Our scripture reading for today is John 7, 25, through 39. Can this be the Christ? Some of the people of Jerusalem therefore said, it's not this the man whom they seek to kill, and here he is speaking openly, and they say nothing to him. Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Christ? But we know where this man comes from, and when the Christ appears no one will know where he comes from. So Jesus proclaimed as he taught in the temple, you know me, and you know where I come from. But I have not come of my own accord. He who sent me is true, and him you do not know. I know him, for I come from him, and he sent me. So they were seeking to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come. Yet many of the people believed in him. They said, when the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done? The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things about him, and the chief priest and Pharisees sent officers to arrest him. Jesus then said, I will be with you a little longer, and then I'm going to him who sent me. You will seek me, and you will not find me, where I am, you cannot come. The Jews said to one another, where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? What does he mean by saying, you will seek me, and you will not find me, and where I am, you cannot come? On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, if anyone thirsted, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the scriptures had said, out of his heart, will flow rivers of living water. Now, this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and the hearing of his word. One of the growing phenomena that we witnessed with the advent of the Internet is this rise and this fascination with conspiracy theories. You know, with the growth of all these personal platforms and instant access to information, and a lot of it just flat out fake news, people are more and more inclined and inclined to give credence to conspiracy. And it just seems like every week someone is suggesting another national or international global conspiracy in an attempt to explain away the simple and the obvious. According to some conspiracies everywhere, there are just too many to imagine, but you've heard of them. I pray that you haven't fallen prey to any of the conspiracies about a flat earth. I hope there are no flat earthers here this morning. Conspiracy about men never going to the moon. They're conspiracy around the New Coke and the Old Coke. I know some of you fell for that. Experts see around the area 51, and there's really men and black running around zapping people. Or the Obama-Burcerism conspiracy. The conspiracy of engineering COVID-19 New York conspiracies are, I believe, conspiracies are really just a person's way of explaining what they have a hard time understanding or refusing to accept the simple and straightforward explanation. And so what happens instead, people become convinced that others are hiding information because of some sinister and evil plan to manipulate them or manipulate the world. I won't suggest to you this morning. I won't be very clear beloved, that God does not deal in conspiracies. He doesn't deal in sinister plots. He doesn't deal in evil schemes to trip up or fool people. His sovereign decree is clear. When you read the Bible, the plan was clear from the very beginning. It is stated over and over again. In fact, here is a clear statement of the decree of God from the very beginning found for us in 1 Timothy 1 and 15. There's no conspiracy here. Jesus was sent into the world to save sinners. No secret conspiracy, no covert plan, and therefore everything that Jesus did was to the end of God's revelation in saving sinners. Everything Jesus did was to that end. Out in the open so others could see Him, so others could hear Him. This is true even when we come to John chapter 7 and Jesus attend the Feast of Tabernacle. As we saw last week, chapter 7 records Jesus and his brothers going up to Jerusalem, along with everyone else as was the Jewish tradition for the annual Feast of Tabernacle, or the Feast of Boots. In the Feast of Tabernacles, beloved, it was the last of the seven national Feast that were on the Jewish calendar at the time. Everyone was called to go. It was a fall Feast. It was the Feast that follows the day of atonement. It was a joyous Feast. It was a joyous celebration. It was at the end of the harbours. And as all the harbours had been gathered in, sometimes the Feast was called the Feast of In-Gathering. It was a week-long celebration. It was a week-long celebration of eating and dancing and drinking and living in tents and living out in Boots because they were commemorating and remembering and celebrating God's presence and God's provision for the children of Israel in the wilderness. That's what the Feast was about. How God provided for them as they dwelt in tents in the wilderness, how He provided food, how He provided water, how He provided all that they need for those wilderness years. And why was Jesus at the Feast? Why did He go? Again, beloved, there's no conspiracy here. Jesus went to the Feast for the same reason that He went to the other Feast. He went to the Feast of Tabernacles just as He went to Passover to reveal that He is the final revelation of God, that He had come into the world to save sinners. He was that Passover because He was the Passover Lamb. Is that what the Bible tells us in John 1 and verse 29 that He is