Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Posts Tagged ‘John 5’

Getting in tune with God

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on April 28, 2015| 4 Comments »

Last week we looked at Being in tune with God. I tried to cast a vision of the Christian life as one in which we can hear God and do his will in any situation we find ourselves in. So we don’t just know God’s will in general, for instance, sharing the good news with people. We can also hear what God might want us to say or do in a specific situation, sharing with a particular person.

God is working all the time all around us. And so our goal is to be in synch with whatever God is up to in a given situation, so that we can be on board and be used by God to accomplish his will. So we need to tune in to God; we need to be listening, listening all the time; we need to be paying attention – so that we can be a part of what God is doing.

Jesus is our example of this in John 5:1-16. He healed the disabled man on the Sabbath because God specifically told him to, and so that’s exactly what he did. As he said, “My Father is working until now, and I am working” – John 5:17. And even though we don’t have the same level of relationship with the Father that Jesus has, we do have the Spirit and so we can also be led and guided by God in specific ways.

Well, if being in tune with God is the goal, how do we get there? This brings us to today’s topic, Getting in tune with God. And to begin with you need to –

Prepare yourself

If you get yourself tuned in, in general, then you will be ready to hear God when he wants to guide you in a very particular way. And right at the top of the list is to 1. Fully yield your heart to God.

I can say with great confidence that there is no way that you can be in tune with God if your heart is in rebellion against God; if you don’t submit to God fully; if you don’t even want to do God’s will.

You have to submit first. This means not only that you get rid of known, willful sin in your life, positively it means that you are committed to choose to do what God wants, even if it’s not what you want. Are you willing to do whatever God might say to you?

Once again, Jesus is our example. He was fully yielded to God. As he said in John 5:30 – “I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.” Jesus didn’t act on his own; he acted in accord with God’s will. This is the way Jesus was always, and so he was ready when the Father told him to heal the disabled man on that particular day.

Well, we are to be fully yielded to God as well, so that our “will is to do God’s will,” as Jesus says in John 7:17. This is what we are supposed to be like. And when  we are fully yielded we put ourselves in a place spiritually where we can be led by God to do his will; where God can specifically guide us if he needs to.

2. Get to know God by immersing yourself in the Scriptures. God has revealed himself to us in the Scriptures. So know the Scriptures inside and out, and then you will know the general framework of what God’s will is in all things.

And what an opportunity this is! But do we take advantage of this? Do you spend time in the Word? Are you hungry to know more about God? Some Christians feel like after a while they know the basics and that’s enough. But there is so much more – it is so deep, and it gives life. In the Scriptures we come to know who God is and what God is like and how God works, and what God’s will is.

Again, Jesus is our example. In John 5:1-16 Jesus knew that as the Messiah he was to have a healing ministry because Isaiah 35:5-6 prophesied this. “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.” And he also knew that the forbidding of healing or receiving God’s salvation on the Sabbath was a human rule, not something Scripture forbade. So he knew the general framework of God’s will.

Well, we are to “have God’s word abiding in” us as well, as Jesus said in John 5:38, in the context of talking about the Old Testament. (He says this to the Jewish leaders, that they don’t have this, but they should have and we should as well.) And we are to have Jesus’ “words abiding” in us, as he says in John 15:7. So both the Old and New Testaments are covered here.

This prepares us to hear from God because we know who God is and what his will is in general. And our heart and mind become tuned in to this.

3. Get to know God by spending time in God’s presence. The Spirit of God lives within us and this is how God speaks to us and guides us more specifically.

And what a great privilege we have to be able to spend time in God’s presence by the Spirit! But do we take advantage of it? Do we spend time with God, not just praying but worshipping. And also listening to what God wants to say to us?

Jesus is our example. He had “the Spirit without measure” – John 3:34. And we see the fruit of his time spent with the Father in John 5:20. “For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing.” He and the Father were in the closest of relationships. And so in any given situation he was ready to hear and act on what God said to him, just as when he healed the disabled man.

Well, we also receive the Spirit. As Jesus said the Spirit is our “helper” – John 14:16. And the Spirit “guides” us – John 16:13. So we need to spend time in God’s presence and allow God to also speak to us by the Spirit. And as we become sensitive to this, and through much practice, we grow in our ability to hear God; to be tuned in to the Spirit’s guidance and how this all works.

Well, these same three things that prepare us to hear from God, also help us to – 

Discern God’s leading

– when we hear God in everyday life situations. 1. A yielded heart can hear God more clearly. If you have ever tried to quiet your heart and mind; to unplug and sit in silence to hear God, you know it can be difficult. There are often many voices floating around in our minds. There is the flesh with its wrong desires, fears, or pride. There is our inner sense of of what we are working on, our “to do” list. And there is Satan, who seeks to lead us astray and can try to mimic God’s voice. How in all this can we discern God’s voice?

Well in the same verse that Jesus tells us about how our hearts are to be such that our “will is to do God’s will” he says, “If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether (something) is from God” or not (John 7:17). In this case the point is whether what Jesus teaches is of God or not.

But the general point here is that if your heart is yielded, that is, you want to do God’s will – you “will know.” When your heart is in the right place you will better be able to discern God’s voice in the midst of other competing voices.

2. Test everything against the Scriptures. If we know the Scriptures inside and out, then we know the general framework of God’s will. And so if we hear something that goes against the Scriptures we know it is not of God. As Jesus said in John 10:35 – “Scripture cannot be broken.” This is a great help in discerning God’s voice.

3. Test everything against what you know God sounds like. From your own times alone with God you get to know what God’s voice and leading is like; how God’s voice is different than your own or any other voice; how God’s voice is crystal clear, strong and pure and comes from outside of yourself.

This experience helps you to know in the moment whether what you are hearing is from God, or not. You know, when someone calls you on the phone that you don’t talk to often, it can be hard to tell who it is. But if you talk on the phone all the time, you know exactly what their voice sounds like and don’t have to wonder at all.

And then finally,

Do what God tells you to do!

As we learned last week, we are not to just be doing things on our own. We are to be listening to what God might say to us in our various life situations. Well, once we hear God then we are to do exactly what God wants us to do. Just as Jesus did in John 5 when he healed the man on the Sabbath.

Two stories of this at work in my life . . ..

Read Full Post »

Being in tune with God

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on April 21, 2015| 4 Comments »

John 5:19-20; 30

We went through John chapter 5 in some detail last Summer. But I want to go back to it today, or to a few verses from it, to look at a particular topic – being in tune with God so that we do his will.

I think we all know in general what God’s will is for our lives from the Scriptures. For instance we are to share the good news of Jesus, and we are to love our neighbors. But I want to cast a vision for you of being so in synch with God that we not only know the general framework of God’s will, but we can also be guided by God in very specific ways in specific situations.

So God opens a door for you to share the gospel, and you know how to do this, but you are also listening for what God might want you to say to this specific person. Or you stop to help someone with a flat tire because you are loving your neighbor. But not only do you help you also listen for what else God might want you to say or do in this situation.

The goal is to always be tuned in to God and paying attention; listening so that if he has something specific for us to say or do, we can hear it and act appropriately. We want to know what God is up to in the situation and be able to respond accordingly so he can do his will through us.

Let’s begin with –

An example of Jesus being in tune with God

If you will remember with me, in the first part of John 5, Jesus healed a man who had not been able to walk for 38 years. It was an astounding miracle. But there was a problem. Jesus did this on the Sabbath, and according to the traditions of the Elders you are not supposed to heal on the Sabbath, unless the person’s life is in danger.

So Jesus’ healing action began a debate with the Jewish leaders, it’s really a trial scene, where they are accusing him of various wrongs. And Jesus’ defense against these charges is that he only did exactly what the Father wanted him to do.

Now let’s see what Jesus teaches about being in tune with God in his defense to the Jewish leaders, because –

Jesus was perfectly in tune with the Father

1. Jesus did nothing on his own. In v. 19 he said, “Truly, truly I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord . . ..” In v. 30 he said, “I can do nothing on my own.” And also in v. 30 – “I seek not my own will.”

So he is telling them that he didn’t decide to heal this man, God did. Now that’s not to say that Jesus couldn’t have healed him or others on that day if he had wanted to. It is just to say that that’s not how Jesus operated. He didn’t act on his own or independently of the Father.

2. Jesus was in the closest possible relationship with the Father. In v. 19 he talks about “what he sees the Father doing.” So he knows what God is up to and he talks about it in terms of seeing this. In v. 20 he says, “For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing.” And in v. 30 he says, “As I hear . . .” from the Father.

Jesus had constant and perfect fellowship with the Father and so he both saw and heard all that the Father was up to; all that God wanted in each situation. There was no confusion on his part. It was clear.

And then finally, 3. Jesus did exactly what the Father wanted him to do. v. 19 – He “only does what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.” And in v. 30 he said, “I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.”

Whatever God specifically told him, that’s what Jesus did. He was in complete submission to God.

To sum up, Jesus knew in general what God’s will was for him. For instance a part of his ministry was to heal people. But he not only knew this, he knew specifically who to heal and when, in this case on the Sabbath.

One way to summarize all this is the language Jesus uses in John 10:30, when he says, “I and the Father are one.” In context, this is talking about being united in purpose and action. Whatever the Father wanted, that is what Jesus did. They were in perfect synch.

Our relationship with the Father 

Now, we are not the Son of God, and so we don’t have that unique relationship that Jesus had with the Father from before time. And we are not called to be the Messiah so that the Father would need to show us “all” that he was up to as v. 20 says. Our every step doesn’t need to be specifically told to us. Much of what we do is simply operating in the general framework of God’s will.

But through Jesus we can also be in tune with God. There will be times when we should expect that God wants to lead us more specifically and so we need to be listening, we need to be tuned in so that God can accomplish his will through us.

