John 7:1-10:42

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Home > The New Testament > John > Chapters 1b-12 > Chapters 7-10
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Summary[edit]

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Discussion[edit]

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  • John 7:17. Verse 17 is the ultimate descriptor of faith in action. It seems unreasonable that God would put his children on earth and challenge them to live a principle based on the testimony of others before we can know for ourselves it is true. We can listen to another talk all day about a doctrinal principle, but we are ultimately left to ourselves to live it without knowledge that it is true. We only know by first doing. And we only do by first hoping. And we only hope by first exhibiting faith.
  • John 9:32. It seems that the man is right. We have no record of anyone ever being cured of blindness before Christ.
  • John 9:41. We can understand this verse in 2 ways. The first interpretation does more justice to the first phrase "if ye were blind, ye should have no sin." In this interpretation blindness is like ignorance. Jesus is saying something like "if you were ignorant, you wouldn't have sin." Under this interpretation Jesus says something similar to what Jesus says a few chapters later, "If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin" [John 15:22]. The second interpretation is preferred because it does a better job of explaining the second part of the verse as well "but now yes say, we see; therefore your sin remaineth." If blindness were ignorance than claiming a lack of ignorance wouldn't make one guilty. In the second interpretation the problem isn't being blind, but rather not recognizing it. If they recognized their spiritual blindness they could be cured, just as the blind man was cured in this chapter. But as they don't recognize their own need to be cured, they are incurable.
  • John 10:10. I happened upon a discourse by Robert Schuler of the Crystal Cathedral and he used this verse to describe the "abundant" Christian life as faithfull, hopefull, thoughtfull, meaningfull, purposefull, mercifull, fruitfull, peacefull, thankfull and joyfull. I thought it was a wonderful application.

Unanswered questions[edit]

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  • John 7:18. How does "speaking of yourself" prove that you are seeking your own glory?
  • John 9:4. What does the phrase mean "the night cometh, when no man can work"? To what time is Jesus referring?

Prompts for life application[edit]

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Prompts for further study[edit]

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Resources[edit]

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  • John 7:16-17. Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "The Power of a Personal Testimony," Ensign, Nov 2006, pp. 37–39. Speaking of testimony, Elder Uchtdorf said: "It is not enough to enter into a scholarly debate if we want to know for ourselves that the kingdom of God has been restored upon the earth. Casual study is also not enough. We have to get in on the action ourselves, and that means learning and then doing God's will."

Notes[edit]

Footnotes are not required but are encouraged for factual assertions that average readers cannot easily evaluate for themselves (such as the date of King Solomon’s death or the nuanced definition of a Greek word). In contrast, insights rarely benefit from footnoting, and the focus of this page should always remain on the scriptures themselves rather than what someone has said about them. Links are actively encouraged on all sections of this page, and links to authoritative sources (such as Strong's Bible Concordance or the Joseph Smith Papers) are preferable to footnotes.




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