the Lamb of God who come to take away the sin of the world once and for all. And therefore, Jesus was at the Feast of Tabernacle for the same purpose to reveal who He is and what He had come to do. He was at the Feast because, as Matthew chapter 1 and verse 23 reminds us, that Jesus is Emmanuel, that He is God with us. And as God had promised to dwell with the children of Israel in the wilderness, in Exodus chapter 25 and verse 8, God promised that He would be in the midst of them, that He would dwell amongst them, that He would tabernacle with them, Christ coming as the final revelation of God, who the Bible says in John chapter 1 and verse 14, as the word became flesh and what did He do? He dwelt among us. He tabernacles among us. Jesus Christ is God in our midst. That's not conspiracy, beloved. That's not hidden there. This is the revelation of God from the very beginning. All that God was saying in the Old Testament was pointing to the fuller revelation of Jesus Christ. The word made flesh to dwell among us. There was no conspiracy with Jesus. The only thing that God had up his sleeve was Jesus. That's it. That's it. Everything in the Old Testament pointed to Jesus. No conspiracy just Jesus. No conspiracy is just Jesus. And, beloved, listen to me. Christians are not in this world looking for something hidden knowledge or secret codes or keys to unlock power and prosperity in our lives. That's not what Christians do because Christians understand that the key to understanding is Jesus. The key to wisdom is Jesus. The key to life and eternity is, yeah, you guessed it. Jesus. It's what Colossians tell us. Chapter 2 and verse 3. In Him, in Him, I hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Well, that in mind, beloved, understand that Jesus is not a thing to be tested. Jesus is not a philosophy to be tried. He is not a theory to be examined, but He is a savior to be trusted. He is God to be believed and yet the fascinating thing about that. And clear that is for anybody who would seriously and soberly read the scriptures as clear as that is for anybody who would seriously and soberly this morning. Listen to Jesus. Still, Jesus can be right in front of you. And you still think of some conspiracy. It could be plain as a nose on your face. And you still think there is some other agenda. There is some hidden information you need. Some of you may be thinking that this morning. Many of them thought that as they encountered Jesus in our text. Jesus was not hiding His agenda. He was not doing tricks. He was not playing games. He had no conspiracy with others to fool the people. And yet some had no other explanation for Him, but a conspiracy theory. And it's apparent. You look at verse 25, chapter 7 and 26. At that point, some of the people of Jerusalem began to ask, isn't this the man they are trying to kill? And here he is. Speaking publicly, they are not saying a word to Him. Have the authorities really concluded that He is the Messiah? Do you hear that? Rather than listening to who Jesus is and accepting what Jesus is doing, they thought that the authorities must be in on it. How could Jesus be able to speak so freely? Did they, did they the authorities, did they the government actually believe that He was Messiah, but they just weren't telling us? Can't be the Messiah. He can't be the Messiah. And the government must have this all wrong. He can't be the Messiah. Why? Because we know His Father. His Father is Joseph of Arimathea. We know where He comes from. This is Jesus of Nazareth. What's going on here? What are they not telling us? Beloved, there's no evil conspiracy. The only conspiracy that we might suggest this morning is that the Father conspired to send the Son to save sinners, to save sinners. But then again, conspiracy is something hidden and secret. And beloved, that is not secret. But there are those who refuse to see that. They could not fathom the truth that was right in front of them. And the truth is this beloved as Jesus was explaining to them. Jesus was more than the Son of Joseph. Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus said, I didn't just come from Nazareth. I came from heaven. Apparently, but apparently, dismissing everything that Jesus was saying and dismissing everything that Jesus was doing, they thought that Jesus was just some local carpenter's son who had become a popular teacher. Or perhaps some miracle worker who now had conspired with the local authorities to create an illusion to fool the masses of people. Beloved, I want to assure you this morning that Jesus is not a trick. That Jesus didn't come to put on a show or to play word games. Jesus came to save. And how do we know this? Because despite the popular opinion and despite the conspiracy theories, the Bible says that some did believe that there were sheep amongst those who heard, trusted, and believed not the conspiracy talk, but Jesus. Some saw through all of the conspiracy talk and they saw the truth. Some saw through and looked clearly at the signs and they pointed to Jesus as Messiah. But I wouldn't suggest you this morning. And there I say that most did not. Why? Because they were too caught up in the conspiracy talk. And rather than believe and confess Jesus, they conspired to arrest Jesus. So actually, Beloved, there is a conspiracy here. There is a conspiracy here, but the conspiracy was not Jesus. The conspiracy was the Pharisees and the chief priests. They conspired to