Now let’s come to John 7 and here we find a direct reference to the Feast of Tabernacles and as a matter of fact Christ keeping the Feast of Tabernacles.  Let’s just touch base here in John 7:1-2, and then we’ll go on and then we’ll come back to this because this is a central focal point and has many of the meanings of the Feast of Tabernacles in it, and also the Last Great Day.  “After these things Jesus walked in Galilee: for He would not walk in [Judea] Jewry, because the Jews sought to kill Him.  Now the Jews’ feast of tabernacles was at hand.”  Now we’ll come back to this because He went up in the midst of the feast and taught.

Then we have chapter 8.  Chapter 8 is into the Last Great Day, and there is great meaning in this and significance of the things that have taken place.  And chapter 9 is into the Last Great Day.  Now we’ll cover both chapter 8 and chapter 9 tomorrow because they are profound.  Then we come here to chapter 10, and chapter 10 does not have a direct reference to the holy days.  It does have a reference to the Feast of Dedication, which a lot of people claim may be Hanukkah, but I’m more inclined to believe that the Feast of Dedication really goes back to the time of Ezra, as we find in Ezra 6 and that was also in the winter.

Chapter 11 has to do with the resurrection, doesn’t it?  Lazarus being raised back to a second physical life is a type of the Last Great Day when Israel will be raised back to a second physical life.  So He said, “I am the resurrection” (vs. 25).  Now we come to the last part of John 11:55, “And the Jews’ passover was nigh at hand…”

Then we have chapter 12.  And chapter 12 has six days before the last Passover.  Chapter 12 also has the Sabbath of the 10^th of Nisan, the selecting of the Lamb of God, the true Lamb of God when Christ was selected.  Now you can read that in the Harmony, and I’ve also covered that on other tapes.  Chapter 12, Christ gives a tremendous warning here concerning, as we have covered in the series on Hebrews, about that you have to believe on Christ.

Now then we come to chapter 13, we have foot washing.  Chapter 14, 15, 16, and 17 have to do with the personal covenantal instructions that God gave to the disciples on the Passover night, and the prayer of Christ before He was arrested.  Then we have chapter 18, 19, and they have all to do with the Passover day and the crucifixion.  Chapter 20 then has to do with the first day of the week and the ascension into heaven.  And you come to the last chapter, chapter 21 and it doesn’t have a direct reference to a holy day, but then here is the true commission given to Peter.  Not only are they to preach in all the world and teach everything that Jesus taught but they are to feed the flock because they love Jesus Christ.

So here you have from chapter 1 to chapter 21 in the book of John, all built on the framework of the holy days of God.  And that is significant.  And as it were right smack in the middle of it, chapter 7, 8, and 9 have to do with the Feast of Tabernacles and the Last Great Day.  So let’s come back to John 7 and let’s go through it and let’s see the lessons that we can learn from it, and let’s understand some of the profound things that are here.  Some of the deep things that are there for us to learn.  Some of the things that are precept upon precept, and line upon line, and here a little and there a little that we can all put it together.

Ok, now let’s begin right here in John 7:2.  “Now the Jews’ feast of tabernacles was at hand.  His brethren therefore said unto Him…” Now his brothers didn’t believe Him.  So they were kind of chiding Him and sort of cynically saying this.  Not mocking Him but just sort of chiding Him.  So they said to Him, “Depart hence [So, why don’t you leave here], and go into Judea so that Thy disciples may also see the works that Thou doest.  For there is no man that doeth anything in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly.  If Thou do these things, shew Thyself to the world.”  In other words they were saying, “Look, we know you’ve done miracles, but why don’t you just go up and really show the whole world this.”  Verse 5, “For neither did His brethren believe in Him” (John 7:2-5).  And that also shows the kind of attitude and the kind of jabs and barbs and also reflective of picky questions which people have that really don’t believe.  See they were trying to provoke Him just with the same attitude that Satan had back in Matthew 4 and Luke 4 about Satan trying to provoke Christ to do something.

