Chapter 7

1) In verse 9, Jesus told his brothers that He would not be going to the Feast of Tabernacles because His time had not yet come. Then in verse 10, He apparently changes His mind and goes. Does this seem incongruous to you about the nature of Jesus? Did Jesus change His mind or did He purposely tell His brohters something different than what He was truly going to do? How can you account for this apparent inconsistency?

2) What do you see as the main communication breakdown between Jesus and the Pharisees? What was a secondary cause of communication breakdown?

3) What is the difference between a concrete thinker and an abstract thinker? Which one are you? Give examples of how Jesus accommodated each type of thinker.

4) What did Jesus mean in verse 36 when He states, "You will look for me, but you will not find me" and "Where I am, you cannot come?"

5) Galilee was considered an undesirable region. Why did people say "a prophet does not come out of Galilee?"

6) If people from Galilee truly were undesirable, and if the Pharisees truly were the religious elite, why then, were the Pharisees so inteimidated by this Galilean and so adamant that he should be killed?

7) Every city seems to have an area that is its "Galilee." It is usually a poverty stricken area with a high crime rate and undesirable housing and schools. Do you either openly or secretly have prejudices about people who live in those areas?
Discuss a time when you witnessed this type of prejudice in your own life.