arrest Jesus. They conspired to discredit Jesus. They conspired to kill Jesus. But not the only ones. They're not the only ones. Beloved because this is what conspiracy do. The conspiracies of false religion have done this from the beginning. The conspiracies of atheistic philosophies have done this from the beginning and they continue to do this. What does false religion do? Beloved false religion confuses the teachings of Jesus. What does atheistic science and philosophy do? But want to discredit Jesus and His claims? Where all these modern conspiracies trying to do? Get people to dismiss and even pervert the truth of Jesus. Now, whenever I hear someone talking about conspiracies, they come up to me and they say, pastor did you hear this? The pastor you want to hear this? The first question I want to ask them, and I usually do is help, I find it helpful, is to ask them who told you that? Who told you that? And when you run into those wanting to pervert the truth of Jesus, all you have to do is start with the question, who told you that? Who told you that? Who told you that the earth was flat? Who told you that? Who told you that men had never been to the moon? Who told you that? Who told you that all religions lead to God? Who told you that? Who told you that Jesus never claimed to be God? Who told you that? Who told you that the Bible is not the Word of God? Who told you that? Who told you that in order to be saved? You have to keep the Ten Commandments. Who told you that? Listen, beloved. Listen, listen. There is a lot of confusion out there. And the internet and YouTube have multiplied, multiplied. The false prophets like never before. And because there are so many false prophets, there are more and more conspiracies, theories. That's why you got to watch what you watch. Be careful who you listen to. Be careful what you read. Be careful what you see. Be careful what you eat. Be careful what you drink. Just because it's red don't mean it's cooling. Just because it tastes like chicken. Don't mean it's chicken. And just because it is spiritual, does not mean it's Jesus. Beloved, I want to be clear this morning that the gospel is not complicated. It is not complicated. Jesus is not complicated. And when it comes to understanding the things of God, there is no conspiracy. There is only Jesus. Just Jesus. Just Jesus. Is this this morning? Is this just Jesus? There is no hidden agenda this morning. There was no hidden agenda with Jesus. And how do we know this? Because the Bible says that on the last day of the feast, he made it clear. And he made it plain. In chapter 7, in verse 35 and 36, the Bible tells us that after Jesus is spoken, there is a question. They had a lot of questions. Why they had a lot of questions? Because this is what people do when they want to die of the truth. They ask a lot of questions. They bring the truth under suspicion by asking a relevant question. And this is what they did. Notice how many questions they have over and over again. Where does this man attend to go that we cannot find him? What did he mean when he said you will look for me and you will not find me? And where I am, you cannot come. What is he doing? What is he talking about? Where is he going? Why did he say that? Why did he say that? Now that had been me. I would have looked at him and said, you ask an relevant question. Ask an relevant question. Why you ask an relevant question? Making statements. But Jesus better than me. Rather than ask them why they ask an relevant question. He made a statement. He made a statement of statements. He made a powerful statement. A most clarifying statement. Some have suggested the most clarifying statement he made during his earthly ministry, at least in the Gospel of John. Don't miss it. For it clearly states who he is and why he came. On the last day, the Bible says, of the Feast. And on the last day is important, Bob. Because on the last day, there was a special water ceremony. The priests on the final day of the Feast would take golden pictures of water from the pool of Psylon. And they would make their way to the temple with the water. And as they were making their way, the crowds would gather around them and begin to shout and begin to sing Isaiah 12 and verse 3. With joy, we will draw water from the whales of salvation. And over and over again, they would say, with joy, we will draw waters from the whales of salvation. With joy, you will draw waters from the whales of salvation. And over and over again, until it reached a fever pitch. And then the priests would pour out the water in front of the altar. And no doubt, beloved, no doubt that when the priests did this, he was reminding the people of God's provision of water for the children of Israel in the wilderness. And as he poured out the water and as the crowd was reaching its highest height, the Bible says in verse 37 that Jesus stood up and he cried with a loud voice if any one thirst, let him come to me and drink, believe in me. As the scripture had said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. The water and the wilderness was given because the people were thirsty. Jesus says that would you celebrate here today was only a temporary fix. I have come to offer you the waters of life. Drink this. Let's believe it. If anyone, he says, if anyone, if anyone, beloved, if anyone is really everyone because we're all thirsty this morning. I'm thirsty. I'm going to have me a drink of water. Everyone