John 8:1-2 "Jesus went unto the mount of Olives. (2) And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them."
There are two events in these verses that catch my attention. Jesus went
unto the mount of Olives. This was a place where He often went. We read at the
conclusion of chapter seven, "And every man went unto his own house."
And immediately in Chapter 8:1, "Jesus went unto the mount of
Olives." We remember He once said the Son of man hath not where to
lay His head. In other words, there was no permanent home for Jesus as He went
about doing His ministry. We look at His going to the mount of Olives in
that maybe He and the disciples made camp there for the night, or He went there
to pray. Or logically, we could say He did both camp and pray in the mount of
Olives.
The next event that catches my attention happens in verse two. Jesus arose
early in the morning to go into the temple. That is something that was His
custom from the time He was 40 days old when Mary and Joseph took Him to the
temple to present Him to the Lord. He was brought up in such a manner that temple
worship was a continuous action. The thing that catches my attention is that
"all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them."
You and I are blessed to understand that Jesus Christ, the Risen Lord, is
indeed the Master Teacher. We are blessed to know the Holy Spirit brings to our
remembrance those things that Jesus spoke when He was on the earth. We look
back and can understand the significance of all the people going to Him. But as
the event was taking place, it was a marvelous thing to watch as the people
gravitated to Jesus.
No doubt the Scribes and Pharisees were filled with envy to see the people
turning from them to go hear this "carpenter" teach. The officials of
the temple were a prideful people. As the book of John unfolds, we shall see
their envy turn to absolute hatred, anger, and bitterness. It would ultimately
reveal itself as they wrongfully crucified Him on the cross. I say wrongfully;
yet, I understand this was the purpose and plan of God. I use the word,
wrongfully, because Jesus did no wrong. He committed no sin. There was nothing
about Him that would make Him worthy of being crucified. They did it because of
jealousy. God used that human emotion to complete the work of redemption as
Jesus laid down His life.
What is the lesson for me in these passages? First, there are times when we
must "enter into our closet", our quiet space, and submit ourselves
to prayer and being still before the Lord. It is in those times that we find
the direction for life that is needed. And I submit once again, the only way to
find meaning in God's Word is to realize Jesus Christ is the Teacher. We must
pray that He will reveal His message to us each time we begin to read the Word
of God. He will teach what we need to hear.