Dear Friends,
One of the most effective means of stifling a true spirit of sincere enquiry on the part of men and women (the Lord’s people included) is to cite the preponderance of a contrary popular opinion – especially if that opinion happens to be one that is held by the recognised leaders of the day. It was the means that was often employed in the days of the Saviour on earth as various groups of people began to feel their hearts and minds opening up to the things that He was saying. In John chapter seven, we have an outstanding and instructive illustration of the whole process.
In that passage of scripture, our Lord has just stood forth on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem and made His famous declaration, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.” This statement – together with all that had gone before – immediately aroused the interest and the discussion of many of the people and a great spirit of enquiry followed. This in no way suited the ruling religious party in Jerusalem, and immediately a group of Temple officers were sent off to arrest Jesus and bring Him before the Council.
The officers returned empty-handed, of course, and when they were asked to give a reason for this, all they could do was express the tremendous impression that Christ’s words had on them:- “Never man spake like this man,” they said. Such impressions, and such opening-up towards the words of Christ must be quickly dealt with; and so, the Pharisees in question call into operation the procedure mentioned above.
First of all, of course, they absolutely demolished any sense of confidence that the returning officers might be placing in their assessment of what they had seen and heard: “Are ye also deceived?” they said. Pretty devastating stuff, and enough to take the wind out of anybody’s sails! Then came the “deathblow;” “Are ye also deceived? Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him?” “Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him?” That was meant to be final, and so far as the Word of God leads us to believe, it was final for every one of those Temple officers that day. The preponderance of popular opinion was against them – the very opinion of the rulers and the leaders themselves – who were they to think otherwise in the face of such weight, and authority.
As we say, so far as the Bible leads us to believe, the returning officers were silenced and their impressions stifled. It is still a very impressive weapon, and one that is still employed in a very high-handed fashion. Preponderance of opinion, and opinions of some in particular, must always be regarded with respect and due consideration; for the enquiring mind of anyone, however, the final answer must rest with what the Lord has said in His Holy Word.
The “second phase” of the proceedings in the Jewish council in John chapter seven is also full of interest and instruction for us. Nicodemus, as a member of the council, was present during these proceedings, and if the officers had been intimidated by the thought of being “out on a limb,” he apparently was not. Nicodemus then, in fact, spoke-up in the defence of Christ, but he was met with the most crushing response of all. “Doth our law judge any man before it hear him, and know that he doeth? asked Nicodemus; “They answered and said unto him, Art thou also of Galilee? Search and look; for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet.” Surely that must be the end of the matter. And for poor old Nicodemus, at this point, it would appear that it was.
You see, what the Pharisees and rulers in question were doing was inviting Nicodemus to “search the scriptures.” “Search and look; for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet.” Surely that was the “end of all controversy!” And we may well-imagine with what confidence they beckoned Nicodemus to the Bible to see for himself just how valid their opinions were. If he would read his Bible, like they read their Bibles, then indeed, he would see that “no prophet” in Israel came out of “Galilee,” such as this man Jesus of Nazareth did. How true that was; how sadly true. For the truth of the matter is, they could not read their Bibles aright, and therefore, never did see Christ in their Bibles.
We may remember our Lord’s own words to them, in chapter five of John, verse 39, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life; but they are they which testify of me.” These men did, indeed, read the Bible, but for all their reading of it, they never did see the true nature of the Christ who was to come, so that when He did come, they rejected Him, and delivered Him up to the death of the cross. If Nicodemus had followed their approach to the Word of God, without doubt, he would have come to believe also that Galilee had no connection with the Prophet of Israel who was to come. But he would have been wrong.
It’s a very telling remark that those religious leaders in Jerusalem made, even in a general understanding of their words. “Art thou also of Galilee? Search and look; for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet.” But, in fact, one of Israel’s greatest prophets had arisen “out of Galilee;” that is the prophet, Jonah. Jonah came from Gath-hepher, which was little more than a stone’s throw from Nazareth itself. How did they make such a glaring omission in their statement? Or, at least, how did they fail to notice a connection in their statement? The answer is more than interesting in the light of the total context of John seven.
The one thing that those religious leaders could not bear was the thought that this Jesus of Nazaeth was presenting Himself as the Saviour of “all men.” That is, not only a Saviour for Israel, but for the uttermost parts of the earth. So, our Lord’s statement that had aroused such discussion and enquiry:- “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.” Christ had come to be the Saviour of all who would believe on His name, and that kind of preaching found little house-room with those men whose whole theology centred on Israel’s favoured position, and on Israel’s favoured position alone. They had no heart, or no thought for the “uttermost parts of the earth.” That was their stated theology and position.
Now, if there is one book in the Old Testament canon of scripture that absolutely pillories that position, it is the book of the prophet Jonah, and the Lord’s insistence that He will have mercy on whom he will have mercy. Jonah was sent, in fact, (much against his own will and views) to the uttermost parts of the earth; it is small wonder that those men of the Jonah-spirit, had little eyesight for recalling the existence of such a prophet in the scriptures that they professed to search. It was simply the old story, they didn’t mould their opinions according to the Word of God, but the Word of God according to their opinions. That’s why they were confident in telling Nicodemus to search and look. Praise God, of course, Nicodemus did just that and found “Him of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets did write.”