GOTCHA! – John 7:19-24

Bible, Bible exposition, Bible homily, Bible sermon, Gospel of John, homilies from Scripture, homily, insight, insights, insights from the bible, J-E-S-U-S, Jesus, Jesus Christ, John 7:19-24, sermon

INTRODUCTION:

“Gotcha” is an American slang term that literally means, “I’ve got you”. It has been used in a number of ways. Many of us have used that word in a conversation, and we had a specific purpose and meaning in mind. It can mean “I understand what you are saying”, or “I’ll do what you’ve asked”. The word is sometimes used in the sense of capturing or apprehending someone, taking someone by surprise, embarrassing or disgracing someone, exposing a person’s mistakes, or proving that the person is wrong. That’s quite a range of meanings and uses for the word, and that’s not all of them. Why would I be using the word “gotcha” to describe an event in the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ? Does that choice seem strange to you? As we study this passage of Scripture, I’ll let you decide for yourself whether or not this title is appropriate.

TRANSITION:

As we begin our study of John 7:19-22, let’s imagine the scene at that moment in Jesus’ life. It’s the week-long Feast of Booths [or Tabernacles]. Jesus arrived unnoticed, went into the temple and began to teach. A crowd of people has formed around Jesus to listen to Him. The Jewish religious authorities have arrived, have made their way to the front of the crowd, and are standing in front of Him, making accusations about Him; and Jesus is once again defending His authority. Meanwhile, the crowd is standing there, watching and listening.

I. THE ACCUSATION (verse 19a)

In verse 19, there is a change of direction. Jesus takes the offensive position against them and assumes control of the conversation. “Turnabout is fair play”, as the saying goes. It’s time for Him to examine their words and their actions, and offer His conclusions. It’s time to bring them back to reality. He begins His attack by saying, “Did not Moses give you the law”? They are thinking in their minds, “Of course he did!” They prided themselves on this and believed that every violation of the law of Moses was deserving of death. While they are gloating about their self-righteousness and their exalted position in the eyes of God, Jesus goes on to say “yet not one of you carries out the law.” Those are stinging words to His questioners! These leaders revere Moses and obey his every word – at least they try to give the impression that they do so! Jesus is telling them, “You’re not carrying out the Law that God gave to Moses. You’re carrying out your own version of it. Those aren’t the Sabbath laws that God gave to Moses. You’ve changed them and added to them to the point where they have become a despicable burden to the people. It’s no surprise that you reject My teaching because you have rejected Moses’ teaching” (John 5:46-47).

At this point in Jesus’ discussion, it’s important to know the words that Moses wrote in Deuteronomy 31:10-13. Here are those words:

Then Moses commanded them saying, “At the end of every seven years, at the time of the year of the remission of debts, at the Feast of Booths, when all Israel comes to appear before the Lord your God at the place which He will choose, you shall read this law in front of all Israel in their hearing. Assemble the people, the men, and the women and children and the alien who is in your town, in order that they may hear and learn and fear the Lord your God, and be careful to observe all the words of this law.” [bold print added to emphasize keywords]

We aren’t told whether or not this is the seventh year but, if not, Jesus may be alluding to that command to remind the Jewish leaders that, when the people hear the words of the Law being spoken, they will notice many of the differences between the Law of Moses and the teachings they have received from these rabbis.

II. THE QUESTION (verse 19b)

As further proof of their disobedience to the law of Moses, Jesus asks them a question: “Why do you seek to kill Me?” He is saying, “Where does Moses say specifically that I should be killed for healing a person on the Sabbath day over a year ago? What offenses deserve the death penalty in the law of Moses? If My healing-miracle is not one of those offenses, then one of the commandments in the law of Moses says, ‘You shall not kill’. So you’re the ones who are breaking the law of Moses by seeking to kill Me.”

III. THE CROWD’S RESPONSE (verse 20)

I can imagine that the leaders of the Jews were standing there dumbfounded. Jesus’ reasoning was too solid. They weren’t prepared for this and didn’t know what to say. The crowd, most of whom were from outlying areas and weren’t familiar with Jesus or with the things He was saying, come to the defense of their leaders. In verse 20 we read, The multitude answered, “You have a demon! Who seeks to kill You?” They weren’t telling Jesus that He was demon-possessed. During that period of time, many Jews believed that all unusual or uncalled-for behavior was prompted by the devil. In this day and age, we might use the words “you’re out of your mind”, “you’re crazy”, or “you’re paranoid”. They misunderstood Jesus’ words because they didn’t know the history behind them.

IV. THE QUESTION ANSWERED (verse 21)

I’m sure the leaders were relieved that the crowd directed the attention of Jesus away from them, but it didn’t last for long. Rather than become distracted by the crowd and direct His conversation toward them in defense of His sanity, Jesus ignores their remark and continues His conversation with the leaders of the Jews, answering His own question. In verse 21, He says, “I did one deed and you all marvel.” The religious authorities were amazed when they learned that Jesus healed, in an instant, a man who had been lame for 38 years, just by saying the words. It was a miracle that only God could perform. Yet they wanted to kill Jesus because He performed that miracle on the Sabbath Day.

