Courage to Speak Truth: Jesus’ Example in John 7:24
John 7:24
"Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment."
The context is during the feast of tabernacles. This is the time when the people of God remember the provisions God made while their ancestral fathers were in the wilderness. Jesus and his brothers are in Galilee, and he tells his brothers to go on ahead of him into Judea for the festival. For the people of Israel, it was a time of celebration, reflection, and spiritual renewal, but for Jesus it's a problem. With tensions rising due to his teachings and growing opposition from religious leaders, Jesus is quietly trying to navigate the social landscape until the time comes for him to openly proclaim his true identity has come. Right now, his brothers still have not accepted his identity as the Christ sent from God. And they come right out and say as much with this snarky little remark.
John 7:3
So his brothers said to him, "Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world."
And Jesus snarks back with a challenge about their choices when it comes to speaking about the truth:
John 7:6-8
"My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil. You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come."
At least not openly. For he does go up to the feast, but privately. Still navigating a web of misunderstanding, skepticism, and hostility while staying true to his divine mission which is ultimately the cross.
Jesus' brothers judged his ministry by appearances, expecting a Messiah who would immediately claim power and fame. And Jesus' words highlight the contrast between his divine mission and the world’s values. Jesus’ truth-telling about sin provokes hostility. Not much has changed. If you want to be ostracized by the world just tell the truth with any amount of confidence or conviction. The world will hate on you in ways you never imagined.
Jesus' call to "judge with right judgment" challenges the crowd, his brothers, and us to move beyond snap judgments based on external markers. The religious leaders, too, judged Jesus by appearances, dismissing him for not fitting their expectations of a Messiah. And likewise, the people in general were divided in their opinions about Jesus.
John 7:12-13
And there was much muttering about him among the people. While some said, "He is a good man," others said, "No, he is leading the people astray." Yet for fear of the Jews no one spoke openly of him.
Nothing good ever comes from muttering:
All of these questions about Jesus are from the continuing fallout after Jesus had healed the man on the Sabbath. And so, Jesus does go to the temple, and he does begin to teach again. But the Jews are there, and the controversy sparks up again.
This social dynamic is evident even today in cultural debates where speaking biblical truth; on issues of morality, identity, or justice, can provoke intense backlash from competing interests. Yet, Jesus’ example encourages steadfastness in his followers, trusting God’s timing and purpose even when misunderstood by others in the community. Jesus’ experience in John 7 mirrors the hostility often faced today when confronting sin or challenging worldly values. The world, as Jesus noted, “hates” those who expose its flaws (John 7:7).
So, Jesus is openly teaching in the temple again and the Jews are not at all happy with him. As I said earlier, it ties back to the Sabbath controversy. In John 7:21-23, Jesus defends his healing of that man by pointing out the inconsistency of the religious leaders’ judgment: they circumcise on the Sabbath to obey the law, yet condemn him for making a man whole, while they themselves do not keep the law. He's calling them sinners and hypocrites for putting on legalistic appearances.
And then the religious leaders try the typical attack of those who have no moral standing or righteous convictions, the religious leaders marvel at his teaching but question his credentials:
"How is it that this man has learning, when he has never studied?" (John 7:15).
Their judgment, based on external markers like a formal education, echoes the broader theme of misjudgment. But honestly I don't think they have a true and honest love for the intellectual world. I think they just need to set themselves apart from Jesus' teachings which they could not defend against outright. They cannot attack his teaching, so instead they attack his educational pedigree.
Jesus essentially said, "look, you're not keeping the law so why are you attacking me?" "Moses gave you the law and you don't keep it, so why are you accusing me when you don't keep it yourself."
This is the ancient version of the modern social media spat. If this happened today in an X post the comments would be lit up.
John 7:20
The crowd answered, "You have a demon! Who is seeking to kill you?"
And there it is, the ultimate claim every time. When you're not conforming to the fundamental principles of the ruling class, you must be demon possessed. You're working for Satan. You're a Nazi. You're antisemitic. You're something and it ain't good.
"You have a demon!"—reveals a pattern of deflection and vilification that’s as relevant today as it was then. Unable to counter his wisdom directly, they pivoted to attacking his pedigree, a classic tactic to shift focus from substance to superficiality. The leaders weren’t engaging in good-faith debate; they were protecting their authority and status. Jesus, a Galilean without rabbinic training, threatened their gatekeeping of religious knowledge. By emphasizing his lack of credentials, they sought to set themselves apart, framing him as unqualified rather than addressing the truth of his words.
Jesus doesn’t let their deflection slide. He exposes their hypocrisy head-on, and Jesus points out their failure to uphold the deeper spirit of the law; love, mercy, and justice. He further illustrates this in John 7:22-23, noting that they circumcise on the Sabbath to obey Moses, yet condemn him for healing a man’s entire body on the Sabbath. Their selective outrage reveals their inconsistent standards and misplaced priorities.
This is a powerful moment of "right judgment" in action. Jesus doesn’t just defend himself; he calls the leaders to account, urging them to judge based on God’s truth rather than their own biases.
What can we learn from this, how can we make application of this?
True discernment looks beyond external rule-keeping to the heart of God’s will. Truth-telling disrupts, and the world’s reflex is to attack the messenger. And Jesus' teaching is, "judge with right judgment". Jesus urges discernment that penetrates beyond appearances. Right judgment requires humility, a commitment to truth, and alignment with God’s perspective, not the world’s applause or the ruling class’s approval.
Go in peace as you navigate these cultural challenges. Trust in God's word to guide your judgments. And humbly approach all discerning questions with an attitude of faith in Christ's teaching. Guard your heart, and renew your mind in these times. Be very careful as you go through it. Be deliberate and diligent in your devotion to the truth. Do not be carried away by unprincipled people.
Let Scripture guide your judgments.
Psalm 119:105 reminds us,
"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."
In a world of competing narratives, grounding discernment in God’s Word ensures alignment with His will. Right judgment requires humility in this, Proverbs 3:5-6 urges us to,
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding."