Jesus' brothers were preparing for the feast when they noticed that Jesus was not making preparations. This greatly concerned the brothers. They couldn't understand why Jesus would teach obedience and then ignore services that were divinely established. The brothers felt it was a huge mistake not to win the affections of the priests and rulers. In truth, the brothers truly doubted Jesus' divinity even though they had witnessed his wonderful works.  

The brothers went to Jesus and said, “If you really have great power, you should go boldly before the priests and rulers and perform your mighty works. Why waste your powers on peasants and fishermen?” Jesus responded by saying, “The world cannot hate you; but Me it hates, because I testify of it”.   

Jesus knew that his works would ultimately lead to his death; however, his time to die had not come and a public display would unnecessarily expedite this event.  Jesus did encourage his brothers to attend saying, “The world does not hate those who are like it in spirit; it loves them as its own”. This was not a compliment coming from Jesus. In fact, Jesus was telling his brothers that their hearts were evil.  

At the feast, the Pharisees were anxious to see Jesus in hopes of finding an opportunity to condemn him. Everywhere people talked about Jesus. Some argued he was God while others argued that he was a deceiver. In the meantime, Jesus secretly entered the city while traveling alone.

Suddenly, Jesus stood up amongst the people and spoke to them like no other man had ever done before. He quickly broke through the barriers of tradition and formalism and reached out to every listener's heart. He spoke with clear and convincing words that held the audience spellbound. The men who hated Jesus the most sat and listened apparently unable to do anything else. Those who listened were astonished at Jesus' wisdom knowing he had no formal training. In reality, he had been trained by God, which allowed him to obtain the highest form of wisdom.  

Toward the end of the festival the people began to grow weary. They had not received anything from the festival that satisfied the soul. Jesus, knowing their emptiness, stood up and said, “Whoever drinks the water I give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”   John 4:14.

Many at the festival had searched for contentment by seeking out the things this world has to offer. This is even more true today.   Some will spend a lifetime seeking contentment outside of Jesus and others will obtain everything this world has to offer only to find that the emptiness is not filled. Jesus' offer to fill our emptiness is still available. The fountain of blessings is still within our reach. We simply need to recognize Jesus as the fountain of life and accept the free gift he has generously extended. Let's accept that free gift today.