In the gospel of John, Jesus talks about our relationship with the Father in two different ways that help us understand this:

We are given the Spirit to lead us. In John 14:16, 26 Jesus said, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever . . . (and) he will teach you all things . . .” He also said in John 16:13, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.”

Because of Jesus, we are given the Holy Spirit to live in us and to lead and guide us. We don’t have the relationship with the Father that Jesus had, but through him we do have a relationship with God.

Also we can be one with God through Jesus. In John 17:11 Jesus prays to the Father that Christians “may be one, even as we are one.” How were the Father and Jesus one? As we saw, they were one in purpose and action.

John 17:23 speaks to Jesus’ role in this, “I in them (by the Spirit) and you (Father) in me, that they may become perfectly one . . .” One with who? John 17:21 tells us, “that they may also be in us,” or one with us, like the Father and Son are one. So this is not talking about us being organizationally one. But rather how each one of us can be one in purpose and action with God through Jesus. But of course, when this vertical unity happens then we can have horizontal or organizational unity. Once we are all in sych with God it makes it much easier to be in sych with each other.

So although we are not going to be in tune with the Father, like Jesus was – 

Being in tune with God is the goal of our Christian lives

And Jesus is our example. 1. So like Jesus, we are to do nothing on our own. We have God’s general will for us – sharing our faith and loving our neighbors. But we are to be careful to listen to God to guide us so that we are not just taking the initiative and following our own agenda as we do these things.

What if there is something more specific that God wants us to say or do? If we don’t listen we won’t know and we will end up acting on our own. We are not to act independently of God, but in concert with God and what God is up to in a given situation.

2. Like Jesus, we are to be in close relationship with God. We won’t have the same level of relationship with God that Jesus had. But the Spirit does dwell within us and we are to be led by the Spirit. And so we can have a sense of what God wants in particular situations.

We won’t be one with the Father like Jesus was, but we can also be united in purpose and action with God so that if he tells us we know what he is up to in a given situation.

3. Like Jesus, we are to do exactly what God wants us to do. Once we hear God giving us very specific instructions – that is exactly what we do. We are to be in complete submission to God.

What do you think of this? That a central goal of the Christian life is to be in tune with God? Do you experience this?

Let me also say that this doesn’t just apply to individuals. As a congregation we need to be able to hear God and discern more specifically what God wants us to do – beyond just sharing our faith or loving our neighbors in general. What is God calling us to do where we are with the people that he has given us? We need to discern this as a group. And we will be working at this in the next few months.

Next time, the plan is to talk about how to get in tune with God.

Read Full Post »

Jesus turns the tables on his opponents. John 5:31-47

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on July 15, 2014| Leave a Comment »

We are jumping right back into the middle of a really intense encounter between Jesus and his opponents. As we saw last week it is actually a trial scene, at least an informal one.

In the Jewish legal system anyone can bring charges and they have accused Jesus of two things: 1) breaking the law by healing on the Sabbath and 2) making himself equal to God, which is blasphemy, and carries with it the death penalty. Jesus defends himself by claiming to be God’s unique agent who only does what his Father, who sent him, told him to do. (For more see – Why Jesus can heal on the Sabbath). 

Well, Jewish trials were based on testimonies, not investigative or detective work. And the one who had the most impressive or honorable witnesses usually won. And so in our passage today Jesus seeks to lay out the positive case for who he is through the use of testimonies.

Testimonies to Jesus

“31If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not deemed true. 32There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true.”

Jesus’ testimony refers to what he has just said about himself in vs. 19-30 regarding who he is and his relationship with the Father. He understands that they don’t accept his words as valid testimony (although they should since he is not an ordinary person 8:13-18).

But the Father bears witness to him. This is what Jesus means when he says “there is another who bears witness about me.” (The present tense here excludes this from referring to John’s witness which is all in the past tense below)

And he presents this as coming through three different avenues, in accordance with the Mosaic Law that says, “A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses” – Deuteronomy 19:15 (NIV).

1) The testimony of John the Baptist. “33You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. 34Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.”

Jesus appeals to John for two reasons: 1) God sent John and spoke through him (1:6). And 2) they themselves went to hear John’s testimony, giving credit to it. They had some openness to John for a time, so Jesus is saying, “remember his testimony to me.”

John told them that the Messiah was in their midst. And he testified to Jesus’ exalted status. He called Jesus the “Son of God” (1:34). And he said, “after me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me” (1:30). Even though John was older than Jesus, the Son of God existed before John.

Jesus himself doesn’t need John’s witness because he knows who he is apart from this. But he hopes they will listen to him.

(That this is all in the past tense seems to indicate that John is either in prison or more likely already dead.)

2) The testimony of Jesus’ works. “36But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me.”

Works here refer to the miracles and healings that he is doing in their midst, and has just done in healing the man who couldn’t walk for 38 years. (Jesus’ “works” can be more broadly construed, as in 5:20 where it has to do with Jesus’ role on the final day in giving life and judging. But here seems to be focused on his signs, as in 9:3) (See 10:37-38; 14:11 for the witness function of his signs)

As the man born blind, but later healed by Jesus says in 9:32-34, “Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” And as Jesus himself says in 15:24 he does “works that no one else did.” These testify to who Jesus is. 

