The Great Schismatic Text: John 7:40-44
Introduction: The Impossibility of Neutrality
We live in an age that worships at the altar of the open mind. Our culture prizes inclusivity, tolerance, and the avoidance of sharp edges. The modern man wants a Jesus who is respectable, a Jesus who can be safely placed on a shelf alongside other great moral teachers like Buddha or Socrates. He wants a Jesus who offers helpful life tips, a Jesus who affirms us, a Jesus who would never, ever cause a scene. In short, he wants a Jesus who is neutered and neutral.
But the Jesus you meet in the Scriptures is nothing of the sort. The historical Jesus, the Christ of faith, is the great divider of men. He is not a placid lake; He is a continental divide, and all the streams of human history must flow to one side of Him or the other. He does not bring a comfortable consensus; He brings a sword. He does not create unity between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of this world; He creates a schism. And He does so, not as an unfortunate side effect of His ministry, but as a central part of it.
The passage before us this morning is a perfect snapshot of this reality. Here in Jerusalem, during the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus has been teaching publicly in the Temple. His words are words of power, authority, and life. And the reaction is not a polite golf clap. The reaction is not a thoughtful stroking of beards. The reaction is a division, a split, a schism right down the middle of the crowd. This is what happens when the uncreated Word becomes flesh and dwells among us. He forces a verdict. No one can remain neutral about Jesus Christ for long. You either crown Him or you crucify Him. There is no third option.
The Text
Some of the crowd therefore, when they heard these words, were saying, "This truly is the Prophet." Others were saying, "This is the Christ." Still others were saying, "No, for is the Christ going to come from Galilee? Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from Bethlehem, the village where David was?" So a division occurred in the crowd because of Him. Some of them were wanting to seize Him, but no one laid hands on Him.
(John 7:40-44 LSB)
The Almost-There Crowd (v. 40)
We begin with the first group's reaction:
"Some of the crowd therefore, when they heard these words, were saying, 'This truly is the Prophet.'" (John 7:40)
This is not a small compliment. They were referring to the great promise God made to Moses in Deuteronomy 18, that a prophet like him would one day arise. This was a specific, messianic expectation. These people heard Jesus teach, and they recognized an authority that was not like that of the scribes. They heard the ring of truth. They sensed something supernatural. They are on the right road, heading in the right direction. They see that Jesus is not just another rabbi.
But it is an incomplete confession. To say He is "the Prophet" is good, but it is not enough. It is to see Him as a messenger from God, but not necessarily as God the messenger. Many people today are in this camp. They admire Jesus. They find His teachings profound. They might even call Him the greatest man who ever lived. But they stop short of the full confession. They are impressed with Jesus, but they have not yet bowed the knee to Him as Lord. It is a dangerous place to be, because it feels so close to the truth, while still being an infinite distance from it.
The Confessing Crowd (v. 41a)
The second group goes a crucial step further.
"Others were saying, 'This is the Christ.'" (John 7:41a)
The word "Christ" is the Greek translation of the Hebrew "Messiah." It means "the Anointed One." This is not just a prophet; this is the King. This is the promised Son of David who would sit on the throne forever. This is the one who would crush the head of the serpent and redeem His people. This is the central confession of the Christian faith. This is Peter's confession at Caesarea Philippi. This is the Church's confession down through the ages. These people heard His words and understood that they were not merely the words of a great prophet, but the words of the King Himself, the Word made flesh.
This is the only adequate response to Jesus. It is to recognize Him for who He is: the sovereign Lord of the universe, the only Savior of sinners, the promised Messiah of God. This is the group you must be in. This is the confession that saves.
The Theologically Obstinate Crowd (v. 41b-42)
But then we come to the third group, the religious objectors.
"Still others were saying, 'No, for is the Christ going to come from Galilee? Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from Bethlehem, the village where David was?'" (John 7:41b-42)
Here we see the great danger of a dead orthodoxy. Notice that this group argues from Scripture. They have their facts correct. They know Micah 5:2, which prophesies that the Messiah will come from Bethlehem. They know 2 Samuel 7, which promises a king from the line of David. They have their eschatological checklist, and Jesus, this Nazarene, this Galilean, does not appear to tick the right boxes. They are using the Bible to reject the author of the Bible.
And the irony is thick enough to cut with a knife. They are so close. Jesus is from the seed of David. Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Their biblical knowledge is accurate, but their information about Jesus is incomplete. And their pride prevents them from simply asking. Instead of using Scripture as a lens to see Christ more clearly, they use it as a shield to protect themselves from His claims. This is a perpetual temptation for those who know their Bibles well. It is possible to be so focused on the grammar of the text that you miss the God of the text. They loved the wrapping paper of prophecy more than the gift of the Messiah Himself, standing right in front of them.
The Inevitable Result (v. 43-44)
The result of these conflicting verdicts is stated plainly.
"So a division occurred in the crowd because of Him. Some of them were wanting to seize Him, but no one laid hands on Him." (John 7:43-44)
The word for division here is schisma, from which we get our word schism. Jesus is the great schismatic. He creates a split. And notice the cause: the division occurred "because of Him." It was not His tone, His methods, or some cultural misunderstanding. It was Him. His person and His claims are the rock upon which humanity is broken. You either fall on this rock and are broken in repentance, or this rock falls on you and crushes you in judgment.
And this division immediately polarizes into two ultimate camps: worship and hostility. Some confess Him as Christ. And the others? They want to seize Him. The desire to arrest and eliminate Him is now bubbling to the surface. When the light shines, it does not just illuminate; it also exposes, and the creatures of darkness hate the light and want to extinguish it.
But they cannot. "No one laid hands on Him." Why? Were they afraid of the crowd? Perhaps. But John has been telling us the ultimate reason throughout his gospel: His hour had not yet come. This is a stunning display of the sovereignty of God. The most powerful men in Jerusalem, filled with murderous rage, are utterly impotent. They are on a leash, and the Father is holding it. They cannot touch a hair on His head until the appointed time in God's perfect, sovereign plan. The wrath of man is real, but the rule of God is absolute. Jesus was not a victim of circumstance; He was a king, marching to His throne by way of the cross, and He was doing so on His Father's timetable, not theirs.
Conclusion: Which Side of the Schism?
This scene in the Temple courtyard is a microcosm of the world. Jesus Christ stands in the middle of the human race, and everyone must decide. The same four reactions are present today.
Some are merely impressed. They think Jesus is a great moral teacher, a fine prophet. They admire Him from a safe distance, but they will not confess Him as King.
Some are the theological hecklers. They use their bits of religious knowledge to find reasons not to believe. They stumble over predestination, or the problem of evil, or some supposed contradiction, and in their pride, they dismiss the Christ who stands before them.
Some are hostile. They want to seize Him, to arrest His influence, to shut down His church, to silence His Word. They are at war with the King, a war they cannot possibly win.
And some confess Him. They hear His words, and by the grace of God, their eyes are opened to see Him for who He is: "the Christ," the anointed King, the only hope for sinners. This is the only sane and saving response.
You cannot be neutral. Your refusal to choose is a choice for the opposition. The great schism runs right through the middle of every human heart. Which side of the line are you on? The division happened because of Him, and He is still the question that demands an answer. Is He a prophet, a problem, or the Christ, your King?