V. THE APPLICATION TO CIRCUMCISION (verses 22-23)

In verse 22, we find that the Lord Jesus isn’t finished with His argument. He is still building His case against them. This time He applies their Sabbath laws to the rite of circumcision when He says, “On this account, Moses has given you circumcision (not because it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and on the Sabbath, you circumcise a man.” First, He corrects their misunderstanding about circumcision. Moses was not the originator of circumcision. Before God told Moses to put the command of circumcision into written form in Leviticus 12:3, it had been practiced by “the fathers” (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) over 700 years earlier. In Genesis 17:10-12, God said to Abraham, “This is the covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you; every male among you shall be circumcised. . . . every male among you who is eight days old.” Therefore, in obedience to that law, every man-child (male baby) is circumcised on the eighth day, no “ifs”, “ands”, or “buts” about it. There are no exceptions to the rule. It’s the law, and this ceremonial law even takes precedence over the Sabbath laws. That was the teaching of the Jewish religious authorities of that day. However, there were exceptions to that rule. In the Talmud (the collection of the teachings of the rabbis), it states that, should the baby suffer from an illness, the circumcision is postponed seven days for the sake of the well-being of the infant. Therefore, the baby’s health is more important than this rite of purification, and this is one of several exceptions in the Talmud.

With that information in mind, Jesus presents His next argument in verse 23, saying, “If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath that the Law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made an entire man well on the Sabbath.” Jesus is saying, “You make exceptions to circumcision on the Sabbath because the health of the child is more important than the strict observance of the Law, so why are you upset because I healed this man completely on the Sabbath?” He’s telling them that they are contradicting themselves because they say one thing but do another.

There is another argument that isn’t spoken by Jesus, but it’s implied, and all the rabbis standing around Him know what that argument is. As they add this final argument to the ones already stated by Jesus, they realize that they have lost their case and there is nothing to refute. Are you wondering what that final argument is? It has to do with one of the teachings of their most famous rabbi, Hillel the Great. Hillel’s first great law of interpretation was, “The Major may be inferred from the Minor”. What does that mean? In this case, circumcision, which was considered to be the ceremonial law of the purification of newborn males) overrides the Sabbath, and health overrides circumcision. So the Sabbath and circumcision are ‘Minor’ when compared with health. Thus Jesus’ case against them might be put into these words: “I did what’s considered ‘Major’ according to your laws and the teachings of your most famous rabbi when I healed that man completely on the Sabbath, so why are you majoring in the ‘Minors’?”

What excellent arguments! Case dismissed! As I review Jesus’ arguments, a word comes back to mind. The word is GOTCHA! Does that word seem appropriate to you also?

VI. THE LESSON TO BE LEARNED (verse 24)

While those teachers of the Law are standing there, looking at Jesus in wide-eyed amazement, experiencing the shame and agony of defeat, the Lord Jesus uses that moment to teach them a lesson in verse 24. Here are Jesus’ words of instruction to these rulers of the Jews. He says to them, “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.” He’s telling them to repent of the way they have mistreated Him and do what’s right in the sight of God. How easy and how tempting it is to make judgments about the actions and motives of others before all the facts are known, or in spite of the facts that are known.

A newspaper correspondent attended an auction where he saw, among other items, a pair of excellent crutches. A poor, crippled boy was the first to bid on them. A well-dressed elderly man was also interested in them and kept offering more money for them. Some of the people frowned in disapproval, and one lady said, “Shame on you; let the boy have them!” Whenever the boy called out a higher price, the man would always top it. At last, the boy held up a five-dollar bill, all that he had, and made a final bid. When more was offered, the young fellow turned away in tears. The crowd muttered angrily. Then, to everyone’s surprise, the gentleman presented the crutches to the boy, saying, “These are much too small for me, so I won’t have any use for them. When I saw that you were crippled, my heart went out to you. So I decided to buy the crutches and give them to you.” The crowd began to applaud for they realized they had completely misjudged the man and the situation. They looked at outward appearances only, and came to their own conclusions when they should have given the situation time to allow the true motives to be revealed. That same principle is reflected in our attitude toward God’s Word, the Bible. Are we committed to what God’s Word actually says, or to what we want it to say?

One of the things that can cause us to make wrong judgments is peer pressure. Em Griffin in his book, “The Mindchangers”, describes an experiment done by Solomon Asch with groups of 12 people. They were brought into a room where four lines of unequal length were displayed. They had to decide which two were the same length and publicly vote for their choice. Person after person after person (11 in all) voted for the wrong line – because they had been told to do so ahead of time. The one individual who was in the dark couldn’t imagine how in the world all these seemingly normal people could all choose the wrong line. When it was his turn to vote, he had to decide, “Do I go with what I know my senses are telling me, or do I go with the crowd?” One-third of those tested caved in to group pressure and changed their vote to agree with their peers. Are you feeling the pull of peer pressure in your life? Don’t let peer pressure keep you from repenting of your sin and following Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. He will give you a new life, a changed life manifested by a love for Him, and a desire to obey Him and depend upon Him for strength, guidance, and victory.

Fellow believers, a decision needs to be made in our hearts to do what is right in God’s sight even when everyone around us, where we live or work or go to school, wants to go the wrong way. Ask God for the desire and the strength to make the right choice and do the right thing, even if it means standing alone. In actuality, we won’t be alone. The Lord will be with us, and there are many Christians over the past 20 centuries who have chosen to live righteously. Some of their testimonies are written down for us in the Scriptures and in the history books. I’ll close by giving you one of those examples. In the third century, Athanasius, the bishop of Alexandria, strongly opposed the teachings of Arius, who declared that Christ was not the eternal Son of God, but a subordinate being. After being exiled five times for his beliefs, he was summoned before emperor Theodosius who demanded that he cease his opposition to Arius. The emperor reproved him and asked, “Do you not realize that all the world is against you?” Athanasius quickly answered, “Then I am against all the world.”

May we have that kind of tenacity in our obedience to the truths of God’s Word.

