Ruffling Feathers

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 22nd of February, 2026.  If all went well, a recording of the service may be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams for the older services or https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch3115/streams for later services.]

Have you ever heard someone says words to the effect, “I’m going to ruffle some feathers tonight”, or maybe, “their feathers were really ruffled in that debate”?  Well, did you know that the idiom “ruffled feathers” has been in use since the 1820s?  Someone back then noticed that when certain birds – like chickens and roosters in particular – got angry or annoyed or threatened, they would ruffle up their neck feathers.  Its a defense mechanism, to make them look bigger, stronger, less vulnerable to attack.  Much like when a dog’s hackles get raised.  Both terms – “their feathers are ruffled” and “their hackles are raised” - are expressions used to describe an angry person, an annoyed person, or maybe someone backed into a corner and ready to fight.  Oh, and there’s another one: “backed into a corner”. 

A lot of times our feathers get ruffled because of our pride - our feelings get hurt, someone says something we don’t like, our opinion is disputed.  It annoys us so much that we get angry and try to retaliate in some fashion, usually with stinging words.  “I’ll just take my ball and go home.”  But our annoyance can also come from our confusion.  Our feathers can get ruffled when we’re faced with a situation or circumstance we just don’t understand.  We don’t know how else to react than to puff up.

Last week we looked at how Jesus often dished out tough love, even to His own disciples.  He did so because He loves us and wants us to always do what is right so we don’t get hurt, especially when it comes to eternal hurt.  Well, for some people, like the Pharisees, that tough love usually resulted in ruffled feathers.

That’s something else Jesus was good at: ruffling feathers.  Sometimes His actions and words made certain people angry, sometimes He confused them, and sometimes they were just angry because they were confused.  Like the time Jesus secretly went to Jerusalem for the Festival of Shelters, so that no one would know it was Him.  Please listen and follow along to how this visit played out, as recorded by the Apostle John in verses 14 through 36 of the 7th chapter of his Gospel account, and I’ll be reading from the Easy to Read Version of our Holy Bible this morning…

14 When the festival was about half finished, Jesus went to the Temple area and began to teach. 15 The Jewish leaders were amazed and said, “How did this Man learn so much? He never had the kind of teaching we had!”

16 Jesus answered, “What I teach is not My own. My teaching comes from the One who sent Me. 17 People who really want to do what God wants will know that My teaching comes from God. They will know that this teaching is not My own. 18 If I taught My own ideas, I would just be trying to get honor for Myself. But if I am trying to bring honor to the One who sent Me, I can be trusted. Anyone doing that is not going to lie. 19 Moses gave you the law, right? But you don’t obey that law. If you do, then why are you trying to kill Me?”

20 The people answered, “A demon is making You crazy! We are not trying to kill You.”

21 Jesus said to them, “I did one miracle on a Sabbath day, and you were all surprised. 22 But you obey the law Moses gave you about circumcision — and sometimes you do it on a Sabbath day. (Really, Moses is not the one who gave you circumcision. It came from our ancestors who lived before Moses.) Yes, you often circumcise baby boys on a Sabbath day. 23 This shows that someone can be circumcised on a Sabbath day to obey the Law of Moses. So why are you angry with Me for healing a person’s whole body on the Sabbath day? 24 Stop judging by the way things look. Be fair and judge by what is really right.”

25 Then some of the people who lived in Jerusalem said, “This is the Man they are trying to kill. 26 But He is teaching where everyone can see and hear Him. And no one is trying to stop Him from teaching. Maybe the leaders have decided that He really is the Messiah. 27 But when the real Messiah comes, no one will know where He comes from. And we know where this Man’s home is.”

28 Jesus was still teaching in the Temple area when He said loudly, “Do you really know Me and where I am from? I am here, but not by My own decision. I was sent by One who is very real. But you don’t know Him. 29 I know Him because I am from Him. He is the One who sent Me.”

30 When Jesus said this, the people tried to grab Him. But no one was able even to touch Him, because the right time for Him had not yet come. 31 But many of the people believed in Jesus. They said, “We are waiting for the Messiah to come. When He comes, will He do more miraculous signs than this Man has done?”

32 The Pharisees heard what the people were saying about Jesus. So the leading priests and the Pharisees sent some Temple police to arrest Him. 33 Then Jesus said, “I will be with you a little while longer. Then I will go back to the One who sent Me. 34 You will look for Me, but you will not find Me. And you cannot come where I am.”

35 These Jews said to each other, “Where will this Man go that we cannot find Him? Will He go to the Greek cities where our people live? Will He teach the Greek people there? 36 He says, ‘You will look for Me, but you will not find Me.’ He also says, ‘You cannot come where I am.’ What does this mean?”

--John 7:14-36 (ERV)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for inspiring the men who recorded Jesus’ life and words for us in their Gospel accounts.  Without their writings, we would know very little about Jesus, and certainly not how often He confounded the religious leaders of His day and left them confused and usually angry.  Father, we love You and Your Son, and we’re aware that we don’t always show it.  Too often we fail to follow our Lord’s commands.  Sometimes we argue among ourselves, our fellow Christians, when we should be showing our love.  And then there are some people we just can’t force ourselves to love.  Please forgive us, these times, Father, when we when we are disobedient children.  Please help us be better servants, and more righteous in our daily walk.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better understand our message today.  This we humbly pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

Someone now unknown once said that, "Safety consists not in the absence of danger but in the presence of God."  Another unknown source added to that concept when they said, the "Peace that Jesus gives is not the absence of trouble, but is rather the confidence that He is there with you always."