So notice what He said.  “Then Jesus said unto them, My time is not yet come…” Not time to show Himself openly to the world.  The real truth of that is going to come when Christ returns as pictured by Pentecost and the Feast of Trumpets.  “…But your time is always ready.  The world cannot hate you; but Me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil” (vs. 6-7).  And anyone who testifies that the works of this world are evil, especially the religious works of this world, you are going to be hated.  And if you’re hated by the world, Jesus said, “Understand they hated Me and My Father first.”

So He said, verse 8, “Go ye up unto this feast…” Now let’s understand.  Did Jesus command His family to go to the Feast?  Yes.  If He commanded His family to go to the Feast, that had to be truth and right, didn’t it?  Yes.  If Jesus were here today, would He command us to go to the Feast?  Yes, He would.  No question about it.  But He already has because it’s in His word.  And it’s here in John 7.  He said, “…I go not up yet unto this feast; for My time is not yet full come.  When He had said these words unto them, He [remained] abode still in Galilee.  But when His brethren were gone up…” Now, when do you suppose that they went up to the Feast?  Well, they went up in time to be there for the first holy day, correct.  Yes, because you can’t keep the Feast of Tabernacles completely unless you keep the first holy day.  Now I’m sure that Jesus went up and kept the first holy day, because Jesus never disobeyed God and completely kept the feasts of God, but He didn’t go up with His family.  Notice, “But when His brethren were gone up [which was prior to the feast], then went He also up unto the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.”  Now did Jesus have the ability to make Himself not visible for the person that He really was when He needed to?  Yes.  That’s how He went up in secret.  He was there.

So He waited until the middle of the Feast.  But until the middle of the Feast, verse 12, “And there was much murmuring among the people concerning Him: for some said, He is a good man: others said, Nay; but He deceiveth the people.  Howbeit no man spake openly of Him for fear of the Jews [lest they be cast out of the synagogue, as we’ll see a little bit later].  Now about the midst of the feast [now yesterday was the middle of the Feast, so we can say about the fourth day] Jesus went up into the temple, and taught.  And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?” (vs. 12-15).  Now I explained that fully in the Harmony of The Gospels and in the Christian Passover book that Jesus was taught of God the Father.  He was never taught by the Rabbi’s.  Never went to their schools.  Never received a diploma from them.  And you can know and understand this for sure, that by this time in the life of Christ and His ministry, all of the Rabbi’s checked with each other to find out if He had gone to one of their schools.  And you know that they would all say, “Of course not, he didn’t go to my school.”

“Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not Mine, but His that sent Me” (vs. 16).  Now the doctrine of Jesus Christ is profound and important brethren.  And it comes from God the Father.  And that’s what we need to understand.  All the things that Christ taught and He brought are from God the Father.

Now hold your place here and come back to 2 John.  2 John is a profound little book that has great depth and great meaning and great understanding though it is just a little old book of just a few verses.  We’ll come back to John 7 here in just a minute.  So here we have 13 verses in 2 John, but notice what he says here.  Let’s pick it up here in verse 9.  “Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ…”, which Christ said was not His, but God the Fathers.  So any doctrine of Christ is the doctrine of God the Father.  So the truth is if you reject any of the teachings or doctrines of Christ, you are rejecting the teachings of God the Father.

Now notice, “Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God.  He that abideth [or lives, or dwells] in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.”  And we will see how that is brought out by Christ in John 7.  Verse 10, “If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: for he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds” (2 John 9-11).  Now the only ones who would come not bringing that doctrine are those who are religious people claiming that the teachings of Christ, based upon the holy days, are different.

Now let’s come back to John 7.  So in essence if anyone comes and preaches not the salvation through Jesus Christ and the forgiveness through His sacrifice, and all of these things based upon the holy days of God, and does not teach the Sabbath and holy days, is not of God.  You need to think on that.  You need to understand that.  Anyone who comes along and says that these Jewish, so called, days need not be kept is not of God because Christ kept them.  The apostles kept them.  Christ kept the Feast of Tabernacles and He taught the Feast of Tabernacles.  And He taught the doctrine of God the Father.