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JESUS INCOGNITO – John 7:10-13

Bible sermon, Gospel of John, homilies from Scripture, hypocrisy, insights from the bible, Jesus Christ, tabernacles, wisdomfromabove.net

INTRODUCTION:

Have you ever tried to conceal your identify in a public place where there were people who knew you? Were you successful? It’s not always easy to do so, is it? The challenge is much greater if you’re a well-known person. The Lord Jesus Christ was a man who was in the public eye. He had become well-known in Galilee, Samaria and Israel, and was attracting a lot of attention because of the miracles He was performing. He was also under close scrutiny because of the claims He made about Himself. As far as the Jewish leaders were concerned, Jesus was now “public enemy #1”, and He was on their “hit-list”.

Once you’re in the public eye, how do you get out of it? In John 7:10-13, we are going to be considering the tactics the Lord Jesus may have used in order to attend the Feast of Tabernacles incognito (unrecognized), as well as His reasons for doing so.

I. THE PROPER TIME (verse 10)

Verse 10 begins with the words, “But when His brothers had gone up to the feast, then He Himself also went up”. In verse 9, Jesus told His brothers, “Go up to the feast yourselves. I do not go up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come.” So He stayed in Galilee and His brothers went to the feast without Him. Did Jesus lie to His brothers when He said He wasn’t going to the feast? Did He change His mind? The answer to both those questions is “no”. Jesus was on His Father’s timetable and, after His brothers left, His Father revealed to Him that it was now the time for Him to go to the feast, so He departed from Galilee and was on His way to Jerusalem. He didn’t tell His brothers that He wasn’t going to the feast. He told them that He wasn’t going at that point in time.

II. THE CHOSEN METHOD (verse 10)

The rest of verse 10 describes the manner in which Jesus attended the feast: “not publicly, but as it were, in secret.” By this time in His ministry, Jesus had become a familiar face. How could He keep people from noticing Him – especially His brothers and the twelve disciples? Was He wearing a disguise? I don’t think so. There were thousands of Jews attending this feast, and some of them lived outside the nation of Israel and had traveled several days in order to fulfill the commands of the Law concerning feasts. These Jews had never met Jesus, and many of them may not have even known anything about Him. Jesus could have spent His time with those Jews, who probably had their own area where they set up their tents and enjoyed one another’s company. He may also have worn a covering over His head, such as a hood, keeping Himself within earshot of what was being said but not close enough to be recognized.

By staying incognito, Jesus is preventing the Jewish leaders from taking His life whenever they pleased. The Father had set a time (an “hour”) when this was going to happen, and Jesus is taking the responsibility to protect His own life until the proper time. You might say that, at this point in time, Jesus is in “self-preservation mode” once again.

III. BEHIND ENEMY LINES (verse 11)

Verse 11 tells us that Jesus was able to get close enough to the leaders of the Jews that He could hear their voices and see the expressions on their faces without being detected by them. This is what Jesus sees and hears: “The Jews therefore were seeking Him at the feast, and were saying, ‘Where is He’.” He watched as they looked around at all the people at the feast. The looks on their faces as they did so, were evidence of their anger and frustration. Some of them may have looked right at Jesus but didn’t recognize Him. They were seeking Him alright! They were seeking to kill Him! You can almost hear the tone of their voices as they kept blurting out the words, “Where is He?” The “search party” hadn’t given up their search yet; but so far, things weren’t working out according to their plans. Don’t you hate it when things don’t go your way!

IV. HIS STRATEGY BECOMES UNFURLED (verses 12-13)

Does this scene bring to mind any memories from the Old Testament? Can you think of a time when a similar strategy was used, and do you recall the reasons for that strategy and the impact it made on the people of Israel? Let’s take a look at the book of Joshua, chapter two, and verses one, eight, and nine:

Then Joshua the son of Nun sent two men as spies secretly from Shittim saying,
“Go view the land, especially Jericho.” So the men went and came into the house of
a harlot whose name was Rahab, and lodged there. . . . Now before they lay down,
she came up to them on the roof, and said to the men, “I know that the Lord has
given you the land, and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the
inhabitants of the land have melted away before you.”

“Melted away” – those words cause me to imagine a stick of butter that’s been taken out of the refrigerator, placed on a dish, and set in the sunshine on a warm day. Before long, the strength and consistency of that butter will be completely gone and you will have to pour it on your toast! The people of that land were scared to death! In verse 24, when those two spies returned to Joshua, they repeated the good news, saying, “Surely the Lord has given all the land into our hands, and all the inhabitants of the land, moreover, have melted away before us.” After hearing those words, Joshua and all the sons of Israel were up early the next morning, ready and eager to cross the Jordan River and take on the enemy.

With those Old Testament scripture passages in mind, we learn, in verses 12 and 13 of John 7, the main reason why Jesus was attending the feast incognito. Having been in the military for a few years, a word came to mind that I haven’t used or heard since those days in the armed forces. The Lord Jesus was “reconnoitering” at the feast. How’s that for a word? Jesus was doing reconnaissance. The following is part of the U.S. Army’s definition of that word.