3) The witness of the Father’s word. “37And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me.”

This refers to the witness of the Scriptures as we will see in a minute (below v. 39, 46-47). (This is not a new witness of the Father, but it is a testimony that he “has” borne to Jesus.) 

But first let’s note that all three of these testimonies establish that the Father sent Jesus – vs. 36, 37, 38; they establish Jesus’ point about who he is; he is God’s authorized agent.

Next Jesus says more about this last witness of Scripture, but he does so in the context of making –

Countercharges against his opponents

In a Jewish legal context, unlike our own, the one who began as a defendant can become a prosecutor of his accusers and successfully bring charges against them. And this is what Jesus does in this section; he turns the tables on his opponents.

Talking about Scripture he says, “His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, 38and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent.”

When he speaks of God’s voice and form he is talking about the giving of the Law or Scripture at Mt. Sinai. When God gave the Law the children of Israel heard God’s voice as a trumpet sound, and they saw him as a thick cloud with smoke and fire – Exodus 19:9-11; 16-20 (They didn’t see God’s form per se – Deuteronomy 4:12, but a visible manifestation in fire – 4:36; or his glory –  5:24).

But his opponents have neither heard nor seen God. They haven’t truly received God’s word.It is not abiding in them.

And he knows this by their outward actions – they do not receive “the one whom he has sent;” God’s Word in human form (1:1; 14).

“39You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, 40yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.” “Search” refers to diligent Scripture study, in this case of the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament. And there is no doubt that his opponents studied the Scriptures carefully.

But they have missed the central point of Scripture. They have a wrong focus and so they have missed the witness of the Scriptures to Jesus, which is the central point.

Here’s an example of this witness, from just before in John 5:27,  Jesus identifies himself as the Son of man spoken of in Daniel 7:13-14 who receives dominion and glory on the final day.

Although they hope that by studying the Scriptures they will  have life, they will not, since they have missed the point; they have missed Jesus who is the one who gives life.

And then we come to their core problem. “41I do not receive glory from people. 42But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. 43I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. 44How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?”

In contrast to Jesus, who doesn’t care at all about human praise but only seeks after God and loves God, they do not love God, but do care about human praise.

As was the custom in that day there was great regard for teachers – with various honors, rank and titles given to them. Jesus is saying that they are more than happy to accept these fellow teachers who come in their own name and they will exchange praise with one another. But when God’s unique agent comes, in the Father’s name, they reject him. Why? Because their desire is for human glory and not the glory of the one God. Their pride keeps them from listening to Jesus as he challenges them and corrects their understanding of Scripture. (See Matthew 23 for a similar critique.)

(The phrase in v. 44, “the only God” is a statement of the Shema that there is only one God – Deuteronomy 6:4. So whatever we say about the relationship of the Father and the Son, there is still only one God)

Then the focus comes back to Scripture. “45Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. 46If you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. 47But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”

They have missed the witness of Moses to Jesus. A specific example of this comes from Deuteronomy 18:15-18. Here the Lord says to Moses, “I will raise up for them a prophet like you . . . and I will put my words in his mouth and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And whoever does not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.” God spoke through Moses of sending an agent like Moses, who would speak God’s words and the fate of all would rest on their listening to him.

Although they hope that Moses will defend them on the final day (his role as the intercessor for Israel in Scripture was thought to continue), he will actually accuse them. For he himself wrote of Jesus. But they have not truly believed Moses, which leads them to reject Jesus.

(Notice the correspondence between the Father’s “word” 5:38 and “my words” in 5:47 [an inclusion] as well as how the subtext of Deuteronomy 18:18-19 uses the phrase “my words” for God’s words. Also notice the agency language of this subtext,  including coming “in my name.”)

 A summary of Jesus’ charges:

1. They have not truly received or believed God’s word in Scripture  and Moses.

2. They have missed the point of Scripture and Moses, which is Jesus.

3. Their hearts are focused on seeking after human glory, so they receive those who come in their own name.

4. And this pride leads them to reject God’s promised agent, Jesus, who comes in the Father’s name. They think they know the Scriptures and won’t listen to him.

And in rejecting Jesus they show that they have (or already had) rejected God. Because to reject an agent is to reject the one who sent him.

Some challenges for us

Do you accept who Jesus claims to be? As we saw last week, he is God’s agent. He only does and says what the Father tells him to do and say. He is the one who fully and truly reveals God (1:18). And he is testified to by John the Baptist; the works of Jesus recorded for us; and the word of the Father in the Scriptures.

Do you accept him for who he is? And if so, do you live your life like this is true, according to his words and example? This is the true test of what you believe about Jesus.

Don’t miss the point of Scripture. You can know everything there is to know of the details of Scripture – it background, various theories of composition, what this or that scholar says about any topic – but still miss the point and find no life.

