. 1:11, 12)
"My doctrine is not mine." Observe that Christ does not say "My doctrines are not mine, " but "My doctrine." The word "doctrine" means "teaching," and the teaching (truth) of God is one correlated and complete whole. In writing to Timothy, Paul said, "Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine." (not doctrines) (1 Tim. 4:6).

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"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine." (2 Tim. 3:16) In striking contrast from this, Scripture speaks of "the doctrines of men" (Col. 2:22), "strange doctrines" (Heb. 13:9); and "doctrines of demons" (1 Tim 4:1). Here the word is pluralized because there is no unity or harmony about the teachings of men or the teachings of demons. They are diverse and conflicting. But God's truth is indivisible and harmonious.
After Jesus clarifies the source of His doctrine, He says: "If anyone will to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority."
In the Bagster's Interlinear, this verse is translated as follows: "If any one desire His will to practice, he shall know concerning the teaching whether from God it is, or I from myself speak." The Greek word here rendered "desire" signifies no fleeting impression or impulse, but a deeply rooted determination.
The connection between this verse and the one preceding is as follows: "What you have just heard from My lips is no invention of Mine, but instead, it proceedeth from Him that sent Me. Now if you really wish to test this and prove it for yourselves you must take care to preserve an honest mind and cultivate a heart that yields itself unquestioningly to God's truth."
"If any man will do His will, he shall know the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." In this declaration our Lord laid down a principle of supreme practical importance. He informs us how certainty may be arrived at in connection with the things of God. He tells us how spiritual discernment and assurance are to be obtained. The fundamental condition for obtaining spiritual knowledge is a genuine heart-desire to carry out the revealed will of God in our lives. Wherever the heart is right God gives the capacity to apprehend His truth. If the heart be not right, wherein would be the value of knowing God's truth? God will not grant light on His Word unless we are truly anxious to walk according to the light. If the motive of the investigator be pure, then he will obtain an assurance that the teaching of Scripture is "of God" that will be far more convincing and conclusive than a hundred logical arguments!

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William Hendriksen makes an interesting observation on the verse that we have just been studying (v. 17). Let me quote at length from his excellent commentary:
"This verse introduces an interesting question: Just how are the various elements of Christian experience related to each other? In general it may be said that, according to the teaching of Christ and the apostles, KNOWLEDGE (concerning Christ and the facts of redemption: implying, of course, a knowledge of misery) comes first. When we try to trace our love for God in Christ to its source, we discover that it resulted from the contemplation of the facts of the Gospel and from our interpretation of the significance of these facts. Nevertheless, we hasten to add: knowledge as such never produces love. It results in love when the Holy Spirit applies this knowledge to the heart; i.e., when He creates in the heart a response to the love of Christ, the knowledge of which is already present in the mind. Now this love, in turn, expresses itself in deeds of obedience: "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." The fundamental relation between the three is, therefore,
a. knowledge,
b. love,
c. obedience.
Dr. Hendriksen continues:
"Yet, this representation is in need of qualification. Each of the elements (knowledge, love, obedience), once present in any slight degree, enriches, intensifies, deepens the others. There is a constant interaction, each influencing the other two. In fact, the three are so closely related that none is complete in and by itself alone. Thus, not only does knowledge, applied by the Holy Spirit, lead to love; but love, in turn, is the indispensable prerequisite of full-grown knowledge.
When we speak of KNOWLEDGE, LOVE AND OBEDIENCE, we are not thinking of three altogether separate experiences, but of one single, comprehensive experience in which the three are united in such a manner that each contributes its share, and all cooperate unto man's salvation and God's glory."
Knowledge, therefore, will never be sanctified to the heart and lead to true discernment of the divine character and origin of Christ's teaching unless the willingness to do God's will is present first of all. When the latter is present, one will immediately perceive that the base charge of the Jews--namely, that Jesus was merely expressing His own private opinions--is utterly false.