“Reconnaissance is a mission to obtain information by visual observation or other detection methods, about the activities and resources of an enemy or potential enemy.” This definition fits the description of Jesus’ activities – wouldn’t you agree? In verses 12 and 13, there is a quiet, public-opinion poll going on, and Jesus is nearby incognito, watching and listening to what’s being said. Let’s catch up with Him again and see if we can find out what kinds of information He’s been gathering. Verse 12 begins with the words: “And there was much grumbling among the multitudes concerning Him.” They’re mumbling and grumbling again! Why the muffled voices and low voice tones? We’re going to find out. Jesus moves a little closer to these “discussion groups” in order to hear what they are saying. Verse 12 continues, “Some were saying, ‘He is a good man’.” That’s good news to Jesus’ ears! There are people in these crowds that have a positive attitude toward Him! Those words must have encouraged His spirit and brought a smile to His face. Even though they called Him a “man”, at least He was a “good man” in their opinion. Does it make you wonder which Jews the apostle John was referring to? I think those Jews were the ones from Galilee and the outlying areas. The good news is now followed by the bad news: “others were saying, ‘No, on the contrary, He leads the multitude astray.” These Jews are the ones living in Jerusalem and its neighboring towns in the district of Judea. They have heard the Jewish leaders use those words in their conversations and are believing them and repeating their words of warning and instruction.

These two opposing views about Jesus’ character have a lesson for us to learn. Jesus is either “good” or He’s a “liar”. It’s one or the other; there are no compromises. A person can’t be good and a liar at the same time. The same is true of our own conception of Jesus Christ: He’s either the Son of God or He is a deceiver, a lair. There are no intermediate conceptions. Which of these have you chosen to believe? Do you have a firm basis for your personal choice?

Since Jesus has been prophesying, performing miracles, and calling God His Father, to call Him a deceiver would be equivalent to calling Jesus a false prophet or a false Messiah. In Deuteronomy 13, Moses wrote that a false prophet was to be stoned to death. Very soon the Jews are going to attempt to do just that.

In verse 13 we find that Jesus is not the only one who is being secretive. John writes, “Yet no one was speaking openly of Him for fear of the Jews.” The people in the crowds are also trying to be secretive in their conversations with one another. The Greek word translated “openly” can also be translated “boldly”. The leaders must have made it clear that no one was to talk about Jesus at the feast. They may have boldly announced this prohibition in loud, angry voices to let the people know that they meant business and would punish those who disobeyed. They weren’t afraid to speak boldly and loudly against Jesus. Their goal was to instill fear in the people, and it looks like they succeeded. Many leaders over the years have used that approach with success. During his years as premier of the Soviet Union, Nikita Khrushchev denounced many of the policies and atrocities of Joseph Stalin. Once, as he censured Stalin in a public meeting, Khrushchev was interrupted by a shout from a heckler in the audience. “You were one of Stalin’s colleagues. Why didn’t you stop him?” “Who said that?” roared Khrushchev. An agonizing silence followed as nobody in the room dared to move a muscle. Then Khrushchev replied quietly, “Now you know why.” Khrushchev used that response to demonstrate what it was like to be around Stalin. You didn’t question or criticize Joseph Stalin unless you no longer wanted to remain alive! He was a man to be feared! In the 1930’s, he had changed his birth-name to Stalin, which means “man of steel”, and he lived up to his name!

This passage of Scripture we are studying, John 7:10-13, is a lesson in contrasts. The first contrast is between the words spoken by various people in the crowd concerning Jesus. Some said He was a “good man”, others said that He was a“deceiver of the people”. If there was ever anyone who lived on this planet who was not a liar or a deceiver, it was the Lord Jesus Christ. If there was ever anyone who was truly good in every sense of the term, it was He. Yet He was being accused and denounced by some of the most deceitful and evil-minded people of that day – the leaders of the Jews. No wonder Jesus called them hypocrites (ones wearing a mask)!

The second contrast is between the reasons for silence at the feast on the part of Jesus and on the part of the members of the crowd. The religious authorities didn’t even want Jesus’ name spoken aloud. They wanted the people to act as if Jesus didn’t exist. I think the people feared being excluded from the synagogue and exposed to ridicule if they were caught mentioning His name, especially in a positive manner. It was a fear for their reputations and social status, at the very least. Fear of what others may think, say, or do is a powerful deterrent from speaking one’s mind honestly.

The Lord Jesus, on the other hand, was not motivated by fear, but by obedience to His heavenly Father. He was being silent because He was gathering information concerning the people’s attitude toward Him at the feast. He learns that there are many in the crowd who admire Him and think well of Him. In the next passage of Scripture we will examine how Jesus puts that information to good use. He learned what He wanted to learn while incognito, and is ready to openly do what the Father wants Him to do next.

CONCLUSION:

Does fear have any effect on your life? Are there times when you are afraid to speak or act because of what others may think, say, or do in response? Are you afraid to become a follower of Jesus Christ because of what you might lose, what you might have to give up, or what family and friends might do as a result? Those are concerns that many people face as they consider placing their faith in Jesus Christ. Don’t let fear get in the way of making the most important, and the most wonderful decision of your life. God will give you the strength and peace of mind and heart to make that decision if you ask Him and rely upon Him. God’s words to the nation of Israel in Isaiah 41:10 are meant for you today because He hasn’t changed: “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and help you; I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.”

If you are a fellow-Christian, then, like me, you’ve had moments when you’ve been afraid to be a witness for the Lord. Pray and ask God to fill you with a deep, unconditional love for that person. God will enable you to overcome that fear with love. The apostle John says in I John 4:18, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” In the next passage of Scripture, it’s going to be love that motivates the Lord Jesus to come out of hiding and once again expose the people to truth in spite of threats to His own life. May we manifest the love of Christ as we live for Him and seek to introduce others to Him.