Jesus is the point of Scripture. The Old Testament points to him, which is what Jesus is talking about, and now the New Testament presents him and points back to him. And it is when we see and know Jesus in the Scriptures that we find the life that the Scriptures can give.

Beware of teachers who seek human glory. Those who are seeking human praise are too proud to truly hear and receive from God. They are busy hearing and receiving praise from others.

Whether it is in popular Christian culture with teachers exalting themselves in various ways, or in Academia with its culture of giving and exchanging glory with one another with various ranks and titles – these are not the teachers to listen to. Look for teachers who love God and seeks after the glory that comes from God alone.  They are the humble ones that labor seeking no recognition. These are the ones who receive from God and can teach you the word.

Let’s learn from Jesus’ love for his enemies. They are actively seeking to kill him, making capital charges against him. But he shows his love for them. He certainly speaks the truth to them, calling out their sin. But he does this out of love. In 5:34 he says, “but I say these things so that you may be saved.” Wow! They are trying to kill him and he is trying to bless them with salvation.

May we also love our enemies, even when they make wrongful charges against us and seek to harm us.

William Higgins

 

Read Full Post »

Literary structure of John 5:31-47

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , on July 15, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Testimonies to Jesus

The Father’s testimony to Jesus: 31If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not deemed true. 32There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true.

1. The testimony of John the Baptist: 33You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. 34Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.

2. The testimony of the works of Jesus: 36But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me.

3. The testimony of the Father’s word: 37And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me.

Countercharges regarding the Father’s word

a. Don’t have God’s word in them/unbelief in Jesus: His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, 38and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent.

b. The Scriptures bear witness to Jesus/their false hope/life:  39You search the Scriptures (writings) because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, 40yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

 c. Receiving glory/seeking God: 41I do not receive glory from people. 42But I know that you do not have the love of God within you.

 d. Receiving agents: 43I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me.

d1. Receiving agents: If another comes in his own name, you will receive him.

c1. Receiving glory/seeking God: 44How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?

b1. Judgment/their false hope/Moses wrote of Jesus: 45Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. 46If you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me.

a1. Don’t believe Moses/unbelief in Jesus: 47But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”

Read Full Post »

Why Jesus can heal on the Sabbath: Who he truly is. John 5:16-30

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , on July 6, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Last week we covered the healing of the man who couldn’t walk. In an amazing display of power, Jesus healed him. But he did so on the Sabbath. And when the authorities found the man who had been healed, he turned Jesus in. This story sets up what we are looking at today, which begins with –

An overview of the prosecution and Jesus’ defense – 5:16-18

“16And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath.”

The Jews here interpret Jesus’ healing as work and therefore forbidden on the Sabbath. To save a life was allowed, but if the healing could wait until after the Sabbath, it should wait (see Luke 13:14)

The phrase “doing these things” indicates that Jesus has healed on the Sabbath more than once, although John hasn’t narrated this.

Persecuting can also be translated “prosecuting.” And indeed, this is a trial scene. An informal one, but still the beginnings of Jesus’ later, formal trial.

In a Jewish setting anyone could act as a prosecutor. If the Law was being violated you bring charges against the person by confronting them. This is what is going on here. The case would be decided by witnesses both for or against the defendant – eventually before a judge. (Ben Witherington)

“17But Jesus answered them, ‘My Father is working until now, and I am working.’”

“Answered,” both here and in v. 19 can have legal overtones (it is in the middle voice). Jesus is giving a defense to charges made against him. Jesus appeals to common agreement among Jews that God works on the Sabbath. He rested after creation, but continues to sustain the creation. Among other things, since people are born on the Sabbath and only God can give life, God gives life on the Sabbath. And also since people die on the Sabbath and only God attends to their fate, God exercises judgment on the Sabbath.(Raymond Brown)

In this case Jesus has given life on the Sabbath. But he is applying a justification for divine work, to himself. “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” This raises deeper issues about his relationship to God.

“18This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.”

So now there are two charges against Jesus . According to them 1) he is breaking the Sabbath, and 2) he is making himself equal to God, grasping after God’s role and glory – which is blasphemy (10:33). [Again, in terms of the first charge, Jesus often contradicted the traditions of the Elders (Mark 7) but he does not break the Sabbath. He is not a Mosaic law breaker or sinner (8:46); he does not annul the Law (10:35)].

The latter charge they see as confirmed in that he calls God “his own Father.” He is claiming a unique relationship with God, which is, in their view, inappropriate.

Jesus’ detailed defense – 5:19-30

This is an amazing speech by Jesus. From the handout you can see its parallelism and symmetry. But also there is an intricate intertwining of themes, as well as an astonishing concision – saying so, so much, in so few words. We will go through by theme, not verse by verse. Let’s begin with the second charge having to do with Jesus’ relationship with the Father because this one explains the first, his work on the Sabbath.