is thirsty this morning. Everyone is thirsty. If anyone really means everyone, we get thirsty. We get thirsty for several reasons. We get thirsty because of overexertion. We overexert ourselves. We get thirsty because we work and try to be good all the time. We can't do it. And we get dry and we get thirsty. We get thirsty from overexertion. We get thirsty from overexposure. Too much time out in the sun. Too much time exposed. Too long underneath the weight of our sin. Oversertion, oversertion, oversertion, oversizany. Too much salt, too many spices, too much 80 in the world's tables. Too much consumer of the world's diet. Soon later, you get tired, dry, and thirsty. We all thirst. We all thirst. I mean, you ask yourself the question, why do you do anything that you do this morning? Think about it. Why do we do anything that we do? We do it because we thirst. We do it because we thirst. Anything that we pursue, we pursue it because we thirst. We pursue education. We pursue school. Why? Because we're thirsty for knowledge and education. We pursue marriage. Why? Because we thirst for a companionship. We pursue sports. Why? Because we thirst for a accomplishment and recognition. We pursue politics. Why? Because we thirst for power and change. We pursue drugs. Why? Because we thirst for relief and pleasure. We pursue money because we thirst for that which is bigger and better. Everyone is thirsty. Blaze Pascuala, Pascuala. The French philosopher, a mathematician who once said, there is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every person. And it can never be filled by any created thing. It can only be filled by the God who made it. There is a thirst, a longing, a need in every human heart this morning. And that is only satisfied with Jesus. It is a longing for fulfillment. It is a longing for completion. It is a longing for joy. It is a longing for peace. It is a longing for assurance. Everyone has it. This is why anyone can come. This is why everyone can come. This is why Jesus says, come, come. This is why the gospel says, come, come. Let not conscience make you linger to song right or say. Not a fitness, finally dream. All the fitness he requires is that you feel your need of him. You just come. You come thirsty. Come. And the promise of God. The promise of God is the satisfaction of the thirsty soul with the pouring out of his spirit. He feels that vacuum with his spirit. This is his promise. And idea, chapter 44, in verse 3, where he says, for I will pour water on the thirsty land and streams on the dry ground. I will pour out my spirit on your offspring and my blessings on your descendants. The Lord promises to pour out his spirit upon the dry desert soul of your life. Refresh it. Renew it. Reclaim it. He doesn't just give you a little drink. Beloved, he feels you up. He feels you up. Ask yourself the question. Ask yourself the question. Why does the Bible seem to always use the language of feel and feeling when referring to the work of the Holy Spirit? In Acts chapter 2, in verse 4, the Bible says, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. In Acts chapter 13, in verse 52, the Bible says, and the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. In Ephesians chapter 5, in verse 18, the Bible says, do not be drunk with wine, but be what? With the Spirit. Why does the Bible speak so frequently of feel and feeling when it comes to the work of Holy Spirit? Because Beloved, there is a boy in the human existence
and the more and more things you and I try to pour into it, the more empty it becomes. In God's sense that he will give his Holy Spirit and when he gives it, it will fill you.
No matter how much, you try to fill it with anything else. It only gets full when the Holy Spirit,
and this is what Jesus says. Come, come, come, drink this, believe on me
and I will fill you with Holy Spirit. Believe in Jesus and you will receive that feeling. Trust in the Lord Jesus and there you will find that joy. There you will find that comfort. There you will find that peace. There you will find that assurance beloved and listen to me. If there is a conspiracy in the Bible, it is not an evil one. It is a good one. It is a glorious one for the Father and the Son have conspired with the Spirit to save and feel with joy all those who believe and trust in Christ this morning. Believe that, believe that. And yet I fear and yet I fear as clear as that is beloved. And yet I fear as clear as that is like those in the text. Some this morning will find it hard to believe. Believe that it is indescribable, that is unfathomable, that such thing is unbelievable. But beloved, I want to tell you that it is not unbelievable. It is just amazing. It is amazing because we serve an amazing God. It is amazing because we worship an amazing Savior. It is amazing because grace is amazing. Don't, don't this morning. Leave from hearing this word, not a sure of faith in Jesus Christ
and the promise of Holy Spirit to feel your life. The Lord says, come this morning, drink this and be satisfied. Jesus Christ offers to us this morning the living water. And if you were this morning, drink of Jesus, which he explained as believing in Him, and how you will flow, these everlasting springs of sin. These everlasting springs of satisfaction and joy in the Holy Spirit.
This is the promise of God. It is not secret. It is not hidden. It is here. It is here for anyone, anyone. All you have to do, let's pray.