Now let’s come back to John 7:16 again.  “Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not Mine, but His that sent Me.  If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of Myself” (vs. 16-17).  Now that is profound, you see, because the way you understand the teachings of God is by doing them.  You can never understand the Sabbath, you can never understand the holy days if you say, “Oh well, you know.  God looks at the heart and my heart is right, and so therefore God accepts me.”  No, you are not doing the will of God.  You are doing your own will and you are justifying your own way, and you are saying that your heart is right.  And if you haven’t repented before God and accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior and received the Holy Spirit of God through the laying on of hands, you are going by your own deceitful heart.

Let’s continue on.  “If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of Myself.  He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory [and boy have we not seen that over and over again]: but he that seeketh His glory that sent Him [that is Christ Who is the one Who is seeking the glory of the Father], the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him” (vs. 17-18).  Now what did Christ teach during the Feast of Tabernacles?  To do the will of God.  Now that’s very important and we need to understand that.

Now what happens if you don’t do the will of God the Father?  What if you’re even religious, and what if you can even read and study the Bible?  What if you could even quote and memorize scripture, but you don’t do the will of the Father?  Now is it the will of the Father to have the holy days?  Yes, it is, because Jesus Christ said that it came from Him.

Now let’s come back to Matthew 7:21.  We’ll just touch base here because we’ve gone over this many times, but let’s just refresh our memory on it.  It’s not enough to mouth the words.  It’s not enough to profess that you love God.  It’s not enough to say that He is your Savior, because He is not your Savior unless you do the will of God.  Now let’s see it here in Matthew 7:21.  “Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that [the one who] doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven.”  And it’s the will of the Father to keep the holy days because He gave them to us, see because the doctrine that we follow, the doctrine and teachings of Christ are not of Christ alone but of the Father.  They belong to both of Them, you see.  So that’s why He said this.  And He said in that day, that is the judgment day, which is what?  The Last Great Day when they’re resurrected in the second resurrection to go into the lake of fire.  They will stand there and say, “Lord, Lord, haven’t we prophesied in your name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in Thy name done many wonderful works?”  And Christ will say, “I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work [lawlessness] iniquity” (Matt. 7:21-23).  And lawlessness is anti-holy day and Sabbath keeping.  Do you understand that?  Yes, I’m sure you do.

Ok, let’s come to Matthew 12:50, because the will of God the Father in heaven above is the most important thing.  And even Christ said that over His own family.  Now let’s come here to Matthew 12:46, “While He yet talked to the people, behold, His mother and His brethren stood [outside] without, desiring to speak with Him.  Then one said unto Him, Behold, Thy mother and Thy brethren stand [outside] without, desiring to speak with Thee.”  And He said, “Oh everybody, just a minute.  My mother and My brothers are here.  Excuse me, I gotta go see them.”  No, notice what He said because He loved God the Father more, and He loved the brethren and those who were following Him more than His own mother and His own brothers, and that’s the same requirement, is it not, that God gives to us when we come to Him and accept Christ?  That we are to love Him more than our father, and mother, and brother, and sister, and lands and our own life also.  Jesus did the same thing.  Notice right here.  “But He answered and said unto him that told him, who is My mother?”  Now with her standing outside the door, some people might think that’s a very insulting statement.  I mean after all, didn’t He know His mother?  Yes.  “And who are My brethren?”  Didn’t He know His own half-brothers?  Yes, indeed.  “And He stretched forth His hand toward His disciples, and said, Behold My mother and My brethren!”  Now notice verse 50.  “For whosoever shall do the will of My father which is in heaven, the same is My brother, and sister, and mother” (Matt. 12:46-50).  Now that comes right back to the Feast of Tabernacles, doesn’t it, because He taught that during the Feast of Tabernacles, to do the will of God.  So that’s quite a revealing thing, isn’t it?

Now here, let’s come to Psalm 40, and let’s understand something: our attitude toward the will of God that we need to have.  Let’s come to Psalm 40:7.  We’ll see this a little later in Hebrews.  Well, we might not go to Hebrews 10 because we’re going to quote it here, so we won’t go there.  “Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of Me, I delight to do Thy will, O My God: yea, Thy law is within My heart” (Psa. 40:7-8).  Now let’s understand something.  We have to come to the point that we delight in doing the will of God, and that the laws of God are within our hearts, written there and inscribed there by the power of the Holy Spirit.  And that’s why Jesus came.  He came to do the will of God.