One way to say it, is that Jesus is God’s unique agent. An agent is an authorized representative who speaks for and carries out the sender’s will. In Jewish thought “a person’s agent is as himself.” (See m. Ber. 5.5). So he is to be accorded the honor that is due to the sender. To accept an agent is to accept the sender and to reject the agent is to reject the sender. Often the eldest son would act as a father’s agent, for instance in various business transactions.

That Jesus is God’s agent shows up in a number of ways here: In the Father, Son language in this passage; in that Jesus is sent by the Father (v. 23; 24; v. 30); in the note that those who reject the Son reject the Father (v. 23); and in the phrase the Son of Man (v. 27) who is God’s agent of judgment and rule on the final day in Daniel 7:13-14.

And it is clear in that the Father gives or delegates to the Son his own powers or tasks. And these are the very ones talked about above, that God does on the Sabbath:

  • The Son gives life. v. 26 – “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.” And as v. 21 says, “the Son gives life to whom he will.”
  • The Son exercises judgment. v. 26 – “and he (the Father) has given him (the Son) authority to execute judgment.”

And both of these powers are exercised now and on the final day. In terms of now Jesus says in v. 24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” This is referring to receiving eternal life and salvation now by faith. [Jesus judges now (and on the Sabbath) in that when people reject him they are judged – John 3:18-21.]

In terms of the future Jesus says in vs. 28-29 – “ . . . an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.” This is talking about the final day.

(This picture of an apparently simultaneous resurrection of the good and evil is in accord with Daniel 12:2.) (Also v. 25 should be taken as a reference to the final day. This has to do with all the dead coming alive, not some who hear and believe. The phrase “is now here” refers to his soon coming death and resurrection which is the beginning of the final day. So it is brought near.) 

And Jesus testifies that he is a good and faithful agent, or Son of his Father.

– With regard to healing or giving life he says in v. 19 – “. . . the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.”

– And with regard to judging he says in v. 30 – “I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.”

In v. 20 Jesus says, “the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing.” This is a continuous revelation of the Father’s will to him, so there is no danger that he is out of touch with God. He is the ultimate agent and Son, fully obedient to the mission he has been sent to fulfill.

So Jesus doesn’t make himself God. He is not exalting himself or grasping after a status. He is rather completely subordinate to the Father only doing what he says, and receiving what the Father gives him in terms of giving life and judging. But precisely by being subordinate, he becomes equal to God by being and doing what only God is and does. Because it is the Father’s will to make him equal.

In answer to the charge: He does not make himself anything. It is the Father who makes him equal. The Son subordinates himself to the Father, but the Father lifts the Son up. So, if you think about it, Jesus is both subordinate to the Father and equal with the Father at the same time, the first by his own doing, the second by the Father’s doing.

Jesus doesn’t dishonor God in is claims about his relationship with the Father. Rather they dishonor God in rejecting him. As he says in v. 23 – “Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.” They are rejecting God’s authorized agent, which is a rejection of him.

[Also in v. 23 we learn that the Father’s purpose is “that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father.” Notice the “just as.” We are to honor and worship the Son just as we honor and worship the Father. This is part of how the Father raises up and exalts the Son as his equal.]

Then we come to the first charge and Jesus’ healing on the Sabbath. In John 7:21-23 Jesus refers back to this same miracle and defends it by saying that making a person whole on the Sabbath is lawful. (It is in keeping with the allowance of circumcision on the Sabbath. If you can make one member of the body whole on the Sabbath, why not the whole person?)

But here his defense is clearly focused on his identity; who he is. Jesus is God’s authorized agent; He is God’s Son. And so just as God gives life on the Sabbath, Jesus also gives life on the Sabbath.

As v. 19 says, speaking of the healing, “The Son can nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.” In other words, it was the Father’s will to heal this man and so Jesus, as God’s agent, healed him.

And as he says in v. 20 they will marvel at greater works than a healing on the Sabbath. He says in v. 28 “do not marvel at this,” marvel that the Son will one day raise the dead. Yes, as God’s agent he told one man to rise up and walk, but on the final day, as God’s agent, he will raise all the dead.

To those who can accept and believe that Jesus is God’s agent, then all this makes perfect sense. For the Jewish leaders who did not accept this, Jesus comes across as a lawbreaker and a blasphemer. As we will see next time, Jesus puts forward his positive case in vs. 31-47, as well as bringing counter charges against his opponents.

Let’s end today with – 

Some challenges for us

1. Do you accept that Jesus is God’s agent? Almost everybody likes Jesus.. But they usually pick and choose what they like and then fill the rest in with what they think is right. A little of Jesus and then a little (or a lot) of what I think is right.

But Jesus is claiming here to be the authorized representative of God. What he says is what the Father says. What he does is what the Father does. There is no separation between Jesus and the Father. As John 1:18 says, “No one has ever seen God; It is God the beloved (the Son) who is at the Father’s side, who has made him known.”

Do you accept Jesus’ claim to fully and perfectly make know the Father? And then do you live your life  by his words and example?

2. Have you received the life that Jesus gives? Jesus said in v. 24,  “whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” You can receive, right now, the life that Jesus gives. It is not something that comes later. Jesus gives eternal life now by faith. Do you believe? Will you receive the gift that the Father gives through his Son?