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THE AFTERMATH: A FALLING OUT – John 6:60-71

Bible sermons, Christ Jesus, homily, Uncategorized, what is a disciple

INTRODUCTION:

There are books galore on the topic of leadership. It would take you an eternity to read them all because new books about leadership are being written and published every day. Have you ever read a book on following, or becoming a good follower? I’ve never read, nor have I ever seen a book on that subject. So I typed “books on following”, and “books on being a follower” into the web browser of my computer. What I received in response was books on leadership. I then typed, “how to be a follower” into my web browser and was given many YouTube sites telling me how to become a follower of someone’s social media site, such as Facebook, Twitter, and others. With the click of a button or an icon, I can instantly become someone’s follower, and receive updates. With the click of another button or icon, I can also instantly “unfollow” a person. It’s as simple as that! There are also many online courses being offered which will give you tools and techniques proven to increase the number of your followers.

In this age of social media, “following” has taken on a new meaning. The number of one’s followers is a sign of popularity. Gaining new followers can easily become an obsession, as well as a source of personal pride and competitiveness. A friend of mine recently told me that he goes to social media sites mainly to get information. He’s interested in keeping up-to-date on certain people and organizations. What immediately comes to your mind when you think of the words “following” and “follower”?

TRANSITION:

During the lifetime of Jesus Christ on this earth, followers were often referred to as “disciples”. In this passage of Scripture, John 6:60-71, we are going to study the effect that Jesus’ conversation had on His followers, and observe how Jesus responds to the situation.

I. THE VERBAL REACTION OF MANY (verse 60)

In verse 60 of John, chapter 6, we find the immediate aftermath of Jesus’ conversation with His crowd of followers. “Many, therefore, of His disciples, when they heard this, said, ‘This is a difficult statement; who can listen to it?’ ” The word “disciple” is the Greek word “mathetes”, which literally means “learner” or “pupil”, and the teacher was called a “didaskalos”. The corresponding Hebrew words that were used during that period of time were the “talmid” and the “rabbi”. In the first century, when you wanted to find out more about a person, and learn from him, you followed him around. There may have been several motives for doing so, such as curiosity, entertainment, a desire to join the crowd, as well a personal commitment to that person.

For example, since you’ve come to this site and are reading this article, you may be a blogger yourself, and have your own blog site. Let me ask you a question. Can you follow a blog site without truly being a follower of that site? I would say that the answer to that question is “yes”. You can click the “follow” button or icon for a number of reasons. You may have read one article, liked it, and clicked the “follow” button because you wanted to get email alerts when new articles are added to the site. You may have clicked “follow” because you want your name and photo added to the list of other followers in the hope that readers might check out your site as well. It’s a form of advertising. Or you may have read several articles and are eager to continue to learn, grow spiritually, and share what you have learned with others. Those are just a few possible motives. As you can see, there are many possible reasons for following, and not all those reasons demonstrate long-lasting commitment.

Verse 60 says that “many“, not “all” of his listeners, had a negative attitude about the teachings that Jesus had just expressed to them, and they put their attitude into words, saying, “This is a difficult saying; who can listen to it.” The Greek word translated “difficult”, literally means “hard”. The word does not mean “hard to understand”, but “hard to accept” once you understood it. You might say that Jesus’ words were “offensive” – His teachings were opposed to their own personal beliefs and prejudices. Therefore they rejected His whole conversation. True disciples wouldn’t react in that way. A true disciple would be willing to listen, to learn, and to believe in Him because of who He is, even if the teaching might seem, at first, to be offensive. The ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle, made the following statement: “Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore, seek not to understand so that you may believe, but believe so that you may understand.” The Lord Jesus has already given this crowd of followers plenty of reasons to believe in Him and trust Him.

Bible expositor, Alfred Barnes, tells us the doctrines that were apparently offensive. First, that Jesus was superior to Moses; secondly, that God would save all that He had chosen, and those only; thirdly, that He was the bread that came from heaven; and fourthly, that it was necessary that an atonement should be made, and that they should be saved by it. Barnes goes on to say, “These doctrines have always been the most offensive that men have been called on to believe, and many, rather than trust in Him, have chosen to draw back to perdition.”

When these so-called disciples said, “Who can hear it?”, they meant, “Who can put up with it?”. “Who can listen to His words any longer without losing their patience and responding with outbursts of anger?”

II. JESUS’ RESPONSE TO THE CROWD (verses 61-65)

The mumbling and grumbling has started again, and verse 61 tells us that Jesus is aware of it. Now He is faced with a choice. Is the Lord Jesus going to politely back away from the conflict? Is He going to give excuses for His offensive words? Is He going to say something like: “I didn’t mean to . . . what I really meant was . .That didn’t come out right . . . what I was trying to say is . . . I’ve had a lot on my mind lately . . . I didn’t sleep well last night , , , Maybe we should start this conversation all over again.” Do those excuses sound familiar? Have you ever used any of them yourself? Be honest!

The other choice would be to stand His ground, give further evidence of the truth of His statements, and then move along in the same direction, full-speed ahead.. This is the course of action that Jesus pursues in spite of their opposition. It’s full-speed ahead! He begins by asking them a question: “Does this cause you to stumble?” He’s letting them know that He hears what they are saying, and He also knows the condition of their hearts. The word “stumble” is the Greek word “skandalizei”. We get our English word “scandalize” from that Greek word. Jesus is saying, “Are My teachings offensive to you?” “Do they go against what you want to believe?” He is also leading into what He is about to say next. His second question, found in verse 62, is “What then if you should behold the Son of Man ascending where He was before?” Jesus is not telling these followers that they will see His ascension into heaven because Acts 1:6-13 tells us that only the eleven apostles watched that happen. Jesus is speaking hypothetically. One of the statements that offended some of these followers was that Jesus claimed that He had come down from heaven. Now He’s saying, “What if you saw me ascend to heaven – the same place that I told you I came from?” “Would that offend you all the more?” You might say, from Jesus’ response, that He is separating the chaff from the wheat!