Notice verse 9, “I have preached righteousness in the great congregation: Lo, I have not refrained My lips, O LORD, Thou knowest.  I have not hid Thy righteousness within My heart; I have declared Thy faithfulness and Thy salvation: I have not concealed Thy lovingkindness and Thy truth from the great congregation” (vs. 9-10).  Did not Jesus teach on these holy days?  Did He not reveal the truth on the holy days?  And part of the truth about the Feast of Tabernacles is doing the will of God, and isn’t that what’s going to happen during the fulfillment of the Feast of Tabernacles in the 1000 year reign and rule of Christ and the saints of God?  Are we not going to teach people to do the will of God?  Yes.  Are we not going to be doing the will of God actively as spirit beings, and are we not going to be teaching the people the same as Jesus Christ, that “My doctrine is not my own, but that of Jesus Christ and God the Father.”  Yes, indeed, the same thing.  Delight to do the will of God.

Now let’s come back here to the gospel of John, and this time let’s come to John 5, and let’s look at the will of God again.  Let’s understand something concerning the way Jesus lived His life.  And if we’re to walk in the footsteps of Jesus, which we are, then it’s going to be to do the will of God.  John 5:19, “Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He seeth the Father do: for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.”

Now verse 30, “I can of Mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and My judgment is just; because I seek not Mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent Me.”  So there it is again.  And we saw where John 5 also has to be involved in the feast days of God, didn’t we?  Yes, so here it is, the will of God.  He came not to do His own will but to do the will of God.

Now let’s come here to Psalm 143 and let’s see something that is important in order to understand the will of God you have got to be taught the will of God.  And that’s what the whole thing of conversion is all about.  And growing in grace and knowledge and growing in understanding so that you are taught the will of God.  Let’s pick it up here in verse 7.  This is David praying.  He says, “Hear me speedily, O LORD: my spirit faileth: hide not Thy face from me, lest I be like unto them that go down into the pit.  Cause me to hear Thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in Thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk…” And the way that we have, brethren, is not a religion.  It’s the way of the Lord.  And we have to walk in it.  And those are the good works, as we have seen in Ephesians 2:10 that God has before ordained that we should walk in them, and that is in the doctrine of God the Father and Jesus Christ, which includes the holy days.  “…For I lift up my soul unto Thee.  Deliver me, O LORD, from mine enemies: I flee to Thee to hide me.”  So whenever you’re in trouble you flee to God, you go to Him in prayer.  Now verse 10, “Teach me to do Thy will…” And that comes over a process of time of teaching and learning by precept upon precept and line upon line, and here a little and there a little.  “…Thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness. Quicken me, O LORD, for Thy name’s sake: for Thy righteousness’ sake bring my soul out of trouble.  And of [from] Thy mercy cut off mine enemies, and destroy all them that afflict my soul: for I am Thy servant” (Psa. 143:7-12).  And if you’re doing the will of God, God will fight your battles for you.  Now they may not be fought exactly in the way that you may think they should be, but they’ll be worked out the way that God wants them to work out.  And I’ve seen that down through the years.  The enemies that have been against us, God has taken care of in His own time.  That’s why we are to love our enemies and not hate them.  We are to put them into God’s hands for His judgment upon them.  And that way then we do not clutter our attitude with hatred and vengeance toward human beings, but we can have our attitude of love and doing the will of God on a continuous positive way so that we can grow in grace and knowledge.

Now let’s continue on.  Let’s see how then, in teaching us the will of God, what we are to do.  Let’s come to Romans 12, it tells us exactly what it is to do.  Here we go.  Shows not only the action we are to do, it shows the things that we are not to do, and Paul also tells us how to do it.  Romans 12:1, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable [or spiritual] service.  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Rom. 12:1-2).  Now then, if the will of God includes the holy days, which it does, and if that is good and perfect, what should we be doing?  You see, the whole New Testament is filled with these things brethren.