3. Are you ready for the final day? As Jesus said, the day is coming “when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live” (v. 25). Indeed “all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment” (vs. 28-29).

We will be judged by our deed. This is the consistent teaching of Scripture. That’s because our deeds truly reveal what is in our hearts, whether we have faith in God and have been transformed by his gift of grace and life. Will you be raised to the resurrection of life?

William Higgins

Read Full Post »

Jesus heals a man who can’t walk. John 5:1-15

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , on June 29, 2014| Leave a Comment »

We are in the Gospel of John once again this morning with another story of Jesus healing a person in need. But we are also moving into new territory. We are into a new section of John that begins in chapter 5 and goes until the end of chapter 10. And within this new section, the healing and teaching of chapter 5 all go together and give us some really important insights about who Jesus is. And so I invite you to read ahead and follow along as we work our way through these Scriptures in the weeks to come.

Our story

“1After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades.”

After healing a royal official’s son, Jesus has now gone from Galilee back to Jerusalem. He went up for a feast but John doesn’t tell us which one. As we will see, the focus of this story is the Sabbath.

“The Jews” is a phrase that refers to a certain group of Jews – the Judean establishment and those in agreement with them, not all Jews. After all, Jesus and his followers are Jews. This section of John, chapters 5-10 is all about conflict between Jesus and these ‘powers that be,’ and ultimately their rejection of him.

pool of Bethesda

This is a model that shows us what the pool of Bethesda looked like. As you can see there were actually two of them connected together. Both of them together were as big as a football field, and are thought to have been 20 feet deep.

(It’s not clear where the Sheep gate was -Nehemiah 3:1; 12:39. It was most likely a small opening in the north wall of the temple – A. Kostenberger).

“3In these (five roofed colonnades) lay a multitude of *disabled people – blind, lame, and paralyzed.” It’s unclear what this pool was used for (public baths? cleaning sheep before entrance to the temple?)  But it attracted those with physical afflictions because in the ancient world pools of water and springs were often thought to have healing powers. This is still true today in some quarters.

“5One man was there who had been *ill for thirty-eight years.” As we learn from v. 7 he can’t walk. And here we learn that he has had this condition for a very long time. Longer than many people lived in that day – 38 years.

“6When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, ‘Do you want to be healed?’” Jesus knew, supernaturally, that the man had been there a long time longing for healing.  So Jesus initiates this conversation with him. Usually people ask Jesus for healing. Here Jesus asks if he wants to be healed.   

“7The sick man answered him, ‘Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.’”

Perhaps some of you have in your Bible, or in a footnote a longer verse 3 and a verse 4. This is a textual variant, something not found in the earliest manuscripts of the New Testament. It says that those at the pool were “3bwaiting for the moving of the water; 4for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool, and stirred the water: whoever stepped in first after the stirring of the water was healed of whatever disease he had.”

This is an attempt to provide a background to our verse here. What is this stirring of the water about? An angel does this. And why does it matter that he can’t hurry in? Because only the first one in is healed.

A copyist of Scripture inserted this note in the column that sought to explain the situation or the superstition that was believed. (And some later copyist took it as Scripture).

The man thinks Jesus is wondering why he hasn’t been healed by the water yet. Does he really want to be healed? And so the man explains that he can’ walk to get in in time. He assumes that Jesus also believes in the healing power of the pool. But Jesus doesn’t operate by superstitions – he operates by the power of his word, for he is the Word made flesh. 

“8Jesus said to him, ‘*Rise, take up your bed, and walk.’” His bed would have been a mat made of palm leaves or straw. This would have been be rolled up and easily carried.

The reason Jesus asks him to take up his bed and walk is to demonstrate the healing. This makes it clear that he is in fact healed.

“9And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.” This is an amazing healing! He wasn’t able to walk for 38 years, but when Jesus spoke he was healed at once and then he rose up and walked. Again, John narrates really difficult miracles that Jesus does as signs that point to who Jesus is and what he does. And this one certainly qualifies.

But there’s a problem . . . “Now that day was the Sabbath. 10So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, ‘It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.’”

If you are reading this story for the first time, this is the first indication that this took place on the Sabbath.

According to Mosaic law you cannot carry a work load on the Sabbath (Numbers 15:32-35; Jeremiah 17:21, Nehemiah 13:15). But this isn’t what is happening here. What is really at stake here is the oral law or what is called the traditions of the Elders. According to the oral law you cannot carry an item from one domain to another on the Sabbath. And he has carried his bed from the pool of Bethesda to the temple. (M. Shabbat 7.2; 10.5) He has broken a tradition of the Elders.

[Jesus often contradicted the traditions of the Elders (Mark 7) but he does not break the Sabbath. He is not a Mosaic law breaker or sinner (8:46); he does not annul the Law (10:35).]