In verse 63, Jesus explains His purpose for saying those things to them, and He also reasserts His authority or right to say them. “The spirit gives life; the flesh accounts for nothing, The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.” I don’t personally think that Jesus is speaking about the Holy Spirit here, even though the beginning of His statement is also true of the Holy Spirit. He’s clarifying His analogy by saying that He’s referring to the spirit of man, not his physical flesh. A man’s spirit is his source of life, and God gives him that spirit. His listeners were very familiar with Genesis 2:7, which says, “The Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” The Greek word translated “spirit” here in verse 63, is pneuma, which literally means “wind” or “breath”, and is sometimes used to refer to the Holy Spirit as well. Jesus is speaking to them in Hebrew (Aramaic), and the word Jesus probably used is ruach, which also means “wind” or “breath”. So there is nothing lost in translation between the two languages. The Scriptures describe Jesus’ death on the cross with the words “He gave up His spirit” (John 19:30; Matthew 27:50).

Now, in verse 64, Jesus “hits them with a bombshell” when He says to the crowd of followers, “There are some of you who do not believe.” He’s implying, “You know who you are, and I know who you are also. You can’t hide anything from Me.” The apostle John goes on to explain the basis for Jesus’ words: “For He knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray Him.” As God, Jesus was all-knowing, but having taken the form of a man, He temporarily laid aside the use of that attribute. It was the Father who had revealed that information to Him. Jesus has “opened the exit doors even wider” for those who weren’t truly His followers, and don’t want to be His followers because they don’t really believe in Him.

Preacher and author, Henry Drummond, was once asked to address a meeting at the exclusive West-End Club in London, England. He began with these words: “Ladies and Gentlemen, the entrance fee into the kingdom of God is nothing, but the annual subscription is everything.” There were many in Jesus’ audience who wanted to be part of the club but didn’t want to pay the subscription fees. Jesus had quite a following that day, but very few genuine followers.

What Jesus then shares, in verse 66, defies their understanding, and hurts the foolish pride of many of His listeners. He reiterates what He said in verse 44, when He says in verse 65: “no one can come to me unless it has been granted him from the Father.” Jesus is telling them that faith is a gift. It’s impossible for us to believe by our own enabling. Only God can draw a person to Himself. He’s also implying that hearing His words doesn’t necessarily lead to faith.

III. THE DESERTION (verses 66-67)

Then it happens. Hundreds of these followers turn away from Jesus and begin to walk away, wanting nothing more to do with Him. Verse 66 says, “As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew, and were not walking with Him anymore.” The Greek word literally means “the majority”. There were more people leaving Him than there were of those who were staying with Him.

Have you ever felt sadness because people who were close to you didn’t come through for you? Did you ever feel a sense of abandonment by the majority of those around you because of something you said or did? How would you feel if over half of the friends on your social media sites decided to “unfriend” you at the same time because of something you said or did? What would be your reaction if most of the followers of your blog site decided to “unfollow” you on the same day because of something you wrote? Would you feel a twinge of sadness and abandonment? I certainly would! God gave each of us emotions and, even if we don’t always express them, we feel them deep down inside and it hurts! The Lord Jesus had a human nature like ourselves, with the same emotional makeup that each of us possesses. Let’s see how He responds to what was happening to Him at that moment.

IV. JESUS QUESTION TO THE TWELVE (verse 67)

Verse 67 gives us Jesus’ initial response. “Jesus said therefore to the twelve, ‘You do not want to go away also, do you’?” I personally believe that Jesus said those words to the twelve disciples with sadness in His heart, and I think that sadness was evident to them by His facial expression and by the way He spoke those words. This should come as no surprise to us. The prophet Isaiah described the Messiah as “a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53:3). This was probably one of many times that Jesus was saddened and grieved at people’s rejection of Him and His words. In this case, Jesus is hoping to receive some encouragement from the twelve.

V. PETER SPEAKS FOR THEM ALL (verses 68-69)

Simon Peter was quick to respond, in verses 68 and 69, saying, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. And we have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.” I don’t know whether Peter could have said it better, and that’s just what Jesus needed to hear at that sorrowful moment in His life. Peter affirmed who Jesus was, attested to the truth of Jesus’ words, and expressed his faith in Him. Peter was also speaking on behalf of the other eleven disciples, assuming that they all believed as he did.

VI. JESUS’ RESPONSE TO THE TWELVE (verses 70-71)

In verse 70, Jesus corrects Peter’s words, but I think there is much more to Jesus’ words than just correcting a misconception on Peter’s part. It reads, “Jesus answered them, ‘Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is a devil?’ “ The verse indicates that He is speaking those words, not only to Peter, but to all twelve of the disciples. Why would Jesus say such a cutting remark? In those days, calling someone “a devil” was pretty strong language. Was Jesus just releasing His frustrations or did He have a specific purpose in mind?

I don’t personally think that Jesus’ emotional state changed from sadness to anger in verse 70. I believe that Jesus said those words with sadness in His heart, in His eyes, and in His words. As He looked around at the twelve, His eyes may have lingered at the face of Judas as He said the word “devil”. It may have been similar to the look on Jesus’ face when He turned to look at Peter after the cock crowed and Peter had denied Jesus three times.

The Lord Jesus loved Judas and wanted him to come face-to-face with his own greed. He gave Judas the responsibility of being the keeper of the money box (John 12:4-6; John 13:21-29) to show him how easily he gave into the temptation to rob from it. As we shall see, Jesus will wash Judas’s feet, pray for him, and show him honor. It saddened Jesus that one who was in such close proximity to Him on a daily basis for three years, would be so distant from Him in his heart. The Lord Jesus had chosen Judas to be one of the twelve, showed him love and concern, revealed Himself to him by His life and miracles, and offered him eternal life. He even gave Judas the power to heal diseases and cast out demons when He sent the twelve out two-by-two to proclaim the Gospel. (Luke 9:1-11; Matthew 10). But it was all in vain. Judas hardened his heart again and again.

