Day 17
* Charlie: Now casinos have house rules: they don’t like to lose. So you never show that you’re counting cards. That is the cardinal sin, Ray.
* Raymond: Counting cards is bad.
* Charlie: Yes.
* Raymond: I like to drive slow on the driveway.
* Charlie: If you get this right, Ray, you can drive anywhere you want as slow as you want.
The 1988 box office hit Rain Man tells the story of Charlie Babbitt, a selfish car dealer whose estranged father has passed away. Expecting to cash in on his inheritance, Charlie discovers that his dad left his $3 million fortune to an institutionalized older brother he never even knew he had, Raymond. Hoping to reclaim the money, Charlie kidnaps Raymond, and their cross-country road trip forces him to bond with his autistic brother, transforming his selfish worldview. On the way, Charlie discovers Raymond’s savant abilities - specifically the incredible gift of counting just about anything - minutes until his favorite show or the number of toothpicks that fall to the floor in a diner. What about cards? Charlie concocts a plan to recoup his inheritance that their dad left solely to Raymond and takes him to Las Vegas to count cards, without getting caught. “Look what my brother can do!”
In today’s reading, Jesus’ brothers, those younger siblings who grew up with a big brother who never got in trouble with mom or dad, encourage Jesus to show off His supernatural skills on the biggest stage in Israel - Jerusalem.
Read John 7:1-36
Scripture identifies four brothers of Jesus—James, Joseph (also called Joses), Simon, and Jude (also called Judas) along with unnamed sisters. While Protestants refer to the brothers as “half-brothers” who shared Mary as mother but not Joseph, Catholic and Orthodox traditions view them as stepbrothers, believing they were Joseph’s children from a previous marriage or even close cousins. James would become a leader of the church in Jerusalem, as noted by the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Galatian church, “I didn’t see any of the other apostles except James, the Lord’s brother.” (Gal 1:19) and is credited as author of the Book of James in the New Testament. Likewise, Jesus’ brother Jude is credited with writing the Book of Jude; yet at this moment in the gospel story, none of Jesus’ siblings truly believed He was the Messiah.
Jesus’ brothers urge him to go with them to Jerusalem for the Jewish Festival of Shelters coming up. During this festival, the Israelites constructed temporary shelters, or sukkahs to live in for 7 days, in remembrance of their freedom from slavery and journey through the wilderness. Taking advantage of their lifelong relationship with Him, the brothers began to pressure Jesus to show off His abilities and shut the doubters up. They encouraged Him to step onto the larger stage, showcasing His miracles publicly in the major religious center of Judea rather than the remote villages of Galilee, primarily because they did not yet believe in him and doubted his ministry. And who would be riding Jesus’ coattails, in positions of “Special Advisor to the Messiah?” Why Jesus’ real brothers of course, not this ragtag band of misfits following Him around.
Jesus sees right through His brothers’ appearance of concern for Him to their skepticism, their pride, and at the root of it all - their unbelief. John explicitly states that “not even Jesus’ brothers believed in him,” (v 5) prompting them to act with sarcasm or challenge his legitimacy. If Jesus was really all that He was claiming to be, they argued, He should be confident enough to show Himself to the world. What was He so scared of? Or maybe they simply misunderstood Jesus’ mission, desiring him to become famous. It was fine for Jesus to “show off” a bit and for His brothers to lead the way exclaiming, “Look what our brother can do!” They would enjoy fame and attention just by their proximity to Jesus.
Of course, Jesus refuses to be His brothers’ puppet king, but does head to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles later. Eventually He enters the temple courts and begins teaching. Those who hear offer mixed reviews, but all are impressed with His ability to teach, as Jesus is not formally trained. (Ha! He is the Word, Who spoke everything into existence, Who etched the law on tablets of stone. One might say Jesus was self-taught!) And while, by their responses to Jesus’ words the crowds displayed their lack of Biblical knowledge and understanding, “many from the crowd believed in him and said, ‘When the Messiah comes, he won’t perform more signs than this man has done, will he?’” (v 31) Once the Pharisees got wind of this talk, they conferred with the chief priests and deployed officers (or temple police) to arrest Jesus. The temple police were drawn from the Levites and were charged with maintaining order in the temple precincts. The order from the Sanhedrin to arrest Jesus implies that they planned to allege criminal activity on His part, whether it be working on the Sabbath or claiming to be the Messiah. The leaders’ case was building as quickly as their fear of not being firmly in control of the Messiah narrative.
Nothing would happen to Jesus, because “his hour had not yet come.” (v 30) Jesus’ strong awareness of God’s providential direction of the circumstances of His life provided peace; His enemies could not capture or harm Him until “the hour” of his arrest, crucifixion, and death, as ordained by God. God the Father would not allow these things to happen until the earthly ministry of Jesus, His Beloved Son, was complete.
Big Picture Questions for Today:
* Do you ever find yourself embarrassed by God’s seeming lack of power in this world? Do you want Jesus to show His glory in such a way that makes you glorious too?
Pray from 2 Peter 3:8, “But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” When God seems slow to act, pray for reminders that He is not in a hurry, for with God, a thousand years are like a day. We can rest in the One who is beyond time and is always on time.
