I GO UNTO HIM THAT SENT ME

John 7:30-36 Then they sought to take Him: but no man laid hands on Him, because His hour was not yet come. And many of the people believed on Him, and said, When Christ cometh, will He do more miracles than these, which this man hath done? The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such things concerning Him; and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him. Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto Him that sent Me. Ye shall seek Me, and shall not find Me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come. Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will He go, that we shall not find Him? Will He go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles? What manner of saying is this that He said, Ye shall seek Me, and shall not find Me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come?

As recorded by the apostle John in previous verses, Jesus accused the Jewish leaders, as well as the Jews of Jerusalem that followed them, for not knowing God. To prove His denunciation of them, Jesus said that if they had known God they would also have known Him as His Son, the promised Messiah and Savior of the world. Angered by His admonishment, they sought to take Him. This seemed to be the intent of the majority of the Jewish mob surrounding Him because of the truths that He taught them in the temple. The desire of these "offended" Jews was to take Him into custody, accuse Him of blasphemy, and have Him slain. However, it appears that God surely intervened, and in some unaccountable, omnipotent manner kept them from laying hands on Him. The reason was that His hour was not yet come - that is, from the beginning of the world, the exact hour foreordained by God for the atoning sacrifice of His Son for the sins of mankind had not yet come. All attempts to take the life of Jesus would be stayed by the hand of God until the earthly mission of His Son had been fully completed.

Although the Jews of Jerusalem denounced the deity of Jesus, yet many of the people believed on Him, that is, they thought Him to be, if not the Messiah, at least an inspired prophet of God. We know this to be their thoughts about Jesus because of this question they asked: When Christ cometh, will He do more miracles than these, which this Man hath done? Without knowledge of the many irrefutable miracles yet to come, many Jews, having witnessed those He had already performed, and thought that the Messiah would be identified by even more miracles. If one would read the prophecy of Isaiah, and specifically that found in Isaiah 35:5-10, it is possible that these doubting Jews could have come to this conclusion. Even though there was some doubt as to Jesus being the Messiah, the fact that many of the Jews believed Him to be a divinely appointed prophet sent to teach them God's will, their murmuring gave the Pharisees much consternation. They began to take action to silence these beliefs and convinced the chief priests of the Sanhedrin to send officers to take Him.

Noting the growing opposition from the Jewish leaders taking place, Jesus further addresses the multitude of Jews gathered around Him. Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto Him that sent Me. Jesus foretells the brevity of His life in their midst; He would be with them only a little while longer. Fully aware of His impending death, Jesus tells His apostles, disciples, and the multitude of Jews, both believing and non-believing, that He would soon leave them and return to God Who had sent Him on His earthly mission. However during His brief life that remains on earth, it is His desire that all people seek Him as God's Son and the Savior that He promised the world, for only in Him men and women of the world will be able to find the hope of eternal salvation. After His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension into Heaven, He would nevermore be physically found and witnessed. Ye shall seek Me, and shall not find Me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come.

The Jewish leaders asked this sarcastic question among themselves: Whither will He go, that we shall not find Him? Will He go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles? These Jewish zealots, because of their unbelief, could not comprehend Jesus' teaching about His return to His Heavenly Father. By their questions we know that they were thinking there was no place on earth that Jesus could go to that they could not find Him. As plain as this may be to Christians today, the Jewish leaders could not understand this saying. Jesus was telling them that after returning to God, their rejection of Jesus as the promised spiritual Messiah would continue, and that they would continue to seek a Messiah that could never be found - a Messiah that would set up, and rule over a Jewish kingdom here on earth.

Although these Jewish leaders, and those that religiously followed their doctrine designed by their human wisdom, would never be able to seek and find an earthly Savior, thanks be to God that all sinners today, by seeking Him in His gospel of salvation, obeying His will, and gain the remission of all sins through baptism, we are able to, not only find Jesus as our Savior, but will eventually be able to come to Him in His heavenly home.