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IF ANY MAN WILL DO HIS WILL, HE SHALL KNOW CONCERNING THE DOCTRINE.
He shall know! He shall have evidence, in the very attempt to do the will of God, of the truth of the doctrine. This evidence is internal, and to the individual it is satisfactory and conclusive. It is of two kinds.
(1) He will find that the truths which Jesus taught is such as commend themselves to his reason and conscience, and such as are consistent with all that we know of the perfections of God.
(2) An honest desire to obey God will lead a man to embrace the great teachings of the Bible. He will find that his heart is depraved and inclined to evil, and he will see and feel the truth of the doctrine of depravity; he will find that he is a sinner and needs to be born again; he will learn his own weakness, and see his need of a Saviour, of an atonement, and of pardoning mercy; he will feel that he is polluted, and needs the purifying influence of the Holy Spirit.
No man who has ever made an honest effort to live a pious life, and to do all the will of God, has ever had any doubt of the truth of the doctrine of Christ.
Jesus continues His teaching with these words: "He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him." (v. 18)
Christ here appealed to the manner and purpose of His teaching to show that He was no imposter. He that speaketh of, or better from, himself, means, he whose message originates with himself, rather than God. That is to say, he attracts attention to himself; he aims at his own honor and aggrandizement. On the other hand, the one who seeks the glory of Him that sent him, the same is "true" and genuine, i.e., a genuine servant of God.
There are some telltale signs of glory-seeking teachers. They insist on using their titles and credentials. They are preoccupied with their relative position in the program or breaches in protocol. They take the credit for success rather than giving it to God. They habitually take more than the allotted time to speak. Paul has something to say about these kind of teachers in 2 Corinthians 10:13-18:
"For we dare not class ourselves or compare ourselves with those who commend themselves. But they, measuring

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themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.
We, however, will not boast beyond measure, but within the limits of the sphere which God appointed us--a sphere which especially includes you.
For we are not overextending ourselves (as though our authority did not extend to you), for it was to you that we came with the gospel of Christ;
not boasting of things beyond measure, that is, in other men's labors, but having hope, that as your faith is increased, we shall be greatly enlarged by you in our sphere,
to preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast in another man's sphere of accomplishment.
But he who glories, let him glory in the Lord.

For not he who commends himself is approved, but whom the Lord commends."
What an important word does this eighteenth verse of John 7 contain for those who sit under the ministry of the professed servants of God. Here is one test by which we may discover whether the preacher has been called of God to the ministry, or whether he ran without being sent. Does he magnify himself or his Lord? Does he seek his own glory, or the glory of God? Does he speak about himself, or about Jesus Christ? Can he truthfully say with the apostle, "We preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord" (2 Cor. 4:5)? Is the general trend of his ministry, Behold me, or Behold the church, or Behold the Lamb of God?
Having laid down these general principles, with their particular application of His own ministry, Jesus now takes up the threads of debate from His last visit to Jerusalem. On that occasion the authorities tried to bring Him to court on a capital charge because of His attitude towards the Sabbath law and because of the terms in which He spoke of God as His Father.
He defended Himself then against their charge of lawbreaking by invoking Moses as a witness against them. Moses spoke of Him in advance as the coming prophet, yet they gave no credence to Moses' testimony regarding Him (John 5:45-48). Now He invokes Moses again as a witness against them because, for all their professed veneration for Moses' law, they themselves were guilty of breaking it. Moses' law said "Thou

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shalt not kill', yet they were trying to have Him put to death.
"Did not Moses give you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why are you looking for an opportunity to kill me? " (v. 19)
Why do you go about to kill Me? It was a word of more than local application. Where there is no heart for the truth, there is always a heart against it. And where there is enmity against the truth itself there is hatred of those who faithfully proclaim it.
"The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil; who goeth about to kill thee?" (v. 20). These people deemed our Lord insane, and said, Thou hast a demon," for insanity is often one of the marks of demonical possession. This fearful blasphemy not only exposed their blindness to the glory of Christ, but also demonstrated the desperate evil of their hearts. To what awful indignities and insults did our blessed Lord submit in becoming incarnate!
Christ ignored the horrible charge of the people, and continued His address to the Jews. "Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel." And herein He has left us a blessed example. It is to be noted that in the passage where we are told, "Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we should follow His steps," the Holy Spirit has immediately followed this with, "who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth; who, when He was reviled, reviled not again" (1 Peter 2:22, 23).
What a beautiful illustration John 7 gives of this! When He was reviled. He "reviled not again." He made no answer to their blasphemous declamation. O that Divine grace may enable us to "follow His steps." When Christ said to the Jews, "I have done one work, and ye all marvel," He was referring to what is recorded in John 5:1-16 which was the healing of the man who was lame for thirty eight years! They considered it not a miracle but a breaking of their Sabbath laws!
Not much a reception for Christ at the Feast! Considered by some an imposter, by others, demon-possessed. But that the Scripture might be fulfilled...He was despised and rejected by men, and man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief! All...because He loved us!