In verse 71, the apostle John adds the following personal comment: “Now he meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray Him.” He said those words because he, Peter, and the other disciples had no idea that Judas was not a true follower of Christ. Judas played the role so well that none of the other disciples noticed any differences. John was as shocked as all of the others, and wants to make that known to his readers.

CONCLUSION:

Are you a genuine follower of Jesus Christ? Have Jesus’ words, in this passage of Scripture, caused you to consider whether or not you want to be identified with Him and follow Him? Have you turned away from Him in the past? Many in that crowd walked away from Jesus because they didn’t want to acknowledge that He was the Messiah, the King of heaven and earth; they didn’t want to believe in His teachings. They didn’t want to acknowledge their own sinfulness, and didn’t want to turn the control of their lives over to Him. Do you feel an emptiness inside and a need to know God? He wants to reveal Himself to you as you read and study His Word. It’s not too late to turn around and choose to follow Him and become obedient to His Word.

If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, and your life bears witness to your commitment to Him as your Lord and Savior, do you feel sadness as you look around you at those who refuse to acknowledge the Lord Jesus Christ and respond to Him by repentance and faith? Are you willing to ask God to give you a greater compassion for the lost, and a burden to pray for them consistently and confidently, trusting God to change their hearts and draw them to Himself? God wants to turn that sadness into joy in answer to your believing prayers. We can never pray enough for those who don’t know the Lord.

CONSTRUCTION SITE: COMPLETED

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON – John 5:19-20

Bible homily, Bible sermons

I’ve heard that saying used many times. Have you? “Like father, like son.” Most of the time the person saying it was pointing out a character trait or fault that a son demonstrated, indicating that he must have inherited it from his father. A similar saying is, “You’re just like your father!” In my own case, it was my mother who was usually the one saying it to me. I almost always took it as a compliment because I wanted to be like my dad. He was a character at times, playing pranks on my mother! And, of course, I was always ready to be of service to him if he could use my help!

I’ve also heard the phrase “Like mother, like daughter”, and it was usually said as a compliment. Those sayings, or something equivalent to them, go back many centuries in history. My favorite one is “A chip off the old block”. I guess it’s all part of the “family resemblance” that sets us apart from other families. Like it or not, know it or not, family members have a tendency to “rub off” on one another, and people who have been around us for a while notice those resemblances, and they are often much more than just “skin-deep”,

In John 5:17, the Lord Jesus made the statement: “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” The Jews correctly assumed that Jesus was claiming to be God. Throughout the rest of the chapter (verses 19-47), the Lord Jesus goes into much greater detail to explain and add further proof of His deity. Jesus claims equality with God in seven areas and we are going to look at two of them in this study.

I. EQUAL IN WORKING (verse 19)

In the midst of their angry words and threats, the Lord Jesus begins His explanation of His relationship to God the Father by swearing an oath to them. “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, those things the Son also does in like manner.” By using the Greek and Hebrew words “amein, amein” (or amen, amen), Jesus is saying that what He is about to tell them is first-hand information. He is claiming that He knows these things directly, by personal experience, and therefore they are true.

The Bible is full of examples of God’s power and might. Those examples are often called miracles. Dynamis is the Greek word for power, might, or strength. The word is found 118 times in the New Testament, usually in conjunction with the performance of miracles by Jesus. How many times do you think the word “dynamis” is found in the Gospel of John? If you guessed “zero”, you would be correct. In the whole Gospel of John, all 21 chapters, there is not even one mention of that word. Instead, we find the repeated use of the Greek word “dynatai” which means “powerless”. That is a new insight for me personally. I did not know that previously.

Do you ever feel powerless to please God, powerless to serve God? If not, you should, because you are! As human beings, we are all powerless to do God’s will and God’s work by our own enabling. To disagree with that statement would be to consider oneself as being better and greater than the Lord Jesus Christ. He was a perfect, sinless Man, but He was still a man. In His case, He had both a human and a divine nature. In the literal Greek text, Jesus is saying, “Cannot the Son do for Himself anything except what He sees the Father doing.” The word “cannot” is the Greek word “dynatai” (powerless). In other words, Jesus is watching as the Father does the miracle through Him. By saying those words to his accusers, He is telling them that they are actually blaming the Father for doing those miracles on the Sabbath day. Jesus is just doing the will of the Father by the power of the Father. This information is going beyond the capability of our human understanding to comprehend completely. The following true illustration will give us another person’s perspective.

Daniel Webster, the 19th-century statesman, once dined in Boston with some influential people. Soon the conversation turned to Christianity. Webster, a convinced Christian, confessed his belief in Jesus Christ and His atoning work. A Unitarian minister asked, “Mr. Webster, can you comprehend how Jesus Christ could be both God and man?”

“No sir, I cannot understand it:, replied Webster, “and I would be ashamed to acknowledge Christ as my Savior if I could understand it. He could be no greater than myself.”

In my Bible, verse 19 ends with the words “in like manner”. In verse 17, when Jesus said “My Father is working until now, and I am working”, the Jews thought that Jesus was saying that He was working independently of the Father, when actually the reverse was true. Jesus was equal to the Father in nature as God, but dependent upon the Father in His human nature as a man. Jesus’ equality with God was also demonstrated by His working together with the Father in perfect harmony. This is one of the great mysteries of the Bible – how Jesus Christ can be fully God and fully man, and be able to function in both capacities without compromising either of them. Are you still with me? That was a difficult sentence to formulate! I hope it helps you realize the need for Jesus’ total dependence upon the Father in order to do the works of God.

