John 2:23-24 (ESV) Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people 25 and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.
This month, I’ve been studying John chapter 2 and came across this passage at the end of the chapter. The idea of Jesus entrusting Himself to the people who saw the signs (miracles) he did in Jerusalem – The miracles are not mentioned in the passage, so don’t bother looking for them. Remember John said he hadn’t written down all the signs Jesus did because there wasn’t enough books in the world to handle them:
John 21:25 (ESV) Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.
So, John skips a lot of what Jesus did for sake of space. In fact, John only records nine miracles in his entire Gospel.
So, back to “entrust.” This is the same word as used in Luke 16:10-11; “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?
John chapter 2 speaks of both the wedding at Cana and the cleansing of the temple. Our text involves the temple cleansing. These guys Jesus ran off were in the process of ripping off the true worshipers by selling animals at highly inflated prices. They were some of the same guys who will seek to kill Jesus after the second time He cleanses the Temple at the end of His ministry (Matt. 21:12-13).
So, Jesus was not going to reveal Himself fully to those fascinated by His miracles or the men who would later seek to kill Him later because “He knew what was in Man.” The fact Jesus’ first Temple cleansing didn’t teach them anything is evidence of these men’s lack of character.
Certainly this does not imply we should not entrust the gospel to the lost, but it does imply God is faithful and entrusts us, His children, with His Spirit and the truth of the Gospel. We as faithful servants, friends, brothers and sisters, fellow workers, are those with whom He does entrust Himself.
Like the passage in Luke 16 above, those who are unfaithful in holding the Word of Truth would be unfaithful in sharing it. As a result, we have heresies existent within and without the church.
For non-believers, reading God’s Word is like reading someone else’s mail. It makes no sense. For Jesus to fully reveal Himself to the corrupt people taking advantage of the Temple for gain would have been misunderstood by them. We see this later on when they crucify Him at the end of His earthly ministry.
Why is this important?
When we share the truth of the gospel, many often can’t accept or even understand it. Some will reject it outright as too fantastic that God Himself, the Creator of the entire universe, would become a man like them and die to pay the price for all their sins.
The Gospel message while simple is truly fantastic in that way. I think there is a deep understanding in all men and women that we are unworthy of something this grand. We believe we could never be entrusted with God’s favor, with God’s Truth.
God’s grace is too extraordinary for man to fully understand. Imagine if Jesus had presented Himself as God. Could these unfaithful men have accepted or even understood it? I think not.
Ours is a great trust. We should feel privileged above the men at the temple. God has placed the very key to everlasting life into our hands through His Spirit. Let us never take it lightly. Let us never keep it to ourselves. Let us never withhold it from those who are seeking a path to escape the darkness.
Believers Armed and Dangerous 