[In this story the focus is not on Jesus healing on the Sabbath but on carrying things on the Sabbath, since they are confronting the man, not Jesus. (The latter is taken up in 5:16 and following and 7:21-24).]

Notice in all their concern for the things of God there is no recognition of the amazing healing that just took place!

“11But he answered them, ‘The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.’’ 12They asked him, ‘Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk?’’ 13Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the place.”

He feels the pressure of the authorities and is quick to point to Jesus as the source of the problem. Jesus is now seen as leading someone astray to break the Sabbath by telling him to do this, at least according to their understanding of the Law and their extra-biblical traditions.

“14Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, ‘See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.’”

Jesus makes a connection here between his previous physical ailment and his unfaithfulness to God. And he warns him to stop sinning so that an even worse fate doesn’t befall him. Now, of course, we have to be careful with this because there is certainly not always a connection between our sin and illness.

For instance in chapter 9:2-3 Jesus is clear that in the case of the man born blind that it was not because he or his parents sinned that he was blind. So it can be true (here, 1 Corinthians 11:30), but not always (Job and Jesus’ own sufferings). Jesus knows the connection in this case by supernatural insight. And unless God gives you this it is best not to make any assumptions.

(Notice how both the Jews and Jesus have a concern for sin in his life.)

“15The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him.” Throughout this passage the man doesn’t come across in a good light:

1) Jesus talks to him and heals him, but he doesn’t even know who Jesus is.

2) The man displays no faith in the story. Jesus simply found him, healed him and told him to rise up.

3) When he gets in trouble by the Jews he is quick to shift blame onto Jesus to get himself out of trouble.

4) When Jesus speaks to him again in the temple, he doesn’t thank Jesus or respond to his call to repentance.

5) Rather, he uses the healing Jesus gave him – his ability to walk – to go and find the Jews in order to turn Jesus in.

Some gleanings for us

1. Don’t be like this man. If last week the royal official was an example to us of one who had real faith in Jesus, this man is not an example to us. He received a great blessing from Jesus, but had no gratitude, and in fact turned Jesus over to his enemies.

Well, when Jesus blesses us how do we respond? With faith in him, with devotion, with gratitude? Or are we just focused on the blessing we got?

And when Jesus blesses us do we then still hang out with those in the world – who don’t know God, who don’t walk in God’s ways, who are enemies of God? (James 4:4)

Don’t follow the example of this man!

2. Nothing is too difficult for Jesus. Once again, even when a person has been unable to walk for nearly a lifetime, Jesus is able to bring instant healing. This should encourage us because this is the same Jesus who loves us and cares for us in all our difficulties.

3. Don’t focus on human teachings and miss the work of God. The Jewish leaders were zealous for mere human traditions that went beyond the word of God. And in their zeal for these, they missed out on what God was doing through Jesus – not just this healing, which they completely overlooked – but all that God was doing through Jesus. In fact, they came to oppose God and God’s work because of their concern for these lesser things that God didn’t even require.

Well, we like our extra-biblical traditions as well.

– What? New people are coming, so we are going to sing some different songs now that they can relate to? Even though there are a thousand different ways to worship God, we want what is comfortable to us. We hold on to our mere human traditions.

– What? God speaks a powerful message to us, but it came through tongues and interpretation and we don’t do that kind of stuff!

– What? God is bringing people into his kingdom here, but they are different than we are and we don’t know how to relate to them and it makes us uncomfortable.

Don’t hold on to the lessor things. When God moves, let him move.

4. Jesus gives life. This miracle is also called a sign (6:2). And what it tells us about Jesus is really the same as the last healing. Jesus is the one who gives life – resurrection life.

If we skip ahead here to John 5:21 we can see this connection. Jesus says, “For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son give life to whom he will.” The same word is used in v. 21, “raises” the dead as the word Jesus used in our story in 5:8 when he told the man “rise” take up your bed and walk.

This healing pictures Jesus as the one who raises the dead and gives new life. Remember, Jesus isn’t about miracles, the miracles are about Jesus – and this one teaches us that Jesus gives new life. May we all receive the new life that Jesus has for us this morning. May we be transformed by it. And may we go forth and share this good news with others.

William Higgins

Read Full Post »

Literary structure: Jesus heals a man who can’t walk – John 5:1-15

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on June 29, 2014| Leave a Comment »

A. The man: 5:1 After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. 3 In these lay a multitude of *disabled people—blind, lame, and paralyzed. 5 One man was there who had been *ill for thirty-eight years.

B. Jesus sees him and speaks to him: 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?”

C. The man answers Jesus: 7 The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.”

D. Jesus tells him to take up his bed and walk: 8 Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.”

E. Healed/Sabbath: 9 And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked. Now that day was the Sabbath.

 E1. Healed/Sabbath: 10 So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath,

D1. The Jews tell him it is unlawful to take up his bed and walk: and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.”

C1. The man answers the Jews: 11 But he answered them, “The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.'” 12 They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk’?” 13 Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the place.

B1. Jesus finds him and speaks to him: 14 Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.”

A1. The man: 15 The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him.

 

Read Full Post »