In Psalm 40:7-8, King David says, “Behold, I come; In the scroll of the book it is written of me; I delight to do Thy will, O my God; Thy Law is within my heart.” I believe that David is speaking prophetically in those verses because the author of Hebrews twice quotes those words almost exactly when referring to Jesus. Hebrews 10:7 says, “Behold, I have come (In the scroll of the book it is written of me) to do Thy will, O God.” Then again, in verse 9, “Behold, I have come to do Thy will.” And Jesus did just that. In His prayer to the Father in John 17, Jesus said in verse 4, “I glorified Thee on earth, having accomplished the work which Thou hast given Me to do.”
May that be our goal in life: to accomplish the work that God has given each of us to do.

II. EQUAL IN KNOWING (verse 20)

Verse 20 reads: “For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing, and even greater works than these will He show Him, that you may marvel.” Jesus points out that His knowledge of the Father is by-far superior to theirs. It is a knowledge that only the Son of God could have. God had concealed many things from Jesus’ accusers. There are mysteries in the Bible that we don’t understand – things beyond our human comprehension. We are also given a limited knowledge of God’s working throughout history and the details of our future. But Jesus is saying that God the Father has withheld nothing from Him. Then Jesus continues by saying “greater works than these will He show Him, that you may marvel.” We’ll see what He means in the next verse of Scripture. A person’s knowledge gives him authority and earns him respect if that knowledge is used properly. I think that Jesus is communicating to them that, because He has the knowledge that belongs only to God, He should be acknowledged as God and worshiped as God as a result.

As we look at the Father’s motive for giving this knowledge to Jesus, you might agree with me that the first part of verse 20 might be even stronger evidence that Jesus Christ is God. The verse begins with the words “For the Father loves the Son”. The Greek word for “loves” is “phileo”. It speaks of family-love or love for an intimate friend. It is this special, Fatherly love that motivated God the Father to reveal all things to His Son. The more scholarly Jews, versed in the writings of the Law and the Prophets, should have realized the similarity of Jesus’ words to the prophecy written down by Isaiah in Isaiah 42:1. It reads: “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put my spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations.” It’s a prophecy concerning the Messiah.

What does the Father say about His Son in the New Testament? At Jesus’ baptism, the Father spoke aloud from the heavens introducing the world to His Son by saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.” (Mt. 3:17; Mk. 1:11; Lk. 3:22). The Father speaks one more time from the cloud on the mount of transfiguration, saying to Peter, James, and John, This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!” (Mt. 17:5; Mk. 9:7; Lk. 9:35 ). The Lord Jesus was the Father’s delight and source of Fatherly admiration and pleasure. This has been true from all eternity. What a testimony to the deity of Christ, coming from His own Father!

Tying all those verses and their meanings together, I like the beautiful summary-statement that John Piper makes. “He is well-pleased with His Son. His soul delights in the Son. When He looks at His Son, He enjoys and admires and cherishes and prizes and relishes what He sees.”

Let’s see if we can gain a perspective on the Son’s helplessness as a Man to do the works of God, having to rely totally on the Father’s enabling for everything that He did; and the Loving heavenly Father working together with His Son to accomplish their work together. Have you ever wondered what that must have been like for Jesus to have been totally dependent upon His Father during His entire life on this earth? I’ve been looking for some basis of comparison here in the United States of America, and I think I may have found it. We live in the first generation that has electronic media at their fingertips 24/7. According to the Pew Research Center, 90% of Americans own a phone. 67% of cell-phone owners find themselves checking their phone for messages, alerts, or calls – even when they don’t notice their phones ringing or vibrating. Studies have talked about all the things we choose to use our cell phones and smartphones to do for us: such as scheduling meetings, finding places to eat, things to do, checking scores of sporting events, surfing the web, talking, texting, gaming, social media, and the list goes on. Adding up all the ways these phones are being used, based on surveys, one internet trends report said that the average person checks their phone 150 times a day. Add to this the personal use of desktop computers, laptops, notebooks, blue-tooths, etc.

My purpose is not to be judgmental but to cause us to see how dependent many of us are upon our phones and computers. We’ve made choices in our use of them, and now many of us are so dependent on them that we don’t see how we can live without them.

When we look at what Jesus says about His total dependence on the Father, we realize that His words have been verified by the choices He has made throughout His own life. How did the Lord Jesus spent His time on this earth? We find in the Scriptures that Jesus spent much time in prayer and the study of the Scriptures. He also spent a lot of time teaching the apostles, witnessing to the lost, and serving the needs of people. He did all those things because that’s what the Father wanted Him to do and empowered him to do; and that’s what brought Him joy and personal satisfaction.

I hope that you believe that Jesus Christ is God. If so, I hope that you’ve responded by committing yourself to Him as your God, your Lord and Ruler, letting Him take charge of your life from moment-to-moment until you see Him face-to-face.

As Christians, we are dependents, and we will never outgrow that dependency during our lifetimes on this earth. We are part of His family and He has claimed us as his children. By His enabling, let’s do the will of Him who adopted us, lovingly depending upon Him to do what He wants to accomplish in our lives because of His great love for us.

May our lives and the use of our time reflect the priorities of Christ, and may our motives reflect the love of Christ.

CONSTRUCTION SITE COMPLETED

I’ll see you at the next construction site. The Lord Jesus has much more to tell us about His deity.