"The right time for me has not yet come; for you any time is right. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that what it does is evil. You go to the Feast. I am not yet going up to this Feast, because for me the right time has not yet come." (John 7:6-8)
After this, Jesus went around in Galilee. He did not want to go about in Judea because the institutional temple leaders there were looking for a way to kill him. But when the Jewish Festival of Tabernacles was near, Jesus' brothers said to him, "Leave Galilee and go to Judea, so that your disciples there may see the works you do. No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world." For even his own brothers did not believe in him. (John 7:1-5)
What is 'the right time'?
Jesus stated to the brothers of his physical body that in his role as God's representative, there would be the right time for him to speak out publicly about certain controversial matters. Until then, Jesus was guarding his movements, and being careful, awaiting the right time to appear to the crowds and speak out.Jesus knew that he would soon make his appearance to the public in Jerusalem to speak on these controversial matters. He understood that this would inflame the situation, and likely cause those in power to persecute him. But that time was not yet, and Jesus still had many things to teach his followers.
This is because it is the teachings of Jesus that are critical to our ability to regain our relationship with God. Jesus' physical body dying on the cross cannot alone save us. It is following Jesus' teachings and knowing that Jesus' teachings were important enough for him to suffer the ultimate sacrifice.
Does the world 'hate' Jesus?
Jesus also makes a comment about the people of the physical world – the souls inhabiting physical bodies. He said, “it [the world] hates me because I testify that what it does is evil.”This clearly states that the people of the physical world are primarily self-centered. Those who are self-centered generally despise those who love others and want to help others. In other words, Jesus had to be careful, because the physical world is primarily occupied by self-centered people, many of whom wanted him out of the way.
Those living in the physical world are here for a reason. Each living being occupying a temporary physical body is here in this physical world because we at some point rebelled against God.
We rejected our subservient relationship with God. This is what the symbolic story of the Garden of Eden was about: Adam rejected his subservient relationship with God. He ate the forbidden fruit even though God advised him not to.
Yet God created living beings in His likeness to exchange loving relationships with Him. This, however, requires the freedom to love Him or not.
Because love requires the freedom to love, God also gave us the ability to choose to love Him or not. This is why He gave Adam the choice to pick the forbidden fruit. The Supreme Being could have hidden the tree from Adam if He wanted to. But he gave Adam the choice: Either do what God wants him to do, or rebel against God and seek his own enjoyment.
Once Adam ate the forbidden fruit, he was thrown out of the spiritual world:
And what was the forbidden fruit?
Self-centeredness. The desire to essentially have what God has. God is the Supreme Enjoyer. By desiring this position, we are essentially envious of God.Yet God created living beings in His likeness to exchange loving relationships with Him. This, however, requires the freedom to love Him or not.
Because love requires the freedom to love, God also gave us the ability to choose to love Him or not. This is why He gave Adam the choice to pick the forbidden fruit. The Supreme Being could have hidden the tree from Adam if He wanted to. But he gave Adam the choice: Either do what God wants him to do, or rebel against God and seek his own enjoyment.
Once Adam ate the forbidden fruit, he was thrown out of the spiritual world:
So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 3:23)Adam was given a physical body and put into the physical world:
The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. (Genesis 3:21)In the physical world, we occupy these physical bodies ('garments of skin'). This allows us to try to enjoy a temporary, virtual self much as a video game player will take on an avatar to play the video game.
These virtual physical bodies are more than just vehicles to try to enjoy, however. They are also vehicles of learning. This is accomplished through consequences.
The physical body and its environment are like a miniature school: Designed to take us through numerous lesson plans in an attempt to rehabilitate us. In other words, the physical world is like a rehabilitation center for those spiritual beings who became self-centered.
These virtual physical bodies also block our vision of the Supreme Being: They prevent us from seeing or sensing God - unless God specifically allows it. This is because we made the decision to reject God: We wanted to be away from God.
In other words, evil is the desire to be the Supreme Being and/or enjoy like God. This is why most of the citizens of the physical world are striving to be the champion, the hero, the superstar, or the boss of some sort. We are trying to carve out some form of godhood. We want to have God's position.
And those who come to teach us these things on behalf of the Supreme Being are mostly despised here. They are despised by the people who want to be champions of the physical world. This is because God's message ruins the illusion that we are the center of the universe, and everything revolves around us.
These virtual physical bodies also block our vision of the Supreme Being: They prevent us from seeing or sensing God - unless God specifically allows it. This is because we made the decision to reject God: We wanted to be away from God.
So what is “evil”?
Evil is acting in a self-centered fashion, with the intent to enjoy oneself separately from God.In other words, evil is the desire to be the Supreme Being and/or enjoy like God. This is why most of the citizens of the physical world are striving to be the champion, the hero, the superstar, or the boss of some sort. We are trying to carve out some form of godhood. We want to have God's position.
And those who come to teach us these things on behalf of the Supreme Being are mostly despised here. They are despised by the people who want to be champions of the physical world. This is because God's message ruins the illusion that we are the center of the universe, and everything revolves around us.
