Believing the Works of God done by Jesus and Only Believers will be in Heaven
John 7:31–34 (NKJV)
31 And many of the people believed in Him, and said, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?”
Christ’s Departure to the Father
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him. 33 Then Jesus said to them, “I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me. 34 You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come.”
Message
I. Believing the Works of God Done by Jesus (31)
See v31.
31 And many of the people believed in Him, and said, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?”
Many believed in Him. They were convinced due to the numerous signs Jesus performed. Jesus wants us to believe the works of God done by Jesus. See John 10:37,38 (NKJV).
37 If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; 38 but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.”
If they believe the works of God done by Jesus, they can know and believe that God is in Jesus and Jesus in God.
II. They cannot come to Heaven while His Disciples will be There (32-34)
See v32.
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.
The people in power didn’t believe Jesus and tried to take the freedom from Jesus. They belonged to the darkness and opposed Jesus who was full of grace and truth. See 1 John 5:19 (NKJV).
19 We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.
When we stand for the truth just as Jesus did – He was doing the will of God and the mission from God – we will experience the opposing force of the evil one. If the people start to believe Jesus, the truth will win. The evil force didn’t want that. The Jewish leaders sent officers to take Jesus away.
See v33,34.
33 Then Jesus said to them, “I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me. 34 You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come.”
Even though officers came to take Him, Jesus knew and said that He still had a little more time for His mission on earth(33a). Then He was to go to the Father who sent Him (33b).
When some Pharisees came, saying to Him, “Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You.” (Luke 13:31 NKJV), Jesus wasn’t shaken at all. Instead, He said in Luke 13:32-33 (NKJV).
32 And He said to them, “Go, tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.’ 33 Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem.
Jesus boldly called King Herod ‘fox’. He knew He still had time, and a journey to complete. And He knew He wouldn’t die outside Jerusalem.
Jesus was going back to heaven where He was from (33b). When He said ‘where I am you cannot come’ (34), it may mean
- Where He will be (the heaven) is the place after the death. The people alive can’t come there.
- Even if they die, they can’t come where Jesus will be because they didn’t believe Him. The heaven is for those who believe Him. To His disciples, He said, “I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am there
