If you get five people in a room to discuss an issue, you will get six opinions. We have all experienced this in committee meetings, church meetings, or family gatherings. I would ask you to imagine for a moment that you were attending the Festival of Tabernacles in Jerusalem. In the course of being with other Jews from Jerusalem, Jews from different places, and the Pharisees, Sadducees, and scribes, there is much gossip about Jesus.

Generally, the Jews who came to Jerusalem were more open to Jesus. They were amazed to hear that the religious authorities considered Jesus, an outlaw and that they wanted to kill Him. The Jews who lived in Jerusalem sided with the religious authorities. The Jews in Jerusalem were probably afraid that they would be excommunicated from the temple if they disagreed with the religious leaders.

If you recall from last Sunday, the religious leaders and the Jews who sided with them tried to discredit Jesus’ character.  Allow me to read verses 12-13. It was Jesus’ time to clear the air at the temple midway through the festival.