Now let’s come back to John 7 and let’s learn some more lessons concerning the Feast of Tabernacles.  Verse 18, “He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory…”,  or that is to build up the self, that is through pride.  But we are to glorify God.  Even Christ did not glorify Himself to become a high priest.  But God the Father swore by an oath that He was a priest forever after the order of Melchisedec.  “…But he that seeketh His glory…”, that is God the Father’s glory, and that’s what we need to do.  Whatever we do we are to glorify God.  We’ll see that in just a minute.  “…But he that seeketh His glory that sent Him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.”

Now let’s come to 1 Corinthians 1 and let’s learn a very profound principle which we always need to do, which ties in with what Paul said that we have nothing that we didn't receive.  1 Corinthians 1:31, “That, according as it is written, He that glorieth [or he that glorifies], let him glory in the Lord.”   You’re seeking His glory, not your glory.  You’re seeking the glory of the brethren, and the truth of God, not your own.  And that’s why it’s so important that we do not get things all mixed up and carnalized, if I can put it that way.  And if you physicalize and carnalize it then you’re not doing glory to God.

Now let’s come back to John 7 because we’re sort of running out of time here for this chapter and there’s still a lot more for us to learn.  So let’s come here to John 7:19.  Here’s a profound statement.  “Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law?”  See, the Scribes and Pharisees and Sadducees with their own traditions, though they kept the holy days and knew the Sabbath, they did not keep the law of Moses because they were only in a legal relationship with God and they were not in a loving relationship with God, you see.  You can see it here.  “Why go ye about to kill Me?  The people answered and said, Thou hast a [demon] devil: who goeth about to kill Thee?  Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel [you are amazed].  Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision [which is a small minor little work, you see]; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the sabbath day circumcise a man.”  Now let’s understand something.  In the year that Jesus was born the Feast of Trumpets was on a weekly Sabbath.  And the evidence is quite clear that Jesus may have been born on the Feast of Trumpets.  And if He was on the Feast of Trumpets, being a weekly Sabbath, He was also circumcised on the weekly Sabbath.  So here He’s probably talking about Himself.

Now verse 23, “If a man on the sabbath day receive circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at Me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the sabbath day?”  See, they were looking to the physical circumstances.  They weren’t looking to the true spiritual and profound work of God.  Because precept upon precept, line upon line, a little here and a little there became to them vomit and stumbling, as we read to begin in Isaiah 29.  So they didn’t understand.  See, unless your willing to do the will of God the Father, you won’t understand and you will be void of judgment.  That’s why in verse 24 Jesus says, “Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.”  Now if you don’t have the tapes in the Feast of Tabernacles 1999, I took day 5 and day 6 to go through “Judge Righteous Judgment”, and we have those on three audio tapes which you can receive.  And that’s the key thing that we’re going to be doing.  That’s why I spent two days in teaching us how to have righteous judgment.  And since this is an overview, we’re not going to go into that.  You can get it in depth.  Just write for the “Judge Righteous Judgment”, the three tapes that we have and the study paper that goes with it.

Now verse 25, “Then said some of them of Jerusalem, Is not this He, Whom they seek to kill?  But, lo, He speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto Him.  Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very Christ?”  In other words if they’re letting Him speak, do they understand He’s the very Christ?  “Howbeit we know this man whence He is: but when Christ cometh, no man knoweth [from where He comes] whence He is” (vs. 25-27).  So they’re saying, “Boy, He is probably the Messiah, the Christ.”

“Then cried Jesus in the temple as He taught, saying, Ye both know Me, and ye know whence I am [from]: and I am not come of Myself, but He that sent Me is true, Whom ye know not” (vs. 28).  Now also, think about this in relationship to the Feast of Tabernacles.  This is exactly the message that we are going to have when we go out we and start teaching the nations.  When we start bringing them out of their heathen ways we are going to say, “God the Father has sent us, Who is true, Who you knew not.  Now we’re going to teach Him to you.  And you need to repent.”

Verse 29, “But I know Him: for I am from Him, and He hath sent Me.  Then they sought to take Him [that is to lay hands on Him and arrest Him]: but no man laid hands on Him, because His hour was not yet come” (vs. 29-30).  Now this is why in our daily prayers we are asked to be delivered from the evil one, because we are not going to be delivered into the hands of those persecutors until the time has come.  Just like with Christ, the time has not yet come.