These are strong words of encouragement for those of us who believe in and trust in God and Jesus.  But what of the non-believer?  Will they ever know peace, or just constant turmoil, followed by everlasting torment and pain?  We might ruffle their feathers a little, or maybe a lot, but we can show them the love of Jesus and in doing so they just might come to know Jesus as their Lord and be spared a horrible fate.  Share some love, spare some love, and help the lost.

You might need to reread the scripture passage to catch all the ways that Jesus poked the Jewish leaders, and their confused and angry responses.  It started right off the bat, when He secretly entered Jerusalem and then the Temple, without anyone knowing His identity.  And He began to teach in His unique, eloquent way that we’ve read in other passages, like in His Sermon on the Mount.  You can almost hear the sarcasm and indignation in the leaders’ response.  “How did this Man learn so much when He hasn’t had the education we had?”  His reply only served to prod them more, especially when He added, “Then why are you trying to kill Me?”

Up until this point, no one knew who He really was, but now some were starting to catch on.  But they also noticed that even though He was teaching in a way like none other, no one was trying to stop Him.  Could He really be the Messiah?  No, wait… we know this Man is from Nazareth, up around Galilee.  He can’t possibly be the Messiah, can He?

It’s like Jesus heard them, or read their minds, for He answered, “Do you really know Me?”  “Do you really know where I’m from?”  And He answered His own question, basically saying He is from God.  Which is true, but too many didn’t want to believe it so they tried to grab Him, but couldn’t, because His time had not yet come and God wouldn’t allow it.

The final confounding point came when Jesus told them He was leaving soon and they’d no longer see Him, no longer find Him, and they could not follow to where He goes.  And He left them scratching their heads.

A little later on, after the festival had ended, Jesus made some of His earlier comments clearer and more to the point.  Listen to what John saved for us of this little episode, from the 8th chapter of John’s Gospel account, verses 21 through 24…

21 Again, Jesus said to the people, “I will leave you. You will look for Me, but you will die in your sin. You cannot come where I am going.”

22 So the Jewish leaders asked themselves, “Will He kill Himself? Is that why He said, ‘You cannot come where I am going’?”

23 But Jesus said to them, “You people are from here below, but I am from above. You belong to this world, but I don’t belong to this world. 24 I told you that you would die in your sins. Yes, if you don’t believe that I Am, you will die in your sins.”

--John 8:21-24 (ERV)

“If you don’t believe that I Am”.  “I Am”, the response God gave Moses when he asked His name.  Jesus is God, the great I Am.  Jesus rebuked the Jewish leaders that they would die in the sin for not believing that He is God.

To die in your sin is eternal damnation!  This is why Jesus came to redeem us of our sin so we would not die as sinners, but as saved.  By our belief, we are washed clean of our sin, forgiven, and seen as righteous in God’s eyes.  The religious leaders would not be granted salvation because of their disbelief.  Talk about ruffling feathers!  What could be worse for someone who thought they were serving God than to be told they were doomed to eternal pain and suffering, forever separated from God?

In our scripture reading last week, Jesus told us that He didn’t come into the world to bring peace, but rather a sword.  He meant His message would split the people, divide them, create a schism between believers and non-believers.  He would be rocking the boat, ruffling feathers, shaking up core values and common perceptions.  He would be doing all the things that would make some people hate Him and try to silence Him, even do away with Him.  In other words, everything that happened just as He and God planned.  And yes, He ruffled a lot of feathers, He poked the bear one time too many.  But in doing so, He changed the world.  And now, billions know His name.

Our challenge, family, is to do what Jesus commanded us to do: to love others and make disciples of them.  Not everyone is going to be very happy at our attempts.  We’re going to ruffle some feathers.  But that’s OK; Jesus did the same thing in His attempts to bring people to righteousness.  He will be at our side, helping is along the way.  And the Holy Spirit will even give us the words to say, when we can’t find the right ones on our own.

Don’t be afraid to ruffle a few feathers.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for sending Your Son to redeem us.  And thank You for giving us faith.  We believers exercise that faith to acknowledge that Jesus is Your Son, and to accept Him as our Lord.  But Father, we know that many of our actions displease You.  We too often fail to obey Your commands.  And we know this is not righteous on our part.  Please forgive us these times, Lord.  And forgive us when we hesitate to step out of our comfort zone to try and make more disciples for Your Son.  Please strengthen us to show the world the truth while ignoring its temptations.  And please help us do a better job of sharing our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and Jesus’ sacrifice.  

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your word, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, You didn’t hold back when talking to the people, and especially when addressing the scribes and Pharisees.  You warned them and us of the horrible fate that awaits those who refuse to accept Your truth.  You made believers everywhere You went, but You also ruffled plenty of feathers.  The family of this house chooses to believe You, Jesus, and we try to follow Your example.  Thank You, Jesus, for showing us the way to righteousness.  Please strengthen us and encourage us to go out into the world telling others all about You.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Help us, guide us in our attempts to bring the lost to You.

Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.