Clearly there is no veiled messianic secret here, as Smalley writes: ‘John shares with the Synoptists the title of ‘Christ’ for Jesus; but the obvious difference is that the so-called ‘messianic secret’ of the first three Gospels does not appear as such in the Fourth Gospel. According to the synoptic tradition Jesus was only hesitantly confessed as Messiah, and he did not openly accept the title: presumably to avoid political confusion. In the Johannine account of the ministry, however, the messianic nature of Jesus seems to be openly acknowledged from the beginning.’
In the water to wine incident, Jesus is the provider at what may be symbolic of the messianic banquet, while in the discourse with the Samaritan woman, who is expectant that the ‘revealer’ Messiah is coming, Jesus says, ‘I who speak to you am he.’ In 7:69, in what may be the Johannine equivalent of Peter’s confession in the synoptic gospels, Peter knows Jesus to be the ‘Holy one of God’, a recognised messianic title. When Jesus is later challenged to tell the people plainly if he is the Messiah, he responds that he has already told them but they would not believe. However, Bultmann questioned the idea that Jesus had a Messianic consciousness, supporting the concept that views like these about Jesus were superimposed upon Jesus by later disciples
The belief in Jesus’ messiahship seems essential to the evangelist who comments (20:31) that the signs have been recorded so that people are brought to believe (or belief is confirmed) that Jesus is the Christ. Lindars writes that ‘In the early church, baptism into the name of Jesus meant initiation into the company of those who confess him as Messiah and Lord. According to Smalley, ‘the messiahship of Jesus, like his glory, was hidden from sight only by unbelief.’
The signs cause division about the person of Jesus. There are those who conclude he is the Messiah (7:31), appreciating that the Christ could perform no more signs than Jesus has, and (7:41) openly affirming ‘This is the Christ’. Yet others will not accept that he is the Messiah. John clearly wishes to show that rejection of Jesus was based on mistaken pre-conceived notions about the Messiah and Jesus. Jesus is rejected as Messiah because (7:26) it is known where he comes from, whereas the origins of the Messiah will be unknown. Jesus was also believed to have come from Galilee whereas (7:41) the Christ was to be a descendent of David coming from the city of Bethlehem.
Many believed in the coming of an earthly liberator Messiah who would re-establish an independent Israel as a military champion in the mould of David. This was not the desire of Jesus in John’s Gospel . Jesus had rejected the crowd’s earlier offer of kingship, and he would later prevent Peter fighting on his behalf in the Garden of Gethsemane. Another preconception was that the Messiah would live for ever. Jesus, however, talked about the dying of the Son of Man. So he is not accepted as Messiah. Indeed, there are those who would arrest him (7:44). Later, in chapter 9 the Pharisees excommunicate from the synagogue those confessing Jesus as the Christ.
There is, however, some recognition of Jesus’ Messianic status. There may be a veiled indication of his acknowledgement by Mary when she anoints him - the word Messiah means ‘anointed one’. Yet this incident is also in the synoptic gospels, and kings were normally anointed on their heads, as in the accounts of Mark and Matthew. It may be that John wishes to indicate that Jesus is the humble dying Messiah, as the anointing echoes his later washing of the disciples feet.
Messiah v. Prophet
Lindars says that “John takes up the Samaritan concept of the Messiah, which is more the expectation of the true teacher.” According to Carson, the Samaritans came to identify the prophet with the term Messiah, blurring the two terms. “As a result of which”, says Beasley-Murray, “the awaited prophet like Moses became in the minds of many, at least a messianic figure”. This would appear to be supported by the reaction of the crowd after the feeding of the 5000, when their appreciation that he is the awaited prophet means they wish to make him their ‘messianic’ king.
However, in John, ‘Messiah’ is distinguished from ‘Prophet’. John the Baptist denies that he is both the prophet and the Messiah. In 7:40, some hearing Jesus’ words conclude he is the prophet, while others affirm that he is the Christ. The Samaritan woman acknowledges Jesus as prophet when talking to him, but later in her own Samaritan group, she asks ‘Can this be the Christ?’ when referring to Jesus’ prophetic capacity as ‘a man who told me all that I ever did’. Similarly, the man cured of blindness develops in the ‘light’ from his initial awareness that Jesus is a prophet, to confess his belief in Jesus as the Son of Man, accepted by some as a veiled Messianic title. So it seems that awareness of Jesus’ prophetic status leads logically to an appreciation of his messiahship.