“And many of the people believed on Him, and said, when Christ cometh, will He do more miracles than these which this man hath done?  The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such things concerning Him; and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.”  Now notice what happened here.  I think this is quite profound.  “Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto Him that sent Me.  Ye shall seek Me, and shall not find Me [no, and they had to lie and say the disciples stole the body]: and where I am, thither ye cannot come.  Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will He go, that we shall not find Him?  Will He go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles?  What manner of saying is this that He said, Ye shall seek Me, and shall not fine Me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come?” (vs. 31-36).  Quite a thing, isn’t it, because in reality Christ was going where?  Back to God the Father.  And when He was going back to God the Father, guess what’s being worked on in heaven above?  New Jerusalem, right, that God is building?  New Jerusalem, to bring down the fulfillment of the Last Great Day?  Yes.  That’s why they can’t find Him.  Christ is there like He said to His disciples.  “If I go, I will come again.  And if I come again, which I will, I will prepare a place for you to receive you unto Myself so that were I am you may also be.”  And that’s fulfilling the Feast of Tabernacles, isn’t it?  Yes, indeed.

Now verse 37 is a profound verse, right here.  “In the last day…” Now we’re getting into the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles, and into the beginning of the Last Great Day.  And right at sunset, at evening, they had the ceremony of the pouring of the water around the altar.  So Jesus took this to teach about the Holy Spirit given to all in the fulfilling of the Feast of Tabernacles.  Now let’s see it here.  “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink.  He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said [now that has to do with repentance, and belief, and baptism], out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water” (vs. 37-38).  Now this is anyone.  Now this cannot be fulfilled until the fulfilling of the Last Great Day.  So this is done during the Feast of Tabernacles when many, many people are called and converted and brought into the Kingdom of God.  And this is greatly fulfilled in the Last Great Day.  That’s why Jesus preached this on the Last Great Day as the Feast of Tabernacles was ending on the seventh day and going on into the beginning of the Last Great Day, then He taught this.  Then we will see chapter 8 and chapter 9 are the day portions of the Last Great Day.  And we’ll see what He taught there tomorrow.

Verse 39, “(But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy [Spirit] Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)  Many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is the Prophet.”  And that Prophet was Christ, and they were right.  “Others said, This is the Christ.  But some said, Shall Christ come out of Galilee?  Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was?”  And you see, they didn’t even understand that He was born in Bethlehem.  He was born there but He didn’t live there.  So they mistook where He was born because He didn’t live there.  They came up for the taxes and Christ was born in Bethlehem, but He didn’t live there.  “So there was a division among the people because of Him.  And some of them would have taken Him; but no man laid hands on Him” (vs. 39-44).

“Then came the officers to the chief priest [because they were sent out and they were watching Him and seeing what He was doing] and Pharisees; and they said unto them, why have ye not brought Him?  The officers answered, Never man spake like this man.  Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived?”  And to this very day the Jew believe that all those who believe in Christ are deceived.  “Have any of the rulers of the Pharisees believed on Him?” (vs. 45-48).  As if that is authority.  Say the same thing today.  Have any of the rulers of the churches today, and religions today, have they kept the feast days?  Have they kept the holy days?  No.  So therefore since they haven’t, then you don’t need to.  Since none of the rulers here have believed on Christ, you shouldn’t believe on Christ.

Now notice the attitude.  “But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed.”  You’re all a bunch of dumb sheep. {laughter}  Now verse 50, “Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came to Jesus by night, being on of them,) Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth?  They answered and said unto him [see, typical put down], Art thou also of Galilee?  Search, and look [in the scriptures]: for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet.  And every man went unto his own house”(vs. 49-53).  Well, quite a debate on the Feast of Tabernacles, isn’t it?

Well, what we’ve learned is, the Feast of Tabernacles teaches us the will of God and teaches us that all that we do is to glorify God.  And teaches that there’s going to be universal salvation given to those all during the Millennium when the Holy Spirit is poured out on all flesh.