Today we continue our teaching series called “The Untold Jesus Stories.”

Throughout this series we will be looking into stories that are not, literally “untold,” but some of the lesser known or lesser understood accounts that we find in the gospels.

This series will simply focus on some stories that perhaps we haven’t paused to consider very often before.

Paul wrote to Timothy with the instruction: "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."

Our “untold” or lesser-known story today is found in John 7:1-13

Before we dive into chapter 7, we need to catch up to what’s happening in John’s gospel to get a clearer picture of the tension in the background of our teaching text.

Back in chapter 5, Jesus is at Jerusalem and heals a paralytic man by the pool of Bethesda. This was awesome, except that the religious leaders thought his timing was off, because he performed this miracle on the sabbath- a strict day of rest in their opinion.

This conflict grows to the point that in verse 16 we read that the Jewish leaders sought to Kill Jesus…

Chapter 6 records several miracles that Jesus did, and it also records a growing movement of rejection among the people, culminating in one of the most profoundly sad verses of scripture, verse 66, says: from this time many of His disciples turned back and no longer followed him.

As we come into chapter 7 and 8, what has been a growing undercurrent of rejection is about to the boiling point, and Jesus knows it.

About 6 months has passes since the sabbath incident of Chapter 5, but as the time has passed, the tension had not. Jesus chose to stay away from Jerusalem, he knew there could be no more casual visits to the capital city.

Jesus’ brothers are basically daring him to go up to Jerusalem during one of the largest festivals of the year and do some of the mighty miracles he’s been doing in Galilee. They wanted him to go and prove something.

"Go on Jesus- we dare ya."

But the underlying problem is revealed in verse 5- Jesus’ brothers didn’t really believe Jesus was the Messiah.

Being double dog dared by his brothers didn’t bother Jesus. He wouldn’t be moved out of alignment with His fathers will at the insistence of anyone.

Skeptics have used this small and obscure passage in an attempt to discredit Jesus by saying that he lied to his brothers. But there’s more to this story.
In Jesus answer to his brothers, he didn’t say he wasn’t ever going to the festival- he said he wasn’t going in their timing and in their way.
His brothers had a plan at best for popularity, at worst for his shaming. Either way, Jesus wasn’t going along with it.

His life is firmly ordered by the will of the Father. No pressure, taunting, or double dog daring was going to force his hand.

Jesus went to the festival undercover, but he would not remain that way. About halfway through the feast Jesus began to teach in the temple.

This created quite a controversy. It’s that controversy that largely makes up the remainder of Chapters 7 and 8 culminating a life-or-death confrontation in verse 59. At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.

The hour had not yet come for Jesus to be handed over to the Jewish leaders. This wasn’t Gods timing.

Just a few months later, Jesus would make the journey up to Jerusalem again. Palm Sunday, the triumphal entry, marks this final approach for Jesus. The hour had come.

As Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane he said “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. And from the cross, Jesus declared “It is finished.” Jesus literally lived and died by the Fathers perfect timing.

Friends, do you trust Gods timing like that? Are you willing to wait until Gods timing is fulfilled before you take the next step? Even when its hard?

That’s what it is to follow after Jesus- to trust him with everything, especially the timing of our lives.

Today, what would it look like or you to set your life to the time of the Heavenly Father?

His timing is always perfect.